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Elevenplusexams/The Tutors CD

Posted: Fri Jul 21, 2006 9:12 am
by patricia
Dear All

My reservations are still that most exams are still pen and paper. in addition the child will have to have jot notes down to work out all the code like questions.

..Some areas are already using interactive style exams

..In the main, most children see the computer as FUN, therefore the child will probably be more affable towards PRACTISING! [ I know for a fact my children would have preferred this style of learning]

..Practising via the computer will give the child a break from pen and paper.

..Whether the exam in your area is CD based or not, the child is still learning.

My proviso would be that you cannot use the CD alone, it MUST be used in conjunction with good old fashioned pen and paper.

Patricia

Posted: Fri Jul 21, 2006 11:09 am
by Sally-Anne
Hi Patricia

Something tells me that this CD could make all the diference to my son actually wanting to put himself through the 12+ next year! As you say, the computer is FUN, where the thought of yet more practice papers was very unappetising for him when we last discussed it.

Thank you.

Sally-Anne

Posted: Fri Jul 21, 2006 2:19 pm
by Nita
I was offered the CD download to trial last week when I contacted this website. My son is doing the bucks exams in just over two month’s time yet we have had to use all manner of bribes and persuasion to get him to sit down and practice. So more out of desperation rather than need, as we already have a huge selection of papers that we purchased and friends from last years bucks exams gave us, we tentatively tried the CD.

I have to say that my husband and I are extremely impressed. From download to having it running on our computer took under 10 minutes. The program is very user friendly and without encouragement our son sat down in front of the computer and within minutes elbowed us away. There is a clock that times each question and he was keen to beat the clock and keep his average time down. To his great annoyance we found ourselves doing the questions over his shoulder, so he ushered us out of the room and turned the television to mute. A short while later he proudly called us back in to view his first score, 40 out of 50. We reviewed all the answers with him.

Even this morning, a week later, with cereal bowl in hand, again without encouragement, he did another question type and scored 48 out of 50. In the car he told his friends about the program and how he scored 96% in a section averaging 9 seconds a question.

Last week I would have bet anything that I would never hear him enthusiastically talk about the 11plus. There are 10 more sets of question types to do but so far so good. If there was one criticism of it, it would be that it should print certificates so that boys who brag in the back of cars can show the evidence to their friends! My husband noted that had we paid for the download it would cost less than 2p a question including timing, marking, progress charts and so on, yet to get our son doing these questions voluntarily is “priceless”.

I would without hesitation recommend the CD. After all verbal reasoning is mainly about the vocabulary and it does not matter how my son picks up the vocabulary as long as he is.

My thanks to the tutors who wrote the questions and lee for giving us a chance to try it.

P.S. I should mention that for bucks parents it's particularly useful as it covers all 21 types of our question types.

Posted: Fri Jul 21, 2006 2:52 pm
by Sally-Anne
Nita

Thank you for such a helpful review - we will definitely go for it in due course on the basis of your recommendation. It is also very helpful to know that you find it relevant for Bucks.

How long do you think it would take to work through the whole CD?

Thank you
Sally-Anne

Posted: Fri Jul 21, 2006 4:58 pm
by Nita
Hi Sally-Ann,

The CD contains 1,050 questions, in other words that is all 21 bucks nfer type x 50 questions. Dividing roughly by 100 questions per hour, there are at least 10 papers worth on it. So at a guess all the sections should take over 10 hours to complete if you only attempt each section once. Some sections are easier than others, like ‘Move a Letter’, some are very challenging such as ‘Word Codes’ and ‘Reading Information’, for these make sure you have a pencil and paper at hand.

What I found useful was that I can tell what type of questions are causing problems straight away. You can also repeat a test as often as you like and it will record all your attempts, scores and time taken. It gives you a chart of the time taken each attempt against the number correct so you can see if your son is getting quicker and more accurate.

There is a book by IPS that gives you techniques to tackle each type of question, if you uses this in conjunction with the CD you will make rapid progress (though IPS gives a different name to each type of question compared to the tutors). For us bucks mums, I would recommend the IPS techniques book first, which itself contains some examples, the CD second and them attempt as many practice papers as you can. The tutors do pairs of practice papers ideal for bucks that mimics our two verbal res exams and IPS does a pack of papers with a purple spine, both sets are also recommended by a local tutors in Amersham. I also saw in bucks section of the forum where Patricia has a list of recommended materials.

Good luck.

Posted: Fri Jul 21, 2006 10:23 pm
by Sally-Anne
Thank you Nita - that is very succinct and helpful.

I especially like the idea of being able to see which question types are problematic, as that was probably my son's issue with the 11+. Some of the questions he could do without any trouble, but others were a real problem.

Sadly we chose Group coaching, and therefore this wasn't picked up until too late, as the Group was following a standard programme. A personal tutor would have spotted the issue far earlier and would have spent less time on the questions he could do and more time on the troublesome ones.

Sally-Anne

CD

Posted: Sat Jul 22, 2006 7:15 am
by 310196
Hi,

Help!

I'm a registered user and have forgotten my password. I've sent approx. 10 emails requesting details of my password but am getting no replies. I desperately need to download the CD but unable to do so without my password.

Can anyone help?

Posted: Sat Jul 22, 2006 7:50 am
by patricia
Dear 310196

Password, found this for you.

I've lost my password!
Don't panic! While your password cannot be retrieved it can be reset. To do this go to the login page and click I've forgotten my password. Follow the instructions and you should be back online in no time.
Back to top

Alternatively, ring the office.

By Telephone or Fax:
During Office Hours telephone 020 8863 0066 or fax 020 8863 0050

Unsure whether they are open on Saturdays.

I don't think you have to be a member to download or buy.

Patricia

Posted: Sat Jul 22, 2006 8:20 am
by 310196
Hi Patricia,

I've tried this on numerous occassions and it keeps saying that a new password has been emailed to me but I never receive it.

Thanks

Posted: Sat Jul 22, 2006 10:34 am
by patricia
Dear 310196

Then a phone call will be necessary, perhaps there is something wrong with the website end.

Good Luck

Patricia