St. Bernard's, Slough
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st bernards appeal
I wonder if anyone has any advice for me. My daughter failed the 11+ for St Bernards by 109 and 109 for pass mark 111. The week before she sat the exam, my father was taken very ill in Ireland and the doctors suggested that the family come over as a matter of urgency which I did. I have letters from the doctors confirming that this is the case. It was obviously quite disrupting but as his prognosis was not good, I let her sit the exam knowing that she was a bit unsettled and had'nt been sleeping well which I now regret. She was preidcted level 5's in her sats and in fact, has gained all level 5's in her mock sats. I am looking for any advice on things that I should provide to the appeal board that will help my case and tips on what I should say at the appeal. Thanks.
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Sally-Anne
- Posts: 9235
- Joined: Wed Jan 11, 2006 8:10 pm
- Location: Buckinghamshire
Hi appeal
The usual advice is not to allow a child who is unwell themself not to sit the exam. The difficulty in any situation of ongoing illness of a much-loved family member, such as the one you faced, is that the situation could in fact have worsened if you left the test even later. You simply could not know what the future held, and therefore delaying the test was not a reasonable option.
Please do remember though that every good appeal puts the positive evidence of academic ability centre-stage. The mitigating circumstances are only there to explain why the child did not perform to their usual high standard on the day.
Sally-Anne
The usual advice is not to allow a child who is unwell themself not to sit the exam. The difficulty in any situation of ongoing illness of a much-loved family member, such as the one you faced, is that the situation could in fact have worsened if you left the test even later. You simply could not know what the future held, and therefore delaying the test was not a reasonable option.
Please do remember though that every good appeal puts the positive evidence of academic ability centre-stage. The mitigating circumstances are only there to explain why the child did not perform to their usual high standard on the day.
Sally-Anne
Thank you for your response. I have a further question(s) you may be able to advise me on. What kind of results do they look at? Do you think I should ask her school for the results of her mock sats and send them on? I know that she received level 5 in all but am not sure if a,b or c. Do you know if 5c would be considered the level of mark they would expect from a child of grammar school ability? Do you think I should ask her teacher for some of her best work to forward for consideration?
A letter from the head stating her Sats predictions ( The more 5's the better) if they can include the 'mock' Sats result then even better. The general rule is that the achievement of Level 5 (be it a, b or c) in Sats is seen as 'grammar' ability. Obviously .. if you have predicted 5a's then that would help an appeal.
On schoolwork..... a school book with excellent comments (or high levels noted) will enforce your argument of ability. Usually Maths, English, Science (core subjects).
Really you are looking for comments about 'working at a high level', 'extremely able' etc. School reports that have these comments may also help.
On schoolwork..... a school book with excellent comments (or high levels noted) will enforce your argument of ability. Usually Maths, English, Science (core subjects).
Really you are looking for comments about 'working at a high level', 'extremely able' etc. School reports that have these comments may also help.
