112 in Bucks

[Ldn]

Hi All,

Usual story - expecting a pass, didn't happen, big disappointment. Comments welcomed.

Here are the details:

Scored 112 in the 11+
SATS in Year 5 were 5/5C/4A
Predicted SATS Year 6 are 5/5/5 (no more detail given)
Headteacher recommendation is 1:1, and strong recommendation in the text of the report
VR score in May 2011 was 120
IQ at 87th percentile
In the "G&T" maths group - currently doing Year 8 coursework (much more interested in maths and science than literature).
Nerves to the point of physically shaking before the exam

As you can see, 112 was not what was expected.

We exploring a medical condition which could explain poor performance in a stressful situation such as an timed exam, but nothing concrete yet. From what I've read, this will either make or break the case, given his good, but not outstanding scores and assessments above.

I'm not clear whether we should include other items such as being Head Boy/Girl, Captain of a school team, music study. Is this just "white noise" or does it show the child will fit into a grammar school environment?

At 112, I think we have a 8% chance of a successful appeal - it's not going to be easy.

Can I take this opportunity to wish everyone the best of luck.

Thanks

[Etienne]

Welcome!

Scored 112 in the 11+

What was the other score?

SATS in Year 5 were 5/5C/4A

Good!

VR score in May 2011 was 120

Borderline! Panels would probably like to see mid-120s.

IQ at 87th percentile

Which test? If WISC or BAS, what was were the percentiles for verbal and for perceptual or NVR?

In the "G&T" maths group - currently doing Year 8 coursework (much more interested in maths and science than literature).

Hence my question above.

Nerves to the point of physically shaking before the exam

Is there any previous history of this sort of thing?

I'm not clear whether we should include other items such as being Head Boy/Girl, Captain of a school team, music study. Is this just "white noise" or does it show the child will fit into a grammar school environment?

Not relevant, I'm afraid.

Good luck!

[Ldn]

Thanks for the fast reply and the welcome.

To answer:

The scores were 111/112.

IQ from a WRIT test. Verbal 115, Visual 114, Overall 117 (87th percentile). We're told that anything from the 80th upwards carries some weight with the panel.

As for the nerves, never seen anything like it before and this was before the first test. Even though we did our best to play it down, my child picked up on the importance of the exam, due to changing household circumstances.

Thanks,

Ldn

[Etienne]

The scores were 111/112.

Thanks - similar scores, then.

IQ from a WRIT test. Verbal 115, Visual 114, Overall 117 (87th percentile). We're told that anything from the 80th upwards carries some weight with the panel.

a) There's no set figure because individual panel members cannot be 'fettered' - they're free to make their own minds up. I would have suggested 'from the 90th upwards' to be on the safe side (and the higher the better!).

b) I'm a little surprised the Visual score is below the Verbal. Part of the Visual includes Matrices which is closely related to NVR.

c) I hope there's a clear explanation of WRIT to accompany the results - panels will not be as familiar with WRIT as they are with some other tests!

[Ldn]

So we've had the result of the appeal and it was unsuccessful.

We are not going to let this drop so could someone offer any advice on what we can do next.

Many thanks,

Ldn

[Sally-Anne]

Hi Ldn

I am sorry you have not been successful, but I am afraid that you had an absolute mountain to climb on 112.

I am afraid there is nothing you can do next in terms of this appeal. If you take a glance at Section D of the Appeals Q&As, this is explained more fully. http://www.elevenplusexams.co.uk/appeals/ombudsman" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

There is always the option of the 12+ for 2013 entry into Year 8. As I wrote to another unsuccessful appellant yesterday:

There is information about the current process here http://www.elevenplusexams.co.uk/school ... -procedure" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; , but please also check this thread http://www.elevenplusexams.co.uk/forum/ ... 12&t=23462" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;, because some schools have elected to change their Late Transfer Procedure for 2013 entry.

I hope that helps in some way.

Sally-Anne

[scary mum]

I just wanted to offer you a positive slant on this, Ldn. My DD achieved a similar score to yours a few years ago. We did not consider appealing, as the feeling was that while she was bright, she hadn't quite been ready (in terms of maturity). I was also under the impression at the time that you weren't allowed to appeal unless you had a score of at least 116, but that's a different story and wouldn't have made any difference. My DD then went to a school where she was right at the top in most subjects and singled out as one of the bright children. This gave her back her confidence and she moved to a GS later on, where she is thriving. I suppose I just wanted to let you know that it's not necessarily the end of the story and that often things work out for the best. Good luck.

[Ldn]

Thanks for the advice and kind comments - it's going to be a difficult weekend.

Ldn

[khanj010]

Ldn sorry to hear the bad news! we have a score of 113 and i am not optimistic that we will get good news either . Like your ds my ds was very unhappy about his scores as he thought he had passed after the first test .
our appeal is next week just wanted to have an idea of why they thought your son was not suitable for a gs school. What questions did they asked , as i think they will throw us also hard hitting questions as 113 is not a really good score. thanks

[Ldn]

The questions we were asked were all around the mitigating circumstances, apart from "what is his reading material?". Our mitigation was medical, and evidenced by specialists. It predicted where he would struggle and I was able to show this - exactly - when we received his raw scores.

I have no idea why they didn't think he was suitable - good SATs, 1:1 recommendation, doing level 6 maths exam this year, 5:5 SATs predicted. I know there will be children at GS who are less capable but managed to get 121.

We were coming from a long way back at 112, I understand that, however we did have a very strong case but clearly not strong enough. I struggle to think under what circumstances the panel would let a child on 112 pass now.

I wish you all the best.

Ldn