Mocks

Eleven Plus (11+) in Gloucestershire (Glos)

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Bambi 175
Posts: 39
Joined: Tue Oct 16, 2018 5:00 pm

Mocks

Post by Bambi 175 »

Can anyone recommend good places for Mocks in Cheltenham please? There seem to be a lot of options. Sorry if this has been asked before. Thanks.
Glos18
Posts: 218
Joined: Sun Aug 19, 2018 4:57 pm

Re: Mocks

Post by Glos18 »

Seeing as no one else has answered I will attempt a reply. Usually a moderator would come on to remind you of the forum rules that people aren't allowed to recommend tutors /mock centres etc apart from by personal message and I hope you have received some PMs.
But, to be frank, you probably won't go too far wrong as long as the centre provides a mock with realistic exam conditions, and 2 mcq papers on maths, English etc. The actual mark your child gets isn't that important, more the experience of doing an exam. I would advise you to pick a centre that gives a good amount of feedback on areas your DC did well / badly on, and if they let u see a copy of the answer sheet that is v useful as u can see if they only got half way through etc
Good Luck!
Tinkers
Posts: 7240
Joined: Mon May 16, 2011 2:05 pm
Location: Reading

Re: Mocks

Post by Tinkers »

Thanks Glos18.

Here’s the usual Mod reminder.
We try to keep the forum as safe as possible - we don't allow tutors to be openly recommended, because it attracts posts with fake recommendations ('dodgy' advertising solely designed to solicit business on the internet).
It is also not unknown for unscrupulous competitors to 'plant' posts seeking to denigrate the opposition!
I
Genuine recommendations from forum members by PM only (private message) are permitted - but be aware of the possibility that someone who appears to be a 'helpful parent' offering advice may not be all they seem! There could be an ulterior motive.

Always treat recommendations from unknown persons with great caution.
However, we have many long standing members (check carefully the date of joining and number of posts) who make a very valuable contribution to the forum. If you receive a private recommendation from one of them, it could be worth considering.

Please let us know if you think anyone is abusing the system by soliciting for business or 'spamming'.
It's easy to report a possible problem - just click on the red exclamation mark that appears with every post and PM: Image

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jacaranda
Posts: 5
Joined: Tue Oct 16, 2018 11:30 am

Re: Mocks

Post by jacaranda »

I agree with Glos18 - definitely pick a centre that gives you detailed feedback including, if possible, copies of the paper and your child's answer paper so you then can see what to focus on etc. The centre we chose didn't do this and although I got a report afterwards it didn't really help us move forward on the areas dd needed help with as we couldn't tell where she had gone wrong. Even her tutor (who we shared the feedback with) was shocked with the quality of feedback we got! I thought none of the centres gave copies of the tests afterwards (like you can't get copies of the real thing) but friends told me afterwards that their centres did give copies. There were a few other slightly negative things about the centre we used which I am happy to share with you in a PM if you so wish.

That being said though, the reason we did a mock was to try to get dd used to what the real test would be like and it definitely did that! On the day of the mock she was a bag of nerves, was very tearful and kept saying she couldn't go through with it. One the day of the real test she was calm, fairly relaxed and said 'I can do this!'. When we booked the mock we weren't too worried about the result but we were really upset when dd's mock results came though a few weeks later and she ranked in the bottom 5 of 120 children who took the mock (and the report stated 'based on this result your daughter would not qualify for a grammar school'). She was devastated and cried most of the weekend she got the result; we were upset thinking why were we putting her through all this etc. as obviously she wasn't capable of doing the test. However, she still wanted to sit the test in September and she ended up qualifying for four schools! So as Glos18 says, don't focus too much on the result - a friend's child did really, really well in a mock (at a test centre) but then didn't qualify for any schools So, in my opinion, it's more about the experience than anything else.

Hope that helps. PM me if you want further info.
steppemum
Posts: 480
Joined: Fri Oct 19, 2012 9:27 am

Re: Mocks

Post by steppemum »

Bit late to this but anyway

I really endorse the idea that it is the exam experience.
I know one very nervous boy last year had a horrendous time in the mock, I tlaked him through why (nerves, filling in the answer sheet all wrong etc) and he passed on the day with flying colours.

The mock results are often a shock, scores at 40% and parents panic. There are several very good reasons for this though
1. kids usually sit a mock in May/June, and that is 4 month sbefore the exam, you would be amazed at how much difference those 4 months make
2. the mock centres err on the side of too hard rather than too easy
3. the mock centres offer 11 + courses to students, and kids who don't do so well tend to take that up (yes, it is that cynical)
4. it is the first time they have had the exam experience, and it can really throw them.
5. most tutors do content first and then nearer the time do a lot more on exam prep, timing etc, so they may not have been as well prepared in terms of sitting an exam at the point that they take the mock.


so, get detailed feedback, don't stress too much about the results.
Bambi 175
Posts: 39
Joined: Tue Oct 16, 2018 5:00 pm

Re: Mocks

Post by Bambi 175 »

Thanks for your reply. I have booked a couple at different centres. It will be useful to see what rank he gets but I won't read too much into the results. It's early days!
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