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Join our Primary Education forum to discuss starting school and helping your child get the most out of it.

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Join our Primary Education forum to discuss starting school and helping your child get the most out of it.

Primary education

KS2/year 6 SATS 2012

37 replies

NotaDisneyMum · 22/08/2011 23:31

Does anyone know the dates of these, please?

My exH has asked if he can take my DD10 abroad for two weeks next year, and I think it's only a couple of weeks before the SATS......how much preparation will she expected to do, can anyone advise - thanks

OP posts:

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mrz · 23/08/2011 07:32

It really depends on the school. Some prepare all year we tend to look at an old paper (for the format) just before the tests. Remember SATs are the end of 7 years of learning and not just a few weeks of cramming

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IndigoBell · 23/08/2011 07:43

I would be incredibly surprised if school would authorise the leave.

If it's unauthorised and more than 10 days they can kick you out of school.

They can also fine you.

I think your exH needs a very good reason to take her out of school....

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Feenie · 23/08/2011 08:28

The 2012 key stage 2 national curriculum tests will be held in the week beginning 14 May 2012. New for this year - externally marked level 6 tests will be available to schools in 2012 to administer to eligible pupils on an optional basis, and the dates for those are Monday 21 May and Tuesday 22 May. (That will be news for a couple of posters who think I dream the existence of level 6 ).

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IndigoBell · 23/08/2011 14:14

Feenie - good news re the L6 tests. Will there be one for reading, writing and Maths?

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mrz · 23/08/2011 14:25

There have always been Level 6 tests in reading writing and maths Indigo but next year they are included in the test timetable for the first time and will be externally marked with the other tests.

Announcement

Ministers have confirmed that the 2012 key stage 2 national curriculum tests will be held in the week beginning 14 May 2012.

Externally marked level 6 tests in English and mathematics will be available to schools in 2012 to administer to eligible pupils on an optional basis. The dates for these tests will be Monday 21 May and Tuesday 22 May.

QCDA will be sending an update to all schools and local authorities to confirm this announcement.

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Feenie · 23/08/2011 14:27

This is the email I received from the LEA assessment team:

"'Ministers have confirmed that the 2012 key stage 2 national curriculum tests will be held in the week beginning 14 May 2012. Externally marked Level 6 tests in English and mathematics will be available to schools in 2012 to administer to eligible pupils on an optional basis.

The dates for these tests will be Monday 21 May and Tuesday 22 May. We will be sending an update to all schools to confirm this announcement.

The test timetable will be published in the 2012 Assessment and reporting arrangements which will be sent to all schools in November 2011. Schools are asked to hold the dates of Monday 14 May until Wednesday 23 May 2012 to allow for the full test administration period'.

So yes, sounds like a test for all three. Which means if children sit the tests, the levels will have to be reported as a test result, not just a teacher assessment, and should appear in all data sources. Good news indeed!

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putthehamsterbackinitscage · 23/08/2011 14:38

Feenie - can you post more info about the optional tests or a link about them?

I have a DD who will be Y6 this year and is already getting secure level 5 for maths / english and would like to know more so I can discuss at school with her new class teacher once they have settled in - the school didn't boycott last year, so I am assuming they will do KS2 SATS this year...

In the past (incl my DS), the Y6 class has spent much of the year preparing for the standard KS2 papers :( whilst disillusioning those who struggle with tests and not necessarily pushing those already achieving high levels.

This might mean they could change their focus a bit and introduce some more challenging work to keep DD and others interested, but I'd hate to see it as just more tests added on top and done through lots of test practice...

If I know a bit about it, I might be able to ask that they opt for the tests and extension work appropriate to those who could achieve L6 rather than just more and more test practice

The last thing I want is just more test practice - I would like to see further extension of the work in class or at home for those who can manage it....

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putthehamsterbackinitscage · 23/08/2011 14:39

I took too long to post!

Thanks for the info...

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mrz · 23/08/2011 14:41

www.qcda.gov.uk/assessment/7602.aspx this is the current info I can't see the tests being very different in structure

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Feenie · 23/08/2011 14:45

You know as much as I do! It was announced on the 26th July, and that was the extent of the information.

I can point you towards documentation in the assessment procedure documents which refer to teacher assessment at level 6, and support materials already available to assess those children, if that helps. And teacher assessment would assess day to day learning, not just test performance.

No schools boycotted last year, btw - schools had the legal backing of the unions in order to do so the year before.

It disappoints me to hear of schools who don't teach beyond a high level 5, because that was the ceiling of the tests. Teacher assessment at level 6 as always been possible, and has equal weighting (supposedly).

Hopefully, the introduction of optional level 6 tests will go some way to address the problem of schools who don't bother to teach beyond level 5. I assume that they will become statutory again at some point.

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Feenie · 23/08/2011 14:49

Yes, mrz, I'd assume that they would look like that, but because they are externally marked, then I assume also that the mark would form the child's test result, instead of just supporting the teacher assessment, thereby allowing the reporting of level 6 test data again, not just teacher assessment.

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mrz · 23/08/2011 14:57

Yes I think the difference will be that they will carry more weight/status in the eyes of some because they are externally marked.

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Anotherchance · 26/08/2011 14:51

Brilliant news re L6 assessment! Does this mean that current able children who scored a good L3 in KS1 will have the chance to show good progress in the statistics? Presumably they will be able to have L6 as their test result as well as teacher assessment. looking at it through a governors eyes as well as a parent and teachers eyes.

Teachers - how will you be selecting which students take a L6 paper? Or am I just getting ahead of myself?

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spudmasher · 26/08/2011 15:01

My school is a 3-16 school with Y6 in the same team as Y7 and Y8 which takes away all the false barriers re level 5 and level 6. The colleagues who are more used to working with KS3 pupils will advise us as to the candidates for the L6 tests.
They have advised in the past that Level 6 is a lot to do with maturity and experience and not many 10/11 year olds at our school are secure at Level 6....but there are some!
I'm in no rush to get my own dd there unless she just happens to arrive there of her own accord. I would much rather breadth of experience and a balanced Year 6 curriculum.

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mrz · 26/08/2011 15:01

They have always had the chance of showing good progress.
Remember levels 5-6 is the expected level at age 14

Levels of achievement www.education.gov.uk/performancetables/ks3_04/k3.shtml

The National Curriculum sets standards of achievement in each subject for pupils aged 5 to 14. For most subjects, these standards range from Levels 1 to 8. Pupils progress up the levels as they get older and learn more:

most 7 year olds are expected to achieve Level 2
most 11 year olds are expected to achieve Level 4
most 14 year olds are expected to achieve Levels 5 or 6

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Feenie · 26/08/2011 15:14

Selection would be easy - the children who are working at level 6 according to teacher assessment.

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spudmasher · 26/08/2011 15:19

We need to do some moderation and standardisation this term in our CPD as Y6 children have been assessed at Level 6 by the Y6 teachers and it has been contested by KS3 teachers....we get to see all that because of how our school is..but in a regular Secondary School they would just laugh at the Teacher Assessments from Primary on a regular basis if their anecdotal evidence is anything to go by!
But like I said earlier...it does happen and these children need to be much better served.

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IndigoBell · 26/08/2011 15:56

So in KS3 you are expected to make either 1 or 2 levels of progress?

As opposed to KS2 when you are expected to always make 2 levels of progress?

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mrz · 26/08/2011 16:10

Correct
In KS1 (2 levels progress in 2 years)
KS2 (2 levels progress in 4 years)
KS3 (1 or 2 levels progress in 3 years)

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CardyMow · 28/08/2011 11:07

So if DS1 was a secure Lvl 3 at the end of Y2, Teacher assessment higher than that, would he be able to sit a level 6 paper in 2013 or is it just for this year only?

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Feenie · 28/08/2011 11:12

Y2 assessment is teacher assessment (they may have reported the test result aswell for your information - some schools are still fixated on them ) so takes precedence. I would expect the level 6 papers to continue after this year, but don't know for sure.

Are you saying your ds was assessed at level 4? Expected progress in KS2 is 2 levels, so attaining level 6 would be satisfactory progress for your very clever ds.

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mrz · 28/08/2011 11:38

If your son was assessed as level 3 in KS1 then the expected level in KS2 end of Y6 would be level 5 loudlass (which is above national expectations - it is the level for KS3)

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Feenie · 28/08/2011 12:17

Loudlass said the teacher assessment was higher than that though, mrz.

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mrz · 28/08/2011 12:30

Yes I know feenie but I wasn't sure if she meant the TA was level 4 or a 3a and you has covered the level 4 option

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CardyMow · 28/08/2011 12:40

He got secure lvl 3 on his extrnally marked end of Y2 SATS - teacher said that was as high as the paper went? His TA was low lvl 4 in literacy, secure lvl 4 in Maths.

At the end of Y4 (July) he was TA as being secure lvl 5 maths, high lvl 4 literacy.

Hence being interested in these Lvl 6 SATS. Will the results be published? As it might give the school an incentive to do something other than spending the whole of Y6 making sure everyone (that they are going to put in for the tests) is going to get a secure lvl 4 (NOT all do - quite a lot don't - the school often doesn't enter pupils, like my DD, for SATS). They don't focus on the dc that cannot get a lvl 4 - leave them to drift for a year - and they don't give anything to dc working above a lvl 4 either - so am kind of hoping this will be the 'push' the school needs to not let DS1 'stagnate' for an entire year.

Am really hoping they WILL be continued. As it is, I am working at home with him on 11+ work to try to get him into the local Grammar school.