Kent Test head Teacher Review Advice Please

[ogs2003]

Hello all, I'm not sure how many mumsnetters are where I am atm but my daughter sat the Kent Test last month and the results are due out on 17th October. Initially when she came out of the test she told us that she had missed 3 questions on the Maths test and I have to admit my heart sunk at this point. She says she thinks the others went well. In my head I figured she will be lucky to pass now but still hoped! So, then a week ago, she came out of school and announced that hers and 2 others books had vanished! I spoke to a teacher friend of mine whos daughter was also subject to the missing books saga (she is in the same class as my dd) and she told me that on the very same day the reviews had taken place (she has a colleague that sits on the HT review panel). So we put 2 and 2 together and figured that the 3 missing books were subject to a Head Teacher review and that our girls must have been close. However, yesterday my daughter was upset to find that her books have reappeared but her friends books haven't, leading her (and me) to believe that the HT decided against appealing for my dd and so returned the books...

I am beside myself with stress and have literally not been sleeping since she took the Test! I am also cross with the school tbh as they have been somewhat insensitive to the childrens feeling and how it will upset them with all the gossip about missing books and what it must mean.

Anyone out there give me any advise or insight in to what we are assuming? I think I am losing my marbles....

TIA xx

[sirfredfredgeorge]

don't go assuming anything, just ask the head teacher.

[TeenPlusTwenties]

I think you should try to relax and wait for the results. No point trying to second guess. In the meantime keep talking up the other option to your DD.

[tashkent]

Ok, a few things to say. Firstly (and in the nicest possible way), get a bit of a grip. It's hard to imagine that your extremely high stress levels about this aren't feeding through to your daughter, which will make things much harder for her if she hasn't passed (as she will realise how super-invested you are in her passing). As others have said, keep talking up the other options. Secondly - try to look on the bright side. If the school is indeed appealing for her, then it means that she was very close to passing (they don't bother appealing otherwise), and there's a reasonable chance the appeal will be upheld. Obviously that's not as positive for you as her passing in the first place - but it's a lot better than being one of the children in your school (of whom I'm sure there will be some) who have failed the test by a bigger margin and therefore don't have a chance at appeal. Thirdly - don't over-analyse and assume that you're right about the appeal. In a lot of schools they will take all the Y6 books away so that nobody knows who's being appealed for - so it may be that your daughter's not right about this. Perhaps other books have been taken but she's not aware. Fourthly - after the appeals, all the books are returned to the school at the same time, and very soon after the review date. If the appeal was a week ago, then the school would already have all the books back, so I shouldn't make any assumptions based on that. Finally - don't ask the head! They're not allowed to tell you about appeals, and it just puts them in a really difficult position if you ask. And cut them a bit of slack - the whole 11+ thing is basically nothing to do with the primary schools, it's parents' choice to enter for the 11+, and it takes teachers and headteachers a lot of time to prepare HT appeals - and after the results come out they get all sorts of abuse from parents about children who haven't passed where the school should have 'done more', about their decision whether or not to appeal, etc etc. When actually they have zero responsibility apart from teaching all the children the correct curriculum in the first place, but they're made to feel that they should give masses of extra resource to those children who are taking an entirely optional test. It's not that I'm unsympathetic - I have been through the Kent Test as a parent myself - but it's really nothing to do with the primary schools.

[ogs2003]

Thanks all for replying! Just getting someone I dont know tell me to get a grip and calm down really does help! I realise that the whole missing books saga has run away with me and it could be something and nothing. I am incredibly proud of my dd and my desire for her to pass is largely because I know how hard she tried, I know she will do well wherever she goes tbh. All her friends are bright and are expected to pass and she so wants to be able to walk in on that Friday and say she did it. Today i have woken up with a fresh outlook (hope it lasts) and can see the positives in all this. Thanks to those who replied to my rantings, it honestly helped alot x

[tashkent]

Glad you're feeling better . Do pop back on the 17th and let us know how your daughter got on. Wishing her the best of luck. X

[SJane48S]

Best wishes and try not to 2nd guess! Not sure where in Kent you are but in my area Maidstone Girls took at least one girl who narrowly didn’t pass and there is a Grammar Stream at Knole for those who got close. We also have (some!) decent secondaries and potentially it’s better for her to be in a top set in a good secondary rather than potentially struggling/somewhere in the middle at a school that continually pushes for very high achievement and she feels any sense of failure. I’m sure you’ve done this/are doing this but I’d seriously consider and try to get her to view positively the non grammar options.

[TheHumanSatsuma]

Why angry with the school?
Kent has a headteacher review system and the panel will need to see the books, what are they supposed to do?

Books are also taken by subject leaders to monitor their subjects (usually 2 top, 2 bottom, 2 middle) so they might not even have been taken for review anyway.

Wait until results are out and then stress. Leave the school to do their job

[ogs2003]

Hi just wanted to come back as promised to say my dd passed on HT review, she missed the maths by 6 points (she didn't finish the last 3 questions) but did very well on the other two tests. I was so emotional when the email came through and waiting outside school to pick her up was lovely! She was thrilled. We took her and my older ds for a celebration a Kaspas!! So glad it's over with and we can all relax now. Thanks to those that replied and I hope everyone else had good news xx

[bloated1977]

Well done to your DD. I don't see how the system works though . My DS was 1 point under last year and didn't pass. Surely if you're 6 points under you haven't passed. I don't want to take away from your DDs achievements but can't see how this works x

[Ingles2]

Congrats to your dd @ogs2003 whereabouts in Kent are you? I had a ds at Norton Knatchbull, and another at Highworth in Ashford..
@bloated1977 technically Ogs' child hasn't passed the Kent test, but the head teacher has appealed on their behalf and secured a place.. it's for close calls, the Head can either say yes, should be at a grammar,.. or no..

[ogs2003]

Thank you xx We are in East Kent. Our HT told me that she would appeal in the event she was close because historically she had achieved some very good results in recent testing. We had a family member pass away two days before the test too and although we didn't tell my dd she was obviously aware something wasn't quite as it should be. I'm sorry @bloated1977 that you were so close last year...it does seem a strange system which nobody can predict.

[tashkent]

Well done, im so pleased for you and your DD. On the points thing, it is a bit varied. Some HTs submit far more appeals than others. But also, it's about the child's general work. If a child misses by a mark or two but they were heavily tutored and the work in their books doesn't suggest a standard higher than they achieved in the test, then the HT is less likely to appeal than they would for a child who missed a paper by 8 marks but whose work is generally of a very high standard, suggesting that they had a real blip in the test. Ultimately, the appeal panel is thinking about whether a GS is the right place for a child long term, not just about their test result on one day.

[ogs2003]

Thank you for your congrats. I agree that she was further away points wise than I would expect to be for a HT appeal and I hope that reading this in the future it will give hope to others who's child maybe had a blip as you say. It's worth noting that she dropped her points in Maths but scored well over in English and VR. I think the fact that she had scored well in recent exams will have also helped her cause and she has always been studious and tried hard. Of course I am biased but she would fit well into GS although she isn't one of the super clever ones in her school. I think what you've said in your reply does explain the seemingly unpredictable system of HT appeals though, it's not just the test itself but rather a bigger picture? Hard when your a parent out there trying to make sense of a possible outcome I know! On the subject of the amount of HT appeals, DD's school historically only appeals 2 or 3 results (it's a small school) and this year was the same, with 3 appeals being made and 3 being successful. I know of other schools around us that appeal on mass with pretty good results it has to be said, but our little school is not one of them. I'm glad it's all over with now and DD can enjoy her last year at Primary. Good luck to anyone reading this in the future and if anyone wanted further info I would be happy to help 🙂🙂