SATS cheating - by the Head!

[Dilemmaramma]

In my DC’s final SATS exam yesterday, the headteacher was overseeing and they picked up DC’s paper, DURING the exam, flicked through it, then rubbed out one of the answers and told DC to try again. They also pointed out another wrong answer and indicated DC should re-do that question.

This is clear cut cheating, right?

YABU - don’t report it, the whole year group could get their SATS voided and they’ll be devastated
YANBU - this is appalling and the Head needs to be investigated

They absolutely do make a difference to secondary school. They are measured on how closely their students achieve their gcse grades which are, on the whole, predicted by sats. Schools can alter them internally but ultimately they are still judged on the government grades done by sats. It means some high schools can do a brilliant job with their students, but get rubbish value added because their original ‘values’ were artificially high because of primary schools cheating on sats. So, yes, it’s ‘only’ a school measure but how many on here chose their schools
or where to live based on ofsted reports? The students i feel most sorry for are the ones who are coached and cajoled through them to get good results which boost the primary’s value added, but then give them stupidly high targets in secondary so they spend their whole secondary career feeling like they aren’t good enough. The sats should be done unseen and unpractised. Like the cats tests, which are still done by some school, but these are not funded and are expensive for schools to do.

It happens.
https://www.thenorthernecho.co.uk/news/16374460.heighington-school-investigated-sats-maladministration-pupils-test-results-annulled/

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/education/education-news/school-s-exam-results-annulled-over-cheating-9135150.html

The most worrying thing about this incident is the HT is basically telling your DS and his classmates that it's OK to cheat. I'd report.

You think cheating doesn't happen?

You would be surprised what heads and other staff do, especially in schools that are under achieving.

I would report it but only once your child has left and is settled in secondary school and there is no chance of them having to resit them.

My teacher did the same thing... walked around the desks and would tut indicating answer was wrong. Would whisper the answer to us after

I suggest you read up on the administration of SATS and of Access Arrangements like having a reader because you are talking nonsense!
I happen to know because I had to write a piece on them for a course I am doing. No parents or relatives can be readers, scribes or anything else for children in SATs and there must be two adults in the room at all times when the papers are there.

Obviously schools don't have to follow these rules but they can have someone from the LA turn up to check their administration and many schools call their own Governors in to check they are administering them correctly.

Check your facts.

All schools I've monitored have children across large rooms, sitting with a 1-1 in various corners or in small rooms with doors open to a central space.

At least one extra adult is in the middle of the room or in the corridor sitting between all rooms, with some occasional walking between. Practical arrangements to allow a second person to oversee the first.

Very dependant on the school building and layout. Also sometimes on the needs of the child (minimise disturbance).

We do the same during unannounced monitoring visits, sitting between, wandering between, listening in, watching.

I've never seen a closed room, 1-1 child/adult. (10 years in the role, unannounced visits during SATS, 4 schools per year) Plus 8 years of SATS as the headteacher responsible for administration.

It is out and out cheating and I am amazed that you and others apparently think it is OK for a headteacher to demonstrate to children that that’s the right way to behave in public examinations (and life).

@Dilemmaramma I’m sure this isn’t true. My understanding is that the SATs are used as a baseline for where the pupil is, and the expected trajectory. If they drop significantly from that trajectory then questions would be asked. They’re certainly not used for GCSE predictions. They do mocks in year 10 for that.

And having googled, the Colburn School maladministration mentioned in this article is even more….(stupid).

So can I. In a discussion with the deputy head in my last school I eventually said "do you want me to write the coursework for them?" He replied "if that's what it takes - yes".

It’s shit behaviour on the part of the primary school! Cheating in SATS leads to kids being put in higher sets than they are capable of when they get to secondary, and provide a stick for secondary schools to be beaten with.

Im with you OP. Cheating is wrong and, whilst I sympathise with all schools that have to go through these ridiculous tests, doing what he did cheats everyone. And you are correct lots of schools use them to ‘set’ children in secondary which makes it even worse.

A teacher at my DS school paid a heavy price for helping his pupils cheat, he ultimately took his own life which was very sad, he was a nice man and was loved by parents and pupils alike, but was caught out and as I say paid the price. This is the article about him. 'I was banned from teaching for helping my pupils cheat' - BBC News

This happend.to my ds several years ago, he was sen and borderline pass. A ta sat next to him and gave a very slight shake of the head when he hovvered over an incorrect answer. Immoral yes, but his face when he realised he'd passed was stunning.

YANBU - report it. The children shouldn't be "devastated" because responsible and caring parents and teachers should surely have already told them already that their individual sats results don't matter one bit, it's a test of the school not the child, and so long as they do their best it's fine whatever happens.

But the head teacher should be sacked. Manipulating sats results is directly misleading the government, ofsted and parents as to the capability of the school.

I think if the TA doesn’t report it and you do, her job could be at risk.

the Headteacher at my DDs school got fired for falsifying SATs results.

Exactly. And by cheating, which results in kids ending up with higher targets than their ability will allow them to attain, this Headteacher is not only condemning kids to the disappointment of being permanently lower than their targets, he is also making secondary teachers look as though they are failing those kids. It's an arsehole thing to do.

SATs should have been got rid of years ago!

Your child's 11 year old SATs will not make a difference to GCSE results- unfortunately the year 9 ones do with foundation papers generally if a score below the level etc.

They tend to move kids about between groups in core subjects anyway before year 10.

If you are indeed an ‘independent school headteacher’, I’m amazed that you condone cheating and think that doing so should be ignored because they’re ’helping your child’!

Were you in the room?