Calling all KS2 Tutors...advice urgently needed!

[testbunny]

Hi there

DS is currently going into Yr2 at a 'good' (and improving) two-form entry state primary school in a mixed (in terms of social makeup and ethnicity) catchment area. He is in a small 'top' group in his class in terms of English & Maths. He got 2B's and 2C in his end of year 1 assessment, He has been offered a place in a small 'outstanding' primary school which achieves stellar results, mainly (I think) because the majority of kids are tutored to go onto private or grammar.

The state secondaries are not brilliant around here, so we will tutor to keep our options open in terms of private or selective state. we will (need to) do this no matter which school DS is in.

My question is; is there a difference in the level the children you tutor reach depending on how many children of a similar ability there are in their class at school? i.e. does it make a difference if they are in a large group of children at school that are providing 'competition' and are all moving forward together, or doesn't this matter? if not, then we may not move him as he is happy in his current school...

Any advice much appreciated! we are having sleepless nights deciding what to do.....

If we had the choice between the schools that you mention I would be looking very closely at the school with good results but not at the results - which as you say can be manipulated - but at the behaviour of the kids, the catchment demographic and the pastoral care. Unless all of these seem to be really excellent it may not be worth the disruption of moving esp if you will tutor whichever school you choose.

woops not finished....
clearly if you are in a high achieving cohort who are well behaved, and you are keeping up, then you should make more progress than if you are in a disruptive setting with less able pupils where the pace of teaching is slower - but it is not clear cut. our local school sets ability based targets in maths and english for all pupils so while they all work on the same problem they all work at different levels. so it will depend on the actual schools and your child. hgave you looked

aargh
have you looked around?

Hi Thanks for this tricot. we havent had a look around for a while - only when we went to look around for reception. it is a lot smaller, and the grounds aren't as nice. i am reassured that the pastoral care is good and they do have excellent activities and clubs. the current school does set ability based targets. it's so hard to know what to do....

hhmm i can see your dilemma.
well the 1950 birth cohort studies appear to show that smaller schools produce better results. however more recent research by the sutton trust (for older children/a levels) suggests that a bigger cohort is better for a deprived cohort. that probably doesnt help much either but i suppose you should maybe not be asking whether or not to stay, but ask yourself what real tangible benefits will justify the stress and disruption of a move?

The thing is, I am not sure! I think we need to give it a go. my ds is outgoing and confident, so I know he will be ok. we will always wonder 'what if' if we don't..thanks for your advise. x

I wouldn't bother - the school really doesn't make that much difference. Parental involvement makes a much bigger difference.

People seem to forget that 'top' schools are often better because they select (or are selected by) the most academic pupils. So they get better results - but not because of any value added by the school.

If your dc is achieving level reasonable level 2s at the end of year 1, and is in the top group already, then he should do fine wherever he is. If you want to help, ensure he reads widely and his basic maths skills (mental arithmetic, tables) are strong - play word/maths/board/card games - even computer games - testing word and maths skills.

To pass entrance tests for secondary, what matters is having strong foundations and it is very hard to 'cram' successfully; much better to work on the basics over several years in a fun way.

My dd was in a similar primary to your first example and is now near the top of her selective school. I taught her for entrance exams myself; not difficult to do.

Why disrupt him if he is happy? He is doing well; let him be.