Pre tests Eton, Harrow and Radley

[molesworthmanor]

Does anyone know what sort of marks Eton, Radley and Harrow are expecting in the upcoming Pre tests in order to get through to the next stage of the selection process?

They don’t share that type of information. The prep schools don’t get the ISEB test restricts back anyway.

Last year no-one from ds’s school was weeded out of any of those schools at the ISEB pretest stage. The plural of anecdote is not evidence, but it did seem that the real weeding out was done after the interview /secondary (Eton) test.

Have sent you a dm op

I would be really interested in this information as well.. Ds2 is taking the pre-tests soon but he has had very little preparation (we came to this late) and has a spikey profile...

It isn’t a very meaningful question. There are no past papers so what would one score them on? and one never knows what they score in the pretest anyway

Black eyes, try the bofa practice pretests.

Thank you!!!

Thank you for responses. I think I'm being overly nervous as to level that my son should be achieving in the BOFA practice tests to stand a good chance of getting through the pre test stage.

My DS is scoring a total average for all 4 BOFA tests (i.e. Maths, English, VR, NVR) of 82%.
Can anyone confirm if this high enough for those 3 schools mentioned on this thread?

I think it's very odd that the ISEB &/or Schools don't share the result...I wonder if we could make a request under the freedom of information....hehehe?

Jusging from my son, then yes,Sirmister

It's very hit and miss though on BOFA....
Up and down between 75% to 96%.
The maths module is harder than what he has done in the past.
Fortunately, no more pre-testing after this month....hurray!

Good luck to all the kids and their hard working parents.

It's not the best process if my humble opinion but unfortunately, we live in an international competitive era where there are some folks who have been sending their kids to tutoring for the last 2 years during their holidays for 6hours per day pay stupendous volumes of money.
Sadly, this is what our kids are up against these days.
I got to say that those that have been intensively tutoring look like robots and it's hard to get a smile out of them never mind a meaningful conversation.
When are the schools going to acknowledge that this unhealthy unsustainable system is not fit for purpose?
Very frustrating for parents like me who just need to get through the system but accepting its deficiencies.

Don't send your child to these terrible places

Tell me about it HoustonBess!

We had no idea that the independent sector had headed so far down this route that it is becoming more and more like the Singaporean/Shanghainese systems that the tabloids rave about and something that we were trying to avoid.
It's ironic that the Chinese, Russians, etc... send their kids to these famous educational institutions in increasing numbers to benefit from their rounded education but in the process they end up turning these schools in to those schools they are escaping from back in their own country!

The state sector is just as bad what with a focus on SATs and results league tables.....there's no escape!

What is one to do?

I purchased the bofa tests, thanks for the suggestion.. Ds2 got 91% in non verbal but only 58% in verbal, so my feeling of his profile being very spiky was correct. Doing maths and English today. Not have many days left, so we are where we are..

my son has struggled with the maths on the pretests but not VR or NVR (questions which are not on any syllabus he has been taught)

Don't worry Lewknor, I think the Maths is a little harder than what the school have given him so my DS was 70% at first and then scored 84% after his 3rd pre-tests.
Maybe the style was different?

GOOD LUCK TO ALL!

Omg Ds2 got 38% in his bofa maths test. Just been looking through it, a mix of rushing through some, not being familiar with the questions and some material not covered at school.

He will try again today, see what he gets.

I wish we had started the practice earlier...

Blackeyes - how long have you got? Is there time to nip out for an 11+ maths book to whip through topics he hasn’t done?

We have just over 2 weeks. Definitely going to try and work on some stuff. I think if he just gets the timing right and reads the question he would do so much better. He is doing well with NVR and VR so I just want him to do himself justice!!!

@SirMister - what exactly is wrong about the Singapore /Shanghai route of tests???

Puzzled Lady:
I don't think there's anything I can say to convince you of what we felt (I stress we felt as it's our opinion only) was wrong with the Shanghai type system.....so better to ask folks from that part of the world why they send their kids to these British schools in increasing numbers.....better to get it from the horses mouth rather than from here and risk starting off a debate about something entirely new.

Best wishes and hope your DC get's on well in this not so perfect process (ISEB)