Query about targets

[ChickensHaveNoEyebrows]

DS1 (Y5) has told me that his teacher hasn't set him any targets yet, because she has to wait for other children to be ready to move up to the next level with him. He said that groups/tables all have to move at the same time. I haven't spoken to his teacher yet, but does this sound right?

My ds1 is in Y5 and I know for a fact that the people on his table are working at different levels.

Before someone asks me how I know, at Parents Evening the teacher had a list of children and current levels on the table.

I don't know when or how teachers set targets but I assume that children who are at different levels have different targets.

Ok. That's helpful. I might just pop in and see his teacher after school. I am well aware that I may be hearing half the story Thanks.

What are you thinking of as a 'target'?

A National Curriculum level or a statement giving the detail of what is being studied?
I would imagine that as this is Y5 the teacher has predicted every child's target level with the help of the Head and senior staff too. The school has a duty to report how many children it believes will achieve level 4 or 5 in English, Maths (separately and combined)at the end of Y6 so there should be no dount about what level each child is on and how much progress is expected. What may not have been done is to determine who will be maybe working towards 'I can read and plot co-ordinates in all 4 quadrants' and who will be on the table who are working towards 'I can order a set of positive and negative integers'. Those sort of targets are easier to organise with everyone moving together.

whoops - doubt not dount

That's it, Elbow. It's the sub 'a, b, c' bit that DS said he had to wait for the others for. Think I'll just pop in to ask what happens in the mean time

If he scored 2a/b/c at the end of KS1 he will be expected to get to level 4 at the end of KS2. If he scored 3 he will definitely be targeted as 5. With a mix of 2a and 2b it will be down to how far the teacher reckons s/he can push - for the school kudos and results they will go for the 5 every time if they can!!

Wasn't going to mention specifics, but feck it He's working at 4a across the board, but he said his teacher said she doesn't know what to do with him as the whole group has to go up to 5c together. Of course this is his rendition of the conversation, so it's probably best to check with his teacher (who is excellent, btw). I assume his teacher will still be attempting to make him work.

The whole class should not be working at the same level. If they are I would be in there complaining.
Each child should have thier own levels. And work set accordingly.
My dd1 is in year 6 but she has always been on slightly higher level than most of her classmates. Some are working level 4 some are level 5.
Go in and have a chat with the teacher.

What a strange thing for the teacher to say. I'd be suspicious that that was to help the teacher not the pupil. But having had to set and monitor targets I know it's nigh on impossible to have them perfectly appropriate and challenging at all times.

Do children normally know what their targets are and are parents told?

They have a sheet pasted in to their homework books telling them what they are working towards, so DS1 has had the 4a target since before christmas. He just told me this morning that he'd achieved 4a across all subjects (I'm guessing numeracy/literacy/science) but that his teacher said she didn't know what targets to set him because his table had to move up as a group. There is probably more to it. Wondered if it was a common policy or just this teacher's approach.

Well I've never seen any targets for ds and nor has he ever mentioned any. Interested to know others' experiences.

I think most schools wouldnt advertise targets, they are nobodies business but the child and parent and it causes lots of tickle tackle and oneupmanship with some parents makign comparisons.

Just in the same way some schools wont advertise where their kids are against the rest of the class.

Chicken... I think its actually fantastic that you are getting this feedback and the kids know what they are aiming for.

There are so many messages on here where parents are complaining that they dont get this info, and this is all that parents want.

I dont think the teacher should have said he has to wait though, she should be providing additional work, even if is sideways extension

To be fair, she may have said it in a jokey manner. I'm seeing her tomorrow, just to see where we're at. The target in homework book thing has only happened this year, younger children don't have the same info provided.

It's not an approach I've ever come across (as KS2 teacher and assessment co-ordinator). In my Y4 class I have tables where six children are working at six different sub-levels. The whole class range from below 1c to 5a in their maths - I'd be completely insane if I were to say to one, "oh, I can't teach you how to double numbers until X has learnt to recognise numbers 1 to 10". I might of course say, "I'm afraid I haven't printed out the target cards for the next stage so it'll be a day or two before you get a fresh one to stick in your maths book".

My class know their targets but don't know their levels (although I'd tell them/their parents if they were interested). Their targets are also shared with parents at parents' evenings along with suggestions of things to work on at home.

All sorted. Teacher explained how the children are grouped on tables roughly according to ability, and that she likes to move them forward in groups so that they can work on group tasks etc. She was just jokily (is that a word?) praising him for working hard, and he will be working on the next target, just not in the group work. Now am aware that she will roll her eyes to her colleagues in the staff room and tell another pushy parent story for them all to snigger over

Just to let you know, I've never been one for mocking "pushy parents"! Hope that relieves paranoia a bit.

It was less paranoia and more self-mockery. I think

I'm not in to 'pushy parent mockery' either... the actively pushy ones (who are a breed apart from the majority of interested parents) don't need me to relay tales of pushy parenting; the problematic pushy ones tend to 'push' all over the school so will have told the office staff, Head, cleaners, other parents, Governors, most other teachers etc. etc. of their complaint/child's latest accomplishment.

Asking a question does not equal pushy!