People who don't understand what SATS levels mean....

[seeker]

and ask about them on mumsnet rather than googling....... Isn't it interesting that their children are never below average.......?.....

Yes, seeker.

Hm, does make you feel as if your 'average' child is at the bottom of the pile!

Well, quite .
However, it does raise the interesting issue of why parents feel the need to 'stealth boast' on MN, doesn't it?

My view is that perhaps it is because our uptight UK culture doesn't like to celebrate academic success and achievement, and to talk about it (or money/earnings!) is somehow seen as crass and boastful, in the way that talking about a child's musical or sporting prowess is not.

Perhaps people come on here asking about 'what SATs levels mean' to get the warm glow we all feel when we are proud of our children and someone else acknowledges it too? In which case, it is a sad reflection of the way that our culture seems to reject 'cleverness' as geeky, sad or boastful, and people don't feel they can talk about these things in real life for fear of being condemned.

Having said that, I come on here to ask questions, not because I want to know 'facts', but because I want people's opinions on those facts. How many people are told their children are 'fine', 'making progress', and then find out on here that that actually means they are well behind or ahead of what is expected for their age?

So, I don't think it is just a question of 'why don't people Google', it runs deeper than that.

I come on here to ask advice, I had four children and the reason I have recently come on here is to ask about my youngest who is well below average but I like to know how this compares to other children so it gives me a clear picture on how she is doing. My daughter is at level W in year one, however I also have a child at the other end of the extreme, shes in yr 5 and just come out with a level 5C in literacy, I havent come on here to ask about the one whos clearly doing well but I dont have a problem with anyone coming on and asking, I love hearing about children doing well and yes as a parent I was buzzing when my daughter came out last week and told me she had a 5 c in literacy, I wanted to shout from the roof tops how proud i felt and why shouldnt I, I think people should actually be able to come on here and chat to other parents without worrying about what people will say and if they want to come on and tell people how proud they are then why not :) My little struggling year one also makes me proud in many other ways and if i want to brag about them i flippin well will lol :D

Well, the reason why I wouldn't want to 'boast' or discuss my child's academic achievments, especially on the school run is because I don't want to make others feel bad.

I will discuss it with friends whose DC are doing well, but I won't discuss it with one of my DS's friend's mum whose DS is not doing well at school.

Agree with LeftToMyOwnDevices. It's not the done thing to boast in real life, people suspect that their children are well ahead, but don't get much more than a "yes, they're doing fine" from school. So it's very tempting to come on here and get the warm glow of knowing that "fine" translates as "jolly clever".

It works both ways, though. There's always people who will say "yes, they're well ahead but so are lots of other people, so meh!"

Have also seen plenty of posts from people who suspect their children are behind, but haven't really been told how far behind before coming on MN.

SATS show nothing. the children are prepped endlessly for them

Besides, I found lots of guiding info and ideas on MN, when I was told my DS is where he sould be in maths, he's fine - and then I found out that he was not fine, that he was behind! I then went to find out what he should be able to do and supported him. Now, 6 months later he is not behind anymore, but ahead! Boast! I don't understand why the school can't just tell parents?

The stealth boasts by others should therefore annoy you as much as the rest of us then, Madmum, if you know you're query is genuine but the weight of evidence is that a lot of them just cannot be, so people like you don't get fair treatment as a result of the stealth boasters.

Maybe LeftToOwnDevices is right & we need the occasional "Blatent Brags" thread in Chat for everyone to happily share & offload & others can hide & ignore it.

Yes, I've been asking questions about level 6 papers. This is because in RL there are mums who are about the top groups extra tuition.
This is despite the fact that it's outside lesson time, giving the teachers more time for the middle group in class.

Why do you worry about other people getting angry. You should do what you feel is right for your child. There will always be somebody who doesn't like it.