Can any teachers advise please?

[oldanddecrepit]

I had a meeting at my DD's school recently she scored an N in recent mock maths test. I know she struggles with maths, but I didn't realise she was that bad. Her reports have only said that she is working below average.

At the end of KS1 she was assessed as working at a level 2b.

At the meeting her teacher said they had been surprised that she had been given that level at the end of yr2 and the things that had been marked off that she could do, but obviously couldn't. They also said that she has made significant progress in ks2.

I don't know what help she gets in maths, they are supposed to be arranging a meeting for me to talk to the maths teacher.

A friend said she shouldn't be taking the SAT tests if she isn't going to get a level 3, but the school have said she will get extra time.

Is my friend right?
Should the school have let me know that my DD was that poor at maths?
She has english targets on he IEP, but no maths

The tests are designed for children working at levels 3-5, but if she was a 2b im Y2 then she should be well within those now. N means below level 3, but a one off test does not mean she works in the classroom day to day at below level 3. It is a concern though.

I would be asking what progress they think she has made between Y2 and Y6 and what they intend to do to address her poor attainment between now and leaving primary. And don't be fobbed off by help that is given only between now and SATs - your dd should have been identified way before now and her lack of progress addressed then. Right now she needs extra help before going to high school, ideally until she leaves.

Just noticed she has Literacy targets on her IEP - could poor reading skills have influenced her Maths paper mark? She could be entitled to reading help for Maths if that's the case and it happens day to day in the classroom.

Is your daughter in year 6?

A 2b in year 2 is 'average', therefore if your child is not scoring on a sats paper four years on, then something is up. If your child has made 'average' progress, they should now be a level 4.

You need a meeting with the head teacher and senco in my opinion as this is a worry if you have not been alerted to the fact that your child is this far behind. Some questions you need answering:

1. Why was your child assessed at 2b if she wasn't a 2b as they are saying? Why were the assessment procedures so lax?
2. Why has no one alerted you to this in the last four years?
3. Why are there are no maths references on the iep?
4. What support has your daughter received to help her catch up? What can you be doing to help?

What is the school like generally? Has nothing been alluded to in your child's school career

Based on your op, there are some serious questions to answer. Either the assessment in the school is rubbish or your child has made no progress. Either which way, your child is being let down.

Thank you for answering Feenie.

Her teacher said she has made significant progress in maths and english,since starting at the school in yr3. She had level 2 a's and b's in English at the end of KS1 as well, but is now only a 3c, school said she might get a 3b in English.

She can read the questions she is given in Maths, but doesn't always know how to answer the questions all the time. Sometimes even if I ask her a question I know she can answer like whats 7+5 she will say I don't know.
Her homework this week had a question Write as a fraction one month of a year. She said she couldn't do it until my DH sat her down and asked what a fraction was, how many months in a year etc. Then she could.

DD is in a school that streams for maths and english (4 form entry).
In maths she is in the bottom group of the bottom class, her teacher thinks her group has a TA, but isn't sure (he doesn't teach her maths). They don't know if there is a difference between her work in class and her work in tests.

What help could she get?

That's up to the school - in ours she would have got one to one help from a teacher on top of her normal Maths lessons, and been identified as not making progress way before y6.

I am struggling to understand how her teacher can claim she has made significant progress since y3 if she has only gone from a 2a to a 3c in 4 years - that's the kind of progress normally made in two thirds of one year.

Was she in an infant school before? This may explain inflated grades; they norm have to deal with the problems of grade inflation at year 6.

Why doesn't her teacher know about the maths teaching? It's not an excuse that she's streamed, the teacher should have ready access to that information/know off the top of her head.

Based on her English grades, she will have made one years progress over the course of four. Totally unacceptable.

Is the first you have heard of the maths issues? I'm slightly dumbstruck by what is happening in this case, there are some serious questions to be answered.

(I should have said, I'm a primary school teacher!)

She was in an infant school before.

My friend came with me to the meeting and asked if her grades had been inflated at ks1, but the school wouldn't say because it would be unprofessional. They didn't say what they though she was working at when she started in Juniors, just that she has made significant progress.

Do they have to give me her teacher assessments for all of juniors if i ask for them?

They have said before about her struggling in maths, but I didn't realise she was quite that bad.

The meeting was with the teacher and SENCO, neither of them had any maths information available

You need to meet with the head and senco as I think you and your child are being let down. Have they not shared any assessment grades with you since she has been there? We let parents know levels during every parents meeting and they get a copy of levels in every report.

I'm feeling really angry for you, you are being let down. I would write a letter, covering the questions above and say that you want a meeting to discuss all these points with the head teacher. In the letter to the head, outline ks1 grades and your experiences so far; as it is such a big school the head may well not know the ins and outs of the case. By giving the questions in advance, you can then expect clear answers in the meeting.

The school don't give us levels, we are just told if they are below, on or above target on reports, with some teacher feedback. At parents evenings we are given feedback, but no levels.

Thank you both for your advice