Can parents boycott SATS by refusing to allow their children to participate in them?

[conistonoldwoman]

Just curious...don't think I'd attempt something so radical although I regard this appalling system with absolute loathing.

I hope you told them where to go toughasoldboots

massive like what? Tough..

I don't agree with them, but taking DCs out seems to give the kids the impression that they are something dreadful that should be avoided. Instead I just told them that they were testing the school to see if the teachers were teaching properly.

I have no interest in the results (well, not true I am a bit nosy!) and tell the kids that they are just practice for real exams in secondary school. That its good to get in the habit of how to practise for tests now when they don't really matter.

However, I'm confused by the post earlier in this thread that 'high schools use the results to grade the children in Y7 ?' Do they?

"My DS had the first six months of year six wasted due to SATS. They were pressurised, told it would affect their classes in secondary school ( it doesn't, this is a grammar school area) and were coached to do them in special 'catch up' classes."

it may not to the 23-odd % who go the the grammar school. But it sure as hell does to the other 77%. But as usual, mumsnet is the preserve of 11+ passers!

Dd is doing very well, thank you.

Ds will be streamed according to his SATS results on his first day in the high school in September.

my boys high school uses the sats to stream initially and then performs their own assesment in the first term, so they are useful from that pov and also as they go into high school they will be having more regular testing, ds1 has them termly in all subjects, and it just part of the process in getting them ready for exams, gcse etc.

They readjust the sets in January. But the school has very few high achievers, so it is very important that if your child is one they find their peers as quickly as possible!

I don't see the problem with SATs. Maybe because my ds's school place no real pressure on the children about them and have been having a normal term at school with no practice papers as yet. I took the 11+ as a child, and lots of children take entrance exams for schools so what is the harm of a few more tests at school. I don't think the children mind, as long as they are not pressurised.

If you boycott the SATs the school get a lower grade as i think an absence is counted as a fail (I think). This will make the school look like it is less affective than it is which is not really fair on it, although if the child really is very ill it is awful that they are still pressured to take the exams!

I just had to go to a meeting to discuss both the phonics class for year 1 students and the SATS for year two as DD is being put in a straddling class (between year 1 and year 2) in September. So she's having both tests, at six.

That should not happen whomovedmychocolate regardless of it being a mixed year class. She should only do the phonics check if she is Y1 or the National Curriculum tests if she is Y2 not both.

Well that's what I thought Mrz - will have to have words again.

seeker - that seems a very odd way to do things. I take it there is a great deal of movement between sets throughout Year 7 else they will potentially end up with some very odd combinations?

DCs secondary set from day 1 and they are one of the most improved schools in the country. It certainly isn't a problem at dcs school.

In my area schools set from day 1 using the SATs then use internal tests to set children in Y8.

I don't think the sort of secondaries that people join from private schools generally do this

At dcs school they also sit cats in the July before they start as part of the transfer process.

I may be mistaken but I don't think there have been any secondary modern schools in the UK since the 70s