DS1 failed the Year 1 Phonics test. Is he alone?

[AnnieMated]

Shocked and upset actually. Trying my hardest not to be, but he's a pretty good reader and is finishing ORT level 6 and reading fluently with no trouble.

He got 28 out of 40 and the pass mark is 40.

What I most concerned about is that the school didn't even inform parents their children were going to be tested, we just got a bland, round-robin letter today in their book bags with the results.

Anyone like to reassure me? Don't want to ask the other mums from the school but will have a chat with the teachers tomorrow if I can...

Feenie

"The method has had 'no measurable effect on pupils’ reading scores at age 11, the LSE's Centre for Economic Performance (CEP) said."

www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/04/24/teaching-phonics-does-not-improve-childrens-reading-skills-landm/

Phonics can be useful in helping children to learn to read, but if a child has learned to read without learning through phonics/ solely through phonics/ enough to pass the phonics check, then there isn't a problem.

If a child is struggling with phonics and struggling with reading that is a different issue, but OP said her child was a fluent reader. In fact, some fluent readers can struggle with the phonics test because they use other strategies to try and turn the 'nonsense' words from the test into real words (because quite frankly why would their teacher be making them read out nonsense?)

ReallyTired There shouldn't be any reason why the children should know it's an official test or know how they did.

I admit we were quite open with DS about it, but we knew it was something he wouldn't have any problem with.

How would children know that they have 'failed' this test? Unless parents tell them so.

Our school did supply the school's results in the report - we had 93% pass (more girls than boys). They have been practising the concept of 'alien words' for months and seem to teach phonics well.

DS2 isn't anywhere near a fluent reader - he often comes across words he doesn't know and manages to decode them. He scored 40 which is better than DC1 scored when they did it, despite them being a free reader with a reading age far ahead of actual age.

Schools provide the results in an envelope. Children who do well are often congratulated by their parents. Children talk to each other in the playground. Most children aren't stupid. The children who failed the phonics test have remedial phonics after school in year 2. Need I say more - it's not nice for small children or their parents.

I feel that children should not be entered for a test that they have no hope of passing. A child who scored 2/40 should never been entered for a test when it would obvious they had no hope of passing. I would like a system when children can sit the test when they are ready.

More able children could sit the test in reception and if they have a good pass mark they could move on to more challenging phonics or other aspects of literacy. Children with learning difficulties might sit the test for the first time in year 3. Schools should have a clear plan when they are going to enter children for a test so that they pass first time.

Maybe there could be opportunities to sit the test in December or June. Maybe a computer programme with a bank of thousands of nonsense words could generate new tests every six months.

Paperclips The article you quote also says:

However, those who were at risk of struggling with their reading – those who came from poor family backgrounds or who did not speak English as a first language – received significant long-term benefits from synthetic phonics, according to the study.

100paperclips, OP is 4 years old. We are responding to the new poster who revived this thread, who's dd got 2/40 and beloe expectation for all subject.

below

It's also questionable that the study was measuring a properly implemented, genuinely "synthetic phonics" approach. See here:

www.iferi.org/iferi_forum/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=583

I thought it was a check rather than a test, with the aim of highlighting where there was an issue.

Maybe some schools deal with it better than others as DS's school invited all the parents in and explained what it was about including providing last years words to go through at home. Hence DS's mark was no surprise to us.

Personally I think the made up words is a good idea and shouldn't be an issue as at the age of 5/6 you simply don't know every word especially names (I work for an international company and deal regularly with names that are new to me even now).

My dd is six and in year one. She got 27/40. She has autism and doesn't read by phonics and learns words via sight. In all honesty I'm not fussed. At the moment I think the education system is a mess (she also has a sibling in year two going into year three). And the government has messed so much about. My dd missed out on a lot of teaching in her first year as she was only allowed to do half days. All the tests for our poor kids. The system is failing our kids if you ask me.

I actually think PSC is good for children. Those who have problems can be identified early.
I heard a year or 2 years above my ds's year had bad result as a whole school. Obviously there must have been something wrong with phonics teaching, so they went through massive change. I'm glad they found it out.

I think any school who characterises it as a test of the kids, rather than a check to identify those who need help, and as irvineoneohone says a check of the school's teaching is probably getting things wrong.

DD actually did last years in reception as a check, I don't know if all of them did all of the words, but they all did at least some of them.

The phonics test tests phonic decoding. This is one skill children can employ to help them read, but it is not reading.

Its a phonics screening check---- so of course it checks phonics

Msqueen my son is also autistic and was at school before the screening check was introduced as a result his difficulties were masked by his high reading ability. I really wish it had been around when he was in Y1. Instead it took until secondary school for someone to recognise his difficulties with phonics

Very interesting reading the older parts of this thread. It certainly sounds like the screening check has done a lot to improve phonics teaching. You don't hear "most of Y1at our school failed" any more! It also sounds like at least in the early days a lot of schools were not administering it right so the kids weren't told which were made up words. Though a friend still had that, along with "we have to take their first answer" (my bolding) two years ago.

You said, paperclip, that phonic decoding is ' not reading'. Which is just ridiculous.

My now 10 yr old DD (end of yr 5) took this phonics test at the end of Yr 1 in the first year it was introduced and didn't reach the expected pass mark. It enabled the school to highlight that she needed a bit of extra help with decoding words. She's just had a brilliant result on her end of year (non-statutory tests that the school do marked in the same way as the new SATS) reading/comprehension test of 129. Her teacher is over the moon and it just shows that picking up issues early on can really help the school to help the child at a young age.

That is great news AlwaysTimeForWine. (I like your user name.) Your daughter's experience shows that failing the phonics check does not mean a child is doomed.

It also shows the PSC working exactly as intended. The child whose phonic knowledge was not quite secure was given extra help and is now doing extremely well.

At my dad's school we knew the tests were happening but there was no real pressure put on anyone.

My daughter didn't even know she had done the test.

My ds got 36/40. He's completely not bothered (not that he should be) and we've not discussed his results with anyone, but I'd just like to say (here) that I am EXTREMELY proud of him. He's had to endure speech and language therapy since starting in reception year, when he started he was unintelligible (literally) he's come so far, has been discharged from salt and is obviously progressing well in other areas.

AnnieMated - sorry not read all 7 pages of this thread but just wanted to reassure you that my DD failed the phonics test last year - same score as your DS. I went to see teacher about it - she said it was completely nothing to worry about given her abilities, reading level and full understanding of phonics, and she wouldnt be needing or receiving any further intervention during yr2. I felt reassured and thought nothing more of it, until I responded to a phonics check thread on here.....

I was told that her teacher was wrong not to be worried / that I should be worried / that my DD would need intervention. It just didn't sit right with me - she was then and is now a brilliant reader and top group phonics.

She got no intervention, re-sat it this year and scored a full 40/40. She has met all age related expectations (working at expected standard) and some areas she's working at deeper lever within expected. Failing it doesnt always mean they need extra help or intervention - they just didnt get it on the day (I suspect a student teacher might've administered the test last year and didnt remind my daughter to stop turning nonsense words into real words).