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Primary education

Join our Primary Education forum to discuss starting school and helping your child get the most out of it.

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Original poster

So if year 2 sats aren't a big deal why on earth are school sending home past papers?

15 replies

caffeinated · 22/04/2013 21:38

Dd2 came home today with 2 old maths papers and a short and long writing task paper to be completed and returned tomorrow morning. Is that strange? Never had that with dd1.

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Feenie · 22/04/2013 21:41

Because they are clearly clueless regarding the assessment system at the end of KS1. Depressingly so. My ds is in Y2 - have gritted my teeth re letters trumpeting SAT's (with misplaced apostrophe, natch), but would be sending any practice papers back to them unused.

Original poster

caffeinated · 22/04/2013 21:43

I haven't used them. I had tea and 3 other children to parent without having to coerce a reluctant child into that.

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Original poster

caffeinated · 22/04/2013 21:44

I suppose I should expect multiple reading papers tomorrow.

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ClayDavis · 22/04/2013 21:45

What Feenie said. Also, I think some schools got into a habit of sending them years ago and just haven't moved on.

Original poster

caffeinated · 22/04/2013 21:50

Dd1 was in year 2 last year and did none of this but it is a different teacher this year. Who I just lost a bit of respect for.

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signet · 22/04/2013 21:54

Our school is really pushing hard for yr2 sats this year for some reason. Not sure why. My two oldest had no clue about it and to be fair neither did most of the parents. This year though for the first year they have been sending home work for SATS for the children, had a parents meeting about it and are really working them hard for it. I have no clue why it is suddenly different. I'm ignoring everything they send home though. DS is only just 7 for goodness sake and it's enough for him to do his readings and spellings without any additional pressure.

They even sent him home a huge workbook to be completed over Easter in preparation for SATs. It's gone crazy!

Feenie · 22/04/2013 21:59

From the 2013 ARA:

Teachers can use the tasks and tests to inform their assessment judgements at any time during the year, but children are not to be tested more than once during the year in each subject or attainment target

Now, it doesn't actually say 'or do past paper after past paper for homework', but I would say it's implicit, wouldn't you?

ipadquietly · 22/04/2013 22:06

Is this for real? All Y2 teachers get the guidance quoted by Feenie. As the tests are only used to support the assessments made by the teacher and the results are never going to be reported to parents, then why.....why?...... are some teachers making children practice papers and sit 'mock' exams?

It's a total mystery to me.

Original poster

caffeinated · 22/04/2013 22:24

Signet it's peculiar isn't it?

Feenie I totally agree. I imagine they have sent them home to familiarise them with the format so that it doesn't put them off during the actual test. So they perform better. Which seems almost like passive cheating. But I can't see why they would bother with that because the reported levels are their own assessments anyway.

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Feenie · 22/04/2013 22:35

Exactly! And teachers are not supposed to be over reliant on the tests as evidence for their teacher assessments.

Original poster

caffeinated · 22/04/2013 22:41

Madness.

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amidaiwish · 23/04/2013 10:55

Craziness. Dd2 is having the same issue, doing practice SATS in school, being told to get a level 3 they need to score 12/30 on the L3 paper etc... Dd1 2 years ago in the same school was oblivious. dd2 is stressed. I just can't wait for them to be over. Happening throughout may, we've been told to give them early nights and plenty of rest so they can perform at their best FFS. Have of her class have has tutor sessions, the whole thing is madness.

Original poster

caffeinated · 23/04/2013 11:23

Amidai that's a few of us then that have older children that have been completely oblivious to them and then a massive change in approach by the school. How odd.

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mrz · 23/04/2013 18:34

I know of one local school that sent home the actual test papers as homework last year

ipadquietly · 23/04/2013 19:06

I'd take a copy of the Assessment and Reporting Arrangements (linked by Feenie) to the HT and the governors. These are the statutory guidelines, and anyone not following them is breaking the law. They quite clearly state that children should only take one test:

'Teachers can use the tasks and tests to inform their assessment judgements at any time during the year, but children are not to be tested more than once during the year in each subject or attainment target.

Teachers must not use the tests and tasks contents to prepare children for the assessments. This could lead to inaccurate results that do not represent the children?s unaided abilities, which would not be useful when informing teacher assessment judgements.'

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