Anyone else fed up with flipping SATS pressure on children?

[CoffeeCrazedMama]

Sorry - rant coming up. ds has just come downstairs in tears - he is not a 'crying' sort of child, normally incredibly stoic. He has been doing a 'practice' Yr 6 sats test, for which he must use a timer and not refer to schoolwork. He is usually at the top of his class, but the pressure from the sats to achieve something called level 6 is really getting to him. He will be scored on this practice test, and the teacher will say whether he qualifies for the higher level. There is a lot of competitiveness in class over these too. All upset, 'teacher expects better of me' etc. Won't listen to me that these tests aren't about him, they are about the school (funnily enough the teachers never let this on to the kids). Yes,he is tired after weekend away but he shouldn't be so distressed. I am very at the pressure schools put the children under for these ridiculous tests - been here before with dds. Year 6 have had enough with all the secondary school place palaver and now this. Grrr.

Put the test away.
Tell him it's not necessary and to enjoy his bank holiday.
You are right. He shouldn't be so distressed. It's ridiculous the pressure being put on children for SATS. Try and get it across to him that he should try his best and ignore everything else that's said.

Look at key stage levels.
"By the age of 11, most children are expected to achieve level 4."
"By the age of 14, most children are expected to achieve level 5."
So not sure what is to be gained by your ds by being pushed to level 6 and making him miserable in the process.

I am a Year 6 teacher and I agree with you coffee.
No child should ever be reduced to tears by exam pressure at the age of 11.
The average child in Year 6 should get a level 4 in their SATs so there is no need for your child to be under pressure from school to get a level 6. We do not put any children forward for level 6 because they are under enough pressure as it is.
I agree with juuule, tell him to put the test away and go and play

Level 6 is not a statutory level at KS2 (7-11), so these tests are actually optional for the school (although the LA may be insisting they do them)It won't affect his normal SATs results and afaik won't affect the schools league position either.

my children have been worried to death about sats over the years.Whether this is right or wrong I told them that they are used to assess the school and not them and they only make the school look bad and not them.

My niece is in an absolute state about them and it is an absolute disgrace.

At end of KS1 - "By the age of 11, most children are expected to achieve level 4."
From my link below.

Ooops sorry that was KS2.
Should have been "By the age of seven, most children are expected to achieve level 2.
"

Is it level 2-3 at age 7?

Ds1 was 5 and in yr 1 in February and sat past year 2 SATS papers - I don't even know why really. One night he was a bit tearful and said 'Miss X makes me do hard maths'. When I asked her about it she said it wasn't surprising he found it hard as it had things in it like division which, of course, they haven't even covered half way through year 1!! Apparently he found the literacy paper fine.

Bizarre - I still don't know what the reason was for him doing it. THey got a small group of the more able ones in his class to do it.

Btw, teacher was not instigator - it must have been 'head driven' as she agreed it was a ridiculous thing to make them do! Maybe I should investigate it more?...

I can't remember clearly but I know at least one of the subjects is divided into 2a,2b,2c. I think it's English and it indicates how close to a lvl 1 or lvl 3 the lvl 2 is iyswim. I would have to look it up to see which is the higher a or c.

2b average for KS1 SATs

Here you go. This might throw a bit more light on it.

My son is downstairs doing a test paper for science at the moment, he had 45 minutes to do it, but teacher doesn't have a problem with parents going through it with them after, to explain what they don't understand.

My son's teacher said to us they don't even mention level 6 to parents, although she did give them some level 6 maths questions to do for fun, in their revision club which is either coming in early every day or staying late on Thursday.

I have no problem with Sats the way they are done at my children's school. Their results are usually above Hertfordshire average, but the pressure on the children is nowhere near what I have heard of in other local schools.

Thanks everyone for your comments. Ds has finished his test, calmed down, had his lunch and now having some quiet relaxation time. On the issue of Level 6, I don't mind if the school want to try out how much some of the abler children can achieve by having a go at the higher level - there are some bright children in that class, including ds , but what irritates me is the way they go about it. Extra coaching for that group of children, and then throughout the year constantly appraising the children's achievements in the terms of what 'level' that makes them. Ds gets quite obsessive about it. Also, the school has always done very well so year on year the pressure mounts on the children and teachers to stay at the top. Fine, measure the children with your tests, but don't have them seeing themselves in terms of what level their Sats work is worth!