How can I tell if my DS is on track using end yr 7 targets vs current results?

[Arabella11]

Hi all, I have just read my DS first report for year 7. In primary school there was a graph line to see where he was headed. I now am presented with current progress vs year end target and have no idea whether he is on track?

Is there a website that provides term by term targets? or can anyone make sense of the following......

English Reading - Current - 4.2 MTG 6.5
English Writing - Current - 4.2 MTG 6.5
Maths - Current 5.8 -MTG 6.8
Science -Current- 4.5 MTG 6.5
Art -Current 4.5 MTG 5.8
Drama -Current- 4.2 MTG 6.5
French -Current- 3.5 MTG 5.8
Geog -Current- 3.5 MTG 6.2
Hist -Current- 3.5 MTG 6.2
ICT -Current- 3.8 MTG 5.8
Music -Current- 4.8 MTG 6.8
PE -Current- 4.5 MTG 6.2
Religion -Current- 4.5 MTG 6.2
Food / Tec -Current- 4.2 MTG 5.8

Thanks:-)

Those look like end KS3 targets to me (ie end Y9).
They are basically saying he should progress 2 whole levels in the 3 years. They will have been set on how he has presented this term plus CATs if he did them (except perhaps English and Maths with will have come from SATs) so almost by definition he is currently on target.

My guess is that 4.2 = 4c, 4.5 = 4b, 4.8 = 4a
They use decimals rather than letters so they can be averaged.

You'll notice a number of subjects are only at 3.something. This is OK. At primary these aren't levelled or assessed and it take the pupils time to learn the specific skills needed to go up the levels, eg in history talking about sources, bia etc. French in particular can often start at 2.something as often hardly done at Primary.

The maths target seems low compared with current. Did he only get a 4 in y6 SATs? You would probably be hoping he beats that target based on current level.

My DD hardly moved up in her PE levels in KS3. She has zero coordination. we looked at the 'attitude' levels. As long as she was trying that's all we cared about.

It's bollocks. Meaningless bollocks. Please don't try to work out term by term targets, levels are designed to measure progress across a whole key stage. Sublevels are made up, subjectively assessed and differ from subject to subject and school to school.

Basically, look at how well his teachers think he is doing in terms of effort, is he producing good homework etc. Look at the whole level to get a general idea of where he is at in terms of national comparisons. But you can't measure progress and plot it meaningfully on a little graph and expect to see a nice straight line. Learning doesn't work like that.

Thanks TeenandTween. He was level 5 for his SATS in Maths???

You're right the targets could be end KS3 it doesnt actually say on his report helpful .

Very interesting to hear that French could start as low as two etc this was just the kind of guide I was looking for, at present I just don't know until I talk to his teachers but want to go in informed

noblegiraffe thanks for your bollocks! I get what you're saying but I'm a graphical girl and like to see trends before it's too late. Just a rough guide will do

But aside from the bollocks, I'm a maths teacher, if he was a level 5 at KS2, then 6.8 would be too low a target for end of Y9 (a level 5 should be getting at least a level 7). If he was a very good level 5, then 6.8 may be an end of Y7 target, although a challenging one. But as the rest look like Y9 targets, who knows what's actually going on!

To be honset Arabella, you need to wait until end Y7 before you look for trends.

With my DD I found that progress was definitely not linear, and different subjects moved up at different times, but the average direction was up if you see what I mean.

One thing I did was contact teachers if the progress was clearly less than other subjects (if it was a subject I cared about). e.g If history stays level for 3 terms, then I would drop an email in asking if I should be concerned. Then i would get an answer back either syaing don't worry, or she's not talking about bias or whatever.

I would at this point query the maths target however.

Most important is to focus on and praise attitude levels if you are given these.

Thanks both, I'll sit back and see for a bit. However I will raise the maths target query. He's been set in top set for Maths but having done many practice papers with him would think he was a low 5 (primary school didnt provide a/b/c's)

Could you get your DS to ask his form tutor what MTG means? That's what I'd do if it were dd . . . (and threaten to phone & ask myself if she didn't!)

DD is in yr 7 & they've just been given targets for end yr 9 for many subjects - essentially it seems to be current level +2. (But I think so far maybe it is only english/welsh/maths/science ie the subjects levelled at end primary.)

Having said that it is much simpler as they don't do sub levels - so 4 = target 6, 5 = target 7 etc.

Love the straight talking, noblegiraffe! When reading the thread, was going to suggest contacting the school and asking the Head of Year (or a teacher) to explain. Noblegiraffe's point proves that they're an authority for explaining all this!

I'm pretty sure MTG isn't end of this yr...

I'm of OP; haven't had anything official thru about DD's targets. She tells me her assessment marks, at least.

lljkk - worth asking your dd? We've not had anything home, dd just told me about everyone being given them, & it was the context of the conversation that prompted it, not sure she would have mentioned otherwise IYSWIM.

MTG= mean target grade? / made-up target grade ?

We only got targets right at the end of the first term with the report.
Haven't got a full list of GCSE targets yet, first term y10.

OP, going back to 'making progress'. Have just checked my DD's end y9 report. Her progress from Dec y7 ranged from 3 sub levels (English, no not happy!) to 13 sub levels (French), but with a mean of around 6 sub levels. So a very wide range.

As a teacher, I'd forget it all. This sort of data is largely meaningless bullshit, frankly.
I'd keep your child focused, working and happy for now, choose whatever he's best at/interested in for GCSE and worry about targets then, because those grades are a genuine, tangible, reliable target.
Possibly not helpful, but realistic.

at Made-up Target Grade

I thought it stood for Magic: The Gathering.

@Takver: DD tells me targets but we don't know when they apply (now, end of y7, end of y8 or 9?). She doesn't know & neither do I.

I know her progress & achievement are fine, no worries there. Just feeling a bit information-deprived, iyswim.

We just got dd's first school report. As well as effort grades (A for effort for everything bar RE - proud parent emoticon :) ) it also gave current levels and target levels for end yr 9.

Well we have Parents evening next week so I will raise this then (I think MTG is minimum target grade - they also included exceeding target grades but left these out of the equation!) I do get the message not to focus too intently on these targets but a general gist would be good - we'll see