Upcoming girls’ independent SW London schools 11+ exams

[Oceane11plus]

Are there any parents on this board with DDs due to sit independent school exams in January? If so where do you stand in terms of shortlisting schools, revisions etc Are you planning to do any work over the summer?

We are still in the process of fine tuning the list of schools... We will probably end up applying to about 4/5 schools, of which 2 are in the same consortium which means 3/4 exams max.
As far as I am aware, our prep has not recommended any specific revisions for the summer, but I was still planning to make her write some maths, English and VR/NVR past papers, as 2 months without doing anything seems too much so close to the exams. I was thinking of making her do one paper a week in each subject, on top of reading and boosting her vocabulary, with two weeks in August without any paper/formal work.

Any tips on what we should be doing at this stage and over summer holidays, notably from parents with past experience, would be super useful!

Thank you

Interesting - we've avoided the virtual open days so far as we (fortunately it turned out) viewed everywhere in Year 5, but I'm now wondering whether we might be missing out on some useful, up to date information.

I know this is an independents thread - but is anyone else applying for Graveney as well - we're out of borough so I've not heard anything on the grapevine about the Wandsworth test this year, other than it's now in December.

@Oceane11Plus

Are you aware of more schools changing their exam format this year due to Covid? I wonder if most independent schools are likely to drop the written maths and English papers, and use the ISEB pre test instead? Jags is not the only one one doing it, King’s in Wimbledon is also doing the same. The main advantage is that it significantly reduces the number of children sitting an exam on site as all the prep school children would be expected to take the exam at their prep. It will also be more flexible and easier to manage in case of more lockdowns or children being ill/isolating etc I can’t see how schools can organise exam sessions for close to 1000s of children in some cases in the current climate with social distancing rules likely to get tighter. It’s sounds like a logistical nightmare! No recent news from Putney High, CLGS, SPGS, Alleyns as far as I am aware?

SPGS does not plan any changes to their test. CLSG has made some changes, which are explained on their admission page.

@kittybloom thank you so much ! very helpfu

@Parkerspiece Thanks for flagging, I missed that re CLSG having already changed the format.
It sounds like most schools (except SPGS maybe?) are likely to drop the written exam.
As far as SPGS is concerned, they might have to call a much greater proportion of applicants after the online pre test to avoid having too many girls sitting the written exam (from my experience with previous DD they usually cull a small minority and invite most of them to sit the written exam).

Hello all, joining a bit late, I’ve been looking out for a thread like this. I did this with DS what feels like ages ago and have a DD in JAGS. Now applying to JAGS, Alleyns & Woldingham. DD already has a place in current senior school, but looking to move.
I have no experience of ISEB, either and feeling a little bit anxious about it all. Also DD is fairly young in her year group and has not sat exams like this before and very easily distracted, especially when doing work online.
With older DD she did mocks, and grammars and was a lot more mature and focused, because she really wanted it. I didn’t have to do much with her.
Because DD2’s school runs through she will be doing the exam in January in JAGS, also I feel it gives her a bit more time settling back into the routine of being physically back in school ( we’ll See how long that lasts). I believe JAGS have contacted prep schools to make arrangements with them and state schools will be doing the ISEB common tests in January along with those whose schools run through to secondary.
Woldingham are also using ISEB but they have specified the tests has to be between certain dates early in November and we are to make arrangements ourselves with our current school.
I’m wondering if that’s too early for her, bearing in mind you can only do it once. Or at least they use the results from the first test.
We haven’t heard from Alleyns about any modifications yet, but I expect there would be some.

@Oceane11Plus The first round test used by SPGS is CEM Select, which is also used by CLSG and Wycombe Abbey.

I mean CLSG will also use CEM Select for this year.

@Parkerspiece Yes that's what I saw, but what's unclear is whether girls only have to sit it once like the ISEB pre test, or whether each independent school will take into account the result from the test girls sit at this particular independent school.
For example DD1 sat the CEM select test twice (for WA then SPGS), I never knew if only the first result counted (in this case it would have been WA) or if each school took into account the result from the test sat at their school. The letters we received at the time seemed to imply the former, but then I wondered why my DD was invited to sit the test one more time at SPGS

@Oceane11Plus The school will decide which one to be used for admission if the child, as you said, has taken the same test more than once. SPGS has mentioned somewhere that the school may decide to take result from the first test. It's from my memory, but I can't remember exactly which document.

I've just seen that Tiffin are planning to go ahead with their Stage 1 test on 15 Oct but are splitting it into 2 sittings with one on the Friday as well.

Just to add to my earlier post, both PHS and SCHS are now confirmed on their websites as using ISEB. PHS dates are very early!!

Any idea what happens when we are an external candidate sitting for two or more schools now using ISEB? Do we have to sit it more than once?

Also, SCHS are requesting a 500 word handwritten creative writing exercise on a choice of topics to be released later - to be done at home with a declaration signed by the candidate and parents that it is their own work. Now that's not open to abuse at all, is it.

You only sit ISEB once so it will be the first schools you are registered with if you are a state candidate. I think it’s put me off registering for PHS as we’d effectively lose a months prep time.

With the 500 word prose piece, I almost wonder if you will get marked down if they are too good?!?

This has all completely thrown me tbh. I'm sure there are many advantages to the ISEB, especially in the current climate, but I definitely feel at a disadvantage now and don't really know what to do to prepare, even though the ISEB says no preparation is required.

Oddly, I also feel very conscious of coming from a state school now when I didn't before - I think it's because the links between the preps and the schools have really been emphasised and I'm aware that DD's school really couldn't give a stuff about independent school entries.

Fortunately DD seems fairly relaxed about the whole thing, and says she'll just turn up where's she's told and see what happens.

I wouldn’t worry about coming from a state school as long as your child is bright. In my opinion, the independent senior schools actually like state school candidates as they know they have not been prepped for years for the exams by their schools.

Agreed, it can be advantageous to be applying to senior independent school from a primary state school. Many deliberately select a high proportion of applicants from state schools.

The ISEB is a good solution as it is an established selection exam, it covers English, Maths, VR and NVR and it doesn't require any preparation beyond the Year 5 National Curriculum.

I agree with PPs. I believe bright state school applicants who’ve done adequate preparation at home have an advantage to some extent. DD1 came from a state school and got offered a place at all the very selective independent schools she applied to (only one was WL). Her sister is at a prep and I am more worried for her than I was for DD1 as I believe there is no room for error as there won’t be any adjustment and competition from other prep school pupils is fierce.

It seems extraordinarily late for schools such as Latymer to announce their use of ISEB. Bringing forward the exam by a month.

@dinosaurinmybelly

Agreed, it can be advantageous to be applying to senior independent school from a primary state school. Many deliberately select a high proportion of applicants from state schools.

The ISEB is a good solution as it is an established selection exam, it covers English, Maths, VR and NVR and it doesn't require any preparation beyond the Year 5 National Curriculum.

Please can you confirm it is restricted to the year 5 curriculum ? My understanding was that it included the year 6 also thank you

That's what it says on the ISEB website - I'm not convinced either though! We obviously missed a term of Year 5 teaching this year, so it's not actually ideal (plus I actually have no idea what the English Year 5 curriculum consists of!).

I think ISEB and CEM Select only have one ‘paper’ of questions from what I read, so they will probably take the first set of responses otherwise it would be unfair? It’s very confusing. Are anyone else’s DD schools charging for hosting the ISEB? Ours wouldn’t normally do it and say it costs £120 to enter.
Also just a reminder that a few schools’ closing dates are coming up fast! Sutton High and Woldingham are this Thursday! Thank goodness for my spreadsheet.

I am feeling totally thrown by this. My daughters prep is on the back foot with the switch to ISEB so we are in no better position than anyone else!

I work in the prep system and I think more secondary schools will make exam changes soon. Covid is in some secondary's and once Public health England start going through their practices it hits home that hosting hundreds of children in classrooms in early Jan is highly impractical.

We just received a letter that Surbiton High School are keeping the math/english format but they expect your daughter to sit the exam at home. You need two computers - one to access the tests and one so they can invigilate. They say they are doing it to make it easier for the girls and parents but I'm not sure this sounds any easier - imagine the stress of having to make sure your wifi is working properly and having your DD in the room next door doing the test?!

That sounds a nightmare Mycats - we'd have to send everyone else out for the exam so that DD wouldn't get disturbed as she'd want to do it in our open plan living area.

SCHS confirmed that they only sit the ISEB once to me. Plus they can either sit the creative writing element either at their school if they can invigilate, or at home with a signed declaration - which makes me think it's a timed exercise rather than working on the best example of their work.

I really can't help but think anything at home is open to abuse.