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Secondary education

Connect with other parents whose children are starting secondary school on this forum.

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Original poster

Sets in Maths- should I make my views known?

32 replies

savetti · 24/09/2020 10:30

Ds -always excelled at Maths- year 8 has been put in set 3.
It’s based on their exam last year, however there were a couple of them involved in a fire alarm that missed half an hour of the exam.
In his report and parents evening the teacher remarked that his exam results didn’t reflect his abilities. He said he was aware of the fire alarm issue- but not sure now that they’re taking this into consideration.
Do I remind them? Or do I trust them to put him in the right set, they’ve said they’re not fixed yet. His teacher from last year mentioned he should be higher, but not sure if he makes the decisions

OP posts:

RedskyAtnight · 24/09/2020 10:35

How many sets and how much overlap between sets? (As in, will it really make a huge difference if he's in a different set - at DC's school there wasn't a massive difference between Set 1 and Set 3 in Year 8).
Regardless of set, he should still be able to access work at an appropriate level, so it's only a problem if he isn't/can't. I would also trust the school to move him up if necessary (though this depends on how good your school is at doing this )

Joopy · 24/09/2020 10:35

How does DS feel? I would call and ask to talk to the maths teacher.

Original poster

savetti · 24/09/2020 10:39

There’s 4 sets. Meant to say, I’ve looked at the curriculum for set 3 and it’s all stuff that he did by himself in lockdown via hegarty maths.
Ds thinks it’s nonsense, a couple of his friends are in set 2 and he is much more able than them

OP posts:

BrieAndChilli · 24/09/2020 10:41

Surely a fire alarm during a test would have meant everybody missing half an hour of the test?

RickOShay · 24/09/2020 10:41

Definitely call them and explain.

Original poster

savetti · 24/09/2020 10:43

Brie- it wasn’t all of them, I can’t remember the details. But ds was raging when he came out of the exam cos they started late and didn’t get extra time.

OP posts:

Malmontar · 24/09/2020 10:45

I'd email tbh. This is one of those things that are so easily overlooked at the moment so I wouldn't count on the school to fix it off their own backs with everything else they're dealing with.

Nquartz · 24/09/2020 10:50

I’ve looked at the curriculum for set 3 and it’s all stuff that he did by himself in lockdown via hegarty maths.

I'd contact the school based on this, he'll just be bored if he is redoing work but depending on how good the teacher is they might not realise and he wastes time when he could be covering new work.

ladymalfoy · 24/09/2020 10:50

Yes. Email and explain. If any of his exercise books from Y7 are knocking around I’d use those as evidence of his ability and compare that work with what he’s doing know.
This will help you show his ability over a prolonged period not just an end of year test.
I write as a teacher in Sec Ed and we use past work to prove pupils are in the wrong sets to SLT/SMT .
Also mention that as a more able student he won’t be stretched or challenged and might run the risk of becoming ambivalent to the subject .
Too many High Schools use sets to manage behaviour as well.

hesaidshesaidwhat · 24/09/2020 10:54

I recently had a similar situation with maths sets. I emailed the school and there had been an administrative error and it was all rectified.

Email but don't show your hand straight off, let them investigate and come back to you with why they have done it. You can then counter with his reports/exam situation etc.

TW2013 · 24/09/2020 10:55

I think that I would just because in a year or two they will decide who does higher and who does foundation maths. It can be hard to catch up if they haven't covered the work.

Original poster

savetti · 24/09/2020 11:04

Ok, thanks
I’ve sent an email

OP posts:

portico · 26/09/2020 11:48

Good one savetti, don’t take any shit from the teachers. Hold your ground.

bravefox · 26/09/2020 12:26

@portico

Good one savetti, don’t take any shit from the teachers. Hold your ground.

What does this even mean? What sort of 'shit' do you have in mind?

BentBastard · 26/09/2020 14:01

It's difficult because we don't know how they did the setting but it's worth noting that just because he covered that curriculum stuff during lockdown it doesn't necessarily mean he did it correctly or with an adequate level of comprehension. I don't know if you then understanding of year 8 maths to know that for sure either.

My understanding is that sets are quite fluid in the first few weeks while everyone finds their correct place.

Of this were my son I would be asking what gaps in understanding had led to the drop in set and take it from there.

AlpineSnow · 26/09/2020 14:26

What set was he in last year?

Witchend · 26/09/2020 17:37

Hegaty maths is very popular round here, but from what I've seen it doesn't encourage them to think about the maths and understand it.

HandfulofDust · 26/09/2020 20:22

If he really excels then yes he should be in a higher set. Its not just the work he'll cover its extension material and competition with other bright students.

Original poster

savetti · 26/09/2020 20:33

They weren’t set last year.
He did do the work correctly, he constantly astounds me how quickly he picks up new maths problems, it comes very naturally to him.
He can’t work independently, so I had to be his teacher last year, every single lesson!

OP posts:

eddiemairswife · 26/09/2020 20:57

Why can't he work independently?

RedskyAtnight · 26/09/2020 21:38

If he can't work independently that would be a reason to be in a lower set. It's one thing to pick up things quickly if you have a 1:1 teacher; another to do it in a class situation.

Original poster

savetti · 27/09/2020 12:34

No, he can’t work independently at home
He’s fine in school

OP posts:

Original poster

savetti · 27/09/2020 12:40

Week after week, every piece of school work, every homework, every hegarty task is completed near perfectly
It’s literally this one exam and I just want to ensure it doesn’t go under the radar. Things are chaotic now, it could easily be missed

OP posts:

AlpineSnow · 27/09/2020 15:24

Usually schools do regular tests throughout the year rather than just one exam. They'd normally go by those rather than work done at home as some parents help out a lot with homework.

AlpineSnow · 27/09/2020 15:34

Worth checking with them though about the fire alarm and seeing what they say

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