11 plus support thread 2022

[PalindromemordnilaP]

Anyone else have a DC sitting 11+ this Autumn?

If so, would you like to chat on a support thread?

DD is sitting her exam tomorrow.

Anyone else? Waiting for the results will be nail-biting.

Think our results are posted out second class at the end of this week- second class post combined with postal strikes is going to make for a fun waiting game. It seems like such an archaic system. Why can't they just email as well as sending a hard copy then everyone receives them on the same day?

@Dynamix that does sound annoying, ours are sent in post but if you applied online which most will have done you can log into your account the morning they are posted and see instantly.

Well that sounds very sensible! I applied online so I'm now off to double check if we can do that here as well (I'm fairly certain not though as I've never heard anyone mention it).

Well, I just rang and they are posted out second class... no information at all available online. They said to ring if results haven't arrived after two weeks .... I'll be testing my hair out after two weeks How painful and unnecessary. I really hope they come in a timely manner with the postal strike. Sorry for the rant!

That's not the one which followed some Year 6 pupils in a Kent primary through their 11+ exam journey up to getting the results was it?

Getting close now 8 days to wait. Finding not knowing really hard. Worrying now in case my church reference not accepted for second choice school or just too far. Worrying about which to put as 3rd and 4th choice schools. Was leaning towards putting local secondary modern as 4th even though I don't want him to go there, but just looked and progress 8 is -3.60 for maths (maybe because its so bad its broken down into subjects on performance tables website) so looks like I will be putting another long shot school down.

I think so @Meredusoleil is the trailer.

I watched it and found it heartbreaking stuff 💔

FWIW, we put dd1 through this process 3 years ago and have decided not to with dd2 this year. Dd1 did get offered a place at 1 of the 3 grammars she sat exams for, but we decided the long journey was not worth the potential extra benefits the school would offer. (We had originally planned to move house closer to the school, but changed our mind.)

She didn't pass 1 school. Passed both the others but her score was too low for 1 of them as we were out-of catchment for both. She got offered the 3rd one in April which we had to decline. I'm actually glad now as dd2 will have sibling priority at dd1's school and no stress of exams except SATs!

just seen an update on the Slough schools website saying they’ll email us when the online portal has results available (and the Bucks team email the actual results from 4pm on 14th, in-county pupils get a brown envelope to take home…)

@Aethelfleda what is the brown envelope? My DC is in a Bucks primary awaiting results on fri, I thought they were all coming out by email?

Posted Friday here!

blahblah, that’s me showing my age! I have a big gap between my DC and when my DD1 took the Bucks exam 6 years ago the in-Bucks school kids were given a big brown envelope to take home with them with results in… of course lots of mums opened them right in the playground… so much better for you if it’s all email now.

I think ours were emailed or posted as we live just over the border (hence taking Bucks and Berks together as we are in distance for both though out of Bucks cachement)

@Aethelfleda that's a relief! I had visions of my DC at after school club staring at an envelope while all their friends had opened theirs in the playground! Agree, email is better!

<puts down a large tray of tea and Jammie Dodgers>

Ooh Jamie Dodgers are my fave 😆

Yay, tea and biscuits while we wait!

My Son sat the 11 plus in September, he is head boy at primary school, did revision over 7 week hol at least a hour a dah with my dad a teacher, always got 90%, came out of test buzzing saying he thought he did ok not to big headed but just thinking he was ok, received dreaded letter today he had failed, i am shocked and feel absolutely gutted for him i havent told him yet i am not sure what to say as he put so much hard work in and just feel so disappointed for him 😭

Really sorry to hear that- it must be really tough and it's a conversation I absolutely dread having if it comes to pass.

It said to email school to find out his score to see how far he was off passing but that would make it worse, we go on holiday tomorrow so not sure what to do he is very emotional person but he knows results are coming and high school place to be chose by end of month etc so cant put it off forever, feel sick to my stomach and cant eat or owt, all over a silly test 😩

oh bless you, it’s such an unfair system. the schools are good but the results are so unpredictable. Is yours a cohort marking system (a fixed percentage get a passing mark and the others fail?)

a good way to explain it to the kids is that it’s not about intelligence and it’s just how things went on the day for the other kids, some will have had a super good day and overperformed, some will have been preparing and not had time to do fun stuff for the whole year just so they could practice more.

Explain to him that with the exam, if one year 100 cavemen sit the exam, guess everything and write “ugg” at the bottom, 30 of them will pass even though they are cavemen.
If the next year 100 Einsteins sit the exam, 70 of them will “fail” even though they are super intelligent and got nearly all the answers right.
then those 70 super clever kids will go onto the comprehensive and do really well, because they are intelligent and try hard, it won’t matter in the slightest that they didn’t get a “passing” mark wjen they were 10-11. Tell him you are so proud of him for trying and big up all the advantages the comp has (whatever they are. Find some).

My DD2 didn’t pass her 11 plus, she is in top set at her comp, played Mary Poppins in the school musical, and her self esteem is much better than if she’d bumped along at the bottom
of the grammar intake.
After we got her results, I bought tickets to the local comp school play hoping the Drama would encourage her to feel better about not making it to the grammar. School play turned out to be a full length production of a musical called “Into The Woods” and she was hooked. So find good things about the way things have turned out, and tell him how proud you are of him for having a go.

Thank you that is very useful and a good way of explaining things, the school he applied take the score of the 140th boy and that is the pass mark, randomly so the 140th boy could have 10% or 99% it doesnt really make sense to me, he just had his heart set on going but i know he will do well wherever he goes, thank you so much

Oh Enimoo so sorry to hear that. I've got that sinking feeling that that will be us know Saturday.

Others at school will get in and boast about it and she won't think she's as clever.... but I love Aethels post and we have been bigging up plan B to her.

@Emimoo84 Sorry about your son. As pp said, one test (particularly so young) does not define your child. As he is well supported at home, he can excel at a Comp too. It's okay to be upset (I will be too if my son doesn't pass) but we need to be strong for our kids and hide these emotions from them. We need to show enthusiasm and faith in the school they will go to. Best wishes to you and your smart boy.

Anxiously waiting for Trafford results for DD2. In some ways it will be easier if she doesn't pass as we're still not decided whether to put the nearby grammar or the excellent local high school as first choice.

@Emimoo84 sorry to hear that, at least the thing about the 140th person being the pass mark means you can assure your DS that it isn't a 'fail', there's kind of no such thing, another year he'd have got in. Super post from @Aethelfleda too. Big hugs, and hopefully your holiday will help take your minds off it.