Page 24 | SW London Grammar and Private year 7 entry 2024

lolo99 · 2023-09-27T18:31:09+00:00

Not sure if this thread has been started but if not, I would like to share experiences, tips and generally talk about schools and their pros and cons and processes to ease the anxiety and pain for us parents :)

travelturtle · 07/12/2023 08:09

Good luck to those still doing exams. We’ve reached end of stage 1 and feeling very relieved. Ibstock part 2 next week and then whatever interviews come in Jan. So glad the exams are all done this side of Christmas.

11plusdoneanddusted · 07/12/2023 10:17

I'm quite envious of you all being done by Xmas! DD is now in sixth form but I vividly remember her 11plus. Ibstock exam was 2 jan, SHS 3rd and KGS on the 4th! She also went back to school on the 2nd. Then Wimbledon, Putney and Emanuel were the following week. Christmas holidays were not very relaxing!
Was the same for DS as well a couple of years later. His LU interview was February 1st and the results came 10days later.
Good luck all- Dd had a nice day off yesterday while some of your DCs were at LU doing their exam!

Brugmansia · 07/12/2023 10:21

We also potentially have 2 after Christmas. Alleyn's isn't until January and St Dunstan's own exams are then (which is dependent on how he does in the ISEB on Saturday).

Wondermumof4 · 07/12/2023 10:55

Yes quite happy that by christmas the biggest part will be done ! Such a relief … even though its not completely over.

Flimpychunk · 07/12/2023 11:00

We were done at the weekend and it’s just amazing being out the other side.

It’s not too much longer now - keep going!!

farfallarocks · 07/12/2023 11:06

@Brugmansia we are also doing St Dunstans (hopefully!)
DD is not remotely convinced about it and it is quite far from us, we are further west. Is the local reputation strong? It just seemed really diverse to me with lots of extra curricular stuff going on and solid results.

farfallarocks · 07/12/2023 11:07

Did the poster with concerns about repeats of putney/Ibstock get any further with Atom and the consortium debacle!

Brugmansia · 07/12/2023 11:29

farfallarocks · 07/12/2023 11:06

@Brugmansia we are also doing St Dunstans (hopefully!)
DD is not remotely convinced about it and it is quite far from us, we are further west. Is the local reputation strong? It just seemed really diverse to me with lots of extra curricular stuff going on and solid results.

We really like it and it's DS's first choice. It is quite convenient for us location wise as there are direct trains from where we are. We also really liked the amount of extra-curricular and how it is built into the timetable.

I think it has become increasingly popular in recent years, so more competitive. I don't know that much more about reputation though as we are in state primary and very few children consider private from our school.

Before we started looking at schools I think I saw it as quite similar to Emanuel, in that they are co-ed with reputations for being a bit less competitive with an emphasis on extracurricular. We liked it much more though on visiting. It felt more progressive whereas we were a bit underwhelmed in the end by Emanuel.

farfallarocks · 07/12/2023 11:34

Many thanks for this, yes I agree, it felt to me like Emanuel 8 years ago before they got so popular

11PlusCraziness · 07/12/2023 11:44

farfallarocks · 07/12/2023 11:07

Did the poster with concerns about repeats of putney/Ibstock get any further with Atom and the consortium debacle!

Not really... It's been raised with the Consortium by at least two schools who have in turn raised it with Atom, who - unsurprisingly - have denied there was any duplication. I'm not sure why a bunch of unrelated kids across different schools would have independently reported it if it hadn't happened. 🙄I'm guessing the Consortium don't want the headache of what the repercussions would be if it were proved that some kids had already sat some of the same questions 1 or 2 times before. How would you even begin to unpick that / ensure all kids got a fair outcome? It's an unholy mess and so unfair on the girls who hadn't sat Putney and / or Ibstock before the Consortium exam. Let's just hope it prompts the Consortium to adopt a different assessment approach in future (or at least have a robust contract with Atom that they can't repeat questions across different schools in the same exam season).

SamPoodle123 · 07/12/2023 12:08

11PlusCraziness · 07/12/2023 11:44

Not really... It's been raised with the Consortium by at least two schools who have in turn raised it with Atom, who - unsurprisingly - have denied there was any duplication. I'm not sure why a bunch of unrelated kids across different schools would have independently reported it if it hadn't happened. 🙄I'm guessing the Consortium don't want the headache of what the repercussions would be if it were proved that some kids had already sat some of the same questions 1 or 2 times before. How would you even begin to unpick that / ensure all kids got a fair outcome? It's an unholy mess and so unfair on the girls who hadn't sat Putney and / or Ibstock before the Consortium exam. Let's just hope it prompts the Consortium to adopt a different assessment approach in future (or at least have a robust contract with Atom that they can't repeat questions across different schools in the same exam season).

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Yea, it sounds like a big mess if it did happen. However, one thing the schools could do if they were really concerned are share scores between them, see if the dc scored higher if they took Putney and then Consortium, or they did well in all. The could also dig deeper and look at the test transcripts to see if there really are duplicates to the ones that sat multiple tests. But it would be hard to prove anything really and perhaps they will just need to double check for next year there are no repeats.

Outerlondon2024 · 07/12/2023 12:16

After taking the consortium exam, DD said that the questions were different from the ones in the PHS exam she had taken earlier.

Wondermumof4 · 07/12/2023 12:21

travelturtle · 07/12/2023 08:09

Good luck to those still doing exams. We’ve reached end of stage 1 and feeling very relieved. Ibstock part 2 next week and then whatever interviews come in Jan. So glad the exams are all done this side of Christmas.

Hi , have you received an email from Ibstock with details for next week ? We also have part 2 next week but so far nothing.
we have chosen the 14th but it has not been confirmed yet.

thanks

11PlusCraziness · 07/12/2023 12:21

Outerlondon2024 · 07/12/2023 12:16

After taking the consortium exam, DD said that the questions were different from the ones in the PHS exam she had taken earlier.

What day did she sit it? If this week, hopefully Atom sorted any potential issues after last week's complaints.

Outerlondon2024 · 07/12/2023 12:25

11PlusCraziness · 07/12/2023 12:21

What day did she sit it? If this week, hopefully Atom sorted any potential issues after last week's complaints.

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DD took the exam this week. We also knew that someone else took it at the end of November. She also said no repeat questions.

11PlusCraziness · 07/12/2023 12:25

SamPoodle123 · 07/12/2023 12:08

Yea, it sounds like a big mess if it did happen. However, one thing the schools could do if they were really concerned are share scores between them, see if the dc scored higher if they took Putney and then Consortium, or they did well in all. The could also dig deeper and look at the test transcripts to see if there really are duplicates to the ones that sat multiple tests. But it would be hard to prove anything really and perhaps they will just need to double check for next year there are no repeats.

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I agree that that's what would happen in an ideal world, but no school is going to go to that effort. And I suspect different schools are not allowed to see each other's transcripts anyway.

11PlusCraziness · 07/12/2023 12:28

Outerlondon2024 · 07/12/2023 12:25

DD took the exam this week. We also knew that someone else took it at the end of November. She also said no repeat questions.

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Good if they sorted it for this week. As I say, many separate girls across different schools reported repeats between last week's Consortium exam and the PHS and Ibstock exams.

IndieAnna · 07/12/2023 13:08

My DD sat PHS and Consortium. She said that there were repeat practice questions but not in the real assessment

travelturtle · 07/12/2023 13:35

Hi @Wondermumof4 No we haven’t heard yet. I assume they will send out timings soon.

Anyone know what to expect from Ibstock round two? Know it’s English and maths but not sure what to expect beyond that. Comprehension and essay?

Wondermumof4 · 07/12/2023 13:53

travelturtle · 07/12/2023 13:35

Hi @Wondermumof4 No we haven’t heard yet. I assume they will send out timings soon.

Anyone know what to expect from Ibstock round two? Know it’s English and maths but not sure what to expect beyond that. Comprehension and essay?

Edited

Thanks, according to their email😉

SW London Grammar and Private year 7 entry 2024

Ilikelists · 07/12/2023 14:07

@travelturtle am pretty sure last year the creative writing they were asked to write about their favourite place, but I might be confusing it with another school!

Ilikelists · 07/12/2023 14:08

Does anybody know if kgs has a school bus?

Flimpychunk · 07/12/2023 14:27

KGS doesn't, I think because it's in the middle of Kingston so easy to get to with public transport as opposed to some of the others like Hampton which are more remote!

farfallarocks · 07/12/2023 14:39

I really like the way some schools post a topics list like Ibstock and Emanuel rather than just saying 'year 6 curriculum' which of course is studied in completely different orders at different schools!

swlondon24 · 07/12/2023 15:03

@travelturtle I am pretty sure the Ibstock email said that the sessions will take place in the morning, so whichever day you chose I would assume it will be some time between 9am-1pm. DD on holiday by the so we are flexible.

I also very much appreciated the schools that kept in touch and sent out helpful information. Apart from KGS and Emanuel I really liked the Surbiton process so far, they have been so transparent and helpful.