Is it worth appealing a Kent Test English score shortfall?

[Pixiespixies]

Hi everyone,

I'm new to this would very much appreciate any advice possible.

My DS has passed the kent test's aggregate, got 118 in Math and Reasoning each. However, on the english paper he received 105 which is 4 points away from the threshold 109.

So, here's a little back story. We moved houses and he started school in Jan and sat the test early March. So, we just decided to give the kent test a try and see how he scores.

His low score on the english paper means he is not eligible for a place at the local grammar school (1st preference on CAF).

I'm not sure if it's worth appealing. I've been thinking and thinking what to do. So I've spoken to his class teacher (who started working at the school the same day my DS started) who told us to appeal but she has written an 'ok' letter. I also spoke to his upper key stage lead who has written and outstanding letter in support of my DS's appeal if we decide to go ahead.

I'm new to the whole grammar school system and would appreciate any help/advise/anything at this point 😬

What's the basis for your appeal? That you moved house?

Yes, appeal. You have nothing to lose!

Are you appealing the test itself or directly for a place at the grammar school? You can do both. I'm in Kent have heard of children getting places at the grammar schools on appeal when they didn't pass, but it will depend on the school and how much competition for places there is.

Yes, that I moved house and DS was still adjusting to new school environment. His core ability seems to be strong which are maths and Reasoning.

Ooh really! I was not aware that you can appeal the test itself?

Thanks, I'm leaning towards appealing with 2 of the schools directly.

Any advise would help 🙂

I think you need to focus on why the low English score is not representative of his true ability in English, backed up with evidence from his teachers.

The adjusting to the whole school environment thing won’t really be seen as relevant because schools are not meant to prepare children for the test so it shouldn’t really affect his innate ability in English, which the test is evaluating. Obviously in practice lots of parents tutor their children but I don’t think lack of practice will be a strong basis for appeal either as the English element was added in an attempt to make the test tutor-proof.

I thought that you had to appeal to a particular school - one that you named on your SCAF that turned your son down - rather than an appeal against the test? Your appeal needs to focus on why his low English score is not representative of his ability, backed up with evidence, and why the school you’re appealing to is more suited to him than the school he has been allocated.

Look at the elevenplusexam.co.uk website. It has lots of useful advice for appeals.

For schools, you need to say why the schools are suitable for your school, not why others are not. That includes evidence that his schoolwork is up to standard, and it was a blip in the day. The house move could be a factor for this blip. You need evidence of the move. I got copies of schoolwork as well as letters for my appeal, plus school certificates for good work etc. Also, the school had a specialism at the time so I factored that in, with more evidence.

Depends probably if you are West or East Kent based. West Kent grammars are often very over subscribed, with many out of county strong applicants. Many of the boys schools are super-selectives, rather than just local catchment

Thanks for your advice.

His SPaG scaled score is 110, and what I've learned is that this is strong fundamentals of English. So this proves his ability.

I do think the English is weighted more on teaching style and not ability (don't quote me onto this 🫣). Maths is more, procedural ability whereas reasoning deals with cognitive ability and intelligence. So, what I'm hoping is that the panel will look at it this way and see he has the ability.

I didn't mention, he was ill a week prior to the test. He had a fever, chesty cough and really bad nasal congestion. He was fine two leading up to the test, but was worried that hadn't he been ill, he would have been able to revise that week. He was also the only one in the room doing the test. So, I think it was multiple factors that contributed to the missed points.

Finally, I've read you can appeal to all schools listed on your CAF.

Oh, thanks for that I didn't know. I'm in east Kent so maybe that will help.

I think the school can appeal the test itself if they think the child's result is not indicative of their true ability - but as you've done the school application now, probably that ship has sailed.
It's a good few years since mine sat the Kent test, but I definitely heard of people successfully appealing for a grammar place when they have "just" missed out on the test in one subject by a few marks - and I'm in West Kent. But the competition for grammar spaces gets ever more fierce for the places here, with people from outside Kent applying for places. Believe it or not, people travelled from Essex every day to get to one of our grammar schools here.
You've had good advice on here already, but you have the excellent letter, and as others have said, you need to concentrate on why your DC needs a place at the school and provide lots of evidence. Most Grammar schools have a particular "ethos" - my DS's school was engineering, some are sport etc - so do your research and see what fits with your DC.

My DC did the Kent test this year. My understanding is that the English paper and particularly the comprehension caught out a lot of children this year. Everyone I've heard failing have failed on English and a lot of people who hot housed their DC on the maths and non-verbal reasoning got a bit of a shock! So it might be worth appealing an English score.

Thanks for your advice.

I have looked at elevenplusexam.co.uk which I found useful to an extent. The phase lead di mention in his letter that he joined the school in January so not sure if that is enough proof?

The particular school we're hoping for specialises in STEM which is my DS strongest subject.

How did you include his school work because I've read they don't accept this?

Thanks for your advice, I really appreciate it.

As I've missed the headteacher panel (because DS sat the test late) the cannot appeal on his behalf.

Yes, the school we want specialises in STEM which are my sons strongest subjects. I don't know how to prove this to the panel. I guess I can mention that, he's reading books on quantum physics, he's developed his own game with Scratch program, taught himself chess and is learning to code with python 😬.

That's new insight for me.

Yes, someone said I have nothing to loose so I think we will be appealing the english.

You can sit the Kent test out of area so not sure why you listed grammar schools on CAF, presumably anticipating a move, if he had not taken the test yet. Agree revision should not have been necessary. Can you evidence his illness and English skill above the passmark, SPAG would only be one element. Does he have a year 7 place for September?

While these things are lovely I don't think they'll put him ahead in a competitive grammar placements. I'd say the grammar children in DC's primary school are all doing things like this, publishing written work, being in national sports teams etc. I think most children in that age group will have learnt chess and coded games in scratch.

Include anything you can on his programming etc - print-offs of anything he has done. Plus future aspirations - what A Levels/university/career he'd like to go into - at this stage you can just make it up, make it sound as ambitious as possible.
Also research any STEM related school clubs & extra-curricular activities the school provides, and express your DC's interest in those.

This is really helpful I'll do that, thanks.

I wasn't aware of this. Only evidence of illness is are emails I sent to the school about his absence. I called 111, but don't think I can get evidence of that.

We don't hear from KCC until end of April about the school he has been allocated, so no, he doesn't officially have a place yet.

Ok, so are you saying it's not worth mentioning? What's your advice?

Stem school I had school certificates showing he did well at IT work, helped others in IT etc.

The school gave me photocopies of maths work, English work etc.

Mention everything you said about developing games etc. Have evidence!

Can he join a chess club? (There’s one in Maidstone if you’re in Kent);

How was he doing in English previously? What were his end of year assessments through primary? e.g. f he has been working at Greater Depth all along, this will be helpful in your argument (you can submit copies of previous years' school reports as supporting documents wrt academic ability, but be aware that none of the what a lovely boy type statements will hold any sway with the independent appeal panel. Ditto any letters provided by his teacher etc, which should also concentrate on academic ability, not what a pleasure it is to have X in the class, he'sa popular boy who was immediately voted class library helper or whatever ).

The panel might / will ask you to explain how moving home etc specifically impacted your DS's demonstration of ability in English in the actual assessment for grammar school.

For a grammar school appeal in your circumstances (applicant not deemed academically qualified), your first hurdle is convincing the panel that he should actually have been deemed academically suitable. If the panel accepts the academic evidence put forward that he should, the hurdle for a grammar school which is already set to admit to PAN is the usual prejudice (oversubscription) argument - Why the disadvantage to my DC of not attending this school outweighs the prejudice to the school (the provision of education and the efficient use of resources) of having to admit an extra pupil. Again, please leave out anything of the he's such a lovely boy and would be such an asset to your school variety, because the only response to that is that he will therefore be an asset to any school he attends and they will no doubt be highly appreciative of his presence there.

For grammar schools meeting the academic level is the first bar to clear. Was your CAF submission late, so his application was only considered after the March allocation date? Even if his score were accepted he might only be added to a waiting list if those schools are oversubscribed. Some mixed ability schools do stream so it is worth checking those out.

This is good to know. I've read that the panel won't accept school work as evidence as they are not able to assess these, is this right?

I will definitely be looking into the chess club, thanks for that.

Re appealing the test, some LAs have a process that allows schools and/or parents to appeal against the results of the test. If this appeal decides that the child is of grammar school standard, they will be treated as having passed the test. I don't know if Kent has such a process but, even if they do, it is far too late for that now.

You are therefore appealing for a place at a grammar school. To win, you need to convince the appeal panel that your son is of grammar school standard and that the disadvantage to him from not being admitted outweighs any problems the school will face from having an additional pupil.

You can use supporting letters from your son's current and/or previous school, school reports and similar to show that he is of grammar school standard, along with evidence to show why he might have underperformed in the test. You should not submit examples of his work. The panel is not allowed to assess his work to decide if he is of the right standard.

It will be difficult to convince the panel that your son is of grammar school standard but, even if you succeed in that, it will not be enough. You still have to convince them that he will be disadvantaged by not going to the appeal school. The fact it is a grammar school is not enough on its own. You need to show specific things he will miss out on if he is not admitted to the appeal school that are particularly relevant to him. If you can evidence your son's interest in STEM subjects and show that the appeal school has a better offering in this area than the allocated school (e.g. more extra-curricular activities), this will be a point in your favour. If you can come up with any more points, that will help.