ATOM tests 11+

[K2026]

Has anyone else found the atom scoring to be off? Does anyone know if the actual tests are easier for selective schools?

i used to work in a prep and yes I felt it scored the kids very low. I emailed once after a bright class had not one kid get the 11+ pass mark in a mock test and they replied that the class must all have had a bad day 😂 when i looked at the questions asked they were way harder than the 11+ questions ever are. In that cohort about 2/3 passed the 11+ so i personally think they must be way off.

We've definitely seen low atom scores this term vs high scores on other 11+ tests. Feels like the difference is at least 10 points, as much as 20 even in some cases.

A grammar in our area used Quest exams (who are owned by Atom or vice versa) for the first time this year. Apparently the exam was ridiculously difficult. Lots of girls coming out in floods of tears, despite being very ready and high ability students (I'm an 11 plus tutor). It will be very interesting to compare how they performed in the general county test compared to the school specific Quest test (a pass in either allows them to apply).

I've heard similar information about other areas where Quest/Atom supply the exam.

Did you try pretest plus?

I am really glad to see this. When my daughter does a paper mock exam she usually scores really high. But on atom she has been scoring really low and this has been hugely discouraging for her. To the point where last night we had floods of tears and her telling me she doesn't want to do the 11+ anymore.

I'm really not happy as it is clear she is ready, but atom is making her feel terrible. I will be cancelling our subscription.

Sorry to hear that. I am finding it really inconsistent as well. Is your daughter applying to selective schools?

I avoided Atom Learning because people online said its question bank is too easy for super-selective schools; in fact, I've seen anecdotes of kids scoring high on Atom mocks but failing the actual exams. Instead, I bought Exam Papers Plus practice papers (very pricey though) because they are said to be much closer to the real entrance tests, even though we found them a bit harder than the actual ones and some questions are unreasonably tedious. But if your only worry about Atom is that it is harder, I don't see that as a problem at all. It is much better for kids to shed tears before the exam than tears after. However, if you think Atom is inconsistent and not aligned with the real test, which is a doubt I share, then that is a real problem.

My dc used Atom over a year ago. Imo it was too easy vs the super selective London grammars

Yes, we are.

@K2026 We stopped using Atom after the free trial as the scores were unhelpfully inconsistent and even just using it for a week or so, there were endless repeated questions. And, as previous posters have said, the level wasn't nearly as hard as the real exams. We found Pretest Plus/ Exam Papers Plus and Schofield and Sims books to be of a more similar standard to the actual exams.

So many Atom users report wild variation in scores that either the algorithm is a bit rubbish in selecting questions for your child or it's deliberately designed to foster parent anxiety and keep you paying the subscription as long as possible!

Plenty of kids pass 11+ for both super-selective grammars and indies without using Atom.