optional sats

[BusyLizzie100]

Last week DS2 sat his optional SATs for Year 3. He gets support from his LSA encouraging him to stay on task and reading the questions to him if necessary.

 

Apparently he didn't finish the numeracy test last week, instead he has finished it today (I learnt from his Link book). The HT has just emailed to say that she will be adding his optional SATs results to her Annual Statement Review Report, which is about to be sent off to the LEA following the review meeting two weeks ago.

 

My question is, is it OK to finish the test over such an extended period? I know it's OK to get extra time and support as his LSA gives him, but does extra time include putting something to one side for several days and then coming back to it to try again?

 

The whole issue of DS2's levels is becoming a bit of a nightmare - school say he is doing fine and we say he is just learning mechanical skills that he can't apply in a functional way. At last year's Review his Numeracy level (for Y2) was 1c, and this year his level (for Y3) is 3c. That's a leap of five levels. Pretty amazing and not very credible, in my view.

 

Especially when one of the targets set at last year's Review was 'To continue to explore and develop maths language to support conceptual understanding in maths', in which he scored 1 - slower progress than expected - alongside the comment 'He does not always understand the concept behind mathematical language. He finds it difficult to apply strategies given.'

 

Confusingly, this target was at first left of the targets at this year's Review, although other targets in which he scored 2 - making expected progress - were repeated. I have asked for this to be rectified and the numeracy target has since been included for this year.

 

Flippin' heck, though, I have to be so vigilant!!

 

Hence my question about the optional SATs - I want to make sure that they're doing it right, seeing as they keep waving his levels in my face. And seeing as his levels were used against us in our recent appeal to SENDIST.

 

Lizzie xx

[darky]

Arghhh tests tests tests. I hate the optional tests more than the SAT's because they are not necessary! The thing is, if they are "optional" it does not mean they have to stick to the same rules as the actual SAT's and can presumably take as long as they like. I don't like all the testing. I have my own opinion on these tests. I do think IN MY OPINION there are SOME cases where the figures are, how should I put it, FIDDLED.

[Kazzen161]

It depends really - whether he went right through the paper last week and refused/could not do some, and then went back to those questions this week, or whether he just stopped the paper and then went back to do the next questions (with no coincidental practice in between, of areas that were going to come up!).

 

At the very least, it should be noted that the paper was not completed in one go. I am presuming he was allowed the same amount of time altogether?

 

I did go back through an English paper with one boy, this time reading him the questions and scribing his answers to see if it made much difference to his marks (it didn't), but we recorded the proper mark.

[Bard]

Have a look at the Y3 paper if you can, not much opportunity to use maths language and reasoning.

Some of mine jumped from a 2c to a 3b.

The QCA should be backed up by continuous teacher assessment. If you aren't convinced that he is at the level they say, and think they might use it against your case, tell them that you will be asking them to produce evidence other than the test that he is. That will be in his maths book that he has been working in since September, if he's mainstream, he's been doing maths for around 45 mins a day 5 days a week.

The school should be keeping records based on the key objectives for his year group, so you could ask to see those, or arm yourself with a set and see how you think he is achieving.

The test is only one piece of subjective evidence.

[LKS]

Hi BusyLizzie I am also having trouble with the school and optional SATS. Dd is in yr 6 and they decided that she should have a go at the English and Science as she seemed to be working at a secure level 3. Dd seemed quite happy with this and was taken into a room with her L.S.A. no pressure but she had a bit of a meltdown with the English because she has been used to feedback and gentle prompting by staff all the year, this time she was on her own and she struggled. In maths she had been given the 2007 maths papers to try, she got 4 out of 40 on the first and 6 out of 40 on the 2nd which is obviously not enough to give her any level, but to me shows how much she is behind the rest of her peers. So what they did was give her an optional SATS paper from yr 2 which apparently she got a 2b. Now to me this shows she is working at the level of an average 7 year old so seems a bit pointless to me. I much prefer the TA which at least shows me where her difficulties lie