Key Stage 3 NC Tests (SATs) at age 14 to be scrapped

[turbobloke]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/7669254.stm

Good for teachers, good for kids, or bad for standards?

[elster]

turbobloke said:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/7669254.stm

Good for teachers, good for kids, or bad for standards?

Just different. Only time will tell if it is the right decision.

[mechsympathy]

Gumnt in "This U-turn is not a U-turn" shocker

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[turbobloke]

Maybe our ministerial muppets need testing more

[elster]

turbobloke said:

Maybe our ministerial muppets need testing more

No they get tested far too much already. What needs to happen is when they fail they get shot. Done. Sure they wouldn't be keen to get things wrong then

[Egbert Nobacon]

Look behind the spin. When the full proposal is issued, the Sat's will no doubt be replaced with yet another bureaucratic system of appraisal that will never see the light of day once the teachers have spent hours compiling it.

[MentalSarcasm]

The SATs are pointless and don't tell you anything new that wasn't seen in normal classroom tests.

[jimmyb]

WTF are sat's anyway. Are they basically exams?

[turbobloke]

jimmyb said:

WTF are sat's anyway. Are they basically exams?

At KS3 they were anyway - in English, maths & science.

[jimmyb]

and people are happy they are getting rid of them?



This countries so called education system really is up sh!t creek and throwing the paddles out and getting ready to drill holes in the bottom of the boat.

[i want an aero]

about bloody time, too much put on passing exams rather than learning

[jimmyb]

i want an aero said:

about bloody time, too much put on passing exams rather than learning

Ummm so how do you asses if the children are actually absorbing any of what they are being taught?

Heres a novel Idea lets just scrap school all together and give them knives guns etc..

[cuneus]

jimmyb said:

Ummm so how do you asses if the children are actually absorbing any of what they are being taught?

Well they used to be called O levels

[White-Noise]

I did these and I think they were a good measure. What are these dimplomas I am hearing about on the radio though? Did they ditch the SATs and bring in a diploma? Not sure its worth the aggro personally.

[turbobloke]

Ditching SATs seems to be in response to long-term complaints from some teachers and parents about over-testing, also recent concerns over marking problems particularly with the English SATs which often need re-marking.

Diplomas are the Labour government's A-levels for all programme, Balls seems to perceive A-levels as elitist and has effectively told schools not to promote them. Diplomas are supposed to be more egalitarian and are part of 14-19 pathways after the KS3 SATs (that will no longer exist).

[s2art]

What is the difference between these SATs and the sort of end-of-term tests we used to get when I was a lad at grammar school? IIRC there used to be at least a couple of tests a year for all subjects.

[speedchick]

Biggest problem with them, is that the schools are having to spend a lot of time teaching the kids how to get through the exams rather than teaching them the subjects.

My son is 11 and has just been caught up in the fiasco with the KS2 SATS, he has kids in his year at school who have not received their results and have been told that they are not going to get them.

It's an awful lot of pressure being piled on the kids and the schools, and all in order to produce the league tables for the school, it doesn't seem to have anything to do with the kids' actual performance.

[Simpo Two]

turbobloke said:

Balls seems to perceive A-levels as elitist

Prick. I thought 'new' socialists had finally realised that some people are cleverer than others.

As the Headmaster of Eton said this morning, football has a 'Premier' league which is an elite and nobody minds that...

[MikeyT]

When they say 'next year' do they mean the SATS my 14yo daughter would have sat next May or do they mean 'the next academic year' ie she will sit heres next May?

I suspect the first option - ie they are scrapped as of now - but would be interested if anyone else has any clarification.

[Engineer1]

I'm on a PGCE course at the moment, and this removal of the KS3 SATs seems to make sense, the KS2 SATs give secondary schools and parents information on pupils and schools performance. The KS3 SATs sit at a pointless pre-GSCE/BTEC point, the schools and teachers should know how pupils are performing why test nationally?