I feel stressed… my exam is in a few hours… I wonder if i will pass

I live in a small Kent town where there are 2 secondary schools, one selective one not. Ok so far, but within this town is a huge beomoth of a tutoring school, where Kent test tutoring is available for children as young as 6 to prepare them for the big day in September.

I am also a upper KS2 teacher of 25 years and a parent of a current year 6. As a teacher I thought I was aware of the utter madness that happens in year 4/5 and the two camps that often happen those for or against Grammar, and an almost polite divide in the playground on test and results day.

As a parent however, you get to see the madness first hand. Now may I say here while I’m against selection, I’m even more against tutoring. Why? Firstly the child, it increases the pressure knowing that their parents are investing several thousands of pounds in them, and means that in cases most of their year 5 summer break is spent with mock tests, boosters and catchup sessions.

My main issue is that it skews the data, our local grammar head told me in person that at the school the school is made up of 20% very bright, and the other 60% shouldn’t really be there and its a bloody drag to get the GCSE results. What this means from a Ks2 perspective is that this test and particularly the tutoring means that the top 20% are not selected and most years you get kids that arent even good and in some cases working towards pass, and some really strong kids who havent had tution through financial reasons, or moral viewpoints, fail.

In addition to this is the appeals system. Last year we had 2 appeals, one for a child from a working class background who was greater depth throughout her time in primary and was unwell a few days before the test. The other a child who came from a very wealthy family who had only ever been expected standards.

Child 1 parents with the help of the school and parents who were teachers submitted the appeal. Child 2, employed an education lawyer, got a private dsylexia assessment (despite not showing signs in school before – these have now been outlawed in terms of evidence). Child 2 was successful, Child 1 wasn’t.

Another teacher at the local grammar school said regardless of ability, rich kids come here, poor kids go there. The “lucky” borderliners who scrape through with the help of tution then struggle with the work, and guess what many get very average GCSE results, because in an academic sense they were a very average child, nothing wrong with that of course, unless you are a very disappointed parent.

The selective system was intended to allow gifted children from poorer backgrounds a chance to thrive in a grammar school, it doesnt mostly. It is about how much your parent has paid in prep school fees or tution.

It is not a story so much as an allegation. In 1942 as this country faced possible annihilation from Nazi attack the Tory led House of Commons tabled a bill for a new style of Grammar school where entry was via a test called the 11+. I believe the Tories knew that Middle class parents far more likely to vote for

the Conservatives after the war and would use this selective device to cheat, first to give their children after school tuition in subjects in which they were weak – ( okay), but then use those same tutors to give their children mock 11+ exams for years in the run up to the real thing- not okay! That is cheating, it is spiteful and it is corruption, because those kids passed when they would have failed, the least any

government could have done is give all parents vouchers and access to adequate number of

tutors to counter this. But, then what would be the point of the 11+ as a selective tool? It was all just to give the impression that the middle classes were academically superior, but there is no proof that is true, god does throw dice, there is such a thing as natural distribution – or the bell shape graph. Ultimately this country pays the price for a middle class sense of entitlement since our Universities and professions are full of mediocrities – its all about image and little substance.

Became a £10 pom and later returned to the uk and became B.Tech – Electrical Engineering from Brunel University HNC Mechanical Engineering from Acton Tech College and MIMech E, MIET, MInstMC

and C.Eng.

I was one of the last primary school children to take the Scottish equivalent of the 11-plus mid-1970s which was ended the following year. Although the local grammar school had become comprehensive a few years previously they still used this exam as the basis of class placement on entry to first year.

At primary school we were made aware of the secondary school’s streaming policy. However, we thought it was very much based on our Primary 7 school reports and subsequently I worked hard that year. I should add that many teachers and parents like mine did not tell us the real reason why we were sitting the verbal reasoning (11-plus) test in the January of P7.

Thus, after the summer holidays together with my family I was horrified to find out that I had not been placed in one of the more academic streams at the local secondary. It seemed so unfair, particularly as I had gained good grades in my last primary school report. This was made even harsher when I found out that several former classmates who had not done so well in P7 were placed in more academic streams, one of which was designed for ‘potential university material’.

In the end I went to another secondary school which is another story. However, I was later diagnosed as being dyslexic and ended my education by gaining both an undergraduate and postgraduate degrees from a prestigious university. I will conclude by saying that I have refused to be self-stigmatised as being educationally subnormal on the basis of one examination taken aged 11 which unfortunately seemed to determine many peoples’ futures in the past.

I had no problems with doing written school work in junior school, but unfortunately had a very bad stammer. When it came to answering questions aloud in class, even though I knew the answer, embarrassment stopped me from speaking up. In fact I had no help or support at home. I remember one particularly bad day my father shouting at me because I couldn’t get a word out, and called me a spastic. That stung and I became very depressed and introverted.

When I sat the 11 plus I thought I did okay, but when the results arrived I had failed.

Only years later I realised all the kids from “middle class” families in our class had passed the 11 plus. Manual workers kids had all failed, even though I knew a lot of those kids were quite bright.

My parents didn’t say a word when I failed. So that was it as far as I was concerned. I was off to secondary school.

I did physics and chemistry which I really enjoyed and could understand. Obviously I disliked languages and having to read aloud in class, I would be physically sick before leaving for school on those days.

We then went into the comprehensive system after two years, merging with the local grammar school.

The grammar school teachers that went to the new comprehensive realised I was at a disadvantage with my speech. But they were very patient and would come around quietly and sit with me to make sure I was okay.

One parents evening a grammar school teacher told me mother they couldn’t understand why I had not passed the 11 plus. I’m not sure what my mother’s reply was. Anyway I left school, got an apprenticeship and went to college. At the end of my apprenticeship I was approached by my lecturers, who told me they had all underestimated me and thought I would never make it.

Apparently I had the highest marks not just in our college, but throughout the country.

A lot of my friends were grammar school pupils and we seem to have a lot in common and my stammer doesn’t seem to bother them. They have shown genuine amazement when say I failed my 11 plus. Both my parents are dead, just wish they could have given me a bit of support when I was very, young. But hey, it was probably tough love and I have had a good career with good earnings and many friends.

Even now at 79 years of age I am still looking forward with confidence to the eventual final abolition of the 11 Plus, for me not passing the 11 plus destroyed for ever the concept of a family, my siblings went to the local Grammar School but I languished in the Secondary Modern. When I failed the 11 plus I felt gutted.

My primary school class in east London contained 42 children. I was in the top half of the A stream but did not pass the 11+ that would have enabled me to have a good education. I learnt later that only 3 girls passed straight through; the other two by interview. My head teacher told me he was disgusted that l had failed. Like most girls, we were not encouraged at home. The education at the secondary modern school was appalling. No mathematics, no physics, no chemistry and no decent study of literature. It was only years later that l was sent to university by my employer that l was able to study for a profession. The 11+ did not increase social mobility for most working class children. The comprehensive system gives all children equal opportunity.

My daughter is in private school and contrary to the beliefs of some people here most private schools do not support or encourage the 11+. This is particularly the case if they have a private secondary school. You are seen as a cash cow into the next school. They do not want 11+ success as it’s a big loss financially to them. The majority of private schools certainly do not teach and coach them for 11+. In fact you are made to feel like an outcast if you say you are sitting the 11+. My daughter missed by 1 mark and they didn’t even trigger a headteacher appeal!

At junior school my last report stated I was a bright good all rounder and passed my 11+ but I didnt get a place at grammar school. I remember my dad wearing a suit in the middle of the day which was unusual as he had a manual job. I was told he was going to the local grammar school for an interview with the headmaster and another parent whose daughter had got the same marks as me but only one place could be taken. The other parent owned a building company. I didnt get the place and my dad was furious. I went to secondary school, the other girl went to grammar school. There has never been an explanation apart from my dad’s angry comments, and I’ve always been curious. Money talks?

I passed the 11+ in 1965 as a border-line case with an interview and from a poor one-parent family. I was always made to feel that I didn’t belong there and struggled academically, so slowly turned into one of the ne’er-do-well kids pretending that I didn’;t care and was constantly in trouble with a massive chip on my shoulder.

I hated 95% of the teachers, for example, the only support I had for my stammer was “spit it out boy”. I think another comment was “You will never amount to anything boy” Practically my only ‘success’ was that I was quite good at rugby for which I achieved my only merit mark in the 5 years I was there but as a result, I was made to give up football for a local youth team so I couldn’t play for my school on Saturdays.

I left school with one O level and a couple of CSE ‘s feeling that I had completely failed with little confidence in the future. I managed to secure an apprenticeship at my local garage (where I was serving petrol) and thanks to the technical college and some inspirational lecturers gained in confidence and passed all the exams I could. I then switched careers to Telecoms and in my 30s started my own business, later in life built up my own property portfolio. I often wonder where would I’d be now if I had failed, my brother went to the local secondary school and went on to become a high ranking officer in the Fire service.

I remember at the time stories of the kids that failed and how upset they were, in my opinion it was a horrible way to segregate kids at an early age and should be cast into history as a lesson never to be repeated!

In 1964 I took the 11 plus exam. It seemed easy and I expected to pass and go to grammar school. I remember coming home from school the day my parents got the results. My father told me that I’d failed. The disappointment in his voice was unmistakable. As far as I was concerned this meant that I was stupid, and I stopped caring about school altogether.

I ended up at the local secondary modern, which was quite rough. I developed school phobia and ended up being moved to a special school for maladjusted children. That place was more of a zoo than a school, many of the kids there were more like wild animals than children. It was clear that I had been thrown away by the education authority and dumped in an educational dustbin. When I left school I had a series of low paid jobs which I hated and didn’t stay in very long.

I spent most of my so called working life on the dole because I just couldn’t tolerate the monotony and poor wages of tge only work that I was qualified to do. One day I was watching an interview with a well known British actor on tv. He told the story of how he failed the 11 plus, and found out that it wasn’t because he was stupid, but because the examiners didn’t want working class kids in their grammar schools. I realised that was probably why I didn’t pass. My father was an engineer for the post office and didn’t earn a very good wage. I was simply in the wrong social class. If it wasn’t for class prejudice my life would most likely have turned out very differently.

My daughter has had very high CAT scores for the last several years. Scores put her in the top stanine (simplified standard score) 9 her average over a 130. When she was immediately rejected from top schools we requested results. We have found that she tested into stanine 6?????

So basically right on average. How on earth is this possible. We were advised to look at top schools. She did not have a bad day. She found the tests challenging but these scores don’t compare to her consistently high CATs, we are at a loss.

I was 10 when I passed the exam and went to the secondary school, then moving from grammar to sec modern at the same time. Also various streaming insitu between Welsh speaking, English speaking and various levels of learner.

It was a nightmare which has affected my life. I am in my seventies now and had a successful career but the emotional damage has stayed with me.

I was a really small girl, physically undeveloped at all until third year. I was bullied incessantly and pretty quickly learned not to stick my hand up and answer as the class would torment.. The teachers misunderstanding / not seeing …and then labelled as not trying.. can do better!! No win scenario. Ran away age 13 yrs so then huge parent/family issues.

The pressure to succeed felt immense, especially with so many expectations from family and friends. I remember the nights I stayed awake, reviewing practice papers and trying to memorize formulas. It felt like my brain was overloaded, and sometimes I wondered if I could handle it all.

On the day of the exam, the nerves were at an all-time high. I made sure to have a good breakfast, but even that didn’t calm my jittery stomach. Walking into the exam hall, I could feel my heart racing. The atmosphere was tense, and I could see others fidgeting or whispering to each other, which didn’t help my nerves.

Once the exam started, I focused on my breathing and tried to keep my mind clear. I paced myself through the questions, but there were definitely moments of panic when I encountered tricky problems. It’s a blur now, but I remember forcing myself to stay calm and trust in my preparation.

When it was finally over, I felt a huge wave of relief wash over me. I had done my best, and that was all I could ask for. Waiting for the results was tough, but when I received the good news, it made all the stress worthwhile.

Looking back, the experience taught me a lot about resilience, time management, and how to cope with pressure. If you’re going through this process, just remember you’re not alone in feeling stressed, and every bit of effort you put in will pay off in the end.

My grandson did not attain the pass mark of 111 in the Slough consortium test which shocked us because he’s extremely bright and we thought well prepared for it. He’d also had 10 months of private tuition. How can we obtain his test papers to see the marks ourselves?

How you face the future if you fail the 11 Plus depends very much on the support that you have from family and the teaching staff at your junior school. In my case my family had no understanding of the massive depths of depression that I felt, my siblings both passed the the 11 plus, they were praised for passing the 11 Plus. I received no emotional support whatever, my family were incapable of understanding how I felt. All my junior school friends went to the local grammar school, as for my juniors school, all the 11 Plus failures were ignored, we were trash.

I moved to Kent as an adult and after having kids was shocked to discover the Kent grammar system.

I have 2 bright kids and don’t believe in single sex education and wanted the kids to be able to go to a local school, and receive a comprehensive education suitable for their learning level.

I discovered this isn’t easily possible in my rural area. What to do??!?!

I couldn’t bear to have single sex school, & I really dislike the grammar concept, so I surely must choose comprehensive.

BUT we live in very rural area, my closest local comprehensive school ( & we would be eligible for KCC transport as over 5 miles away) doesn’t have the correct academic level, they don’t even offer the 3 sciences at GCSE ( KCC state double sciences is good enough, but I’m expecting my kids might do science at uni level), and the other subjects don’t have the top achievers, what to do?

I refuse to tutor the kids, kids should be kids playing, not doing extra work.

But the parent guilt when they are sitting the 11+ is sooo high as all their friends have had tutoring for years and mine have only recently looked through the ‘familiarisation’ papers. Am I a bad parent to not have paid for them to be more prepared?

I visit all the nearest schools, grammar & comprehensives and actually like some of the comprehensives, but am told I won’t get in based on distance.

Both kids manage to pass.

Is there any choice other than grammar? as Grammar is selective they will get in even though the schools are further away ( & transport is available as KCC have kept a public bus open just for this route)

A comprehensive that is the closest school to the other side of my village seems to be the perfect answer, a mixed comprehensive with grammar stream.

Excellent! except there is no way to get there, public bus cuts axed this route.

After 2 years of campaigning we have now have rerouted a private bus company to include our village, finally a bus to school, expensive but a solution. My oldest is doing brilliantly now in year 9, my youngest will join in September.

Soo much stress, and it doesn’t have to be this way. If Grammar system didn’t exist, my closest school would have a representational mix of academic levels, and therefore be suitable for my kids, and most likely there would also still be a bus to the other closest school ( that my kid attends) as KCC would be not be paying for a bus route running to the grammar schools as these wouldn’t exist.

My 10 year old’s school class were split down the middle with children who have just failed the 11+ devastated. This system is damaging the confidence and mental health of our children at age 10 years…. Why are we doing this to our kids, it doesn’t have to be this way.

The only thing I can remember about the test was been told I’d passed and I could go to the grammar school, but the awareness of been different and placing my parents, who had another 5 children and four jobs between them, in an even worse financial situation than they were already in was too much for a child my age to justify. I couldn’t comprehend the level of opportunity and could only equate it to thinking I was saying I was better than others if I went, so when the time came I went to the local secondary school to be like my brothers and sisters.

Everyone’s lives turn on particular events, I don’t think I became a worse member of society for not going, I didn’t become a delinquent or a criminal, I’ve worked since 16, own home, family etc. but I still question whether it is a system that placed such a burden on a child, the nature of the child or the nature of the adult they became, that is to blame for that personal guilt you feel from a seemingly lost opportunity?

Kent Test results come out tomorrow, so I don’t know yet whether my daughter has been ‘deemed suitable for grammar school’, but I do know that the fear and anxiety that has been building inside her as we approach results day is terrible for her mental health. I know she will succeed and be happy in any school, but she is not able to see that at the moment. She will be crushed if she has not passed the required mark for her preferred school. I will just be glad that it’s over.