Buckinghamshire schools

Today children in Buckinghamshire schools take an exam, the 11 plus exam, results of which are taken as an indicator of whether they should go to a Buckinghamshire grammar school, or an upper school. It's a bit nerve wracking for the parents, especially if you know your child should go to a grammar, that they'd love it there, that they're really academic, but you also know that your child will be marginal, might not quite get the required score.

There are two tests, taken a week apart, but they are only verbal reasoning (VR) tests, not non-verbal reasoning, and not numerical. That means that if you've got a child who's brilliant at maths, or is dyslexic, or even bilingual, then a VR test might not show up their best academic ability. The child might have a vocabulary of 4000 words in English and 4000 words in Pushti, but if the VR expects 5000 words in English, and tests to that, then the child won't get the 121 that is the score for a grammar school.

However, Buckinghamshire allows other evidence through an appeal system. If the best of the two VR tests, doesn't come high enough, and a parent disagrees with the LEA assessment that the child would be most suited to an upper, then the parent(s) can appeal. Parents can bring in other evidence, whatever they think fit, that demonstrates a grammar school would be the more appropriate school for their child. That might be tae kwondo or ballet dancing certificates, school work, computer work, or a report from a suitable professional. Parents can also provide evidence to explain why the child didn't do well enough on the day of the tests, like had a cold, or asthma, or the school fire alarm went off.

A tribunal of three volunteers, independent of the LEA, assesses the evidence, consider the arguments, and make a decision that is binding on the LEA. I like that because there's the opportunity to use the measured evidence from the tests, plus the qualitative evidence that can take into account other unmeasurable evidence.

Today a relative takes the 11 + and another relative is taking the GRE. This site tells you that the GRE is for the graduate record examinations that also assess verbal reasoning skills, along with other skills that an undergraduate might have achieved.

Good luck to both relatives.