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Interesting Articles
The History and Structure of the Elevenplus exam.
This article by Stephen McConkey first appeared in the
journal Headteacher Update.
Introduction
"Think about it John!" - A
reasonable approach
"Think about it John!" or "You're not
thinking Mary!" How often in a school day would we hear this 'chant' or
should it be this 'rant' from our teaching
staff?
Scientific research has shown us the various ways in which our brains learn -
visual, auditory, tactile and so on and educationalists tell us how this
knowledge can guide our teaching styles - a class of 30 pupils requiring 30
different styles - do you recognise the
picture?
As a school staff we sat down to analyse our internal school exam results and it
was obvious to all that 'Problem Solving' was indeed a problem!
So we asked the question "Why is this so?"
Heated debate followed with various reasons offered including - "Our
children don't think!" or "Our pupils are from a deprived area and are
less able!" I couldn't and, as
a self -respecting head teacher, wouldn't accept the second premise.
The first theory, however, did catch my attention - "Our children
don't think!"
If this is the case and it obviously is, why does it happen?
As a province with a population of approximately 1 ½ million we have a
grammar school selection system which until relatively recently was based on
Verbal Reasoning tests (verbal and non-verbal reasoning tests are still widely
used in many areas of England and Scotland as a selection tool at 11+ and 12+)
I don't wish to comment on the debate surrounding grammar school selection tests
at 11 years or 12 years except to recount the comment of a senior member of our
staff - "At least when we had the 11+ Verbal Reasoning tests we had to
teach the pupils to
think!"
How much of the truth is held in the last 8 words of this statement?
As a staff we wanted to unpick the issues and if there was a problem -
how could we fix it?
The reality began to dawn on myself and my staff that we really do not teach our
pupils to think or reason yet we expect them to be able to do it
–“naturally”. We wouldn't
consider the premise that a year 1 or Year 2 pupil can read “naturally” and
therefore not teach him/her to read. We
wouldn't consider telling a pupil to enter the swimming pool with the misguided
belief that he / she can swim – “naturally” - no, we would teach them to
swim. We teach lots of different,
perhaps isolated 'things' in a school but I'm not sure that we teach our pupils
to think or reason and this should be our number one priority.
Most teachers have made their way through into adult life without ever having
been taught to think and will have developed their thinking skills primarily
through a process of trial and error. Intrinsic
to this process is the error or failure element - so devastating to all people
especially young primary school children. If
we knew that we wouldn't fail we would try everything!
We all know our pupils fear failure and so don't or won't try new or
different things. We ask pupils to think and reason yet give them little or no
guidance or teaching in this central issue.
The list and type of thinking and reasoning skills demanded of pupils is daunting and includes :-
Information - processing skills allowing pupils to analyse information, sort data and classify items.
Questioning skills - allowing pupils to plan, predict outcomes and define problems (not just ask why? why? why?)
Creative skills - allowing pupils to express and extend new and current ideas.
Reasoning Skills - allowing pupils to make informed decisions based on reasons and evidence.
The list is huge yet we send pupils into this educational
minefield with little or no teaching in the area of thinking or reasoning.
One member of our staff has just returned from teaching in Australia in a school
which taught some aspect of 'thinking' each and every week.
We are currently using her skills and knowledge to introduce some aspects
of this to our own school. She is
introducing a collection of up to ten different approaches to help pupils think
and reason out a problem. Included in this are many simple techniques that would
have been 'taught' during preparation for verbal and non-verbal reasoning tests
- the type of tests used for grammar school selection.
Taught strategies will now include making a table, making a list, looking
for patterns, making pictures and diagrams and brainstorming involving pupils
and staff. All skills of the type taught to pupils being prepared for 11+ or 12+
examinations.
We don't expect dramatic and sudden changes but we are looking for positive
long-term improvements in our pupil's ability to think and reason.
This new approach cannot be poured over the school community to get a
quick fix but will require time to become integrated into the day-to-day process
of education.
The teaching of pupils to think is represented by a strong movement in America
going under many titles including 'Critical Thinking' (key 'critical thinking'
into Google and you get nearly 4 million results).
This group, a very large group, reason that if you teach children to
think in a 'critical' manner then you can add significantly to the vocational
and personal success of pupils. Critical
thinking will help with assessment as pupils analyse and assess their own work
in all spheres of school life. Raising
self esteem and the importance of the individual are central to critical
thinking and it should not be seen as an isolated skill but as something central
to the whole process of education. The
ability to think critically across all subject matter and curricular areas is
something that isn't natural but must be taught - the two skills of thinking and
questioning go hand in hand.
Taken to its highest level when pupils are taught to think and reason then they
are better placed to reason their actions against the expected outcomes and this
can reduce poor behaviour in school and anti-social behaviour in society.
Pupils sitting grammar school selection tests will have been prepared for the
exam and taught to 'think' as they are taught to reason out verbal and
non-verbal reasoning questions. Is
this why grammar school pupils are less likely to be involved in violence and
anti-social behaviour? Has initial
teaching in the art and skill of thinking via verbal and non-verbal reasoning
tests been carried forward into post-primary schools and into adult life where
they think about the consequences of their actions?
Simplistic I know but is there an element of truth here and was my teacher
correct when she said, "At least when we had the 11+ verbal reasoning tests
we had to teach them to think!"
Teach them to think positively and not to fear failure.
Samples of verbal and non-verbal reasoning tests can be found at www.learning together.co.uk
The
History and Structure of the Elevenplus exam.
This information is given as a guide only, as the situation may change over time. Please contact your Local Authority or chosen school for upto date details.
The Eleven
Plus Exam or Transfer Test is an examination given to students in
their last year of primary education in the United Kingdom. The name derives
from the age group of the students: 10-11. The 11+exam was once used throughout
the UK, but is now only used in a number of counties and boroughs in England and
more widely in Northern Ireland. It is particularly associated with the
Tripartite System used in the UK from 1944-1976.
The
elevenplusexam tests a student's ability to solve problems using verbal
reasoning, maths and non-verbal reasoning. Introduced in 1944, it was used to
determine which type of school a student would attend after primary education: a
grammar school, secondary modern or a technical school. The tripartite system
was based on the idea that skills, rather than financial resources, were most
important and that different skills required different types of schooling.
Structure
The
structure of the eleven plus varied over time and between counties. Usually, it
consisted of three papers
- Arithmetic
– A mental arithmetic test.
- Writing
– An essay question on a general subject.
- General
Problem Solving – A paper assessing ability to apply logic to simple
problems and to test general knowledge.
Most
children sat the elevenplus test in their final year of primary school, at the
age of 11 or 12. In certain counties, such as Buckinghamshire, it was also
possible to sit the test a year early- a process nicknamed the ‘ten plus’.
(More recently in Buckinghamshire, the test has been called the 'twelve plus'
and has been taken a year later than was standard.)
The
test was originally voluntary and currently around 30% of students in Northern
Ireland opt out of the transfer test.
Current
practice
Eleven
plus exams and similar type exams vary around the country but will use some or
all of the following components.
- Verbal
reasoning (VR)
- Nonverbal
reasoning (NVR)
- Mathematics
(MA)
- Writing
(EN)
In
Buckinghamshire children sit just two verbal reasoning papers. In Kent children
will sit all four of the above disciplines. However, The London Borough of
Bexley has suggested carrying out only two tests - Verbal Reasoning and Non
Verbal Reasoning but it is not yet known if Bexley Borough will go ahead with
this plan. If so, it'll mean children will have to do 2 tests instead of 4. In
Essex children sit Verbal Reasoning, Maths and English. Other areas use other
combinations. Some authorities/areas operate an opt-in system, whilst others
(such as Buckinghamshire) operate an opt-out system where all pupils are entered
unless parents decide to opt out.
Importance
The
elevenplus was created as part of the 1944 Butler Education Act. This
established a Tripartite System of education, with an academic, a technical and
a functional strand. Prevailing educational thought at the time argued that
testing was an effective way of finding which strand a child was most suited
for. The results from the 11+exam would be used to match a child’s abilities
and future career needs to their secondary school.
When
the system was implemented, the technical schools did not appear on the scale
envisaged. Instead, the Tripartite System came to be characterised by fierce
competition for places at the prestigious grammar schools. As such, the eleven
plus took on a particular significance. Rather than allocating according to need
or ability, it became seen as a question of passing or failing. This led to the
elevenplusexam becoming widely resented.
Controversy
The
eleven plus was the result of the major changes taking place in British
education in the years up to 1944. In particular, the Hadow
report of 1926 called for the division of primary and secondary
education, to take place on the cusp of adolescence at 11 or 12. The imposition
of such a stark break in the Butler Act seemed to offer an ideal opportunity to
implement streaming, since all children would be changing school anyway. Testing
at 11 emerged largely as a historical accident, without clear forethought.
Criticism
of the eleven plus test arose on a number of grounds. Success was determined not
only by ability but also by location and gender. 35% of pupils in the South West
secured grammar school places as opposed to 10% in Nottinghamshire. Due to the
continuance of single-sex schooling, there were fewer places for girls than
boys.
The
merits of testing at 11+examination, when children were at varying stages of
maturity, has been questioned, particularly when the impact of the test on later
life is taken into account. Children who developed later (so-called "late
bloomers") suffered because there was inflexibility in the system to move
them between grammar and secondary modern schools. Once a child had been
allocated to one type of school or the other it was extremely difficult to have
this assessment changed. (It was however possible, at least in some areas, for
academically able pupils from secondary modern schools to transfer to grammar
schools around age 17 in order to study for GCE A-levels, and in some cases to
progress to higher education.) Areas using the exam today have recognised this
concern, and offer reassessment in later years, notably at Key Stage 3.
Critics
of the elevenplus also claimed that there was a strong class bias in the exam.
JWB Douglas, studying the question in 1957, found that children on the
borderline of passing were more likely to get grammar school places if they came
from middle class families. For example, questions about the role of household
servants or classical composers were easier for middle class children to answer
but far less familiar to those from less wealthy or less educated backgrounds.
This criticism was certainly true of the earlier forms of the 11+exam, and as a
result the elevenplus became more like an IQ test during the 1960s. It has been
argued that middle class opposition to the eleven plus exam rose partly as a
result of this move to greater fairness.
Overall,
it has been suggested by some that a large number of students were unfairly
treated by the elevenplusexam. The sociologist AH Halsey claimed that as much as
one quarter of pupils were misallocated by the exam. It is generally agreed that
there were problems with the eleven plus exam and even those advocating a return
to the Tripartite System usually acknowledge the need to review testing methods.
Use
of the eleven plus exam today
In
counties in which vestiges of the Tripartite System still survive, the eleven
plus continues to exist. Today it usually takes on the form of an entrance test
to a specific group of schools, rather than a blanket exam for all pupils, and
is taken voluntarily. For more information on these, see the main article on
grammar schools. The largest area still operating the eleven plus is Northern
Ireland, although it is planned to phase the exam out this year. For more
information, see the main article on the Tripartite System.
Independent
schools, particularly those Direct Grant Grammars which seceded from the state
system after the abolition of the Tripartite System, often model their entrance
exams upon the old eleven plus.
The
content of the examination differs from area to area, but most children sit a
Verbal Reasoning paper, many sit a non-verbal reasoning paper and some sit a
mathematics paper or different combinations of all three.
Scoring
The
scores in a few cases (mainly in Kent, where the eleven plus is commonly taken
in its most standard form, but NOT in any other areas of the UK) add up to 700.
The verbal reasoning, mathematics and writing are all out of 141 (in
standardised scores). Writing and mathematics are doubled and verbal reasoning
added on to make a total score out of 700 standardised points.
When
used to decide whether students are eligible for a grammar school education, a
pass mark is set to decide. Usually, the pass mark is between 500 and 510.
People who exceed that are given the opportunity to study at grammar school
while those who fall below that are often not. Should a score be close to yet
slightly below the pass mark be achieved then the candidate may appeal to get
into grammar school. Generally someone who gets between 500 and 530 has achieved
just enough to pass. Those getting 530 to 600 are most likely fairly able to
carry on to grammar school without a problem. Students who score between 600 and
650 are considered extremely bright. Those that exceed a score of 650 are rare
yet exemplary cases and will have no problems whatsoever in making the
transition from primary to secondary education.
In
Northern Ireland, pupils are awarded grades in the following ratios to pupils
sitting the exam: A (25%), B1 (5%), B2 (5%), C1 (5%), C2 (5%), D (55%) and there
is no official distinction between pass grades and fail grades.
References
- http://www.deni.gov.uk/index/85-schools/6-admission-and-choice/6-transfer-procedure.htm
- Szreter,
S. Lecture, University of Cambridge, Lent Term 2004
- Sampson,
A. Anatomy of Britain Today, London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1965, p195
External
links
In
favour of the Eleven Plus/Academic Selection
- http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/leading_article/article548046.ece
- http://education.guardian.co.uk/specialreports/grammarschools/story/0,5500,1537655,00.html
Against
the Eleven Plus/Academic Selection
- http://education.guardian.co.uk/secondaries/story/0,12389,811843,00.html
- http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/features/mike_baker/2763973.stm
- http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/2713105.stm
- http://www.york.ac.uk/search/cgi-bin/monitor.cgi?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.york.ac.uk%2Fdepts%2Fecon%2Fdp%2F0052.pdf&rank=4&search_words=grammar%20school
- http://education.guardian.co.uk/schools/story/0,,1490391,00.html
- Many thanks to wikipedia for this text. The full article can be found at http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Eleven_plus_exam&oldid=195617074