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Decision time looms for grammar entrance test
Wednesday, 14 April 2010
A crunch meeting of Northern Ireland’s grammar schools is due to take place next week to decide once and for all if there will be a single entrance test for P7 pupils this autumn.
It is understood that the talks could falter on the key issue of whether or not to charge a fee for any new test.
Parents of pupils currently in P6 are waiting to hear what their children will face next year if they want to secure a grammar school place.
Education Minister Caitriona Ruane wants all schools to stop using academic selection but can only direct schools to follow her advice as selection is still legal and therefore can be used by schools.
Representatives from the 68 schools which ran independent selection exams last year will meet on Monday evening.
This includes the 34 schools — mainly Catholic grammars — who came together under the Post Primary Transfer Consortium to run multiple choice exams on one day.
The other 34 schools — catering mainly for Protestant pupils — offered three different exam papers over three days to P7 pupils and all are members of the Association for Quality Education (AQE).
These papers were more in the style of the old 11-plus exams.
There was a fee for the AQE tests while the tests on offer within the Catholic school sector were free.
The results from both tests were issued to pupils across the province in February and are being used by the schools as their first criterion for entry if over-subscribed.
It is understood that the Catholic grammars are currently saying that they are not willing to charge for tests and this may scupper plans to have a single testing system.
On the other side of the argument — the AQE schools are reluctant to fund the exams from their school budgets.
Billy Young, from AQE, said: “Negotiations are still ongoing.
“The consortium and AQE will be meeting next week to decide finally if there is agreement to go ahead with a single testing system.
“Both sides are still keen for it to go ahead but we need to sort out some of the finer points like the style of the test, how it will be funded and whether it would be managed centrally or by individual schools as was the case with the consortium this year.”
Another school source said: “The schools in the Post-Primary Consortium say that they will not charge parents for the tests, whether it is £60 or a penny.”
The consortium schools used various means of funding for the first year of tests.
Some had a sponsor for their exams and others took it out of their own budget.
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It may surprise you PACE but I agree with you!
It is beyond question that the levels of achievement in literacy & Numeracy need to be improved for all children.
Our education system is and has been failing all our children for far too long. The first step in fixing a problem is to acknowledge there is a problem in the first place; all our schools could improve.
To try and fix a dysfunctional system in a piece meal manner is not, however, possible.
While there are schools designated for the educational winners and losers (in a testing system long discredited) systemic improvement will remain impossible.
Posted by Exasperated | 20.04.10, 11:56 GMT
Exasperated,
Simple solution - better teaching of numeracy and literacy.
Seeking proposals for education reform after your predetermined outcome strategy has failed is comical.
Your reference about going back to the past has been tiresomely overused in political circles as justification for all sorts of poor policy. The current education regime has produced one outcome - removal of choice.
Since transfer tests measure numeracy and literacy and 25% of primary school pupils fail to achieve the DENI set standard, your persistent link of causal relationship of poor teaching of the basics to the 11-plus exposes your ideological bias.
Remember Exasperated the transfer test system is now deregulated - it is none of your interfering business - unless like many anti-selectionists you wish to see your children attain places in grammar school.
Posted by Parental Alliance for Choice in Education | 20.04.10, 08:10 GMT
So david how do you propose to bring about an improvement in the education system in NI?
I believe (for reasons I have outlined) removal of academic selection is one of many strategies to be used to raise standards for all.
Others disagree yet offer no vision for the future only a reflection of the past!
Posted by Exasperated | 19.04.10, 11:53 GMT
Excellent, one test for all schools is the best possible action that can be taken in our current situation.
The times certainly are not "changing" as Exasperated says; just because you want them to does not mean they will. Surely you read about the report published very recently explaining how England's remaining grammar schools are LESS socially exclusive than the comprehensives?
Posted by david | 16.04.10, 22:32 GMT
On the substantive issue of a single test PACE are bound to point out that a proven test already exists and will be offered this year again. The AQE CEA exam will be available in the autumn. It will be left to the Post Primary Transfer Consortium to participate or not. Parents can make their arrangements for applying for a grammar school place accordingly.
This information is provided "free"
Posted by Parental Alliance for Choice in Education | 16.04.10, 07:57 GMT
Parent 14.04.10, 18:10 GMT
When the 11-plus tests were regulated by the DENI and administered by CCEA it cost the taxpayer millions to pay for the test setting, invigilators, marking and distribution of results. This money allocated to the DENI budget has been kept by Caitriona Ruane without explanation of how it is now being used. The AQE charge is a fraction of the previous costs with teachers and vital others donating their time. More importantly, the claim that
the tests on offer within the Catholic school sector were free are disingenuous at best. Using the "free" reason as a barrier to testing exposes those advocating it as manipulators. Where was their concern for the taxpayer for all the years of regulated 11-plus tests?
Posted by Parental Alliance for Choice in Education | 16.04.10, 07:04 GMT
It's so important to avoid two tests that many ways should be considered to get over the financial hurdle.
No child should be refused admission to the tests because their parents will not pay. The schools know who are reasonable candidates, hence PS and their PTA's can ensure all such children are funded - irrespective of their parent's means. In addition those who would like a chance but on the face of it will not succeed should be funded if they are unable to pay the fee.
No doubt a financial pool can be set up between schools to help the funding.
This would be a wider scheme than the current AQE subsidy based on free school meals but narrower than the current free scheme provided by Catholic Schools.
Posted by Michael Dubitante | 15.04.10, 21:23 GMT
Exasperated, I know from several friends in senior management positions in Catholic schools from different areas that the PPRCE options were absolutely not "written by all the schools together grammars and all ability". Consultation was minimal and meaningless; the options were written by PPRCE and schools were informed of the proposals for their areas. Many are extremely unhappy about the so called choices available to them. If your school was part of writing the options for your area then I suggest it's in the minority!
And you know as well as I do - even PPRCE have admitted it for goodness sake - that the legal position is that nobody can force schools and BOGs to stop academic admission tests. Your school may be up for it but are all? I don't think so.
You still haven't answered my question on the other thread by the way, PACE very helpfully distracted you. ;-)
Posted by Anne | 15.04.10, 20:54 GMT
Good point TJ, you are right of course about politicians (and lots of other people) who have never worked in education in any capacity at all appear to think they are experts. Change just for changes sake is meaningless, if not down right damaging; you like me will have experienced the madness that is Dept of Ed 'death by policy innovation'.
However our system is broken, those with more wealth can buy privilege, a point contributors who disagree with my position have acknowledged. Research demonstrates that children mature at different rates and cannot be neatly categorized into two 'types' (all parents observe this) at 10 or 11.
A 'transfer test' cannot therefore do what its users claim.
This is why I wish for change to address the underlying problems with a failing system.
PS No school has received any budget yet and the financial year started three weeks ago, lets see the politico sort this out!
Posted by Exasperated | 15.04.10, 20:51 GMT
Exasperated | 14.04.10, 18:31
Thanks for that Exasperated at least I presume we both like a bit of Dylan.
Some people politicians and 'educationalists' in particular keep harping on about change and how much we need it and how we should 'embrace' it. They fail to mention that change can be very much for the worse for everyone!
Posted by T J McClean | 15.04.10, 14:38 GMT
Very good point Exasperated. It is also just as illegal to remove funds from Prep schools without bringing it before the Executive, but I am sure the Minister for Education is aware of this.
It is also illegal to remove admission by academic selection as was agreed in 2006 at that great Assembly offsite in Scotland.
So where to we stand.........back where we started me thinks.
The AQE also charged for their testing so where's the issue. The parents have already paid for it.
Posted by NW Parent | 15.04.10, 14:09 GMT
Hope to God no grammar school has been stupid enough to use delegated monies to fund these disgraceful tests; this money is for the education of the children already at the institutions.
It would be illegal to use delegated funds to pay for either the AQE or GL tests, and could easily lead to suspension of Governors and or Principal and almost certainly result in criminal prosecution!
As to the PPRCE options, readers should remember they were written by all the schools together grammars and all ability.
A few loud voices from certain schools cannot defy the will of the school OWNERS.
Sorry TJ and PACE “The times they are a changin’”
Posted by Exasperated | 14.04.10, 18:31 GMT
Why do AQE need to charge if PPTC can run a test without a charge?
Posted by parent | 14.04.10, 18:10 GMT
What decision? The Post Primary Consortium have no say in this matter - their anti-selection position is clear.
Catholic schools are to become comprehensive or all-ability since they seem incapable of using the word comprehensive.
There have been problems with the GL Assessment tests and the lack of a specification. The two tests are not the same, therefore incapable of becoming one.
The AQE tests were available to all parents last year but it is interesting that that the AQE have remained silent on the issue of availability for this year. Is there some sort of political deal in the background or are the AQE simply the GBA in disguise and want to impose the Catholic education solution on all ? Parents of P6 deserve to know that the AQE selection test is being offered prior to the election. Otherwise another post-election U-turn is on the cards.
Posted by Parental Alliance for Choice in Education | 14.04.10, 08:15 GMT
This includes the 34 schools — mainly Catholic grammars — who came together under the Post Primary Transfer Consortium to run multiple choice exams on one day.
...but I thought that according to the Catholic church bishop's directives they were all abandoning academic testing! Obviously not then! A wee bit of a schism here, noise of rebellion in the camp, Catholic parents and Grammar schools in open revolt at last!
Posted by T J McClean | 14.04.10, 08:14 GMT