Danny Finkelstein, writing recently in the Times, correctly reported on the improvement in schools in England. He noted how we had risen up the league tables in reading and maths – so much so that we are ‘attracting admiring visits from foreign policymakers keen to see what England is getting right.’ He praised the efforts…
The recent Year 6 SATs’ reading paper caused tears from students who took it – and from some of their teachers. It was too hard, they said. The National Association of Headteachers claimed that even staff ‘had to really think’ about the answers. The Department for Education defended the paper, saying the questions had been…
The 2016 changes to the Key Stage 2 SATs tests grading system have been a travesty. Just as the positive 2014 changes to the curriculum saw us rise up the PISA rankings, the 2016 changes to the SATs grading system could see us fall back down. Accurate information about how children are performing means that…
The government is committed to holding SATs exams for Year 6 students next year – and it is the right thing to do. Testing children is crucial and the damage the lack of exams has caused over the last year will only become apparent in the future. SATs are important because they should give accurate…
One effect of the pandemic not yet wholly appreciated is the way it has exposed the weakness in assessing children’s progress at primary school level. A dramatic shake-up of the SATs system around four years ago has left educators and parents unaware of exactly how children in this age range are faring. Before the changes,…