Procedure for entry to secondary education 2015

1. Procedure for entry to secondary education 2015 SCAF- Secondary Common Application Form

2. Choice ? • In this part of Kent, you have a wide choice of secondary schools – grammar, wide ability single sex schools with changes in the offing…, wide ability mixed schools, a denominational mixed school The Ursuline College , which is also wide ability, and academies and federations.

3. Registering • I have sent you all information about registering for your child to be tested - the Kent Test will be on Wed 10th September- very soon after the new term commences. • The form MUST be back to the authority by Tuesday 1st July –please copy us in to these so that we can support you through the process . You can also download the form from www.kent.gov.uk/secondaryadmissions and they are asking that you do this if at all possible. If your child is not registered, he or she CANNOT take the Kent Test…

4. The process • You have already had an opportunity to meet Mrs Sproates, Mr Pavelin and me recently to discuss your child’s current assessment and progress. • We can give you information, but it is YOU who have the responsibility for making the final decision. • In offering our advice to you, we DO NOT look at future potential for development at this stage – we are assessing the child NOW but we have the advantage of knowing about children’s attitudes to work .

5. The Tests This year there will be changes to the way in which the children are tested. The most significant is that tests will be completed on one day: Wednesday 10th September. • The first test will be an English and Maths paper in multiple-choice format with a separate machine readable (OMR) answer sheet. The whole test will take an hour to administer. Each sub test will take 25 minutes and will be preceded by a five minute practice exercise. The English test is in the first section. Children will be required to stop at the end of the English section and wait for instructions before they start the Maths Section. The English will involve a comprehension exercise plus some additional questions drawn from a set designed to test Literacy skills.

6. Reasoning Paper • The second test will be a Reasoning Paper in multiple choice format and will take an hour to administer, including practice drills and questions. It will contain a verbal and non verbal reasoning section of roughly the same length, with the verbal reasoning being the first part. The non-verbal reasoning will be split into four sections, administered and timed individually (as in previous tests).

7. The Tests contd • The tests take place in the class room to make the surroundings as familiar and comfortable as possible but under examination conditions – this year there are no practice tests; instead there are practice questions prior to the main tests. There will also be a writing exercise which will not be marked but will be taken into consideration in borderline cases referred to the local Head Teacher Assessment Panel. 40 minutes will be allowed for the exercise, including 10 minutes for planning.

8. The Tests contd • Mr Pavelin administers the test here together with an invigilator, usually a head teacher from another school and I do the same at the other school. • The tests are centrally marked by an optical marker. • They are then age ‘standardised’ The Local Authority will give you the assessment decision by 15th October on line after 4p.m. Or from the 16th October by post.

9. 'Secondary Common Application Form', • At around the testing time in September, you can download a booklet called: ‘Admission to Secondary School in Kent 2015’ from the web site : www.kent.gov.uk • It will give information about the completion of the next stage in the process, completing the 'Secondary Common Application Form‘. • The 'SCAF' form will enable you to make your choice of secondary school - and for those of you who have children who have taken the Kent Test, you will then know what kind of school, grammar or otherwise, to choose. • You are required to make 4 choices in order of preference. Please use all 4. • The SCAF form can be completed on line or a paper copy can be sent directly to the LA or through school by 31st October

10. Offers of school places • Offers of school places will be posted from the Local Authority on 2nd March 2015. The LA will let each school know the names of children who appear on the SCAF, but schools don’t know whether they are 1st, 2nd ,3rd or 4th choice. • The school then rank the children in order of their admissions criteria. It is therefore very important to read criteria to be sure you are eligible for a particular school.

11. Offers of school places • So, if, your child, who has reached the required standards in the tests and who has Dane Court as a first choice on the SCAF and you fulfil their other admissions criteria (probably distance) they will be offered a place there. If your child is not offered a place, because of the oversubscriptions criteria, a place will be offered at another school listed on your SCAF… • The booklet will explain the waiting list and appeals processes – the appropriate forms will be sent to you with the allocation of places letters… for you to return to the authority. • You can appeal for a place at any school that you named on your form, wherever you ranked it on the SCAF….

12. Head Teacher Appeals • If we believe that your child should have achieved a ‘positive outcome’ from the test, and the test scores do not support this, we have an opportunity to present your child’s classwork to a panel of professionals on your child’s behalf… and write a report and annotating work supporting our reason for re-consideration. At this point, the writing exercise under test conditions will be used. • If this is not successful there is still the parental appeal process where we can support parents for whom we have made a Headteacher appeal but it is important that you contact us at this point for this to happen. – BUT work needs to be really consistent and show improvement…

13. Appeals • We have seen in the past, children who have achieved a low score in the Kent Test, whose parents have appealed to a Grammar school and achieved a place… parents ask us for a supportive reference, which we will provide IF the child has worked to earn that support…

14. The Last Bit! • When you download it,PLEASE KEEP THE PESE BOOKLET SAFE… It will give full information about the process and the schools’ oversubscription criteria AND the DCSF number of the schools… Remember to check that you have selected the correct St. George’s… • Secondary Schools will start to publish Open Days in September and October. Visit as many as you can and keep an open mind.

15. What if? • Illness – if a child is absent, they take the test with me immediately on their return to school (but they usually do not perform as well as having taken with the group… it’s worth considering bringing them to school and taking them home after the test… ). • Please don’t promise a ‘new bike or new computer’ if you pass… • It is very important to impress upon the children that no matter what the outcome, they don’t change as a person and are very special and we try to promote that within the class whether the take the test or not

16. Choice and suitability • It is not always prudent to register your child for the test if it sets unrealistic expectations. • Many parents choose not to opt their child into testing because they know that their first choice will be The Ursuline College. • The most important thing is that your child secures a place at a secondary school which best suits his or her educational and social needs and your family values.

17. Here to help • You are not alone. If you need any help or advice, let us help you. We want to see the youngsters we have nurtured over the last seven years to continue to be enthusiastic learners and happy in their new schools.