Worcester MP sits SATs in row over pressure on kids
MP Robin Walker is sitting a SATs test paper as a campaign group is highlighting the consequences of high-pressure, high-stakes nature of the exams.
MPs have been invited to sit a year 6 SATs exam paper for the Big SATs Sit-In in Westminster today.
Under the same exam conditions faced by year 6 pupils, parliamentarians will test their knowledge of fronted adverbials and long division. The tests will be invigilated by year 6 pupils from Surrey Square Primary School in London who will strictly enforce the rules of no talking, no calculators and no Googling.
The event has been organised by campaign group, More Than A Score, to highlight the consequences of the pressures put on children because of SATs exams.
As well as Westminster, Big SATs Sit-Ins are taking place in dozens of schools around the country, including in Brighton, Birmingham, Cheshire, Essex, Durham, Whitley Bay, and London, where parents will test their knowledge.
After the papers are marked, the Westminster class of 2022 will be told if they have collectively “reached the expected standard” required by the Department for Education.
Alison Ali from More Than A Score said: “This is more than a test of maths and English capabilities, it’s an opportunity for MPs to put themselves in the shoes of 10- and 11-year-olds being tested under GCSE-style exam conditions.
"They will see how absurd some of the questions faced by children are, how these absurdities influence and narrow the whole curriculum, and how they are only used to judge schools, not to help children’s learning. We want them to question: is this the right way to measure what children can really do? Is it the fairest, most accurate way to judge school performance?”
In 2022, 41% of year 6 children were told they had not “reached the expected standard” before starting secondary school. More Than A Score argues that being labelled a failure is the wrong way to begin secondary school and that spending most of year 6 cramming for SATs does not encourage a love of learning.
Parents and headteachers agree: according to research in September 2022*, only 8% strongly support current government policy on primary testing and headteachers believe preparing for SATs and other tests should be bottom of their priorities in the classroom. Meanwhile 60% of parents agree that the high-pressure nature of the tests harm children’s mental health.
Matt Morden, headteacher of Surrey Square Primary School comments, “Like many schools, we do everything we can to reduce the stress placed on children by SATs. But, of course, they feel the pressure of the exam conditions on the day. SATs will never show all that our pupils have learned and they will never give a full picture of our school performance.”