SATs

As part of my school governor involvement, I attended a couple of the SATs at our local primary school. Standard Assessment Tests have been on the go in primary schools since the 1990s, so by now a lot of children have experienced them. But until now, I'd never seen how they are administered. Sitting as an observer in a school hall with twenty Year 6 pupils, each at individual desks, separated by a regulated distance from one another, I felt for these eleven year olds. The strict exam protocol reminded me of my school exams, and not pleasantly so. Exam papers were placed on desks, and at an agreed start signal, the children would turn them over and begin, for the specified duration of the exam. No wonder that some children find it stresses them out. I felt nervous myself, especially as I read the questions. Finding examples of adverbial nouns took me a while, as did an example of a past completed tense.  These youngsters do pretty well to cope with this level of examination.