Transfer Test AQE 2014-2015

Mrs_mum

Daughter back yo school tomorrow. Can't believe she is going into P7, where has the time gone? Now just a few more months of hard work and then the tests will be over.

Veggie_Northern_Ireland

I know Mrs Mum the summer just disappeared! My sister wasn't in a great mood to practice over the summer... She did a test most weeks but wasn't interested in doing much practice work on her mistakes. She seems to be willing to do bond books etc now but I'm worried it's just too late Only time will tell.

I wish we knew that once the schools are back (she's not back to Thursday) that it will be all focus for the last 9-10 weeks to the tests but her school are offering very little help.. No help during class, no practice papers but an after school club 1 hour a week.

Is anyone else still in the low 70s at this point? We can be mid/high 80s in one and low 70s in the next!



AQE Paper 1 - 74 Days

AQE Paper 2 - 88 Days

AQE Paper 3 - 95 Days

Mrs_mum

Yea, scores can still be a bit up and down. I really think that some of the old papers are harder than others and I do think that they are harder than the AQE papers. Is her school not doing any practice papers in class? My daughters headmaster told us they will be doing 2 practice papers a week in P7.

Veggie_Northern_Ireland

Mrs Mum, No they won't do any practice papers at all in school, not even in the after schools club. It seems to be really puting the kids at a disadvantage when almost all other schools are doing practice papers, with many having done them in p6 too.

I'm just really hoping that lots of practice from now to November will be enough.

Mrs_mum

That really sucks Veggie Northern Ireland. Ur right I think they are putting their pupils at a disadvantage. How else are they supposed to learn about managing their time and what it feels like to be doing this test before the actual real tests, never mind preparing them for the layout of the papers and the type of wording that is used. I know that the AQE is made up of the work that is in the curriculum but that alone isn't enough preparation for these kids that are only 10 and 11. Did the headmaster give a reason as to why they wouldn't be giving them practice papers? (apart from the fact that they don't have too and are not meant too)

Veggie_Northern_Ireland

Mrs Mum it seems that her school have suddenly had a massive change in their approach to aqe! She came home yesterday with the news that they would be doing 2 tests each week and that the children doing the aqe would be getting separate homework than those that are not...

Yesterday she had 70 maths questions and today it's 90 English questions! It feels a bit like they've went from too little to too much :huh: (we have to fit homework around sport clubs 4 nights a week) but at least they're doing something :T

Mrs_mum

Wow veggie Northern Ireland what a change around. Glad they have decided to help prepare the kids but as u say, it is now a case of trying to fit everything in! Hopefully u and your sister will manage to juggle it all. My daughter has activities 3 nights a week and already this week it has been a tight squeeze trying to fit everything in with the extra homework but I don't want her to have to give up activities that she really loves. We will just have to see how she copes over the next couple of weeks. They did their first practice paper of P7 today and she got 83% so she was happy with that and I was happy.

stevieboy11

I'm still following this thread as big son went through the AQE last year and I had all of the same concerns - he came through well and got to his first choice school and is now half way through his first full week. Now my worries are will he settle in? will he cope with all the new subjects? will he keep up with the big uplift in homework? and a hundred more that keep me thinking at night. Thankfully so far so good - I dropped him to school on his first day, and like an animal being released back into the wild, he never looked back when he got out of the car

Anyway, the point of this post....I think we worry about these things more than the kids - My pointer would be to support where necessary and explain where you can, but be carefull you don't transfer your stress onto them - I could definitely see it in my son before his first AQE exam.

Good luck everyone, I know its hard

Mrs_mum

Thanks stevieboy11 good to know that we will come out the other end! Lol

Mrs_mum

Well how did everyone's first full week back to normal go? Daughters teacher had a meeting with all the parents this week to let us know what will be happening in the run up to the AQE, 2 practice papers a week, AQE club once a week, homework at the weekend to be marked by parents, along with their normal homework every evening which consists of numeracy or literacy, spellings, times tables and reading and then their Friday tests. So think they are going to be kept busy.