I hate, loathe and detest the acronym SATs. I will not have a SATs paper in my teaching room.
I was involved in the first ever lot of SATs for 7 year olds and strongly disagreed with administering them, on the grounds that I knew every child in my class better than any government test would. Not to mention how insulted I felt as an experienced teacher.
And so mention SATs to me and you'll be likely to get an earful ;-)
I think that they are a complete waste of time and money.
Time that could be spent on educating our children properly and money that could be spent on vital and valuable books and materials etc.
And lets face it, for this years SATs marking, read..FIASCO.
Every year brings a smile to my face YET, at the same time, TEARS TO MY EYES.
This year is no exception...
1. Four in ten teenagers are struggling to master the basics after three years at secondary school following a slump in their grasp of core subjects.
2. Falling numbers of 14-year-olds made the grade in English and Science SATs tests this year, despite record investment in secondary education.
3. The performance of boys in reading suffered its biggest ever drop - three percentage points in a single year.
4. It means just 62 per cent met the expected level for their age this year - down from 65 per cent in 2007 and far behind girls' 76 per cent.
5. (THE BEST BIT) More than one in five boys were revealed to have the reading age of a child of just nine.
AND...
6. (AN EVER BETTER BIT..WAIT FOR THIS..)The trend prompted Schools Minister Jim Knight to call on parents to curb their sons' computer use and encourage them to read for pleasure instead.
Ah so there you have it! It's as easy as that Jim! Don't you just love it when a govt minister makes a right prat of himself? I do.
Anyway..all is not doom and gloom because..do you know why?
I'll tell you.
By the time that these children take their GCSE'S and maybe A levels, MIRACULOUSLY, record achievements will be announced (as they always are!)
Strange that, isn't it? Work that one out! ;-)
SATs = Standard Assessment Tasks
But if anyone can think of a better acronym, please comment!! ;-)