Eleven plus exam

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The Eleven Plus or Transfer Test was an examination which was given to students in their last year of primary education in the United Kingdom under the Tripartite System. The name derives from the age group of the students: 11+. The exam is still used in a number of counties and boroughs in England, and more widely in Northern Ireland. It examines the student's ability to solve problems using verbal and non-verbal reasoning. Contrary to its designers’ intentions, the exam came to be seen as determining whether a student went to a grammar school or to a secondary modern.

Contents

[edit] Structure

The structure of the eleven plus varied over time and between counties. Usually, it consisted of three papers

  • Writing – An essay question on a general subject.
  • General Problem Solving – A paper assessing ability to apply logic to simple problems and to test general knowledge.

Most children sat the test in their final year of primary school. In certain counties, such as Buckinghamshire, it was also possible to sit the test a year early- a process nicknamed the ‘ten plus’. (It should be noted that in Buckinghamshire, up until recently, the test was called the 'twelve plus' and was taken a year later than currently). The test was voluntary, but it was extremely rare not to enter.

[edit] Current practice

Eleven plus and similar type exams vary around the country but will use some or all of the following components.

  • Verbal reasoning
  • Nonverbal reasoning
  • Mathematics
  • Writing

In Buckinghamshire children sit just two verbal reasoning papers. In Kent children will sit all four of the above disciplines. Other areas use other combinations. Some authorities/areas operate an opt-in system, whilst others (such as Buckinghamshire) operate an opt-out system where all pupils are entered unless parents decide to opt out.

[edit] Importance

The eleven plus was created as part of the 1944 Butler Education Act. This established a Tripartite System of education, with an academic, a technical and a functional strand. Prevailing educational thought at the time argued that testing was an effective way of finding which strand a child was most suited for. The results from the exam would be used to match a child’s abilities and future career needs to their secondary school.

When the system was implemented, the technical schools did not appear on the scale envisaged. Instead, the Tripartite System came to be characterised by fierce competition for places at the prestigious grammar schools. As such, the eleven plus took on a particular significance. Rather than allocating according to need or ability, it became seen as a question of passing or failing. This led to the exam becoming widely resented.

[edit] Controversy

The eleven plus was the result of the major changes taking place in British education in the years up to 1944. In particular, the Hadow report of 1926 called for the division of primary and secondary education, to take place on the cusp of adolescence at 11 or 12. The imposition of such a stark break in the Butler Act seemed to offer an ideal opportunity to implement streaming, since all children would be changing school anyway. Testing at 11 emerged largely as a historical accident, without clear forethought.

Criticism of the eleven plus arose on a number of grounds. Success was determined not only by ability but also by location and gender. 35% of pupils in the South West secured grammar school places as opposed to 10% in Nottinghamshire.[1] Due to the continuance of single-sex schooling, there were fewer places for girls than boys.

The merits of testing at 11+, when children were at varying stages of maturity, has been questioned, particularly when the impact of the test on later life is taken into account. Children who developed later (so-called "late bloomers") suffered because there was inflexibility in the system to move them between grammar and secondary modern schools. Once a child had been allocated to one type of school or the other it was extremely difficult to have this assessment changed. Areas using the exam today have recognised this concern, and offer reassessment in later years, notably at Key Stage 3.

Critics of the eleven plus also claimed that there was a strong class bias in the exam. JWB Douglas, studying the question in 1957, found that children on the borderline of passing were more likely to get grammar school places if they came from middle class families.[2] For example, questions about the role of household servants or classical composers were easier for middle class children to answer but far less familiar to those from less wealthy or less educated backgrounds. This criticism was certainly true of the earlier forms of the exam, and as a result the eleven plus became more like an IQ test during the 1960s. It has been argued that middle class opposition to the eleven plus rose partly as a result of this move to greater fairness.

Overall, it has been suggested by some that a large number of students were unfairly treated by the eleven plus. The sociologist AH Halsey claimed that as much as one quarter of pupils were misallocated by the exam. It is generally agreed that there were problems with the eleven plus exam and even those advocating a return to the Tripartite System usually acknowledge the need to review testing methods.

[edit] Use of the eleven plus today

In counties in which vestiges of the Tripartite System still survive, the eleven plus continues to exist. Today it usually takes on the form of an entrance test to a specific group of schools, rather than a blanket exam for all pupils, and is taken voluntarily. For more information on these, see the main article on grammar schools. The largest area still operating the eleven plus is Northern Ireland, although it is planned to phase the exam out in 2008. For more information, see the main article on the Tripartite System.

Independent schools, particularly those Direct Grant Grammars which seceded from the state system after the abolition of the Tripartite System, often model their entrance exams upon the old eleven plus.

The content of the examination differs from area to area, but most children sit a Verbal Reasoning paper, many sit a non-verbal reasoning paper and some sit a mathematics paper or different combinations of all three.

[edit] Scoring

The scores in a few cases (mainly in Kent, where the eleven plus is commonly taken in its most standard form, but NOT in any other areas of the UK) add up to 700. The verbal reasoning, mathematics and writing are all out of 141 (in standardised scores). Writing and mathematics are doubled and verbal reasoning added on to make a total score out of 700 standardised points.

When used to decide whether students are eligible for a grammar school education, a pass mark is set to decide. Usually, the pass mark is between 500 and 510. People who exceed that are given the opportunity to study at grammar school while those who fall below that are often not. Should a score be close to yet slightly below the pass mark be achieved then the candidate may appeal to get into grammar school. Generally someone who gets between 500 and 530 has achieved just enough to pass. Those getting 530 to 600 are most likely fairly able to carry on to grammar school without a problem. Students who score between 600 and 650 are considered extremely bright. Those that exceed a score of 650 are rare yet exemplary cases and will have no problems whatsoever in making the transition from primary to secondary education.

[edit] External links

[edit] Websites against the eleven plus

[edit] Websites promoting the eleven plus

[edit] Information about the eleven plus system in Buckinghamshire

  • [1] The Buckinghamshire Eleven Plus site

[edit] Footnotes

  1. ^ Szreter, S. Lecture, University of Cambridge, Lent Term 2004
  2. ^ Sampson, A. Anatomy of Modern Britain Today, London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1965, p195

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