ALTRINCHAM GRAMMAR SCHOOL
FOR BOYS
Entrance Exam
September 2011
(for entry in
September 2012)
Welcome
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LEA Common Preference Form
AGSB Application Form
Test day
Results
Review
Offer of places
Appeal
Summary
LEA Common Preference form
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Trafford LEA requires all common preference forms to
be completed and returned to them by the 31st October
2011 – other LEA’s may have similar dates – please
check . They are sent to you in the first week of term as
your son begins Year 6 in his primary school
Parents should rank their choices in order of preference
listing as their highest preference the school they most
wish to be allocated on their LEA preference form
Your LEA will endeavour to give you your highest ranked
preferred school – equal preference
If your son currently attends an Independent School,
please contact your LEA for a CPF.
Equal Preference
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Your first choice of school will be allocated to your son
subject to the admissions criteria for that school.
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As you will only receive 1 offer it is essential that you
name your highest preference school first.
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If, for whatever reason, you cannot be offered your first
choice, then your second choice becomes your first, etc
Application
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For your son to gain a place at AGSB :
You must fill out your common preference form and
put AGSB where you wish us to be ranked
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However he must pass the AGSB Entrance Exam. To
take this you must apply directly to us
Entrance Exam Date
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Our entrance exam is being held on
Saturday September 17th
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Our results will be sent to you in mid October – before
you have to return the common preference form to your
LEA
TAKE NOTE
If you do not complete the LEA form indicating
AGSB on your preference form, your son may go
through and pass the Entrance Exam but in the end
he will not be allocated a place here by Trafford, on
our behalf, in March!
Late applicants are only dealt with after all on time
applications have received their offers
Application continued
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You send us your application form together with two passport
sized photographs and a large(A4) envelope with 66p postage
(last date for applications – Friday 2nd September). On this
please include a contact telephone number for the day of the
exam, just in case your son is ill on the day
Once we have received your application we will send you an
acknowledgement pack – which includes some sample question
sheets
Preparation is useful
The orange form – gives useful information
Equipment for the day
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HB pencil
Eraser
Application continued
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Inform us of any special requirements such as:
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Impaired eyesight – we provide enlarged papers
Impaired hearing – will be sat at the front
Any other medical conditions that may affect
performance can usually be accounted for
Religious reasons
We can accommodate you as long as you let us know in
advance
Test Day – Saturday 17th September 2011
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Arrival
The test room
The test itself
Break
Collection
Departure
Arrival
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You must aim to arrive between 9:00 - 9:15am
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Traffic will be heavy and parking will be extremely
difficult.Park nearby and walk along Marlborough Road
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AGGS on same day!
900 pupils and their parents came last year so please be
patient – two queues at the main doors - all will get in!
Arrival continued……
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Come to the main entrance with your orange form – it tells you
which door to go through and which room to go to with your son
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If you son is ill on the day, please do not bring him. Contact us
immediately by telephone and we will advise accordingly
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Special circumstances form - yellow
 If in doubt fill it out!
 Hand in before exam date or on the day. You must hand it in
to the Enquiries Table NOT to the test room invigilator
The Test Room
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Approximately 30 pupils in each room
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1 Staff & 6th former assistant
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Pupils sit in assigned places, allocated on application
The Test Itself
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GL ASSessment (formerly NFER-Nelson)
National standardised tests
Secure tests, copies are prohibited
Non Verbal Reasoning
Verbal Reasoning
Creative Writing (for review purposes only)
Maths
The Tests - Timing
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GLASS tests
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Creative Writing
20 minute session
GLASS test
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2 x 10 minute sessions
50 minute session
AGSB test
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NVR –
VR –
Maths –
50 minute session
Tests are carefully timed by invigilator. There will be a clock in the
room – but working through at a steady pace is required for these
tests. Time warnings are given in the VR and Maths tests only, half
way through and 5 minutes from the end.
Break
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Break of 20 minutes after NVR and VR test
Staff and 6th former changeover
Small snack may be brought by boys
SMALL drink please!
After the break CREATIVE WRITING followed by
MATHS test
Any time lost through a toilet break cannot be added
on at the end
As you return to school……..
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Please be mindful of pupils and other parents as you
leave, it will be busy
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Roads will be congested again, so please be patient
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Details about return and collection will be displayed
around the school when you leave your son for the tests
briefly they are……..
Collection………
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Return to school between 12:30 - 12:45pm
Follow the signs to the Grammar Car Park – please wait
quietly as boys will still be working
Estimated finish time 1:00pm
Pupils led through Hall to the south yard nearby
Room flags will be on desks where your son will be told
to meet you
If you are not there your son will be asked to wait in the
hall
The Tests - marking
NVR
40
VR
80
MARKED AT AGSB
STANDARDISED (and ‘age weighted’)
RESULTS AND PASS MARK OBTAINED
REVIEW LATE SEPTEMBER
RESULTS SENT TO PARENTS MID OCTOBER
MATHS
50
The Tests - Standardisation
141
141
80
40
NVR
VR
141
50
MATHS
The Tests - Results
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The maximum mark =141 x 3 = 423
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No minimum pass mark for each test
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The qualifying score is 334
The Tests - Review
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Pupils who are within 20 marks of the pass mark will be
reviewed
Review panel will include staff from AGSB as well as a
Primary Head teacher
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Creative Writing test is used at this point to help assess ability
Primary school report is also requested and considered
Scores obtained on the exam
Special Circumstances
Creative Writing test
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Boys are asked to continue a story, using their
imagination. i.e. Jack wandered into the woods and
stumbled on a giant black box…….
We are looking for the ability to write correctly and
interestingly – writing as vividly as possible is more
important than finishing the short story
Three or four well structured paragraphs would be very
impressive
Quality is more important than quantity
Ranking – Qualifiers
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In Area boys who qualify will be eligible for a place and
will receive an offer letter from Trafford (subject to where
you have ranked AGSB on your preference form) on 1ST
March 2012 – National Offer Day
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Out of Area boys who qualify will be ranked by score
and offered places subject to our admissions criteria
(and again subject to where you have ranked AGSB on
your preference form) on 1st March 2012
Ranking – Qualifiers – recent offers
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In area applicants
In 2010 every qualified boy whose parents ranked us as
their highest preference, was offered a place in the
March of that year
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Out of area applicants
The criteria used is score order
In 2010 approximately 33% of the places that we offered
were made to qualified out of area boys.
Confirmation Letter
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In mid October, a letter will be sent to all parents
informing them of the pass mark as well as their son’s
marks in the individual tests
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This is not an offer of a place – it is for information
only
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Offer of places to qualifiers will be made by Trafford LEA
(or your local LEA) on our behalf on 1st March 2012
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Final date for acceptance of a place is 15th March 2012
Appeal
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Appeals body is independent of AGSB
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Details of how to appeal will be given to you on
National Offer Day
Offers of places after 1st March
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Any parent disappointed with their allocated school will
have to re-apply to Trafford immediately after National
Offer Day for any vacancies that are subsequently
available at their preferred school
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No offers are made directly from the school during this
period – they are still made by Trafford on our behalf
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Once all the possible offers have been and accepted, we
will hold a waiting list for one term for any subsequent
vacancies that may arise. So keep in touch!
Open Evening - Thursday 30th June
5:00pm – 7.30pm
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Open Evening will provide you with a chance to see the
school in action
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You can talk to boys and staff about opportunities at
AGSB
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You can buy some more practice papers if you wish
Practice Tests
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Practice tests are available to buy tonight and up to the
exam date for £9.99
Same style as actual test – 4 versions
Experience has shown us that
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Practice is good and familiarisation with materials makes
sense; however…
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Over coaching just to pass the test is not in the best
interests of a boy
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A moment’s pleasure at the result could lead to 5 – 7
years of struggle!
Questions
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If you have missed some of the points or you find you have further
questions after tonight do not worry…
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You can ask questions in a few moments
Look through the application literature again
Practice papers, application forms and copies of our admission
policy are available on your way out this evening
Come and see us on Open Evening – bring your sons
We are always on the end of the phone
Look at the school website – for admissions information, a
complete copy of the latest school prospectus and, in a week or
so, a copy of this presentation
A Final Word
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As well as applying to AGSB and your son sitting the test
here, you must also ensure that you fill in your LEA
common preference form
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Our entrance exam is being held on
Saturday September 17th this year
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Results will be sent to you in mid October – before you
have to return the common preference form to your LEA
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Trafford requires you to return this form to them by 31st
October. Other LEAs will have similar dates – please
check with them
Thank you for listening
Any Questions?
We hope to see you at Open Evening
on Thursday 30th June
5.00pm – 7.30pm