Information Evening
for P6 Parents
7 May 2013
BANGOR GRAMMAR
SCHOOL
GLENLOLA COLLEGIATE
SCHOOL
REGENT HOUSE
SCHOOL
What will tonight be about?
Admissions
to
selective
grammar schools
in 2014
What will tonight be about?
‘Tests’
Who sets and marks them?
What will they be like?
When will they take place?
Where will they take place?
What will the outcomes look like?
How will the outcomes be used to determine entry to a
grammar school?
What will tonight be about?
Process
What do I need to do?
When will I need to do it?
Where will my child sit the ‘tests’?
Where can I find the information
I need to know?
How do I apply to
post-primary schools?
What will tonight be about?
Process
What are
‘Access arrangements’
and
‘Special Cases’?
Do I need to know about them?
AQE
Association
For
Quality
Education
AQE
Parents’ Groups.
Former Pupils’ Associations.
Governors and Principals of
Grammar Schools.
Operated by a consortium
34 Grammar Schools.
Funded by parental fees
supported by
the Grammar Schools.
PPTC
Post
Primary
Transfer
Consortium
CEA
Common
Entrance
Assessments
Assessments
In almost all AQE grammar
schools, absolute priority
will be given to pupils
who sit
the AQE CEAs.
(Campbell College,
Victoria College and
Wellington College
will also accept PPTC grades.)
Assessment
2013
• Three Assessments
• November 9
• Each one hour long
• November 23
• Three Saturday
Mornings at 10.00 am • November 30
Assessment
• Best two marks out of
three count.
• Children do not have to sit
all three CEAs.
• Based on Revised
Curriculum.
• English / Mathematics.
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
8 Maths items
Poem + 7 items
8 Maths items
Basic skills + 5 items
8 Maths items
Poem + 7 items
8 Maths items
Prose passage + 7 items
Why three assessments?
• Reduces the ‘high stakes’ pressure;
• children can have an ‘off-day’;
• allows children more opportunity
to become used to a strange environment;
• reduces the disadvantage for children
who are not coached or prepared by their primary
schools;
• increases the technical reliability and validity of
the assessments.
Markers?
• Retired teachers with experience of
external examining.
• Two marking centres.
• Each script is marked three times.
• Rigorous quality assurance processes.
Outcomes
• Numerical ‘age standardised’
scores (say between 70 – 130).
• 100 = average score for cohort.
When will the results
be published?
Saturday
1 February 2014
The Process
How can I arrange
for my child
to sit the
AQE CEAs?
The Process
Fill in the
Registration Form.
Opening Date for
application?
13 May 2013
When will the form
be available?
NOW!
Closing Date for
application?
13 September 2013
The Process
Where can I find the Registration Form?
•
•
•
•
Grammar Schools (in our pack).
Grammar School websites.
AQE website.
Some Primary Schools.
Where will the assessments
take place?
In the Grammar Schools.
Invigilated by school staff.
You will be able to choose the centre
which best suits you.
The centre you choose does not need
to be the school you wish
your son/daughter to attend.
How will he/she know
where to go?
• Nominate your 3 choices of venue on the
Registration Form.
• Centres will run Orientation / Information
mornings in October (BGS: Saturday 19 October).
• Children will sit with friends.
(The earlier you apply, the greater the chance of
obtaining a place in your first choice.)
Important
• Send Registration
Form to AQE.
• Fee = £44.00.
• Birth Certificate.
• Three passport sized
photographs to be
enclosed.
• List your choice of
centres in order of
preference.
• Children who receive
Free School Meals
pay no fee (proof
required).
Access Arrangements
(before the assessments)
• Children with specific needs who require
special conditions for the tests should indicate
these special needs on the Registration Form
(Section B).
• A second ‘Access Application’ form will be sent
out by AQE to be filled in with more detail.
• AQE Panel will consider application.
• Centre makes suitable arrangements if
application is granted.
• Closing date for Access Forms:
20 September 2013
Application Process to
Post-Primary Schools
• Meeting in February with Primary School
Principal.
• List choice of schools in order of
preference on transfer form provided.
• Processed by ELB and sent to school(s) of
choice.
• News of placement received at the end of
May.
Application Process to
Post-Primary Schools
Admissions Criteria
• Academic
• Non-academic
Admissions Criteria
• Apply rank order for all places
available on the basis of a score
(AQE) or grade (PPTC).
• Where there are more applicants
on the same score than there are
places remaining, non-academic
criteria are applied.
Examples of
Non-academic Criteria
• Feeder primary schools.
• Eldest in family.
• Sibling(s) already pupils in the school or
former pupils.
• Children in receipt of free school meals.
• Parish or borough.
• Distance from school.
• Random selection.
Special Cases
(after the assessments)
• Special Circumstances
• Special Provisions
Special Circumstances
• Circumstances beyond the control of the child
which affect his or her performance in the
assessments.
• Apply to AQE for special form, on which you
may describe circumstances and provide
evidence.
• Submit with the Transfer Form (Application).
• Individual schools will evaluate the claim and if
necessary and appropriate…
• …adjust the score by a margin determined by
other academic information.
Special Provisions
May apply to children:
• who live outside NI up to and at the
time of the tests, or…
• who have experienced more than
half their primary school education
outside NI, or…
• have been unable to sit the AQE CEAs.
To take away …
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
AQE Guide for Parents (strong green)
AQE ‘Implementation Process’ (cream)
Frequently Asked Questions (red)
Explanation of scoring system (lilac)
Access Arrangements (blue)
CEA Specification (pale green)
Registration Form
Copy of slide presentation
Contacts
www.bangorgrammarschool.com
(info@bgs.bangor.ni.sch.uk)
www.glenlolacollegiate.net
www.regenthouse.org.uk
www.aqe.org.uk
Contacts
AQE Office
Unit 3
Weavers Court Business Park
Belfast
BT12 5GH
028 9022 4002 / aqeoffice1@yahoo.co.uk