Heads say Sats marking 'erratic'

14 July 2011 Last updated at 13:51 GMT By Katherine Sellgren BBC News education reporter Teachers have described the marking of Sats test in English as "erratic" and "bizarre" More than 1,000 head teachers in England have raised concerns about problems in the marking of this year's primary school Sats tests.

A survey by the National Association of Head Teachers found 1,025 heads were unhappy with the marking of one of the English papers taken by 11-year-olds.

The association carried out the survey after angry complaints from schools about the quality of marking.

The Department for Education says test markers are fully trained.

The accuracy of the Sats results is important to both schools and pupils - as they are used to rank schools for league tables and can influence the ability bands for pupils beginning in secondary school.

The NAHT sent out the survey to 10,000 members last week and the full results will be collated on 15 July when the poll closes.

It said the response to the survey had been "unusually strong".

Before the closing date for the survey, 129 head teachers had reported "mild" problems, 384 "moderate" problems, 350 "severe" problems and 162 "outrageous" problems.

'Very upset'

One head teacher said: "The upper ability children have been marked down.

"We normally get circa 25% Level 5s. This year we have 2%. Our total Level 5s in English is now 5%."

Another school leader said: "The marking of the writing papers was erratic in the extreme.

"A vast number of papers have been under-marked according to the mark scheme, while a few have been over-marked."

Another said: "It is incomprehensible to us how five pupils, clearly working at Level 5 all year and demonstrating their skills well in the test, have been marked so harshly on the longer writing task.

"The application of the mark scheme seems erratic at best and bizarre in some places."

The BBC has also received dozens of e-mails from heads angry at "inconsistencies" in marking.

The concerns centre on a section of the English test, where pupils are asked to produce a piece of creative writing - an area which has attracted complaints in recent years.

A recent review called for this part of the test to be scrapped and replaced by teacher assessment.

NAHT general secretary Russell Hobby said although the survey did not include the experience of all schools, the association believed it was representative.

"Head teachers are very upset about the marking," he said.

"They and their students have put in an immense amount of work and it's not then rewarded with a level of quality at the other end.

"Students and schools depend on these results and we expect a high standard. They are finding a lot of inaccuracies: students that they would have expected to get high or low marks not getting them - and a lot of inconsistencies."

Head teachers have until Friday 15 July to request a formal review if they wish to question the marks given.

Schools pay ?9 per returned script and get the money back if their appeal is successful.

Quality checks

A spokesman for the Department for Education said: "Children have the right to have their papers fairly marked. Key Stage 2 test markers, who are practising or retired teachers, receive thorough training and undergo a number of quality checks through the marking process.

"Ofqual regulates Key Stage 2 tests and has said it they will continue to monitor and safeguard the quality of marking.

"We are currently considering Lord Bew's recommendations as to how we can improve our testing and assessment system."

He said details of the total number of requests for remarks would be published later in the year as official statistics.

Last year, the NAHT, along with the National Union of Teachers, was involved in a boycott of Sats - action which affected about a quarter of England's schools.

The unions said the tests did not give a true picture of pupils' attainment, encouraged teaching to the test and put pupils under pressure.

The English Sats paper has attracted criticism in the past - and generally accounts for most of the requests for re-marks.

Figures published in November on appeals against last year's Sats results showed there were requests for "reviews" of 23,438 test scripts - mostly for English.

In about one in 10 cases, a new grade was given.

In 2009, appeals covered more than 27,000 papers at 5,000 schools.

Again, a higher grade was eventually given in about one in 10 cases.

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Heads angered over Sats marking

5 July 2011 Last updated at 15:45 GMT By Katherine Sellgren BBC News education reporter The exams are taken by 11-year-olds in England in the last year of primary school Head teachers fear some pupils in England have been graded incorrectly in a writing test that forms part of their national curriculum tests or Sats.

The National Association of Head Teachers (NAHT) says many of its members say higher and lower attaining pupils have been graded incorrectly.

The writing tests, which a recent government review recommends scrapping, were taken in May by 11-year-olds.

The Department for Education says no complaints have been received.

Marked test papers were returned to schools last week, but head teachers were only sent details of the thresholds - the marks required to meet the different levels - on Tuesday 5 July.

They have from then until 15 July to request a review if they wish to question the marks given.

Schools pay ?9 per returned script and get the money back if their appeal is successful.

'Disgraceful'

The NAHT says it has had many calls from head teachers across the country concerned by this year's marking.

It also polled members in one local authority - Lancashire - where 47 out of 48 respondents reported "serious inconsistencies" in the way different papers were marked.

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We are receiving dozens of unsolicited calls and emails every day about this problem, which is bound to be the tip of the iceberg ”

End Quote Russell Hobby NAHT Several head teachers have also told the BBC they have found inconsistencies with this year's marks.

Matthew Bradbury, deputy head at St Anthony's Catholic School in Wolverhampton, said he would be sending back 15 pupils' English papers out of a total of 43.

"And these are only the ones where we think they could change a level," he said.

Mr Bradbury, who has been in charge of Sats at his school for 15 years, said the scores this year were "bizarre, to say the least".

"As these results are used to judge both the children and the school, the marking is disgraceful.

"If it wasn't serious, it would be laughable."

Kim Docking, head teacher at Walsgrave School in Coventry, told the BBC: "We have questions regarding the quality of marking for writing in particular.

"Scripts of different standards have been levelled the same and there is a general feeling of marking to the middle.

"Some of the lower ability children have done better than we thought - it didn't mirror what we expected.

"There's just a feeling of 'Gosh, these don't seem to have been marked terribly well.'"

Mrs Docking said it was "hardly surprising" that the Department for Education had not received any complaints yet, as the period within which schools can complain only began on Tuesday.

One school leader told the NAHT: "My Year 6 teachers are very experienced in levelling writing and they are horrified - some children who we consider have written Level 5 writing have been marked right down and others whose writing is definitely not Level 5 have been awarded high marks. It is unbelievable."

"None of the children's scores were an accurate reflection of their ability or teachers' assessment," said another.

Review

In June, a review of Sats by Lord Bew recommended the creative writing test should be scrapped and children's creative writing skills assessed by teachers.

But Lord Bew said pupils should still face official tests of spelling, grammar and punctuation as well as reading and maths.

A Department for Education spokesman said: "Any school which disagrees with the results for any pupils is able to request a review of the marking."

He said no complaints had been received by the Department or by the Qualifications and Curriculum Development Agency.

The exams watchdog, Ofqual, said it had been monitoring national curriculum tests closely this year and would report its findings later in the year.

"We would advise any teachers who believe there to be marking inaccuracies to apply for a marking review," a spokesman said.

"Ofqual has not received any complaints regarding the marking of this year's national curriculum assessments."

'Low quality control'

NAHT general secretary Russell Hobby said: "Anyone who thinks that external tests are somehow an 'objective' measure of pupils' achievement should be rapidly disabused of the notion by this year's second exam fiasco.

"Inconsistencies abound this year, along with stark examples of low quality control.

"As a nation, we pour massive sums of money into setting and marking Sats - money which could be far better spent on teaching children.

"We can only hope that the government pays serious attention to the recommendations of Lord Bew for more teacher assessment.

"This is another nail in the coffin for testing as a gold standard of assessment. Certainly the case for the end of the writing test is now cut and dried.

"We are receiving dozens of unsolicited calls and emails every day about this problem, which is bound to be the tip of the iceberg in terms of impact."

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