Majority of parents concerned about primary school testing

Of the 2,028 parents surveyed by YouGov on behalf of the More Than A Score campaign group, just 4 per cent correctly stated that there are tests in five out of seven primary years.

When they were made aware about the number of tests pupils undertake, 73 per cent of respondents said they thought children are under too much pressure because of Government testing. A further 61 per cent agreed there is too much standardised assessment in primary schools.

A total of 44 per cent believed SATs had a negative impact on their child’s well-being and almost one-in-three believe they affected family life negatively.

From September 2020, there will be statutory assessments in five out of seven primary years, these are:

• The reception baseline assessment in reception.
• The phonics screening check in year 1.
• Key Stage 1 statutory assessments (KS1 SATs), including papers in English and maths, in year 2.
• The multiplication tables check in year 4.
• Key Stage 2 statutory assessments (KS2 SATs): a week of papers in English and maths taken under exam conditions in year 6.

Of those parents that were surveyed, only 16 per cent believe it is fair to use SATs and other formal tests to measure a school. They would prefer schools be judged on the happiness of pupils, not test results.

The findings, which are included in a new report entitled ‘Too many tests for no good reason’, also suggest that in contrast to the Government’s perception, parents do not prioritise the data generated by tests to make decisions about their child’s education.

Just one-in-four consider SATs results when choosing a primary school – 8^th in a list of factors. The school’s position in league tables came in 10^th position (23 per cent of parents), while the school’s Ofsted ranking came in fourth place.

The most popular consideration for parents is ‘teachers that care about their pupils and inspire them to learn’ (77 per cent) while parents’ own instincts score highly (72 per cent ) along with recommendations from other parents (62 per cent). 

Comments

Sara Tomlinson of More Than A Score said, ‘It is now clear that parents' priorities are not reflected in Government policy. It's time to overhaul a system which lets children down and works against their chances of experiencing high-quality learning. 

‘The Government may argue that “standards” are improving but this claim is based on narrow tests taken under exam conditions. A recent international study (Pisa 2018) demonstrated that the drive towards to high-pressure testing has come at a serious cost: children in England were found to have among the lowest levels of life satisfaction.’

Kevin Courtney, joint general secretary of the National Education Union, commented, 'In demonstrating that most parents do not value the current system of primary testing, this survey does a great service to public debate. Ever since the 1990s, ministers have told us that without the publication of test scores, parents’ confidence in schools would collapse. The survey undermines that claim: parents are deeply concerned about the effects of testing; they do not want their children to enter a system which prizes test scores above well-being. NEU members share these views. They believe in assessing children in ways that help them in their learning – our current high-stakes system has the opposite effect.'

A Department for Education spokesperson said, 'Key stage 2 tests have been central to raising standards, helping to ensure children leave primary school with a secure grasp of the fundamentals of reading, writing and mathematics. As part of a broad and balanced curriculum, this helps lay the foundations for success at secondary school and beyond. 

'We trust teachers to administer these tests in an appropriate way and so they should not be a source of stress for children. The tests enable teachers to track pupils' progress, helping to make sure they stay on track to fulfil their potential throughout school.'