By Lucy Phillips
7 May 2010
Primary schools that are boycotting next week’s Standard Assessment Tests risk being marked down by government inspectors, Public Finance has learnt.
Up to half of England’s 17,000 primary schools are set to boycott the Key Stage 2 tests for 10 and 11 year-olds, which are used in Ofsted reports and school league tables.
Members of both the National Union of Teachers and National Association of Head Teachers voted in favour of the boycott last month. They claim the tests damage the education system and threaten teachers’ jobs. The NAHT said: ‘SATs in their current form disrupt the learning process for children in Year 6, and are misused to compile meaningless league tables that only serve to humiliate and demean children, their teachers and their communities.’
The government, which condemned the action, said it was ‘inevitable’ the boycott would undermine the schools inspection regime.
An Ofsted spokesman warned that any consequences of the unions’ action would not be seen until inspection reports were published on its website later in the year. ‘This boycott will not affect school inspections until the autumn when the school’s performance data are released,’ the spokesman told PF.
The watchdog added that, if the boycott affected the way inspections reports were put together, it would issue guidance to inspectors and schools prior to this. The spokesman did not wish to comment any further.
Schools will otherwise be operating as normal next week.
7 May 2010
Primary schools that are boycotting next week’s Standard Assessment Tests risk being marked down by government inspectors, Public Finance has learnt.
Up to half of England’s 17,000 primary schools are set to boycott the Key Stage 2 tests for 10 and 11 year-olds, which are used in Ofsted reports and school league tables.
Members of both the National Union of Teachers and National Association of Head Teachers voted in favour of the boycott last month. They claim the tests damage the education system and threaten teachers’ jobs. The NAHT said: ‘SATs in their current form disrupt the learning process for children in Year 6, and are misused to compile meaningless league tables that only serve to humiliate and demean children, their teachers and their communities.’
The government, which condemned the action, said it was ‘inevitable’ the boycott would undermine the schools inspection regime.
An Ofsted spokesman warned that any consequences of the unions’ action would not be seen until inspection reports were published on its website later in the year. ‘This boycott will not affect school inspections until the autumn when the school’s performance data are released,’ the spokesman told PF.
The watchdog added that, if the boycott affected the way inspections reports were put together, it would issue guidance to inspectors and schools prior to this. The spokesman did not wish to comment any further.
Schools will otherwise be operating as normal next week.
