31 Mar Start Preparing For The SATs Now!

Start Preparing For The SATs Now!

Are you looking to support your child in their upcoming SATs preparation? Want to help your child to pass their SATs and ensure the best results possible? Throughout this article we take a look at what exactly the SATs are, how you can help your child to start preparing for their upcoming SATs, and what’s needed in order for your child to pass.

 

What Are The SATs?

The SATs, or National Curriculum Assessments, are a form of statutory assessments administered to students in primary schools in England. Sat at both the end of Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2, SATs are used to assess the progress of a student against what would be expected for their age, in line with the UK’s National Curriculum.

The SATs cover topics including English reading, English grammar, punctuation and spelling, handwriting, mathematics, arithmetic, times tables etc. Until 2012, students also took Science SATs, however these were phased out in favor of less formal teacher assessments in science.

Made up of a combination of tests, exams and teacher assessments, the SATs are administered to all government-funded primary schools in England.

The SATs are taken in year 2 for the KS1 SATs and year 6 for the KS2 SATs, but SATs preparation may start as early as reception.

Up until 2008, SATs were also required at the end of Key Stage 3, when a student is in secondary school, typically year 8 or year 9. KS3 SATs exams were phased out due to them no longer being justified, instead replaced by internal teacher assessments.

 

What Does SATs Stand For?

SATs stands for Standard Assessment Tests or Standard Attainment Tests. Introduced from 1991 onwards, SATs are used to assess the achievements and skills of students in line with the UK National Curriculum. The UK SATs may also be known as Statutory Assessment Tests, Scholastic Aptitude Tests or the National Curriculum Assessment.

 

When Were SATs Introduced?

The SATs started rolling out from 1991, following the introduction of a National Curriculum in England & Wales under the Education Reform Act 1988. Initially starting with Key Stage 1 SATs, the launch of the National Curriculum Assessment followed students who were at the end of Key Stage 1 from 1991 onwards.

Since the launch of SATs, students at the end of Key Stages 1 or 2 have sat the tests each year.

 

When Do The SATs Take Place?

The SATs are taken at the end of Key Stages 1 and 2, typically in year 2 and year 6. The SATs are usually administered in schools in May, with results and remarking from July onwards.

 

How Are SATs Exams Marked?

The SATs are marked differently depending on whether you are sitting the KS1 SATs or the KS2 SATs. For Key Stage 1 SATs, students are marked by their teachers, although some papers from the school may be sent to the local education authority for moderation.

The Key Stage 2 SATs are marked externally by qualified assessors, with no teacher assessment involved. KS2 SATs are marked externally in order to measure a school’s performance.

For students with Special Education Needs, a separate marking process may be used known as P-Levels.

 

How Are SATs Results Calculated?

SATs results are calculated based on a score achieved across all of a subject’s SATs papers/tests, working towards an “expected standard” which is calculated each year.

For the KS1 SATs, your child’s teacher will use a scaled score system to mark your child. A scaled score system makes for fairer marking and ensures that any slight difference in the difficulty of the SATs year-on-year is accounted for. A raw score required to meet the expected standard is calculated each year and your child will be marked across all of their SATs papers.

For Key Stage 2 SATs, a scaled score system is used again, with a raw score required to meet the expected standards calculated by external assessors each year. Your child’s score will be calculated from the 6 papers they sit as part of their KS2 SATs.

 

How Long Are SATs Exams?

The length of your child’s SATs exams will depend on whether they are sitting KS1 SATs or KS2. For Key Stage 1, the tests are informal, are not timed and take place in a typical classroom setting. For Key Stage 2, the test is more formal, with each paper lasting up to 60 minutes. Key Stage 2 pupils will sit a total of 6 papers.

 

Are The SATs Hard/Difficult To Pass?

The Key Stage 1 SATs are designed to be as pressure free as possible, but do still require a minimum score in order to meet the expected standard. The minimum score required is changed each year thanks to a scaled score system. The good news is that the vast majority of students pass the KS1 SATs, with a 75% pass rate in 2019.

Key Stage 2 SATs have a reputation for being harder and more formal than Key Stage 1, however the pass rate remains pretty similar at almost 75% for 2019. The Key Stage 2 SATs come with a little more pressure, in the form of timed assessments, external marking and more papers, but the vast majority of students will still meet the expected standard.

 

How To Pass The SATs Exams?

Is your child preparing for their upcoming SATs? Want to help them to achieve the best results possible? Below we have listed some of the best tips to help your child in their upcoming SATs preparation:

Prepare Early – Failing to prepare is preparing to fail! By getting your child to begin studying for their upcoming SATs as early as possible, you are helping to maximise their chances of achieving the best results possible.

Starting your child’s preparation early doesn’t mean that they have to do hours of revision a day in the weeks/months leading up to their SATs. Rather, a little studying often will help your child to properly digest the information they are learning and help to set them up as well as possible for their SATs. Your child’s school may even put on some dedicated SATs revision classes in the run up to their SATs testing period.

Understand Your Mistakes – One of the best tips for when preparing your child for their upcoming SATs exams is to help them to identify and understand their mistakes! Everybody makes mistakes, it’s only human, but to be able to identify the areas your child has problems with, understand where they are going wrong and improve on their weak areas, you can help your child to make the most out of their SATs preparation.

A good way to identify and understand your child’s mistakes is by practicing the topics and questions that are likely to come up in their SATs. With the results of this practice, you can then identify the problem areas your child needs to focus on and help them to learn to improve these areas.

Boost Confidence – It’s one thing to have the knowledge to pass your SATs, but your child must also have the confidence that they can pass too. Going into their SATs as confident as possible will help your child to feel relaxed and breeze through their SATs papers.

One of the best ways to boost your child’s confidence during their SATs preparation is to practice the topics and questions that are likely to come up within their SATs papers. If your child is preparing for the KS2 SATs, then it may also be worth practicing under exam conditions, I.e. in a timed environment.

Consider A Revision Schedule – A revision schedule can help your child within their SATs preparation, keeping your child on track and focused when it comes to their SATs studies. By developing a weekly schedule of revision topics, arranged to fit around your child’s other commitments and routines, you can help to ensure that adequate time is devoted to your child’s SATs preparation.

When preparing a revision schedule, it is important to not overload your child with work/revision. If your child is overloaded with revision they can become disillusioned and may avoid revision altogether, making for far from ideal preparation.

Prepare For Test Conditions – Another tip to help your children to succeed in their upcoming SATs is to practice under test conditions. This isn’t so appropriate for the Key Stage 1 SATs, due to their more laid-back and relaxed nature.

However, if your child is preparing for the KS2 SATs, then preparing for test conditions can be very useful.

You can help your child to prepare for test conditions by practicing in a timed environment, helping your child to understand how much time is remaining and how they should manage their time. Your child’s school may even offer “mock” SATs papers as part of their KS2 SATs preparation, which can help your child get used to an exam format, managing their time, writing for an exam and generally boost their confidence.

Don’t Leave Any Questions Blank – One other way you can help your child to prepare for their upcoming SATs is to make sure they do not leave any question blank. Encourage your child to take a guess on any questions they are unsure about. You never know, they may just get the question right and failing that, any calculations or steps they have demonstrated to get their answer could still help your child to collect some marks.

Online Tutoring – By far, one of the best ways you can help your child to prepare for their upcoming SATs is to make the most out of online SATs tuition! Online SATs tutoring helps to prepare your child for their upcoming SATs tests and has all of the resources needed to help your child to pass. Online tutors have helped many students in the same position as your child and know what is required to help your child to succeed. An online tutoring platform such as Tutorwiz is the perfect tool to help your child pass their SATs. Focused around Maths & English, Tutorwiz combines real-life tutor support with the best online educational resources to help your children to succeed in their upcoming SATs exams.

If you would like to find out some more information about how you can help your child in their upcoming SATs preparation or if you would like to find out some more about Tutorwiz’s online SATs tutoring programmes, then please do not hesitate to get in touch today. You can get in touch with the Tutorwiz team by calling us on 0800 181 4221, by emailing us at info@tutorwiz.uk or by using our contact form. Alternatively, why not request a FREE Education Assessment for your child today and identify their individual strengths and weaknesses.