It is a ritual almost as established as the exams themselves, but with the year 6 Sats tests for primary school pupils in England starting this week, it is also that time of year when encouraging notes and messages from schools and teachers get the opportunity to go viral on social media.
This year, one of the notes to gain national attention has come from Micklands primary school’s headteacher, Mark Frost. In it, he tells pupils “Here is what you need to do over the weekend in order to be fully prepared for the tests.”
The letter then goes on to list such activities as reading a book, playing on a computer or games console, playing board games, or watching films. The letter also encouraged pupils to “spend home time with your family and people you love” and advised that “the weather for the weekend looks good. Get yourself outside for a game of football, cricket or whatever sport you enjoy. Go for a walk or run, climb a tree; anything that will get your heart pumping a little. Remember that exercise lowers your stress levels, makes you feel happy and more alert.”
The Sats, or national curriculum assessments as they are formally known, test pupils against key stages 1 and 2 of the national curriculum. The majority of pupils taking the tests are aged seven or 11.
Another head, John Newport at Marden Bridge middle shool in Whitley Bay, sent pupils a letter last week stating: “Please remember, when you open your first test on Monday morning, a test is all it is. It will not define who you are, you are worth more and are better than that. You are a strong, resilient member of our community and people will think highly of you because of this and not because of how many questions you can answer. You can rest assured that because of the hard work you have put in you should feel confident with these tests. Please do not let them worry you.”
The letters follow in the footsteps of texts that went viral in previous years. In 2017 Bishop Wood Church of England school in Tring sent a note from the headteacher, Linda Hardman, which reassured pupils that “the people who create these tests and score them do not know each of you the way that we do”.
It went on to say: “They do not know that some of you speak two languages or that you love to sing or draw. They have not seen your natural talent for dancing or playing a musical instrument. They do not know that your friends can count on you to be there for them; that your laughter can brighten the darkest day or that your face turns red when you feel shy. They do not know that you participate in sports, wonder about the future or sometimes help your little brother or sister after school.”
The precise format of this text seems to have first become popular in 2015, when a similar letter from Buckton Vale primary school was featured on ITV’s This Morning show and additionally tweeted by presenter Phillip Schofield.
Some schools have helped children to prepare for this week’s tests by offering a free breakfast club during the week, to ensure children arrive on time and well fed for their exams – with some even promising the bonus of bacon sandwiches for breakfast on Friday.
This letter has been sent in the post to all Y6 children to arrive this weekend. They are such a hard working and talented group. We wish them well in their SATs tests next week, but it’s important to remember the tests only test lit & maths not the many other talents they have. pic.twitter.com/eKCZEC5t6x
— Dave Shaw (@DaveShawICT) May 11, 2018
It isn’t just before the exams that encouraging words from a school can gain huge public recognition. Last year after the results came out, a kind letter sent out following the results of the tests was also widely shared.
In tears. A letter to my 11 yr old autistic son from his school. "These tests only measure a little bit of you" pic.twitter.com/e9OPECidxX
— Gail Twist🐝 (@gailtwist) July 9, 2016
Sats tests have proved unpopular with many parents – and activist groups like Let Our Kids Be Kids have campaigned against them, and also encouraged parents to boycott the tests. As well as the pressure the exams put on pupils, critics are unhappy with the content of the tests, which focus on rigid interpretations of grammar and force pupils to use specific parts of speech in the English language.
The Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL), representing about 18,000 school leaders, has cautioned parents against this. Last month Julie McCulloch, ASCL’s interim director of policy, told Schools Week newspaper: “We would advise parents against withdrawing their children from key stage 2 tests” as they “help secondary schools know how much support they may need to give to a child”.
The row over the exams has not stopped teachers doing their best to relax and encourage pupils before facing the tests. The letter sent to pupils this year at Micklands ends: “Remember that Sats do not test the following qualities: compassion, creativity, happiness, love, generosity, confidence, kindness, faith, bravery and many more things that are far more important in life than long division and adverbial phrases.”
