Teachers support exam boycott bid

OLDHAM NUT delegate Samantha Nicholson-Hickling

OLDHAM NUT has backed the move towards boycotting primary school exams.

The Oldham National Union of Teachers delegate Samantha Nicholson-Hickling spoke out over the alleged failure of standardised tests in England and maths at a national conference.

Samantha, a teacher from Chadderton, said the current model for assessing children is not working.

The 27-year-old said: "Last year Sats were absolute chaos. I was teaching Year 5 at the time and the curriculum was changed and the way we taught had to change.

"But the stress build-up begins as soon as they enter Key Stage 2. It's horrible that Sats are drilled into our kids when they are as young as seven, when they won't even sit these exams until they are 10 or 11."

She added: "Other subjects are being squeezed out. They are narrowing what our kids are learning."

Children must currently sit compulsory tests at the ages of seven and 11.

Intervention

The National Union of Teachers conference in Cardiff on Sunday heard from dozens of speakers who called for direct action.

Other delegates called for protests over Sats for seven and 11-year-olds in key stages 1 and 2 as well as future assessments.

Yesterday delegates resolved to "support and promote a parent boycott" of the 2017 national curriculum tests for primary school children.

Samantha said that it would do "more harm than good" to boycott this year's Sats which children are due to sit in 10 days' time.

However, she expressed hope that there would be a national boycott of the tests next year.

Speaking at the conference on Sunday morning Samantha said: "We know this system doesn't work. It creates workload and immense stress for everybody. It leaves us with a prescriptive, boring curriculum.

"It is all about a test. Our Government is test-obsessed.

"What is the point of putting our young people through this exam factory when the only thing it seems to be useful for is for a giant stick to beat us for not making 'accelerated progress'?"

It comes as the Government consults over the future of primary assessment which may see tests for seven-year-olds scrapped and a baseline test for reception children introduced. If agreed, however, this would not start before 2020.