Eleven plus

The Eleven Plus was an examination given to students in their last year of primary education in the United Kingdom under the Tripartite System. It is still used in a number of counties, and in Northern Ireland. The test examines the student's ability to solve problems using verbal and non-verbal reasoning. Contrary to its designers? intentions, the exam came to be seen as determining whether a student went to a grammar school or to a secondary modern.

Controversy

The eleven plus was the result of the major changes taking place in British education in the years up to 1944. In particular, the Hadow report of 1926 called for the division of primary and secondary education, to take place on the cusp of adolescence at 11 or 12. The imposition of such a stark break in the Butler Act seemed to offer an ideal opportunity to implement streaming, since all children would be changing school anyway. Testing at 11 emerged largely as a historical accident, without clear forethought.

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Criticism of the eleven plus arose on a number of grounds. Success was determined not only by ability, but by location and gender. 35% of pupils in the South West secured grammar school places as opposed to 10% in Nottinghamshire.{{ref|Szreter1}} Due to the continuance of single-sex schooling, there were fewer places for girls than boys.

Related Topics:
South West - Nottinghamshire - Single-sex schooling

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The merits of testing at 11, when children were at varying stages of mature mentally, has been questioned, particularly when the impact of the text on later life is taken into account. Late bloomers suffered badly as a result of the exam. Areas using the exam today have recognised this concern, and offer reassessment in later years, notably at Key Stage 3.

Related Topics:
Mature mentally - Key Stage 3

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Critics of the eleven plus also claimed that there was a strong class bias in the exam. JWB Douglas, studying the question in 1957, found that children on the borderline of passing were more likely to get grammar school places if they came from middle class families.{{ref|Sampson_195}} Questions about the role of household servants or classical composers helped middle class children at the expense of those from more deprived backgrounds. This criticism was certainly true of the earlier forms of the exam, and as a result the eleven plus became more like an IQ test during the 1960s. It has been argued that middle class opposition to the eleven plus rose partly as a result of this move to greater fairness.

Related Topics:
JWB Douglas - Household servants - Classical composers

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Overall, it has been suggested that a large number of students were unfairly treated by the eleven plus. The sociologist AH Halsey claimed that as much as one quarter of pupils were misallocated by the exam. It is generally agreed that the eleven plus was a flawed institution, even those advocating a return to the Tripartite System usually acknowledging the need for a more sensitive method of testing.

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