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.

Use of the Eleven Plus Today

In counties in which vestiges of the Tripartite System still survive, the eleven plus continues to exist. Today it usually takes on the form of an entrance test to a specific group of schools, rather than a blanket exam for all pupils, and is taken voluntarily. For more information on these, see the main article on grammar schools. The largest area still operating the eleven plus is Northern Ireland, although it is planned to phase the exam out in 2008. For more information, see the main article on the Tripartite System.

Related Topics:
Grammar schools - Tripartite System

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Independent schools, particularly those Direct Grant Grammars which seceded from the state system after the abolition of the Tripartite System, often model their entrance exams upon the old eleven plus.

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