Why 11 Plus Mock Exams are Important

The 11 Plus Exam is highly competitive. Only a fraction of the children who apply and sit the 11 Plus Exam secure a place. Grammar Schools are on a par with private education, in terms of quality of education and prestige. It is evident that those children who secure a place at a Grammar School do better in the longer term, regardless of their background. This research in the Times Higher Education supports this fact: Education Researchers accused of anti-grammar school bias. This article will explore why 11 Plus Mock Exams are important in preparing a child.

Every parent who is supporting and preparing their child for the Grammar School 11 Plus Test would be thrilled if their child is successful in passing the 11 Plus. Parents must look at ways to ensure that their child has been given the best training possible enabling them to be successful in the 11 Plus Test. Many children have private tuition to get them ready for this test, whilst a good tutor will do well with teaching the core components, it would be difficult for them to cover a simulation of a real 11 Plus Exam. The proverb ‘Practise make Perfect’ rings true here, if you can simulate the real test environment, the real test structure, the real test content balance, you can significantly improve your chances of success by just practising. For this statement to be true, you must find a 11 Plus Mock Exam Provider who is able to realistically reproduce the examination paper with a true likeness, both in terms of format and content.

There are many providers of the 11 Plus Mock Exam, not all are equal in quality or authenticity. One must perform some due diligence to select a quality 11 Plus Mock Exam Provider like Educational Tutoring Service, who is able to simulate the CEM 11 Plus Mock Examination. If the 11 Plus Mock Exam simulates the real test in every way possible, your child will benefit significantly.

What are the benefits of doing a 11 Plus Mock Exam?

The following sections will tell you all the benefits of doing a 11 Plus Mock Exam.

Calm the nerves:

We have all been in an exam where we are anxious in a test due to the environment. By attending a sitting that simulates the real environment, it will get them use to it. This is very important as anxiety will affect the child’s performance. If you child does feel scared sitting the test, tell them to take a deep breath, hold for a few seconds and then release. This will help them recompose, ready to continue.

Paper Format Familiarisation:

The paper layout, its structure and content style are all important here. We know that when we are introduced to sometime for the first time, it takes a little while to know where everything is and get familiar with it. Doing a 11 Plus Test for the second time also gives you a level of assurance and confidence. Therefore, familiarisation brings significant value to the performance.

Time Management:

Timing is very important; this is where application of good exam skills can play a role. If the child does not complete the all the 11 Plus Mock Exam questions, they will appreciate the disciple that is required for good time management. It is very difficult to teach a child to manage time effectively, but if they experience this for themselves in the Mock Test, you can be sure it will be a lesson worth having.

There are two golden rules for Time Management:

• ‘If you cannot do a question, miss it out, put a little asterisk* or marker next to the question (so it’s easy to find later) and move to the next question, then if you have time at the end of the paper, go back and do the questions you missed out’
• ‘If you return to a question, and you still cannot do it, make an intelligent guess.’ There is no negative marking in the 11 Plus Test, so if you leave a question blank, it will be marked, wrong, but if you make a sensible guess, you may get it right. Do not leave any questions without answers.

Exam Paper Answer Format:

The 11 Plus Mock exam has a specific way of answering the questions, you normally draw a horizontal line through a multiple-choice question. The paper will be marked by an (OMR) Optical Mark Recognition’ software, so the clarity of the answer is critical. The OMR is very much a binary reader, your answer is either right or wrong, there is no in-between. It is very important that the child understands this and ensures that they write their answers clearly. Also, if they make a mistake with their answer, they must erase the old answer properly and write the new one in clearly, so the computer can read it accurately.

11 Plus Performance Report:

A good 11 Plus Mock Examination Provider will provide you with a comprehensive report. The report should tell you how your child has performed in each component of the 11 Plus Test. The report must be meaningful, so there should be a comparison against other children who have also sat the examination. It should perform mark standardisation, this is an algorithm to compensate for children who are born in August Vs those born in September, standardisation is also used to compensate between question difficulty grades. A good provider with also provide you with quartile statistics which can help you evaluate the likelihood of your child passing the real exam. There should also be a section for examiner comments, for them to highlight any specific underperformances seen in the paper. You can then use this report to target areas that need attention in your child preparation. Educational Tutoring Services produces a very high standard CEM 11 Plus Mock Exam Report which covers all the above and more.   

The Real 11 Plus Exam

You will only get one chance at doing the ‘real’ 11 Plus Entrance Exam. Hence, it is better that you learn from your mistakes in the 11 Plus Mock Exam. We always recommend that children should do at least two Mock Exams, or more if possible. This enables children to understand the most common mistakes on the first test, then the performance naturally improves on the second and subsequent ones. This ensures that your child is ready for the real 11 Plus Mock Exam.

Summary

It is necessary for the parents to select a good 11 Plus Mock Provider who can simulate the real test. If the provider is unable to do this, you would be wasting your money. By practising a 11 Plus Mock Exam, your child will learn from their mistakes and will be better prepared for the real 11 Plus test.

Educational Tutoring Services has been established for over 25 years and has specialised in the 11 Plus coaching for children. We have been successful in securing thousands of places at local Grammar Schools. Our CEM Style 11 Plus Mock Exams are a simulation of the real exam in everyway possible. To book one of our 11 Plus Mock Exams or read more about it please click here.