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Minister ready for Sats showdown Minister faces teachers over Sats
(about 3 hours later)
The education secretary will try to persuade head teachers not to back a boycott of Sats tests in England when he addresses their annual conference. Schools Secretary Ed Balls has attempted to head off a showdown with England's head teachers over controversial Sats tests.
Heads will vote on the issue soon after hearing from Ed Balls. It is thought they will back a ballot. He told heads meeting in Brighton a boycott of the tests was "not the right or responsible approach".
They argue the tests, taken by 11-year-olds in England, put too much pressure on children and narrow the curriculum. They are to vote on whether to ballot on boycotting next year's tests.
But ministers insist the tests give parents vital information about their children's progress and local schools. He acknowledged league tables give only a "narrow view" of a school, and said the current assessment system "was not set in stone".
Key policy The heads argue the tests, taken by 11-year-olds in England, put too much pressure on children and narrow the curriculum.
Ministers also say a boycott would be illegal and irresponsible. President of the National Association of Head Teachers, Chris Howard, said there would be no end to their campaign until the "tyranny of testing and league tables" was over.
But teachers and heads say children miss out because so much classroom time is devoted to the subjects being tested. Pressure
One of the big classroom teachers' unions, the NUT, recently voted for a ballot on the issue - which is one of the key planks of England's schools policy - and that is likely to take place this autumn. Head teachers and classroom teachers all dislike the test and most of all the league tables made from them.
At best they tell us where rich people live, at worst they demean schools Mick Brookes, NAHT general secretary They say teachers are forced to "teach to the test," focussing most on the three subjects tested, English, maths and science.
Between them, the two associations make up most of the teaching staff in England's primary schools. Children and schools are both put under too much pressure over the tests, they say.
The NAHT's general secretary, Mick Brookes, says heads are not against tests themselves as much as the "high stakes league tables" compiled from their results. In other parts of the UK, children are tested but the tests are marked in school and are not used to make league tables.
"At best they tell us where rich people live, at worst they demean schools," he said. At the Naht's annual conference, Mr Howard told delegates: "There will be no conclusion to our honest and well-reasoned campaign to stop the tyranny of testing and tables for primary schools in England until they have been ended."
He is hoping Mr Balls will come with suggestions about how to change the system for the better. And he suggested it was "high noon" for the government, which he said had promised "education, education, education", but had delivered "regulation, regulation, regulation."
"Hopefully, he will bring an olive branch today but one of my members said he should bring an olive tree." We don't want to ballot for industrial action. We want to work to get a better system for our children David AllenDelegate
Statutory duty The organisation says the tests should be replaced by assessment of pupils by teachers, which already takes place.
The government has ordered a review into the testing regime, which is due to report in the next few weeks. The National Union of Teachers recently voted to ballot its members on a boycott and this will probably take place in the autumn.
It says heads have a statutory duty to administer the tests - something the heads do not dispute. The two groups together make up most of the teaching staff in England's primary schools so a joint boycott by them could throw next year's Sats into disarray.
Heads arriving at the conference on Saturday seemed determined to show their opposition to the tests. Their action comes after the embarrassing shambles of this year's tests, when marking problems led to severe delays in publication of hundreds of thousands of children's test results.
We don't want to ballot for industrial action. We want to work to get a better system for our children David Allen, delegate The government went on to scrap compulsory tests for 14-year-olds.
Arriving at the conference ahead of Mr Balls' speech, many delegates voiced their opposition.
Martin Thacker, from Chesterfield, said: "I will attempt to keep an open mind but successive education ministers have not delivered on their promises."Martin Thacker, from Chesterfield, said: "I will attempt to keep an open mind but successive education ministers have not delivered on their promises."
Karen Brookes, a head teacher from Nottinghamshire, said she hoped Mr Balls would come with something concrete to "move forward with for next year".Karen Brookes, a head teacher from Nottinghamshire, said she hoped Mr Balls would come with something concrete to "move forward with for next year".
"The issue is not about the tests themselves, which could be used to inform a teacher's assessment, it is the league tables issue for me - what is being done with the data.""The issue is not about the tests themselves, which could be used to inform a teacher's assessment, it is the league tables issue for me - what is being done with the data."
Sats and league tables are not an issue for other parts of the UK, as England is the only place which has them. Wales phased out Sats tests a few years ago. David Allen, a head from Nottingham, said: "We don't want to ballot for industrial action. We want to work to get a better system for our children".
Heads and deputies are hoping that the government's decision to abandon compulsory Sats for 14-year-olds last autumn in the wake of the marking shambles is a sign that Sats tests for 11-year-olds and league tables could go the same way.
Delegate David Allen, a head from Nottingham, said: "We don't want to ballot for industrial action. We want to work to get a better system for our children".