By IRNA,
London : Thousands of pupils missed controversial national tests (Sats) at primary schools across England Monday following a boycott by head teachers.
Around 600,000 children aged 10 and 11 were due to start tests but it is thought that the boycott extends to at least 15 per cent of the country’s 17,000 primarily schools.
Head teachers have long argued that the Sats tests, which were originally introduced back in 1990s, damage children’s education because they encourage teachers to “teach to the test”, so that other subjects are squeezed out of the curriculum.
Criticism has also been made that the Sats results are used as a blunt instrument for league tables of schools and do not reflect what pupils achieve.
Sats tests for 14 year olds at high schools were scrapped by the government in 2008 but still continue at primary school also for 7-year olds.
The boycott comes within days of the most closely-fought general election for decades, and while parties appear to accept the need for reforms, all insist that tests are vital for schools to be held accountable to both the government and parents.