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House of Lords: Only 44 percent of MPs jokingly referred to as the Westminster Class of 2022 achieved the expected level in mathematics
Photo: Kirsty Wigglesworth / dpa
MPs from the British Parliament have rewritten a compulsory test for sixth graders in England - and did worse on average than the ten and eleven year olds who were tested in the summer.
This was reported, among other things, by the British »Guardian«.
Only 44 percent of the MPs jokingly referred to as the Westminster Class of 2022 achieved the expected level in mathematics;
in spelling, punctuation and grammar it was 50 percent.
Across the country, 59 percent of students ages 10 and 11 achieved expected levels on the Key Stage 2 tests this year, compared to 65 percent in pre-corona year 2019. Detailed figures provided by the Ministry of Education published in the summer showed that disadvantaged children's performance declined more than that of their better-off peers.
The tests in Parliament were organized by the More Than A Score campaign, which is campaigning for the abolition of tests, also known as SATs.
They argue that the children are put under unnecessary pressure to perform.
More Than A Score hopes, the report says, that politicians have experienced the pressure themselves and realize that "the exams only judge schools, they don't help children's learning".
»The exams were absolutely terrifying«
In the case of Labor MP Ian Byrne, the goal appears to have been achieved.
He said, according to The Guardian, "The exams were absolutely terrifying" and the tests should be scrapped.
Robin Walker, the new chair of the Education Select Committee, acknowledged the need to reform exams for sixth graders, but opposed abolition, according to the report.
sun