Kent 11 Plus Guidance

All across the country, Year 6 pupils will need to make that all important decision as to where they want to continue their education. Choosing the right secondary school will have a huge impact on the rest of their academic life, and thus this choice needs to be the right one for your child.

The first big decision you and your child will need to make is whether or not they wish to attend a grammar secondary school. If you wish to apply for a grammar school placement, then there are a few things that you are going to need to know.

This ultimate FREE resource will guide you through the entire process of applying to a grammar secondary school, specifically focusing on Kent grammar schools. This resource will answer some of the most common questions concerning the 11+ Test, in the hope to make the transition from primary to grammar school much, much easier.

Don’t forget to download your Free Kent Test Practice Papers at the end of this resource.

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KENT GRAMMAR SCHOOL ENTRY TEST INFORMATION

What is the Kent 11 Plus?

If your child wishes to apply to a grammar school situated in Kent, then they will be required to sit the Kent grammar school entry test.

The 11+ assessment which is taken by some pupils in their last year of primary school (Year 6 in England and Year 7 in Northern Ireland) to gain a placement in a grammar school. The 11 plus assessment is the assessment used for children who wish to attend a grammar school in Kent.

As the name suggests, the Kent Grammar School Entry Test is ONLY used for schools situated in Kent; schools in other areas such as Medway and Surrey will use a different form of 11+ assessment.

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The Kent 11 plus is an examination used to filter through students who show the skills and qualities required for a grammar school placement.

By using an entry exam, this allows grammar schools to implement a thorough selection process, and decipher which students meet the standard requirements of a grammar school pupil.

The exam is made up of the following assessments:

ENGLISH

MATHS

VERBAL REASONING

NON VERBAL REASONING

Foremost, the Kent Grammar School Test is used to:

  • Provide pupils with equal opportunities of passing the entry test;
  • Assess pupil’s knowledge in regards to English, Maths, Verbal and Non-Verbal Reasoning; as well as a short written exercise to examine their communication and creative skills;
  • Determine which primary school pupils show the required skills which are favoured by grammar school placements;
  • Utilise the skills and knowledge gained in primary school and demonstrate this knowledge in pressurised situations.

The tests are all multiple-choice and will assess different skills and qualities for each area of the assessment.

ENGLISH &
MATHS

  • Assess pupils’ regarding literary techniques;
  • Assess pupils through English comprehension;
  • Using vocabulary to enhance pupils’ knowledge in English
  • Assess pupils’ numerical ability using basic mathematical calculations;
  • Assess pupils ability regarding basic equations and formulas;
  • Assess how well a pupil is able to recognise patterns in data.

VERBAL REASONING &
NON-VERBAL REASONING

  • Assess pupil’s ability to spot errors and patterns in written work;
  • Determine how well a pupil is able to analyse written information;
  • Assess the relationship between words,letters and sentence.
  • Assess pupil’s ability to spot patterns in shapes and sequences;
  • Determine how well a pupil is able to visualise patterns and similarities;
  • Assess the relationship between shapes and objects.

The first examination for the Kent Grammar School Entry test will be an English and Maths paper.

  • 1 hour to complete both sections;
  • Each section will have a 5 minute practice exercise;
  • Each section will last for approximately 25 minutes.

The second part of the examination will be a Reasoning paper, comprising a Verbal and Non-Verbal Reasoning section.

  • 1 hour approximately to complete both sections;
  • Depending on how long it takes to complete the practice questions, the remaining time will be split between the Verbal and Non-Verbal Reasoning section.

A written exercise will also be required. However, this test is NOT marked and will only be considered in borderline cases.

  • You will be given 40 minutes to complete this exercise;
  • The first 10 minutes should be used to plan your answer
  • The remaining 30 minutes should be used writing and proofreading your work.

If your child wishes to apply to a grammar school situated in Kent, then they will be required to sit the Kent 11 plus. The 11+ assessment which is taken by some pupils in their last year of primary school (Year 6 in England and Year 7 in Northern Ireland) to gain a placement in a grammar school. The 11+ assessment is the assessment used for children who wish to attend a grammar school in Kent.

As the name suggests, the Kent Grammar School Test is ONLY used for schools situated in Kent; schools in other areas such as Medway and Surrey will use a different form of 11+ assessment.

If your child passes the Kent 11+ exam, any Kent grammar school will consider your child’s application.

However, we cannot stress this enough – just because your child passes the test, does not automatically guarantee them a place at the grammar school of their choice.

You should consider the following when applying to grammar schools:

  • How close you live to that grammar school;
  • What the grammar school’s admission requirements are;
  • Does any of their siblings attend the same grammar school?

For a list of Kent grammar schools, please visit the government website.

Registering for the Kent Grammar School Test is relatively easy. For details on how to register for the Kent Eleven Plus, please watch the following video:

One of the most important things you should remember regarding the Kent 11 Plus is the KEY DATES.

There are a few dates that you should write down and make a note of in your calendar:

3 June 2020 Registration opens
1 July 2020 Registration closes
15 October 2020 The date for pupils living in Kent
17 October 2020 The date for pupils living Outside Kent
26 November 2020 Assessment results sent to parents

*Please note, these test dates are based on applications for 2020 entry. Generally, for each year, these dates will be around the same time.

This is a great question. The 11+ exam is not to be taken light-heartedly. Of course, the complexity of the course will depend on a number of things:

  • Has your child prepared for each assessment of the test?
  • Have you ensured that your child is feeling confident about the exam?
  • Do you know what to expect before, during and after the Kent Selection Test?

As with any exam, there is a great deal of pressure to do well. The 11+ assessment is designed to assess whether children should be awarded a grammar school placement, in order to continue their education.

The 11 plus exam is specifically designed for Kent grammar schools in hope to find intellectual, creative, gifted children. The assessment has undergone some vigorous changes in the last few years, and is now harder than ever. This is to ensure that grammar schools maintain the best levels in terms of prospects and academic achievements.

The pass mark of the Kent Grammar School Test is a standardised marking, which means it changes based on everyone’s scores collectively. For more information on the pass mark and standardised marking, please read the section on ‘Understanding Results’.

The Kent 11+ uses a standardised scoring criteria. This means, your child will receive 3 scores:

  • A score for English;
  • A score for Maths;
  • A score for Reasoning.

How is the standardised score measured?

The process of standardisation basically refers to a collective set of results, and determining the overall average. In simpler terms, your child’s scores will be assessed in relation to the average score that was achieved in the Kent 11+ Test. In order to make this process fair, minor adjustments are made in order to cater all ages. For example, the youngest person who sits the 11+ are not put at a disadvantage compared to other pupils undergoing the Kent 11 plus.

The Entry test threshold

To pass the Kent 11+ exam, pupils will be required to achieve a total score of 320+. Across each score (for English, Maths and Reasoning), pupils need to score no lower than 106 in each assessment.

For pupils who didn’t quite achieve the full marks needed, the written exercise can be viewed by the examining panel to assess borderline cases.

If pupils do not achieve the set requirements, parents are able to APPEAL their scores, and more information on this can be found in the section entitled: ‘Appealing the 11+ Test’.

There are a lot of cases whereby pupils are only a few marks off from achieving the requirements needed for a grammar school placement. If parents have viable reasons, they may be able to appeal.

There are several reasons which make you viable for grammar school appeals:

  • The child passed the assessment, but the grammar school is full;
  • The child has not passed the assessment, and the grammar school is full;
  • The child has not passes the assessment, but the grammar school has spaces available.

If you are unhappy with the schools that have been offered to your child, you do have the right to appeal against this. You will be able to appeal for any of the schools you listed on your application.

Although you want to appeal, it is best to accept the place your child has been offered already. This won’t go against you in the appeal, but will guarantee your child has a secondary school placement, in case the appeal doesn’t go in your favour.

For details on the process of appealing your child’s school, visit the government website.

Below we have provided some brief data which highlights some of the key information regarding the entry exam.

ADMISSIONS
(Sep 2015)
ADMISSIONS
(Sep 2016)
Pupils who registered 13700 14,400
Pupils who registered that sat the test 13000 13,700
Pupils deemed suitable for grammar school 5,800 6,300
Available grammar school placements 4,800 4,800

*Please note, these numbers have been provided as approximations to the nearest hundred.

As mentioned earlier, there are four parts to the grammar school entry assessment.

You will be assessed on the following:

  • English
  • Maths
  • Verbal Reasoning
  • Non-Verbal Reasoning

ENGLISH

Q1. Which of the following sentences has a mistake in its punctuation?

A – Its not a difficult task.

B – “What do you want for dinner?” asked Jane.

C – If it rains tomorrow, I will not be happy.

D – She was a tall, beautiful girl.

E – My friends Ava, Sophie and Rebecca are staying the night.

Q2. If the following words were arranged in alphabetical order, which word would come last?

A B C D E
Petrified Petroleum Penalised Pewter Perpendicular

Q3. Complete the following sentence.

The boy waited __________ for his mother to arrive.

A – Always

B – Patient

C – Patience

D – Patiently

E – Never

MATHS

Q4. What is one quarter of 6 hours?

A B C D
90 minutes 95 minutes 180 minutes 80 minutes

Q5. Fifty seven thousand, seven hundred and thirty six people attended a concert.

What is this number rounded to the nearest thousand?

A – 50,000

B – 57,700

C – 58,000

D – 57,000

E – 100,000

Q6. Look carefully for the pattern, and then choose which pair of numbers comes next.

0 1 1 2 3 5 8 … …

A B C D
12,18 13,21 15,23 13,22

VERBAL REASONING

Q7. In the line below, the word outside of the brackets will only go with three of the words inside the brackets to make longer words. Which ONE word will it NOT go with?

A B C D
In (decisive reference destructible convenience)

Q8. Choose one letter that can be moved from the word on the left to the word on the right, making two new words.

RULER STAY

A B C D
R U L E

Q9. Which of the following is the odd one out?

A B C D E
Sight Height Eight Night Flight

NON-VERBAL REASONING

Q10. Which two shapes are identical to one another?

kent test spatial reasoning

Q11. Which SET does the TEST SHAPE belong to? (A, B or neither)

kent test spatial reasoning 3

Below we have provided some brief data which highlights some of the key information regarding the Kent 11+.

ENGLISH

Question 1

A=its not a difficult task

Question 2

D=pewter

Question 3

D=patiently

MATHS

Question 4

A=90 minutes

Question 5

C=58,000

Question 6

B=13, 21

VERBAL REASONING

Question 7

B=reference

Question 8

A=r

Question 9

C=eight

NON-VERBAL REASONING

Question 10

D and E

Question 11

Set B

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The revision videos below have been made to help your child revise each of the subjects areas that the Kent 11 Plus exam assesses; Maths, English, Verbal Reasoning and Non-Verbal Reasoning/Spatial Reasoning.