What are entrance exams?

Entrance exams are tests set by private schools and grant-maintained schools and are used to assess the ability of prospective pupils to see primarily if the child’s educational / academic attainment is already at a reasonable or impressive level, and also if s/he will be able to cope with the pace of lessons and detail likely to be offered at each institution. Each test usually runs for between 45 minutes and an hour and a quarter, depending on the school and the number of questions offered. Entrance tests are most commonly aimed at pupils wishing to enter years 7 or 9 and tend to focus on Maths and English although Verbal and Non-Verbal Reasoning are increasingly being assessed too. For both year 7 and year 9, schools are likely to assess maths based on the topics specified in the National Curriculum but sometimes at a more advanced level – the questions given in the entrance exams are sometimes harder or trickier than those given in the 11+. Candidates will need to know how to multiply and divide by mixed fractions and are expected to be able to reduce fractions to their lowest form, for example. There is usually space on the question page allocated for working out and it is important the children show their working to gain the marks and to help maximize their chances of obtaining the correct answer.

For English, assessment is usually divided into comprehension and creative writing sections. For the comprehension, an excerpt from a children’s story is often given and applicants are required to respond to a number of questions that require not only finding the answer from the words printed, but also deducing meaning from the implications of the text. For example, if the passage describes a building with lights on where characters can see and hear the sea, readers are not told that it is a lighthouse, but are expected to assume that it is based on the information given. In the writing task, examiners are looking to credit work for accurate punctuation, spelling and capital letters, grammar, paragraphs and cohesion, and vocabulary.

Verbal and non verbal reasoning tasks consist of any combination of the tasks specified in the Bond Assessment papers. For verbal reasoning, these include: find the word between words, relationships between words, find the opposite/similar meaning, etc. For non-verbal, likely tasks may include: complete the pattern, odd one out, find the shape, nets, etc.

For all subjects, your child may find the timing tight, so practising papers as often as possible and becoming familiar with the type of questions likely is of paramount importance. Most private schools have well developed websites which feature sample papers. Perse School, for example, is excellent.

Hints & tips for entrance exams

For Maths

• The candidate should learn the times tables thoroughly. A good candidate for entrance exams will be able to give a correct answer to any times table instantly. There will be no need to count up on fingers or ‘work it out’.
• Read the question carefully and if there are lots of parts to it, tick off each part as you complete it.

For English

For the comprehension task

• It is recommended that your child reads the excerpt thoroughly. When answering the questions, s/he should look for evidence in the text to support their answer. If evidence can’t be found, the response should be reconsidered.
• The child would also do well to look at the number of marks available and tailor their answer accordingly. A two mark answer probably needs two answers, or two details.
• If your child doesn’t understand a word in the text, they should work out what it means using the rest of the sentence. Sometimes though, they won’t even need to know its meaning.
• Read the question and if there are lots of parts to it, tick off each part as you complete it.

For the writing task

• It is recommended that your child spends time planning their answer before writing it, and read it through checking for errors when the answer is finished.
• Increasingly, pupils are making a number of technical errors using full stops and commas. For this basic mistake, pupils will be penalised heavily. Some revision of punctuation may be necessary.
• I would advise that the candidate lists some unknown words on a piece of paper (for example from a book that is being read for pleasure) and learning their meaning before the exam. When the child goes into the exam, this list of new words will be stored mentally and some of the words will be applicable to the piece of writing.

For verbal and non-verbal reasoning

Enable your child to practise as much as possible. Practice should be completed in small stages. If you are lucky enough to have copies of the Bond Assessment Papers, let your child work through them one paper at a time. Mark the work soon after it has been finished and explain problem areas and incorrect answers to your child. Leave at least a day between tests and allow knowledge and understanding to ‘sink in’. It is highly inadvisable for your child to complete all of the assessment papers in the book too close together. This method will destroy time for reflection and consideration of tasks and individual questions. A private tutor is, of course, highly recommended to set an appropriate pace suitable for your child and to provide guidance on how to complete tasks offered.