October 1, 2018
Could we please ask providers who haven’t already responded to our current poll about difficulties with skills test availability, to take a moment to do so.
The information NASBTT gathers through this poll can be used to strengthen arguments around skills tests but evidence can only be shared with DfE if the poll receives enough responses to provide meaningful and robust data to share.
Your engagement with this and future polls is much appreciated.
[poll id=”77″]
Local centre closed down and so this meant the other centre was dealing with high numbers.
Centre in Truro was closed in June, just as most are scheduling their tests. Candidates were not informed, so showed up to take the test at the end of July to be turned away. As a result, it means candidates from Cornwall face over 200 miles return journey
We have been working hard with a small handful of trainees to get them through the skills tests. It has become apparent that the practice tests available online are quite out of date and do not include all of the topics that are now covered in the actual tests. Trainees have struggled to get bookings and many have had no alternative to book in at quieter venues such as Preston (we are Leeds based) and have therefore incurred a lot of travel expenses. We feel that a lot more venues are needed in order to increase capacity. We would even go as far to raise the proposal of SCITTS and Universities being to offer spaces on their campus to open a Skills Tests centre. We have been told by a trainee that once you fail at a tests centre, you cannot rebook there for 3 days – this seems obstructive to the whole process. Overall this is a broken and expensive system which proves nothing: if prospective trainees have a grade C/Level 4 in English and Mathematics, what exactly is the purpose? We set our own Literacy and Numeracy tests which we use as part of the interview process in terms of ensuring that they are literate and numerate for the workplace they are going into.
We potentially may lose from late recruitment as they cannot get onto the coruse in time for registration
There seemed to be an issue for candidates finding a slot to take the skills test. More slots should have been available given that the number of attempts was uncapped.
We advised applicants to book early – if they listened they were fine. The biggest problem were those who went on holiday and left it to the last minute. It makes us as an ITT provider question their ability to organise their time!
Finding available dates to sit the tests proved difficult for a number of our candidates. We still had candidates taking the tests a few weeks prior to the start of the programme.
We din’t need to check skills test over the summer so unable to comment on difficulties others may have experienced.
Thank you for all your responses. These have been collated and passed as evidence to the DfE as they consider the future of skills tests in the teacher training landscape.