vindication!

[tamaranth]

At the age of 11 I was foiled: my parents wouldn't let me take the 11+, they thought it was elitist. (Fast-forward through 5 yrs of comprehensive hell.)

11+ on BBC website: how do you score?

"Top of the class!You've scored 15 out of 15."
(in, er, 5:03 minutes rather than 10. Not sure what this proves but I am pleased with my brain.)

Comments

[dougs.livejournal.com]

15 out of 15 ... but in 5:22, so I'm clearly 19 seconds less bright than you.

Proves nothing, of course -- no attempt to test humanities, language skills, sciences...

[feorag.livejournal.com]

Proves nothing, of course -- no attempt to test humanities, language skills, sciences...

Nor did the 11+ when I took it.

[tamaranth.livejournal.com]

Proves nothing, of course -- no attempt to test humanities, language skills, sciences...

That doesn't mean it proves nothing: it means it's a test of logical / reasoning ability rather than knowledge and facts. And one's knowledge, fact-retention, comprehension do change markedly over the course of a life.

I'm occasionally unnerved by the level of general knowledge expected of mid-C20 schoolchildren, but I wouldn't expect the 11+ to include questions that would probably be easier for an older age-group. Isn't it supposed to be about potential?

[realthog.livejournal.com]

"Top of the class!You've scored 15 out of 15."

Ditto, but, I was surprised to find when I looked, in a somewhat faster time . . .

*modest cough*

[tamaranth.livejournal.com]

Modesty is a very overrated 'virtue'.
Anyway, you are more Plus than I am, 11+ wise. :)

[drplokta]

Proves nothing, of course -- no attempt to test humanities, language skills, sciences...

It's explicitly not intended to test what you already know, but rather your capacity for learning.

[realthog.livejournal.com]

I am?

[ivory-goddess.livejournal.com]

I did 13 in the time allowed 'cos I had to keep pausing to stop the cats from killing one another!

I want to do a different set of questions at work where I won't be distracted... but I think there's just the one set.

[realthog.livejournal.com]

It's a form of IQ test and therefore specifically should not have knowledge-based questions.

Of course, one can argue until the cows come home about the value of IQ testing, which was vastly overstated during the 11 Plus's heyday; at the same time, though, such tests do undoubtedly offer some form of measure of the ability to reason.

[ajshepherd.livejournal.com]

15 as well.

I did take an 11+, but failed!