The eleven-plus (11+) is a standardised examination administered to some students in England and Northern Ireland in their last year of primary education, which governs admission to grammar schools and other secondary schools that use academic selection. The name derives from the age group for secondary entry: 11–12 years. The equivalent examination for selective senior private schools, both at the age of 11, and the more usual age of 13, is known as Common Entrance.
The eleven-plus was once used throughout the UK, but is now only used in counties and boroughs in England that offer selective schools instead of comprehensive schools. Also known as the transfer test, it is especially associated with the Tripartite System which was in use from 1944 until it was phased out across most of the UK by 1976.
The examination tests a student's ability to solve problems using a test of verbal reasoning and non-verbal reasoning, and most tests now also offer papers in mathematics and English. The intention was that the eleven-plus should be a general test for intelligence (cognitive ability) similar to an IQ test, but by also testing for taught curriculum skills it is evaluating academic ability developed over previous years, which implicitly indicates how supportive home and school environments have been.
Introduced in 1944, the examination was used to determine which type of school the student should attend after primary education: a grammar school, a secondary modern school, or a technical school. The base of the Tripartite System was the idea that skills were more important than financial resources in determining what kind of schooling a child should receive: different skills required different schooling.
In some local education authorities the Thorne plan or scheme or system developed by Alec Clegg, named in reference to Thorne Grammar School, which took account of primary school assessment as well as the once-off 11+ examination, was later introduced.
Within the Tripartite System
The Tripartite System of education, with an academic, a technical and a functional strand, was established in the 1940s. Prevailing educational thought at the time was that testing was an effective way to discover the strand to which a child was most suited. The results of the exam would be used to match children's secondary schools to their abilities and future career needs.
When the system was implemented, technical schools were not available on the scale envisaged. Instead, the Tripartite System came to be characterised by fierce competition for places at the prestigious grammar schools. As such, the eleven-plus took on a particular significance. Rather than allocating according to need or ability, it became seen as a question of passing or failing. This led to the exam becoming widely resented by some although strongly supported by others.
Structure
The structure of the eleven-plus varied over time, and among the different counties which used it. Usually, it consisted of three papers:
Arithmetic – A mental arithmetic test. Writing – An essay question on a general subject. General Problem Solving – A test of general knowledge, assessing the ability to apply logic to simple problems.
Some exams have:
Verbal Reasoning Non-Verbal Reasoning
Most children took the eleven-plus in their final year of primary school: usually at age 10 or 11. In Berkshire and Buckinghamshire it was also possible to sit the test a year early – a process named the ten-plus; later, the Buckinghamshire test was called the twelve-plus and taken a year later than usual.
Originally, the test was voluntary; , some 30% of students in Northern Ireland do not sit for it.
In Northern Ireland, pupils sitting the exam were awarded grades in the following ratios: A (25%), B1 (5%), B2 (5%), C1 (5%), C2 (5%), D (55%). There was no official distinction between pass grades and fail grades.
Current practice
There are 163 remaining grammar schools in various parts of England, and 67 in Northern Ireland. In counties in which vestiges of the Tripartite System still survive, the eleven-plus continues to exist. Today it is generally used as an entrance test to a specific group of schools, rather than a blanket exam for all pupils, and is taken voluntarily. For more information on these, see the main article on grammar schools.
Eleven-plus and similar exams vary around the country but will use some or all of the following components:
Verbal Reasoning (VR) Non-Verbal reasoning (NVR) Mathematics (MA) English (EN)
Eleven-plus tests take place in September of children's final primary school year with results provided to parents in October to allow application for secondary schools. In Lincolnshire children will sit the Verbal Reasoning and Non-Verbal Reasoning. In Buckinghamshire children sit tests in Verbal Reasoning, Mathematics and Non-Verbal reasoning. In Kent, where the eleven-plus test is more commonly known as the Kent Test, children sit all four of the above disciplines; however the Creative Writing, which falls as part the English test, will only be used in circumstances of appeal. In the London Borough of Bexley from September 2008, following a public consultation, pupils sitting the Eleven-Plus exam are only required to do a Mathematics and Verbal Reasoning paper. In Essex, where the examination is optional, children sit Mathematics and English (Applied Reasoning was removed from the English test from 2025 onwards). Other areas use different combinations. Some authorities/areas operate an opt-in system, while others (such as Buckinghamshire) operate an opt-out system where all pupils are entered unless parents decide to opt out. In the North Yorkshire, Harrogate/York area, children are only required to sit two tests: Verbal and Non-Verbal Reasoning.
Independent schools in England generally select children at the age of 13, using a common set of papers known as the Common Entrance Examination. About ten do select at eleven; using papers in English, Mathematics and Science. These also have the Common entrance exam name.
Scoring
Authority/consortium Mean Standard Deviation Bishop Wordsworth 100 15 Chelmsford 100 15 Dover Grammar School for Boys 100 15 Folkestone 100 15 Gloucester 100 15 Harvey 100 15 Heckmondwike 100 15 Henrietta Barnett School 100 15 Kendrick School 100 15 Mayfield 100 15 Reading School 100 15 Redbridge 100 15 The Latymer School 100 15 Torbay and Devon Consortium 100 15 West Midland Boys 100 15 West Midland Girls 100 15 Buckinghamshire 100 43 Dame Alice Owen 106 15 Slough Consortium 106 15 South West Herts 106 15 Bexley 200 30 King Edwards Consortium 200 30 Warwickshire 200 30 Wirral Borough Council 234 15 Altrincham 315 30 Sale 318 30 Stretford 327 30 Urmston 328 30
England has 163 grammar schools 155 of which control their own admissions including the choice of test. (143 Academy Converters, six Foundation schools and six Voluntary aided schools control their own admissions. Admissions for the remaining seven Community Schools and one Voluntary Controlled school are determined by the local authority.; DfE Schools Pupils and Characteristics datasetSchool level data. Department for Education. West, Anne and David Wolfe. Academies, autonomy, equality and democratic accountability: Reforming the fragmented publicly funded school system in England. London Review of Education (2019)
Over 95% of grammar schools now determine their own admissions policies, choosing what tests to set and how to weight each component. Although some form consortia with nearby schools to agree on a common test, there may be as many as 70 different 11+ tests set across the country CEM set tests for 28 different LAs, consortia and individual schools and claim to have 40% of the market. Extrapolating would suggest there are approx. 70 different sets of tests in total. meaning it is not possible to refer to the eleven plus test as a single entity.
Tests are multiple choice. The number of questions varies but the guidance provided by GLA Free familiarisation materials. Granada Learning Assessment (GLA). shows that full length Maths and English Comprehension tests are both 50 minutes duration and consist of about 50 questions. Verbal Reasoning is 60 minutes containing 80 questions. Non-Verbal Reasoning is 40 minutes broken into four 10-minute separately-timed sections each containing 20 questions. At a rate of one question every 30 seconds, it could be argued that the test is one of speed rather than intelligence.
One mark is awarded for each correct answer. No marks are deducted for incorrect or un-attempted responses. Freedom of Information. Buckinghamshire Grammar Schools. There are usually five possible answers, one of which is always correct meaning a random guess has a 20% chance of being correct and a strategy of guessing all un-attempted questions in the last few seconds of the exam will, if anything, gain the candidate a few additional marks which may make the difference needed to gain a place.
The actual marks from these tests, referred to as raw marks, are not disclosed by all schools, and instead parents are given Standard Age Scores (SAS). A standard score shows how well the individual has performed relative to the mean (average) score for the population although the term population is open to interpretation. GL Assessment, who set the majority of 11+ tests, say it should be, "a very large, representative sample of students usually across the UK";GL Assessment A short guide to standardised tests. 013 GL Assessment Limited. however, grammar schools may standardise their tests against just those children who apply to them in a given year, as this enables them to match supply to demand.
Test results follow a normal distribution resulting in the familiar bell curve which reliably predicts how many test takers gain each different score. For example, only 15.866% score more than one standard deviation above the mean (+1σ generally represented as 115 SAS) as can be seen by adding up the proportions in this graph based on the original provided by M. W. Toews).
By standardising on just the cohort of applicants, a school with, for example, 100 places which regularly gets 800 applications can set a minimum pass mark of 115 which selects approximately 127 applicants filling all of the places and leaving about 27 on the waiting list. The downside of this local standardisation, as it has been called, is parents are frequently unaware that their children are being judged as much by the standard of other applicants as their own abilities.
Another issue with the lack of national standards in testing is it prevents any comparison between schools. Public perception may be that only pupils who are of grammar school standard are admitted to grammar schools; however, other information such as the DfE league tablesData source: England_ks4final.csv. Field 39, PTPRIORHI shows the Percentage of pupils at the end of key stage 4 with high prior attainment at the end of key stage 2. calls into question the existence of any such standard. Competition for places at Sutton Grammar School is extremely fierce with, according to an online forum over 2,500 applicants in 2016. At the other end of the scale, Buckinghamshire council website says, "If your child's STTS is 121 or above, they qualify for grammar school. We expect that about 37% of children will get an STTS of 121 or more."Marking the Secondary Transfer Test. Buckinghamshire Council. Official statistics show 100% of those admitted to Sutton Grammar School have, "high prior attainment at the end of key stage 2", compared to only 44% of those who attend Skegness Grammar School. The Grammar Schools Heads Association's Spring 2017 newsletter says the government are considering a national selection test which would remove the lack of consistency between different 11+ tests.