Sats results 2024: Slight rise overall

The proportion of Year 6 pupils reaching the expected standard in all three areas of reading, writing and maths has increased slightly but is still behind pre-Covid levels, according to government data.

Overall, 61 per cent of pupils taking this year’s key stage 2 Sats tests met the expected standard in all three areas, compared with 60 per cent last year.

This is still behind the pre-pandemic 2019 figure of 65 per cent.

Last year’s published figure was originally 59 per cent before being revised earlier this year.

Reading and writing up but maths remains the same

This year, the proportion of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading attainment was 74 per cent - a slight increase from 73 per cent last year.

The proportion of pupils meeting the expected standard in writing was 72 per cent - also up from 71 per cent last year.

And the proportion of pupils reaching the expected standard in maths was 73 per cent, which is unchanged from 2023.

In grammar, punctuation and spelling (GPS), 72 per cent of pupils met the expected standard, also unchanged since 2023.

And in science, 81 per cent of pupils met the expected standard, a slight increase from 80 per cent last year.

This year’s Sats are the last to be delivered by Capita after they lost out to Pearson to run the exams from next year.

Key stage 2 pass marks

The Department for Education also published the thresholds for reaching the expected standard for KS2 reading, maths and grammar, punctuation and spelling (GPS) tests this morning.

In maths, the pass mark has dropped to 54 out of 110, compared with 56 in 2023. This follows concern from primary leaders and experts that the paper was “deliberately tricky”.

In GPS, the pass threshold has also fallen slightly from 36 marks to 35 marks out of 70.

In the reading test, the threshold has increased from 24 to 27 marks out of 30. This is likely owing to standards levelling out after last year’s difficult reading paper, which left even the most able pupils “broken” and in tears, according to leaders.

A review of last year’s controversial reading paper found that lower-attaining pupils were likely to have found the test more difficult than previous tests since 2016.

• Sats 2024: How did pupils find the tests this year?
• 2023 results: No rise towards pre-Covid levels
• Unions: ‘Sats results should not be public for next two years’

Some leaders struggle to find results

Last year, school leaders were left frustrated as they tried to access their schools’ Sats results via the Primary Assessment Gateway (PAG).

Primary heads had reported being unable to access the site despite assurances from the STA that there would be no repeat of the issues that occurred in 2022.

This year, some primary teachers have been unable to see their results via the Primary Assessment Gateway this morning. Schools should be able to access their results through the “Available activity” section.

Has anyone else had difficulty with finding the results for Keystage 2 SATs on the gateway? Ours are not on their in the Available Activity section. #EduTwitter #SATs

- Mr J Deacon 💙 (@Mr_J_Deacon) July 9, 2024

Markers concerned over pay

Tes is aware of concern being expressed by numerous markers this year over the pay that they have received for this exam series.

Speaking anonymously, some said that segment rates are lower than they were originally told, meaning many have been paid less than expected.

Sats exams are marked by segments, rather than the entire paper. A rate in pounds is given to each segment, which determines how much markers are paid.

However, Capita told Tes that it has had “no indication [that] there’s an issue with pay”.

Capita delayed marking last year following “technical issues”, with markers reporting they were locked out of training in the lead-up to exam marking.

How are Sats scores generated?

Pupils’ Sats marks are converted from a raw score (the total number of marks that a pupil received from their Sats tests) to something called a “scaled score”.

This means that the mark is processed to account for any variations in difficulty that have occurred between assessments year on year. This makes it possible to compare the performance of different cohorts of pupils across different years.

A scaled score of 100 or more means that the pupil has met the expected standard.

If a school believes that a pupil’s mark is incorrect, or that there has been a clerical error, it can apply for a review of marking.

For pupils who do not meet the expected standard in Year 6, a literacy and numeracy catch-up premium is given to state-funded schools (including special schools and alternative provision settings) to provide additional funding for support in reading and/or maths.

Calls for Sats reform

There have long been calls for Sats to be reformed or even scrapped, particularly since the pandemic, when the assessments were cancelled.

The heightened concern is partly borne out of a rise in children having mental health problems: a third of primary school leaders are more concerned about the mental wellbeing of their Year 6 pupils this year compared with their previous cohorts, according to a survey shared with Tes.

This year marked the first set of non-mandatory KS1 Sats, which the government decided to make optional to prevent ”anxiety for young children”.

Despite this change, Tes revealed in April that over half of primary schools were still running the Year 2 assessments at some point this year.

During the two summers without Sats tests, headteacher Kulvarn Atwal saw an unintended benefit to the way students were measured and thought that writing standards “dramatically improved” when the tests were withdrawn.

“Rather than ‘training’ students to prepare for a timed writing test, teachers have instead had the opportunity to assess their children’s writing across the year, from September to June,” he said.

Pepe Di’Iasio, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, said that the fact results are still lower than pre-pandemic levels shows “the ongoing impact of the educational disruptions caused by Covid-19”.

“The learning loss experienced by some students, particularly those from disadvantaged backgrounds, was considerable,” he continued, highlighting “inadequate post-pandemic education recovery funding” and the end of National Tutoring Programme funding as “a step backwards” for support.

Paul Whiteman, general secretary of the NAHT school leaders’ union, warned that “the current high-stakes testing regime fails to value children as individuals, foster positive mental health, or encourage a broad and balanced curriculum”.

“We urge the new government to reconsider the value and purpose of statutory assessments. They are given disproportionate significance and pile pressure onto pupils and staff, causing unnecessary stress and, in some cases, harming their wellbeing.”

For the latest education news and analysis delivered directly to your inbox every weekday morning, sign up to the Tes Daily newsletter