During your child’s time in primary school he or she will complete standardised Numeracy and Literacy tests towards the end of every school year. In our school, we administer the Micra-T standardised test for English reading and the Sigma-T standardised test for Maths for 1st to 6th class. The results of these are presented to you in your child’s end-of-year report. Adapted from information on the website for the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment, here we explain what standardised tests are and how they can help your child’s learning.
Further information about the standardised testing can be found here at the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment’s website. However, if you have any questions, we would be delighted to answer these.
- - to report to you as a parent on your child’s achievement in English reading and maths
- - to help to find out if your child has learning difficulties in English reading and maths and so that the school can put appropriate supports in place
- - to help to find out if your child is a high achiever in English reading and maths so that appropriate learning experiences can be provided for him/her
- - to help your child’s teacher plan for further learning across the curriculum because your child’s achievement in English reading, maths and Irish reading is important for all of his or her learning.
STen score |
What the score means |
Approximate proportion of children who get this score |
8-10 | Well above average |
1/6 |
7 | High average |
1/6 |
5-6 | Average |
1/3 |
4 | Low average |
1/6 |
1-3 | Well below average |
1/6 |
A STen score of 1, 2 or 3 suggests that your child may have difficulties in English reading or in maths. One test score by itself does not give a complete picture of your child’s learning in English reading and maths.
The teacher might decide to gather more information about your child from other tests, as well as his/her observations in class. You too will have additional information from helping your child with homework, and hearing him/her talking about schoolwork. The teacher may ask the learning support teacher to look at your child’s test scores and other assessment information. They may decide that your child would benefit from extra support with reading or maths. However, if this were the case, you would be involved in all steps in this process.
You know your child best. No matter what the score is, you play an important role in encouraging your child to do his or her best, and in helping your child with English reading and maths. If the score is low and your child needs extra help with reading or maths, it may be helpful to talk to him or her about this and to see the help in a positive way.
Further information about the standardized testing can be found here at the NCCA’s website. However, as always, if you have any questions, we would be delighted to answer these.