Phonics test: NUT says it will make failures of five-year-olds
A teachers' union is calling for a boycott of a new phonics reading test, saying it risks making failures of five-year-olds.
The government in England wants all children to be taught to read using phonics, where they learn the sounds of letters and groups of letters.
And it says the new "phonics check" for five and six-year-olds will help identify children who need extra help.
But the National Union of Teachers says it will not tell teachers anything new.
And the union fears the results could be used in league tables.
At their annual conference in Torquay, NUT members will vote later on Sunday on calls for them to refuse to stage the tests when they are introduced in June this year.
The union says nine out of 10 of its members who took part in an online survey said the check would give teachers no extra information on their pupils.
Eight out of 10 of the 1,300 people who opted to take part in the survey did not agree with the test, it says.
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... (BBC News - 08 April)