QTS numeracy key skills test - help and advice
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hi all,
I am studying for the tests at the moment, I have the literacy book, as I am more concerned about literacy (as I am not born here), apart from the 4 practice tests in the website is there anything else I can refer to? also the spellings, are they much different words from what you have in the practice book?
I am studying for the tests at the moment, I have the literacy book, as I am more concerned about literacy (as I am not born here), apart from the 4 practice tests in the website is there anything else I can refer to? also the spellings, are they much different words from what you have in the practice book?
Hi, I have booked the skills test and I need to change the date however I cannot find the website. Could someone send me a link please.
Thank you
Thank you
Original post by mandajane09
Hi, I have booked the skills test and I need to change the date however I cannot find the website. Could someone send me a link please.
Thank you
Thank you
Hi, you have to call them to change the date. The number should be on your appointment sheet/email confirming your appointment. Hope that helps xx
Does anyone have the site for the Skills Test, every time I go onto DfE I can't get any information. But I'm retaking my Maths and know there used to be a site with practice exams and guidance etc.
Thank you!
Thank you!
Original post by Mrs Nas
Hi, you have to call them to change the date. The number should be on your appointment sheet/email confirming your appointment. Hope that helps xx
Thanks you, I'll call them tomorrow.
Hi Guys
I have recently completed the skills test and had numeracy the other day. I think the tests are various difficulty and weighted so the pass mark varies for harder or easier tests. I found mine really hard and was sure I failed and ran out of time but somehow i passed. So my advice is dont panic about it, it takes a while to get into as I was nervous and just make sure you are picking up some marks and try to have a go at each question.
you get a whiteboard and headphones and I even got ear plugs. Strangely hardly anything I revised came up, but you can have a good guess at some, good luck!
I have recently completed the skills test and had numeracy the other day. I think the tests are various difficulty and weighted so the pass mark varies for harder or easier tests. I found mine really hard and was sure I failed and ran out of time but somehow i passed. So my advice is dont panic about it, it takes a while to get into as I was nervous and just make sure you are picking up some marks and try to have a go at each question.
you get a whiteboard and headphones and I even got ear plugs. Strangely hardly anything I revised came up, but you can have a good guess at some, good luck!
(edited 10 years ago)
I've got my second attempt of the Numeracy test tomorrow, I passed the Literacy test first time as I felt way more confident with that (as you're not under pressure with time being against you as much, unlike the mental arithmetic section for Numeracy). I failed by 3 marks for my first attempts for my Numeracy test, and it's fair to say I was gutted.
I'm feeling pretty nervous about tomorrow, mainly because all I've got stuck in my mind is 'I don't want this test to be harder than the first one' and 'If I fail by one, two or three marks, I will be so gutted again'... If I fail my second attempt tomorrow, I will be so gutted, and feel so nervous and pressurised to pass my last/third attempt, as then it's a two year ban. In two years I can only imagine that they will again set higher standards (a slightly higher pass mark), and there will be other changes too which may prevent me from being offered any places at uni, such as requiring higher A level grades and possibly higher GCSE grades in English, Maths and Science.
It looks like a lot of people have found their second attempt a lot harder than their first attempt, this is exactly what I don't want to happen to me and have been hoping won't happen! I'm finding it pretty stressful to be honest, and if I pass it, then that will be a HUGE weight off my shoulders!
Honestly though, I do think that they don't give you enough time in the mental arithmetic section, I think an extra 5 seconds would be helpful. I get quite nervous in tests, and knowing I'm against a short period of time makes me panic a bit when I'm working out the sum, and so when i come to an answer, I doubt myself and try and work it out again, as I'm so conscious about failing by one or more marks!
I'm feeling pretty nervous about tomorrow, mainly because all I've got stuck in my mind is 'I don't want this test to be harder than the first one' and 'If I fail by one, two or three marks, I will be so gutted again'... If I fail my second attempt tomorrow, I will be so gutted, and feel so nervous and pressurised to pass my last/third attempt, as then it's a two year ban. In two years I can only imagine that they will again set higher standards (a slightly higher pass mark), and there will be other changes too which may prevent me from being offered any places at uni, such as requiring higher A level grades and possibly higher GCSE grades in English, Maths and Science.
It looks like a lot of people have found their second attempt a lot harder than their first attempt, this is exactly what I don't want to happen to me and have been hoping won't happen! I'm finding it pretty stressful to be honest, and if I pass it, then that will be a HUGE weight off my shoulders!
Honestly though, I do think that they don't give you enough time in the mental arithmetic section, I think an extra 5 seconds would be helpful. I get quite nervous in tests, and knowing I'm against a short period of time makes me panic a bit when I'm working out the sum, and so when i come to an answer, I doubt myself and try and work it out again, as I'm so conscious about failing by one or more marks!
Original post by BenC42
I've got my second attempt of the Numeracy test tomorrow, I passed the Literacy test first time as I felt way more confident with that (as you're not under pressure with time being against you as much, unlike the mental arithmetic section for Numeracy). I failed by 3 marks for my first attempts for my Numeracy test, and it's fair to say I was gutted.
I'm feeling pretty nervous about tomorrow, mainly because all I've got stuck in my mind is 'I don't want this test to be harder than the first one' and 'If I fail by one, two or three marks, I will be so gutted again'... If I fail my second attempt tomorrow, I will be so gutted, and feel so nervous and pressurised to pass my last/third attempt, as then it's a two year ban. In two years I can only imagine that they will again set higher standards (a slightly higher pass mark), and there will be other changes too which may prevent me from being offered any places at uni, such as requiring higher A level grades and possibly higher GCSE grades in English, Maths and Science.
It looks like a lot of people have found their second attempt a lot harder than their first attempt, this is exactly what I don't want to happen to me and have been hoping won't happen! I'm finding it pretty stressful to be honest, and if I pass it, then that will be a HUGE weight off my shoulders!
Honestly though, I do think that they don't give you enough time in the mental arithmetic section, I think an extra 5 seconds would be helpful. I get quite nervous in tests, and knowing I'm against a short period of time makes me panic a bit when I'm working out the sum, and so when i come to an answer, I doubt myself and try and work it out again, as I'm so conscious about failing by one or more marks!
I'm feeling pretty nervous about tomorrow, mainly because all I've got stuck in my mind is 'I don't want this test to be harder than the first one' and 'If I fail by one, two or three marks, I will be so gutted again'... If I fail my second attempt tomorrow, I will be so gutted, and feel so nervous and pressurised to pass my last/third attempt, as then it's a two year ban. In two years I can only imagine that they will again set higher standards (a slightly higher pass mark), and there will be other changes too which may prevent me from being offered any places at uni, such as requiring higher A level grades and possibly higher GCSE grades in English, Maths and Science.
It looks like a lot of people have found their second attempt a lot harder than their first attempt, this is exactly what I don't want to happen to me and have been hoping won't happen! I'm finding it pretty stressful to be honest, and if I pass it, then that will be a HUGE weight off my shoulders!
Honestly though, I do think that they don't give you enough time in the mental arithmetic section, I think an extra 5 seconds would be helpful. I get quite nervous in tests, and knowing I'm against a short period of time makes me panic a bit when I'm working out the sum, and so when i come to an answer, I doubt myself and try and work it out again, as I'm so conscious about failing by one or more marks!
I have mine at 3 oclock.. WA
Original post by CLF1991
I have mine at 3 oclock.. WA
Did you pass? I failed by two marks! I'm gutted... I've now got one attempt left, and if I don't pass that I'm screwed:/
The mental arithmetic part was so so difficult this time round, there were like 5 questions where they asked me to multiply big decimals, and as we have no calculator, I panicked a bit each time and tried to work it out, but ran out of time! The general arithmetic part was pretty easy, but I'm so gutted about the mental part... I don't get why they put such big decimals in when you're not allowed a calculator.
Third time lucky hopefully... Otherwise I don't know what I'm going to do. In 2 years time it will be even harder to get into teaching and uni...
Oh no! Do they tell you what you failed on? I passed- would have liked feedback tho!
Original post by BenC42
Did you pass? I failed by two marks! I'm gutted... I've now got one attempt left, and if I don't pass that I'm screwed:/
The mental arithmetic part was so so difficult this time round, there were like 5 questions where they asked me to multiply big decimals, and as we have no calculator, I panicked a bit each time and tried to work it out, but ran out of time! The general arithmetic part was pretty easy, but I'm so gutted about the mental part... I don't get why they put such big decimals in when you're not allowed a calculator.
Third time lucky hopefully... Otherwise I don't know what I'm going to do. In 2 years time it will be even harder to get into teaching and uni...
The mental arithmetic part was so so difficult this time round, there were like 5 questions where they asked me to multiply big decimals, and as we have no calculator, I panicked a bit each time and tried to work it out, but ran out of time! The general arithmetic part was pretty easy, but I'm so gutted about the mental part... I don't get why they put such big decimals in when you're not allowed a calculator.
Third time lucky hopefully... Otherwise I don't know what I'm going to do. In 2 years time it will be even harder to get into teaching and uni...
Original post by CLF1991
Oh no! Do they tell you what you failed on? I passed- would have liked feedback tho!
Yeah, but they're pretty vague! It just says 'You have been unsuccessful in the test. An additional 2 marks was required in order to gain a pass. The areas you performed less well in are detailed below:
Mental Arithmetic"
That's basically all it said... which gives me nothing to really go by to practice for my final/last attempt! I know which area I struggled in, but I still don't see how I can multiply massive decimals in a short period of time!
Well done for passing though!
Hopefully I'll pass my final attempt, booking it for next week... Nervous!(edited 10 years ago)
Original post by BenC42
Did you pass? I failed bym two marks! I'm gutted... I've now got one attempt left, and if I don't pass that I'm screwed:/
The mental arithmetic part was so so difficult this time round, there were like 5 questions where they asked me to multiply big decimals, and as we have no calculator, I panicked a bit each time and tried to work it out, but ran out of time! The general arithmetic part was pretty easy, but I'm so gutted about the mental part... I don't get why they put such big decimals in when you're not allowed a calculator.
Third time lucky hopefully... Otherwise I don't know what I'm going to do. In 2 years time it will be even harder to get into teaching and uni...
The mental arithmetic part was so so difficult this time round, there were like 5 questions where they asked me to multiply big decimals, and as we have no calculator, I panicked a bit each time and tried to work it out, but ran out of time! The general arithmetic part was pretty easy, but I'm so gutted about the mental part... I don't get why they put such big decimals in when you're not allowed a calculator.
Third time lucky hopefully... Otherwise I don't know what I'm going to do. In 2 years time it will be even harder to get into teaching and uni...
You multiply each by ten for example. 2.5 x 2.5 will become 25 x 25 equals 625, then put in the decimal equals 6.25. :-)
I passed second attempt 26th April. The first time i failed was by 3marks. I bought a book that really helped (the blue one which has pass 1st time on the top left corner). The book had questions that are not on the website and some of the same type questions came up. I would not have known how to answer it otherwise. During the practice question I jotted down as much as I could of the 6,7 and 8 times table so I could answer questions without stressing too much. Keep calm (easier said then done) just think of it as your last attempt and think about how much you want and need this.
Got my Literacy tomorrow morning, not too worried about that. Numeracy is Monday morning and my word, I'm worried. I keep practicing, but i panic in the time constraints. 18 seconds?! What the actual?? haven't passed a single online maths practice, so i'm really disheartened - 10 out of 30 seems to be my average 
All my teachery friends tell me that it's easy, but numbers freak me out. Always been really bad at maths; will be heartbroken if i fail it twice, teaching is all i've ever wanted to do.
Does anyone know, has Gove actually taken the test??
All my teachery friends tell me that it's easy, but numbers freak me out. Always been really bad at maths; will be heartbroken if i fail it twice, teaching is all i've ever wanted to do. Does anyone know, has Gove actually taken the test??
Be careful re the Numeracy Ready site. I paid 2 days ago £20 for test questions and I still can't get on despite numerous emails to them, now I'm not even getting a response. They've really let me down as I sit my 2nd test next Tuesday! I will be pursuing them for my £20 back. What a con!
(edited 9 years ago)
Hi everyone,
I have my test on this coming Monday. I failed by 3 marks in the mental arithmetic a month ago. It was disappointing but realised I was doing too much over time at work so didn't revise enough. Ive been doing constant online practice questions, videos and questions in the blue qts book.
Each time Im passing but feel like when it comes to the actual test I will panic as its my second time and my conditions for being accepted are to pass for the 31st July. I feel like the gov tests are much harder than the videos or the actual first test. Does anyone have any suggestions?
I have my test on this coming Monday. I failed by 3 marks in the mental arithmetic a month ago. It was disappointing but realised I was doing too much over time at work so didn't revise enough. Ive been doing constant online practice questions, videos and questions in the blue qts book.
Each time Im passing but feel like when it comes to the actual test I will panic as its my second time and my conditions for being accepted are to pass for the 31st July. I feel like the gov tests are much harder than the videos or the actual first test. Does anyone have any suggestions?
Original post by Monr
Does anyone know how many questions you need to get right in the mental arithmetic half? That's the part I'm struggling with, I'm more confident with the on screen questions!
Overall you need to get 66% far as i know
so it doesnt really matter what section you make your marks up in, the best way to grasp it is practice and get your timing down what i recommend you do is do all the mental arithematic questions in the qts numeracy book and then use this site http://www.numeracyready.co.uk/ this is basically a website it has 20 exam practice papers it costs £20 but money well spent with this you will be able to get your speed down and get all the practice you need hope that helps i noticed that every time i did one of these papers i gradually started building up my marks when you notice that your getting about 70% plus per paper you know your in the safe zone, i hope this helps
The the same thing happened to me. However if you check you bank account they might not have taken the £20. Try using a different PC. I did it so many times. But they only took the money out once. Use a different PC it worked for me. Good luck.
Original post by amigo777
Be careful re the Numeracy Ready site. I paid 2 days ago £20 for test questions and I still can't get on despite numerous emails to them, now I'm not even getting a response. They've really let me down as I sit my 2nd test next Tuesday! I will be pursuing them for my £20 back. What a con!
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