Liverpool NUT today stepped up the campaign against SATs tests, which the union is hoping to boycott next year. In the next few weeks they will be leafleting schools and the town centre, gathering a petition, sending cards to Charles Clarke. Jon Berry, who has pioneered the NUT boycott, will be speaking at their AGM on 26 June. (7 00 pm at The Casa)

Over the next weeks, children aged 7, 11 and 14 will be sitting tests in Maths, English and Science. Their results determine their schools’ places in the league tables – and even, in some cases, the pay their teachers receive.

There is growing opposition to these tests from teachers, parents and others in the sphere of education. However the government, with its obsession with targets and "league tables" seems determined to keep them.

Julie Lyon-Taylor, Deputy General Secretary of Liverpool NUT said today,

"SATs are anti-child and anti-education. There are already in schools far better ways of assessing children’s progress. They turn education into a dreary drilling for very narrow tests. Education should not be about labelling children but sharing with every child the excitement of learning. It’s a tragedy when a seven-year old is tearful and nervous because of a test, or when a fourteen-year old writes himself off as a failure.

Teachers boycotting SATs does not mean:

• Children sent home;
• Children’s education being disrupted

• Children get more teacher time
• Children get a broader curriculum
• Children have a happier school life

Our children are amongst the most examined in the world. The NUT thinks it is time to make a stand for the sake of the children."

For more information contact:

Liverpool NUT 0151 707 0900

Julie Lyon-Taylor 0151 281 4739

Ruth Knox 0151 726 8813