Christine Blower: The pupils forced to face unnecessary hoops

This is not strike action, schools will be open and children will be taught. This industrial action relates to the effects of the tests on

the terms and conditions of leadership members.

It has been necessary to take this decision to ballot because of the lack of a positive response from Government to the clear alternatives to SATs outlined by the NUT and NAHT.

The abolition of Key Stage 3 SATs was an admission that the current testing system has failed. For too long, English, Mathematics and Science teachers in secondary schools found themselves skewing

everything to enable their pupils to jump through a series of

unnecessary hoops.

Even though it could be the case that a number of secondary schools still use the tests, teachers are being trusted with assessment and the results are not made publicly available.

We would like the Government to understand that the whole testing

system needs fundamental change.

The unanimous votes to boycott SATs at the NUT and NAHT Conferences, together with the justifiable anger felt by the many teachers I've spoken to since, is a clear indication that teachers believe enough is enough and are more than ready to stand up and be counted in the battle for a quality education for our children.

These tests do not drive up standards – they just cause additional stress for pupils, teachers and parents and are used to create school league tables.

It is absurd to think that somehow a narrow set of tests can be used as a proxy for evaluating the success of schools. Every piece of data and research evidence shows that, however hard teachers and school communities try, the impact of social deprivation on pupil achievement is on average three times greater than any other type of discrimination experienced.

Governments now, and in the future, have to drop their deeply ingrained habit of naming and shaming schools as their principal method of school improvement. Parties' election manifestos should contain the commitment that they will initiate a fundamental, independent, review of the way schools are evaluated on criteria that success should be celebrated and any weaknesses targeted with guidance and support.

It is time for a change; this waste of our children's education, with

all the unnecessary stress and some children being labelled as failures at an early age, is a national disgrace.

It is unacceptable that some young people start their secondary

education already feeling academically inadequate. This is not a positive start, for either secondary teachers or their pupils.

We are not against assessment. What we want is assessment that is meaningful, assessment that is more accurate and assessment that

focuses on what children can do, rather than stigmatising them as failures for the things they can't do.

We want all political parties to accept and promote assessment by teachers which arises out of children's learning.

It would be a message greatly welcomed by teachers in all phases. It would relieve pressure in the system, lead to better outcomes for teachers and children and, we believe, have the support of parents.

The Government says we need SATs to give parents, teachers and the public the information they need about the progress of children and primary schools.

There are more appropriate ways of choosing a school and seeing how it is doing than looking at league tables, such as talking to other parents, reading the school's inspection report or visiting the school.

The NUT and NAHT believe that parents can get the most accurate and up to date information from their child's teacher as SATs do not assess children's achievement across the whole curriculum. Secondary schools also know this, which is why they often retest children when they enter Year 7.

It is time our children they had the education they deserve and I hope the Government acts to make this the last year of SATs.

Christine Blower is general secretary of the National Union of Teachers, the largest teachers' union.