A regional daily education reporter has warned children are losing a “love for learning” after sitting Year Six SATs exams herself.

Hull Daily Mail journalist Liz Mackley says it was a “shock” to score 74pc on a maths test and 72pc on an English paper designed for 10 and 11-year-olds.

English graduate Liz sat the exams while researching a piece for the Mail, after recent criticism over how tough the tests are for children.

The National Union of Teachers said this primary school generation is the “most tested in Europe” and voted to boycott the tests at its annual conference in Brighton during the Easter weekend.

Liz, pictured above, who has a “decent” degree in English Literature and an AS level in Maths, expected to be scoring around 90pc in both exams.

She told HTFP: “The fact I needed the total 40 minutes allowed to complete the maths test and still only score 74pc was quite a shock to say the least. This was compounded by the fact I actually did worse in the English paper.

“There was absolutely no margin for error in these tests. No marks for effort, no acknowledgment I might have been on the right track – just ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ – which happens to be an attitude I think is pretty unhelpful for anyone, let alone our youngest members in society who need to know it is OK to make mistakes because they are valuable lessons in themselves, not just in the classroom but in everyday life.

“And, trite as it sounds, I couldn’t help having a minor crisis of confidence in what my scores said about my intellect and ability.

“I don’t think children gain anything by sitting these tests, aside from a bout of anxiety, a wasted childhood swotting in bedrooms and ultimately a loss of love for learning. And I think that’s a tragedy.”