Assessment can be split into Assessment for Learning (Formative Assessment) and Assessment of Learning (Summative Assessment). Both types of assessment are important and feed into teachers’ overall understanding of where pupils are in terms of their progress. We use both types of assessment at Blakehill
Assessment for Learning (AfL)
Formative assessment is a crucial aspect of pupils’ progress to minimum expected grades and beyond. It is a vital process in pupils’ preparation for summative assessment as it is during this stage that teachers and pupils can identify what they are doing well and what the next steps must be to improve performance and final outcomes. It requires pupils to reflect on their work and the success criteria.
Why do we assess?
- When administered well, assessment provides the foundation that guides teaching and learning. Accurate and thorough assessment is crucial to learning as it informs what is to be taught next.
- Assessment is fair, inclusive and free from bias
- Assessment outcomes are conveyed in an open and transparent way.
- Assessment objectives set high expectations for learners and ensures they are aware of where they are in their learning journey.
- Assessment is appropriate to age, to the task and to the desired feedback information
- Assessment draws on a wide range of evidence
- Assessment is consistent, with judgements that are moderated to ensure accuracy.
- Assessment can provide accurate, useful feedback to our pupils that makes a difference to their outcomes both academically and personally, emotionally and socially.
- Assessment allows pupils to access feedback that supports them in making progress.
- Blakehill ensures assessment is reliable and gives all stakeholders a common language to discuss and recognise progress.
- Parents/carers are informed of their child’s progress and targets. They have regular opportunities to talk about their child’s progress towards his/her target at our 2x annual parent/ teacher consultation evenings and after the end of year report.
Our target setting is ambitious, placing no categories, barriers or ceilings on any pupil. The assessment and target setting process is designed to support this belief.
Assessment Framework
Our assessment frameworks link numerical data and to a series of statements which a child is expected to achieve by the end of each year group and will ensure consistent and accurate judgements are made about children's progress and attainment.
Moderation is also be an important part of how we use and validate assessment in each class and across all classes, year groups and phases.
Our work incorporates the following agreed principles of assessment:
Assessment – some key definitions
- WTS- working towards the standard of their year group
- WA/EXS -working at the expected standard for their year group
- GDS- working at greater depth standard for their year group
Teacher Assessment
Teachers will use the school tracking system to make judgements for attainment termly. These judgements should match evidence in books.
Testing
Testing will be carried out to validate teacher assessment. All evidence compiled through assessment must be triangulated with other sources of assessment evidence (including testing).
Pupil Progress will be regularly reviewed at progress meetings.
Class teachers will record for their own purposes, in a form convenient to them, the full range of evidence of performance and attitude through each term to allow for robust reporting; this will come from formative testing, AfL strategies in lessons, observations and marking of criteria-related tasks.
Moderation:
What is it?
Internal school moderation is a process to check the consistency of teachers’ judgements following pupil assessments across classes, year groups and phases within school. This activity is also used to identify and resolve any differences in teachers’ marking, ensuring that all work is standardised by being judged fairly and correctly.
Inter-school and external school moderation procedures are also regularly employed by Blakehill to ensure consistency in judgements across schools and as part of the wider Local Authority community.
What does it involve?
Moderation and standardisation meetings are used in order to:
- Review evidence and observations gathered.
- Draw upon other teachers’ knowledge of the children.
- Discuss pupil attainment levels and identify how they can be improved.
- Reach agreement over marking standards with reference to the exemplification materials.
- Support
- Enable consistency and accuracy of judgements