Assessment serves many purposes but the main purpose of assessment in our school is to help teachers, parents and children plan their next steps in learning.
We also use the outcomes of assessment to check and support our teaching standards and help us improve.
Through working with other schools and using external tests and assessments, we will compare our performance with that of other schools.
We assess pupils against assessment criteria, which are short, discrete, qualitative and concrete descriptions of what a pupil is expected to know and be able to do.
Assessment criteria are derived from the school curriculum, which is composed of the National Curriculum and our own local design.
Assessment criteria for periodic assessment are arranged into a hierarchy, setting out what children are normally expected to have mastered by the end of each year.
The achievement of each pupil is assessed against all the relevant criteria at the end of each term.
A tracking system designed by an external expert ensures each pupil is assessed as either emerging ( – ), developing ( = ) or expected ( + ) based on progress within the relevant criterion contained in our expectations for that term/year. These judgements are translated into numbers which can then be analysed and used for monitoring purposes and identifying priorities.
Where a pupil is assessed as exceeding the relevant criteria in a subject for that year they will also be assessed against the criteria in that subject for the next year. For those pupils meeting and exceeding the expected standards we will provide more challenging work through application and extension.
Where children with Special Educational Needs are working below National Curriculum expectations in Year 1 then they will be assessed using the EYFS bands.
Assessment judgements are recorded and backed by a body of evidence created using observations, records of work and testing.
Assessment judgements are moderated by colleagues in school and colleagues in other schools and the Local Authority to make sure assessments are fair, reliable and valid.
Our Use of Assessment
There are two main purposes of assessment.
- Assessment of Learning – Summative Assessment
- Assessment for Learning – Formative Assessment
Summative Assessment summarises where learners are at a given point in time and provides a snapshot of what has been learned in terms of both attainment and achievement.
Formative Assessment is an on–going process. It informs the next steps to learning and results in teachers adjusting their plans to take account of how learning is developing. The school recognises that pupils have different learning needs and provides a differentiated curriculum that takes into account different learning styles.
Teachers use the outcomes of assessments to summarise and analyse attainment and progress for their pupils and classes.
Teachers use this data to plan learning for every pupil to ensure they meet or exceed expectations. Teachers and leaders analyse data across the school to ensure that all groups of pupils including those identified as vulnerable or at particular risk are making appropriate progress and that all pupils are suitably stretched.
The information from assessment is communicated to parents on a termly basis through structured conversations at open evenings. Parents also receive rich, qualitative reports about what has been achieved and indications of what pupils need to do next. Pupils receive regular verbal and written feedback linked to assessment; areas for improvement are shared with them. Refer to Marking Policy.
We celebrate all achievements across a broad and balanced curriculum, including sport, art and performance, behaviour and social and emotional development.
