Nelmes Primary Approach to Assessment
With the introduction of a new National Curriculum from September 2014, the nature of national assessment underwent a fundamental change. Children’s progress and attainment is identified by assessing how well they achieve against the age related expectations, which are in place for each year group.
Teachers track pupil progress and assess learning and achievements against the learning objectives undertaken in order for the children to meet their end of year expectations [copies of these expectations are on the website].
The expectation is that the vast majority of children will achieve the year group, age related objectives. We use termly assessments to inform the children’s progress against the learning objectives and teachers will be able to judge whether a child is in line to be;
- Working below end of year expectations
- Working towards end of year expectations
- Meeting end of year expectations
- Working at Greater depth standard
The teachers will ensure the children fully understand a concept or objective before moving the learning on. This will ensure that the children have a deep understanding of the learning and they will master the required skills for their age ranges.
For those children with severe or significant special educational need, the teachers will follow an assessment programme that breaks the key learning skills in to small incremental steps that the children will achieve before moving on to the next step.
At Nelmes Primary School we will:
- Monitor and assess pupil progress through our own internal assessment and moderation processes.
- Monitor and assess our pupil’s progress through school to school moderation with a number of schools locally.
- Use the outcomes of the assessments to summarise and analyse attainment and progress for their pupils and classes.
- Use available assessment data to plan the learning for every pupil in order to ensure they meet or exceed expectations and achieve success in their individual learning journey at Nelmes Primary School.
- Analyse the data across the school to ensure that pupils identified as vulnerable or at particular risk are making appropriate progress, receiving appropriate support and that all pupils are suitably challenged.
- Communicate the outcome of formative assessment to parents by providing opportunities to look at children’s books and communicate summative assessments through end of year reports and end of key stage tests.
Schools have devised their own assessment and reporting systems. At Nelmes Primary School we have always thoroughly tracked and assessed pupil progress. Thorough formative assessment will continue to play an integral part of our teaching and learning process.
Formative [day to day] assessment is undertaken in a variety of ways and includes;
- Pre and post learning assessments
- Use of learning objectives and success criteria
- Weekly gap marking of extended writing in English
- Weekly response marking in maths
- Feedback from support staff
- Feedback from PPA cover teachers
- Discussions with pupils
- Quality questioning in lessons
- Feedback from parents
- AFL techniques e.g. self assessment, peer assessment
- Weekly spelling tests, tables tests etc
End of year reports will clearly indicate whether the child is;
- Working below end of year expectations
- Working towards end of year expectations
- Meet end of year expectations
- Working at greater depth standard
We have termly parent consultations and teachers share with parents how their child is progressing in relation to the end of year expectations.
Key Stage 2 standardised attainment tests [tests that children are required to take in May of Year 6] are reported on slightly differently. Children are given a standardised score ranging from 80-120. A score of 100 shows a child has met the expectations and a score of higher or lower, to a greater or lesser extent, shows where a child hasn’t quite met the expectations or is in fact more secure. A score of 110+ generally identifies a child working at the greater depth standard.
For many years children at Nelmes Primary School have achieved and attained at a level significantly higher than national. We have very high standards and our expectations would be that children at Nelmes continue to progress and achieve at this continued high standard.
For more information please see School Policy click on link below:
Nelmes Primary Assessment Policy
