Principles of Assessment
It must be fair, accurate and reliable:
- ensures that children are able to show their learning and achievements in various ways
- uses a range of evidence in a range of contexts over time
- promotes breadth and depth of learning
- is benchmarked against peers in school and beyond
- is carried out and checked by well trained professionals
It must be proportionate, relevant and appropriate:
- is not over-demanding on children and teachers to the detriment of learning
- assesses what is important
- tells children, teachers, parents and government agents what they need to know
- uses methods that are right for the child at their age and stage of development
- is regularly reviewed to evaluate effectiveness and appropriateness
Put the child at the centre of the process:
- involves the children, their teacher and their peers talking together about learning
- helps children to self-assess and be reflective. Pupils use 2, 5, 8 to show their understanding of this.
- clarifies what the children can do and what they need to do next
- raises children’s aspirations
- is positive and emphasises children’s strengths, raising self-esteem
Be designed to support the raising of standards and aspirations:
- gives accurate feedback to celebrate achievement and enables children to self-correct
- improves the quality of teaching by guiding teachers to base their plans on the needs, prior learning, interests and experiences of the children
- improves children’s learning by closing any gaps in attainment and progress
- promotes independence, responsibility and team working
- identifies where extra help is required and the training staff might need
Be open and informative
- uses language that is understood by teachers, children, parents, governors, school leaders and government agencies
- is based on the teacher’s knowledge of the child and how they learn and can be compared with national standards
- is collected and recorded in a way that means it is manageable and understood by teachers so that they can plan for the future
- is kept securely and easy to transfer
Our assessment wheel
Explanation of the different sectors of the wheel:
2- I feel like am still learning this. I still have some questions and am unsure sometimes.
5- I feel like i know this pretty well. I get almost every question right the first time.
8- I know this VERY well. I feel like I could teach it to someone else.
Locked (inidcated by a padlock) - I understand completely and I am able to explain to a peer or the teacher and apply the learning outside of the lesson.