Assessments
The joy of pupil progress
Assessment is a huge part of teaching and should be a key focus for all teachers. It allows teachers to know the impact of their teaching on their pupils and enables them to gather information on their knowledge and understanding. Assessment should be present in every lesson, and day-to-day assessment is known as formative assessment or assessment for learning (AfL). During planning, objectives were set and the assessment was decided, along with the activities for that lesson.
Questioning is a common formative assessment strategy. During planning, I highlighted my assessment points and the questions that I'd ask my pupils. The questions were designed for pupils to demonstrate their learning and for me to evaluate their understanding. Assessing my class' understanding at the start of a lesson allowed me to establish where pupils were in their learning. As a result of my questioning, I could identify any misconceptions and adjust my teaching.
Summative assessment refers to the 'in school' termly assessments and national exams. At my school, pupils were assessed at the end of each term in core and none core subjects. My pupils sat formal maths tests and were assessed in phonics and writing. I had a writing success criterion, which I used to assess writing, and an amazing teaching assistant did the phonics tests. In the summer term, my class also had the national phonics screening, which is a key annual test for year 1 pupils. Their final pieces of artwork and DT creations were assessed, along with their progress in other curriculum subjects.
All assessment data was recorded on an online spreadsheet and used for reporting and tracking pupil progress. The data was discussed with the year 1 team (often on a Monday night each term) and allowed us to see the attainment levels across the year group. In core subjects, pupils were identified as mastery, secure or developing - and in none core subjects they were identified as higher, middle or lower attainers. It was encouraging to see pupils progressing throughout the year and moving from developing to secure. Assessing the data allowed us to identify pupils who needed extra support or interventions. Interventions included things like after-school maths booster clubs or additional one-to-one reading. The data was used to form specific targets for each pupil, which were discussed with parents/carers.
Reviewing learning and asking a large number of questions follows Rosenshine's principles of learning (see my blog on Rosenshine) and are effective assessment strategies. Assessment should always be happening in classrooms, through questioning and observations. Circulating the tables during independent practice allowed me to further assess my class' understanding and progress. As a teacher, there's nothing better than seeing pupil progress, and formative and summative assessment allowed me to experience this :).
