Assessment at Hoole St Michael is an ongoing process and takes place in many forms. We assess children informally and formally during their learning in order to inform teaching. Children at Hoole St Michael are also actively involved in assessing themselves during lessons and units of work.We track each individual child’s progress through school using teacher assessment and Pips data. The data is inputted onto the Lancashire tracker termly and analysed by each teacher during termly pupil progress meetings.
FURTHER INFORMATION CAN BE FOUND IN OUR ASSESSMENT AND RECORDING POLICY
How we report attainment
The national curriculum emphasises key concepts, key ideas and is full of skills. It includes wide reading, practical work in science and application of maths. At Hoole St Michael our teachers have worked very hard to deliver the curriculum. We have a two year cycle of cross-curricular topics which cover all the objectives within the National Curriculum.
How do you know how your child is progressing?
There is no national requirement from the government in how schools should assess and record progress. It is therefore up to each school to develop its own system. At Hoole St Michael we use the system developed by Lancashire authority – KLIPS (Key learning indicators of progress). Using KLIPS, we assess each pupil through on-going teacher assessment which guides our teaching (formative assessment)
At the end of each term we judge whether a child is working at age-related expectations for that point in the year (summative assessment).
We expect that a child who is working at age-related expectations will be:
- Entering age-related expectations by the end of the autumn term
- Developing age-related expectations by the end of the spring term
- Secure within age-related expectations by the end of the summer term
What does this mean for you?
We will share with you whether your child is entering, developing or secure and whether they are on track to reach their end of year expectation. This will be discussed at parent evenings and reflected in our interim/end-of year reports. Under the new National Curriculum, children should only work on the objectives for their year group. For those pupils who have reached their end of year expectations, the teachers will provide a range of learning opportunities that offer a greater depth and breadth of understanding specific to their year group. If your child is gifted and talented, they may be taught skills from a higher year group, however this will be the exception rather than the norm. Children who are working below age-related expectations may not be secure by the end of the year, and some pupils may need to be taught skills from a lower year group.
Reporting attainment.
It is vitally important to note, that due to the higher standards and increased expectations of this National Curriculum, a child who may have previously been assessed to be working at age-related expectations using the old National Curriculum (i.e. a 2b at the end of Year 2/KS1) may now be assessed to be working below age-related; likewise, a child who was originally judged to be working above age-related under the old system, may now only be assessed to be working at age-related. This does not mean that your child is no longer making progress. Your child will be working hard and making progress but they are now required to attain a higher standard in order to achieve age-related expectations. You may will have the opportunity to discuss this with your child’s class teacher during parents’ evening.
End of Key stage SATs
These tests in English and maths reflect the national curriculum.
In May of Year 2, children will take SATs in:
- Reading
- English grammar, punctuation and spelling
- Maths
KS1 Reading
The reading test for Year 2 pupils involves two separate papers:
- Paper 1 consists of a selection of texts totalling 400 to 700 words, with questions interspersed
- Paper 2 comprises a reading booklet of a selection of passages totalling 800 to 1100 words. Children will write their answers in a separate booklet
- Each paper is worth 50 per cent of the marks, and should take around 30 minutes, but children will not be strictly timed, as the tests are not intended to assess children’s ability to work at speed.
The texts in the reading papers will cover a range of fiction, non-fiction and poetry, and will get progressively more difficult towards the end of the test. Teachers will have the option to stop the test at any point that they feel is appropriate for a particular child.
There will be a variety of question types:
- Multiple choice
- Ranking/ordering, e.g. ‘Number the events below to show in which order they happened in the story’
- Matching, e.g. ‘Match the character to the job that they do in the story’
- Labelling, e.g. ‘Label the text to show the title’
- Find and copy, e.g. ‘Find and copy one word that shows what the weather was like in the story’
- Short answer, e.g. ‘What does the bear eat?’
- Open-ended answer, e.g. ‘Why did Lucy write the letter to her grandmother? Give two reasons’
KS1 Spelling and Grammar (SPAG test)
Although not statutory, children taking Key Stage 1 SATs will sit three separate papers in grammar, spelling and punctuation:
- Paper 1: a grammar and punctuation written task, taking approximately 20 minutes, and worth 15 marks. Children will be provided with a prompt and stimulus for a short piece of writing, with a clear text type, audience and purpose. Handwriting will be worth four per cent of the marks.
- Paper 2: a grammar, punctuation and vocabulary test, in two sections of around 10 minutes each (with a break between, if necessary), worth 20 marks. This will involve a mixture of selecting the right answers e.g. through multiple choice, and writing short answers.
- Paper 3: a 20-word spelling test taking approximately 15 minutes and worth 10 marks.
KS1 Mathematics
The Key Stage 1 maths test comprises two papers:
- Paper 1: arithmetic, worth 25 marks and taking around 15 minutes.
- Paper 2: mathematical fluency, problem-solving and reasoning, worth 35 marks and taking 35 minutes, with a break if necessary.
There will be a variety of question types: multiple choice, matching, true/false, constrained (e.g. completing a chart or table; drawing a shape) and less constrained (e.g. where children have to show or explain their method).Children will not be able to use any tools such as calculators or number lines.
How will KS1 tests be marked?
Although the tests are set externally, they will be marked by teachers within the school. Instead of the old national curriculum levels, children will be given a standardised score. Teacher assessments will also be used to build up a picture of your child’s learning and achievements. In addition, your child will receive an overall result saying whether they have achieved the required standard in the tests. The Department for Education aims for 85 per cent of children to reach the required standard.
Other national curriculum subjects, including English writing, speaking and listening, science and computing, will be assessed by your child’s teacher based on their work throughout the year.
End of KS2 SATS
At the end of Year 6, children will sit tests in:
- Reading
- Maths
- Spelling, punctuation and grammar
These tests will be both set and marked externally, and the results will be used to measure the school’s performance (for example, through reporting to Ofsted and published league tables). Your child’s marks will be used in conjunction with teacher assessment to give a broader picture of their attainment.
KS2 Reading
The reading test is a single paper with questions based on three passages of text. Your child will have one hour, including reading time, to complete the test.
There will be a selection of question types, including:
- Ranking/ordering, e.g. ‘Number the events below to show the order in which they happen in the story’
- Labelling, e.g. ‘Label the text to show the title of the story’
- Find and copy, e.g. ‘Find and copy one word that suggests what the weather is like in the story’
- Short constructed response, e.g. ‘What does the bear eat?’
- Open-ended response, e.g. ‘Look at the sentence that begins Once upon a time. How does the writer increase the tension throughout this paragraph? Explain fully, referring to the text in your answer.’
KS2 Spelling and Grammar (SPAG test)
The grammar, punctuation and spelling test consists of two parts: a grammar and punctuation paper requiring short answers, lasting 45 minutes, and an aural spelling test of 20 words, lasting around 15 minutes.
The grammar and punctuation test includes two sub-types of questions:
- Selected response, e.g. ‘Identify the adjectives in the sentence below’
- Constructed response, e.g. ‘Correct/complete/rewrite the sentence below,’ or, ‘The sentence below has an apostrophe missing. Explain why it needs an apostrophe.’
KS2 Mathematics
Children sit three papers in maths:
- Paper 1: arithmetic, 30 minutes
- Papers 2 and 3: reasoning, 40 minutes per paper
Paper 1 consists of fixed response questions, where children have to give the correct answer to calculations, including long multiplication and division.
Papers 2 and 3 involve a number of question types, including:
- Multiple choice
- True or false
- Constrained questions, e.g. giving the answer to a calculation, drawing a shape or completing a table or chart
- Less constrained questions, where children will have to explain their approach for solving a problem
How will Key Stage 2 SATs be marked?
Your child will be given scaled scores. You will be given your child’s raw score (the actual number of marks they get), alongside their scaled score and whether they have reached the national average. The score needed to reach the national average has yet to be announced.
Progress measures are calculated when all results are in nationally and comparisons are made.