Assessment
Assessment For Learning
Assessment for Learning is the everyday assessment that teachers undertake during every lesson. There are many strands as it involves teaching techniques as well, but the basics are explained here.
So, assessment for learning involves:
- Knowing the current level of skills, knowledge and understanding of each child
- Setting targets to move each child on to the next level or part level
- Asking good questions of children, that are linked to their own level of understanding
- Developing in the children the ability to answer questions fully—and to as good questions themselves
- Developing in the children the ability to assess their own understanding: you may hear the children referring to ‘traffic lights’-one of the simplest ways of getting the children to self assess is by asking them if they consider themselves to be
- green (understood, ready to move on)
- orange (nearly there, a little more explanation needed)
- red (no, I didn’t understand and need more help).
- Of course, the teacher will check out the children’s self assessments by questions and looking at individual work.
- Developing in the children the ability to assess the understanding of their friends
- Developing in the children the ability to coach their friends, and thus share their under standing (parents sometimes worry if their child is seated with other children whose understanding is less than theirs—please don’t! One of the most powerful ways of deepening your own understanding is having to teach a concept, skill or piece of knowledge to someone else)!
- Developing in the children the ability to talk about their understanding and to help the teacher to set targets for moving on.
- Developing in the children the ability to check their own work against given success criteria so that they know that they have met these and how they have met them, through careful self evaluation
Assessment Of Learning
Assessment of learning is sometimes about testing—but it does include teacher assessment too, and the general marking of the children’s work.
It is important to regularly test the understanding of the children. In this way we can find out where their understanding is and what aspects of whatever was taught has not been understood. Teachers can then plan the next series of lessons carefully, in order to address any problems and move the learning on.
It is very important that we know exactly what the children can and cannot do in English and Mathematics. Mathematics is an essential life skill. English is the subject that opens up all others—learning in all other subjects depends so much upon the children’s understanding of language used, ability to read and their ability to write. Even subjects like art require the children to understand the language and at the very least to be able to research about artists for themselves. Therefore we test in English and Mathematics ‘formally’ twice a year. We also test Science when each topic has been completed. However, we do try very hard not to have any ‘build up’ to the tests, and to treat them as a normal part of the children’s learning.
During the summer term, we undertake the SATs (Statutory attainment tests). The end of key stage SATs are taken in year six. We cannot help the children knowing that the SATs are coming up, because of course they know that the are doing revision—and they hear about SATs everywhere—the television and the shops advertise materials for children to buy to help them revise all the time for instance! However, we do try our very best to keep things low key in school—but we cannot do anything about the external pressures!
In years 3,4 and 5 we do ‘optional’ SATs in English and Maths—the children do realise that these are a little more formal than the earlier tests, but again we do try not to let any pressure build up. We explain to the children that tests are a useful tool for the teachers—in this way we can find out about their knowledge, understanding and skills, and know what we have to do to move their learning on.
The tests are important, and of course the children must do their best—but we expect that in every lesson anyway! However, the sky will not fall in if the children get some aspects wrong—all that happens is that the teacher knows what to teach next! (and that is very important)!