Archived decisions
EFFECTIVE PRACTICE IN HAMPSHIRE PRIMARY SCHOOLS
Assessment and Tracking Pupil Progress
Introduction
In the Spring term 2003, Attached Inspectors (AIs) visited 40 schools to talk with headteachers, teachers and children about how progress in English and mathematics is assessed and tracked in Key Stage 2. The purpose of the visits was
· to find out more about how information is gathered, recorded, shared and used to ensure that children make expected or better progress, and;
· how the processes used to do this contribute to improving professional knowledge and understanding within the school.
This paper collates the findings contained in the reports written by attached inspectors following those visits. The findings do not necessarily identify whether the comments are about English or mathematics and apply to effective practice in assessment and tracking for both subjects.
This EDP activity formed part of the LEA's requirement to monitor English and mathematics. The focus for the visits was chosen to reflect the LEA's commitment to ensuring that individual children are enabled to make the best possible progress, and to promoting the sharing of effective practice. To support the focus, the Research Unit provided the attached inspectors for each school to be visited with the names of up to five randomly selected pupils and their Key Stage 1 SAT results.
The schools visited varied in size and situation. Some had very stable pupil numbers and established staff members; others experienced turbulence in one or both of these areas. However, all the schools clearly understood the importance of monitoring pupil progress and had developed procedures and systems for this purpose. This paper tries to capture the range of work undertaken and to identify the strengths, as described by schools and inspectors, that contribute most significantly to ensuring that children make good or better progress. As many with aspects of effective schools, there is nothing magical about the effective work which was found. It was usually a matter of doing the, apparently, simple things well.
Findings
Culture and Commitment or Why the Schools Do What They Do?
The drive for continuous improvement in the quality of learning and teaching, and the children's achievement, is present in all and shines through, in many of the reports. This gives the impetus for the work of headteachers and teachers, in developing or adapting assessment and tracking systems that provide useful and accurate information about individual pupils. The discussions with staff and pupils revealed the crucial role that headteachers play in creating a culture of high expectations and collective responsibility for the children's progress.
"The school has well developed and well established processes for assessing and tracking pupil progress. These operate at individual pupil level not just because the cohorts are small but also because a focus on children as individuals is at the heart of the school's culture."
"There is a culture of self-evaluation that focuses on improving practice and pupils' progress."
"Although children are not under pressure there is a proper expectation across the school that all pupils will succeed and make appropriate progress."
"This ethos is not the result of imposed systems - it has grown through professional and honest examination of practice and the shared goals of staff.
"The ethos of the school is that there is a corporate responsibility for standards and progress across the school in the broadest sense."
In all cases, the headteacher is seen as significant in ensuring that assessment and tracking is well led and managed and, in many cases, headteachers also play an active part in the processes.
"The headteacher builds detailed personal knowledge about each child through performance management discussions with teachers, classroom observations, regularly teaching in every class, termly work sampling with staff, mentoring specific children who may be experiencing difficulty and his day to day informal contact with other children. This approach forms a strong foundation for the good rates of progress that children make throughout the school."
"Two key factors in ensuring good progress in the school are the high level of subject knowledge of the headteacher and her high level of knowledge about individuals, through regular discussion with pupils, scrutiny of children's books, reading logs, and progress tracking".
"The headteacher knows the children very well from both the personal and academic progress aspects and both aspects are recorded. She talks regularly with children and staff members about the children's progress and sees this in action in classroom observations and work sampling."
"The headteacher takes active steps to ensure that procedures are rigorously maintained by internal and external checking. There is a sustained management effort over time to encourage continuous professional development. This, together with recognition of the need to improve all the time, is embedded in the approach all staff take to their work."
Using the Data or How the Schools Do What They Do
All the schools analyse and make use of a range of assessment data to set targets and predict pupil progress. In monitoring progress towards targets, there is clear evidence of the belief that a good balance must be struck between internal and rigorously moderated school assessments and the judicious use of QCA optional tests and other external tests. Whether the school uses SIMS Assessment Manager; school devised recording sheets; or excel spreadsheets to manage the information gained, there is general and, not surprising, agreement that recording systems need to be manageable and easily accessible. Another significant factor is the work done to ensure consistency in teacher judgements.
"Ongoing tracking is updated twice a year using results from QCA tests and teacher assessments based on half termly levelled, moderated writing and results from NfER reading tests."
"Children are assessed using QCA, SATs as well as moderated formative and summative teacher assessments. Results from these inform the process of target setting and performance management."
"A colour coding system is used to make it instantly visible if a child has made less than the expected two third levels of progress."
"The record keeping system records interventions both for support and extension activities and is very helpful documentation."
"A process of assessment, action planning and targets moves quickly into place when new pupils arrive. Pupils undertake a piece of writing for assessment purposes approximately twice a term, optional SATs and other published tests are used for spelling and reading."
"Teacher assessment is used as the basis for all judgements. If test results do not concur the teacher investigates the reasons and discusses with senior staff."
Some primary schools were able to evidence progress from baseline to year 5 and, in the most effective junior schools, good use is made of received information and tracking begins at the start of year 3. All the schools made use of the information gained. In some schools the pace and rigour of intervention, following assessment or issues arising from monitoring of progress, was impressive.
"When children enter school their KS1 results are entered into an assessment manager database."
"The headteacher has clear and detailed procedures in place to track pupil progress. The emphasis is placed on progress rather than attainment and the school looks closely at the progress of individual children from Reception to Year 6."
"Particularly significant is the very detailed information passed from Yr2 to Yr3."
"Planning is flexible to the extent that it can accommodate changes arising from assessed needs. Pupils are supported through a variety of intervention programmes including ELS, ALS and FLS."
"Writing assessments are undertaken termly and the annual optional SATs papers are used in all four year groups. Careful analysis is done on these papers, areas for improvement are identified and curriculum provision is adjusted accordingly."
"Should daily assessments indicate an area of weakness this will be addressed through discussion with pupils, be the focus of marking and result in change of practice or grouping."
"Following each review of the tracking a `cause for concern sheet' is drawn up detailing groups and individuals needs and actions to be taken."
Collective Responsibility or Who Plays What Part in Promoting Good Progress?
The significant contributions made by deputy headteachers and subject managers is clearly stated in the reports. In many cases they take a leading role in the process alongside the headteachers. The most effective subject managers have very good subject knowledge, a good understanding and overview of progress and achievement across the school, and give considerable support to the professional development of other staff. A further significant factor is the level of teamwork in the school and the clear understanding of different but shared responsibilities. Reports note the importance of coherent strategies, and all staff playing clearly identified roles, as key factors in a school's overall success in end of key stage assessments.
"Teacher predictions of progress are scrutinised by headteacher and subject manager to ensure that they are sufficiently challenging. Arrangements ensure direct involvement of class teachers, subject manager and headteacher."
"The deputy headteacher maintains a central tracking register, matching achievement against predictions and expectations. Where appropriate teachers are questioned and challenged about children's progress"
"Teachers are kept informed by the very effective subject manager of any developments in approach within the school, the LEA or nationally."
"The subject manager maintains a strategic view of her subject and makes sure that she has an overall view of all support procedures and strategies employed to ensure that all children make good progress."
"The subject manager asks to see books/work of any children not making appropriate progress. She then advises staff, checking expectations are high enough. She also plans and teaches in every year group."
"There is high quality leadership by core manager and year group subject leaders."
"The subject manager monitors progress through pupil interviews and working, sampling, reporting to the headteacher, staff and governors."
"The headteacher and mathematics manager moderate teachers' judgements and if any concerns arise they work alongside the teacher until they are confident that judgements are secure."
"The teachers track progress in mathematics using tracking documents linked to levels and then set targets for the next step of learning. The headteacher expects the teachers to know the level that each child is working on at all times through the year."
"The teamwork between three year 5 teachers in planning and evaluating units of work is a significant factor in prioritising pupil progress."
"Professional discussions across a year group, between year groups, and between a range of people such as teachers, LSAs, SENCO, ABCO, subject manager and the headteacher."
"The Governors have a `Target Setting, group who meet to analyse data. These Governors know which groups of children are targeted, they discuss weaknesses in particular cohorts and ask for progress reports."
Overall Outcomes or What difference Does it Make?
Pupil Achievement
The reports indicate clear and high aspirations for children's progress and achievement. Many state that schools are comfortable with the idea of at least two levels of progress in Key Stage 2 as an expectation. The reports also state that the majority of the identified children for the focus of these visits are on track to meet expected targets.
"The school places an expectation on teachers that pupils in Year 3 will progress by one fine level by the end of the year. In Years 4, 5 and 6 it is expected that pupils will progress by two fine levels. This ensures that if all pupils meet these expectations that pupils have progressed by two whole levels and a fine level by the end of the key stage."
"Two levels of progress within the key stage is the clear expectation, and is achieved by the majority of pupils in school."
"The children spoken with were all assessed by their teachers to be at Level 2 by the end of Key Stage 1. The school is now predicting that all will achieve Level 4 at the end of Year 6, with a significant number gaining Level 5".
"Targets for predicted progress are set at the beginning of year three based on the premise that children should make at least two levels of progress"
Pupil involvement and attitudes
All the children who were spoken with, during this exercise, have very positive attitudes to school and the progress they are making. The reports cite many instances of pupil self- assessment strategies and the impact that these are having on learning and progress. Overall, in many of the schools there is a growing sense that children have a very well-developed understanding of their responsibilities as learners and are involved in assessing their own learning. This is seen as contributing significantly to the progress children make.
"All had a good understanding of the progress they were making and were aware that they had some responsibility for this; they understand that the assessment process is designed to help their learning - diagnose misunderstanding or reveal gaps in their learning."
"The children are expected to respond to teachers' marking and time is provided for this to happen. Response partners mark work against specific criteria in line with lesson objectives and agreed targets. Children felt the use of response partners was helping them with their work."
"The English Manager has worked on a traffic light system. There are a set of statements for writing where each child marks green for always, amber for sometimes and red for not yet. This builds into the children setting their own targets.
"Pupils have a yellow target card, the content of which is negotiated with them during termly individual conferences with the teacher. The onus is then on the child to select evidence that shows achievement of the target. Pupils are given child friendly "traffic light" level descriptors against which they can evaluate"
Professional Development for Staff
The reports conclude that the processes related to pupil progress, particularly discussion, are making a significant contribution to growing professional knowledge within and across schools. Many of the reports mention productive links with the schools' performance management systems, where pupil progress is a key piece of evidence in judging each teacher's performance. There is also plenty of evidence that, where teachers talk frequently about how best to ensure that children make good or better progress, there are positive effects on curriculum planning and pedagogy. Reports cite a correlation between secure assessment and tracking procedures and interesting and challenging lessons that encourage pupils to discuss their work, think problems through and work creatively.
"The school uses its analysis of pupil progress effectively as a means of professional development for the staff. The headteacher is committed to ensuring that teachers use data reflectively and discuss how to make their teaching most effective."
"There is a clear expectation modelled by the headteacher and deputy headteacher that children's needs should determine the pattern of learning and teaching."
"Year groups work in mixed teams and regularly share pupil outcomes and consequent intervention strategies" These discussions signal professional development opportunities at individual or whole school level.
"The school is a learning institution that uses its analysis of pupils' progress to develop new systems and ideas to improve pupil performance. The staff have quality time to discuss pupil progress and brainstorm ways to improve achievement."
"Teachers analyse the pupil progress and suggest reasons for the progress of particular groups. Where a teacher has been successful with a group of children a discussion follows on what made that practice particularly effective. If progress has not been made teachers brainstorm possible reasons why and then actions that could be taken."
"The school uses its analysis of pupil progress effectively as a means of professional development for the staff. The headteacher is committed to ensuring that teachers use data reflectively and discuss how to make their teaching most effective."
Conclusions
There is much to be celebrated in the work of the schools in relation to the impact of their work on assessment and tracking. The schools clearly know their individual children well and are committed to enabling them to learn most effectively and make best progress. The last word should therefore be left to two of the headteachers who summed up as follows:
The strengths of our system are that:
· It is widely shared, with benchmarking understood by teachers;
· It informs planning;
· Expectations are high but realistic;
· It is a regular focus of staff discussion;
· There is always an emphasis on action following assessment.
It is important to:
· Establish a culture of focusing on individuals and promoting high expectations;
· Keep systems simple, manageable and useful, reviewing effectiveness regularly and acting on findings;
· Ensure consistency through staff discussion and moderation of work;
· Link assessment and tracking to the school strategic plan and staff development needs.