HINCHINGBROOKE

SCHOOL

Policy Statement

on

ASSESSMENT AND REPORTING

Drawn up by:                                                              SJE

Date:                                                                          April 2005

Date adopted by Governing Body:                             5 May 2005

Revised:                     

ASSESSMENT AND REPORTING POLICY

Objectives

1. To inform teachers’ planning for learning.
2. To provide students with accurate feedback about their performance and focus their attention on issues for improvement.
3. To provide parents with measures of progress and a framework within which they can support their children’s learning.
4. To support school self-review.

Student Level Achievement Targets

1. At the beginning of each school year, the Data Officer will supply to all teachers a target minimum grade for each student at KS3 and KS4 which is generated from the LEA’s Fischer Family Trust database.  For post 16 students minimum target grades will be set using the Durham CEM Centre ALIS data modelling from the previous year’s model in the first instance.
2. Teachers will review these targets and add challenge by increasing the target grade for 50% of the students in each class by one grade/level.  These targets will be reported to subject team leaders by the end of week 6.
3. Subject leaders will log these targets with the Data Officer and compile a report for Guidance teams, tutors and senior staff by the end of week 8. 
4. The Data Team will advise subject leaders where MID-YIS and YELLIS data suggest targets at odds with FFT data.  Subject leaders will advise teachers of the need to add further challenge to student targets as appropriate when this data is available in the second half of the autumn term.
5. The aggregates of the student level targets, formulated by the Data Team will inform senior staff and governors in setting school level targets for the School Improvement Plan.  Subsequently, they will be used to benchmark self-review actions.

Assessment standards

1. At Key Stages 3 and 4 teachers must assess students’ work against national standards at least once in each 12 hour teaching cycle.  The assessment must be recorded and fed back to the student. Once each term, the progress assessment should be reported to subject leaders, tutors and parents.  This assessment must be supported by recommendations to the student for improvement.  At post 16, the assessments will be made for each 24 hours of teaching.  There will be a termly student/teacher review which will be reported to subject leaders and parents.  The termly progress check will use the current Student Progress Report document.  Teachers need to assess effort, participation, etc, as required.
2. The school’s marking policy is set out separately.
3. In marking students’ work, teachers should normally identify between one and three key actions which will help the student raise his/her performance.  Recommendations and assessments must be expressed clearly in writing to the student on a progress record.
4. The final assessment each term will logged by subject leaders with the Data Officer. 
5. A summary report will be sent to parents in the Summer Term.  For Post 16 students, there will be a teacher student progress review.
6. The summary report will consist of the most recent subject progress    review and a summary report by the tutor.  This report will meet the statutory requirement.  Tutors at KS3 and KS4 should discuss the report with students before it is sent to parents.  The audience for all reports is the student.
7. Tutors will review each student’s progress at the end of each school year and write a summary progress report for parents.  The report should be discussed with the student before it is reported to parents.

Developing good assessment practice

1. Assessment practice should be discussed in subject meetings at least once each term.  Progress profiles should be reviewed half termly.
2. Subject progress profiles should inform subject level self-review.
3. A detailed analysis of outcomes by teaching group at the end of each Key Stage should be submitted to the senior staff link to the subject.
4. School level CPD will be planned in the light of self-review evidence.  Assessment will feature in the school training day programme at the beginning of each school year.  The school’s ASTs will play a lead role in school level training.
5. It is the duty of all subject and guidance team leaders to inform new teachers on the school’s assessment and reporting practice.

Assessment and examinations

1. Every teacher must take significant care to read and understand examination board specifications. The duty to work accurately with examination board specifications is of the highest importance.  Failures of duty in this respect can have serious consequences for students.
2. Where there is concern over interpretation of the requirements, advice should be sought from the examination board.
3. The school’s Examinations Quality Assurance Officers will sample practice in relation to the preparation of students for public examinations.
4. Where a subject leader wishes to take a new specification, the decision must be reviewed with the link member of senior staff and the relevant EQAO.

Monitoring and Evaluation

The Head of Department or the member of staff with responsibility for a key stage is responsible for monitoring and evaluating the application of this policy within their subject area.

Key Stage Guidance teams will monitor and evaluate the policy across their key stage.

The above will report their findings to the relevant Line Manager.