ASSESSENT WITHOUT LEVELS Boughton Heath Academy

Aims ◦ To give parents a wider view about why the government removed the old system of levels ◦ To explain CAT new assessment system ◦ Daily assessments ◦ Half termly assessments ◦ To give parents an understanding of the information they will receive at parents evening ◦ Review assessments throughout school year groups ◦ Questions

Reasons to abandon levels ◦ Assessment should focus on whether children have understood key concepts rather than achieved a particular level. ◦ There is a number of compelling reasons for levels being abandoned. While the original idea of levels was that children worked their way up the levels, they have become overly influenced by other factors. Children are labelling themselves and comparing themselves to others in an adverse way, and they are encouraged to move at an undue pace through the levels. Every child needs to be capable of doing anything dependent on the effort they put in and how it’s presented to them. Levels got in the way of this.

Reaching a certain level does not necessarily mean a child has grasped a key idea, as levels are derived in different ways. Three different conceptions of ‘level’ have built up in the old system. We have one model based on national tests, where the same level can be awarded to different children despite very different profiles of marks across the different parts of the test. The composition of their attainment – what they know and can do – is very different, but they get the same level. We have another based on ‘best fit’ – where teachers choose the level which looks most appropriate to what a pupil can do – they are ‘level 3’ even if they have significant gaps in their learning. And we have ‘threshold’ – a pupil is level 4 if they are ‘just in’ that level – an issue which is of grave concern to secondary schools who receive ‘level 4’ children who are secure in only a small portion of the level 4 material.

We believe things are now moving in the right direction: The curriculum at Boughton Heath focuses on fewer things in greater depth. From September 2015 national curriculum levels have been removed and not replaced. The new national curriculum sets out what pupils should be taught by the end of each key stage with schools able to introduce their own approaches to assessment.

Daily Assessments

Class Track Daily Assessment Coding red ambergreenpurplegrey Not understanding the objective Showing signs of understanding Understanding on a regular basis Embedded Skill Not being assessed or absent at time of teaching

Half termly Assessments

End of half term bands Working Below Emerging Developing Working at National Curriculum Expectations Deeper Learning 0-9% of curriculum graded as green or purple from class track 10-39% graded as green or purple from class track 40-69% graded as green or purple from class track 70% above graded as green or purple from class track More than 70% of curriculum graded as purple in class track Class Track Daily Assessment Coding red ambergreenpurplegrey Not understanding the objective Showing signs of understanding Understanding on a regular basis Embedded Skill Not being assessed or absent at time of teaching

Parents’ information

When will I receive the information? ◦ Half termly ◦ At Parents’ Evenings ◦ At your request (given reasonable notice)

Assessments and Testing ◦ Reception- Early Years Framework- No change ◦ Year 1- Phonics Check- Summer Term ◦ Year 2- Standardised Tests (Mathematics, Arithmetic, Writing/Grammar and Reading) ◦ Year 6- Standardised Tests (Mathematics, Arithmetic, Writing/Grammar and Reading)

Questions