1. Implications of The Rochford Review
Issues which prompted the commissioning of the Rochford Review and dominated the challenge posed to its members
South and West Association of Leaders in Special Schools
Deputies’ / Assistant Headteachers’ Conference

2. Summary of the Rochford Review Recommendations
Statutory assessment by reference to P scale levels should be removed
The interim pre-key stage standards for pupils working below the standard of the national curriculum tests should be made permanent in order that all pupils engaged in subject-specific learning may have the opportunity to be tested
Pupils with EAL may be disapplied from statutory assessment
Pupils not at the standard of subject-specific learning should be statutory assessed against the seven aspects of engagement for cognition and learning
Schools should routinely assess pupils with SEND in all EHC areas of need and report their holistic progress to parents in tandem with attainment data from statutory assessment

3. It’s mainly stuff to do with pupil assessment and improving outcomes for pupils with SEND

4. Clarity About Pupil Assessment
Clarity of Purpose
Why are pupils being assessed?
What is assessment intended to measure?
Who is the assessment for?
How will the resulting information be used?
Combinations of summative and formative assessments serve different purposes for different people:
Pupils;
Parents/Carers;
Teachers and support staff;
School leaders and governors;
Local authority and service providers;
The Government and Ofsted
Schools need to have clear policy governing why and how they use different forms of assessment
Statutory assessment is only a small aspect of a school’s provision for pupil assessment

5. What We Want Assessment to Help Achieve Safe & Healthy Learners
Engaged Learners
Engaged learners who are motivated to participate in new learning activities and retain some knowledge of what they have experienced
Successful Learners
Successful learners who are accessing, mastering and generalising new concepts & skills to bring about beneficial, enduring outcomes
Safe & Healthy Learners
Safe & healthy learners who have friendships and enjoying good standards of mental, emotional & physical wellbeing
Responsible Learners
Responsible learners who are interacting positively, behaving appropriately, being self-determining and helping realise their planned level of dependent or independent living in the adult world

6. Big Issue
The Centre for Studies in Inclusive Education still claims that the provision of special education somehow violates a child’s basic human rights and is disrespectful So
Has the inclusive national curriculum and its framework of statutory assessment upheld the basic human rights of children with SEND and shown them due respect?

7. Disadvantage & SEND
The Desperate Need to Change Quality of Life Outcomes
More than 60% of those in prison are below Level 1 in reading , approximately 75% are below Level 1 for writing and 60% have significant difficulties in their basic communication and language skills
People with learning difficulties have a shorter life expectancy and increased risk
of early death with 3 times higher mortality rates for MLD/SLD than general population
School leavers with learning difficulties are more likely to be NEET and only 7%-10% of adults with learning difficulties are in employment
More than 49% of those in prison have a history of being excluded from school and pupils with statements of SEN are 9 times more likely to receive a fixed period exclusion than pupils with no SEN
People with learning difficulties have higher levels of unmet mental health needs despite statistics showing that 36% of pupils with learning difficulties suffer from a diagnosable psychiatric disorder
(compared to 8% of other pupils)
People with learning difficulties are more likely to be exposed to poorer health, poverty, poor housing conditions, social disconnectedness and overt discrimination

8. What’s the Point of these Recommendations?
To propose a change in the way schools assess pupils who are working below or at the periphery of subject specific learning, designed to have a lasting beneficial impact on a school’s culture, organisation and overall performance with a view of improving pupil outcomes
The Rochford Review proposals represent a real rabbit out of the hat moment for improving provision and outcomes for children and young people with SEND

9. Why a Cultural Change?
Statutory P level assessment has become too entangled in school league table mentality with pupils being pushed through “best fit” levels of attainment as quickly as possible in order to raise the relative standard of whole school performance
The setting of IEP targets with which to minimise the disabling impact of SEND issues has become secondary to the setting of pupil targets to improve whole school Ofsted ratings
SEND issues have a massive impact on how pupils acquire, retain, perceive and apply new learning yet there remains an assumption that all pupils should be able to make similar rates of linear progress within a narrow set of generic academic standards
The statutory requirement to review progress within Statements of SEN / EHC plans and prepare pupils for adulthood has become secondary to the task of amassing summative pupil performance data that only really demonstrate pupils with SEND achieve at rates and standards below the national average

10. Principles before Procrastination in Statutory Assessment
Assessment should ensure that every pupil is able to demonstrate achievement and be empowered to make the best progress possible via combinations of summative & formative approaches
Assessment should take into account the complexity, nature and combination of difficulties faced by disadvantaged pupils and support the ambitions of recent SEND related reforms including EHC plans to improve long term outcomes
In order to make statutory assessment truly inclusive and provide equal insight into the standards attained by all pupils
assessment approaches have to be varied according to the needs of some pupils

11. A Backdrop of National Change
Too often levels (in the old national curriculum)became viewed as thresholds and teaching became focused on getting pupils across the next threshold instead of ensuring they were secure in the knowledge and understanding defined in the programmes of study. Depth and breadth of understanding were sometimes sacrificed in favour of pace (CAWL Report 2015)
Ministers asked the Rochford Review whether the P scale levels remained fit for purpose and the overwhelming answer was “No”
I can see you had a lazy eye as a child and it seems to have spread to the rest of you
78% of respondents from a DfE survey undertaken in spring 2016 also agreed that P levels were not fit for purpose

12. Context to the P Levels Question In response to the DfE survey of 2016
Despite voracious feeding of P level progression data into commercial software systems and their collection by local authorities, P level pupil performance data were never considered sufficiently robust to warrant any significant “data crunching” by the Department for Education or The Standards & Testing Agency
Despite the publication of “Progression Guidance” Ofsted has increasingly preferred to seek out a “range of evidence” to inform their judgements about pupil progress rather than rely on P level data
In response to the DfE survey of 2016
60% of parents/carers did not think P levels gave useful information and over 90% said it was important their child made progress in relation to their own needs

13. Escaping the Historical Culture of Levels
Changing the culture of assessment by reference to national curriculum levels is the key to enriching learning and motivation for pupils with SEND and the professional development of teachers

14. Big Headline
Assessing pupils with complex needs and those with very low attainment can be more complicated than assessing other pupils
CAWL 2015

15. Issues of Perception in Cognition & Learning
Our understanding of the world and how we interact with it are intrinsically linked to how we engage with and make sense of the things we experience
The process by which we do this is called perception and the development of perception requires an integrated use of the senses with other core functional abilities
Perception is more than the processing of sensory stimuli, it requires us to draw upon information gained from our memory of previous events
It is essential we monitor and respond to pupil engagement in order to personalise our teaching and empower pupils to access new learning
We depend upon previous knowledge to provide the context in which we can think about new information and shape our perception of it
Having multiple impairments inhibits how well information is perceived so new learning experiences can be confusing and pupils may demonstrate extreme variations in their motivation and engagement

16. Innate Disabilities & Social Issues
Cognitive
Impairment
Physical Health Impairment
Sensory
Impairment
Untreated medical conditions
Increased risk of abuse
Emotional, Behaviour & Social Impairment
Motor
Impairment
Social Exclusion
Deprivation
Mental Health Impairment
Neurological Impairment
Communication Impairment

17. Issues of Acquired Pupil Difficulties
Some difficulties are not identified because of inadequate SEND related assessments & these become more acute & disabling over time
Basic aspirations to have a fulfilled & enjoyable lifestyle sometimes overlooked
Inability to make and sustain progress undermines status within society
Depth of understanding sometimes neglected because of overwhelming emphasis on anticipated rates of pupil progress
Poorly targeted curricula constrain the acquisition & generalisation of essential skills & concepts
Lack of personalisation restricts engagement for learning
Provision not responsive to idiosyncratic therapeutic needs undermines wellbeing
Lack of opportunity to be self-determining & make decisions increases passivity

18. Some pupils may take longer and need more help than others
Mastery Learning
The new national curriculum is premised on a process of “mastery learning” with a combination of in-school and statutory assessment being used to confirm depth of learning in all aspects of Programmes of Study as opposed to the historical practice of accelerated, best fit progress
Mastery learning is a specific approach in which learning is broken down into discrete units and presented in logical order with pupils required to demonstrate mastery of all aspects within a unit before being allowed to move on
It is assumed the majority of pupils will achieve mastery if they are appropriately supported
Some pupils may take longer and need more help than others
There will always be a small minority who will never master the standards of a particular key stage

19. Mastery Learning at Subject Specific Levels
Because skills and concepts at P levels 5-8 are the first stages of cognitive development which relate to “subject specific learning” pupils working at this standard can be statutory assessed in much the same way as pupils working at the level of tests, but only when pupils are secure in PoS subject matter and in ways that are empathetic to their personalised learning styles
Overseen by DfE curriculum experts, additional “can do” pre-key stage standards were appended to key stages 1 & 2 in English and mathematics to accommodate P5-8 learning matter and bridge the “gap” between P8 of the old national curriculum and Standard 1 of the new national curriculum
The panel has recommended these interim pre-key standards be made permanent, but acknowledged that further work is likely to be required after the procedure has been adequately trialled

20. Incorporating Mastery Learning into
Statutory Assessment
However, the recommended pre-key stage standards approach still cannot provide a satisfactory solution to the assessment of pupils unable to participate in formal test settings and/or working below the level of subject specific knowledge in a meaningful or inclusive way

21. Assessing pupils working below
the standard of subject specific learning
Learning is the acquisition of knowledge (concepts and skills) usually classified by reference to different subject areas
The statutory assessment of a pupil’s subject knowledge is undertaken by testing concepts and skills against concise written standards of what a pupil is expected to know and be able to do at specific chronological stages
Particular problems arise when a pupil has not reached the stage where the level of knowledge acquired can be attributed to a subject, ie., the pupil is working below the level of subject specific knowledge
The Rochford Review sought to determine an approach to statutory assessment that would better recognise the achievements and progress of pupils working below the level of subject specific knowledge in a way that would also be inclusive of pupils of all abilities.

22. In-School Approaches to Assessment
Schools should not seek to devise an approach to pupil assessment they think Ofsted inspectors might want to see - it should be one that works for pupils with the sole aim of empowering learning and long term benefits
For pupils with SEND
assessment should consider long-term wider outcomes and meaningful ways of measuring all aspects of progress including communication, social skills, physical development, resilience and independence
CAWL 2015

23. Issues Associated With Assessing Depth of Learning
It is essential pupils are able to connect together previously learned concepts in order to generalise their understanding and apply this in functional ways to solve problems and bring about desirable beneficial outcomes
But how easy is it for pupils with SEND to achieve depth of learning ?
Depth of Learning (deep learning):
Accessed to supported, incremental learning that builds to acquisition of a targeted concept/skill
Mastery of targeted concept/skill autonomous of adult support
Generalisation of the newly mastered concept/skill

24. Helpful Prompts
The nature of learning for those with complex difficulties and disabilities can never be guaranteed to be either linear or developmental
Both the SEN and Disability Code of Practice and Ofsted highlight the importance of assessing progress in wider EHC plan areas of need
Cognition & learning
Communication & interaction
Physical & sensory
Social, emotional & mental health
Without engagement there is no deep learning

25. Big Headline
In 2006 the Specialist Schools and Academies Trust (SSAT) advised that schools should “transform their responses to the learner from the largely standardised to the profoundly personalised” (Hargreaves)

26. Personalisation
As teachers we have a duty to know and demonstrate whether we making a real difference in the circumstances of the pupils we serve
Provision for pupils with SEND is not about identifying and teaching generic, standardised measures of knowledge and learning outcomes
It is about understanding what needs to happen and how it needs to happen in order to facilitate important improvements in the quality of an individual pupil’s learning and cognition in tandem with facilitating important beneficial outcomes in the other SEND domains
It is only once we have personalised a pupil’s learning pathway that we can properly measure the impact our specialist provision is having upon the learning and holistic development of our most complex pupils

27. A Multilayered Pathway to Learning
Motivation
Postural & Motor Access
Physical Health,
Social, Emotional & Mental Wellbeing
Sensory Neural Perception
Cognition &
Communication
Accessed Learning
ENGAGEMENT

28. Personalised Pathways
What are the best postural settings to ensure my wellbeing and access?
What beneficial new skills or concepts do I need to learn?
What are the optimal settings for me to use distant and near senses?
Engagement
For
Learning
What things capture my immediate interest and motivate me to respond?

29. The Seven Aspects of Engagement
Pupil Engagement
Because engagement is key to how pupils of all abilities learn, measuring the different ways and extent to which pupils are engaged for learning represents a particularly relevant, inclusive approach to statutory assessment
Assessing pupil engagement is also very helpful for monitoring the extent to which pupils working below the level of subject specific knowledge are developing the right kinds of concepts and skills with which to progress to subject-specific learning if and when they are ready to do so
The Seven Aspects of Engagement
Responsiveness
Curiosity
Discovery
Anticipation
Persistence
Initiation
Investigation

30. Engagement for Depth of Learning
Beneficial Impact
Generalised
for
Practical
Application
ment
Mastered
Concepts & Skills
Pupil “can”
autonomously
age
Accessed
Motivation
Eng
Prompted
small steps

31. Big Issue
How can the ambitions of EHC plans be supported by a combination of in-school and statutory assessment to bring about better outcomes for pupils with SEND?

32. Issues with EHC Plans
EHC Plans aim to provide support for children and young people through a unified plan taking into account education, health care, and social care needs
Parents are finding the system hard to navigate and believe services are declining in quality
Present provision is fragmented leading to difficulties in sharing information and knowledge
Many children and young people do not receive the support they deserve and gaps in the system lead to wasted resources
48% of those who had been through the system were dissatisfied
The number of EHC plans being issued is lower than envisaged meaning we could see an even bigger increase in tribunal figures
Source:
HOUSE OF LORDS BRIEFING PAPER
Number 07020, 10 November 2016

33. List of Holistic Assessments
Example Case Study
List of Holistic Assessments
Pupil Issues & Barriers  
Pupil is dependent upon others for support in all aspects of his learning/wellbeing. and diagnostic assessment has identified the following issues:
Hydrocephalus (he has a shunt fitted)
Cerebral palsy affecting all four limbs (he has a Baclofen pump fitted)
Contractures of upper limbs particularly wrists and also in his knees (Botox injections every 12 months)
History and high risk of developing pressure sores
Scoliosis of the spine
Dislocated left hip
Severe communication difficulties
Nil by mouth and has a gastrostomy
Severe respiratory problems (requiring regular chest physio and oral suctioning)
Epilepsy (seizures and absences)
Registered partially sighted (bilateral optic nerve hypoplasia; visual acuity 6/38; right alternating divergent squint)

34. Using Assessments Formatively in Pupil Profiles
Example Case Study
Using Assessments Formatively in Pupil Profiles
Postural Preferences
Likes to sit in his chair for short periods but most comfortable when lying on the Acheeva bed and this also reduces risk of pressure sores
When he is comfortable he has more energy and is better motivated to join in activities;
Very sociable, but not so easy for him to see and join in with his friends when lying on the Acheeva so group activities need to be adapted
Sensory Preferences
Enjoys using his hands to make messy paintings to show his friends but needs some over hand prompting and good positioning
Loves rock music, especially “We Will Rock You” by Queen and this works well to capture his attention and/or reinforce positive experiences
Enjoys the feeling of air being blown gently in his face by a fan
Loves having water sprayed very gently and finely on the back of his hands
Reduced vision particularly on right so preference for close work on left side

35. Example Case Study EHC Targets, Engagement & Beneficial Outcomes
Priority EHC targets relating to worsening contractures of wrists and hands
Pupil can participate in coactive exploration during mark making activities as described in the following activities:
I can use a flat hand to explore surfaces and materials
I can grasp an object placed in his hand
I can participate in making marks on surfaces
I can produce work through mark making using a variety of media
Beneficial impact and outcomes
I can maintain my hand function and learn about the world via sensory integration
I can participate in fun, meaningful activities using my hands to experiment and initiate activities
I can use my hands to make choices and express preferences
I can make my mark on the world and share my creations with my friends
Engagement for learning
Suitably motivating and messy interactive activities
Relevant physical/visual positioning
Spray on back of hand as prompt
“We Will Rock You” as reinforcement

36. End of Year Report for this Pupil
Actual Example
End of Year Report for this Pupil
Current National Curriculum Levels and Targets for End of Academic Year
Spk/List
Reading
Writing
U&A
Number
SS&M
Current
P Levels
S= P2i+47%
L=P2i+47%
P2i+40%
P2i+7%
P2i+27%
P2i+47%
P2i+33%
Target
S= P2i+40% L= P2i+40%
What do you think parents/carers might like to read in their child’s report?

37. Another Big Issue How will schools be held to account for
standards of pupil learning and progress?

38. How Schools Will Be Held To Account
when no progression data is submitted
In respect to the progress of pupils working below the standard of tests schools must provide evidence to support a dialogue with parents and carers, inspectors, regional schools commissioners, local authorities, school governors and those engaged in peer review to ensure robust and effective accountability
A school’s claims about the quality of its pupil assessment will be done by comparing its published statutory SEND information against its everyday practice and reviewing the actual outcomes accruing to pupils with SEND
Peer
Review

39. Big Headline Curriculum, Pedagogy & Assessment
For pupils with SEND to achieve depth of learning
Curriculum, Pedagogy & Assessment
need to be inextricably connected

40. Dimensions of School Provision in Relation to Changes in Assessment Practice
curriculum design
School SEN
information
pedagogy
Statutory
Assessment
resources
policies
assessment
framework
CPD

41. SEND is Always Context Related
Environment
Curriculum
Pedagogy
Assessment
ENGAGEMENT
SEND

42. Curriculum & Pedagogy to Empower the Rochford Recommendations
THE COMMON DENOMINATOR IS ENGAGEMENT
Specialised stuff to promote pupil performance within the EHC areas of need; minimise the impact of innate SEND issues and acquired barriers; enhance wellbeing and motivate pupils to experience new things
Motivating stuff to develop pupil personality; interaction and relationships; acquire the skills to enhance participation; build resilience to cope with anxiety and the unpredictable nature of life
Cognitive stuff to provide pupils with depth of learning so they can understand and apply the processes governing everyday living with opportunities to experiment, problem solve and be self-determining
EHC
Plan

43. Engagement for Learning
Responsiveness
A change in a pupil’s behaviour that demonstrates s/he is being attentive to a new stimulus. Important for establishing what differing stimuli motivate a pupil to attend and particularly relevant for assessing pupils with multiple sensory impairments
Curiosity
How a pupil is building on an initial automatic reaction to a new stimulus, perhaps by reaching out or scanning for the source of a new stimulus
Discovery
Changes in the way a pupil is interacting or responding to a new stimulus, sometimes accompanied by expressions such as enjoyment and excitement
Anticipation
A pupil’s ability to predict, expect or associate a particular stimulus with an event which is important for measuring a pupil’s concept of cause and effect
Persistence
The extent to which a pupil is sustaining attention towards a particular item or action and thus beginning to develop conceptual understanding
Initiation
Different ways and extent to which a pupil is instigating an event in order to bring about a desired outcome
Investigation
The extent to which a pupil is actively trying to find out more about an object or activity via prolonged, independent experiment

44. Assessing Individual Pupils in:
Responsiveness
Curiosity
Discovery
Anticipation
Persistence
Initiation
Investigation
No focussed engagement (score 0)
Emerging or fleeting engagement
(score 1)
Partly engaged
(score 2)
Mostly engaged (score 3)
Fully engaged (score 4)

45. Assessment Used Formatively to Improve Engagement & Summatively to Show Gains in Lateral Progress
Monitoring of different approaches used during lesson 28 24 20 16 12 8 4
24 score
What motivated engagement?
14 score
6 score
asleep
Different approaches for teaching of a targeted concept/skill
Baseline Lesson 1
Lesson 3
Lesson 6

46. Different Forms of Assessment
In-school formative assessment
In-school summative assessment
Statutory summative assessment
School policy needs to set out the purpose, strengths and limitations of each form of assessment and explain how the information is used to get optimal overall benefit

47. Assessment for Pupils with Complex Needs
In-school summative assessment
Incremental progress towards EHC improvement targets and/or lateral progress endorsed by engagement scales
Mastered concepts and skills
Generalised concepts and skills applied in practical ways
Periodic standardised testing in specific areas such as reading
In-school formative assessment
Dynamic pupil profile information
Routine diagnostic assessments of functional skills and issues in SEND domains and setting of EHC related improvement targets
Engagement for learning baselines with subsequent monitoring of accessed learning across relevant components of the curriculum
Formative Teaching
Whole class observations via use of engagement ladder to monitor pupil engagement, staff performance and curriculum differentiation
Analysis of impact of SEND interventions via engagement scales
Case studies
Statutory Summative Assessment
National Curriculum teacher assessment at end of Key Stage 1 and tests at the end of Key Stage 2 (data submitted to DfE)
Engagement in Cognition & Learning
Annual reports about impact and outcomes (SEND offer and/or EHC plan)

48. Engagement for Learning & Data Mapping
Intervention
Gathered daily to identify where and how a pupil is struggling, what needs to be done to assist the pupil and what the pupil needs to do in response to issues which are presenting barriers to learning and wellbeing
Progress
Gathered systematically to identify how well a pupil is participating in his/her personalised curriculum and what needs to be done to improve engagement for learning and the incremental acquisition of accessed learning
Attainment
Gathered periodically to confirm both lateral and linear progress, moderate evidence of mastery learning and the generalisation of skills and concepts targeted to bring about wider benefits
Pupil Profile Data
Impact in reference to a pupil’s EHC plan
and/or school offer
Progress Data
Engagement and progress within the school’s broad, well balanced and motivating curriculum
Standards Data
Deep learning in cognition in tandem with overall holistic progress
Analysis

49. Research & Partnership Working
Schools need to work collaboratively to research and develop best practice with good schools sharing their expertise and any school in need of support actively creating links with schools that can help

50. Self-Review Those Nagging Doubts
Q1) With 1 being “not well” and 10 being “very well” please give yourself a score which represents how well you usually cope with change;
Q2) Using the same system, score how you are feeling about the proposed Rochford Review recommendations;
Q3) Record the evidence you have that supports why you might be feeling negative, particularly if you don’t believe the reasons, or why you feel the recommendations aren’t fair, or why you feel they won't work;
Q4) If you had to recommend a change in the statutory assessment of pupils with complex SEND then record how you would do it to bring about the same range of benefits anticipated by the Rochford Review recommendations?
“My comments might suggest I am inviting feedback but please do not be fooled”

51. Albert’s Thoughts About The Rochford Review Recommendations
Curriculum
Assessment
Education is not the learning of facts but the training of the mind to think
If you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid
Pedagogy
I never teach my pupils I only provide the conditions in which they can learn

52. Reflect on the Rochford Recommendations
Respond Positively
to improve outcomes for disadvantaged pupils and those with SEND
Richard Aird OBE