Www.journeytoexcellence.org.uk1 OPENING UP ASSESSMENT Learning Together Resource Learning together resources use carefully selected videos of excellent.

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OPENING UP ASSESSMENT

Learning Together Resource

Learning together resources use carefully selected videos of excellent practice

and information from The Journey to Excellence website.

Whilst you watch examples of practitioners and learners, and listen

to the perspective of researchers, you will be encouraged to carry out activities and

put your learning into your practice.

March 2012Version 1.1

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The resource is presented using a slideshow format.

• Slides can be accessed in succession, using arrow keys, through hypertext links or navigation buttons. Hypertext links are live in slideshow format only.

• Glow*, NAR* and SQA* icons link to additional assessment resources and discussion forums.

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Learning Together Resource

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Who is this for?

The pack has relevance for a wide range of partners and professionals working in all sectors and contextswho contribute to the implementation of Curriculum for Excellence.

It is designed to help you reflect on the implications of assessment for your practice.

OPENING UP ASSESSMENT

Learning Together Resource

An asterix* highlights there is additional information in the notes pages of a particular slide.

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ImprovementGuides

VideosActivities

Introduction

OPENING UP ASSESSMENT

Learning Together Resource

The resource is organised in 4 sections. Each can be accessed individually or in succession.

Additional resources can be found after the activities section.

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As you work through the resource be mindful that the principles of assessment are to……

support learning

promote learner engagement ensure appropriate support

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say write do

say / communicate

write

make

do

As you work through the resource be mindful that effective assessment involves a wider range of evidence.

In response to their learning experiences valid, reliable and proportionate

assessment evidence may come from things that learners………

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VIDEOS

The following two slides link to a sample of clips showing effective practice in assessment. These

can be viewed online or downloaded. They can be accessed by clicking the school name on the

slide. Alternatively, enter the school name into the video search engine on The Journey to

Excellence online resource. The clips are also available at iTunes U .

Minishant Primary School Involving learners in creating their own success criteria.

Auchinleck Academy Transitions – sharing standardsin mathematics.

Grange Academy Moderation to improve learning.

Torbain Primary Assessment in action.

Mosshead Primary School Mosshead learning Journeys.

Dundonald Primary Personal planning in literacy, numeracy, health and wellbeing.

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VIDEOS

Balwearie High School Formative assessment as an integral part of Learning at Balwearie.

Raploch Primary School Assessment at Raploch Primary School.

St Modan’s Raising attainment through young people knowing

their strengths and next steps as learners.

Grange AcademyNumeracy across the curriculum.

Auchinleck Academy Learner engagement through interdisciplinary learning.

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Improvement Guides – What is excellence in assessment?

Using assessment to support learning

Assessing progress and achievement

Monitoring, recording and tracking success

Recognising achievement

Profiling success in achieving outcomes of learning

Reporting on success in achieving outcomes

Ensuring quality and confidence in assessment

The following improvement guides provide information on excellence in assessment. They are part of a series

available at the Journey to Excellence online resource. They illustrate the difference between good practice and

excellent practice in assessment. They can be applied in any learning context.

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ActivitiesActivity 1 This activity helps you to compare your own practice in assessment with features of excellence detailed in the improvement guides.

Activity 2.1 This activity is the first of three activities exploring how you might report to parents on a child’s or young person’s progress through a level using the terms developing, consolidating and secure.

Activity 2.2 This activity is the second of three looking at a child’s progress through a level. It asks you to explore your own understanding of the term ‘breadth’‘challenge’ and ‘application’ before listening to a clip which explores the terms in depth.

Activity 2.3 This is the third activity linked to assessing progress through a level. Its purpose is to build on your prior knowledge and explore your own practice in knowing when a child is ‘secure’ at a level.

Activity 3 This activity highlights excellent practice by practitioners through the involvement of children and young people in understandingthemselves as learners. It also looks at pathways through Curriculum for Excellence levels for children and young people who need additional support.

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ActivitiesActivity 4 Effective assessment is reliable, valid and proportionate. It takes accountof a child’s or young person’s learning both in and outwith the classroom. This activity helps you to explore when to assess a child or young person to provide a holistic view of progress.

Activity 5 Curriculum for Excellence aims to develop a child’s or young person’s skills for learning, work and life. This activity helps explore your thinking around assessment across the four contexts for learning. It highlights two schools whose approaches ensure children and young people know their strengths and next steps as learners in a range of settings. Both schools use this information to raise attainment and achievement of their children and young people. Activity 6 Effective assessment approaches are inclusive and accessible

for all children and young people. This activity encourages you to consider the five entitlements of Curriculum for Excellence and fair and

inclusive assessment approaches. Activity 7 These two slides are included for self-directed learning through additional resources and activities available from Education Scotland interactive assessment site, National Assessment Resource (NAR) and SQA. Topics include Recognising Achievement, Profiling and Reporting Progress and Sharing standards and expectations.

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Activity 1Choose one of the assessment improvement guides. How well does your practice in

assessment match the features of excellence.

Activities

List your strengths and areas for development below

Strengths Areas for Development

Discuss with a colleagueApproaches to planning must be coherent around learning, teaching and assessment. Given that, what are the implications for your current learning, teaching and assessment policies and practices?

• Do your assessment processes take account of the capacities, attributes and capabilities of Curriculum for Excellence? • Do you apply the principles of curriculum design to assessment approaches?• Do you come together with other staff and partners to plan learning, teaching and assessment in a coherent way?• How effective is your approach to monitoring and tracking the quality of learning and achievement across IDL, subject learning, ethos and life of the school, and opportunities for personal achievement?

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Activity 2.1Reporting progress through a level

Teachers should report to parents on their child’s achievement in terms of levels as well as using brief qualitative comments to reflect ‘how much’ and ‘how well’ their child has achieved. Assessment approaches should help learners to show their progress through the levels and enable them to demonstrate their achievements in a range of ways which are appropriate to learning.

Secure*Developing*

Consolidating*

The Learner…

NB: These terms are not meant to be applied to individual experiences and outcomes as this may lead to fragmented learning.

How effective is the range of assessment evidence you collect in demonstrating what learners know and understand and can do across all aspects of achievement?

Does your evidence include assessment in a range of contexts and settings?

Activities

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Activity 2.2

To demonstrate that a child or young person’s progress is secure and that they have achieved a level,

they will need opportunities to show that they: have achieved a breadth of learning, they can respond to

the level of challenge, and can apply what they have learned in new and unfamiliar situations.

What does assessing ‘breadth’* of learning, ‘challenge’* in learning and ‘application’* of learning mean to

you? Consider each word below, making a mind map showing your knowledge of these terms.

Breadth Challenge

Application

Watch the video clip. Highlight and add comments to your mindmap. Discuss your mindmap with a colleague.

Hear Frank Crawford discuss breadth,

challenge and application.

Activities

NB: This video is hosted on YouTube.

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Activity 2.3

Read the statement below.Assessing progress and achievement in learning….Assessing progress* across the breadth of learning, in challenging aspects and when applying learning in different and unfamiliar contexts, helps teachers to plan, track progress and summarise achievement in a rounded way and better prepare children and young people for the next stage in learning. In considering this statement, what are the implications for your assessment practice in your context at present? What 3 changes in practice could you make?

1)

2)

3)

Activities

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Activity 3

Watch the videos from St Luke’s High School and Minishant Primary School.

How effectively do you make clear to learners what they are learning, what success looks like and what is expected of them? Do you provide sufficiently high-quality feedback to learners about how much and how well they have learned? Are learners involved in this process?

What strategies do you have to ensure consistent application of standards?

How do you use the flexibility of Curriculum for Excellence to provide opportunities and pathways for all learners including those who need additional support and those who require more choices and more chances to progress?

It is important that more able children and those who make faster progress do not ‘race’ through the levels. How can you plan greater variety of contexts, depth and greater challenge into the experiences and outcomes for these children and young people?

St Luke’s High School Minishant Primary School

Activities

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Activity 4

Assessment takes place as part of on-going learning and teaching, periodically and at transitions. This

provides a holistic view of a child’s or young person’s progress

•List the forms of assessment that you routinely use in your daily work to judge learners’ progress, and enable them to judge their own progress in relation to agreed outcomes and targets; for example, sharing learning outcomes, questioning to check on understanding, self and peer assessment, etc.

•Next to each of the forms of assessment you have listed, write a sentence describing how you use the assessment information that you have gathered. Which forms are most useful in helping you to plan future learning, as well as address immediate learning issues?

•How do you monitor and record an individual’s learning over a period of time, for example over a block or a term, or over one or more school sessions? How do you

use that information?

Taking a close look at individual

progress*

Assessment of key milestones

in learning*

Assessmentduring

learning*

Progress andachievement

Activities

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Activity 5

Watch the St Modan’s video Raising attainment

and achievement through young people knowing

their strengths and next steps as learners and Mosshead PS: Skills for Learning, Skills for Life.

Which of the approaches to assessment in your

establishment are most effective in helping to

provide a picture of a child or young person’s

progress and achievements? In what ways does

assessment help identify a child or young person’s

strengths and next steps in learning across all 4

contexts of learning within the Curriculum?

Activities

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Activity 6 Teachers have a deep understanding of children’s learning and development.  They provide high-quality feedback personalised for each learner. 1. Consider assessment approaches for a particular learner or groups of learners with barriers to learning in your playroom/class/school. 2. Use the grid below to record current practice and key areas for development linked to the entitlements.

Activities

Entitlement  Fair and inclusive assessment approaches.      Current practice

Fair and inclusive assessment approaches.      Areas for development

A broad general education

A coherent curriculum

Senior phase

Positive destinations

Skills for learning, life and work    

Support*

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Recognising achievement, profiling and reporting progress.

As with all aspects of Curriculum for Excellence, the learner should be at the centre of all processes.  Reflection by the learner and dialogue with the learner about their learning is central to practice in recognising achievement, profiling and reporting.

The wide range of information and evidence of progress and achievement collected by schools and other establishments can therefore be used for a variety of purposes.

Recognising achievement, profiling and reporting to parents are closely linked and focused on improving learning and achievement. Education Scotland’s interactive assessment group is located on theNational group area of Glow. It is is designed to support the implementation of the national framework of assessment.

Activity 7

.

Follow the link and see examples of practice, including profiles, uploaded by practitioners On the Education Scotland assessment national glow group.

Activities

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Sharing standards and expectations

The National Assessment Resource (NAR) can support assessment practice. Follow the link and review the many examples of how schools and local authorities have used NAR to support professional development through developing their own materials.

Information about the new qualifications for children, young people, parents and professionals can accessed at the SQA Website.

Activities

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Additional resources

Dylan Wiliam reviews the nature of formative assessment and how teachers can use it to gain better insights into student learning and achievement.

Learn how St Luke’s High school meets the needs of vulnerable young people by offering an integrated and enhanced transition support programme when they are moving from P7 to S1.