Assessment
We have a structured programme of continuous assessment of pupils. Teachers regularly assess pupils throughout the school year through questioning, analysis of work, end of unit tests, check ups and many different ways. These assessments help the school to provide greater challenges to the children who require it and also to put in place extra support whenever a child needs it.
Soon after starting school in August Baseline Assessments were carried out with P1 children. These assessments related to numeracy and literacy. This Baseline Assessment score can be found on P1 reports.
Standardised Assessments are also carried out in East Renfrewshire schools for pupils in P3, P5, P7 and S2. They have an important role to play in providing teachers with concise objective information on a child’s level of development (in numeracy and literacy for P1 children).
We track pupils’ progress at every stage in school. Assessments carried out with P1 children provide a baseline against which the progress of individual pupils can be measured. The results provide
information for planning future teaching and learning. Baseline and Standardised scores can range from 70 to 130. A score of 100 is the average.
These results are used by staff to help plan the next stages in learning and teaching
Assessment information is also used to provide end of year reports to parents and for discussion during our twice-yearly parents meetings.
Please see link below and select ‘HT presentation’ for a PowerPoint presentation with more information.
Scottish National Standardised Assessments (SNSA)
As part of the Scottish Government’s National Improvement Framework, all children in P1, P4 and P7 will complete a set of national standardised assessments (SNSAs). Currently, these assessments are in addition to East Renfrewshire’s standardised assessments at P1, P3, P5, and P7
These assessments will add to the ongoing assessment profile that class teachers are able to build up over the course of a session. They aim to provide an additional source of nationally consistent evidence for teachers to use when assessing children’s progress. As always, teachers will continue to draw on all of the assessment information available to them when considering children’s progress and planning for their next steps in learning.
The SNSAs focus on aspects of reading, writing and numeracy. Children in P1 will undertake 2 assessments (literacy and numeracy) while children in P4 and P7 will undertake 3 (reading, writing and numeracy).
Children do not need to revise or prepare for SNSAs and they will form part of children’s daily routine. Assessments will be completed digitally and will be automatically marked online. Each assessment is designed to last a maximum of 45 minutes, although it is unlikely that children will require this full time. The system is designed so that if a child starts to experience difficulty, the questions will get easier. If a child appears to be doing well, the questions will get more challenging. In this way it is believed that the most accurate picture of a child’s progress can be determined. Children are not expected to undertake more than one assessment on any particular occasion.
The online assessment system provides feedback information which teachers will use, along with a wide range of assessment information, to discuss your child’s progress in learning. This will usually happen through existing channels of communication, such as parent consultation evenings and summative report cards. Education Scotland is also currently working with teachers and parents to develop guidance on the best ways to report on children’s progress.
As the SNSAs should be seen by your child as just another aspect of daily learning, there is no need for parents to prepare their child or practise any specific tasks or activities.
The online assessment system provides feedback information which teachers will use, along with a wide range of assessment information, to discuss your child’s progress in learning. This will usually happen through existing channels of communication, such as parent consultation evenings and summative report cards.
Education Scotland is also currently working with teachers and parents to develop guidance on the best ways to report on
The SNSAs can take place at any point during the course of a school session. Usually the children will undertake the assessments during the summer term (April-May) class teachers and the Leadership Team will judge when best to incorporate them into children’s daily routine.
More information can be found; https://standardisedassessment.gov.scot/parents-and-carers/