Assessment at St. John Bosco Primary School

Assessment is a way of supporting learning. It helps teachers, learners, parents and others to understand the depth and breadth of learning undertaken.

Assessment takes many different forms. These support the tracking of progress, planning next steps, reporting and involving parents, children and young people in their learning. Assessments can be categorised as formative or summative. Both formative and summative assessments are used in schools.

Formative assessment at SJB includes the use of whiteboards, show-me cards/boards, thumbs up/down, exit passes, traffic light systems, comment only marking, open-ended questioning, use of ICT e.g. JamBoard, random name selector, peer/self-assessment and MUCH MORE!

“Formative assessment describes all those processes by which teachers and learners use information about student achievement to make adjustments to the students learning that improve their achievement.”                                                             (Dylan Wiliam)

Summative assessment is an evaluation that takes place after a period of learning, typically at the end of a unit or term. Its primary purpose is to measure pupils’ overall understanding, skills and knowledge on a specific topic/subject or a Curriculum for Excellence level.

Summative assessment at SJB includes Renfrewshire end of topic assessments (Maths and Numeracy), assessment of taught spelling words, mental maths assessments and ‘cold pieces’.

‘Cold piece’ is a term used to describe a situation where a student is given a task without any prior preparation or practice. At SJB, children complete a ‘cold piece’ of writing every term.

Standardised assessments measure performance relative to all other pupils taking the same assessment. They ensure consistency of assessment across the school. Standardised assessments give clear areas of strength and also show where a child may need additional support. Standardised assessments are used at the end of a Curriculum for Excellence level and are also used diagnostically. Diagnostic results allow staff to tailor interventions to meet the needs of individual pupils.

Standardised assessment at SJB:

• National Standardised Assessments for Scotland (P1, P4 and P7)
• Single Word Spelling Test (SWST) (P2-P7)
• Middle Infant Screening Test (MIST) (P2)
• York Assessment of Reading for Comprehension (YARC) (diagnostic)
• Phonological Assessment Battery (PhAB) (diagnostic)

Assessment is an integral part of the learning cycle and allows staff to promote learner engagement, support and challenge our pupils and accurately report to families. If you have any questions about assessment at SJB, please contact a member of staff.