Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Assessment Policy
The Westminster School
Drafted - Summer, 2010
10
Assessment Policy
Assessment
design
should
provide
students
with
the
s0mulus
to
learn
in
depth,
to
apply
their
developing
skills
and
knowledge
in
new
situa0ons,
and
challenge
and
change
their
ways
of
thinking
and
doing.
Student
engagement
is
enhanced
by
including
opportuni0es
for
students
to: nego0ate
and
have
choices
in
at
least
some
of
their
assessment
tasks with
some
guidance,
assess
their
own
performance
standards specify
the
nature
and
focus
of
feedback
that
they
require
to
improve
and
enhance
their
performance act
on
the
feedback
provided
by
peers,
experts
and
teachers
to
enhance
their
learning
and
their
performance impact
posi0vely
on
student
learning Assessment
tasks
should
be
diverse Assessment
prac0ces
should
be
inclusive
and
support
principles
of
equality,
catering
for
both
individual
and
group
diversity.
It
should
be
recognised
that
all
assessment
models
have
limita0ons
and
a
capacity
to
disadvantage
to
certain
students.
Every
eort
should
be
made
to
minimise
such
disadvantage
by
using
a
variety
of
assessment
techniques.
The
language
of
assessment
in
The
Westminster
School
must
be
used
to
avoid
gender,
racial,
cultural
or
other
language
bias. Assessment
should
be
used
for
both
forma5ve
and
summa5ve
purposes Forma0ve
assessment
helps
students
and
sta
to
iden0fy
strengths,
weaknesses,
and
ways
to
improve
and
enhance
learning
aFainment.
Summa0ve
assessment
provides
informa0on
to
judge
the
extent
to
which
a
student
has
achieved
outcomes
relevant
to
the
quali0es
in
a
course
or
program.
In
short,
we
assess
to
dene
each
child's
ability
in
terms
of
what
the
child
knows,
understands
and
can
apply
so
as
to
plan: To
reveal
children's
strengths
and
weaknesses.
To
ensure
early
iden0ca0on
of
children
with
par0cular
learning
needs. To
inform
future
planning
and
target
seJng. to
ensure
con0nuity
and
progression
in
our
work
with
the
children.
To
communicate
accurate
informa0on
about
the
child
that
is
useful
to
teachers,
pupils,
parents,
and
other
educa0onal
agencies.
To
comply
with
GEMS
requirements. Good
assessment
requires
clear
ar5cula5on
of
purpose,
requirements,
standards
and
criteria Assessment
works
best
when
students
have
a
clear
understanding
of
assessment
expecta0ons.
Assessment
criteria
in
par0cular
needs
to
be
understandable
and
explicit
so
that
students
know
what
is
expected
of
them
for
each
assessment
task. Good
assessment
prac5ce
allows
students
to
receive
5mely
feedback
on
their
learning
Assessment Policy - page 3
High
quality
feedback
is
clear
and
construc0ve,
and
enables
students
to
make
sensible
judgements
about
modifying
aspects
of
their
academic
performance
in
order
to
meet
the
objec0ves
of
a
course.
Such
feedback
should
enable
students
to
understand
their
level
of
development
of
the
required
skills,
their
mastery
of
the
understandings
embedded
in
the
assessment
ac0vity,
and
how
their
performance
in
each
domain
could
be
improved
in
subsequent
learning
ac0vi0es.
Thus
feedback
at
The
Westminster
School
can
include: model
answers
to
ques0ons
verbal
comments
from
teaching
sta,
both
individually
and
to
the
whole
class
verbal
comments
on
presenta0ons
and
par0cipa0on
in
class
discussions
preliminary
assessment
task
advice
face-to-face
assessment
task
discussion,
individually,
and
in
groups wriFen
feedback
comments
regarding
draOs
and
assessment
tasks Where
possible,
some
expecta0on
should
be
built
into
the
assessment
design
and
grading
process
such
that
students
acknowledge
and
act
on
the
feedback
provided.
Where
possible,
some
expecta0on
should
be
built
into
the
assessment
design
and
grading
process
such
that
students
acknowledge
and
act
on
the
feedback
provided.
(Please
see
Sta
Handbook
for
more
specic
guidance
on
marking) Assessment
methods
should
be
valid,
reliable
and
consistent Every
eort
should
be
made
to
ensure
that
assessment
methods
are
valid
and
reliable,
recognising
that
professional
judgement
is
a
signicant
and
reasonable
element
in
indicators
of
achievement.
However,
it
is
also
reasonable
that
such
judgement
is
regularly
subjected
to
peer
review
and
discussion.
Modera0on
(including
external
modera0on
where
appropriate)
of
both
the
seJng
and
marking
of
assessment
tasks
should
therefore
be
established
to
improve
the
validity
and
reliability
of
assessment
methods.
Program
teams
will
develop
and
implement
appropriate
modera0on
to
ensure
inter-assessor
and
intra-
assessor
consistency
in
judgments
made
about
student
achievement
and
the
quality
of
feedback
given
in
and
across
courses. Good
assessment
prac5ces
should
promote
ethical
academic
conduct Ethical
academic
conduct
is
both
a
sta
and
student
responsibility.
Good
assessment
design
can
both
educate
students
about
appropriate
academic
conduct
and
minimise
academic
misconduct. The
Westminster
Schools
Strategies
for
Assessment The
school
uses
a
range
of
assessment
techniques
to
gauge
the
extent
of
students
learning.
These
include: Observa0on
-
watching
the
children
on
task.
Ques0oning/discussion
with
the
children.
Photographing/videoing/audio
taping
work
in
progress.
Examining
and
evalua0ng
children's
wriFen
work.
Marking
children's
work,
according
to
the
marking
policy
of
The
Westminster
School.
Teacher
devised
tests
for
areas
such
as
spelling,
tables.
Baseline
assessment
when
children
enter
the
Founda0on
Stage.
At
end
of
Nursery
and
Recep0on
Baselines
using
the
Early
Years
Prole.
Assessment Policy - page 4
Assessment
is
built
into
planning
and
takes
place
both
during
each
topic/half
term's
work
and
at
the
end
of
a
topic.
Weekly
plans
show
assessment
focus
with
an
asterisk
and
any
relevant
comments
on
the
reverse,
or
added
to
individual
records. Assessment
in
Arabic
As
well
as
the
weekly
con0nuous
assessments
of
children
in
measuring
their
progress
in
Arabic,
the
school
is
about
to
introduce
the
GEMS
Arabic
Language
Framework
that
is
being
used
in
all
GEMS
schools.
This
is
a
set
framework
from
Grades
1
-
9
where
children
are
assessed
in
their
use
of
Arabic
and
graded
against
par0cular
eciency
levels.
For
example,
Emergent
-
E1
through
to
Advanced
-
A2.
Further
details
may
be
found
in
the
GEMS
document,
GEMS
Arabic
Language
Framework.
The
Yearly
Overview Date
September
Section
Foundation Stage Primary
Action
Commence Early Years Prole with early baseline assessment of the children on entry to the school. Teachers become au fait with students previous National Curriculum assessments / plan work accordingly. Year 6 - 7 Learning Prole started. Some students undertake re-site of internal examinations as per Ministry requirements. All subject teachers become au fait with students previous National Curriculum assessments / teachers internal examination evaluations from Summer exams and plan work accordingly. Secondary teachers carefully evaluate predictions for ICGSE. Learning Proles started for Years 8, 9, 10 and 11. Teachers become aware of students ICGSE results. Sixth Form Learning Prole started. Weekly tests in various subjects start. First meeting with parents to discuss progress. Early Years Proles start to be completed given childrens progress. Internal end - of - term examinations. Parents Meeting. National Curriculum sheet rst term completed Internal end - of - term examinations. Teachers complete evaluation sheet of how well pupils / classes performed. Feedback to Head of Section. National Curriculum sheet completed for mid-year? Learning Proles for rst term completed. Parents Meeting Students complete Learning Proles ready for Second Term Mock Examinations / Evaluations carefully shared with students. Learning Proles completed for the nal push.
Secondary
Sixth Form October December Primary / Secondary Foundation Stage Primary Secondary
January March
May
Early Years Proles completed / shared with childrens next form teacher End of term examinations / National Curriculum Level sheets completed / Year 6 - 7 Learning Prole commenced. Teachers carefully share information with students next form teacher. Board Examinations for Years 10, 11, 12 and 13 Internal examinations for Years 7.8.9. And 10. Teachers and subject heads make careful evaluations of results. Results of internal end - of - term examinations collated, shared and agreed with the Ministry of Education Open House for Parents where academic information shared. All Learning Proles completed with pupils own evaluations of their Academic Year duly recorded. Subject Heads of Departments collate ICGSE predictions and share with Head of Secondary School. Results of Board Examinations collated / shared with Corporate Ofce / evaluated internally by Heads of Department and matched with earlier predictions. Each Head of Department to disseminate this information in terms of successes and further areas of development.
August
Secondary
At The Westminster School, Nursery and Recep9on will complete records based on Desirable Outcomes. If some children complete the Desirable Outcomes record in Recep9on, then a Na9onal Curriculum record may be started. From Year 1 onwards, individual class record sheets in terms of the levels that each child reaches are completed twice a year - at the end of the Winter break and at the end of the academic year. These are kept for the core subjects (including IT). They are passed to the childs next teacher before the end of the academic year so that the childs new teacher has a baseline from which to commence their daily planning. Teachers may well keep their own informal notes to assist lling in school records and in sharing informa9on with parents.
Learning
Proles
During
the
Academic
Year
2009/10,
the
a
Learning
Prole
was
designed
and
devised
for
Sixth
Form
students.
The
main
emphasis
of
this
was
to
give
the
students
more
opportuni9es,
with
assistance
from
their
class
teachers,
to
start
evalua9ng
their
own
learning
in
terms
of
their
successes
and
what
the
next
steps
may
be
to
accelerate
their
learning. These
proles
were
then
adapted
to
be
used
in
Years
6/7
(joint),
8,
9,
10
and
11
from
the
start
of
the
Academic
Year
2010
/
11.
As
with
the
Sixth
Form,
the
principles
behind
these
proles
are
to
enable
the
students
to
set
their
targets
for
improvement,
evaluate
where
they
have
succeeded
and
what
they
need
to
do
next,
monitor
their
aYendance,
and,
at
the
end
of
the
year,
explore
what
they
have
done
well
and
where
they
s9ll
need
to
improve.
The
Learning
Prole
gives
scope
for
the
students
to
explore
no9ons
of
the
GEMS
Core
Values,
think
about
the
Arab
culture
and
the
UAE
and
to
work
in
teams
in
sharing
these
views.
Assessment Policy - page 6
Further aims in using the prole will be to engage with Parents on the outcomes within the Prole, give them scope to make a contribu9on and to extend its use, perhaps in simpler terms, with the students in the Primary Department.
Modera5on
Regular
modera9on
takes
place
each
term.
Cross
phase
groups
analyse
children's
work
against
Na9onal
Curriculum
level
descriptors
and
Desirable
Outcomes. During
the
Summer
term,
teachers
are
involved
in
formal
Teacher
assessments,
sta
throughout
the
school
par9cipate
in
the
modera9on
of
work,
to
assist
sta
to
make
nal
judgements.
Repor5ng
to
parents
Parents
are
invited
to
aYend
a
parents'
evening
each
term
at
which
sta
discuss
progress
and
targets
for
their
child.
In
the
Summer
term,
parents
receive
a
report
on
their
child's
progress
for
the
academic
year. Parents
receive
their
child's
Na9onal
Curriculum
assessments,
giving
both
Teacher
Assessments
and
how
well
the
students
have
performed
in
terms
of
Ministerial
expecta9ons
(Arabic,
for
example).
Parents
are
given
the
opportunity
to
discuss
the
contents
of
the
report
in
the
Summer
term
Open
House.
Curriculum Coordinator It is the responsibility of Curriculum Coordinator (Mrs Ri9ka Anand) to review monitor and evaluate all aspects of the Assessment Policy within the context of whole School development planning and self evalua9on Heads of Department It is the responsibility of Heads of Department to apply and embed the principles of the School Assessment Policy within their own departmental prac9ce. They should formulate and maintain a departmental policy on Assessment which may be the whole School policy. Good prac9ce in terms of departments can be clearly iden9ed through:
consistent
departmental
planning assessment
tasks
fully
integrated
with
Schemes
of
Work
shared
learning
outcomes
standardized
marking
construc0ve
feedback
assessment
data
used
to
inform
teaching
and
learning
assessment
data
regularly
and
consistently
recorded
assessment
data
used
for
regular
repor0ng
regular
self
assessment
by
pupils
and
sta
liaison
with
Head
of
Year/Subject
teacher
re
individual
pupil
performance
as
required liaison
with
External
and
Internal
School
Examina0on
ocers
re
entries
for
all
examina0ons
eec0ve
organisa0on
re
seJng/marking
internal
examina0ons,
monitoring
and
evalua0on
of
all
departmental
assessment
prac0ce
and
outcomes
Subject
Teachers It
is
the
responsibility
of
Subject
Teachers
to:
implement
departmental/whole
School
policies
on
Assessment,
evalua0ng
their
implementa0on mark
in
accordance
with
departmental
policy
in
a
posi0ve,
accurate,
meaningful
and
diagnos0c
style compile
and
maintain
individual
pupil
records report
to
pupils,
parents
and
sta
on
individual
and
group
progress(October/January/June)
liaise
with
Head
of
Department
/
Year
Teacher
re
individual
pupil
support
as
required
Year
Teachers It
is
the
responsibility
of
Year
Teachers
to:
liaise
with
Heads
of
Department/Senior
sta/Subject
teachers
concerning
individual
pupil
progress report
to
parents
as
required
re
individual
pupil
progress
produce
Overview
statements
for
Reports
in
January
and
June
conduct
with
Senior
sta
formal
overview
of
pupil
performance
twice
yearly
aOer
internal
examina0ons
Assessment Policy - page 8
Examina>ons Manager It is the responsibility of the External Examina9ons Manager(Ms Minie Mathew) to liaise with appropriate sta/pupils/parents/exam boards regarding all aspects of external assessment. This role has par9cular responsibility for AS/A Level examina9ons. Deputy Examina>ons Manager It is the responsibility of the Assistant to liaise with appropriate sta/pupils/parents/exam boards regarding IGCSE/KS3 examina9ons. Internal School Examina>ons Ocer in charge of the Sec>on Level - has responsibility for the organisa9on and invigila9on of all internal School examina9ons. Pupils and Parents Pupils and parents may be asked to contribute to the evalua9on of assessment prac9ce at The Westminster School.
(DraLed / Summer Term, 2010) To be reviewed, Summer Term 2011 in light of experience of using the newly devised Learning Proles.
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The Westminster School, Dubai. Appendix 2 - Predicted Grade Sheet / Secondary Department Year __________ School Year ______________
Subject
A*
Overall - A* - C
English Maths Biology Chemistry Physics Urdu French Arabic First Arabic Foreign C / Studies ICT Economics Accounting Business Stud Env. Man Travel & Tourism English / First
Assessment Policy - page 10
Appendix Three - Example of Sheet from Report Card / Primary Academic Teacher Comment Term 1 Grade Arabic T1 T2 Term 2 Grade
National Curriculum Level _______ Science T1 T2 National Curriculum Level _______ ICT T1 T2
Academic grades A + Excellent 90 - 100 C - Satisfactory 50 - 69 A - Very Good 80 - 89 D - Greater effort needed 40 - 49 B - Good 70 - 79 E - unable to cope with the standard 39 & below
Appendix Four - Teacher Evaluation Sheet - All Year Groups Teacher: Subject: Learning Bay ________ / B / G What do the weekly test papers indicate that the students have not grasped: Weekly Test Paper One
What do the weekly test papers indicate that the students have grasped: Weekly Test Paper One
What do the end of term examinations indicate that the students have grasped:
What do the end of term examinations indicate that the students have not grasped:
Overall, what does the information from the term tell me about how successful my teaching has been?
Overall, what the test papers tell me about individual pupils including those with Special Educational Needs and particular talents who have done really well / below expectations: Name of Pupil(s):
Special Needs
Medi cal
Beha viour
HA
MA
LA
Nature of the talent or particular academic gift and brief description of the provision being made in the school / learning bay
Emirati