Creative Teaching & Learning

Assessment in the new curriculum

The next few years will see some dramatic changes to the way both primary and secondary schools assess and track pupil progress – and losing levels is just the beginning. Sue Hackman considers life without levels, from testing of four-year-olds to the new GCSE grading system and everything in between.

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      string(5780) "Volume6.1nCreativeTeaching&Learning71e-learningConnectedcomputingDiscover the surprising creativity of computing with this selection of websitesand online resources to support the planning, teaching and assessment of thenew curriculum.Now in its second year, the new computing curriculum isno doubt being enjoyed by many teachers and childrenacross the country who are just beginning to realise itsamazing potential for creativity and discovery. It wasrecently revealed, however, that just over a third of schoolsspent absolutely nothing on training staff to deliver the newcurriculum this past year, leaving many teachers unsure of theirability to understand, let alone convey to pupils, key computingconcepts such as algorithms, abstraction, decomposition and more.It is an especially difficult situation for primary teachers, who, oftenotherwise confident in their ability to teach, did not experiencethe subject in their own school days and were not taught about itduring their teacher training.As a result, many teachers are taking their professionaldevelopment into their own hands and turning to their colleaguesonline. There is an endless supply of websites aimed at helpingteachers deliver the new computing curriculum with confidence,whether those teachers are entirely new to the subject or simplylooking for innovative ideas to spice things up. In this article, wepresent the best of these resources.The majority are aimed at primary teachers, since they are lesslikely to be subject specialists. But don’t write these resources off justyet, secondary teachers. Since the subject is so new, pupils in KeyStages 3 and 4 have a lot of catching up to do; teachers of secondarycomputing may therefore find the activities, lesson plans and otherresources flagged up for use with primary pupils useful in ensuringolder students have grasped the basics.The new computing curriculum is made up of three core strands:computer science, digital literacy and information technology. Theemphasis, however, is not on the technology itself, but the thinkingthat goes along with it; some aspects of the curriculum don’t requireany sort of technology to teach. Keeping this mind, we have selecteda wide range of websites and tools to feature in the following pages– from an ‘unplugged’ approach to teaching algorithms and datacompression, to an online, gamified course exploring the rightsand responsibilities of being a digital citizen. Our hope is that allteachers, whether primary or secondary, beginner or specialist, willfind something useful to take away and try in their own classrooms.http://www.teachingtimes.com/news/coding-in-schools.htme-learning72Volume6.1nCreativeTeaching&LearningAn offshoot of the grass roots, school-led computingcommunity, Computing At School, QuickStart Computingaims to provide teachers with the necessary resources torun a computing CPD course for their colleagues. There’s noreason a teacher can’t use the toolkit independently, however,as part of their own personal development.There are two toolkits – one for primary and one forsecondary. They’re both similar in structure, separated intoa number of sections featuring downloadable handbooks,resources and external links. A particularly strong feature ofthis site is its array of videos, presenting concepts and ideasin ways that are easy and interesting to listen to.In terms of content, the two toolkits are similar also –although the primary toolkit includes more informationon curriculum content than the secondary toolkit does,featuring a breakdown of the new curriculum, overviewsof key computing concepts, a glossary of useful terms andpre-prepared classroom activities. The predominant focusof both toolkits, however, lies firmly on the how of planning,teaching and assessment, rather than the what. In the primaryarea, for example, you will find a range of suggested teachingapproaches, ideas for differentiating for pupils with variousneeds, and guidance on collecting evidence of learning.In the secondary section, meanwhile, you will find a skillsand knowledge audit tool to identify your own areas ofweakness, templates to help you plan and refine your lesson,and advice on choosing the best programming languagefor your pupils. Both toolkits also feature guidance fromexternal organisations such as Ofsted, the Department forEducation and NAHT on assessing progress and attainmentin computing – particularly interesting since all schools willnow be doing this differently.Overall, QuickStart Computing is a wonderful resource for allteachers, whether primary or secondary, and especially thosewho still do not feel confident teaching the new curriculum.More experienced teachers will benefit too, however, as thereare plenty of practical resources and ideas to experiment within their own teaching.The BBC Schools Computing is a vibrant amalgamation ofresources and information for teachers and children of allages. The bulk of its content comes from the new ‘LearnerGuides’ from BBC Bitesize. These are designed to be used bypupils directly, but will also be useful for teachers wishing tostrengthen their own understanding of various computingconcepts. The guides are categorised according to key stage,then topic. Those aimed at primary-age pupils use child-friendly language, illustrations, videos and even games toanswer a series of simple computing questions such as ‘what isan algorithm?’ or ‘What is a computer bug?’. The secondary andGCSE guides are similar, but, as expected, a little more grownup; they provide more depth on each topic and finish"
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Creative Teaching & Learning

Connected computing

3 Dec 2015

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      string(2030) "The end of levels is only the beginning. The whole assessment and accountability system is changing, and school leaders at every level need to be prepared. Sue Hackman provides an overview, from testing of four year olds to the new GCSE grading system and everything in between.The new curriculum shifts us from a curriculum focused largely on processes and skills to one based on hard-edged knowledge. Where in the past we have prioritised the tracking of an individual’s progress, the new curriculum pushes us to focus on the acquisition of each year’s prescribed topics. You can already see examples of this new, crisper approach in two places – the phonics check in Year 1 and the spelling, punctuation and grammar (SPAG) test in Year 6. Soon you will be able to see it in the same test for Year 2, and possibly more in the revised SATs from 2016. They are absolute tests of knowledge, each question with an indisputable correct answer. In the past, we synthesised pupils’ strengths and weaknesses to arrive at a fair ‘best-fit’ judgement – in future, we will tot up the sum of their knowledge. In writing, for example – the most notorious of assessment challenges – we juggled the complexities of composition, grammar, spelling and expression to arrive at a single mark, whereas now we have the absolute measure of whether, for example, they can underline the adverb in someone else’s sentence. This approach is easier and technically more ‘reliable’, but it is also more atomised and less informative about how well pupils use their knowledge.The bar is risingAccountability will continue to depend largely on English and maths results, except at the end of secondary school, where an average point score will be used across eight subjects (ten if you acknowledge the double-weighting of English and maths).Primary schools should note that the new system will…Click here to continue reading this article"
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Leadership

Assessment in the new curriculum: Vital signs ...and learning to live without levels

26 Jun 2014

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      string(4661) "of work e.g. half-term themes. For each theme, set downthe curriculum objectives you intend to secure in the teaching, and at the end, assesswhether the pupils achieved them or not. Over the key stage, make sure that you coverall the objectives.The method was well-liked by teachers because it made sense to them to check iftheir teaching had worked. The downside is that it is not a good method for tracking,because it only tells you how the pupils did on those particular objectives in thatparticular unit. It does not track overall progress like the current system.Option 6: Buy a schemePublishers and test agencies will soon beat their way to your door to sell their products.29Vol 6.1School Leadership Todaywww.teachingtimes.comLeadershipSkillsAssessmentKnowledge trails1) Data, data everywhere… but what does it mean? – Ann O’Hara explains how schools caneffectively use data to evaluate and build on pupil progress in their current context, while alsopreparing staff for future expectations of assessment.library.teachingtimes.com/articles/data-data-everywhere-but-what-does-it-mean.htm2) Literacy across the curriculum: Making it happen – With the increased emphasis on stronglanguage skills at GCSE, it’s vital all departments get involved in developing them. MarcellaMcCarthy shares some practical strategies.library.teachingtimes.com/articles/literacyacrossthecurriculumIt will cost you, of course, but it will save a lot of effort. Big publishers have theresources to pre-test and calibrate their products so you can have confidence in theirestimates of pupil attainment. Beware, though – ready-made products tend to beone-off tests rather than routine tracking, and if they apply less than once a term, theywon’t give you enough information to act swiftly. Some publishers will be offeringonline tracking systems, mini-tests and online assessments, and these might be worththe investment.Option 7 (for KS3): Use the new GCSE gradesThis wouldn’t be a bad idea in Year 9 if you have annexed that to KS4. The advantageis that you would have a ready-made, nationally calibrated metric, and a strong senseof working towards the GCSE gold standard. The disadvantage is that even the mostable students would start at F and G (soon to be 2 and 1), and that may lower moraleamong some, and spark the competitive gene in others.A need for agreementIf schools develop their own ladders or lists, I think we should all agree to call thenew expectations by their year number. So, for example, a 7b would be an averageperformance against expectations for a Year 7 pupil studying the Year 7 objectives.A 7a would be a strong performance against the Year 7 objectives. It would be easyto remember, and no pupil would appear to go down the levels. If we all adoptedthe same nomenclature, then even if we use different criteria, we will have a generalsense of where the child is in relation to expectations.That still leaves a decision about whether we are grading promise (‘You’re ontrack to be a 7a this year’) or current attainment (‘At this point in time, you havereached 7c’), and how we describe Year 7 pupils who have not yet conquered all theYear 6 objectives. I think it is expedient to describe what the child actually knows, soeveryone starts Year 7 at ground zero and works their way up through 7c, 7b and then7a.In a nutshell…Use the last few months of the old regime to:Agree a new in-school tracking system, preferably in common with your partnerschools.Map the new ‘borderliners’ created by the hike in standards, especially in thecohort destined to be first to sit the new tests and exams.Revisit the essay skills and language needs of your pupils, especially in secondary.Keep an eye on the development of progress measures, as they will determinewhere you lie in relation to the floor.Sue Hackman is an education trainer, consultant and writer. She started workinglife as an English teacher, but has since taught at every key stage, and worked asa local authority adviser and inspector.She was Chief Adviser on School Standards at the Department for Educationfrom 2006 to 2013.■■■■Imaginative Minds willbe publishing a set ofassessment ladders forEnglish, mathematics andscience for Key Stages 1-3in early autumn. These canbe used to track pupilsusing a simple, familiarformat.We expect to add othersubjects later in the year– watch this space formore information.Coming soon!http://library.teachingtimes.com/articles/data-data-everywhere-but-what-does-it-mean.htmhttp://library.teachingtimes.com/articles/literacyacrossthecurriculum"
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Leadership

Assessment in the new curriculum: Vital signs ...and learning to live without levels

27 Jun 2014

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      string(3327) "curriculum.library.teachingtimes.com/articles/goodbye-levels-hello-climbing-frames2. Putting pupils at the heart of assessment – The UK’s leading formative assessment expert,Shirley Clarke, looks at the top ways schools are using their new-found freedom from levels to makeassessment count for every child.library.teachingtimes.com/articles/assessment-pupils-at-the-heartBuilding on solid foundationsAs Roy Blatchford has so succinctly put it, great schools ‘excel at what they do in aconsistent manner…their achievements do not happen by chance but throughhighly reflective, carefully planned strategies’11. As schools strive to secure or sustain‘robust assessment systems’, I would encourage leaders to take time to audit currentpractices, build on identified strengths and uphold a commitment to critically reflectiveenquiry and development. Such an approach ensures that changes implemented aresupportive of a culture of ambition and high aspirations in practice, tailored to theneeds of the school and its pupils, and incisively informed.The essential ingredients are no secret, but it is this approach which enables strongleaders to skilfully combine and adjust them to secure success.Ann O’Hara is an independent education adviser, leadership coach and writerworking with schools, LAs, and national organisations. She has spent over 30 yearsworking at many levels in education including headteacher, Ofsted inspector,School Improvement Partner, senior local authority manager and national adviser.The audit tools shared here are drawn from Ann’s Learning and AssessmentPathways, a change management toolkit to assist primary schools in auditing,reviewing and refining whole-school assessment practices. For more information,visit: teachingtimesbookshop.co.uk/product/learning-assessment-pathways-laps.https://www.gov.uk/government/news/primary-schools-continue-to-forge-ahead-says-ofstedhttps://www.gov.uk/government/news/primary-schools-continue-to-forge-ahead-says-ofstedhttp://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-31087137http://www.tlrp.org/pub/documents/assessment.pdfhttp://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/4156941.pdfhttps://www.gov.uk/government/publications/note-for-inspectors-use-of-assessment-information-during-inspections-in-201415https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/note-for-inspectors-use-of-assessment-information-during-inspections-in-201415http://dera.ioe.ac.uk/6967/1/download%3Fid%3D17387%26filename%3Dseven-claims-about-successful-school-leadership.pdfhttp://dera.ioe.ac.uk/6967/1/download%3Fid%3D17387%26filename%3Dseven-claims-about-successful-school-leadership.pdfhttp://www.almaharris.co.uk/files/10strongclaims.pdfhttp://www.almaharris.co.uk/files/10strongclaims.pdfhttps://www.gov.uk/government/publications/school-inspection-handbookhttps://www.gov.uk/government/publications/school-inspection-handbookhttp://www.oecd.org/unitedkingdom/TALIS-2013-country-note-England.pdfhttp://www.oecd.org/unitedkingdom/TALIS-2013-country-note-England.pdfhttp://library.teachingtimes.com/articles/goodbye-levels-hello-climbing-frameshttp://library.teachingtimes.com/articles/assessment-pupils-at-the-hearthttp://teachingtimesbookshop.co.uk/product/learning-assessment-pathways-laps"
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Leadership

Securing robust assessment under the new curriculum

11 May 2015