Assessment
Assessment at Norbury Manor Primary School
Our Approach to Assessment
At Norbury Manor Primary School, assessment is an integral part of teaching and learning. It helps us understand what pupils know, understand and can apply independently, identify what they need to learn next and ensure that every child receives the right level of support and challenge.
We use assessment to:
- identify pupils’ strengths and gaps in their knowledge and skills;
- identify appropriate next steps in learning;
- plan teaching that responds to pupils’ needs;
- identify pupils who may require additional support or intervention;
- identify pupils who are ready for greater challenge and opportunities to deepen their learning;
- monitor the attainment and progress of individual pupils and groups;
- evaluate the effectiveness of teaching and interventions;
- set appropriate and ambitious targets;
- provide parents and carers with clear information about their child’s attainment and progress; and
- support school leaders and governors in evaluating standards and planning future school improvement.
How Do We Assess Children?
We use three main forms of assessment:
Day-to-Day Formative Assessment
Formative assessment happens continually as part of teaching and learning.
Teachers gather information about pupils’ understanding through their work, responses to questions, classroom discussions, observations, practical activities and other opportunities to demonstrate their learning.
This allows teachers to identify:
- what pupils already know and can do;
- misconceptions or gaps in learning;
- whether pupils are ready to move on;
- whether teaching needs to be adapted;
- which pupils require additional support; and
- which pupils need further challenge.
Teachers use this information to plan pupils’ next steps and adapt future teaching.
Summative Assessment
Summative assessments provide a snapshot of attainment at particular points during the year.
These assessments help teachers and leaders identify pupils’ attainment and progress, recognise strengths and areas requiring further development and evaluate the performance of individuals, groups and cohorts.
At Norbury Manor, formal assessment points take place throughout the academic year. Teachers enter assessment information into Bromcom, our school assessment and management system.
Assessment information is considered alongside teachers’ knowledge of the pupil. No important judgement about a child's learning is based on one test alone.
Our assessment policy requires teachers to use professional judgement and recognise that every child is different when reaching their assessment decisions.
Statutory National Assessments
At different stages of primary education, pupils also participate in statutory national assessments. These include:
- the Reception Baseline Assessment;
- the Early Years Foundation Stage Profile;
- the Year 1 Phonics Screening Check;
- the Year 4 Multiplication Tables Check; and
- the Year 6 Key Stage 2 National Curriculum Tests (SATs) and statutory teacher assessments.
These statutory assessments sit alongside, rather than replace, the much wider range of assessment information teachers gather throughout the year.
Our Mild, Spicy and Hot Assessment System
Norbury Manor has developed a bespoke assessment system within Bromcom.
In Years 1 to 6, curriculum expectations are organised into year-group bands. Within each band, learning is divided into three stages:
| Stage | What it means |
|---|---|
| Mild – Working Towards (WTS) |
The pupil is developing the knowledge and skills required for their year group and is working towards age-related expectations. |
| Spicy – Age-Related Expectations (ARE) |
The pupil is working within the expected curriculum for their year group and can increasingly apply their learning independently. |
| Hot – Greater Depth (GD) |
The pupil demonstrates a deeper understanding and can independently apply their knowledge and skills in increasingly challenging and unfamiliar contexts. |
Each subject has its own assessment statements for Mild, Spicy and Hot. These statements are linked to the curriculum that pupils are being taught.
Emerging, Developing, Secure and Mastered
To help us identify smaller steps of progress, each Mild, Spicy and Hot stage is divided further into:
Emerging → Developing → Secure → Mastered
These describe how securely and independently pupils can demonstrate their learning.
| Step | What this means |
|---|---|
| Emerging |
The pupil can demonstrate aspects of the learning with adult direction or support. |
| Developing |
The pupil is increasingly independent and can demonstrate much of the learning successfully. |
| Secure |
The pupil can demonstrate their learning successfully and independently in a range of contexts. |
| Mastered |
The pupil can independently demonstrate and apply their learning to a high standard across a variety of contexts. |
How Teachers Reach an Assessment Judgement
Assessment is based on a range of evidence.
Teachers consider what they see during everyday teaching alongside pupils’ work, discussions, observations, curriculum assessments and, where appropriate, test outcomes.
Teachers continually assess pupils against our curriculum statements and review this information at formal assessment points.
Our assessment system supports professional judgement. A child may demonstrate some learning from a higher stage while still securing particular aspects of an earlier stage. Teachers therefore consider the overall picture of the child’s learning rather than relying solely on a numerical calculation.
Going Deeper – Challenging Higher Attaining Pupils
Being successful does not simply mean moving onto work from the next year group.
Where pupils have securely understood the curriculum for their age, we provide opportunities for them to go deeper and wider.
This can include:
- applying knowledge and skills to extended problem-solving;
- using learning in new and unfamiliar situations;
- explaining and justifying their thinking;
- making connections between different areas of learning;
- completing extended projects;
- conducting independent research and enquiry; and
- applying their learning for different purposes and audiences.
We want pupils to develop a deep and secure understanding of important concepts rather than racing through curriculum content.
Our assessment policy describes progress as being more like a “climbing frame than a ladder”: sometimes pupils need to move more widely through their learning to develop greater depth and understanding rather than simply moving upwards to the next year's curriculum.
Assessment Throughout the Year
Formal assessment information is reviewed at key points throughout the academic year.
Teachers use both formative assessment and more formal assessments to build a picture of pupils' attainment.
Our assessment programme includes, where appropriate:
- ongoing assessment against curriculum statements;
- spelling assessment;
- writing assessment;
- mathematics and arithmetic assessment;
- reading assessment;
- grammar, punctuation, spelling and vocabulary assessment;
- phonics assessment;
- multiplication assessment;
- science assessment;
- assessment in foundation subjects; and
- statutory national assessments.
The exact type of assessment used depends on the pupil's age and the subject being assessed.
Assessment in Foundation Subjects
Assessment is not limited to English and mathematics.
Teachers assess pupils' knowledge, understanding and skills across the wider curriculum. End-of-unit assessments and evidence gathered during lessons help teachers determine how securely pupils have understood the curriculum they have been taught.
Pupils are assessed using the same broad language of:
Mild – Working Towards
Spicy – Age-Related Expectations
Hot – Greater Depth
This enables teachers and subject leaders to identify strengths and areas for development across the curriculum.
Tracking Progress Using Bromcom
Assessment information is recorded and monitored using Bromcom.
Teachers and school leaders use Bromcom to monitor the attainment and progress of individual pupils, classes, year groups and significant groups of pupils.
Our key measures include:
- he proportion of pupils working at age-related expectations;
- the proportion working at greater depth;
- the progress made by individual pupils;
- the progress of classes and year groups; and
- the attainment and progress of different groups of pupils.
Teachers input class assessment data at the school's assessment points and use this alongside their ongoing assessment information to plan subsequent teaching.
Pupil Progress and Additional Support
Assessment is particularly important in helping us identify pupils who require additional support.
Teachers and leaders review assessment information regularly and identify children who:
- are at risk of falling behind;
- are working below age-related expectations;
- have gaps in their knowledge or skills;
- have SEND or other barriers to learning;
- are learning English as an additional language;
- have not made the progress expected from their individual starting points; or
- require additional challenge.
Termly pupil progress meetings are used to review pupils' attainment, progress and targets and to agree appropriate actions for pupils who may be at risk of falling behind.
Support may include adaptations within normal classroom teaching, additional practice, targeted group work, intervention programmes or more individualised support.
Interventions are monitored so that teachers and leaders can determine whether they are having the intended impact and decide what should happen next.
Our aim is always to identify needs as early as possible and provide the right support at the right time.
Assessment for Pupils Working Below Age-Related Expectations
We recognise that children have different starting points and that assessment needs to reflect individual pupils' learning.
Where a pupil is working below the expectations for their chronological year group, teachers can assess them against an appropriate earlier curriculum band so that their knowledge, understanding and progress can be accurately identified.
Pupils working below our Pre-Year 1 Band may be assessed using the Engagement Model, where this is appropriate.
Assessment in the Early Years Foundation Stage
Assessment in Nursery and Reception is an important part of understanding each child's development and identifying their next steps.
Our Early Years practitioners build a detailed picture of children through:
- interactions and observations;
- children's independent learning and play;
- focused activities;
- conversations with children;
- examples of children's work;
- information from parents/carers and previous settings; and
- appropriate assessment activities.
Assessment information is recorded within our EYFS assessment area in Bromcom.
Starting Points and Baseline Assessment
Children entering Nursery and Reception are assessed to establish their starting points.
Staff spend time working, playing and interacting with children so that they can get to know them well. Information from parents, carers and previous early years providers also contributes to this initial picture.
Children joining our Early Years provision during the school year are similarly assessed so that teaching can be matched appropriately to their needs.
Reception Baseline Assessment
Children entering Reception also complete the statutory Reception Baseline Assessment (RBA) during the first six weeks of starting Reception.
The assessment provides a starting point for the national progress measure between Reception and the end of Key Stage 2.
It is only one part of the information we use to understand children's starting points.
Reception Baseline Assessment – Information for Parents
Early Years Foundation Stage Profile
At the end of Reception, children are assessed against the statutory Early Learning Goals (ELGs).
For each Early Learning Goal, teachers determine whether a child is meeting the level of development expected at the end of the EYFS or is still working towards that level.
The outcomes of the Early Years Foundation Stage Profile are shared with parents and support transition into Year 1.
Phonics Assessment
We closely monitor pupils' development in phonics.
Our phonics tracking considers important aspects of early reading, including:
- grapheme-phoneme correspondence;
- blending;
- segmenting; and
- spelling.
Pupils following Read Write Inc. are assessed regularly so that they can be placed within the most appropriate teaching group and teachers can identify what they need to learn next. Phonics assessment information is recorded and monitored through Bromcom.
Year 1 Phonics Screening Check
Children normally complete the statutory Phonics Screening Check in Year 1.
The check assesses whether pupils can use their phonics knowledge to decode words. It contains both real words and pseudo-words.
The outcomes help the school identify children who may require further phonics teaching and support. Pupils who do not meet the expected standard in Year 1 normally complete the check again in Year 2.
Phonics Screening Check – Information for Parents
Year 4 Multiplication Tables Check
Children in Year 4 complete the statutory Multiplication Tables Check (MTC).
The check is designed to determine whether pupils can fluently recall their multiplication tables up to 12 × 12, which is important for future success in mathematics.
The check is completed digitally. Children answer 25 multiplication questions, with six seconds to answer each question and a short pause between questions.
Teachers use pupils' multiplication knowledge throughout the year to identify where additional practice or support may be required.
Multiplication Tables Check – Information for Parents
Year 6 Key Stage 2 National Curriculum Tests – SATs
At the end of Year 6, eligible pupils complete the statutory Key Stage 2 National Curriculum Tests, commonly known as SATs.
The tests assess:
English Reading
Pupils complete a reading booklet and answer questions designed to assess their understanding of the texts.
English Grammar, Punctuation and Spelling
This consists of:
- a grammar, punctuation and vocabulary paper; and
- a spelling paper.
Mathematics
Pupils complete three mathematics papers:
- Paper 1 – Arithmetic;
- Paper 2 – Reasoning; and
- Paper 3 – Reasoning.
The tests are administered nationally during a specified week in May.
Understanding SATs Results
SATs results are reported using scaled scores.
A pupil's raw score – the number of marks achieved in the test – is converted into a scaled score.
A scaled score of 100 represents the expected standard.
The conversion from raw scores to scaled scores is determined nationally after the tests have been completed.
SATs are an important national assessment, but they are not the only information we use to understand a child's achievements. Teachers have a much broader knowledge
of each pupil based on their learning throughout the year.
Key Stage 2 Tests – Information for Parents
Moderation – Making Sure Our Judgements Are Accurate
It is important that assessment judgements are accurate and consistent.
Teachers therefore regularly work together to moderate assessment judgements.
Early Years, reading, writing and mathematics assessments are moderated within school. Staff also participate in external moderation and professional development opportunities where appropriate.
Subject leaders monitor pupils' work across the curriculum, and assessment information is considered alongside other evidence about the quality and impact of teaching.
The Headteacher and Senior Leadership Team oversee the school's assessment arrangements and monitor their implementation across the school.
Sharing Assessment Information with Parents and Carers
We believe parents and carers are important partners in children's education.
Throughout the year, we provide opportunities for families to understand how their child is progressing and what their next steps are.
Assessment information is shared through our parent consultation and reporting arrangements. Where we have concerns about a child's progress, we aim to work with families so that appropriate support can be put in place.
Parents and carers are always welcome to speak to their child's teacher if they have questions about their child's attainment, progress or assessment.
Our Assessment Cycle
Our approach can be summarised simply as:
Teach → Assess → Identify strengths and gaps → Adapt teaching → Support or challenge → Review progress → Plan the next steps
Assessment at Norbury Manor is therefore not about collecting data for its own sake.
It enables us to know our pupils well, respond quickly when they need additional help, provide appropriate challenge when they are ready to go further and continually improve teaching and learning.
Our aim is to ensure that every pupil makes strong progress from their individual starting point and is supported to achieve their potential.
Make every moment count… for every child!