Assessment

At Pakefield we have a curriculum that we are proud of. We have reviewed our assessment and reporting systems to ensure that we know where each child is on our learning continuum.

Our fundamental aim for our children to leave us in year six demonstrating that they are working at either the expected or higher standard in order for them to be well placed at High School. We strongly believe that progress is individual to a particular child and should be assessed from their starting points. Most children will make progress in line with their peers. However, there is a small number of children whose learning and progress will look very different.

The principles that underpin our assessment system are:

Every child can be successful and independent learners.
Live assessment is made in each lesson. This informs teachers’ planning and delivery of learning.
Children’s learning is based on Formative and Summative Assessments.
Children self-select appropriate challenges – we believe that independence is key.
Prior learning is taken into account to ensure the best opportunities are given to all of the children.
Pixl Question Level Analysis assessments are used to identify gaps in learning.
The National Curriculum objectives and End of Key Stage Assessment frameworks are used to plan all learning opportunities.

Tracking progress over time:

Teachers’ planning is a working document, based on daily Formative Assessment. Children are involved in this process and help identify their own next steps of learning and subsequent targets. Each term Summative Assessments of children’s work are made by staff in reading, writing, maths and science and these findings are recorded on a tracker. All other subject summative data is collected in July.

Achievements Team Meetings and Pupil Progress Meetings help teachers to address underperformance.

Parents are kept informed of their child’s progress through termly parent meetings, informal chats and end of year reports.

Reading Assessment

Pupils are assessed using the Pixl test papers each term to identify strengths and gaps in learning.

Writing Assessment

6 pieces of writing per year are assessed against a set of criteria for each year group. The criteria grids have been developed using end of key stage assessment criteria and a range of other sources. We use ‘No More Marking’ as a comparative judgement to help us assess standards against a larger sample of children nationally.

Maths Assessment

Pupils are assessed using the White Rose material and Pixl test papers each term.

Foundation Subject Assessments

Teachers use Assessment Matrices to plot learning to against several key objectives over the year.

Early Years - Nursery & Reception

The curriculum in Nursery and Reception is based on the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS). This provides a framework for challenging experiences that meet the different needs of all our children.

The Foundation Stage Curriculum is made up of 3 prime areas of learning:

PSED: Personal, Social and Emotional Development. This area develops social skills, attitude to learning, self–confidence, self-awareness and supports them in managing feelings and behaviour.
C & L: Communication and Language. This area develops skills such as listening and attention, understanding and communicating with others.
PD: Physical Development. This area teaches children about their bodies, how to be healthy and develop skills such as control, movement, strength and using equipment safely.

There are also 4 specific areas:

L: Literacy develops skills in reading and writing, through the teaching of phonics and supporting children to apply these skills in all areas of their learning.
M:Mathematics area develops skills such as counting, addition, subtraction, problem solving, understanding shape and measuring.
UW: Understanding the World. This area develops a child’s understanding of the environment and their community, the world and technology around them.
E, A & D: Expressive Arts and Design. This area develops their imagination and the skills of singing, drama, making, painting and using different resources.

The Early Excellence Tracking system unpins our assessment systems at Pakefield.