Fischer Family Trust

Lewis School, Pengam

History Department Assessment Policy (DRAFT)

1 Rationale

The Lewis School Pengam Departmental History policy is based upon agreed principles informing action taken at classroom level.

The policy aims to provide a consistent and comprehensive approach to assessment throughout the department and has been formulated to meet the needs identified by WAG and DCELLS.

Effective assessment practice is part of the continuous process of school improvement and is a critical element in enabling schools and individual pupils to improve their performance.

The purpose of this document is to is both to challenge and to support members of the History Department.

Support will be provided through analysis of assessment information and the development of the skills needed to deliver effective teacher assessment, leading to the accurate allocation of levels at the end of each key stage.

Challenge arises from National benchmarks, School and LEA targets and the prior attainment of pupils. Setting targets for pupil attainment clarifies expectations and helps to identify under- attainment and under-achievement allowing remedial action to be taken. It can be a vital element in assisting schools to develop a self-critical culture. Formative assessment or assessment for learning is a vital part of the target setting process.

As part of its strategy for quality assurance in assessment practices the History Department will:  Produce exemplar materials to ensure that school judgements are secure;  Disseminate best practice and inform all members of the department about the latest developments in assessment.

2 All staff In the History Department recognise the key impact of effective assessment practices in enabling pupils to improve their performance. We believe this should

 be founded upon an agreed view of what learning needs to be assessed;  offer all pupils an opportunity to show what they know, understand and can do;  help pupils and teachers identify learning and teaching required to ensure a process of continuous development;  establish the progress made by pupils;  recognise their wider achievement;  help parents to be involved in their child’s progress;  provide information to evaluate work, establish levels of attainment and set appropriate targets for improvement.

Objectives

We believe assessment within the History Department is a natural part of teaching and learning. Our objective is to ensure effective assessment that

 informs teachers about pupils’ learning requirements;  enables them to monitor progress over an extended period;  supports teachers in extending pupils and maximising their ability;  enables pupils to demonstrate achievement;  helps them to understand what they need to do in order to improve.

In essence, within the History Department, all staff agree that the prime objective of assessment is to assist pupils in their learning by making informed judgements about what they know, understand and can do and what, in consequence, they need to do in order to progress.

Key Terms

We believe that assessment may be split into two areas which are not mutually exclusive. These are:  Assessment for learning which may be termed formative; and  Assessment of learning which is primarily summative.

3 Assessment for learning is an ongoing activity concerned with specific narrow objectives. It explores the edges of capability and aims at success for the pupil. It may include both self and peer assessment.

Assessment of learning is a periodic activity with broader objectives. It explores the strengths and weaknesses of an individual and reflects performance without support.

In the History Department we believe that classroom assessment is effective when teachers:  assess in a range of contexts e.g. individual work, pair, group and whole class situations;  ensure that learning objectives are clear and not confused with the specific task;  make explicit the targets that pupils need to achieve;  provide pupils with an opportunity to reflect on and talk about their learning;  use a range of assessment methods confidently;  use assessment diagnostically to decide a next step in a pupil’s learning;  possess strategies which enable them to recognise when pupils have problems or are not making progress.

4 Provision and Practice

Marking and feedback

The outcomes of marking should have a perceptive effect on pupil progress. It should give pupils a clear picture of what they have done well and where they need to improve. Within the History department books should be marked regulalrly and will:

 provide regular quality feedback to pupils;  focus the response on the Learning Objectives and success criteria;  be consistent;  provide clear strategies for improvement;  take an ipsative approach;  enable teachers to adjust future planning;  be consistent and in line with whole school policy;  be accessible to children;  allow children time to read and understand the improvements required;  encourage and teach children to self-mark where appropriate.

Marking comments will be specific and offer alternatives, pointers or a degree of scaffolding. Pupils will be allowed time to read marking comments and assess their implications. Teachers will consider whether the response is intended:  to motivate;  to provide a sounding board for ideas;  to point out problems that stand in the way of success;  to suggest an external measure of success or failure.

The CLL will check that marking comments or codes are consistent with whole school policy.

Comments will reflect the ways in which the school values its pupils and our belief in their ability to make good progress. Pupils should be asked to respond actively to the marking and the comments that they receive.

5 The effective involvement of pupils in their own learning will be achieved through an appropriate blend of the following elements:

Sharing learning goals Effective questioning

Effective feedback Pupil self-evaluation

Focused feedback should be a key element in the motivational processes that affect learning. Research by Dweck, the American psychologist, suggests that positive attitudes to learning exist when children:  believe that effort leads to success;  accept that they have the ability to improve and learn;  fell satisfied when they complete challenging tasks.

Negative attitudes , however, are displayed when children:  believe that success is only related to ability;  enjoy out-performing others;  evaluate themselves negatively when the task is too difficult.

Different learners need different modes of learning. A number of factors can determine learning aptitude within a given context.

Examples of good marking practice can be found on the departmental wiki

http://lsphistory.wikispaces.com/

6 Questioning

“ More effort has to be spent in framing questions that are worth asking: that is, questions that are critical to the development of pupil understanding.” Paul Black 2003

In our efforts within the history department to extend the thinking of learners we will plan to use questions which make progressive cognitive demands, moving from lower to higher order questions.

Lower Order Higher Order

4) Analysis 1) Recall/ Knowledge Asking pupils to break down and Asking pupils to remember study subject matter

2) Comprehensions 5) Synthesis

Asking pupils to express ideas Asking pupils to build a new idea, in their own words theory

3) Applications 6) Evaluations Asking pupils to apply on Asking pupils to assess or judge principle elsewhere

Our teachers will model questions for pupils, provide opportunities for them to create their own and plan time for them to ask questions.

Recording Evidence

“ Not all that is assessed can (or should) be recorded but records should identify individual pupils’ achievement.” Framework for Inspection

7 Teachers use records to review pupil progress and to set appropriate targets for the future.

Record keeping and evidence is useful when teachers:  keep manageable records;  make judgements about learning to plan the next steps;  record significant progress;  use records to inform target setting;  retain annotated samples of work;  involve pupils in reviewing their own work;  use records and evidence of shared standards in moderation;  pass on clear records to others.

Sources of evidence within the History Department include:

 Pupil Portfolios  Individual books used daily by pupils  Learning Logs  LISOL

All of the above can be found on the departmental wiki.

http://lsphistory.wikispaces.com/

Summative Assessment

Periodically in history we employ measurements or judgements that can summarise attainment in order to report, evaluate and possibly assess progress and achievement.

In key stage 3 History, teacher assessment is the basic medium for summative judgement. This may be supported through the use of standardised tasks or tests. To be of any value any tests used should possess both validity and reliability.

“ A reliable test should produce consistent, objective, dependable and fair results on every occasion it is used.” NFER Nelson

End of Key Stage Assessment

Statutory teacher assessment is an essential part of NC assessment arrangements.

The increased importance of teacher assessment makes it essential for all teachers to have a clear understanding of level descriptions and how to apply them.

8 Level descriptors

The following level descriptions describe the types and range of performance that pupils working at a particular level should characteristically demonstrate. In deciding on a pupil’s level of attainment at the end of a key stage, teachers should judge which description best fits the pupil’s performance. Each description should be considered in conjunction with the descriptions for adjacent levels.

By the end of Key Stage 3 most pupils should be within the range of levels 3 to 7. Level 8 is available for very able pupils. To help teachers differentiate Exceptional Performance at Key Stage 3, a description above Level 8 is provided.

Level 1 Pupils recognise the distinction between present and past in their own and other people's lives. They show their emerging sense of chronology by placing a few events and objects in order, and by using everyday terms about the passing of time. They know and recount episodes from stories about the past. They find answers to some simple questions about the past from sources of information.

Level 2 Pupils show their developing sense of chronology by using terms concerned with the passing of time, by placing events and objects in order, and by recognising that their own lives are different from the lives of people in the past. They show knowledge and understanding of aspects of the past beyond living memory, and of some of the main events and people they have studied.They are beginning to recognise that there are reasons why people in the past acted as they did. They are beginning to identify some of the different ways in which the past is represented. They observe or handle sources of information to answer questions about the past on the basis of simple observations.

Level 3 Pupils show their developing understanding of chronology by their realisation that the past can be divided into different periods of time, their recognition of some of the similarities and differences between these periods, and their use of dates and terms. They show knowledge and understanding of some of the main events, people and changes studied. They are beginning to give a few reasons for, and results of, the main events and changes. They identify some of the different ways in which the past is represented. They use sources of information in ways that go beyond simple observations to answer questions about the past.

9 Level 4 Pupils show factual knowledge and understanding of aspects of the history of Britain and the wider world. They use this to describe characteristic features of past societies and periods, and to identify changes within and across different periods. They describe some of the main events, people and changes. They give some reasons for, and results of, the main events and changes. They show some understanding that aspects of the past have been represented and interpreted in different ways. They are beginning to select and combine information from different sources. They are beginning to produce structured work, making appropriate use of dates and terms.

Level 5 Pupils show increasing depth of factual knowledge and understanding of aspects of the history of Britain and the wider world. They use this to describe features of past societies and periods and to begin to make links between them. They describe events, people and changes. They describe and make links between events and changes and give reasons for, and results of, these events and changes. They know that some events, people and changes have been interpreted in different ways and suggest possible reasons for this. Using their knowledge and understanding, pupils are beginning to evaluate sources of information and identify those that are useful for particular tasks. They select and organise information to produce structured work, making appropriate use of dates and terms.

Level 6 Pupils use their factual knowledge and understanding of the history of Britain and the wider world to describe past societies and periods, and to make links between features within and across different periods. They examine and explain the reasons for, and results of, events and changes. Pupils describe, and begin to analyse, why there are different historical interpretations of events, people and changes. Using their knowledge and understanding, they identify and evaluate sources of information, which they use critically to reach and support conclusions. They select, organise and deploy relevant information to produce structured work, making appropriate use of dates and terms.

Level 7 Pupils make links between their factual knowledge and understanding of the history of Britain and the wider world. They use these links to analyse relationships between features of a particular period or society, and to analyse reasons for, and results of, events and changes. They explain how and why different

10 historical interpretations have been produced. Pupils show some independence in following lines of enquiry, using their knowledge and understanding to identify, evaluate and use sources of information critically. They sometimes reach substantiated conclusions independently. They select, organise and use relevant information to produce well-structured narratives, descriptions and explanations, making appropriate use of dates and terms.

Level 8 Pupils use their factual knowledge and understanding of the history of Britain and the wider world to analyse the relationships between events, people and changes, and between the features of different past societies and cultures. Their explanations of reasons for, and results of, events and changes are set in a wider historical context. They analyse and explain different historical interpretations and are beginning to evaluate them. Drawing on their historical knowledge and understanding, they use sources of information critically, carry out historical enquiries, and reach substantiated conclusions independently. They select, organise and deploy relevant information to produce consistently well-structured narratives, descriptions and explanations, making appropriate use of dates and terms.

Exceptional performance Pupils use their extensive and detailed factual knowledge and understanding of the history of Britain and the wider world to analyse relationships between a wide range of events, people, ideas and changes and between the features of different past societies and cultures. Their explanations and analyses of reasons for, and results of, events and changes, are well substantiated and set in their wider historical context. They analyse links between events and developments that took place in different countries and in different periods. They make balanced judgements based on their understanding of the historical context about the value of different interpretations of historical events and developments. Drawing on their historical knowledge and understanding, they use

It is crucial that staff:  build on the assessments of previous teachers;  share information with colleagues; and  feed forward this information to the future teacher

At ______school we will monitor school improvement through assessment information through:  staff at all levels making systematic use of assessment information and examinations results;  considering benchmark information to:

11  measure our performance against the best;  compare ourselves with schools/ departments of a similar kind;  put our results into a wider context.

 setting targets in relation to an analysis of pupil potential and attainment  identifying the performance of different groups e.g. boys and girls, ethnic groups, more and less able;  drawing conclusions to influence future priorities and actions;  possessing appropriate expectations for all pupils;  setting realistic targets in relation to prior performance.

Pupil Participation

We believe young pupil who work within the History department often have a unique knowledge of their own needs and circumstances and their own views about what sort of help they would like to help them make the most of their education. They will be encouraged to participate in all the decision-making processes including the setting of learning targets and contributing to the nature of topics taught. This will take place through pupil interviews and questionnaires.

Monitoring, Evaluation and Review

In the History Department we will monitor departmental improvement through assessment via staff at all levels making systematic use of assessment information, FFT data, CAT data and examinations results. This will ensure that we

 measure our performance against the best;  compare ourselves with schools/ departments of a similar kind;  put our results into a wider context.

We will achieve this by

 setting targets in relation to an analysis of pupil potential and attainment  identifying the performance of different groups e.g. boys and girls, ethnic groups, more and less able;  drawing conclusions to influence future priorities and actions;  possessing appropriate expectations for all pupils;  setting realistic targets in relation to prior performance.