Assessment

How we check your child is progressing well

Assessment is a tool for collecting and making use of information about a child's learning experiences, their achievements, misconceptions and their progress. At Birchwood Grove we believe that effective assessment:

• Is an integral part of teaching and lies at the heart of promoting children's education
• If there is a clear purpose and help's the school and children monitor and support their progress, attainment and wider outcomes 
• Is varied and includes both summative and formative methods (see below)
• Helps children progress by giving them regular feedback 
• Gives parents and carers an accurate sense of children's progress and achievements and important next steps 

There are two types of assessment: summative and formative.

In-school summative assessments are used to monitor and support children’s progress. They provide children with information about how well they have learned and understood a topic or, course of work, taught over a period of time, providing feedback on how they can continue to improve. In-school summative assessments also inform parents and carers about achievement, progress and wider outcomes. Teachers use of in-school summative assessments to evaluate both pupil learning at the end of an instructional unit, or topic, and the impact of their own teaching.  In-school summative assessments will also be used at whole school level to monitor the performance of pupil cohorts, to identify where interventions may be required and to work with teachers to ensure pupils are supported to achieve sufficient progress and expected attainment.

Day to day in-school formative assessment is an integral part of teaching and learning. It helps children to measure their own strengths and areas for development. It allows teachers to understand pupil performance on a continuing basis, enabling them to identify when pupils are struggling, when they have consolidated learning and when they are ready to progress. In this way, it supports teachers to provide appropriate support or extension as necessary and informs progress. It enables teachers to evaluate their own teaching of particular topics or concepts and to plan future lessons accordingly.

Reporting to parents

As your child moves through the school, we keep a full record of the achievements, interests and progress of every child. In the autumn and spring terms, all parents will receive Next Steps reports. Towards the end of the summer term parents of all children will receive an annual written report on their child’s progress.​

There are regular opportunities for parents to come into school to discuss progress. The first of these is in the autumn term when you will be able to discuss with the teacher how your child has settled at the beginning of the new academic year. In this way, any initial problems can be dealt with quickly. There is a further Parent/Teacher Consultation Evening in March. On both occasions you will have a chance to look at the range of work produced by your child in the various curriculum areas and discuss this with their class teacher.​

Should we consider it necessary to discuss the progress of a child, we will get in touch to arrange an appointment at a mutually convenient time.