DDs school (independent) have changed the way they assess pupil performance by comparing them against the other pupils in their set (which is their class except for maths) They have an attainment and an effort grade:
Attainment:
EX - Consistently well above the rest of the set (top 5%)
AA - Regularly well above the rest of the set (next 20%)
AV - Average level of attainment across the group (50% of set)
BA - Below average in the group (bottom 25%)
Effort:
1-4 where 1 is the lowest and 4 the highest.
AV - 3 is apparently the benchmark level to show they are achieving what is expected of them in their set.
My first problem is I don't really care how well she is performing against other members of her class. It's a nice piece of supplementary information but I do expect her to be taught as an individual, not as a member of a pack.
Secondly, if she is a high performing member of a low achieving class, how would I know? Ditto if she performs comparatively poorly in a high performing class?
Her report was good, not fabulous. She got one EX, four AAs, five AVs and 1 BA. The BA was for Maths and she's in the top set. Last term she was 3rd in the whole year so either something has happened for her performance to drop dramatically or the difference between EX and BA is so negligible she's still in the top 15 of the year. Who knows.
Finally, DD and her friend have exactly the same report (apart from two subjects where one of them performs better than the other). You could almost have photocopied one and given it to the other. However, the other girl's parents have been told she is performing way higher than everyone else in the class and they want her to move up a set into the Exceptional Performers class.
This seems to confirm my feelings that the assessment method is absolutely useless and tells a parent nothing whatsoever. AIBU to expect a more objective assessment method with clear factual measurement of performance and for it to be clear to me that DD is on track for her age group. I also think a phone call would have been order to explain DDs drop in Maths grade. But perhaps I completely misunderstand the process. Are there any teachers out there with experience of a similar methodology and where it adds value?
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Secondary education
Confusing Assessment Grades Tell Me Nothing
16 replies
ItsDecisionTime · 04/11/2013 23:29
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