July 2014

The know zone

  • Tall tails...
    The saga of the sinking ambulance, a spot of amateur hairdressing and the grandmother with a bird about her person... read all about it in the diary of a headteacher. More
  • The 'middle tier'
    Following the creation of regional school commissioners and Ofsted regional directors, along with the Labour Party’s Review of Education, which proposes local directors of school standards, there has been much debate about the ’middle tier’. More
  • Leaders' surgery
    Under generic employment law, staff owe their employer a duty of 'honesty and loyalty' in their service. This often comes up in calls to the hotline, both where our members are the employee and when they are acting for the employer. Here, ASCL Hotline Leader David Snashall talks about three real situations from the calls received recently through the hotline. More
  • Taught on camera
    Tony Thornley shares some tips on using video to evaluate lessons and improve pedagogy. More
  • Educating the mind
    MindEd provides free online education resources to help adults to support wellbeing and identify, understand and support children and young people with mental health issues. More
  • Assessing without levels
    With the removal of levels from September, schools and colleges will currently be at various stages along the road towards implementing their own assessment framework. More
  • Rising costs and rhetoric
    As sixth form funding continues to decline, staff need to understand the financial position but they also need to pull together to find creative solutions. Stephan Jungnitz offers some suggestions for building up esprit de corps. More
  • Withstanding G-forces?
    Sam Ellis bids farewell and leaves readers with some final thoughts about how to measure the benefits of education re-organisation. More
  • Blurred lines
    Increasing numbers of business leaders are experiencing problems because it is unclear who is responsible for what in their schools, says Richard Bird. More
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Assessing without levels

With the removal of levels from September, schools and colleges will currently be at various stages along the road towards implementing their own assessment framework.

In this, the role of standardised assessments is crucial. Here is a short overview as to why:

  • They provide a Standard Age Score (SAS), one of the fairest and most accurate ways of benchmarking pupils and tracking their progress. The SAS also enables meaningful comparison between tests.
  • They help schools to understand how their students’ performance compares with other young people of the same age across the UK.
  • Using the SAS, the impact of a particular intervention can be evaluated easily and reliably.
  • Students’ attainment and progress can be communicated clearly to Ofsted and to parents. 

Indeed, standardised tests from GL Assessment are already featuring in many schools’ approaches to life after levels. For example, Hinchingbrooke School in Cambridgeshire uses the Cognitive Abilities Test (CAT) to provide an accurate understanding of pupils’ potential and the New Group Reading Test for an insight into general progress. And for a better understanding of what is hindering or motivating learning, the Pupil Attitudes to Self and School (PASS) survey is proving invaluable. You can see their case study and others at www. gl-assessment.co.uk/levels GL Assessment is an ASCL Premier Partner – member discounts available. For more details call 0845 602 1937, email info@ gl-assessment.co.uk or visit www.gl-assessment.co.uk

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