How you can assess and collect evidence for the RSHE Primary Curriculum
T
he statutory guidance produced by the Department for Education is clear that the focus for assessment in Relationships Sex and Health Education (RSHE) should be in supporting children’s learning and making sure their needs are met. There are no plans for formal testing. However, teachers still need to assess pupil progress, so what approaches can you use to assess your pupils in RSHE in an effective and non-time-consuming way? There are three key questions to consider: ● How will assessment and evidence collection support children’s learning? ● How will assessment and evidence collection support planning and teaching? ● How will assessment and evidence collection demonstrate impact for internal review e.g. governors and external review e.g. Ofsted?
A starting point for RSE assessment A good starting point is to consider how you assess and collect evidence in other foundation subjects as these procedures can be adapted for RSHE. However, remember that good RSHE should include a range of opportunities for children to discuss their ideas and therefore there may not be as much written evidence as there might be for other subjects. This does not mean there will be no written work, and using a published scheme, such as the Kapow Primary RSE and PSHE scheme of work, can really help as it includes a range of activities in its lesson plans. Many of these can be used as evidence, such as top tips lists, quizzes and scenario responses.
How do you support planning, teaching and learning in RSE? To support planning, teaching and learning, it is good practice to carry out a baseline assessment at the beginning of each topic. There are many ways to do this but one of the most straightforward is a mind mapping activity. For example, you can use the areas covered in the unit, such as stereotyping and friendship, and ask the children to record anything they already know about these. They could complete this individually, in pairs or groups. You can then see what they know, any misconceptions they may have and any gaps in their understanding. The other big advantage of this is that the mind map can be revisited at the end of the unit and additional information added, perhaps using a different colour, providing useful evidence of progress. Kapow Primary’s scheme includes this approach, as well as an assessment quiz.
Another established tool for baseline assessment in RSHE (and PSHE education) is ‘Draw and Write’. This was originally designed by Noreen Wetton as part of drug education but has been developed and can be used for a number of topics. The basic principle involves outlining a scenario to the children and them responding with their ideas in pictures and words. Again, this allows you to see what they already know and any misconceptions. Like the mind map, this can be revisited at the end of a unit to see progress. To support planning, it is important to assess in each lesson and in particular to identify any children who really have not understood the content. In each Kapow Primary RSE and PSHE lesson, guidance is given on what you can expect for children with secure understanding and those working at greater depth. Your lesson plan can be used to note children who do not have secure understanding as well as any who have exceeded expectations. Working this way will enable you to adjust the planning for the next lesson to support those children who need some extra input, and those who need extending further.
8
