KS1 SATs 2016 - Parents Information

KS1 SATs 2016 Parents’ Information ‘Assessment without Levels’

Key questions • • • • •

What are SATs? Why the change in assessment?

What is replacing the old system of ‘Levels’?

How will teachers decide how my child is progressing?

What information will I receive about how my child is progressing?

• What are we, as teachers, doing to help your children?

• How can we, as parents, help our children?

• What are the important things to remember?

What are SATs? • SATs stands for ‘Standard Attainment Test’. This is the common name for the National Curriculum Test which children may sit at the end of Years 2, 6 and 9.

• What do SATs tests show? The idea of the SATs is to show what pupils have learnt and retained during each key stage. The tests help us learn more about the strengths and weaknesses of your child, allowing us to target future needs.

• Can my child fail a SATs test? It is important that children understand they are not going to 'pass' or 'fail' the test - it will just show what they have learned and what they can do.

Why the change in assessment? ‘…the current system of national curriculum levels will be removed and not replaced.

Department for Education (July 2013) A new National Curriculum was introduced in September 2014 and is more challenging , therefore expectations are higher.

The old levels wouldn’t work as a way of assessing children’s attainment against the new curriculum.

• •

Pupils being labelled as a certain level can have a negative effect on their selfesteem and put a ceiling on achievement.

There has been an ‘undue focus on pace; maximum progress, without deep learning taking place.

What is replacing the old system of ‘Levels’?

How will teachers decide how my child is progressing?

• For each National Curriculum subject area, there are many Key Learning Indicators of Progress (KLIPs). We, like many Lancashire schools, will be using a system which enables the teachers to assess against the year group expectations.

• At Inskip St. Peter’s, the children will be regularly assessed against these expectations but in a variety of ways- assessments; children’s work in their books and pupil discussions about their work. We feel that a variety of methods of assessing will provide us with a more accurate way of making a judgement on attainment.

• Each term, the class teachers will make a judgment of each child's current attainment and record this using the school tracking system. This system enables the school to record attainment over the course of the school year and also over the time they are at St Peter’s.

• The school is adopting a system which refers to the terminology: Entering, Developing and Secure.

This works on the principle that a child will move a judgement band each term. From ‘Entering’ to ‘Developing’ and then to ‘Secure’ by the end of the school year.

YEAR GROUP 1 2 3 4 5 6

AUTUMN

SPRING

SUMMER

Entering Entering Entering Entering Entering Entering

Developing Developing Developing Developing Developing Developing

Secure Secure Secure Secure Secure Secure

These judgements will be used for Teacher Assessment.

How will your child’s SATs results be reported?

• In your child’s end of year school report, you will receive an additional form that will contain their SATs results.

• This will inform you whether they have reached the national standard for each area of learning.

Michael Tidd, a Deputy headteacher, has produced a short video aimed at parents to give outline information about the new National Curriculum tests https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M8MjPFWRQs0

What are we, as teachers, doing to help your children prepare?

• Modelling how to answer past paper questions.

• Working in small groups where appropriate to boost confidence.

• Encouraging independent learning at home.

What can you, as parents, do to help your child prepare?

• Listen to your child read as often as possible and ask them questions about what they have read.

• Ensure that they are practising their times tables.

• Ensure your child has plenty of sleep and a good breakfast before coming to school.

Thank you!