Assessment

Key Stage 3

The focus of all assessment at Woodham Academy is to give staff and students information on what students are currently doing well and what they need to do to improve. For formal assessments students will receive information in the format of What Went Well (WWW) and Even Better If (EBI). Your child will sit 2 sets of formal assessments in each academic year.

These formal assessments will take place in the classroom, during normal timetabled lessons and over a 2 or 3-week period. Students will receive a calendar of assessments, so they know what assessments they have and when. Information about the assessments, together with revision resources, will be available on the website. This will allow parents to support their children and help them prepare.

Following a formal assessment at Key Stage 3, you will receive two pieces of information for each subject about your child:

1) A band showing to how your child is performing based on age related expectations.

Students will be placed in a band depending on their performance against age related expectations. The bands are as follows:

Exceeding = Your child is exceeding in this subject and is well above age related expectations. (Approximately the top 10% of the year group)

Above = Your child is working above age related expectations. (Approximately the next 20% of the year group)

Working At = Your child is working at age related expectations. (Approximately the middle 40% of the year group)

Working Towards = Your child is working towards being at age related expectations. (Approximately the next 20% of the year group)

Below = Your child is below age related expectations. (Approximately the final 10% of the year group)

We will use staff expertise, comparable assessments, and the cohort’s entry pattern to ensure that students are placed in the most appropriate band for their current attainment levels.

2) An effort grade for your child.

Effort grades are given on a 1-5 scale by classroom teachers, with 1 being the highest. These grades will be communicated to parents/carers through the Arbor app.

As well as the information above, following formal assessments, you will also have an opportunity to discuss your child’s progress at our parents’ evenings. These happen once per school year. However, we would encourage parents who have a concern, or question, regarding their child’s progress, to get in touch with the school at the earliest opportunity.

In addition to the formal assessments, students may have other assessments throughout the academic year. These will be used at the discretion of the class teacher to check for understanding, address any misconceptions, and to assess end of unit topics.

Following formal assessments, some students will be identified for presentation with a certificate to recognise progress, effort and attitude to learning. If a student is identified as underachieving, intervention will be put in place by either the Head of Learning or class teacher.

Key Stage 4

Student progress is tracked very carefully in Key Stage 3 to ensure that students are maximising their potential. When students arrive with us at the start of Year 7, their KS2 SATs data will be used to establish their end of Key Stage 4 target. This will give students, parents and staff a rough guide to the grades that students will be aiming to achieve at the end of year 11. These grades will be given as a numerical target. At Woodham, we will support and encourage students to achieve the best that they can, regardless of their academic target.

There are two summative assessments, which take place, in each academic year. The purpose of these assessments is to:

• Inform teachers and students of what students can and cannot do and what they know and don’t know.
• To collect data, which will inform us of how well your child is progressing and whether they are making progress in line with their academic ability.

Formal assessments in year 10 and 11 help to prepare students for their final GCSE exams in the summer of Year 11. As a result, all assessments will take place under exam conditions in the main hall. Students will receive a calendar of assessments, so they know what assessments they have and when. Information about the assessments, together with revision resources, will be available on the website or will be given to students via their class teacher if they are too big to upload to the website. This will allow parents to support their children and help them prepare.

The results of these assessments will be given as a grade 1-9 in line with GCSE results, alongside students’ targets, together with an effort grade. This will allow you to monitor the progress of your child in each of their GCSE subjects. Effort grades are given on a 1-5 scale with 1 being the highest. These grades will be communicated to parents/carers through the Arbor app. There will also be the opportunity to talk to staff during our parents’ evening, which happens once a year. However, parents who have a concern, or question, regarding their child’s progress, are encouraged to get in touch with the school at the earliest opportunity.

In addition to these summative assessments, students may have other assessments throughout the academic year. These will be used at the discretion of the class teacher to check for understanding, address any misconceptions, and to assess end of unit topics.