Assessment Policy

Rationale

At Theresa Nuzzo School we believe that assessment provides the basis of informed teaching, helping pupils to overcome difficulties and ensuring that teaching builds upon what has been learned. It is also the means by which pupils understand what they have achieved and what they need to work on.

Formative assessment creates a positive learning environment where children can see the steps necessary for their own success. It enables teachers to set appropriate work at the level necessary for the children’s continuing progress.

Summative assessment is important for acquiring more information regarding a child’s attainment and progress.

Aims and objectives

The aims and objectives of this policy are:

• To gather evidence of the learners’ needs,
• To address the needs of individual pupils,
• To enable the active involvement of pupils in their own learning through constructive feedback,
• To enable teachers and other professionals to use assessment judgements to plan work that accurately reflects the needs of individual pupils.

Types of assessment

At Theresa Nuzzo School, we use a combination of formative and summative assessment as outlined below:

Formative Assessment (Assessment for Learning – AFL)

“Everybody is a genius. But if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid.” Albert Einstein

Based on the above, our mission is to provide an environment for holistic learning and growth which caters for the progress and attainment of each child; and that assessment should be in line with this premise, namely through a balance between formative and summative assessment.

• To ensure that formative assessment of each child is ongoing according to the stated Learning Outcomes and by the end of the year a mark is issued.

Assessment for learning uses information as evidence of:

• the learners’ current level,
• the learners’ progress,
• the actions to be taken to reach the desired learning outcomes.

Formative assessment in Maltese and English Literacy ought to take into consideration all of the following components:

• • Speaking,
  • Sentence building and Vocabulary,
  • Listening,
  • Reading and Understanding,
  • Writing.

Formative assessment in Mathematics ought to take into consideration all of the following components:

• • Problem Solving through practical activities – concrete, pictorial and abstract approach,
  • Real Life application of learned concepts,
  • Skills Acquisition,
  • Using Mental Maths strategies.

Formative assessment in Social Studies, Science and Religion ought to take into consideration the following:

• • Projects/Activities,
  • Fieldwork,
  • Discussions,
  • Values (Religion),
  • Experiments,
  • Research.

To provide teaching staff with adequate training to enable the realization of this policy.

To provide parents and other stakeholders involved with information regarding this policy through:

• • Meetings,
  • Emails,
  • School Website.

Children are to be formatively assessed through some/all of the following:

• • Classwork,
  • Homework,
  • Questioning,
  • Oral discussions,
  • Presentations,
  • Short recall tests,
  • Practical projects,
  • Hands on activities,
  • Quizzes,
  • Trails,
  • Newspaper hunt,
  • Fieldwork,
  • Research,
  • Experiments,
  • etc…

Summative Assessment (Assessment of Learning-AOL)

• Parents need to have a meeting at the beginning of the scholastic year, to explain and understand the different methods of assessment.
• Different Assessment methods are to be used. (Oracy, through games, ICT, discussion, show and tell, role play, interviews, etc…).
• A template must be created with the aims intended per assessment including Art, Drama, Music, P.E. and skills.
• In the upper years (4, 5, 6), marks to be included but subjects are to be split into the different language components: speaking, listening, reading, writing.
• A detailed report should be written for students who do not follow concurrently.

Assessment and Reporting in the Infant Years – Years 1,2,3

• Continuous assessment for all subjects.
• Reports for parents published once every term via MySchool online platform. (LOs ticked according to the student’s level.)
• Parents’ Day twice a year.
• Assessment of reading skills throughout the year.
• Assessment of reading skills in January – for Year 1.
• Maths Assessment for Year 2 & Year 3 at the start of the school year.

Assessment and Reporting in the Junior Years – Years 4,5

• Continuous assessment for all subjects.
• Reports for parents are published twice a year via MySchool online platform.
• Half Yearly published report – LOs are ticked according to the student’s level and a mark out of 100 for continuous assessment for core subjects.
• Annual published report – LOs are ticked according to the student level for all subjects, a mark out of 100 for continuous assessment, a mark out of 100 for annual exam for core subjects – global mark out of 100 which is equal to 60% exam and 40% continuous assessment. Exams can ONLY be held on the stipulated dates.
• Core subjects (Maths, Maltese, English & Science).

Assessment and Reporting in the Junior Years – Year 6

• Continuous assessment for all subjects.
• Reports for parents are published twice a year via MySchool online platform.
• Half Yearly and Annual published report – LOs are ticked according to the student level for all subjects, a mark out of 100 for continuous assessment, a mark out of 100 for exams in the core subjects – global mark out of 100 which is equal to 60% exam and 40% continuous assessment. Exams can ONLY be held on the stipulated dates.
• Core subjects (Maths, Maltese, English & Science).

Homework

Homework is an integral part of learning. It is an expectation and a requirement. The homework set should provide pupils with the experience of working independently without immediate access to the teacher. It should consolidate and extend work covered in school and develop in our pupils a positive attitude towards independent learning.

Objectives of homework:

• To develop perseverance and self-discipline.
• To allow practice of skills learnt in class.

Teachers’ Duties:

• Teachers should develop a policy for correction. If class and/or self-correction are chosen, homework still has to be seen and feedback given by the teacher.
• Homework should be designed to challenge pupils.
• Directions are to be clear and pupils must know exactly what is expected of them.
• Parental involvement in signing homework or exchanging of notes with the teacher, when necessary, is highly recommended.
• Remarks to be made accordingly and where appropriate.
• Effort to be given more importance than achievement especially with low ability pupils.
• To emphasize that additional reading is a homework in itself and thus has to be done on a regular basis.
• Teachers shall encourage pupils to keep a homework diary – the school diary is obligatory from Year 2 to Year 6.
• Teachers are to ensure that the homework given is returned on due day.
• Parents should be approached if homework is frequently missed or incomplete.

Parents’/Guardians’ Duties:

• Should check homework diary/MS Teams every day.
• Parents should make sure that homework is complete and handed in on time.
• A note should be sent by the parents/guardians when there is a problem or difficulty completing homework.
• Parents/Guardians should discuss any difficulties that arise concerning homework.
• It is advisable for parents to consider homework as quality time with their children and help them to manage time properly.
• Parents should consider reading as a very important , regular task.

Marking Guidance

The guidance on grading forms part of the whole school policy for assessment and is directly linked to curriculum planning. The school is committed to using formative assessment, through assessment for learning, and uses focused marking as the principle method for providing feedback to children in order to raise standards of attainment.

Formative assessment is based on the principle that in order to make good progress, pupils need to be clear about the next steps in learning.

Teachers use focused marking to assess children’s progress in relation to planned learning objectives and to identify children’s strengths and gaps in their skills/knowledge. Next steps should be shared with the child, in an age-appropriate way, in order to provide feedback to the child about where they are, in relation to this aim and the steps necessary to achieve the aim.

This information is used to inform planning for subsequent lessons and to facilitate the setting of appropriate targets for the class, group or individual. Grouping should be flexible in order for teachers to effectively address the needs of children with similar gaps in learning. E.g. Guided reading/RWInc. Reading Scheme.

When necessary, teachers should write a comment on the children’s work.

The school recognizes that the best way to communicate next steps is through verbal feedback given directly to the child by the teacher.

Children should be given the opportunity to look at and respond to the teacher’s comments in an-age-appropriate way.

Focused marking of children’s writing should relate to either the specific learning objective (communicated through ‘I can…’ statements), or the next step target for each child.

Teachers do not correct every mistake in a piece of written work, as this can be overwhelming for children and will rarely lead to an improvement.

The main purpose for marking Maths work is to identify whether children have grasped a mathematical concept or method and to assess the steps needed to enable them to make further progress.

The school acknowledges that there is a role for testing; however teachers ensure that test results are fed back to children individually and sensitively. Teachers are however encouraged to provide information to children on whether the mark achieved is an improvement on previous attainment.

Self Assessment

Teachers should provide regular opportunities for children to assess their own work and the learning of their peers. This supports children to be actively involved in their learning and to be able to identify their own targets for improvement. This may include:

• Self-evaluation (e.g. traffic lights or smiley faces to indicate how the child views their work in relation to the learning objective), or even verbally.
• After tests, children in the junior years (years 4, 5, 6) are to identify one thing they can improve upon.
• Teachers are to give the opportunity to their pupils to remark about the good aspects of other students’ work.

Updated, August 2023