Over the last few years there have been huge changes to the educational landscape, many of these changes are still working their way through the system and their impact is yet to be felt. Here is a summary of the changes by Key Stage.
Removal of National Curriculum levels. Each school to develop their own way of recording and reporting progress. KS2 SAT results given as a standardised score and a judgement made as to whether students have met the required standard.
Removal of National Curriculum levels. Each school to develop their own way of recording and reporting progress. New curriculum in place for all subjects, schools advised to concentrate on ‘depth of knowledge’ rather than ‘breadth’.
2015 saw the first teaching of new reformed GCSEs in English and Mathematics. These new GCSEs (first examined in 2017) will be graded on 1 – 9 scale. The following year all other subjects (apart from DT and Business studies) began their new specifications. All GCSE courses are now new specs. The amount of Controlled Assessment has been reduced for most subjects.
First teaching of new reformed A Levels began in 2015. Previously AS was the first year of the A Level, and the AS grade counted towards a student’s overall A level grade. In reformed A levels, the AS course has now been decoupled from the A Level. This means that students can still sit an AS exam but the grade does not count towards the A level grade. The A level exam will test students on the whole two years of study. By Sept 2017 all A level subjects had been reformed.
With the removal of National Curriculum levels and the introduction of a new grading system at KS4 a new whole school assessment method was implemented. This allows a single system of assessment to be used from when students are set a baseline at the end of Year 7 until their complete their GCSE exams in Year 11.
The aim of this system is to provide a clearer pathway of progression from the start of year 8 to the GCSE exams in Year 11. It will hopefully remove confusion when equating NC levels with GCSE grades and will provide a better basis for Year 9 in selecting their GCSE options.
The system was developed after examination of other school systems and attendance at national meetings on assessment. All Heads of Department were fully involved in the decision making process and staff have spent this academic year adapting resources to fit in with the new assessment policy.
Assessment at CCGS is based on a 1 – 9 grading system (with 9 being the highest grade). A system of subgrades (e.g. 2-, 3+) will be used to show progress through the grade.
Extra grades below grade 1 have been added, these are known as Foundation Grades (F1, F2 and F3) and these are used to grade students who have not reached grade 1 of the GCSE scale yet.
How do I know if my Son/Daughter is making progress?
In the first few weeks at CCGS students sit a baseline test in each of their subjects. This baseline (on the 1 – 9 scale) is then used as the starting point from where we measure progress. Class tests, exercises, projects and homework will be marked using the 1 -9 scale, students and parents will be able to see if progress is being made from their starting point.
Students are issued with a report each half term. In Years 8 and 9, the Christmas, Easter and the Summer report contains ‘Academic Tracking information’. This takes the form of a ‘Working at’ grade for each subject and a judgement from the class teacher as to whether progress is ‘Above Expected’, ‘Expected’ or ‘Below Expected’.
At the end of year 7 students are set a baseline grade which will be their starting point for the measuring of progress during years 8 and 9. The baseline grade will be based on assessment throughout the year, Year 7 exam and KS2 data.
At the start of year 10 we set Target Grades for students across all their GCSE subjects. Target Grades are based on their KS2 Data and adjusted in light of the progress made at the school so far. The same pattern of reporting is followed as KS3. The academic information given is ‘Working at Grade’ and a ‘Projected Grade’. A ‘Projected Grade’ is the grade that your son/daughter’s teacher thinks they will attain at the end of the course if they carry on working as they are.
At both KS3 and KS4 students’ progress is closely monitored by subject staff and by the pastoral team (Heads of House and the Senior tutors).
Information from the government states that a new ‘Grade 4’ will be equivalent to a ‘Low grade C’. However the DFE have already stated that for school measures (such as % English and Maths) it is a Grade 5 that will be the minimum. We are telling our students that a Grade 5 will be seen as a ‘pass’ in the future.