Assessment | SIPS

SIPS is an inclusive school, and we work hard to meet the needs of all our children. Class teachers are responsible and accountable for the progress and development of all pupils in their class. High quality teaching is available to all children, including those with additional needs. We work hard as a school to ensure that all additional support in the classroom is deployed effectively. Where a child is not making the expected progress the class teacher will work alongside the Inclusion Leader, parents and external agencies (where appropriate) to plan tailored support. We follow the Assess, Plan, Do, Review cycle to ensure all children are monitored closely and make progress. We use Individual Learning plans, where appropriate, which are reviewed with the child and parents termly. Engaging pupils in their own assessment is a core philosophy of the school’s learning approach. The purpose of this approach is to have our pupils be able to articulate what they were ‘learning’ and not just what they were ‘doing’. Feedback and feed forward is a really important part of knowing what you’ve done well at and what you need to do next to succeed.

All children in Year 1 will participate in a National Curriculum Phonics screening check. This is designed to confirm whether pupils have learnt phonic decoding to an appropriate standard. It will identify pupils who need extra help to improve their decoding skills. The check consists of 20 real words and 20 pseudo-words that a pupil reads aloud to the teacher. This assessment will be administered by the Year 1 teacher. Results are included within the Year 1 end of term report.

Internal Assessment

Baseline assessment

Baseline Assessment is very important for tracking progress, planning next steps, reporting, and involving parents, children and young people in learning. It is a means of collecting information about a child's development or attainment at the point at which they enter a new setting or year group. Our Baseline assessments from year 2 -year6 help teachers to get an understanding of our students’ existing subject knowledge.

Formative Assessment (Assessment for Learning)

Formative Assessment takes place as part of ongoing learning and teaching. As part of ongoing learning children and young people's progress, strengths and needs are assessed as part of day-to-day learning and teaching. Teachers and others do this by, for example, watching and listening to learners carrying out tasks, by looking at what they write or make and by considering how they answer questions. Students will be involved in planning their next steps in learning. formative assessments can be conducted throughout the term which are composed of quizzes, projects, half term evaluation, and assignments.

Summative Assessment (Assessment of Learning)

Teachers will assess a student’s progress and achievements in order to be able to plan ahead and to record and report on progress. This will help to ensure that their progress is on track and that any necessary action is taken to support their learning. The purpose of the Summative Assessment is to evaluate student learning at the end of an instructional unit by comparing it against some standard or benchmark. Summative assessments are often high stakes, which means that they have a high point value. Examples of summative assessments include: a midterm exam.

External Assessment (Standardized tests)

CAT4(The Cognitive Abilities Test Fourth Edition)

CAT4 is a suite of tests developed to support schools in understanding students' abilities and likely academic potential. It is an internationally recognized assessment tool designed to measure a student's cognitive abilities across various domains. The test is often used in educational settings to gain insights into a student's strengths and areas for improvement, helping educators tailor their teaching strategies to better meet individual needs. Here are key aspects of the CAT4 test and why it is considered important:

The CAT4 assesses a student's cognitive abilities in four main areas:

Verbal Reasoning, Non-Verbal Reasoning, Quantitative Reasoning, and Spatial Ability.

Verbal Reasoning: Assessing the ability to understand and work with information expressed in words.

Non-Verbal Reasoning: Evaluating problem-solving skills using shapes and patterns.

Quantitative Reasoning: Measuring mathematical reasoning and problem-solving abilities.

Spatial Ability: Assessing the capacity to manipulate shapes and visualize spatial relationships.

Students from year 2- year 10 will be assessed for CAT assessment at the beginning of every academic year and the results will provide valuable insights into the student’s preferred learning style and potential challenges.

TALA

TALA provides a standards-based measure of the Arabic reading and writing proficiency of children who are mother-tongue speakers of Arabic. is the first internationally recognized certification that assesses your proficiency in modern standard Arabic. It is the first internationally recognized certification that assesses the child’s proficiency in modern standard Arabic.

Progress Test

The Progress Test in English (PTE) assessment enables teachers to accurately measure how the school and the students are performing – student by student, class by class and year by year. Students will be assessed once every year from year 3-year 10

Assessment in primary school

Internal Assessment

External Assessment (Standardized tests)