This document outlines an agenda and materials for a training workshop on assessment for learning. The workshop will cover: 1. Key principles of formative and summative assessment, including using assessment to provide feedback and adjust teaching. 2. Different teaching contexts and how to plan for various learning styles using formative assessment strategies like questioning, self-assessment, and providing feedback. 3. The role of school and subject leadership in supporting assessment for learning. The workshop aims to help educators better understand assessment for learning and how to implement practices that actively involve students in assessing their own learning.

1. © Cambridge International Examinations 2014
Janet Rees
June 2014
India
Assessment for learning
Training workshop

2. Housekeeping
• Health & Safety
• Fire alarms
• Fire safety
• Start-finish, breaks
• Washrooms
• Refreshments
• Plan of the day

3. Cambridge International Examinations
the world’s largest provider of international
qualifications for 5 – 19 year olds
develops successful learners in over 160
countries
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part of the University of Cambridge –
renowned worldwide for excellence in
education

4. Session 1
Introduction to Course
Introduction to Assessment for Learning

5. Course aims
• To introduce assessment for learning
• To discuss school and subject leadership for AfL
• To examine the role of questioning
• To discuss different styles of teaching
• To plan for different teaching contexts and learning
styles
• To look at different resources for use in the
classroom

6. Structure of course
1. Introduction to Course:
Principles of Assessment for Learning
2. Formative and summative assessment:
teaching and learning contexts
3. Planning – different teaching contexts and
learning styles; questioning
4. School and subject leadership for AfL.

7. Session 1
Principles of assessment for learning

8. Assessment for learning:

9. Key aspects of assessment
• Summative – to ‘sum up’ what students have achieved.
• Formative – to establish whether students have met the
learning objective or are on track to do so, and to use
the information to direct or re-direct the teaching.
• Formative assessment can also include:
– Diagnostic – to identify why students do not understand,
or have difficulty with some topic or idea and to use this
information to take appropriate action to correct
mistakes/misconceptions.
– Evaluative – to determine whether the action following the
diagnosis has resolved the student’s difficulties.

10. Assessment for learning
“Assessment for learning is the process of
seeking and interpreting evidence for use
by learners and their teachers to decide
where the learners are in their learning,
where they need to go and how best to get
there.”
Assessment Reform group (2002).

11. Formative assessment consists of:
• the active involvement of students in their own
learning
• sharing learning goals with students
• involving students in self-assessment
• effective questioning
• providing feedback which leads students to
recognise their next steps and how to take them
• adjusting teaching to take account of the results of
assessment.

12. Aims:
• every child knows how they are doing, and
understands what they need to do to improve and
how to get there. They get the support they need to
be motivated, independent learners.
• every teacher is equipped to make well-founded
judgements about pupils’ attainment, understands
the concepts and principles of progression, and
knows how to use their assessment judgements to
forward plan, particularly for pupils who are not
fulfilling their potential;

13. • every school has in place structured and
systematic assessment systems for making
regular, useful, manageable and accurate
assessments of pupils, and for tracking their
progress;
• every parent and carer knows how their
child is doing, what they need to do to
improve, and how they can support the child
and their teachers.

14. Learning, Teaching &
Assessment Cycle
Improvement
Planning
Learning
Intentions
Input
Success
Criteria
Learning
Activity
Formative
Feedback
Peer & Self-
Assessment &
Evaluation
The assessment cycle

15. Formative assessment:
• is a range of formal and informal assessment
procedures employed by teachers
• is used during the learning process in order to modify
teaching and learning activities to improve student
attainment
• typically involves qualitative feedback (rather than
scores) for both student and teacher which focus on
the details of content and performance
• is commonly contrasted with summative assessment,
which seeks to monitor educational outcomes.

16. Which is best?
Discuss and group the different forms of
assessment.
• Which will give the best information about
educational outcomes(knowledge)? When could
this be used?
• Which will give the best information about the
processes of learning? When could you use
this?
• Be prepared to give reasons for your choices.

17. Benefits of formative assessments for
teachers:
• Teachers are able to determine what students
already know and to what degree.
• Teachers can decide what minor modifications or
major changes in teaching they need to make so
that all students can make progress.
• Teachers can create appropriate lessons and
activities for groups of learners or individual
students.

18. Benefits of formative assessments for
students:
• Teachers can inform students about their current
progress in order to help them set goals for
improvement.
• students are more motivated to learn
• students take responsibility for their own learning
• students can become users of assessment
alongside the teacher
• students learn valuable lifelong skills such as self-
evaluation, self-assessment and goal setting.

19. The benefits of assessment for learning
• Assessment for learning is a powerful way of
raising pupils’ achievement.
• It is based on the principle that pupils will
improve most if they understand the aim of
their learning, where they are in relation to
the aim.
• It is central to effective teaching and learning.

20. Questions
What questions can you ask students to help
them evaluate their own learning?

21. Question strategies
Evidence
• How do you know that?
• What evidence is there to support that position?
Clarification
• Can you put that another way?
• Can you give me an example?
• Can you explain that term?
Linking and extending
• Is there any connection between what you have just said and what
Y said earlier?
• How does this idea support/challenge what we explored earlier in
the session?

22. Question strategies
Explanation
• Why might that be the case?
• How would we know that?
• Who might be responsible for…?
Hypothetical
• What might happen if…? What would be the potential benefits of
X?
Cause and effect
• What would happen if we increased/decreased X?
Summary and synthesis
• What remains unsolved/uncertain? What else do we need to know
or do to understand this better/be better prepared?

23. Formative assessment types
Summaries and Reflections
• Writing in a journal is one way to assess student
understanding. Students:
– stop and reflect on the lesson and their work.
– take a moment alone to think about what they have
learned and how they understand the material before the
teacher moves forward with the lesson.
– can write about the lesson and also their feelings.
• Writing in journals is one way to implement this type of
‘formative assessment’.
• Teachers may gain a lot of insight using this method.

24. Lists, charts, and graphic organisers
• Students can graph their progress. Teachers help
students organise learned content and display it on
a list, chart or graph.
• Using these tools, students make connections
between concepts and learn how different content
may relate.
• Students may be asked to list as many concepts as
they can remember from the lesson. They might
also have the opportunity to graph their level of
comprehension on a daily basis and see their
progress as time goes by.

25. Visual representations of information
• Using art with a lesson allows understanding and
memory. Pairing visual representations with learned
information encourages understanding and memory.
• When the teacher pairs a picture with a word or phrase,
it increases the likelihood of the student remembering
the concept later because they have used more than
one kind of learning.
• An assignment that includes art is one way to use this
type of "formative assessment." Art allows individual self
expression, which helps the teacher understand each
student and his needs.

26. Collaborative activities
• When students divide into groups and work together, they
have the opportunity to communicate with others and assess
their level of comprehension as it compares to others.
• They gain an opportunity to learn from their peers as well as
help them.
• Assigning a group project, such as class presentations
performed by group members, is an example of this type of
‘formative assessment’.

27. Types of collaboration
Envoy
Goldfish
Carousel
Paired
tutoring
Snow-
ball
Cascade
Students
as
teachers
Pair
swapping
Allocated
roles
Jigsaw

28. Sources of assessment evidence
• Oral
• Written
• Graphic
• Product
• Performance

29. Collaboration
• Let’s work through these examples.
• Which worked best for you?
• Why do you think this is?

30. Assessment of and for Learning
Summative assessment:
• occurs after the learning
• used to prove learning
• measures learning
• is done to learners
• widens the ability range
• is externally referenced
• is outcome focused
Formative assessment:
• occurs during the learning
• to improve learning
• grows learning
• is done with learners
• narrows the ability range
• is personally referenced
• is process focused

31. Session 2
Formative and summative assessment:
Teaching and learning contexts.

32. Teaching and learning contexts:

33. Thinking point
• What do you think are some of the most
appropriate activities and learning/teaching
methods that will allow both achievement of
the set task (summative)as well as group
processes (formative)?
• On your own, make a list, share with a friend,
share as a group.

34. The role of the teacher
There are three main activities that teachers have
to manage simultaneously:
• managing the class
• managing activities
• managing the learning.
The role of the teacher is that of facilitator of
learning: leading discussions, asking open-ended
questions, guiding both process and task, and
enabling active participation of learners and
engagement with ideas.

35. Diversity in teaching in the classroom
Teaching Approaches:
• Teachers’ own preferred ways of learning tend to affect the
ways in which they teach
• A greater awareness of learning preferences in general, and
of their own in particular, can help teachers to be more
aware of their own personal teaching ‘style’
• Learning more about their own teaching style does not
necessarily mean that teachers should be encouraged to
change their style
• Teachers tend to be most effective when they teach to their
own preferred style, but do so in a way that takes account of
and respects different learning preferences.

36. Diversity in teaching in the classroom
• An awareness of different learning styles can
help teachers to sustain motivation by
encouraging and allowing students’ use of
preferred styles but also providing support when
using alternative approaches.
• Effective teaching involves effective organisation
and management, but no single style or
approach to class organisation is best.

37. Some of the problems:
• the solutions to problems rather than discuss them.
• the teacher gives a lecture rather than conducting a
dialogue
• the teacher talks too much
• students cannot be encouraged to talk except with
difficulty; they will not talk to each other but will only
respond to questions from the tutor
• one student dominates or blocks the discussion
• the students want to be given answers

38. Overcoming the problems.
• What do you do?
• Share your ideas with your group.
• Be careful you don’t become one of the
problems!

39. An effective teacher:
• is essential to ensuring that small groups
work well
• is enthusiastic
• has organised the session well
• has a feeling for the subject
• has empathy with the learners
• understands how people learn

40. Effective teachers:
• has skills in teaching and managing learning
• is alert to context and ‘classroom’ events
• is teaching with their preferred teaching style
• has a wide range of skills in their teaching
repertoire including questioning, listening,
reinforcing, reacting, summarising and
leadership.

41. Planning and preparation
• Who am I teaching? The number of learners and their study
level or stage in training.
• What am I teaching? The topic or subject, the type of
expected learning (knowledge, skills, behaviours).
• How will I teach it? Teaching and learning methods, length
of time available, location of teaching session, access to
patients, internet resources, clinical skills models, etc.
• How will I know if the students understand? Informal and
formal assessments, questioning techniques, feedback from
learners.

42. Thinking point
Can you answer the above questions for all the
groups you teach? If not, how might you find
out the answers?
• Think
• Pair share
• Group share

43. Lesson plan
• define your aims and learning outcomes or objectives
• think about the structure of the session and timing of
activities
• decide on the best teaching and learning methods to
achieve the learning outcome
• list content and key topics, and research more if needed
• refine the lesson plan
• identify learning resources and support material
• finalise any linked assessment or evaluation.

44. Practical task
• How tall is the giant?
• How can we find out?
• What knowledge/skills did we need?
• What processes did we go through?
• What have we learnt?

45. Assessment of learning
• aims to find out how much learners know
• summative assessments including end of module/ year tests
• useful in establishing a rank order of attainment or
comparing results from year to year
Assessment for learning
• considers where learners are with their learning, where they
want/ need to get to and how to bridge the gap.

46. Guided group work
What does the phrase ‘guided group work mean to
you?
Group work – discussion in pairs or small groups
• How do you group your students?
• How do you use group work in your own
classroom?
• What is its purpose?

47. Guided group work
• Informed by and creating opportunities for
assessment.
• Guided group work is based on flexible groupings;
• A guided group will be made up of students that you
have selected as a result of assessment, however
informal;
• Guided groups provide opportunities for making use
of focused questioning to assess student’s
understanding and take forward their learning.

48. Guided group work
• Guided groups provide opportunities for
learning more about the effect of teaching.
• Group size will vary but needs to be
manageable to achieve the purpose and
expected outcomes of the session.

49. Guided Group Work
• Diamond ranking card sort
• 12 cards to sort
• You must reject 3 cards
Most important
Least important

50. Guided Group Work
• Encourage flexibility in the organisation of the
curriculum and the structure of mathematics lessons
• Structure teaching and learning over sequences
of lessons as well as within lessons
• Raise expectations for all students, especially
those at greatest risk of underachievement
• Make more effective use of assessment to inform
and direct teaching and learning
• Broaden and strengthen pedagogy to improve
the quality of teaching and learning for all students.

51. Guided Group Work
What adjustments would you need to make to
your practice in order to know you are doing
guided group work?

52. Guided Group Work
• Reflect on some recent teaching and
assessment that you have done.
• Are there any students that you can
immediately think of who have a common
area of difficulty that may benefit from a
guided group approach?
• What would you hope to achieve from
working with the group?

53. Key elements of teaching approaches
Pupil perceptions
• Students appreciate teachers who value and appreciate
them as individuals
• Good discipline is important, but students need to
understand/recognise the need for it
• Students look for consistency of approach from a
teacher
• Students react positively when the teacher listens and
responds to their ideas rather than just assessing or
judging - this may involve being prepared to deviate
from the lesson plan

54. Being clear about learning purposes
and learning outcomes
• Be aware of differences among learners e.g. preferred
learning styles.
• Teaching styles should accommodate all learning styles by
providing opportunities to see the written word, to respond
physically etc.
• Be aware that students learn at different speeds, some
students will require much greater support and/or time in
completing tasks.
• Develop a sense of when it is appropriate to move on to the
next phase of teaching, when to stop and go back over
things, when to pause for consolidation, when to accelerate
the pace of learning.

55. Using different interactions to match
different purposes and outcomes
(informing, describing, explaining, modelling, demonstrating,
coaching, listening, watching, questioning)
• Allow time for students to be actively involved in their
learning, to rehearse new learning, to reflect, to do
something with their new learning, to make concrete links
between new and prior learning.
• Pay particular attention to opening and closing sessions: use
established but varying routines.
• Pull the class together at the start to motivate, enthuse,
clarify, focus.

56. Let’s do maths!
• Work in pairs at your own level
• Discuss strategies
• Share ideas
• What have you found out?

57. Using different interactions to match
different purposes and outcomes
• Make specific links between what has gone before and
how that fits into the ‘big picture’ - be clear on the
overall aims of the study
• Allocate some time at the close to ‘pull’ things together,
reiterating what has been learned, praising student
effort and achievement
• Memory maps for note taking. Use colour, bold images
and space on the page to enable learners to build up
their own unique way of making sense of the material.

58. Use flexible groupings
• Be clear about the appropriateness of group
work: the learning outcomes should
determine the method of working and will
include direct interactive teaching, whole
class, group and individual work
• Students should be encouraged to work
collaboratively and independently.

59. Working as a group
As a group, work through the story activities
• What helped the group to succeed?
• What didn’t help?

60. Skilful use of questions
• Use a variety of questions
• Offering alternative answers gives additional
listening input to the learners, gives time for
reflection and is useful in developing problem-
solving skills
• Use open questions
• Phrase ideas in straightforward language
appropriate to the level of the class
• Allow adequate thinking and answering time.

61. Reflection and discussion
• Which of the above approaches do you
recognise in your current classroom practice?
• Are there any approaches that you would
consider adopting to improve your current
classroom practice?
• What and why?

62. Preparing students
• The teacher needs to be familiar with the prior
learning/achievement of students
• Students should be clear about their learning needs
• They should also be aware of their own most effective
learning styles
• Work needs to be meaningful and relevant
• Students should be able to connect the work in hand
with a desired goal
• It may involve groups working collaboratively as part of
the process and students need the skills for this.

63. Independent Learning
Research suggests that people like to learn as follows:
• doing activities they want to do
• being actively involved in tasks
• getting good feedback
• having opportunities to reflect on what has been learned;
• working at their own pace
• having choice in where and when they work
• working in company with others, especially people engaged
in a similar process
• having a feeling of being in control of the situation.

64. Nature of independent learning work:
• students take more responsibility for their
learning
• students need to approach work in a
questioning manner and be actively involved
• the learning process can be as important as
the content
• the approach will be flexible and will offer
students choices.

65. Reflection and Discussion
• What elements of your current teaching
devolve responsibility for learning onto the
students?
• Are there opportunities for you to promote
independent learning activities in your
classroom?

66. Summary: SMART
Before you can use Assessment for Learning
you must be clear:
• on what the student is expected to learn
• on the steps the student undertakes to be
successful in their learning
• on the criteria which will be used to judge
success

67. Session 3
Planning to cater for different teaching
contexts and learning styles

68. What are Learning Styles?
There are three main aspects of how people
study:
• perceiving information
• processing information
• organising and presenting information.

69. Perceiving information
• Visual (sight)
• Auditory (hearing)
• Reading and
• Kinaesthetic (other sensations which
includes touch and temperature as well as
movement).

70. Processing information
You will have a natural preference for how you:
(a) grasp information
• do you prefer to deal with abstract concepts and
generalisations, or concrete, practical examples?
(b) order information
• would you rather receive facts in a logical, sequential way (to
build up a picture one step at a time), or with an overview
straight away (to show the big picture first, then the details)?
(c) engage with information
• do you prefer active experimentation or reflective observation?

71. Organising and presenting information
You will have a preference for how you:
• (a) organise information — with a holistic
overview, or with detailed and logical analysis
• (b) present information — verbally or using
images

72. How do you learn best?:Activity
• Practical activities which will allow only one
type of learning style
• Discussion. What made it hard for you. What
would have made it easier?
• Implications for the classroom

73. Advice for visual learners
• Use visual materials such as pictures, charts, and maps
• Use colour to highlight texts and own notes
• Take notes or use hand outs; look carefully at headings
and patterns of topics
• Brainstorm using illustrations, mind maps and models
• Use multi-media where possible (computers; mind
maps)
• Study in a quiet place away from visual disturbances
• Visualise information as a picture
• Skim-read to get an overview before reading in detail.

74. Advice for auditory learners
• Participate frequently in discussions and debates
• Make speeches and presentations
• Use a tape recorder if possible instead of (or as well as)
making notes
• Read text aloud
• Create musical jingles and mnemonics to aid memory
• Discuss your ideas verbally
• Dictate to someone else while they write your ideas down
• Speak onto an audio-tape and listen to your own ideas
played back.

75. Advice for tactile/kinaesthetic learners
• Take frequent study breaks
• Move around to learn new things
• Stand up to work
• Use bright colours to highlight reading
material and turn it into posters or models
• Skim-read before reading in detail.

76. Group dynamics - group processes

77. Forming:
• is when a group comes together for the first time.
The teacher can help by allowing introductions,
using ice-breaking tasks, and explaining the tasks
and purpose of the group.
Norming:
• Is when the group begins to share ideas, thoughts
and beliefs, and to develop group rules. The
teacher can help by clarifying ideas and ground
rules, encouraging the more reticent to participate
and moving the group towards its purpose.

78. Storming:
• is when the group is actively trying to carry out a task
and there may be conflict between one or more group
members as the group sorts itself out and becomes
more functional. The teacher can help by clarifying and
reflecting ideas, smoothing over and moderating
conflicts and acting as a go-between between
members.
Performing:
• is when the group focuses on the activity and starts to
work together as a team to perform the set tasks. The
teacher’s role is to keep the group focused and to
encourage and facilitate as necessary.

79. Teaching contexts
• Whole class
• Group work
• Individual work

80. Using different contexts and
differentiation
• Draw a large square:

81. Session 4
Target setting and leadership
Resources and practical ideas for using them
in the classroom

82. SESSION AIMS
• to explore and evaluate different ways of
marking and providing feedback
• to consider the role of marking and feedback
in assessment for learning
• to reflect on current practice.

83. Marking and feedback
• What kind of work do you mark?
• How do you mark?
• Who do you mark for?
• Why do you mark?
• What do you want to happen as a result of
your marking?

84. Assessment for learning focuses on
how learners learn and requires them
to know:
• where they are in their learning
• where they want to be
• how to get there.

85. What has
been done
well?
Target areas
to be
improved on
Ways
forward
Positive and
related to planning
learning objectives
Realistic Constructive
Teacher plans for how they will provide feedback…..
Developing feedback
Turning learners from ‘passive’ recipients into ‘active’ participants

86. Feedback is the central theme of
formative assessment
• Teacher to student
• Student to teacher
• Student to other students
• Oral, written, pictorial etc.

87. Feedback is the central theme of
formative assessment
The greatest motivational benefits come from
focussing feedback on:
• The qualities of the student’s work, and not on
comparison with other students
• Specific ways in which the student’s work could
be improved
• Improvements that the student has made
compared to his or her earlier work.

88. What are the advantages of oral
feedback?
• Immediate - able to deal with misconceptions as
they occur
• Dynamic and adaptable – allows for exchange of
ideas and is adaptable to respective learning needs
• On-going – a continuous and familiar part of a
lesson.
• Episodic – a lesson can be punctuated with plenary
moments to structure learning with reference to the
objectives

89. What are the advantages of oral
feedback?
• Stimulating – oral feedback can encourage,
enthuse and stimulate.
• Personalised – facial expressions and body
language enhance feedback.
• Versatile – questioning, modelling and explaining
can all be used as means of providing feedback.
• Motivating – learners like immediate oral feedback
and respond easily as the learning is fresh, and
quick improvements build a feeling of success.

90. Some characteristics of constructive
feedback include:
• focusing on the learning objectives selectively
• confirming that learners are on the right track
• stimulating the correction of errors or improvement of a
piece of work
• supporting learners’ next steps
• providing opportunities for learners to think things
through for themselves
• commenting on progress over a number of attempts
• avoiding comparisons with other learners
• providing learners with the opportunities to respond

91. Feedback in marking can include:
• annotations
• annotations plus a mark or grade
• annotations plus a mark or grade plus a comment
• annotations plus a comment.
Marking/feedback is only useful if:
• it is relevant to ‘how to get there’
• the information fed back is actually used by the
learner in making improvements.

92. "If you can both listen to children and
accept their answers not as things to
just be judged right or wrong but as
pieces of information which may reveal
what the child is thinking, you will have
taken a giant step toward becoming a
master teacher, rather than merely a
disseminator of information."
Easley & Zwoyer, 1975

93. Assessment for learning
• Whole class
• Group – peer assessment
• Individual- self assessment

94. Effective peer and self assessment
Key requirements in developing these skills:
• expected learning outcomes must be explicit and
transparent to students
• students need to be able to identify when they have
met some or all of the success criteria
• students need to be taught the skills of collaboration
in peer assessment
• students need to be able to assess their own
progress to become more independent learners.

95. Key features of self-evaluation
• The emphasis is on thinking and articulating,
not writing.
• Questions are easier to answer:
–after a short period of time
–if related to the learning intention
–if visually displayed
–if modelled first by the teacher.

96. Key features of self-evaluation
• Articulation can be by combining ideas, in
small groups or pairs.
• It cannot be systematic in accounting for each
child’s responses: it establishes a constant
feature of lessons.
• A range of questions displayed as a poster,
as a menu for the ends of lessons, broadens
the scope for analysis and raising self-
esteem.

97. Self-evaluation: thinking about what
happens when we are learning
• What did you find easy about learning to …?
• What are you most pleased with about learning to …?
• What really made you think/did you find difficult while
you were learning to …?
• What helped you when something got tricky about
learning to …?
• What do you need more help with about learning to
…?

98. Self-evaluation: thinking about what
happens when we are learning
• How would you do things differently next time now
you know what you know?
• What can you do now that you couldn’t do before?
• What have you learnt that is new about …?
• How do you think we can use what we’ve learnt today
and in the future?
• How would you change this activity for other students
who were learning to …?

99. Implications for teaching
To develop peer and self assessment teachers need to:
• train students over time to assess their work and the
work of others
• plan peer and self assessment opportunities in lessons
• explain the learning objectives and intended outcomes
behind each task
• guide students to identify their next steps
• frequently and consistently encourage students’
self-reflection on their learning
• plan opportunities and time to allow students to do it

100. Twenty ideas for formative assessment
1. Let’s compare notes
2. Wait a minute
3. Venn Diagram
4. Thinking diagram
5. Sequencing events
6. Plus – minus – interesting
7. One – sentence summary
8. One last question
9. What I still don’t understand is …
10. How do I know what I know?
11. The Mirror
12. The Microscope
13. Millipede
14. Is that a fact?
15. The exit ticket
16. Say it again!
17. Definitions
18. As I see it
19. 3-2-1 reflection
20. Priority

101. I can …
I know …
I understand

102. Assessing student progress
• Assessment is at the heart of an effective
curriculum and is a fundamental part of good
teaching and learning.
• It enables learners to recognise achievement
and make progress, and teachers to shape
and adapt their teaching to individual needs
and aspirations.

103. Assessing pupil progress:
• reduces reliance on specific assessment tasks and
tests at key transitions
• provides a common language for discussing
assessment
• recognises evidence from the full range of what
pupils know and can do
• provides a clear sense of whether pupils are able to
use the knowledge, skills and understanding they
have developed in different contexts

104. Assessing pupil progress:
• raises pupils’ expectations by clarifying their
achievements and next steps in learning
• informs teachers’ discussions about learning
with pupils and parents/carers.

105. 4 key principles
• the learner is at the heart of assessment
• assessment needs to provide a view of the
whole learner
• assessment is integral to teaching and
learning
• assessment includes reliable judgements
about how learners are doing in relation,
where appropriate, to national standards and
expectations.

106. As part of a school development
programme, AfL can:
• use what teachers know about their pupils to
improve their learning
• help learners understand their own learning
and where to go next
• give parents/carers better information about
their children’s progress.

107. Talking points
• When do you stand back and reflect on your
assessment practice and discuss changes
with your colleagues?
• How will you secure Assessing Pupil
Progress across your school/class and
manage the changes you want to see?

108. Talking points
• When Assessing Pupil Progress is working
well, what would you expect to see and hear:
– from pupils?
– in a learning context?
– in a curriculum meeting?
– in moderation meetings?
– in your leadership meetings?
– in parent–teacher communications?
• How will you evaluate the impact of it in your
school

109. When Assessment for Learning is working well,
what would you expect to see and hear:
• – from pupils?
• – in a learning context?
• – in a curriculum meeting?
• – in moderation meetings?
• – in your leadership meetings?
• – in parent–teacher communications?
• How will you evaluate the impact of AfL in your
school

110. More talking points
• How do you involve pupils actively in their own
assessment?
• If you are starting to use AfL, how can it help
develop your assessment practice to provide
pupils with more personalised learning
opportunities?
• If you have already implemented AfL in a school,
what impact on pupil performance have you
seen?

111. What next?
Guiding your thinking:
• consider what assessment in the future
should be like and how you want it to work in
your school
• plan what you need to do to get your staff,
pupils and parents/carers to meet this
aspiration.

112. Moving on whole school AfL
• review the aims of your whole school
assessment policy, what you want to achieve
for the school and your pupils and how you
will measure success.
• how will you evaluate the impact AfL is
having on improvements in the quality of
dialogue with parents/carers?

113. Impacting on pupils’ learning and
progress
Consider how you will evaluate the impact AfL
is having on:
• teachers’ curriculum planning and pedagogy
• pupils becoming more independent and
taking more responsibility for their learning
and their progress.

114. Summary
• every child knows how they are doing, and
understands what they need to do to improve and how
to get there.
• every child gets the support they need to be motivated,
independent learners on a journey of improvement
• every teacher is equipped to make well-founded
judgements about pupils’ attainment, understands the
concepts and principles of progression.
• every teacher know how to use their assessment
judgements to forward plan, particularly for pupils who
are not fulfilling their potential

115. Summary
• every school has in place structured and
systematic assessment systems for making regular,
useful, manageable and accurate assessments of
pupils, and for tracking their progress
• every parent and carer knows how their child is
doing, what they need to do to improve, and how
they can support the child and their teachers.

116. Good assessment for learning makes:
• an accurate assessment – knowing what the
standards are, judging pupils’ work correctly
• a fair assessment – knowing the methods used are
valid
• a reliable assessment – ensuring that judgements
are consistent and based on a range of evidence
• a useful assessment – identifying barriers to pupil
progress and using that information to plan and
discuss the next steps in learning.

117. Good assessment for learning makes:
• a focused assessment – identifying areas of a
child’s learning where there are blocks to
progression, which might, for example, benefit from
the attention of one-to-one tuition
• for continuity of assessment – enabling better
transfer between years and schools.

119. Reminders
• How to keep in touch…
• info@cie.org.uk
• For more information about future courses
please go to the training events calendar at
www.cie.org.uk