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Thank you to Deputy Headteacher Michael Tidd for this article. 

As promised, this week Justine Greening announced some changes to Primary Assessment, after the department reflected on the process earlier this year. The changes fall in three main parts: the coasting standard; assessment for lower-attaining pupils; and plans for reform of assessment more generally. Hopefully this will mean that in the next couple of years, schools can be fairly confident of what’s coming up. Consultations will begin in the new academic year about what changes should be made in the longer term.

Assessment in 2017 and 2018… and beyond

The general message here is that there will be relatively little change over the next two years. The Early Years Foundation Stage Profile will continue to be used, as will the current style of KS1 and KS2 tests and Teacher Assessment. The only exception is that the Key Stage 1 Grammar and Spelling test will not be compulsory.

This will mean no new times tables test in Year 6, no phonics check in Year 3, and no new Year 7 resit tests at least for the next couple of years.

It also means that schools will continue to use the “interim” assessment frameworks for Teacher Assessment for the next two years. The department has clearly recognised the challenges presented this year, and has said that additional guidance will be available for 2017, as well as statutory moderation training for Local Authority moderators.

This broad consistency will be welcomed by many in the interim, but it is clear that the department still feels there are areas that could still be improved. We can apparently expect a consultation in the spring term about any alterations to be made in the longer term.

The Department for Education has confirmed the definition for 'coasting' schools on p.8 of the Primary School Accountability document, as shown below.

The DfE has published the final report for the Rochford review.

The final report’s recommendations include:

• the removal of the statutory requirement to assess pupils with SEND who are working below the standard using performance scales (P scales)

Justine Greening has released a statement on primary education which outlines a number of decisions and initiatives that will be taken forward by the Department for Education over this academic year and beyond. Here's a quick summary of the key information.

Ofsted's Chief Inspector, Sir Michael Wilshaw, has written a commentary on high performing multi-academy trusts and what they have in common. Here's a brief summary of the key points.

In summer 2016, Classroom Monitor launched a National Primary Assessment Survey to find out how schools have adapted to a world free from levels.

What’s included?

The whitepaper includes findings in the following areas.

• Post levels life: How many schools continue to record assessment against National Curriculum Levels?
• Personalised v Specialist Solution: How many schools are choosing to create their own framework against those using an off the shelf solution, and how do each rate their success?
• The way assessment is recorded: Do schools consider a specialist solution worth the time and money? Or are schools better off sticking to traditional means of recording assessment?
  

Provisional information about the 2016 phonics screening check and assessments at KS1 has been released from the DfE, including breakdowns by pupil characteristics.

The ‘Test orders’ section of the NCA tools website will open later than in previous years, on Monday 31 October. Schools should place an order if they have pupils who will require modified versions of the key stage 1 (KS1) or key stage 2 (KS2) test materials.