The why, what and how of assessment – Primary

SSAT has long advocated a principled approach to the design of both the curriculum and assessment.

We welcome Ofsted’s focus on the quality of education which not only focuses on the curriculum but also the use of assessment in ensuring teaching matches the student’s prior knowledge and allows small steps of progress and mastery to be celebrated.

Within education, we assess for a wide range of reasons to provide a holistic picture of pupils’ achievements. Across the whole curriculum, we use assessment to find out what pupils already know, what they have learned and to identify next steps.

This resource has been produced in collaboration with SSAT’s Primary and SEND steering groups. It does not attempt to tell you how to assess rather it asks questions that you need to ask and be confident of answering. It is closely linked to the Professional Practice strand within SSAT’s Framework for Exceptional Education. We recommend that you work through the questions initially as a senior team and then in discussion with your whole staff, your learners, their parents/carers, governors/trustees and all other stakeholders.

Highlight any areas you identify that you need to consider further and use these as the basis for the ongoing review of your assessment policies and procedures.