Telephone: 01202 876 556
office@fernmid.dorset.sch.uk
Ferndown Middle School
Peter Grant Way Ferndown Dorset BH22 9UP

Assessment

Pupils no longer have to be taught and assessed against the traditional levels. The National Curriculum has changed and this has given us a greater opportunity to create a system that is right for our pupils.

The new curriculum changes require a greater depth of thinking and evidence of application of the skills and knowledge. All year groups for each subject have objectives that have to be covered. Within the objectives for each year group, there are essential key performance indicators (KPIs) that all pupils have to meet, this is called ‘age related expectations’ (ARE). For English and maths the report is broken down into different strands to enable the parent and child to be able to identify strengths and areas for improvement.

The vast majority of pupils will meet ARE, a few will be working towards ARE and some will be above ARE. To make the assessment judgement, teachers will use classwork, homework and some test data. Moderation of work will be completed regularly within year groups, across year groups and across schools to ensure consistency of results.

Parents will receive interim reports 3 times a year.  The interim reports show whether your child is ‘working towards’ ‘working at’ or ‘working above’ age related expectation (ARE). This will be alongside information showing effort, attendance and progress.

Understanding Assessment at Ferndown Middle School