Teach Secondary Issue 13.6

THE TS GUIDE TO… ASSESSMENT This issue, we look at how schools can weigh up the valuable insights and feeback they get from assessment, with the levels of time and effort needed to make it work as it should 28 WHAT’S YOUR DATA TELLING YOU? Kit Betts-Masters explains how the stories told by your assessment data can lead to constructive learning conversations with your students 31 TOO MUCH INFORMATION Is it possible to assess students too often – and if so, how can you tell where the limit should be? 32 “JUST LIKE WE REHEARSED…” Mock exams are a standard part of every school’s GCSE preparations – but the closer you can get to simulating the real thing, the better, writes Ama Dickson…. INTHIS SECTION 27 IN FIGURES: HOWDOTEACHERS FEELABOUTTHE TIME THEY SPEND ON ASSESSMENTTASKS? 56% of teachers believe they spend too much time on recording, monitoring and analysing data relating to pupil performance 46% of teachers feel that they spend too much time on marking pupils’ work; 43% feel the amount of time they dedicate to the task is ‘about right’ 63% of senior leaders feel they spend about the right amount of time on data analysis tasks; 30% feel they spend too much Source: ‘Working lives of teachers and leaders 2023’ survey carried out by the DfE ACCESSREADINGTESTS / ACCESSMATHEMATICSTESTS Access Reading Tests (ART) and Access Mathematics Tests (AMT) are new standardised assessments fromHodder Education. Both assessments empower teachers to quickly and accurately benchmark and track student progress in KS3 maths and reading with parallel tests, enhanced reporting and optional intervention software. The assessments are incredibly flexible, and can be used at either end of interventions that span an academic year, a school term or other intense period of learning. Each set of parallel tests becomes increasingly demanding,matching the content students are expected to know in their respective school years. AMT and ART gather the data you need to target your teaching, understand your students, reduce your workload burden and improve learning outcomes. For more information, visit hoddereducation. com/assessment I N A S S O C I AT I O N W I T H I N A S S O C I AT I O N W I T H + TEACH SECONDARY SPECIAL ASSESSMENT 27 teachwire.net/secondary