HMI Education 8-12 (1985)

Notes on the text
Preliminary pages Contents, Preface
Chapter 1 Introduction
Chapter 2 The content of the curriculum
Chapter 3 Personal and social education
Chapter 4 Provision for children with special needs
Chapter 5 Planning, assessment, continuity and liaison
Chapter 6 The management and organisation of the teaching
Chapter 7 The main characteristics of the schools
Chapter 8 Some issues for discussion
Appendices Inspection procedures, background to the schools, Statistical notes, HMI schedules
Index

A survey by HM Inspectors of Schools (1985)

London: Her Majesty's Stationery Office 1985
© Crown copyright material is reproduced with the permission of the Controller of HMSO and the Queen's Printer for Scotland.

Chapter 5 Planning, assessment, continuity and liaison
[pages 45 - 53]

PLANNING

5.1 General responsibility for the planning and coordination of the curriculum lay with the head in consultation with the governors. The responsibility for planning the work in particular subjects or areas of the curriculum was frequently delegated to other teachers. The teachers holding curricular responsibilities usually drew up schemes of work, often in consultation with the head and other teachers, and sometimes with local authority advisers.

5.2 Table 1 shows the number of schools with schemes of work for particular subjects, though not all the schools offered all the subjects listed. Schemes of work were most often provided for mathematics, English, science, geography and history, though the last two or three subjects were sometimes included in a social studies, humanities, or environmental studies programme. Schemes of work for religious education, music, physical education, art and design, and needlecrafts had been drawn up in about half the schools. For French, health education, craft design and technology and home studies schemes of work were provided in about a quarter of the schools.

5.3 There was considerable variety in the quality of the schemes. Some did little more than list content as topic headings, or set out chapter headings from textbooks. Others stated aims and objectives, listed content and available resources, suggested forms of organisation and gave the skills and concepts to be acquired, indicating stages of progression which took account of different ability levels.

5.4 The extent to which the schemes influenced the work undertaken also varied considerably. Schemes were most often effectively prepared and used where there were opportunities for staff discussion, and advice from the teacher with special responsibility for the subject was provided. This illustrates the need for such teachers to be given adequate time and opportunity to draw up schemes, to consult with teachers who will be using them, and to evaluate the schemes by observing the teaching programmes which result from them. Some schools took commercially produced materials for English and mathematics to be the only guidelines necessary to support their work. A significant association between the quality of the schemes of work and that of the pupils' work was found in art and design, history, geography, science, music, physical education and needlecrafts. (1)

ASSESSMENT AND RECORD KEEPING

5.5 The most frequently used forms of assessment were careful observation of activities and the marking of work produced by the children. Formal procedures such as the use of standardised tests or class/school examinations were also employed in most of the schools at least once a year. Assessment was usually undertaken to gauge children's levels of achievement, but it was not often used as an indicator of the need to change or adapt programmes of work.

5.6 Schools gave particular attention to assessing children's performance in English, especially reading. Nearly all the schools tested children's reading performance annually or biennially, often through the use of standardised, graded-word or sentence completion tests, which provided limited information about the children's progress. Reading tests were often used to indicate which children were in need of remedial help, notably where LEA screening occurred. Individual teachers usually kept detailed records of the stage reached by a child in the reading scheme, but records about children's personal reading were comparatively rare. The marking of written work was generally conscientious and supportive, but was rarely used to analyse errors or to plan work to overcome them. There was an emphasis on the correction of spelling and punctuation but comments which indicated an appreciation of content and meaning were relatively rare. Records of children's progress in English were maintained by the school and usually consisted of test score results set alongside the comments of the teachers.

5.7 In mathematics nearly all the schools undertook some form of assessment which involved formal testing procedures. Some teachers used tests of their own devising, others used standardised tests or those incorporated within a commercial scheme, and many schools used a combination of these procedures. The analysis of individual learning difficulties was much less prevalent, though in some schools this was attempted at the time when pupils' work was marked. The results of various tests were used to record levels of achievement as a basis for setting arrangements, for forming remedial groups and for providing information on transfer to the upper school. In the majority of the schools marking was thorough and sometimes it was supported by helpful comments. In just under half the schools where records were kept, they were little more than a list of test scores. Elsewhere, marks together with teacher comment formed the record, and in about a quarter of the schools this was supplemented by information which indicated a pupil's development across a range of concepts and skills.

5.8 The assessment of competence in French was generally confined to a termly or yearly grade based on the teacher's impression of a given pupil's achievement. Seven schools used tests devised within the LEA to assess pupils at the end of the middle school course, while in at least one authority graded tests for various levels had been drawn up by teachers and the modern language adviser. In over two thirds of the schools where French was taught no separate records were kept of pupils' progress in reading, writing and speaking French.

5.9 Only a small proportion of the schools assessed work or recorded children's progress in practical subjects such as art, needlecrafts and craft, design and technology. Where such assessments occurred they were seldom on the basis of criteria relating to skills and design. In a few schools the teachers had valuable discussions with pupils when grading pieces of work; in most schools the purpose and value of assessing practical work had not been fully clarified.

5.10 In about three quarters of the schools the main form of assessment in science was the marking of the work that was recorded in the pupils' books. In most instances the marking was predominantly concerned with such items as spelling, grammar and neatness of drawing, rather than with an assessment of scientific understanding and competence.

5.11 In PE much of the assessment occurred during the lessons and two thirds of the schools kept some written records, including brief comments or grades about the pupils' performance. A few of the schools noted individual athletic, gymnastic or swimming achievements on the pupils' records.

5.12 In humanities the teachers usually gave the pupils' work a numerical or literal grade and sometimes added a written comment, but this was rarely concerned with the acquisition of particular skills and knowledge relevant to this aspect of the topics. Where records were kept they were frequently confined to a statement of topics covered.

5.13 In summary, assessment and record keeping were given high priority in mathematics and reading. Elsewhere assessment and written records of children's progress were much less systematic. While recognising that continuous assessment is an integral part of teaching there remains an urgent need to relate it much more closely to the aims and objectives of the particular area of the curriculum. In particular, there is a need to introduce policies and practices which enable assessments to be made of the children's levels of understanding and which help the teachers to adapt the programmes of work when necessary.

CONTINUITY AND LIAISON

5.14 Almost all the schools gave some time and effort to developing links between first, middle and upper schools, in an attempt to aid continuity and ease the transfer of children between the stages of the system. The extent to which liaison was achieved varied considerably depending on the priority and time heads and teachers were able to give to this activity, the initiative and support provided by local authorities, and the number and proximity of the schools involved. Table 2 gives details of the number of schools involved in transfer arrangements between first and middle stages. Table 3 gives similar information about the transfer to upper schools. More than a third of the schools transferred pupils to six or more upper schools.

Liaison with first schools

5.15 Nearly all the first schools arranged for their children to make an introductory visit to the middle school prior to transfer. Often the middle school teachers involved with the work of first year [now Year 4] pupils visited the first school to exchange information. It was common practice for the first schools to complete and pass on the local authority record card, supplemented by the school's own records and sometimes incorporating examples of the children's work. Particular care was usually taken to discuss the needs of children with learning or behavioural difficulties.

5.16 Table 4 indicates the number of schools where the head reported that teachers consulted with first school staff about the various areas of the curriculum. Approximately half the schools had engaged in discussions about mathematics, English and remedial work. Consultation about other subjects or areas of the curriculum was comparatively rare. In mathematics just over one third of pupils in the 8 to 12 age range used the same course book or text as the contributory first school or 5 to 8 classes in a combined school, but in just under half the schools the teachers had little detailed knowledge of the mathematics programme followed in the earlier years. In English the most frequently transferred piece of information was a reading test score, though sometimes first year [now Year 4] leaders had discussions about the reading programme with first school teachers.

5.17 In addition the first and middle schools were concerned to pass on information about the personal and social development of pupils. Generally, there is a need for schools to liaise more effectively about other subjects in addition to mathematics and English and to exchange schemes of work, so that there can be mutual understanding about curriculum content, method and organisation. The information provided on individual record cards could then be more fully understood and interpreted, and continuity improved for the children.

Liaison with other middle schools

5.18 Links with other middle schools are valuable particularly, but not only, where a number of middle schools send pupils to the same upper school. Table 5 gives information about the number of schools engaging in consultation with other middle schools about particular subjects or areas of the curriculum. Over half the 43 schools which offered French had some liaison in this subject with other middle schools. Sometimes meetings were initiated by an LEA adviser and in the most effective cases meetings occurred regularly, eg termly. In science, where contacts took place in rather less than half the schools, LEA initiatives had been helpful in several instances. Liaison between middle schools was facilitated by the setting up of 'pyramid' meetings involving the teachers from an upper school and all the contributory first and middle schools; by local authority meetings and in-service courses; and by the drawing up of LEA guidelines for particular subjects, eg 'science in the middle years'. As well as the advantages gained from discussion about the curriculum, schools benefited from establishing inter-school competitions and clubs, and sharing resources and equipment.

Liaison with upper schools

5.19 Table 6 suggests that the combined and middle schools had a slightly higher degree of contact about the curriculum with upper schools than they did with other middle or first schools. Nearly ail the middle school pupils made introductory visits to upper schools prior to transfer. In most cases the upper school teachers, particularly those with responsibility for the first year [now Year 8] pupils, visited the middle schools to talk to pupils before they were transferred.

5.20 There were few examples reported where curricular liaison was well developed and had been sustained. Table 6 shows that science, mathematics, French, remedial work, and English were the aspects of the work which most often involved liaison with upper schools. In science, the liaison usually involved at least one of a number of activities such as 'pyramid' meetings, staff discussions, and the sharing of apparatus and equipment. Similar activities occurred for mathematics, together with discussions about testing procedures at the time of transfer and the use of a common scheme of work for both stages. 17 of the middle schools used the same published mathematics scheme as that used in the upper schools to which most of their children transferred. In French, the liaison often included meetings of the teachers from groups of schools, sometimes involving an LEA adviser. These meetings often focused on course books, syllabus content, testing procedures and levels of attainment. Liaison for pupils in need of remedial help in English and mathematics ranged from the giving of information on the LEA record card, to joint meetings of teachers to discuss individual children and the programme of work in reading, language and mathematics. There was liaison for other aspects of the curriculum in only a minority of the schools. In general, the middle schools needed to give much greater attention to securing the continuity of teaching and learning across the range of the curriculum for pupils transferring to upper schools.

Table 1 The number of schools with schemes of work for particular subjects

Table 2 The number of schools receiving children from various numbers of first schools by size of middle or combined school

Table 3 Number of middle and combined schools transferring children to various numbers of upper schools by size of middle or combined school

Table 4 Number of schools with teachers engaging in consultation with those in first schools by subject

Table 5 Number of schools with teachers engaging in consultation with those in other middle schools -by subject

Table 6 Number of schools with teachers engaging in consultation with those in upper schools by subject

Footnotes

(1) The association reported here relates to those subjects where Kendall's rank correlation coefficients exceeded 0.3. (See Appendix 3, paragraph 12, Table 18).