Assessment is integral to ensuring that pupils progress successfully through the currciulum. In all lessons, staff will be continually checking on how well pupils have understood and retained important knowledge and concepts and intervening where neccessary. 

Pupils will also be prepared for more substantial summative assessments, three times a year. Parents and pupils will be informed about this and issued with an assessment calendar and an outline of assessments requirements each year.

As additional support, in key stage 4, when pupils are preparing for formal mock examinations they will receive detailed revision booklets to help them prepare  and plan their home study successfully for these important assessments. 

The assessment principles we adhere to at Blessed Trinity are outlined below:

Assessment principles 2022-23.

Purpose of Assessment

• To know how well pupils are learning
• To know how well curricular intent is being implemented and, hence, to support curriculum improvement
• To support whole school improvement

What should be measured in subjects?

• Subject assessment should measure progress against the substantive and disciplinary knowledge/skills specified in learning plans and SoW
• All subjects should provide an assessment overview for each year/key stage
• Data from assessments should be analysed in a timely manner to support pupil progress as well as curriculum development

Validity and Reliability of assessment and data

• All subjects should ensure that the curriculum is knowledge-rich
• Assessments should be cumulative and build to cover all content taught from the start of the academic year
• All teachers teach the knowledge that has been specified in the learning plans and SoW, using the pedagogy agreed by the subject team
• Questions are not shared with teachers and pupils before any assessment
• Assessments and their delivery must allow fair access for all pupils

Assessment schedule

• All teachers implement retrieval practice in lessons and employ swift, effective feedback techniques on key class work and homework tasks
• KS3 pupils complete 3 summative assessments per year during assessment fortnight
• KS4 pupils complete 3 summative assessments per year which will include mock examinations

What subjects should do after an assessment

• If evidence from assessments show that all pupils have learnt the specified endpoints, they should be taught the next knowledge in the sequence
• If a small number of pupils have not learnt the curriculum, subject leaders should share a plan to improve their knowledge with SLT
• If the majority of pupils have not learnt the curriculum, subject leaders should share a plan of how the curriculum will be retaught and assessed