Indicate your knowledge of the range of assessment processes available to teachers in your phase and subject. Evaluate the contribution that each assessment method makes to continuity and progression of pupil learning in your Secondary PE

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Mark Anderson

The Coventry Blue Coat CE School

GTP Assignment 2 Secondary

“Indicate your knowledge of the range of assessment processes available to teachers in your phase and subject. Evaluate the contribution that each assessment method makes to continuity and progression of pupil learning in your Secondary PE”

Date: 18 / 01 / 2007

Assessment is one of the most discussed issues in education, with numerous parties involved in its delivery and effectiveness, from pupils and teachers to parents and schools (Teaching 2006). Assessment within education has been criticised as having a ‘one size fits all’ approach, but the government has moved its assessment focus to a more personalised learning approach with its work on Assessment for Learning (AfL) (Prestage 2006). AfL has been defined as:

The process of seeking and interpreting evidence for use by learners and their teachers to decide where the learners are in their learning, where they need to go and how best to get there. (Assessment Reform Group 2002)

This move was as a result of the key document, ‘Inside the Black Box’, by Paul Black and Dylan William (1998, cited Assessment Reform Group 1999). The review concluded that the use of assessment for learning within education can effectively raise attainment (Black and William 1998, cited in Assessment Reform Group 1999). The Assessment Reform Group (ARG) (2002) argue that the research gained from ‘Inside the Black box’ is central to the teaching and learning process.

This assignment will firstly address my experience of assessment from my teaching practice. Having addressed my own experience, I will discuss the literature on assessment and evaluate how assessment contributes to planning, pupil learning and motivation.

I will firstly discuss my involvement with assessment in my teaching at Blue Coat School. The teaching that I have undertaken has been at Key Stages 3, 4 and 5 in Physical Education (PE). I have taught years 7, 8, 9 and 10 core PE and have had a role within delivering GCSE and A-Level PE. This has been at different capacities from observing lessons, to team teaching and solely delivering lessons across all key stages. Through this experience, I have established that assessment is a multidimensional concept that cannot be merely categorised as a single area of education. Before beginning my teaching practice my perception of assessment was just identifying the national curriculum levels of pupils at different stages of their school career. I now have an appreciation that, although national curriculum levels are an integral contribution to assessment, they are only a single aspect of the assessment process. I have identified two sub categories of assessment that I have experienced through my teaching across key stages as being, informal and formal assessment. My experience in these two areas of assessment will now be discussed.

Informal Assessment

My teaching experience has shown me that assessment is an ongoing process, that, as a teacher you need to be aware of and attend to for a multitude of reasons. Therefore, informal assessment by way of continuously assessing both individual and groups of pupils has driven much of my teaching practice. For example, in all of the practical lessons that I have taught or been involved in teaching, I have used informal assessment to drive the delivery of my lessons.

With mixed ability groups, differentiation is fundamental in providing an effective learning experience for each pupil. Therefore, assessing the ability and progress of pupils is essential for distinguishing between pupils’ abilities that have been categorised as those pupils who are able and gifted, those pupils who have average attainment, and those pupils with learning difficulties (Teaching in England 2006). For example, a lesson that I delivered to a year 7 class in Tag Rugby focused on a 2 v 1 attacker versus defender scenario, where I began with instructing defenders to be static. For those more able, I increased the role of the defender to be able to run sideways and those able and gifted, I allowed the defender to run freely. For me to be able to ascertain which groups of pupils suited which of the above progressions in the lesson, I was required to assess pupil ability within the groups when the task was first set. This was achieved by observing the ability of each group and assessing their level of competence. Without the use of this informal assessment, the differentiation planned for this lesson would not have been possible. Assessment also allowed me to continually use relevant feedback to assist the pupils in their learning.

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Another example of how I have used informal assessment is in selecting teams in games during lessons. This is particularly important when formally assessing pupils as it allows a fair game with pupils having the opportunity to perform to their potential. The informal assessment takes place by assessing pupil’s ability in lessons leading up to formal assessment and I then select the teams according to pupil ability.

Formal Assessment

Formal assessment has been an integral part of my development and has been a particular area of recent development in my teaching practice. I have undertaken formal assessment for ...

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