How will I know how my child is doing at school?

There are a number of ways in which teachers assess your child’s potential and progress. The school will regularly tell you how your child is doing. If you have any concerns, you can also contact the school and ask for a meeting. All schools have parents’ evenings where you meet your child’s teachers. At the end of each year you will receive a report which tells you what your child has achieved and what he/she needs to do to progress further.

If your child is in the reception class at primary school, the report will cover development in the six areas of learning for the Foundation Stage. These are:

From Year 1 (age 5 and 6) the report will have comments on English, mathematics, science, information and communications technology (ICT), religious education, art, design and technology, geography, history, music and physical education These are all subjects of the National Curriculum.

From Year 5 (age 9 and 10) to Year 9 (age 13 and 14) the report will have comments on English, mathematics, science, information and communications technology (ICT), religious education, art, design and technology, geography, history, music, physical education, citizenship and modern foreign languages (which will be commented on from Year 7 or earlier if the middle school teaches the subject in Years 5 or 6). These are all subjects of the National Curriculum.

From Year 10 (age 14 and 15) to Year 13 (age 18 and 19) the report will have comments on each of the subjects your child is studying.

Many schools will also send you progress statements during the year.

To help you and your child know how their learning is progressing, and to help your child’s teachers in their planning, your child’s work will be regularly assessed.

Primary schools will gather together information about children as they enter into the reception class. The information may come from parents or carers, and from a pre-school or nursery class. The teacher will match this information with observations of each child as they work and play to ensure that activities and learning opportunities are appropriate. At the end of the reception year the teacher is required to draw together the outcomes of these observations in a Foundation Stage Profile, which will refer to the early learning goals for children of this age.

National Curriculum Assessment for seven year olds (Year 2 Primary School)

During Year 2 your child will undertake a number of national tasks in reading, writing, spelling and mathematics. These will be assessed by your child’s teacher and, together with other assessments of their work, will contribute to the formal National Curriculum Assessment level reported to you at the end of Year 2. These tasks are based on the work your child will be doing and are not a formal examination-type test. Many schools hold parents’ meetings to explain this process and the tasks to parents. If your child is meeting their age expectation at this stage of the National Curriculum they should achieve a level 2b or higher

National Curriculum Assessment for Years 6 and 9

National Curriculum tests and tasks take place for:

These are national tests and tasks in reading, writing, spelling, mathematics and science (these are a more formal test).

Many schools hold parents’ meetings to explain the tests to parents. If your child is meeting the standard expected at this stage of the National Curriculum, they should score a level 4 or higher for 11 year olds (Year 6), and a level 5 or higher for 14 year olds (Year 9).

Year 11 through to Year 13

From Year 11 (age 15 and 16) through to Year 13 (age 18and 19) your child will take a range of formal GCSE, AS level, A level or vocational examinations. These examinations will be related to the subject choices they made towards the end of Year 9 and in year 11 before they started sixth form.

CATS

All Island schools use ‘Cognitive Abilities Tests’ (CATS) and reading-age tests in Year 3 of primary school, Years 5 and 7 of middle school, and Year 9 in high school. These tests help teachers to identify your child’s potential and set expectations for their achievements. They also help identify areas where your child may need specific support to help them achieve their full potential.