In 2016 the House of Commons Education Select Committee launched an inquiry into primary assessment, following the first set of end of key stage tests on the new national curriculum. Read the full report on the committee's findings(external link)
Among the recommendations are:
- longer lead-in times for changes to assessment and improved communication with schools;
- an independent review of the development process for tests;
- the Department for Education (DfE) and Standards and Testing Agency (STA) should publish plans to improve the test experience for pupils;
- the key stage 2 spelling, punctuation and grammar test should not be part of statutory assessment;
- the DfE should evaluate the reliability of teacher assessment judgements and their use in accountability;
- teachers should receive professional development training on effective assessment throughout their careers, with resources provided by the DfE;
- the DfE should provide more advice and guidance for schools on assessment systems;
- Ofsted should ensure that its inspectors consistently report on the full breadth of a school’s curriculum and explore alternative ways of using data in inspections;
- the DfE should change its performance tables so that key stage 2 results are reported as a rolling three-year average;
- the DfE should consider the wider impact of its proposal to measure progress from early years to key stage 2.
As previously reported in an earlier bulletin, the government has published a consultation on primary assessment which is due to close on 22 June. Any future government will respond to both the Select Committee report and the responses to the consultation.