Assessing the young people within our school is vital to ensure they are progressing appropriately and meeting the high expectations set.
Pupils’ work is marked and assessed on a regular basis in line with the School Policies on Assessment and Marking.
We use three computer based test systems appropriate to the age of the student.
The Centre for Evaluation and Monitoring at Durham University (CEM) is one of the largest independent providers of educational assessment and monitoring systems in the world, and the largest provider of computer-adaptive assessments outside the United States. Used in over 50 countries, their assessments measure the potential of over 1 million children and young people between the ages of 3-19 every year. Our Prep students undertake CEM testing but we also use it in the Senior School alongside Senior School specific computer adaptive testing.
Computer-adaptive assessments fit perfectly into a philosophy that seeks to assess each child as an individual, and they overcome some of the shortcomings of traditional methods.
These assessments generally begin with reasonably easy questions and then use the child’s responses to decide whether to progress to more challenging questions or to back off to easier ones. This means that the assessment is tailored to a child’s ability. Each individual is challenged at a level which is appropriate to them, resulting in an experience which is motivating and enjoyable.
There are no scripts to mark so teachers can access feedback quickly. This personalised assessment of each child gives a full profile of their strengths and areas to focus upon, which can be used to inform teaching and learning.
The system can help teachers identify an individual’s strengths and areas for development, spot high-fliers or those who may need additional support. The information is also used to inform decisions such as target setting.
