22 October 2015
Dear Parents and Carers
SOME IMPORTANT CHANGES IN ASSESSMENT AND GRADING
You may be aware that certain elements of education are significantly changing at the
moment, and I would like to take this opportunity to update you on some of the key
changes that will affect students at Ormiston Denes Academy in the next year or two.
Some of these changes are complicated, so I am also running an information evening
for parents on Wednesday 4 November, at 5.30pm, in the Entrance Hall. At this
presentation, I will explain the changes in more detail, and answer any questions.
The key areas I would like to outline at the moment are a shift in how GCSE courses
will be graded, a change in the information and assessment that will be used to track
students through years 7 and 8, and a change to the accountability measures that will
be used to judge schools from the end of this year.
GCSE Course Grading
GCSE examinations have traditionally been graded on a scale from A*- G, with A*
being the best grade a student can receive. This is changing to a new scale from 9-1,
where 9 is the highest grade a student can achieve.
A*-G gives eight possible different grades, but 9-1 gives nine different grades, so the
old system does not map onto the new system in a simple way. Appendix A gives a
better idea about how to compare the new grades with the old ones. The bottom of a
current C grade will broadly match the bottom of the new 4 grade, and the bottom of
the current A grade will broadly match the new 7 grade.
From September 2016, all GCSE subjects will be graded using the new grades 9-1.
However, the new grading system is being introduced in Maths and English one year
before other subjects. That makes its introduction quite complicated, and different
year groups will see their results in different ways. This table summarises how your
child’s GCSE courses will be presented:
Year group
9 and below
10
11
How the grades will look
All grades at the end of year 11 will be on
the 9-1 scale, so a student will get a
numeric grade for every subject they take
(eg: Maths – 5, French – 7)
Students will receive English and Maths
grades on the 9-1 scale, and all other
subjects on the A* - G scale (eg: English –
6, Science – C)
All grades will be on the A* - G scale, so
each GCSE subject will have a traditional
grade, as we have used for many years
(eg: Science – B, Geography – A*)
To reflect this change, we have already started recording GCSE projected and target
grades on Go4Schools in the appropriate scales. Year 9 students will see that their
Maths and English targets and projected grades are numbers, rather than letters,
and to have a better understanding of what these numbers mean please refer to the
table in Appendix A.
Assessment in Years 7 and 8
At the moment, assessment in years 7 and 8 is measured in national curriculum
levels. A student might arrive from primary school, for example, with a maths score
of a high level 4 (4a). Progress over two years would move that student to a mid
level 6 (6b).
From September 2016, the government has decided to remove levels from the
national curriculum. This has two implications. Firstly, it means that when students
finish their primary school education they will not be assessed in the same way.
They will no longer be given a national curriculum level for reading, writing and
maths, but instead will be given a number which represents their overall ability, and
one which represents their overall progress. This will look very different to the
current system.
It also means that schools will need to find different ways of showing progress for
their students, and we are working hard to develop a system at the moment. We
will give more detailed information towards the end of the year, but at the moment
we favour a system that looks at how well a student has mastered a particular skill
area, and how this changes over time. You will become used to phrases like, “when
she arrived, Hannah’s skill in writing sentences was emerging, and now it is fully
developed.”
Changes to Accountability Measures
Every year, schools are held accountable for the results that their year 11 students
achieve. The main figure that most people use to judge schools is the proportion of
students who scored “five or more GCSEs at C grade or above, including English and
Maths.” Last year, this figure was 29% for the academy.
From next summer, this accountability measure will change. The most important
new measure is known as “Progress 8”, and you will hear about this in the press
over the next few months. Progress 8 is a measure of the progress shown by the
students as they move through a school. It reflects their best eight subjects (hence
Progress 8), with certain restrictions. Within the eight, all students will do Maths and
English, and must take three qualifications in Science, History, Geography,
Languages or Computer Science. This is to ensure that they have a broad and
balanced curriculum, to maximise their opportunities later in their lives. At Ormiston
Denes Academy, we are carefully ensuring that our curriculum model is carefully
constructed to give the best opportunities to our students.
The Progress 8 measure will be based on the amount of progress that an average
student makes between the end of their primary education and the end of their
secondary education. The implications for students are simple. For every single
grade they improve, in every single one of their best eight subjects, they will
improve their Progress 8 score. By carefully tracking the progress of our students
against expected target grades, we will continue to intervene where appropriate to
support our students towards the best outcomes.
One Final Note: Go4Schools
For those students or parents who have not yet signed up to the online data
assessment and tracking package, can I remind you that there is a guide on how to
log on for the first time on our academy website, under the “Parents and carers” tab.
Access to Go4Schools will give you up to date assessment and attendance
information on your child, as well as access to all the reports we have sent home.
If you would like to attend the information evening on Wednesday 4 November, at
5.30pm, in the Entrance Hall, can you please return the tear-off slip at the bottom of
this letter, indicating how many would like to come.
Thank you very much.
Yours sincerely
Mr A R Bown
Vice Principal
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Dear Mr Bown
I will be attending the Parents Information Evening on Wednesday 4 November at
5.30pm.
Childs Name: …………………………………………………………………. Tutor Group: …………
Signed: …………………………………………………………………………….. Parent/Carer