Guest Posted July 5, 2005 Posted July 5, 2005 Hi. I have been asked to assess my children against the NC attainment targets for Re (amongst others. Profile apparently too much to look through!) Where should they be? They look around AT1 1,2 and possibly 3, but in AT2 only 1. eg. AT1 Level 1 Pupils recount outlines of religious stories (1). They recognise features of religious life and practice, (2) and some religious symbols and words (3). and AT2 Level 1 They identify aspects of their own experience and feelings (1). Does that sound right? It's only basic RE in Reception. Is anybody else doing this? Why am i doing the profile if no-one is going to look at it!!
AnonyMouse_3307 Posted July 5, 2005 Posted July 5, 2005 Well for one you're doing the profile because it's statutory and I would get that message shouted loud and clear to your management team. It's utterly ridiculous that you are being asked to do over and above the statutory expectations of a reception teacher, which is to assess against the 13 scales not the NC. It's the responsibilty of the coordinators in a school to understand ALL the statutory assessments that are made and to be able to know what they tell you about individuals, cohorts and groups. Can you get hold of "Continuing the learning journey" , give it to your head and ask them (politely) to read it and then discuss the information in it with you? It might be a start? (Situations like this make my blood boil)
AnonyMouse_3307 Posted July 5, 2005 Posted July 5, 2005 oh, and do you have a FS advisor/consultant/link you can contact??
Guest Posted July 5, 2005 Posted July 5, 2005 We have no FS coordinator and all this was in place before i got there, i seem to be repeating everything. I think its just so the year 1 teacher can just look at these class sheets instead of twenty odd profiles. Very annoying... Gonna enquire with an AST who's coming to see me tomorrow as part of my NQT year.
AnonyMouse_79 Posted July 5, 2005 Posted July 5, 2005 Buttonmoon, as Catma says you shouldnt be doing this. If necessary give the appropriate person the details of the relevant goals by photocopying the appropriate pages from the curriculum document (RE is in K &U, as Im sure you are aware!) and indicate the childrens attainment as you have done re the profile. Good luck.
AnonyMouse_2760 Posted July 5, 2005 Posted July 5, 2005 I have had this conversation with someone only just today! I would agree wholeheartedly with Catmas advice.
AnonyMouse_832 Posted July 5, 2005 Posted July 5, 2005 Or get hold of a copy of "Making links - Supporting Transition from the Foundation Stage into key Stage 1" produced by BASS in Birmingham and they can look it up themselves!!! (This was referred to somewhere else - I can't remember where though?) The booklet shows you how the stepping stones and early learning goals link. Sue
AnonyMouse_832 Posted July 5, 2005 Posted July 5, 2005 Sorry I meant link to the National Curriculum!! Sue
AnonyMouse_2776 Posted July 5, 2005 Posted July 5, 2005 I hope this is useful... Green_SS__ELG_and_NC_Y1.doc
Steve Posted July 6, 2005 Posted July 6, 2005 That looks very interesting smiley, thanks very much - is it your own creation?
AnonyMouse_2776 Posted July 6, 2005 Posted July 6, 2005 No, Steve. If I am not wrong... I got it here, in the forum... but I don't recall who was the person who shared it with us or who gave the web link. Have a nice summer !
AnonyMouse_73 Posted July 6, 2005 Posted July 6, 2005 well thasnk for bringing in to our attention again, and it certianly look s very useful.
AnonyMouse_3307 Posted July 6, 2005 Posted July 6, 2005 I think I got this from here ut maybe not. Anyway it was ages ago so apologies if you recognise it!! This format has proved very popular with Y1 teachers who came on the transition training I did, who say they can see the profile points attained, get an idea of the class overview and would use it!! Smiley, I saw this the other day and have shown my KS1 consultant colleague. She thinks it is very useful too. (And what she doesn't know about good transition/Y1 practice you could write on a postage stamp!!!!)
AnonyMouse_3307 Posted July 6, 2005 Posted July 6, 2005 I must also say, that I wouldn't even be trying to give NC equivalents to the profile information - it's statutory, it's what should be used and until everyone else wakes up to this fact we will be continually be completing meaningless exercises every year just to make other colleagues feel secure and not have to bother to engage their brains with the FSP. (And I usually try to avoid "us and them" scenarios but this makes me MAD). The rest of the primary phases have a professional responsibuility to know what it all means and it's their JOB. I sat with a team the other day and they had levelled all their children as required by the school. Guess where they were - Yes -W all the way. So I said, well what profile points did they get, and Lo, suddenly we were having a real conversation about progress and attainment and what were the next steps and who was stronger than who etc etc. Far more meaningful than W. Ha! Got that off my chest.
Guest Posted July 6, 2005 Posted July 6, 2005 Thanks for the help guys. All i've got to do is 3 ticks sheets which i think are pointless but seeings as they will only take me about half an hour i do it to please the year 1 teacher. We are passing "Continuing the learning journey" around so everybody can find out what we are doing... don't know if they're actually bothering to read it though.
AnonyMouse_1195 Posted July 6, 2005 Posted July 6, 2005 All makes my blood boil too as I have to do PIVATS fro my children now that I have competed my profiles and reports. what a waste of my time when I have already spent hours on obs and assessment. I have produced documentation to prove that I should not be doing P levels but i still have to do them. Several evenings work ahead of me now. took me 2 hours tonight to do reading and writing and I have 7 more areas to do yet!!!
AnonyMouse_3307 Posted July 7, 2005 Posted July 7, 2005 if you go to the strategy website and follow links to foundation stage there are some FAQ.s for the FSP. I'm pretty sure ther it clearly states no P levels....might strengthen your argument. Any link inspector or the like you can talk to?
AnonyMouse_1195 Posted July 7, 2005 Posted July 7, 2005 I have presented a copy of the FAQs to no avail. So more of my own time used for something that is not statutory!! I am going to add up the hours I spend and put this in writing now. i have mentioned this to my advisor but nothing much ha happnd since although she has been into school. i suppose they can onloy say so much.
Guest Posted July 10, 2005 Posted July 10, 2005 Hi there - could I clarify the situation as regards RE in the Foundation stage. I am an RE specialist and FS teacher and have been supporting my LEA in reviewing their Locally Agreed Syallbus for RE. Firstly RE is only statutory for pupils registered on the school roll. That is those in Reception classes. It is not therefore statutory for nursery children although best practice would indicate that elements of RE can be well taught at this age. RE is delivered in accordance with a Locally Agreed syllabus which is the statutory requirement. This differs in faith schools. Therefore the requirements of a Locally Agreed syllabus provide the statutory element for RE. Several years ago I emailed Lesley Staggs regarding this issue and she said that local SACRE's should begin to reflect the requirements of what was then the new 'Curriculum Guidance for the Foundation stage'. most authorities will have this processes underway by now. Recently we have seen the arrival of Non statutory guidance for RE and The Non statutory national framework for RE. In some authorities this will form the basis for their Agreed Syllabuses. This is where the levels for RE will have originated from. In terms of assessment you need to consult your authority's Agreed syllabus. In our review we have made no requirement to go beyond the FSP - but some authorities may have. I would feel that it is entirely possible that some children at the end of the Reception year would be beginning to achieve level 1 statements but unless this is required by your Locally Agreed Syllabus it is not statutory. I hope this clarifies the situation for you as regards RE I think all of us in FS are under pressure to adopt other assessment strategies used throughout school and I for one have been resisting them!
AnonyMouse_2776 Posted July 10, 2005 Posted July 10, 2005 Boy... I think that is why Reception is like the ham/cheese of the sandwich... it is just stuck in the middle of the problem. Why do we have to work with '2' curriculums? Isn't the FS Curriculum what is statutory? Reception gives the 'finishing' touch to the FS. Then why are people still working with the old Reception curriculum... more within the NC? It is time that the government and it's agencies clear themselves up!
AnonyMouse_3307 Posted July 11, 2005 Posted July 11, 2005 But I think the problem can often lie in schools - the message at regional trainings for FS advisors etc is quite clear, the advice you can find on the strategy website and the like is fairly unequivocal, the FSP is the statutory assessment. (I'ld forgotten that RE does have slightly different status and for example in the church schools I support wouldn't mess with their RE lessons, but have never been asked to do an alternative RE assessment linked to the locally agreed syllabus). However mainly it's the insistence of heads/coordinators and the like in schools that want NC equivalent numbers. This is the culture that has to change and it won't if it is not challenged at grass roots, but with reasonable alternatives that leaders of schools can use to do their job too. heads etc have to demonstrate progress is made. So do we too in our performance management and similar - and I think often the FSP has been mystified by the FS. Instead of engaging in this debate it's been more of "noone understands it, why do I do it" (and don't get me wrong -I've been there too) which hasn't helped. Now at least a general dialogue has been started and the new training materials provided for schools and settings can be a powerful tool if used wisely. Getting to use the FSP better in schools is, I believe a two way process that we can help inform.
Guest Posted July 21, 2005 Posted July 21, 2005 I read your post a few days ago and have been trying to find the electronic version of the progression grids derbyshire have produced which link stepping stones, ELGs and level 1 and level 2 descripters for all the areas of learning. I haven't found one yet but when i have i will post it. I have used them with my Year 1 collegue to group and level the children for next year. We did this in groups rather than individually as she didn't want piles of paper.
AnonyMouse_79 Posted July 21, 2005 Posted July 21, 2005 That sounds really interesting, verityn, if you can locate it.
Recommended Posts