1 Marking for Improvement Presented by: Mrs G Duffy, Vice Principal Self Evaluation

Focus: An Aspect of Assessment for Learning September `12 Consultation with staff and agreed the focus: a need to change our assessment of pupils’ work Agreed year groups to carry out this change: Year 8 & Year 10 Agreed evidence to quality assure the process: Book Looks, Trusted Colleague Observations, Pupil/Parent Voice, Data (if relevant) 2

3 Starting Process Collected samples of Year 8 work from all departments. The Quality Assurance Team (voluntary members) looked at how the work was marked in each department. We presented the findings at a HOD meeting in September 2012 – results highlighted a lack of consistency in marking across the school. Best practice for marking was discussed and backed up with research Departments agreed to adopt the marking for improvement strategy of using clear & specific success criteria and providing feedback identifying 2 strengths and an area for improvement.

Next Step All staff provided a summary of their baseline (how they previously assessed pupils’ work) and agreed to new way of assessment. (Sample on next slide) QAT looked at each departmental report and assessed 4 departments with evidence of marking for improvement. This was generated through book looks, and trusted colleague observations on teacher providing feedback. 4

5 SELF-EVALUATION School Target: Marking for Improvement Department: ________________Date: ___________________ Focus of this Self- Evaluation is to bring about whole school improvement in assessment for learning Areas for Improvement (a)Share Success Criteria (b)Use comments only in feedback to pupil: Identify two strengths and one area for improvement (c)Discuss assessment decision with pupil Evidence Teacher’s Signature:_______________Date: ________________ QAT Member’s Signature:____________________Date: ________________

6 Department: Technology & Design Base line position (please comment on how work was assessed in your department) Previously our department’s marking consisted of marking workbooks at the end of a Unit of Work and marking the few home works, that are given throughout the unit, as they are submitted. The marking consisted of a mark against the assessment criteria, which is given to each student, for each Unit of Work. Review of Action Plan Sources of Evidence To date…we have sampled 1 Yr 9 Homework and 1 Yr 10 homework from each class (2 & 3 respectively). The home works are completed in class workbooks for each Unit of Work. Evidence: Work Books and Homework Evaluative CommentI am the only teacher teaching Year 9 & 10 classes. Marking for improvement is now carried out in all of these classes. This was observed by checking the marking in all work books for all Year 9 & 10 students. The pupils are provided with excellent feedback on the homework and on the Evaluation page at the end of each Unit. All teachers in the Department now share the success criteria for all units with all pupils and comment on 2 strengths and one area for improvement. Next year all of the teachers within the department will be using the strategy for marking for improvement & sharing success criteria with pupils.

QAT Findings There was still inconsistency in the marking of pupil work both within departments and between departments Positive aspects included the number of trusted colleague observations which took place which contributed to the start of the process of the sharing of good practice. 7

8 QAT Findings Reasons for failure Tried to do too much in one year for example marking for improvement, sharing good practice, trusted colleague, effective questioning. Staff got confused as to what the focus was on: books (marking for improvement, trusted colleague observations, assessment (peer assessment) Other factors: transition of pupils, workload, staffing issues

Sept 2013 – Started over again Introduced the idea of “Formal Homeworks” at the first HOD meeting of the year Produced a template for all Depts to use for the formal homework Showed them an example from Science of what it should look like 9

Great emphasis was placed on the following: Clear specific success criteria for pupils The comments made on the pupils` work only relating to the success criteria Teachers recording the mark for the homework in their registers and sharing it with the pupils at some point after they had read the comments

12 Timeline Sept`13: Departmental meeting (1) Each member brought 3 samples of marking for discussion After meeting (1) – HOD wrote a brief description of what the marking was like (baseline) Oct `13: Formal homeworks were distributed Completed by pupils and marked by teachers according to the success criteria Members of each department invited colleagues in when they were returning the homework (Trusted colleague observations sheets were completed) Nov / Dec `13: Departmental Meeting (2) Each member brings 3 samples of home works The HOD writes a brief description of the marking in the department HOD hands up a folder with TCO sheets, HOD comments and evidence

13 Dec 13 Dept Meeting: Each member brought 3 samples of home works. The HOD wrote a brief description of the marking in the department, where they are now and included their evidence:TCO sheets and assessed work. Jan 14 QAT assessed the quality of the sample provided. They checked the processes were being carried out and provided feedback to HODs and SLT. A further sampling took place in March April 14: Report findings indicated that Mercy College QAT would deem this self-evaluation project a success. All 15 Depts carried out Marking For Improvement- clear consistency across all depts. The Quality Assurance Process

The Findings – June 2014 A lot of professional discussions have taken place at all levels about marking for improvement and openly shared with all staff. Feedback from pupils (carried out by SLT and pupils survey) indicates that the feedback is meaningful. Both teachers and pupils have made suggestions for improvement and this will become standard practice now in Mercy College. Parents have made positive comments about the marking on pupils’ work. Following Whole School Self-evaluation Survey All Depts agree PRSD Objective for 2014/15 is to look at Formal Homeworks, producing a Homework timetable, providing information to parents and pupils on expectations to improve pupils learning and outcomes.

How to Improve pupils’ learning experiences Areas for improvement identified Good practice identified by Staff Professional conversations taking place about the process Consultation & Agreement re: dates for sampling Time provided for teams to meet. Greater understanding of self-evaluation process and which must be linked to SDP/Dept Dev Plan- Dept team 15 Summary

THE SECRET SSIMPLE EEFFECTIVE CCOMMUNICATION RREALISTIC TIME SCALE EEMPOWERMENT TTEAM WORK 16