Covid-19 has certainly caused disruption and turmoil across the sector.
While the recent decision to cancel KS1 and KS2 SATs this year provides an element of space for schools to focus on continuing to provide high-quality teaching and learning throughout the pandemic – particularly while pupils are being taught remotely – teachers will still need a way of efficiently and fairly assessing student progress.
With assessment methods being key to helping teachers monitor progress and identify gaps in learning, the current situation poses challenges in achieving this effectively and helping children meet academic objectives to the best of their abilities, regardless of where they are based.
With little to no face-to-face support, now more than ever, it is important to utilise additional resources and streamline platforms to take the growing pressures off teachers and help children continue engaging with their studies and making progress.
EdTech, assessment and remote learning
EdTech has been central in facilitating remote learning, and the government’s commitment to work in tandem with schools and organisations to increase access to devices and broadband for as many children as possible to limit disruption is a welcome step.
It’s also important that we recognise the value that EdTech plays in helping teachers effectively capture data and assign the right tasks for individual levels and abilities to minimise the increase in attainment disparity.
Schools may want to consider investing in systems which will support better assessment and evaluation practice.
This will ensure teachers are supported with a simple yet valuable way of identifying pupils’ individual strengths and areas for development without bias. This in turn will help inform teaching, successfully re-engage pupils with their learning and promote a deeper understanding of concepts.
Often, pupil progress is tracked through large digital statement banks which tend to operate independently to the curriculum and teaching methods.
The downside to this is that teachers and leaders may lose sight of pupils’ individual performance and instead, receive generic statements.
Instead, an assessment platform which centralises integration, automation, and personalisation of learning will likely not only streamline administrative processes for staff but will provide a 360-degree outlook for individual evaluation, assessment mapping and overall whole school progress.
Assessment resources
It is more than likely that primary leaders will already have a range of digital tools and traditional paper systems in place to gather and manage student data.
However, this can be onerous for staff when it comes to identifying levels remotely, which in turn creates challenges for personalised learning. Having a more ‘joined-up’ approach to accessing data will be key in effectively carrying out assessments and evaluating pupils’ understanding.
This is vital while children are learning remotely; with teachers under enough pressure to deliver engaging lesson content and activities, it is crucial for schools to provide EdTech resources and platforms which help staff streamline workloads and automate tailored learning to every child’s needs in a way that doesn’t add even more pressure.
With Covid-19 providing a springboard for school leaders to assess infrastructure capabilities and EdTech platforms or resources which will aid teaching and learning over the next academic year, it’s important for them to consider those which will provide the most effective and comprehensive functionality.
For example, digital tools that provide teachers with a complete 360-degree view of student data. This could include setting up curriculum-aligned assessments and providing automatic marking and feedback features.
Therefore, while exams and formal assessments might be on hold, EdTech holds the key in forming a more cohesive approach to bridging the attainment gap and ensuring no cohort is left behind as a further educational casualty of the global pandemic.
Haylie Taylor is a former teacher who is now education consultant at EducationCity.
