Assessment

In the summer term of 2021, children in Year 2 and Year 6 will take their SATs papers. These tests in English and maths will reflect the national curriculum. 

At the end of Year 6, children will sit tests in:

• English Reading
• English Grammar, Punctuation and Spelling
• Mathematics

These tests will be both set and marked externally, and the results will be used to measure your child’s progress and the school’s performance. Your child’s marks will be used in conjunction with teacher assessment to give a broader picture of their attainment.

Key Stage 2 reading test

The reading test will be a single paper with questions based on one 800-word text and two passages of 300 words.

Your child will have one hour, including reading time, to complete the test.

There will be a selection of question types, including:

• Ranking/ordering, e.g. ‘Number the events below to show the order in which they happen in the story’
• Labelling, e.g. ‘Label the text to show the title of the story’
• Find and copy, e.g. ‘Find and copy one word that suggests what the weather is like in the story’
• Short constructed response, e.g. ‘What does the bear eat?’
• Open-ended response, e.g. ‘Look at the sentence that begins Once upon a time. How does the writer increase the tension throughout this paragraph? Explain fully, referring to the text in your answer.’

Key Stage 2 grammar, punctuation and spelling tests

The grammar, punctuation and spelling test will consist of two parts: a grammar and punctuation paper requiring short answers, lasting 45 minutes, and an aural spelling test of 20 words, lasting around 15 minutes.

The grammar and punctuation test will include two sub-types of questions:

• Selected response, e.g. ‘Identify the adjectives in the sentence below’
• Constructed response, e.g. ‘Correct/complete/rewrite the sentence below,’ or, ‘The sentence below has an apostrophe missing. Explain why it needs an apostrophe.’

Key Stage 2 mathematics tests

Children will sit three papers in maths:

• Paper 1: arithmetic, 30 minutes (written)
• Papers 2 and 3: mathematical fluency, solving problems and reasoning, 40 minutes per paper

Paper 1 will consist of fixed response questions, where children have to give the correct answer to calculations, including long multiplication and division. Papers 2 and 3 will involve a number of question types, including:

• Multiple choice
• True or false
• Constrained questions, e.g. giving the answer to a calculation, drawing a shape or completing a table or chart
• Less constrained questions, where children will have to explain their approach for solving a problem.

Key Stage 2 science tests

Not all children in Year 6 will take science SATs. However, a number of schools will be required to take part in science sampling: a test administered to a selected sample of children thought to be representative of the population as a whole. (Early June is the science sampling test period in which your child might sit the tests). For those who are selected, there will be three papers:

• Biology: 25 minutes, 22 marks
• Chemistry: 25 minutes, 22 marks
• Physics: 25 minutes, 22 marks

Click on the following link to download an Achieve KS2 Parent Guide.

• Achieve KS2 Parent Guide

Are there any sample papers?

Yes – The Government produced sample papers with mark schemes in June 2015. You can have a look at them by clicking here.

Since summer 2016, the SATS are more challenging SATs tests to reflect the new curriculum at the end of the Key Stages. Children now receive a scaled score instead of a level. Their raw score - the actual number of marks they accrue - will be translated into a scaled score; this helps to allow for differences in the difficulty of the tests from year to year so that pupils’ results can be compared accurately. You will be told your child’s raw score, scaled score and whether they have reached the national standard for that subject. The score that equates to the national standard has yet to be announced.

Children will also be matched against ‘performance descriptors’ (in other words what pupils are expected to know and be able to do at the time of testing) when being assessed by their teachers in non-SATs subjects at the end of Key Stage 1 and 2 to see if they’ve achieved the expected standard.

Alongside continuous teacher assessments, there will still be national assessments at regular intervals:

• Children will undergo a Reception Baseline test in Reception
• The Phonics Screening Check in Year 1
• The end of Key Stage test in Year 6 (KS2 SATs)

Under the changes, from 2016 the government expects 85% of pupils to reach a ‘good level of attainment’ in updated Key Stage 2 SATs.

With levels abolished and the introduction of ‘performance descriptors’, there will be a lot less emphasis on expected grades for each year group, but rather a focus on whether a child has acquired the expected knowledge or not. The government will sets the precise extent of progress required in each year group.

Click here to see some sample test materials for the new Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2 tests in 2016:

• National curriculum assessments: practice materials

What about children who are above or below the expected level?

Of course, there will still be children who will not meet the expected standard and they will continue to be teacher assessed using P-scales (a way of measuring the progress of children who are working below the national curriculum levels). By assessing children more formally at Reception level (with the new Reception baseline assessment test), the government hopes the children requiring more teacher input will be identified earlier.

In the past, the brightest Year 6 children could be entered for Level 6 SATs papers for English and Maths. These tests will no longer be offered; instead, all children will take the same tests, but the papers will include a number of more difficult questions that are intended to stretch higher achieving children.

One of the most valuable ways in which we assess children is through the marking of their work. Our approach to marking is formative, regular and consistent and celebrates what children have achieved as well as showing them how they can develop further in their learning.

There has been a big shift in the past few years in how we teach reading in school. Across Key Stage 1 we use Little Wandle Phonics - Letters and Sounds Revised to teach early reading skills. This programme focuses on fluency (being able to blend words fluently), prosody (reading with intonation and expression) and comprehension (understanding what has been read).

Reading is taught through daily phonics lessons and smaller reading practise groups in Reception and Year 1.

What is the phonics screening check?

The national phonics screening was introduced in 2012 to all Year 1 pupils. It is a short, statutory assessment to ensure that children are making sufficient progress in the phonics skills to read words and are on track to become fluent readers who can enjoy reading for pleasure and for learning.

The Department for Education defines the checks as “short, light-touch assessments” that take about four to nine minutes to complete.

Any children who do not reach the required level have additional support to ensure that they are given every opportunity to develop their phonic skills and retake their phonics screening at the end of Year 2. 

When does the Year 1 phonics screening check take place?

All Year 1 pupils will take the phonics screening check during a specific week in June.

How is the check structured?

It comprises a list of 40 words and non-words, which the children know as ‘alien’ or ‘monster’ words. Your child will read one-to-one with their teacher. They will be asked to ‘sound out’ the word and blend the sounds together to read the word. The words will be presented as a booklet with up to 4 words per page. Non-words will be presented with a colourful picture of an alien. The children will be asked what the aliens name is by reading the pseudo word. This will make the check a bit more fun and provides the children with a context for these non-words. They are included because they will be new to all pupils, so there won’t be a bias to those with a good vocabulary knowledge or visual memory of words. Pupils who can read non-words should have the skills to decode almost any unfamiliar word.

Half the words cover phonic skills which are usually covered in Reception, and half the words are based on Year 1 phonics skills.

How will the results from the phonics screening check be used?

Schools have to inform parents towards the end of the summer term in Year 1 of their child’s results. At Audley Primary School the results form part of the end of year reporting. All of the children are individuals and develop at different stages. The results of the screening check will assist teachers to identify which children will need further support with decoding.

What happens if a child struggles with the screening check?

The screening check will identify children who have phonic decoding skills below the level expected for the end of Year 1 and who therefore need extra help. Your child will re-sit the check the following summer term. We regularly check phonic development within our Little Wandle assessment procedures, this screening forms part of our overall assessment procedure.

How can I help my child?

There are a number of things that parents can do to support early reading skill development.

• Let your child see you enjoying reading yourself - they are influenced by you and what you value!
• Immerse your child in a love of reading: share books and magazines with your child, take them to the library to choose books and read to them
• Make time for your child to read their school books to you regularly - encourage them by pointing to the words and ask them about the story they are reading
• Help your child to practice reading key words and sounds when these are sent
• Communicate with your child’s teacher through their Home/School reading logs

The DFE introduced the Multiplication Tables Check (MTC) as statutory in the 2021-22 academic year. The purpose of the MTC is to determine whether pupils can recall their times tables fluently, which is essential for future success in mathematics. It will help schools to identify pupils who have not yet mastered their times tables, so that additional support can be provided.

Schools will have a 3-week check window in June to administer the MTC. Teachers will have the flexibility to administer the check to individual pupils, small groups or a whole class at the same time.

Do you have a child in year 4 at primary school?

If so, your child will be participating in the multiplication tables check in June.

The purpose of the check is to determine whether your child can fluently recall their times tables up to 12, which is essential for future success in mathematics. It will also help your child’s school to identify if your child may need additional support.

What is the multiplication tables check?

It is an on-screen check consisting of 25 times table questions. Your child will be able to answer 3 practice questions before taking the actual check. They will then have 6 seconds to answer each question. On average, the check should take no longer than 5 minutes to complete.

What if my child cannot access the check?

There are several access arrangements available for the check, these can be used to support pupils with specific needs. Your child’s teacher will ensure that the access arrangements are appropriate for your child before they take the check in June.

The check has been designed so that it is inclusive and accessible to as many children as possible, including those with special educational needs or disability (SEND) or English as an additional language (EAL). However, there may be some circumstances in which it will not be appropriate for a pupil to take the check, even when using suitable access arrangements. If you have any concerns about your child accessing the check, you should discuss this with your child’s headteacher.

Do I need to do anything to prepare my child for the check?

No, you do not need to do anything additional to prepare your child for the check. As part of usual practice, teachers may ask you to practice times tables with your child.

Schools will have unlimited access to a try it out area from March. They can use this to make sure pupils have the necessary support required to access the check. This includes opportunities for pupils to familiarise themselves with the check application and try out any access arrangements that may be required.

How will the results be used?

Schools will have access to all their pupils’ results, allowing those pupils who need additional support to be identified.

Will I receive feedback on my child’s check?

Yes. Your child’s teacher will share your child’s score with you, as they would with all national curriculum assessments. There is no pass mark for the check.

Further information

Your child’s teacher will be able to answer any questions about the multiplication tables check. For further details you can also visit www.gov.uk/STA.

Click here for a copy of the Assessment Without Levels presentation:

• REVISED Assessment Without Levels Presentation to Parents November 2015

• Reception Baseline Assessment 2021