Decoding parents evening - YR!

[Bumpsadaisie]

Just wondered if teachers could help.

Had parents evening recently. Apparently DC is working "above the expected level" in three areas, as expected in some others and there's one they are looking to "develop".

So does this translate to "exceeding" in the three areas, "expected" in the others and "emerging" in the last one, do you think?

I wish I had asked this at the time !

[Galena]

Possibly, but not necessarily. I believe it is very difficult to get exceeding, so a child could be above average, but still not exceeding. However, it could be that her teacher does mean precisely that...

[columngollum]

Maybe the teacher and the staff in general are meeting to discuss what it is that they actually do mean.

[Bumpsadaisie]

Thanks both.

I had heard too it was v difficult to get an exceeding.

[slp123]

Perhaps they are referring to the developmental age month bands. I believe they only use emerging, expected and exceeding for the Early Learning Goals at the end of the year.

[MrsKCastle]

Unfortunately, different schools and LAs use different benchmarks for defining 'exceeding'. In many (probably most) schools, exceeding can be pretty hard for 5 year olds to achieve. Others are much more lenient.

If I were you, I'd start looking at the descriptions for the different levels and get a rough idea of where you think your child fits.

[thegreylady]

dgs was 'exceeding' in reading [purple ORT] and above expected level in other areas except for writing which was expected.
Socially he is totally lacking any sense of competition, very caring and helpful but inclined to be stubborn.
Sounded ok to me [unless grandma is only getting the good bits!].

[Lara2]

MrsKCastle - schools and LEA's all use the same benchmarks to judge children against the ELG's at the end of Year R. We all use the exemplar materials given to us by the Government. Year R teachers have to attend county and district moderation; failure to do so wil probably trigger external moderation of the Profile judgements.

ELG are only looked at to make end of year assessments. During the year, children are judged against the age bands - usually we say emerging, developing or secure for those. Emerging, expected and exceeding are for the ELG. It is difficult for children to achieve exceeding and you have to know the child very well and have lots of evidence to support your judgements. It's worth noting that the judgements should be based on what the children do in their own chosen play, consistently over a period of time.

[mrz]

If expected = average you would be correct but it doesn't

[mrz]

The government believes it is the level we should expect for all children

[simpson]

DD got exceeding last year in reception in reading (stage 11) but the next best reader on stage 9 didn't

[mrz]

and in some schools they award it for stage 2

[simpson]

No wonder some parents are confused and pissed off

Mrz - what do you think it should be awarded for?

As I have said on other threads in DD's reception year 1/90 got exceeding (DD) and in the class I was in last year (not my DC school) 4/120 kids got exceeding but not for academic work (think it was art).

In the reception class I am in this year (again not my DC school) one child will get it for reading (they are currently on stage 6).

[MrsKCastle]

Lara2 I know that the schools and LAs should be following the guidelines and using the descriptors to make judgements. With moderation, it shouldn't be possible to make mistakes.

However, I know from experience that it is possible. I don't know how common it is, but DD's school certainly got it very wrong last year. I'm not a parent with an axe to grind, and I have nothing against her school. But they assessed her as exceeding in almost everything, and I am 100% certain that she was not at that level. Pfb she may be, but I know what she could/can do. Tbh, even now, in Y1, I'd hesitate to assess her as 'exceeding' against some ELGs.

So mistakes can and do happen.

[simpson]

DD is certainly a mistake from last year.

I would not expect her to have been exceeding in numeracy or anything else tbh but certainly in her writing she should have been.

But in the grand scheme of things it's really not going to seem important when she is 16

[mrz]

It's not only parents who are pissed off simpson. Imagine you're in a school where exceeding is seen as exceptional achievement while down the road the next school awards it for much less!

Personally I only ever awarded the old point 9 (exceeding) to children working at the highest levels. My exceeding children were independently writing stories and other texts of a side of A4 not one or two words or lists and were reading equivalent to purple band+

[columngollum]

Comparing the awards in different schools is the quickest route to madness. Of course they have different managements, different resources, staff, children and different policies!!

To compare this child's report with that child from a different school's report is a definition of nuts!!

[Galena]

DD is bright. She isn't 5 yet and reads well - on entry to Reception had a reading age of 9 and a comprehension age of 8y9m. At the end of December she was assessed as being level 1b for maths and reading and 1c for writing.

She isn't the brightest child to have lived, but she is bright. In most schools she would look bright, but nothing hugely special - there would be a number of children approaching her level. In most schools she probably wouldn't be given exceeding at the end of the year as she's not massively ahead of her peers.

However, the school she attends is an unpopular one. As such, it tends to attract a cohort of children who start school life at a level below the national average. There is little parental involvement in education and the school have to work very hard to achieve the results they do.

In this school, there is a huge gulf between DD and her peers. She is working with the top group of Y1 for Lit/Num and does Phase 5 phonics with most of Y2. I imagine she probably will receive exceeding at the end of the year as it is very tempting, with a child so far ahead of her peers, to over-inflate your opinion of their ability.

I know it shouldn't happen, but that's one explanation.

[MrsKCastle]

It shouldn't be nuts at all. The ELGs should be a standard level, comparing across schools should be the same as comparing SATs results in Y2 or Y6. Children awarded expected should be working at a similar level. Otherwise the words 'expected' 'emerging' etc are useless.

[MrsKCastle]

Galena- from what you have said your DD absolutely shout be graded as exceeding in reading. Possibly not in writing though, as I think 1c is within the realms of 'expected'.

[mrz]

Galena that's very much the issue we had a couple of years ago. Our NQT reception teacher never having completed the profile before was intent on awarding the points based on comparisons with the other members of the class. Children who are streets ahead in one school could be decidedly average in another or even bottom set in others. Fortunately internal moderation allowed us to put things straight before assessment was reported.

[Galena]

This is a piece of writing that DD recently did unaided.

[Lara2]

Last year was the first year of the new profile - nobody had had any moderation training in my county at least - I don't know about other counties. I think that we just have to accept that last years data was dirty data. It will be interesting to see what this years is like.
Only 60% of children achieved expected last year (the same as on the pilot year), the Government are saying it should be more like 85%.

[mrz]

My LEA and neighbouring LEAs provided training last year and of course the previous year involved many in the pilot of the profile.