Teachers/ Headteachers...please educate me....

[whattodowiththisinfo]

We have just had end of term reports back for our dd in ks2. She has had a fabulous teacher this year - someone who challenged and pushed her a little but encouraged and supported her too. As a result we have a happy, motivated dd - wonderful!

However her report grades didn't quite fit with the verbal feedback we had been given throughout the year. Whilst the attainment grades for dd were good, the effort grades were low. When I questioned this to decide if a gentle butt kick was needed, the teacher told me that originally she had put down the teacher assessment grade (collated from evidence throughout the year) but had then been directed by the headteacher to use the results of a one-off test which all the children had completed recently. The test had been quite difficult and the grades came up slightly lower. This doesn't represent the effort dd has put in in certain subjects this year and I feel it is a shame for her.

I am confused - is this standard practice? If so, what is the thinking please?

So the effort grades were based on her results in a one-off test? That sounds mad to me.

Unless they are saying this was a very hard test, and she did well in it, so if she was trying this hard the rest of the time, she could do better in her day-to-day work...therefore she is not actually working that hard, (possibly because the usual work is relatively easy for her?

Pass....it makes no sense to me. i don't doubt the teacher's ability so I'm flummoxed. Thanks anyway.

It makes some sense if the head is looking to downplay the expectation for KS2 test results, so that effort and attainment increase but it is a dangerous game to play as it can easily result in pupils being disillusioned.

Admission - this is exactly what is happened. My dd is left feeling that however hard she tries she can't hit the target... :(

We are given effiort grades, national curriculum levels for teacher assessment and the level for the end of year test. That makes much more sense than just giving one.