Over 9,600 primary schools have registered to take part in
the pilot of the Reception Baseline Assessment (RBA), the
new 20-minute check that will provide a snapshot of pupils’
development when they start school.
The assessment will enable the removal of Key Stage 1 tests
that currently take place at the end of year 2, reducing
overall workload for schools. The change will also mean
schools are recognised for the work they do throughout the
whole of primary school rather just between years 2 and 6,
as is currently the case.
Over half of eligible primaries will take part in the
pilot, which will run this September and enable schools to
familiarise themselves with the assessment before providing
feedback to the Department for Education, ahead of the
national roll out in 2020.
The assessment has been designed to reflect those that most
schools already carry out in reception. It will take
roughly 20 minutes, be carried out during one-to-one time
with pupils, and does not have a pass mark.
School Standards Minister said:
Just like checking a child’s teeth or their eyesight, the
reception baseline assessment is a quick check of a
child’s early language and ability to count when they
start school. It will provide the baseline of primary
school progress which is an important check of our school
system, providing important information on schools’
performance to make sure all children reach their
potential.
The pilot is an opportunity for schools to familiarise
themselves with the format and help us make sure it works
for both children and teachers - that’s why it’s so
significant that almost 10,000 schools have registered to
take part.
The assessment will lighten the load for schools, which
will no longer have to carry out whole-class assessments
at the end of year 2 or deal with the test papers and
administration that comes with that, while also being
stress-free for children.
Schools will not receive individual scores for the
assessment, instead getting a series of short, narrative
statements that will say how each child performed, which
they can use for informing teaching in the first term.
There is no reason for parents or teachers to prepare
children ahead of the assessment. As such, carried out in
the right way, children should not be aware an assessment
is taking place. Progress data will be shared with schools
following children’s completion of Key Stage 2 tests at the
end of primary school, preventing labelling or grouping of
pupils.
Nick Brook, deputy general secretary of school leaders’
union NAHT, said:
If a baseline assessment is to be a success, it is
absolutely critical that it is done right, which is why
it’s encouraging that so many schools have signed up for
the pilot. This will mean that the assessments can be
trialled across the full range of provision. This is
important because it will tell us whether the assessment
which has been developed works for teachers and children,
and what the next steps should be.
Children will be assessed orally through simple, practical
tasks which could include counting or describing pictures,
activities that are broadly consistent with the types of
things that take place in reception classrooms already, and
some of which parents already teach their children at home.
Pilots will take place from September, in the first half
term of the new academic year. Following feedback from
schools, the RBA is scheduled to be rolled out across
England from September 2020.
