IOE researchers lead independent review into the role of assessment in primary schools

Co-chaired by Professors Alice Bradbury and Dominic Wyse from IOE, UCL’s Faculty of Education and Society, and including academics from the Universities of Winchester, Cambridge and Brighton, among others, the Independent Commission on Assessment in Primary Education (ICAPE) will take evidence from a range of experts in how primary children are assessed and the way school performance is measured. The Commission, funded by the National Education Union, also includes headteachers, teachers and researchers working in the field.

Currently, primary school children take government assessments in five out of seven primary years in England. The list of current assessments includes Baseline Assessment and the Early Years Foundation Stage Profile in Reception, the Phonics Screening Check in Year 1, Key Stage 1 SATs in Year 2, the Multiplication Tables Check in Year 4, Key Stage 2 SATs in Year 6.

The addition of the Reception Baseline Assessment and the new Year 4 Multiplication Tables Check this year means that there are now more formal assessments than ever before in the history of primary school education in England.

The Commission will take evidence from experts on how well current policies and practices link to the latest research on assessment, further connecting education policy and evidence. It will then recommend key principles for improving assessment in primary schools and offer examples of practice that reflect these.

Co-Chair Dominic Wyse, Professor of Early Childhood and Primary Education and Director of the Helen Hamlyn Centre for Pedagogy (0-11 years) at IOE said:

“The pandemic gave rise to significant debate on assessment policy with much of the discussion centering on exams in secondary education. However, primary education often gets neglected. The assessment system in primary schools has changed significantly over the last decade. The time is right to assess whether curriculum and assessment policy is best serving the needs of our young learners.”

Co-Chair Alice Bradbury, Professor of the Sociology of Education and Co-Director of the Helen Hamlyn Centre for Pedagogy (0-11 years) at IOE also commented:

“After the period of home-schooling during lockdown, many parents know more about what children are learning in school and how this is influenced by the government tests. Assessment is something which should support children's learning during these vital years of primary education. Our hope is to ensure that all forms of primary assessment are research informed and prioritise helping children to learn.” 

Over the next six months the Commission will meet and hear evidence and aims to publish interim findings by July and a final report later in the year in October. The Commission is taking evidence from anyone with an interest in primary education: surveys for teachers, parents and carers are available on the ICAPE website.

Links

• ICAPE
• View Professor Alice Bradbury's research profile
• View Professor Dominic Wyse's research profile
• Helen Hamlyn Centre for Pedagogy (0-11 years)
• Department of Learning and Leadership

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Phil Meech for IOE