Assessment & Reporting

Assessment

Various forms of assessment are used at school. Assessments done during a course or at the end of a particular section of work help the pupils and Staff to identify areas of strengths and weaknesses in specific skills or areas of knowledge. Thus, Staff can discover where extra support is needed and pupils can develop confidence in their abilities. Assessments at the end of a course indicate exactly what a pupil has achieved or mastered in a specific subject.

As the pupil progresses through the school, school examinations move more towards preparation for external examinations. In S5/6, National Qualifications courses include end of unit assessments.

Many subjects include internal assessment of coursework, which counts towards the final grade awarded. Details of pupils’ achievements in National Assessments in English and Mathematics are passed onto us from their Primary schools. These are used in Mathematics to allocate pupils to their initial classes and to identify next steps. In English the classes in S1 are mixed ability. In S1 and S2 pupils undergo further National Assessments in English and Mathematics when appropriate.

The school holds a central record of all examination performances and certificates gained. A computerised administration system is operated and parents are advised of the contents of these records under the terms of the Data Protection Act. Pupils in the senior school are helped to compile a file of progress. This includes a record of all personal achievements, qualifications, work experience and individual plans and targets.

Reports

A full report on a pupil’s progress and achievement is sent home once a year. Progress reports are also issued once a year. Parents and carers are asked to sign and return a reply slip each time, and are encouraged to make any comments they wish. Parents and carers should feel free to contact the school at any time if they are concerned about their son or daughter’s work, and would like a progress report.

• In S1 and S2 the report describes a pupil’s attainment in each subject and notifies parents of any National Tests results available in English and Mathematics.

• In S3-S4 subjects are broken down into a number of elements, which reflect areas of knowledge, or skills, which are assessed at Standard Grade, and an indication of a pupil’s achievement is given for each element.

• In S5 and S6 an attainment grade is given which is based on assessments.

Reports also give parents an indication of pupils’ motivation and attitude. They offer advice and suggest ways forward.

Early warnings for academic concerns are raised for any pupil at any point in the session.