Education Service

Assessment and the Curriculum for Excellence (CfE)

Assessment and the Curriculum for Excellence:Fife’s perspective

Stuart Booker

Statistician

Email: stuart.booker@fife.gsx.gov.uk

Education Service

Assessment and the Curriculum for Excellence (CfE)

Introduction: “understanding”

• My background– Research/analysis – mathematical modelling– Teaching – HE sector

• “Understanding” rather than just information• Knowing why things happen

as well as knowing what is happening

Education Service

Assessment and the Curriculum for Excellence (CfE)

Overview

1. Why “understanding” is key to the success of Curriculum for Excellence

2. How appropriate information can help us to improve “understanding” …… including information from CEM systems

Education Service

Assessment and the Curriculum for Excellence (CfE)

1. Curriculum for Excellence (CfE)

• National Outcome 4 introduces the four capacities …

“Our young people are successful learners, confident individuals, effective contributors

and responsible citizens”

Education Service

Assessment and the Curriculum for Excellence (CfE)

Why CfE matters

Curriculum for Excellence

Our young people are successful learners, confident individuals, effective contributors and responsible citizens

National Outcome 3

We are better educated, more skilled and more successful …

National Outcome 2

We realise our full economic potential with more and better employment opportunities …

National Outcome 6

We live longer, healthier lives.

National Outcome 7

We have tackled the significant inequalities in Scottish society

Education Service

Assessment and the Curriculum for Excellence (CfE)

Why CfE matters

Education

“There is ample empirical evidence that education is one of the major drivers of intergenerational social mobility, particularly income

mobility”

Social equity

“Countries where equality of opportunity is estimated to be

relatively low include … the United Kingdom …”

The economy

“… inequalities in the distribution of learning

opportunities might signal economic inefficiencies …”

Source: Equity in student achievement across OECD countries: an investigation of the role of policies, Causa and Chapuis (OECD, 2009)

Education Service

Assessment and the Curriculum for Excellence (CfE)

Why CfE matters

Source: National Outcomes, Young People (Scottish Government web-site, 2010)

Education

“The ambition is universal: the goal is to raise achievement across the population and for the gap between those who are the most and least

successful to be reduced”

Social equity

“Countries where equality of opportunity is estimated to be

relatively low include … the United Kingdom …”

The economy

“… inequalities in the distribution of learning

opportunities might signal economic inefficiencies …”

Education Service

Assessment and the Curriculum for Excellence (CfE)

Why understanding matters

Education

“It is well established that children who experience poverty are more likely than their more advantaged peers to experience lower levels of

… attainment”

Source: Poverty, family resources and children’s early educational attainment …, Kiernan and Mensah (BERJ, 2010)

Social equity

“Countries where equality of opportunity is estimated to be

relatively low include … the United Kingdom …”

Education Service

Assessment and the Curriculum for Excellence (CfE)

Why understanding matters

• In order to achieve the ambitions of Curriculum for Excellence, we need to:– Make sense of a complex issue with several,

inter-dependent factors (i.e. a “wicked problem”)– Recognise good/best/successful practice– Make a fair assessment of areas of relative

strength and weakness – Recognise systemic, as well as individual pupil,

needs

Education Service

Assessment and the Curriculum for Excellence (CfE)

2. How can we achieve understanding?

• National deciles– Measure against an absolute standard

• Trends– Measure against own past performance

• PCA comparators– Measure against similar schools

• Longitudinal data (CEM)– Measure against potential,

as measured by pupil’s prior achievement

Education Service

Assessment and the Curriculum for Excellence (CfE)

National deciles

• NCDs give a sense of absolute performance• They give a sense of scale• … but, they give no context

% NCD2010 77 6

5+ Level 4% NCD

2010 75 7

5+ Level 4

Education Service

Assessment and the Curriculum for Excellence (CfE)

Trends

50

60

70

80

90

100

2006 2007 2008 2009 2010

Year

Ach

ievi

ng

5+

at

leve

l 4

(%)

50

60

70

80

90

100

2006 2007 2008 2009 2010

Year

Ach

ievi

ng

5+

at

leve

l 4

(%)

% NCD2010 77 6

5+ Level 4% NCD

2010 75 7

5+ Level 4

Education Service

Assessment and the Curriculum for Excellence (CfE)

Trends

• Trends allow a comparison against past achievement

• Give a sense of significant change over time• … but, they don’t account for social context

Education Service

Assessment and the Curriculum for Excellence (CfE)

PCA comparators

% NCD2010 77 6

5+ Level 4% NCD

2010 75 7

5+ Level 4

Education Service

Assessment and the Curriculum for Excellence (CfE)

PCA comparators

• PCA makes allowance for social context, by providing 20 “similar”, comparator schools

• Aims to give a “like-for-like” benchmark for performance

• … but, degree of “similarity” can vary significantly between schools

Education Service

Assessment and the Curriculum for Excellence (CfE)

PCA comparators

• … and, PCA comparators don’t explain year-on-year fluctuations in performance

50

60

70

80

90

100

2006 2007 2008 2009 2010

Year

Ach

ievi

ng

5+

at

leve

l 4

(%)

Education Service

Assessment and the Curriculum for Excellence (CfE)

Longitudinal data

• Example. Comparison of 5+ at level 5 with proportion of same S4 cohort who attaineda PIPS P7 score in the top 34% nationally

2007 2008 2009 2010

53 57 50 4542 48 40 39

30

40

50

60

2007 2008 2009 2010

37 33 36 4143 39 43 45

30

40

50

60

% PI PS % SQA

Data for two Fife schools

Education Service

Assessment and the Curriculum for Excellence (CfE)

Longitudinal data

• Can help explain year-on-year fluctuations• Gives insight into progression• Can give a sense of “value added”

2007 2008 2009 2010

53 57 50 4542 48 40 39

30

40

50

60

2007 2008 2009 2010

37 33 36 4143 39 43 45

30

40

50

60

Data for two Fife schools

% PI PS % SQA

Education Service

Assessment and the Curriculum for Excellence (CfE)

Longitudinal data

• Can give a sense of relative strength of subjects and courses …

• … but, offers limited prior information (e.g. reading, maths, science)

Education Service

Assessment and the Curriculum for Excellence (CfE)

Longitudinal data

• Gives a useful measure of group performance

• … but, is not a predictor of individual performance

y = 5.793x - 111.31

R2 = 0.4748

0

50

100

150

200

250

300

350

400

0 20 40 60 80 100

PIPS P7 combined score

SQ

A t

arif

f p

oin

ts

Education Service

Assessment and the Curriculum for Excellence (CfE)

Longitudinal data

• Incorporates the impact of deprivation

50

100

150

200

250

300

0 5 10 15 20

SIMD vigintile

SQ

A S

4 ta

riff

sco

res

40

45

50

55

60

0 5 10 15 20

SIMD vigintile

PIP

S P

7 av

erag

e sc

ore

Education Service

Assessment and the Curriculum for Excellence (CfE)

Trends

Towards a better understanding …

Self

Potential

Absolute

Similar

Nationalresults

Longitudinaldata

PCAcomparators

Behaviourand discipline

Surveys etc

Education Service

Assessment and the Curriculum for Excellence (CfE)

Conclusion

• Understanding is key for the successful delivery of Curriculum for Excellence

• Longitudinal data is an invaluable source of information about progression …

• … through both primary and secondary education

Education Service

Assessment and the Curriculum for Excellence (CfE)

Conclusion

• With longitudinal data, information sources exist that can provide a balanced understanding of performance

• Fife Council is working towards this goal