Pupils in The Oaklands Centre are carefully assessed in all four areas of their curriculum and this is used to plan their progression.

• Self-regulation and Social Learning Assessment

We use a detailed ‘in-house’ response tracking system to monitor pupils’ self-regulation. It captures their level of independence across the day and the frequency of any dysregulated behaviour.

Social development is captured using our bespoke assessment package ‘ShowProgress’. This also records in detail how independently pupils apply new social skills. Pupils have short and long terms targets across all of their areas of need built into their EHCP. These targets are loaded into ShowProgress and their individual progress towards them is recorded and evaluated.

The Annual Review cycle is used to provide a summative assessment of progress in these areas.

• Key Skills Assessment

In maths, reading and writing, school assessment processes are often followed. We recognise that the majority of our pupils have ‘spikey learning profile’. Even within one subject, there may be areas of strength and areas of weakness. For example, in reading, a pupil may have weak decoding skills but excellent comprehension of text they experience through spoken word. Equally, a pupil may have excellent decoding skills but find inference or prediction very challenging as a result of their autism. As a result, awarding an overall ‘level’ in any subject may not give a clear picture of their learning. Formative assessment, recorded in ShowProgress, is used to put a finer point on each pupil’s development and progress.

Key Assessments:

Maths:

• Knowledge checks at the end of each topic and subsequent knowledge retrieval checks.
• Pre-key stage 2 assessment framework
• Key stage 2 assessment framework
• Statutory tests (Tables check, Y6 SATs).

Reading:

• Phonics phases
• Statutory phonics check
• Progress through book bands
• Pre Key-Stage 2 assessment framework criteria
• Accelerated Reader reading level
• KS2 assessment framework criteria
• Statutory tests (Y6 SATs)

Writing:

• Pre-key stage 2 assessment framework
• WriQ formative and summative assessment
• Key stage 2 assessment framework

All pupils have their academic targets set in ‘ShowProgress’ and assessment of these shows their progress in each area of learning in small steps. ShowProgress provides a summative record of how much progress overall each pupil has made towards their personal set of targets.

Most pupils participate in statutory tests which provide a summative assessment of their attainment.

• Broad Knowledge Assessment

Knowledge that pupils are taught is recorded on ShowProgress and in their individual Learning Journals. Teachers regularly check how much pupils remember against the 'key knowledge' for each unit. Pupils complete unit assessments and retrieval exercises which inform teachers' judgements.

• Preparation for Adulthood Assessment

All pupils participate in a certified ASDAN course designed to structure their preparation for adulthood. Pupil’s learning through these courses is assessed in their Pupil Portfolio.

Pupils' individual progress towards their ‘Preparation for Adulthood’ targets is captured and evidenced in their portfolio and on ShowProgress.

Sharing Assessment With Families

Pupils’ progress is shared with their families in several ways:

In person

Staff have regular informal conversations with families about their child’s progress. Parents are also offered appointments whenever they would like to have a longer discussion. Parents’ Evenings are offered on the same schedule as the school and Annual Review meetings are held each year.

On Tapestry

On a daily basis, pupils’ learning and activities are shared on Tapestry, which all parents are offered access to.

On ShowProgress

All parents are offered access to their child’s secure area on ShowProgress. There, parents can see all of their child’s targets and progress at a time that is convenient to them. Parents are provided with reports generated within ShowProgress regularly.