EDU5TEB AT3 Reporting on Assessment Data

Nina Hamilton-Grundy

17751727

I will begin with stating that assessment and reporting is extremely important for
parents, students, schools and teachers. Utilising this data can determine what can
be taught, improvements that can be made and what can be done at home. With the
innovativeness and ongoing updates in technology this allows assessment and
reporting to become more available, accessible and manageable in the future.
Demos and Foshay (2009) discuss the importance of utilising assessment data in
order to differentiate instruction (p. 26). Assessments positively impact reporting by
enabling opportunities to show how students are best attempting to meet the
curriculum by completing set tasks and through their overall performance.

PARENTS
5.

How they use the data in reporting to parents

Brady and Kennedy (2012) explained a number of parents want and often expect
certain outcomes from reporting and interviews (p. 103). In order to use the data to
report to parents its important to keep track of and map a students progress
throughout the year. To help teachers complete a report and planning, teachers such
as my mentor do so by viewing their students past results up to year 7 in AUSvels,
NAPLAN and OnDemand results as one of their starting points. This way teachers
can in their reporting to parents what improvement they have made and what
aspects the student still needs assistance with or what they can work on at home. It
was previously stated when completing my TEB assessment task 2 that teachers
need to be aiming to move all of their students forward not matter what their level is.
Parents often want to see how their children are going and work out the concerns

they may need to address when receiving their childs report and gain an
understanding of what they have been assessed/taught at school. Brady and
Kennedy (2012) reiterate this should also be a cyclical process that is noted during
the entire year and not necessarily because reporting needs to be completed (p.
103). However, when it comes my placement school, parents are notified of a couple
of aspects. In the reports parents are able to view the achievements in a particular
subject of their child and what areas they can need to work on trying to improve in,
as depicted in Appendix 3. Their childs behaviour, work and readiness is also
assessed. They may be contacted regarding their child because they are failing to
meet requirements or have a redemption for uncompleted work or even has failed to
complete a redemption. I think its important that schools allow both parents and
student to know about their concerns when they still have a chance to fix the issue
rather not being able to do anything until the next term because they are often only
made aware of problems when they receive a report. It is also often said that no
news is good news however, Ferguson (2013) explains that for assessment to
impact performance assessment needs to involve ongoing feedback and reflection
(p. 414). One aspect parents from the school dont receive yet is timely feedback that
is accessible online. Parents unfortunately may only be able to go on what their child
states on how they are going on tasks such as CATs or SACs or if they are
contacted by the teacher. Currently, parents only access the reports when they are
mailed out, there is no online version at this point in time, however, mailing out is
used as a tactic to ensure parents will see their childs report. By comparison, Knox
College (2016) have enforced a continuous online system that both students and
their parents have access to and this includes regular feedback. The school also has
a Skoolbag App on iTunes to assist parents with keeping up to date and being able

to note of their child is absent.

STUDENTS
4.

How they use it to give feedback to students

6.

How they use the data to report student achievement

Brady and Kennedy (2012) stated in summary that any form of assessment needs to
strive for improvements in student learning (p. 27). There are two ways that students
can benefit from assessment and reporting. Students benefit from receiving
feedback and having their achievements reported and documented. It is also
beneficial to report on the improvement the students can make and the ones they
have made. Feedback that is received by student should be provided informally in
most lessons by the teachers in order to be most beneficial for the student and assist
with establishing progress growths. My mentor stated this is really important to try to
do in PE lessons as it can improve students skills and tactics in a range of sports.
Brady and Kennedy (2012) add on that feedback, particularly in an informal manner
can allow teachers make judgements to how students learning is going and whether
or not they need make changes to the teaching process (p.17). Teachers should
make comments on assessment data for improvement and what was achieved. I had
the pleasure of getting to mark year 8 CATs in Health, this was my first time marking.
When marking these tasks, I strived to include positive comments and ones that
stated room for improvement. My mentor and I both also completed the marking of
an oral presentation rubric for a year 12 Outdoor Education SAC. When he handed
out these marks out he gave the whole class an overview of the most common
positive aspects and what to work on for next time and then he gave all students
slips with individual feedback. The individual feedback included a summary of

comments made by students that marked it, myself and my mentor and an average
mark. What he said they should all, as a whole class, work on for next time was
making sure they elaborated better on summary points they included such as
reduce, reuse and recycle, this was also valuable for the students to remember to
consider in their last two SACs and their end-of-year examination. McDevitt and
Ormrod (2012) make a point about the important of children being assessed in many
different working conditions because it can assist in growth in their cognitive
development and overall performance (p. 221).
At my placement school students do have student email accounts but they do not
use these efficiently, so the school came up with a solution, particularly in years 11
and 12, of creating Facebook groups for students to keep up to date, catch up on
missed classes and be aware of assessments. DET Vic (2014) includes on their
website that this is kind of example is an appropriate use of social media. Another
aspect that another teacher I worked with marked in their roll on who brought their
gear and if they participated. These aspects are involved in a students work habits
and assessment tasks in their semester report, as expressed in Appendix 3, students
can learn from this by continue to utilise or improve their organisational skills.
Another way teachers could further improve these aspects of a students report
would be to trial what Brady ad Kennedy (2012) suggest about allowing students to
lead their reporting progress in a supervised environment (p. 84) and also involving
more input from parents and students such as discussing it with your teacher or
more involvement in reporting (p. 101). In addition, Masters (2013) elaborates on the
idea of making assessments more personalised for students e.g. utilising a test that
suits everyones actual abilities not their perceived year level abilities therefore
allowing more students to feel challenged and successful rather than it being too

easy or difficult (p. 28).

SCHOOLS
1.

The schools reporting policy

2.

The schools assessment schedule

Schools can find that having a member of staff that is a reporting manager can assist
establishing the reporting formats and planning a schedule and updating the policy
when needed. This documentation assists with teachers weekly timelines of each
term in regards to assessment to contribute to reporting. Brady and Kennedy (2012)
explained that informal assessments can have a formative purpose that indicate
how learning is progressing with each particular student (p. 17).
It is illustrated in the schools reporting policy that the school is expected to release
four formal reports for every student each year (Appendix 1). In addition, the policy
also states teachers at the school are required to write regular reports on the
progress of their students for parents/guardians (Appendix 1).
Establishing assessment schedules can assist schools in meeting their deadlines
and allows teachers to try work out when they need to work on filling out their reports
and when they fit in more formal types of formative or summative assessments.
Brady and Kennedy (2012) discuss the principles of reporting in order to report
student achievement in the classroom, they touch on how reporting must include the
teacher and/or school providing quality information regarding the achievements of
students, this includes in and out of the classroom, i.e. curriculum related and
general capabilities (p. 101-3). Furthermore, Brady and Kennedy (2012) explain that
there are a number of other ways to report achievements school-wide in not only
formal contexts, and this particularly includes students both individually and

collectively (p. 115). They suggested school newsletters, I also believe that staff
briefings should have been included as well to get all staff to have awareness as
well, one example from this placement was that two of the senior boys were
exceptional in the basketball competition, the teacher stated that if you see them
around school congratulate them on their efforts. These kinds of activities when
students go out and represent their school respectively and have the chance to shine
in their other talents and interests is important to be recognised by their teachers too.
It is important to also consider assessing aspects that Masters (2013) describes as
necessary for life and work and these are skills such as problem-solving, critical
thinking, communication, collaboration and self-management (p. 24). Furthermore,
Masters (2013) explains this also includes students being able to display attributes of
becoming successful learners, confident and creative individuals and active and
informed citizens (p. 26). During my attendance at staff meetings the school went
through working the essentials of the Victorian Curriculum and working ways to meet
the needs of the high achieving students in any given domain, this was great to
observe and be involved in.
Although every student has access to an iPad or a laptop, I found that most
assessments were lacking authenticity, which Brady and Kennedy (2012) list a
number of advantages of these, particularly including modernizing the whole school
curriculum (p. 45). However, this is something they can work on bringing on the
future, the school is only 6 years old and have set the agenda on being prepared for
next year with the Victorian Curriculum becoming utilised. In addition, currently in
Health and Physical Education they lack an indoor facility and this makes it a bit
difficult with PE assessments. Another aspect I experienced was getting to view their

students responses in the attitudes to school survey and most of the figures have
increased for most cohorts over the last 3 years (Appendix 4).

TEACHERS
3.

How the teacher keeps assessment data

- How they use it in their planning

Brady and Kennedy (2012) discussed the issue of assessment being an add on to
teaching and learning but it is an essential component to both teaching and learning
(p. 18). I have learnt that is it great for teachers to keep assessment data easily
accessible and organised. My mentor stated that he has access to particular
analytics of assessment data about OnDemand, AUSvels and NAPLAN results on
the Compass online system of any given student. This allows him with more
background knowledge in his planning which is great to utilise along with
communicating with teachers that he shares a student with. My mentor also makes
entries is his secondary planner diary in the roll/assessment marking section to keep
organised in topic areas and weeks of a term. This can also be tailored towards to
keeping on track with assessment schedules and reporting timelines that are set up
in the school. Teachers should also keep record of comments made on assessment
tasks to check if students have been working on what was mentioned later down the
track.
Another teacher I observed explained that in PE he made notes on not only students
attendance in class but also if they brought the appropriate gear and if they
participated in class.
The Compass online school system has a number of features that make keeping
assessment data easier. Compass (n.d) explains that their all-in-one program

features include; Attendance and Roll Marking, Semester and Progress Reporting,
News Feed and Calendaring, Staff, Student and Parent Portal, Online Payments and
consent, Resource and Curriculum Builder, Parent Teacher Interviews, Wellbeing
and Behaviour Management, Event Planning, Approvals and Payments, Budgeting
and Purchase Orders and Native iPhone and Android Applications. My placement
school has only got this system up and running this year and they utilise it for
Attendance and Roll Marking, News Feed and Calendaring and Wellbeing and
Behaviour Management. My mentor explained that they will probably utilise a lot
more features in years to come. By comparison Geelong High School (n.d) include
on their website that they utilise a lot of system features especially the Staff, Student
and Parent Portals.

In conclusion, assessment and reporting is clearly important for ensuring students

growth and to understand how they can improve in teaching instruction. In addition,
schools need to be prepared to try to constantly adapt assessments for diverse
students. Assessment and reporting is also becoming more and more continuous
and accessible, therefore we need to try to make sure that it involves assessment
challenging and achievable of any given students needs.

References:
Brady., L. & Kennedy, K. (2012). Assessment and Reporting: Celebrating Student
Achievement [4th ed.]. Frenchs Forest, NSW: Pearson Australia.
Compass. (n.d). Homepage. Retrieved from
http://compass.edu.au/
Demos, E. S., & Foshay, J. (2009). Differentiated instruction: Using a case study. New
England Reading Association Journal, 44(2), 26-30,92. Retrieved from
http://search.proquest.com.ez.library.latrobe.edu.au/docview/206035929/fulltextPDF/
863E87F61FCB4AE3PQ/1?accountid=12001
DET Vic. (2014). Examples of Social Media Use. Retrieved from
http://www.education.vic.gov.au/about/programs/bullystoppers/Pages/smuse.aspx
Ferguson, P. (2013). Chapter 12: Assessment, feedback and reporting. In R. Churchill (2nd
Ed.), Teaching: Making a Difference, (pp. 414-457). Milton, QLD: John Wiley & Sons
Australia. Retrieved from
https://latrobe.rl.talis.com/link?url=http%3A%2F
%2Febookcentral.proquest.com.ez.library.latrobe.edu.au%2Flib%2Flatrobe
%2Freader.action%3Fppg%3D432%26docID%3D3563933%26tm
%3D1468215573620&sig=2a9ffd6f44c8dfdc55bb79e10e7ac579f6f3c1e5b704c1f1df
30e5f178df659b
Geelong High School. (n.d). Administration. Retrieved from
http://www.geelonghigh.vic.edu.au/About_Administration
Knox College. (2016). Continuous Online Reporting. Retrieved from
http://www.knox.vic.edu.au/curriculum/cor/
Masters, G. (2013). Reforming Educational Assessment:]
Imperatives, principles and challenges. Retrieved from
http://research.acer.edu.au/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1021&context=aer
McDevitt, T. M., & Ormrod, J. E. (2010). Child development and education [4th ed.]. Upper
Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.
Woolfolk, A., & Margetts, K. (2013). Educational Psychology [3rd ed.]. Frenchs Forest, NSW:
Pearson Australia.
Appendix 1: The Schools Reporting Policy (Draft)

Student Reporting Policy

DRAFT

1. Prologue
All Victorian government schools are required to report on student
achievement against the Victorian Curriculum or the AusVELS [or VicVELS]
achievement standards for every student at least twice a year using
common sense student reports. The reports are written in plain English,

giving parents a clearer picture of their childs progress and achievement

against clearly defined learning standards.
http://www.education.vic.gov.au/school/teachers/support/Pages/assessme
nt.aspx
2. Colac Secondary College will provide a written report on student
progress every school term. The reports will be:
a. Interim Report: the Interim Report will be written on a midsemester cycle. The report will be a tick box format with a comment
per subject of 150 characters. Teachers will nominate whether an
interview with parents and students is required (see 3.1).
b. Interim reports will be mailed to parents at the end of Term 1 and
Term 3.
c. Semester Report: the Semester Report will be written at the end
of each semester. The format will be a full page subject report
which will consist of:
i.

AusVELS/VicVELS Progression Points

ii.

Behaviour graphic, 5 point scale (Needs Attention,

Satisfactory, Good, Very Good, Excellent)

iii.

Assessment Task results, including class work and Common

Assessment Tasks

iv.

Comment on student achievement up to 400 characters

v.

Comment on future improvement up to 400 characters

d. Semester reports will be mailed to parent at the end of Semester 1

and Semester 2.

3. Parent Teacher Student Interviews: will be scheduled to occur

twice per school year at the end of Term 1/start term 2 and the end of
Term 3/start Term 4 to correspond with the Interim Reports.
4. As per the Department of Education and Early Childhood Development
requirements (see prologue) teachers at Colac Secondary College are
required to write regular reports on the progress of their students for
parents/guardians. Teachers will write four formal reports (two Interim
Reports and two Semester Reports) per year.

5. Teachers will be supported by:

a. the provision of a Reporting Timeline near the start of each term
b. Professional Development will be available to staff as required
c. guidelines for reporting will be available for staff members (see 6.1)
d. feedback will be available to staff on their reports as required (6.1)

6. The Reporting Manager duties will be to:

a. produce a Reporting Timeline at the start of each School
Term for that reporting period in conjunction with and
through the approval of Colac Secondary College
Consultation committee
b. using available software prepare the relevant report
formats for each reporting period
c. in conjunction with Domain Leaders ensure Semester
Report formats include accurate AusVELS/VicVELS Domains
and Assessment Tasks
d. ensure that reports are printed and proof read for accuracy
e. ensure that the reports are available for mail out
f. provide, when asked for, feedback on reporting and
Professional Development as required by the school
7. Colac Secondary College will support the Reporting Manager by:
a. a time allowance as determined by the
Principal/Consultative Committee
b. release from scheduled classes in peak reporting times, as
required
c. assistance in the proofreading of reports, as required

DRAFT

Appendix 2: The Schools Reporting Timeline

REPORTING TIMELINE
2016

SEMESTER 2, Term 3

DATE (Timetable/Week No. of

Term)

EVENT

Monday August 1 (TT 2/ Week 4)

Reports available for staff to check classes and

students, email corrections to KT.

Friday August 5

Last day for staff to email changes to KT

Monday August 8 (TT 1/ Week 5)

Reports available to staff for writing

Monday August 15 (TT 2/ Week

6)

Friday August 19

CAT 3 Due

Monday August 22 (TT 1/ Week

7)

Monday August 29 (TT 2/Week

8)
Thursday September 1
Friday September 2
Monday September 5 (TT 1/
Week 9)
Tuesday September 6
Wednesday September 7

Interim Reports All reports completed by 9:00 am,

printing
Proof reading and corrections FS & KT
Proof reading and corrections FS & KT
Proof reading and corrections FS & KT
Corrections and reprinting
Corrections and reprinting
Interim Reports to Level Managers for Proof Reading

Friday September 9

Interim Reports proof reading finalised - reprints

Monday September 12 (TT

2/Week 10)

Interim Reports - reprints

Tuesday September 13
Wednesday September 14

Interim Reports reprints, mail out

Interim Reports last day mail out

Friday September 16

Last day of Term 3

Appendix 3: Student Semester Report Examples (including the two following pages)

Appendix 4: Attitudes to School Survey Student Responses Report