Why Test For Failure? Let’s Assess For Success
Post-Rochford Review, asks Jackie Ward, will pupils with SEND finally be seen for what they can do, and not just what they can’t?
- by Jackie Ward
Late last year I was asked to present a keynote speech at the @BeyondLevels #LearningFirst Lancaster conference (see beyondlevels.website), followed by a workshop aimed at opening up a wider discussion.
Both focused on how to conduct principled assessment from a SEND perspective, with a grounding in quality first teaching, whereby SENCos maintain strategic oversight of what is happening across their school. As a keen user of ‘EduTwitter’ I canvassed the views of professionals and parents beforehand, and the consensus seemed to be that we need to know the child in order to assess and meet their individual needs.
More than a PRU issue
That might sound obvious, but whether it happens still largely depends on teachers’ ability to recognise SEND in their pupils and put appropriate interventions in place – or their willingness to seek further advice and support from their SENCo. As a former deputy head and SENCo in a primary pupil referral unit, I regularly received children with a range of underlying or complex needs that had often gone unrecognised. Some would have displayed challenging behaviours in a mainstream setting that stemmed from social, emotional and mental health difficulties, leading to their permanent exclusion.
It was our job to unpick those difficulties, build their self-esteem, combat their feelings of worthlessness and failure and deliver an appropriate curriculum matched to their abilities. Yet failure is not just a PRU issue!
In my current role as an independent specialist teacher, I remain concerned that schoolchildren with SEND who are cognitively ‘below’ the expected standard are framed in the language of failure, rather than success. It all seems to be about what they cannot do, rather than their achievements, however big or small.
Falling below expectations
I therefore read the findings of the Rochford Review with great interest. As well as recommending the replacement of P scales – which tend to assume an upward trajectory, rather than the more fluid ‘steps of progress’ that tend to be the reality – it called for the introduction of a statutory duty to assess pupils against seven aspects of cognition and learning and report this to parents and carers. The aspects in question are ‘responsiveness’, ‘curiosity’, ‘discovery’, ‘anticipation’, ‘persistence’, ‘initiation’ and ‘investigation’. It will be up to schools to decide how they should assess progress in these areas, and use the resulting information to build up a picture of the whole child.
Trending
At my #LearningFirstworkshop, the gathered heads, SENCOs and other professionals cheered this apparent rejection of what had up to then been a relentless focus on whether pupils fell below (or even well below) certain agerelated expectations. Instead, we now have what appears to be a willingness to embrace the idea that progress can be made in small, positive steps – a notion that hitherto you would only have expected to find in the EYFS profile.
The language in the air now seems to focus far more on enjoyment, excitement, curiosity, stickability – and most importantly, on what a child can achieve, not just what they can’t. So how can we can ensure that systems are in place to ‘assess for success’? There are some useful checklists out there that explain, step-by-step, the signs of SEND that teachers should look out for – there’s one I particularly like created by Chris Chivers, which you can find at tinyurl.com/chivers-send.
If the school has firmly embedded quality first teaching, the SENCo can concentrate on their strategic role, ensuring the teacher has access to high quality resources and external specialists. Early intervention is key. When everyone knows which children have SEND, there can be a real sense of a shared purpose in helping the most vulnerable children succeed.
About the author
Jackie Ward is a behaviour management and SEND consultant; for more information visit sendforjax.co.uk
