Assessment for Learning and the New Music National Curriculum

Phil Kirkman (prk24@cam.ac.uk)2nd February 2010

Introductions

Plan for the session:

Module 1: “Assessment Really Can Help”

Music is different (You can’t measure it with a stick!)

So what about musical progression

How do I see it?

3. 00 - Short break

Module 2: “Making Assessment Work For You”

How do I know it works?

How do I prove it?

What do I do next?

Questions & Evaluation

Activity 1: where are you?

Module 1: Assessment Really Can Help

Activity 2:

What is formative assessment?

What is summative assessment?

So which is which?

Challenges Opportunities

Summative Assessment

LEVEL DESCRIPTIONS: MUSICLevel 1Pupils recognise and explore how sounds can be made and changed. They use their voices in different ways such as speaking, singing and chanting, and perform with awareness of others. They repeat short rhythmic and melodic patterns and create and choose sounds in response to given starting points. They respond to different moods in music and recognise well-defined changes in sounds, identify repeated patterns and take account of musical instructions.Level 2Pupils recognise and explore how sounds can be organised. They sing with a sense of the shape of the melody, and perform simple patterns and accompaniments keeping to a steady pulse. They choose carefully and order sounds within simple structures such as beginning, middle, end, and in response to given starting points. They represent sounds with symbols and recognise how the musical elements can be used to create different moods and effects and communicate ideas. They improve their own work.Level 3Pupils recognise and explore the ways sounds can be combined and used expressively. They sing in tune with expression and perform simple melodic and rhythmic parts. They improvise repeated patterns and combine several layers of sound with an awareness of the combined effect. They recognise how the different musical elements are combined and used expressively and make improvements to their own work, commenting on the intended effect.Level 4Pupils identify and explore the relationship between sounds and how music reflects different intentions. While performing by ear and from notations, they maintain their own part with awareness of how the different parts fit together and the need to achieve an overall effect. They improvise melodic and rhythmic phrases as part of a group performance and compose by developing ideas within musical structures. They describe, compare and evaluate different kinds of music using an appropriate musical vocabulary. They suggest improvements to their own and others’ work, commenting on how intentions have been achieved.Level 5Pupils identify and explore musical devices and how music reflects time, place and culture. They perform significant parts from memory and from notations, with awareness of their own contribution such as leading others, taking a solo part or providing rhythmic support. They improvise melodic and rhythmic material within given structures, use a variety of notations, and compose music for different occasions using appropriate musical devices. They analyse and compare musical features. They evaluate how venue, occasion and purpose affect the way music is created, performed and heard. They refine and improve their work.40 of 59MusicLevel 6Pupils identify and explore the different processes and contexts of selected musical styles, genres and traditions. They select and make expressive use of tempo, dynamics, phrasing and timbre. They make subtle adjustments to fit their own part within a group performance. They improvise and compose in different styles and genres, using harmonic and non-harmonic devices where relevant, sustaining and developing musical ideas, and achieving different intended effects. They use relevant notations to plan, revise and refine material. They analyse, compare and evaluate how music reflects the contexts in which it is created, performed and heard. They make improvements to their own and others’ work in the light of the chosen style.Level 7Pupils discriminate between and explore musical conventions in, and influences on, selected styles, genres and traditions. They perform in different styles, making significant contributions to the ensemble and using relevant notations. They create coherent compositions drawing on internalised sounds. They adapt, improvise, develop, extend and discard musical ideas within given and chosen musical structures, styles, genres and traditions. They evaluate, and make critical judgements about, the use of musical conventions and other characteristics and how different contexts are reflected in their own and others’ work.Level 8Pupils discriminate between and exploit the characteristics and expressive potential of selected musical resources, styles, genres and traditions. They perform, improvise and compose extended compositions with a sense of direction and shape, both within melodic and rhythmic phrases and overall form. They explore different styles, genres and traditions, working by ear and by making accurate use of appropriate notations. They both follow and challenge conventions. They discriminate between musical styles, genres and traditions, commenting on the relationship between the music and its cultural context, and making and justifying their own judgements.Exceptional PerformancePupils discriminate between and develop different interpretations. They express their own ideas and feelings in a developing personal style, exploiting instrumental and/or vocal possibilities. They give convincing performances and demonstrate empathy with other performers. They produce compositions that demonstrate a coherent development of musical ideas, consistency of style and a degree of individuality. They discriminate and comment on how and why changes occur within selected traditions, including the particular contribution of significant performers and composers.

Unit

4 Module 2: Written feedbackObjectives• To recognise the types of written feedback that best help pupils to improve• To focus written feedback on the learning objectives and planned learning outcomes of lessons so that pupils can see the immediate relevance of comments• To develop a strategy to provide written feedback that will better help pupils to improve• To contribute to developing a whole-school policy linking and clarifying the relationship between oral and written feedback

The PACE project

“Since the negative impact of tests on assessment for learning is one of the main reasons for proposing greater use of teachers’ assessment it is important to consider how to reconcile the two”

How often is too often?

“...to avoid a negative impact on the formative use of assessment it is important that internal summative assessment is not carried out more often than is really required for reporting progress and achievement. Assessing pupils frequently in terms of levels or grades means that the feedback that they receive is predominantly judgmental, encouraging them to compare themselves with others. In such circumstances there is little attention by teachers or pupils to the formative use of assessment...” (ARG 2006)

Attainment targets

Developmental - they describe PUPILS

They discuss widely understood processes

To communicate National Standards

Attainment targets should be applied at the student level.

They cannot be applied either to musical products or activities

Attainment targets should be applied at the student level.

They cannot be applied either to musical products or activities

How do I make this a level 5 piece of work?

…

Practice for progress so you become a level 5 student!

How do I make this a level 5 piece of work?

…

Practice for progress so you become a level 5 student!

You don’t measure the music - you measure the student

Bringing Assessment together

FormativeSummative

So what about musical progression?

“For the things we have to learn before we can do them, we learn by

doing them”

Aristotle

Assessment for learning

The Assessment for Learning

(AfL) Framework has built in

recognition of:

the rights of the individual,

the uniqueness of your department,

your expertise as a classroom

teacher

learning as the focus of assessment

Formative Assessment

Challenges Opportunities

Assessment for learning is a powerful way of raising pupils’ achievement.

It is based on the principle that pupils will improve most if they understand

the aim of their learning,

where they are in relation to this aim

how they can achieve the aim

The benefits of assessment for learning

The 10 Principles: Assessment for Learning

Assessment for learning should be part of effective planning of teaching and learning

Assessment for learning should focus on how students learn

Assessment for learning should be recognised as central to classroom practice

Assessment for learning should be regarded as a key professional skill for teachers

Assessment for learning should be sensitive and constructive because any assessment has an emotional impact

Assessment for learning should take account of the importance of learner motivation

Assessment for learning should promote commitment to learning goals and a shared understanding of the criteria by which they are assessed

Learners should receive constructive guidance about how to improve

Assessment for learning develops learners' capacity for self-assessment so that they can become reflective and self-managing

Assessment for learning should recognise the full range of achievements of all learners

Targets

How

Involvement

Knowledge

Feedback

T - H - I - N - K

T - H - I - N - K

T - What are your Targets? what are students’ Targets?

H - How will student achievement be seen by you?

I - Involvement - How will achievement be seen by students?

N - How will you share knowledge of students’ achievement?

K - How will you create a feedback loop to build on gains?

How do I see it?T - H - I

Targets - How -Involvement

Video at http://www.teachers.tv/video/33482

Case study 1

- Target- How

- Involvement

Case study 2:

This old Hammer

- Target- How

- Involvement

http://curriculum.qcda.gov.uk/key-stages-3-and-4/assessment/nc-in-action/

items/music/7/368.aspx

Summative assessment

Formative Assessment

Assessment for Learning

THINK

Targets - How - Involvement

Module 1: “It really can help”

Break

Module 2: “Making it work for you”

Making it work for you

How can you get assessment to help you help them to

develop as musicians?

(And keep what’s left of my sanity!)

What’s the problem?

“How do I know or find out what progress looks like in my school

for my students so I can set targets that are meaningful to

my students

THINK:How do I know what

works?

Methodology: How do we view the learning?

Depth of understandin

g

Number of students

How do I sample?

• Cases:

Groups of students:Prior learning

Prior progress

Prior attainment

Pupils with individual needs

Interesting cases I didn’t expect........ Why....?

Which groupings of students will

best represent the learners for this task?

Are there any special cases?

How do I sample?

• Larger groups:

Groups of students:Prior learning

Prior progress

Prior attainment

Pupils with individual needs

What questions do I ask?

What kind of answers can I get?

Qualitative or quantitative?

Which groupings of students will

best represent the learners for this task?

What is it that I really need to know?

Activity

Detail:

How did the activities around this old hammer impact upon the

learning of ...(student cases).........

Broad overview:

What was the impact of this old

hammer on students’

achievement in year 7?

What can we do to improve the learning of key concepts and

skills through this unit of work?

Was the unit a success? Did students enjoy it? Should we

prioritise it for updating?

THINK:How do I prove it?

...Feedback

THINK:

Product - Process - Person - Environment

Evidence can be collected from many sources:

Depth of understandin

g

Number of students

Types of evidence

Patterns in your evidence

Maybe

Probably Most likely

VideoAudio

WorksheetInterview notes

Lesson notesPictures

Feedback formsLogbooksSurveys

QuestionnairesSpreadsheetsStudent notes

Group worksheets

Lesson PlansMark bookStraw Poll

ExamsTraffic lights

TargetsThumbs

up/Thumbs downPost its

Peer review sheets

Mind mapsFish diagramsVenn diagrams

Meeting minutesDevelopment

planPMI diagramLadders of

understandingNational Data

Attainment target levels

Evaluation formsComputer files

What do I do next?

Feedback - Knowing (me), Knowing (you)

Where did you want to be by the end of this afternoon?

Did you get there?

Where do you want to go next?

What can you do next to build on where you are now?

THINK

How do I know? - Methodology

How do I prove it? - Methods & Sources

Feedback into the planning

Targets - How - Involvement - Knowing - Feedback

Module 2: “Making it work for you”

Questions & Evaluation