Research School Network: Assess Better. Join the Assessment Lead Programme.

The Assessment Lead Programme enables education professionals to make their assessment approach more efficient, allowing them to make more reliable judgements about what pupils know, can do and need next.

By generating and using higher quality information on pupil learning, and better integrating assessment with curriculum and pedagogy, teaching can be more responsive to pupil needs.

Spend less time producing data and gain time for refining pedagogy.

This programme will encourage you to re-think your approach to assessment and support you to implement change.

What is the purpose of the programme?

The aim is to improve the efficiency of assessment as a tool to improve the quality of information that supports effective teaching and learning.

The programme itself provides a framework for improving a school’s in-house assessment approach, both formative and summative.

It includes evidence-based training, practical tools and resources, guidance for implementation, a collaborative model of development and expert support, sustained over time.

The programme activates change on three levels.

Individual practitioners:

· Understand why, when and how to assess

· Understand key concepts in assessment and assessment as pedagogy

· Use assessment more effectively to support curriculum planning and pedagogy

· Be able to design powerful formative questions and quizzes that can be used during teaching to identify pupil misconceptions and learner needs

· Design formative and summative assessments that are demonstrably reliable in supporting curriculum planning and tracking progress

Within a department or phase:

· Structured collaboration, driven and supported by trained Assessment Leads to link curriculum and pedagogy through effective use of assessment

· Improve reliability of judgements in both formative and summative approaches

· Build a bank of powerful formative questions for diagnostic use when planning schemes of work

Whole school:

· In-house support for teachers’ development in assessment practice

· A replicable model for activating change with Assessment Leads modelling good practice – taking on the role of ​‘expert practitioner’

· Support to roll-out learning to other departments or phases

How’s the programme structured?

In line with the best available evidence in teacher CPD, the programme is structured over time, with participants learning and developing their practice in manageable units, at their own pace and over three school terms.

Term 1 – Develop: Learn the underlying pillars of great assessment and use them to design, implement and analyse assessment more effectively in any subject. Learn how to design assessments for different purposes, and how to use the information you generate effectively as part of curriculum planning and pedagogy.

Term 2 – Apply: Learn from experience. Apply your knowledge and test what you’ve learned by working with colleagues to put things into practice. Develop and refine questions and classroom assessments using the tools provided to improve the quality of information generated by their assessments.

Term 3 – Drive: With the knowledge, experience, confidence and examples you have developed, we guide you to work with others to lead the development and improvement of assessment within a department or phase and across school. Our collaborative framework guides you in using your expertise and resources to enable others to make better use of their time by assessing purposefully.

What’s the format?

All learning material, tools, resources and support are delivered via a personalised and engaging online learning platform. However, the real learning takes place in your school; applying the theory to your individual context, using the resources, working with colleagues to design and refine your assessments and generally honing your skills to harness the power of assessment in your department or phase!

Flexible, practical and supported learning

Learn around your own timetable at a time and pace that suits you. Benefit from:

· 50 hours of professional learning aligned with the best available evidence

· Tools and resources to guide, support and implement change

· Structured collaboration and support – you are not alone!

· Practice opportunities: non-negotiable exercises to stage learning – guiding you through the whole process

· Personal support throughout the programme from our team of experts

· Valuable skills that are in high demand

· Example-based learning: relevant, relatable examples to explain key concepts

· Examples from schools working through the everyday practicalities of implementing an integrated assessment system

Who is eligible for the programme?

Any English-medium primary or secondary school, FE college or academy that is committed to the below criteria can sign up to the Assessment Lead Programme.

For the programme to have the desired impact, we strongly advise that schools and participants are committed to:

· Improving their use of assessment as a tool to support teaching and learning

· A professional development approach that is sustained over time

· Enrolling the senior leader responsible for assessment, plus one middle leader such as a head of department or phase

· Ringfencing around an hour per week for personal learning, plus around half an hour per week for Assessment Leads to meet up, discuss topics, collaborate on activities and support one another

· Supporting the programme as part of directed CPD

How much does it cost?

£1,200 for an institution, for a year’s programme of guided CPD. This includes two places on the online programme. (We insist on a minimum of two, because the research evidence indicates that structured collaboration and peer support is a common feature of effective CPD.)

Each additional place on the programme thereafter costs £500. All costs are excluding VAT.

Receive £100 off when you book through Meols Cop Research School

Sign up now

Find out when the next cohort is running and start to #AssessBetter! Sign up at

https://ebe1.typeform.com/to/iiDNw7?%20source=MeolsCopRS

Any questions?

Ask away! Book a telephone Q&A session or submit your questions by email to alex@evidencebased.education