Assessment is the start, not the finish

It is hard to believe that we are now 80% of the way through the school year, though the recent heat and rain confirms that we are definitely in the rainy season again.  With 20% to go, there is a lot to do before we start to think about the summer holidays.

Last week in BISblog, I outlined the assessment and reporting schedule for this term and provided a short piece reflecting on the place of assessment in education.  What should be clear is that in line with the reporting schedule improvements put in place this year, we regard school education as a continuous process, punctuated by breaks.  The summer break is distinguished by its length, and by it marking key transition points in the organisation of lessons.   Summer term, therefore, is not only a time of taking stock and testing, it is very much a time of continuing to learn.  This is the reason for assessments, as far as is practical, being timed so as to allow important follow up work to take place.  Assessment is a starting point for the next steps in learning, not a finishing point.