Primary Assessment
CAT4 Assessments
What is a CAT4 Assessment?
The Cognitive Abilities Test (CAT4) is an assessment that is designed to help students and their teachers understand how they learn and what their academic potential might be. It assesses how students think in areas that are known to make a difference to learning.
Why do we complete a CAT4 Assessment?
CAT4 is designed to give schools a much broader, more rounded view of each child, their potential and how they learn. Results help teachers decide about the pace of learning that is right for a student and whether additional support or challenge is needed.
Does my child need to revise for a CAT4 Assessment?
We strongly advise against any kind of practice ahead of a CAT4 test as this will alter the reliability of test scores. The point of CAT4 is that it is not a test of learnt knowledge and it needs to be as unaffected as possible by any external factors, such as practice. Think of it like an eye test; if you practice ahead of an eye test and memorise the card, your diagnosis may not be correct and valuable information may be missed.
The New Group Reading Test (NGRT)
What is a New Group Reading Test?
New Group Reading Test (NGRT) is a formative assessment that is used to assess a students’ level reading. Formative means that it does not count towards any final grade or result but is used to find out your child’s current ability level as compared to the national average and allow for identification of students who may benefit from interventions or from being stretched further. The test can be taken again later in the school year to assess progress and see whether interventions have been successful.
Why do we complete a NGRT Assessment?
Reading skills are a key aspect of a students’ ability to access the school curriculum. NGRT can quickly and accurately inform staff of a student’s level of reading, and therefore provide support to those who need it, or stretch those who can be pushed for further development. It allows for more personalised interventions that are appropriate for the individual student, with the aim of raising a student’s abilities in reading and, by extension, their ability to access other areas of the curriculum.
Does my child need to revise for a NGRT Assessment?
We advise against any practicing or training in order to get a fair assessment of the student’s reading abilities at that moment in time. There are practice questions in the assessment to get students familiar with the task they are being asked to do.
PT Test
What is a PT test?
An English, Maths and Science online assessment to measure academic attainment and progress.
Why do we complete a PT test?
The assessment allows the school to monitor students’ learning and ensure they are sufficiently supported and challenged to reach their full potential.
Does my child need to revise for a PT test?
Teachers prepare the students for these assessments in class. A resource will also be shared with you to support your child in advance before the assessments take place.
Phonics Screening Test
What is a phonics screening test?
The Phonics Screening Test is an assessment to check that students are making expected progress in line with the UK National Curriculum. It compromises of a list of 40 words which the student will read to the teacher.
Why do we complete a phonics screening test?
The assessment ensures that as a British Curriculum School, our student's knowledge of Phonics is in line with age-related benchmarking set out by the UK government.
Does my child need to revise for a phonics screening test?
Students are supported through daily Phonics lessons. We encourage parents to support through weekly spellings and daily reading.
PASS Test
What is a PASS Test?
Pupil Attitudes to Self and School (PASS) is an assessment that involves students answering survey style questions that takes 20-30 minutes. It gives staff an indication of how a student is thinking and what their attitude to school and learning is.
Why do we complete a PASS test?
It is important for students to have a positive attitude towards school and learning in order to be effective learners. Sometimes it can be difficult however for staff to understand the internal cause of a student’s external behaviour. PASS can be used to investigate this.
Students’ answers to PASS may influence staff to implement interventions at whole school, class or individual level. .
Does my child need to revise for a PASS test?
There is no need for revision or training as PASS is intended to gain an accurate understanding of how a student honestly feels about themselves and their school at that moment in time. There are no right or wrong answers, and the child should not be coached in any way regarding their responses.
