Testing twice a year – Seize the moment!

On 3 July 2024, Minister Stanford announced a policy on student assessment, making it mandatory for kura to assess students at specific points in their schooling. Phonics checks will be carried out at 20 and 40 weeks for students in their first year of schooling. Progression monitoring on reading, writing, and maths will also be introduced for children in years 3 - 8, which will be done using three standardised assessment tools: e-asTTle, progressive achievement tests (PATs), and Te Waharoa Ararau. Alongside this, there will be an expansion of the Curriculum Insights and Progress Study, with reading, writing, and maths being assessed annually for years 3, 6, and 8 from 2025.

The Minister identified the following benefits from this policy:

• early identification of learning needs

• consistency in student assessment nationally

• informing parents about their child’s learning and progress

• regular progress monitoring

• informing teachers about the next steps needed for a child’s learning.

In announcing this policy, the Minister said:

“Parents deserve to know how their kids are progressing at school.”

While this is obvious and correct, it's clear that effective checks and monitoring are essential for informing parents about their children's progress. When done properly, they provide valuable insights beyond just basic information for parents.

This policy focuses on consistent biannual assessments to identify trends school-wide, not the moment-by-moment assessment events that teachers and students use all the time to monitor small (daily) steps in learning.

Here are some thoughts on maximising this policy to enhance learning for all.  

Seize the moment

Firstly, it’s important to note that for many schools already using standardized tests twice a year across their cohort, this will not be a change in practice. However, for some schools, it may require a significant shift in practice.

In education, we are constantly presented with new challenges and opportunities. Whether it's a new national assessment framework or a curriculum adjustment, the initial reaction might be to resist change, especially if it doesn’t align with our current beliefs or practices. However, as Perry Rush (2024) aptly put it:

“Don’t dismiss outright change that you disagree with. Give time to let ideas percolate and look for the gold.”

This national policy shift in educational practice provides the opportunity to refine and improve our systems, both schoolwide and nationwide. This is the time for students, teachers, and leaders, as well as whānau, to be better informed so seize the moment and read on for ways to implement thoughtful assessment.

Generate dependable data: A thoughtful approach to assessment

For assessment data to be truly useful, it must be dependable. This means that the testing processes must be designed to provide accurate, actionable insights into the learning of students. There are some fundamental principles that must be considered when implementing nationally consistent testing twice a year.

1. Get the right information to the right people

The New Zealand Assessment Institute (2021) highlights that all education tiers—students, teachers, parents, whānau, school leaders, and boards—require different assessment information to support equitable learning. Effective planning ensures everyone has timely access to the data they need.

Key data considerations include:

• Who needs the data?

• What data do they need?

• In what form do they need it?

• When do they need it?

• How will they access it?

• What aggregation and disaggregation need occur for cohort data?

• What analysis is needed prior to sharing?

2. Choose the best assessment tools for your setting

For those schools using the New Zealand curriculum, e-asTTle and PATs are the two options schools can use. Both are good tools, so it’s hard to go too far wrong. Currently e-asTTle is the only standardised writing tool. However, there is an opportunity to review which tools are being used for reading and mathematics and decide which will work best. The answer will be different from school to school and that is ok.

The phonics checks will be provided—one in English and one in te reo Māori. Both checks will be trialled in Term 4 2024, with the phonics check being available for kura to use from the beginning of Term 1 2025.

In Māori medium for years 3–8, e-asTTle or Te Waharoa Ararau can be chosen. It is important to understand the limitations of the current versions of tuhituhi, pānui, and pāngarau in e-asTTle. This includes whether level 2, the lowest level available in the tool, is appropriate for ākonga. Te Waharoa Ararau was developed to assist with the collection, analysis, and reporting of progress and achievement information in relation to Te Marautanga o Aotearoa and uses an OTJ approach. Again, even if e-asTTle or Te Waharoa Ararau is currently being used, it’s worth reviewing how you are using it to make sure the potential of the tool is being maximised.

3. Assign assessments with an appropriate level of difficulty

As testing twice a year requires whole cohort testing, it may be tempting to give whole-year groups the same test. Please don’t do that! At best, it produces unreliable data for both high and low achievers, and at worst, there is reputational risk as it shows whānau that their child is not well known or understood. If the test is too easy, there is little challenge for them, and the score is untrustworthy. If the test is too hard, the student may feel dumb and disengage. In both cases, teachers, students, and parents won't get valuable insights into progress or feel well informed about future learning goals. No one benefits!

The focus is not whether a test is good or bad, but whether it is appropriate for each student, allowing them to demonstrate their abilities and limitations at a given point in time. Assessment tools are most effective when students achieve a balanced mix of correct and incorrect answers. To generate useful data for students, teachers, and parents, assign tests that challenge each student appropriately, ensuring accurate scores and valuable insights for future learning that can be achieved through proper planning. If using e-asTTle, begin by downloading our handy e-asTTle Test Creation Planning Sheet. Take a schoolwide approach instead of having teams work independently. This creates efficiencies and minimises potential issues when assigning tests, collating data, or analysing results.

4. Quality assessment management

A standardised test is one that is administered and scored in a standard way by all users, allowing comparison of student performance against norms. But this is only true if all tests are administered in a standardised way. Therefore, teachers must know the testing procedures and ensure testing is carried out in accordance with the assessment instructions.

It’s important to remember that some students may need accommodations to participate in the assessment. Review guidelines for acceptable accommodations and provide them to those who truly need them. This should be a professional decision made with the student’s best interests in mind. The goal is to fairly assess a student’s abilities while considering their needs. Share the nature of, and rationale for the accommodation with the student to ensure they feel supported, not demeaned.

5. Timing

Consideration must be given to the timing of testing, which is the responsibility of school leadership. Consider the following three points to get the best results:

• Choose a time when students can perform at their best.

Test students at a time and in an environment that allows them to perform their best. Avoid the start of the year or term and choose a time of day when students can focus without being disturbed.

• Space out testing to show real progress over time.

Testing too often or too closely spaced can mean that real progress can be hidden. As Darr and Ferral (2007) wrote:

 “Attempting to measure an individual’s progress over short time intervals will often leave us no wiser as to how much the student has improved. We will see far more noise than signal in the gain scores even though real improvements could be taking place.”

To prevent this, consider a “twice a year” approach that creates a convenient six-month interval. Scheduling assessments at similar times during Terms 1 and 3, or Terms 2 and 4, is an effective and straightforward solution. This spacing also allows the important monitoring of progress trends across years.

• Align testing with other relevant school activities.

Align testing with key reporting and consultation events throughout the school year, such as report writing, student led conferences, or board reporting. By testing in early Term 2, for example, it allows time to interpret that data and gives the students the opportunity to share recent, relevant insights of their learning and progress with whānau during student-led conferences.

Use the data well

When testing all year 3 - 8 students twice a year, it's essential to plan carefully to make the most of the data gathered. It takes effort, so make it worthwhile.

1. Teaching and learning come first

e-asTTle and PATs have always been designed and promoted as tools to support teaching and learning first and foremost. This is the great feature of these tools. The data generated from assessments must be used to celebrate progress and identify the next steps for future learning.

The assessment tools produce reports that show:

• areas of strength

• gaps in learning

• clear next steps.

Teachers need to possess the necessary technical skills and knowledge to use and share this information from the assessments.

Students also need to understand their reports and be active partners in their learning journey. This makes it easier for them to engage with their next steps in learning and personal growth. Dedicating time to building assessment literacy in both teachers and students enables them to make better use of test data, and more importantly, it helps them recognise the value and benefits of assessment.

2. Confirm or challenge

Don’t accept the data at face value. Scrutinise the data to ensure it aligns with a student’s classroom performance with a process I like to call "confirm or challenge." Compare test results with students' usual behaviours, and other information. While this may seem complicated, it really isn’t, as teachers usually know their students well enough to anticipate how they will perform.

Teachers are often heard saying things like:

"Wow, Sarah performed well in that test!"

Clearly, the teacher had a feeling of how the student would perform, and those expectations had been exceeded. Of course, the opposite can also happen.

When a test result confirms a teacher's perception of a student, the data can generally be trusted and used with confidence, while if the result challenges the teacher's perception, it becomes necessary to either question the result or reconsider their view of the student. The teacher can check by drawing on multiple forms of evidence (often in their head) and even the student’s own view of their performance.

When a student’s results challenge a teacher’s perception, teachers can either:

• establish that the test result is not representative of the student’s abilities and so maintain similar expectations of the student or

• verify the result and adjust their perception accordingly.

3. Trends and patterns

Cohort data combines all data and allows filtering by factors like gender, ethnicity, and year groups to reveal group trends that individual data can't show. Seize the opportunity to use this data to identify emerging patterns and guide strategic decisions. For example:

• If a pattern shows that year 7 students struggle with fractions, teachers can address it.

• If a significant number of year 3 and 4 students have low reading scores, it enables targeted resourcing.

4. Consider tracking progress over time

It is essential to think about data usage not just in the immediate term but also longitudinally. Long-term data tracking offers deeper insights into student achievement that can guide teaching strategies at individual, group, or school-wide levels. This approach is more meaningful than only looking at two points in a year. Tools like e-asTTle’s new targets and summaries feature, show student progress across several years and schools.

The example below shows test results for an individual from years 4 -10 and across two different schools. This is crucial for tracking improvements in excellence and equity over time. 

This data offers a more reliable picture of student progress over time than just two points in a single year.

As a school there is a great opportunity to consider aggregated and disaggregated longitudinal data. It can help answers questions such as:

• How do our year groups compare to national norms?

• Are our year groups making accelerated progress within and across years?

• What does progress for our year groups look like over the last 4 years?

• Are there gender or ethnicity differences in our data?

• Are our students performing better or worse than similar students in the past?

Generating dependable data, and using it well, can have a profound impact on teaching, learning, and school-wide decision-making. It helps confirm or challenge existing perceptions, identify trends over time, report consistent data, and personalise instruction for each learner. By seizing the moment and testing twice a year, when done well, will foster a more informed, effective, and forward-thinking learning environment.

Where to from here?

Seize the moment by beginning with a review of the current state of assessment. This may require input and feedback from multiple perspectives, so discussion is needed, particularly with students and whānau.

A good resource to support this initial review are the Assessment to improve learning documents that are freely available through the New Zealand Assessment Institute (NZAI).

Downloadable PDFs:

• Assessment to Improve Learning: Principles, Practices and Proof

• Companion Guide to the Assessment PPP

These free, downloadable documents provide useful principles, sound assessment practices, and ways of knowing whether the practices have been effective (proof) as well as discussion starters to help with the review.

Good luck and seize the moment!

References 

Absolum, M. (2006). Clarity in the Classroom.

Darr, C. and Ferral, H. - Too much testing? Finding the signal amongst the noise
NZCER Set article – Set 3 20027

Ministry of Education: Minister outlines intentions for assessment and aromatawai - https://www.education.govt.nz/news/minister-outlines-intentions-for-assessment-and-aromatawai/

New Zealand Assessment Institute - Assessment to improve learning: Principles, Practices and Proof - https://www.nzai.org.nz/knowledge-centre/assessment-ppp/

New Zealand Assessment Institute - Companion guide to the Assessment PPP - https://www.nzai.org.nz/knowledge-centre/assessment-ppp/ 

New Zealand Government: Govt delivers consistency for assessing Kiwi kids - https://www.beehive.govt.nz/release/govt-delivers-consistency-assessing-kiwi-kids

Rush, P. - Your 2024 Educational Reform Playbook
https://www.learningcircle.co.nz/blog/your-2024-educational-reform-playbook

The glossary of Education reform - https://www.edglossary.org/standardized-test/

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Contact Garry Taylor