Identification of Underachievement

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Identification of Underachievement
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What is underachievement?

• Pupils who are failing to reach their maximum
  potential
• This may be due to a range of factors such as
• Attendance
• Pastoral Issues
• Medical
• SEN
• Lack of Motivation
• These could be interrelated

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What data was used to identify underachievement?

• Standardised external tests such as CATs and
  Transfer Tests
• Standardised internal tests
• Diagnostic testing for SEN
• The professional judgement of staff
• Different Criteria were established for each Key
  Stage

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How do we collect the data?

• Year 8 and 10 pupils sit CATs test in October and
  the results are supplied to the school on a
  floppy disc. This data can be directly imported
  into SIMS Assessment Manager
• Standardised assessment data is collected for all
  pupils in November, February and May. This data
  is directly entered into a SIMS marksheet.
• This data was combined with other data in an
  Excel spreadsheet but the introduction of
  Assessment Manager 7 should reduce the workload
  substantially.
• Attendance Percentage and SEN status are fields
  which can now be inserted automatically into any
  marksheet.
• Aspects could be set up for Pastoral and Medical
  issues.

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Collecting the data using version 6 of
Assessment Manager
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Assessment Manager 7 will reduce the workload
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Non Data Based Information

• Pastoral Information
• Medical Issues
• Professional Opinion of teachers
• The Number of Departments/subjects who identify a
  pupil as underachieving

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Further Information from the Heads of Department
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How was the data collated?

• Up until now data from Assessment Manager was
  copied to Excel and combined with the other data
  copied from various modules as well as a
  substantial level of manual input.
• Using functions such as COUNTIF in Excel, pupils
  who are underachieving could be identified
  according to the specific criteria for each year
  group

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Example of Criteria for determining
underachievement in Year 10 (KS3)

• Pupils who achieve a Verbal or Quantitative
  Stanine of 5 or less in the Year 10 CAT Tests
  conducted in October 2006
• and/or
• A Verbal or Quantitative Stanine significantly
  lower than their non verbal score
• Pupils who achieved three or more Grades lower
  than C in Assessment 1
• Pupils who are highlighted by departments as
  underachieving in three or more subjects across
  the ability range

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All the data is now in place!
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What happens next?

• The SMT analyse and discuss the data.
• Pupils underachieving are identified using the
  criteria for the particular Key Stage
• Information is then circulated to Heads of Year
  and Head of Departments.
• Curriculum and Pastoral support is put in place
  where appropriate
• The data is also used as part of a mail merge
  report to parents at Parent Teacher Meeting.
• Where pupils are identified as underachieving
  their parents are informed of our concerns and
  proposed action.

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Intervention

• Depending on the level of underachievement and
  the underlying cause, if known or identified, the
  pupils can have
• Their progress Monitored closely until the next
  set of assessments
• Interviews by their Head of Year or a member of
  the SMT depending on the severity of the
  underachievement and the particular circumstances
• Following the interview pupils could be placed on
  a Pupil Development Plan (PDP) and progress
  monitored by Form Teacher/Head of Year.
• If there appears to be underlying learning needs
  the pupil will be diagnostically tested and if
  necessary placed on the SEN Register

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(No Transcript)
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Has this scheme been successful?

• We collected the following data on each year
  group
• of Grade As in the Transfer Test
• of Pupils achieving at least 3 Level 7s at KS3
• of pupils achieving 7 GCSEs at Grade A-C
• of pupils achieving 3 A Levels at Grade A-C
• This data was plotted against year of entry

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of Pupils with Transfer Grade A
Year of Entry
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A set of benchmarking data can be collected for
each year group
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Comparison of Performance in Transfer, KS3, GCSE
and A Level
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Trends in Performance can be identified
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Has this scheme had any impact?
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An ongoing process

• This system has now been in place for 6 years. It
  is an ongoing continuous cycle which also
  includes analysis of winter and summer reports.
• During this period no pupil has been continuously
  identified every year and the vast majority after
  identification improve their performance.
• With the improvements in Assessment Manager 7 and
  our plan to introduce Codes for Pastoral and
  Medical Issues, the system to collect information
  will be fully automated and live.
• We hope that there will less time spent on
  collating the data and allow earlier intervention.