The Education (Assessment Arrangements) (Foundation to Key Stage 3) Order (Northern Ireland) 2007

Made: 26th January 2007

Coming into operation: 1st August 2007

The Department of Education, in exercise of the powers conferred by Articles 9(2) and 43(5) of the Education (Northern Ireland) Order 2006[^f00001], makes the following Order:

Citation and commencement

1

This Order may be cited as The Education (Assessment Arrangements) (Foundation to Key Stage 3) Order (Northern Ireland) 2007 and shall come into operation as set out in Schedule 1.

Interpretation

2

In this Order—

• “autumn term” means the period commencing on 1st August and ending with the beginning of the Christmas holiday;

• “other skills” means the skills specified by The Education (Other Skills) Order (Northern Ireland) 2007[^f00002];

• “school year” means a year ending on 31st July

• “summer term” means the period commencing immediately after the Easter holiday and ending with the school year; and

• “the 2006 Order” means the Education (Northern Ireland) Order 2006.

General duties of the principal

3

It shall be the duty of the principal of each grant-aided school to make arrangements for the assessment of each pupil in each school year, in accordance with the provisions of this Order.

4

• (1) Pupils shall be assessed in the autumn term, using such computer-based assessment method as the Department may specify, in accordance with any guidance provided by NICCEA.

• (2) Each pupil in:

• (a) the second year of Key Stage 1; and

• (b) each year of Key Stage 2;

must be assessed in accordance with paragraph (1).

• (3) Pupils in Foundation Stage, the first year of Key Stage 1, or Key Stage 3 may be assessed using such computer-based assessment method as the Department may specify.

• (4) The results of the assessment under paragraph (1) and, if applicable, paragraph (3), shall be recorded and notified to the pupil’s parent in writing by the end of the autumn term.

• (5) It shall be the duty of the principal of the school to offer the pupil’s parent a meeting to discuss the results of the assessment under paragraph (1) and, if applicable, paragraph (3), by the end of the autumn term.

• (6) It shall be the duty of the principal of the school in respect of the results of the assessment under paragraph (1) and, if applicable, paragraph (3) to send notification to NICCEA in such form and by such date as it may require.

5

• (1) Each pupil shall be assessed in each school year by the end of the summer term by a teacher in:

• (a) each of the areas of learning;

• (b) the cross-curricular skills; and

• (c) other skills.

• (2) The cross-curricular skills of pupils in Key Stages 1, 2 and 3 shall be assessed by the end of the school year with reference to levels of progression, specified by an order made by the Department under Article 8(3) of the 2006 Order.

• (3) It shall be the duty of the principal of the school in respect of the results of the assessments under paragraphs (1) (b) and (2) to send notification to NICCEA in such form and by such date as it may require.

Exemptions

6

• (1) The provisions of this Order shall not apply to any pupil with a statement of special educational needs, maintained by a board under Article 16 of The Education (Northern Ireland) 1996[^f00003], and who, on the making of an assessment of his special educational needs, has been assessed by that board under Article 15 of that Order as having severe learning difficulties.

• (2) Where a pupil has been exempted from any of the requirements of Articles 5 to 9 of the 2006 Order by Article 14 (Development work and experiments), 15 (Exceptions by regulations), 16 (Pupils with statements of special educational needs) or 17 (Temporary exemptions for individual pupils) of the 2006 Order, the provisions of this Order shall not apply in respect of the requirements from which the pupil is exempt and that pupil shall be assessed only in those parts of the curriculum from which they are not exempt.

• (3) Regulation 4 shall not apply to an Irish speaking school which provides only primary education:

• (a) in the school year commencing with the date from which the school becomes grant-aided; or

• (b) where a school becomes grant-aided from a date other than the beginning of a school year, for the remainder of that school year.

SCHEDULE 1 — Commencement

The provisions of this Order shall come into operation for pupils in each year of a key stage on 1st August of the school year shown in the following table:

Signed

Sealed with the Official Seal of the Department of Education on 26 January 2007

David Woods — Assistant Secretary — Department of Education

Explanatory note

(This note is not part of the Order)

EXPLANATORY NOTE

This Order specifies the assessment arrangements for pupils in Foundation Stage to Key Stage 3. It will come into operation on a phased basis from 2007/08 to 2009/10.

Article 3 places a general duty on school principals to make arrangements for pupils to be assessed in each school year. Pupils are required to be assessed using a computer-based assessment method (for literacy and numeracy) in the autumn term. NICCEA will provide guidance as to how this assessment should be carried out and the Department will specify the computer-based assessment method that all teachers must use when assessing pupils in certain year groups in Key Stages 1 and 2. The Department may also specify a computer-based assessment method to be used to assess pupils in Foundation Stage, the first year of Key Stage 1, or Key Stage 3. The results of these assessments must be provided in writing to parents by the end of the autumn term. Principals must also offer parents a meeting to discuss the results with their child’s teacher. Principals must also provide information on the results of these assessments to NICCEA in the form and by the date it requires. (Article 4).

In each school year, teachers are required to assess pupils in the areas of learning, the cross-curricular skills and other skills (Article 5). Teachers are required to assess the cross-curricular skills of pupils in Key Stages 1, 2 and 3 with reference to the levels of progression, which will be specified in an order made by the Department.

Principals must provide information on the results of each pupil’s assessment in the cross-curricular skills to NICCEA in the form and by the date it requires.

Article 6 provides for exemptions from the assessment arrangements in certain specified cases.

The provisions of this Order come into operation on a phased basis, as set out in Schedule 1.

Footnotes

[^f00001]: S.I. 2006/1915 (N.I.11)

[^f00002]: S.R 2007 No.