Whether we want to master a new language, play in an orchestra or run a marathon, we all need to learn to work through different levels of achievement in our bid to reach the ultimate goal.
Setting and achieving targets is an intrinsic part of life and this is often replicated in the way schools monitor their pupils’ learning. But do parents get enough information about where their child is in relation to their expected achievement?
Aiming high
Many schools regularly set target grades for their pupils to aim for throughout the term or by the end of the academic year. These grades can be subject-specific and they help teachers to track children’s learning as well as identify what action needs to be taken to support them in making good progress.
It is vital that care is taken to ensure target grades are personal to a specific child. There are schools I know of that tailor learning goals for each child using computer software to analyse a range of information, such as historical assessment scores and national averages. Detailed notes from teacher observations are also seen as crucial to ensuring that the targets are challenging yet achievable for children, to keep them motivated. But I am seeing more and more schools wanting to take this a step further.
Greater transparency
Heads of an increasing number of independent schools I visit report a growing need for them to demonstrate the impact they have on pupils’ learning. One way that some schools have responded to this is to start making much more information available to parents than they may have done in the past.
One school I recently visited was keen to move away from a situation where parents were often unaware of what their child was expected to achieve – or where they were in relation to this.
By setting more personalised learning targets for every child, tracking the progress they make more closely and sharing the details more regularly, parents now know what goals their child is working towards and as a result, can help to boost their achievement from home.
As a parent myself, I feel it’s really important for my child to understand from a young age that if on first glance a challenge seems insurmountable, slicing it up into smaller steps is a great way to help them get to the desired end point. But parents need to be kept informed of how their child is progressing in order to provide the right support, at the right time, to help them master each step.
Julie Booth is head of SIMS Independent www.capita-independent.co.uk
You can read Julie’s full article published in the Huffington Post