Level threshold tables and age standardised scores

Transcription

1 KEY STAGE 2 Level threshold tables and age standardised scores for key stage 2 tests in English, mathematics and science 2007 National curriculum assessments

2 The Qualifications and Curriculum Authority (QCA) wishes to make its publications widely accessible. Please contact us if you have any specific accessibility requirements. First published 2007 Qualifications and Curriculum Authority 2007 ISBN Reproduction, storage, adaptation or translation, in any form or by any means, of this publication is prohibited without prior written permission of the publisher, unless within the terms of licences issued by the Copyright Licensing Agency. Excerpts may be reproduced for the purpose of research, private study, criticism or review, or by educational institutions solely for educational purposes, without permission, providing full acknowledgement is given. Printed in Great Britain by the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority under the authority and superintendence of the Controller of Her Majesty s Stationery Office and Queen s Printer of Acts of Parliament. The Qualifications and Curriculum Authority is an exempt charity under Schedule 2 of the Charities Act Qualifications and Curriculum Authority 83 Piccadilly London W1J 8QA

3 CONTENTS 1 Contents 1 Introduction Training and checking marking standards What to do when the results are received How the levels are set Setting draft thresholds Setting level thresholds Level thresholds The English tests The mathematics tests The science tests Age standardised scores Working out age standardised scores Making use of age standardised scores National comparisons using the shaded bands Confidence bands Age standardised scores tables

4 LEVEL THRESHOLD TABLES AND AGE STANDARDISED SCORES FOR KEY STAGE 2 TESTS IN ENGLISH, 2 MATHEMATICS AND SCIENCE 1 Introduction This booklet provides: tables for converting marks on the key stage 2 tests into national curriculum levels age standardised scores for the reading test, mathematics test A and test B, and the mental mathematics test. 1.1 Training and checking marking standards All markers undergo training before they are allowed to start marking pupils scripts. The training is designed to enable markers to apply the Mark scheme to a key stage / subject-specific national standard. The Mark scheme used by markers is the same as the one that was sent to your school in the mark scheme pack, along with test materials, in April. All markers are allocated to a team and have a supervisor who checks samples of their marking at least twice to ensure they are applying the Mark scheme to the national standard. If the marking is not satisfactory, the marker is stopped from marking and the scripts are allocated to another marker for re-marking. At the end of the marking period, markers are issued with the level thresholds. Markers are required to revisit their marking for pupils whose total marks fall within specified mark ranges below the final level subject thresholds; this is known as borderlining. Where this borderline check has taken place, it will be indicated on the front cover of one of the pupil s scripts. 1.2 What to do when the results are received Return of results Schools will be notified of their pupils test results through the return of completed marksheets by 10 July If they have not arrived by the end of the day on 10 July 2007, please contact the NAA test operations agency on Checking results The marking of pupils tests will have been checked carefully before the papers are returned to schools. However, schools may wish to undertake their own checks, particularly for any pupil(s) who in the school s opinion have been awarded an incorrect national curriculum level. The review process should only be used when, in the opinion of the staff in a school, the pupil(s) concerned have received a national curriculum level above or below that to which their work is entitled in relation to the published Mark scheme. Guidance on requesting reviews is given in the key stage 2 Information for schools booklet, which was sent to schools at the end of June It is essential that requests for reviews follow the procedures set out in this booklet. This includes clearly identifying where the Mark scheme has not been applied accurately in a question or questions. Requests for reviews must reach the NAA test operations agency by 20 July 2007 at the latest. No reviews can be discussed over the telephone and none will be accepted after this date.

5 INTRODUCTION 3 Reporting results for key stage 2 The key stage 2 test levels awarded must be reported to pupils parents within 15 school days of the return of results to schools, alongside the end of key stage teacher assessment levels. If the outcome of a review is pending, schools should report test results to parents as provisional. Parents should also receive a summary giving the proportion of pupils awarded each level in the school this year and nationally in Please refer to the 2007 key stage 2 Assessment and reporting arrangements booklet for full information on reporting to parents (pages 75 78). Schools may, if they wish, return the marked scripts to pupils. Submitting teacher assessment data The deadline for submitting teacher assessment levels to the NAA test operations agency is 11 July The date for submission of this information has been set so that national summary data can be made available to schools and local authorities as early as possible. To achieve this, teacher assessment data must be submitted promptly. Any queries regarding the submission of teacher assessment data should be directed to the NAA test operations agency, telephone number

6 LEVEL THRESHOLD TABLES AND AGE STANDARDISED SCORES FOR KEY STAGE 2 TESTS IN ENGLISH, 4 MATHEMATICS AND SCIENCE 2 How the levels are set The national curriculum tests are written against the programmes of study and are designed to award levels that equate demand to the level descriptions. QCA has in place a range of procedures as laid out in the Code of practice, both statistical and judgemental, to ensure the standards of performance required for the award of each level are maintained consistently from year to year. These procedures include extensive pretesting of all test papers and obtaining the advice of a panel of senior markers including the marking programme leader once the marking is well under way each year. These procedures have enabled QCA to set threshold scores each year that have maintained standards since Setting draft thresholds The NAA sets draft level thresholds with the test development agencies for each subject in February March preceding the tests in May. The difficulty of the current test is considered by looking at pretest data, which includes a number of measures designed to identify any variation in the underlying difficulty of the test papers from year to year. If a test is deemed to be more difficult than the previous year s test, the level thresholds will be lower. If a test paper is deemed to be less difficult, the level thresholds will rise. The draft level thresholds are used to inform the next stage of the process. 2.2 Setting level thresholds Once the test has been taken and marking is under way, samples of marked scripts from year 6 pupils are collected from external markers. The scripts, which fall close to the draft level thresholds, are scrutinised in detail by senior markers to determine where they believe the level thresholds are located. A final level setting meeting is then convened in June to set the final level thresholds using all the evidence available. The marks obtained by a sample of pupils in the live tests are collected so that the NAA can be aware of the impact of the decisions made in setting the thresholds. All these measures are taken to ensure standards are maintained and that a pupil who would have achieved a certain level in last year s tests will achieve the same level in the new tests.

7 LEVEL THRESHOLDS 5 3 Level thresholds The Mark schemes, which are provided in the mark scheme packs sent to schools with the test materials, give the acceptable answers for test questions and set out the criteria for the award of marks. They also contain guidance on the general criteria used by external markers in the application of the Mark schemes. Where markers find answers that are not given explicitly in the Mark scheme, they use their professional judgment to decide whether or not an answer is creditworthy. The following method is used to note the marks awarded for each question: 1 means that a creditworthy response has scored one mark 0 means that a response is not creditworthy. Half marks are not awarded. Some questions are worth two or more marks. Some pupils test papers may contain two sets of marks one in red and one in green. This occurs where markers work is routinely and randomly checked by their supervisors. In all cases the green marks override the red. Where a pupil has not attempted a question, the marker will cross through the response space with a diagonal line. On the English writing tests, markers are instructed to tick each page as they mark and to rule a line at the end of the pupil s writing. Markers are not required to place any further marks on the scripts. The total number of marks awarded is recorded on each test paper and on the marksheet. Pupils who narrowly fail to achieve the lowest level targeted by the levels 3 5 tests are awarded a compensatory level 2. Pupils who score fewer marks than are required for a compensatory award will be awarded N. To calculate an overall test level for English, mathematics and science, the marks awarded on all the test papers in each subject are added together, then the tables on pages 7 and 8 are used to convert a pupil s total mark into a test level. Pupils who were absent for one or more test papers in a subject will be recorded as A for absent for that subject. However, for English, if the pupil sits all reading or all writing components, they will receive a reading or writing level but be recorded as A for English overall.

8 LEVEL THRESHOLD TABLES AND AGE STANDARDISED SCORES FOR KEY STAGE 2 TESTS IN ENGLISH, 6 MATHEMATICS AND SCIENCE 3.1 The English tests The following points explain how the Mark scheme is applied by markers. Reading test The reading test is marked against the Mark scheme, which includes descriptive criteria. For the more open questions, which carry several marks, judgements are made about how well a pupil s response fits these criteria. The maximum mark available is 50. Writing test The longer writing task The longer writing task is assessed against the following three strands of criteria: sentence structure and punctuation (SSP) text structure and organisation (TSO) composition and effect (C&E). The maximum mark available is 31 (including a maximum of three marks for handwriting). The shorter writing task The shorter writing task is assessed against the following criteria: sentence structure, punctuation and text organisation (SSPTO) composition and effect (C&E). The maximum mark available is 12. Handwriting Handwriting is assessed through the longer writing task. Marks are awarded according to the criteria given in the Mark scheme. Pupils who are physically unable to write are awarded two marks. The maximum mark available is 3. Spelling test The Mark scheme gives the correct answers. The total number of correct spellings is converted to a mark using the table on the back page of the pupil s script. This ensures that the weighting given to the spelling test represents seven per cent of the total mark for English. The maximum mark available is 7.

9 LEVEL THRESHOLDS 7 The marks for reading, writing and English overall are converted into levels using the tables below. Reading Level N Mark range Writing Level N Mark range English overall Level N Mark range The award of level 2 for pupils who narrowly fail to achieve level 3 is a compensatory award for English overall only. There are no compensatory level 2 awards available for reading or writing.

10 LEVEL THRESHOLD TABLES AND AGE STANDARDISED SCORES FOR KEY STAGE 2 TESTS IN ENGLISH, 8 MATHEMATICS AND SCIENCE 3.2 The mathematics tests Markers record the number of marks awarded in the margin of the test paper. All questions, including those not attempted by the pupil, are marked with a 1, 0 or (for no response). Most of the questions carry one mark only, although some carry two. In some two-mark questions, if a pupil has not given the right answer, but there is evidence that an appropriate method or working has been used, 1 will be recorded in the appropriate mark space and 0 in the other space. For the mental mathematics test, where pupils provided the correct answer, a score of 1 will have been recorded. Marks awarded for test A and test B and the mental mathematics test are totalled to provide an overall mark. This table gives the mark ranges for the award of each pupil s statutory key stage 2 mathematics test level. Level N Mark range The science tests Markers record the number of marks awarded in the margin of the test paper. All questions, including those not attempted by the pupil, are marked with a 1, 0 or (for no response). Most of the questions carry one mark only, although some carry two. This table gives the mark ranges for the award of each pupil s statutory key stage 2 science test level. Level N Mark range

11 AGE STANDARDISED SCORES 9 4 Age standardised scores The tables give age standardised scores from the levels 3 5 reading test On Dangerous Ground, the mathematics test (test A plus test B) and the mental mathematics test. The scores are for optional use. The purpose of the information set out here is to convert the pupil s actual score in the test, the raw score, to a standardised score. Age standardised scores take into account the pupil s age in years and months, giving an indication of how each pupil is performing relative to other pupils of the same age. Age standardised scores do not affect the pupil s test levels. The tables were calculated from the test results of pupils involved in the level confirmation exercise. This involved year 6 pupils who took the tests in May 2007 under statutory conditions, in accordance with the statutory test timetable. The English and mathematics tables are based on between 23,500 and 31,000 pupils results. 4.1 Working out age standardised scores To work out a pupil s age standardised score, select the table for the relevant test and use the pupil s test score and age in years and completed months at the time of testing. For example, a pupil born on 30 March 1996 and tested on 10 May 2007 would be 11 years and 1 month old. Where a pupil s birthday falls between the dates of the two tests in a subject, the pupil s age at the date of the first test (ie the younger age) should be used. To convert a raw score into an age standardised score 1. Along the top of the table, locate the pupil s age in years and months at the time the test was taken. 2. On the left-hand side of the table, locate the pupil s raw score. 3. Read off the age standardised score from where the row and the column meet. Understanding age standardised scores The average score is 100. A higher score is above average and a lower score is below average. About two-thirds of pupils will have age standardised scores of between 85 and 115, so scores outside this range can be regarded as exceptional. 4.2 Making use of age standardised scores If you choose to find the age standardised scores, you may use this additional information about the pupils performance in any way you wish. You may decide to inform parents how a pupil s performance in the test relates to his or her age at the time the test was taken. For example, An age standardised score of 112 shows that the pupil s test performance was above average for his or her age.

12 LEVEL THRESHOLD TABLES AND AGE STANDARDISED SCORES FOR KEY STAGE 2 TESTS IN ENGLISH, 10 MATHEMATICS AND SCIENCE You could use the information in planning teaching, for example to identify pupils whose achievement, although in the level 4 range, may have been surprising in relation to their age at the time of taking the test. For example, These scores were not particularly good for these pupils once their ages were taken into account perhaps I should be expecting a bit more from that group. You might be able to identify patterns in results that indicate reaching and learning issues to be addressed. For example, The performance of girls in our middle age group is consistently better than the boys in that group, but this pattern is not repeated in the other two age groups. Why might that be? Is there something we need to think about here? Age standardised scores may be averaged across a group, for example the whole class or school. In the average class or school, the average score should be close to 100; if it is much above or below this, the performance of your class or school varies from the national average. Similarly, age standardised scores could be used to consider differences in pupils performance in your school in relation to their particular ages, for example between boys and girls or between pupils who have English as an additional language. (This will only give you useful information if the group is reasonably large; the average of just a few pupils is not a reliable indicator.) 4.3 National comparisons using the shaded bands The tables of age standardised scores are divided into five bands. These bands give an indication of how the scores relate to the national population. The band nearest the top of the table contains the scores that correspond to the lowest fifth of the population, the next band, the next fifth, and so on. If a pupil has a score in the final band, you know that the score is in the top 20 per cent nationally once age has been taken into account. Very low and very high age standardised scores are printed in the tables as ***. This means that they would be below 70 or above 140, but cannot be calculated with the necessary degree of statistical reliability. If an exact score is needed, for example, to calculate an average for the class, 69 or 141 should be used for these pupils.

13 AGE STANDARDISED SCORES Confidence bands As the age standardised scores in the table are derived only from one short test, some margin of error is inevitable. To indicate how wide this margin of error is likely to be, a 90 per cent confidence band has been calculated. This means that you can have 90 per cent certainty that the pupil s true score lies within the confidence band. For the reading test, the 90 per cent confidence band is plus or minus 7. So, for example, if a pupil has an age standardised score of 110, you can be 90 per cent certain that the true score is between 103 and 117. For mathematics test A and test B, the 90 per cent confidence band is plus or minus 5. So, for example, if a pupil has an age standardised score of 110, you can be 90 per cent certain that the true score is between 105 and 115. For the mental mathematics test, the 90 per cent confidence band is plus or minus 8. So, for example, if a pupil has an age standardised score of 110, you can be 90 per cent certain that the true score is between 102 and 118.

14 LEVEL THRESHOLD TABLES AND AGE STANDARDISED SCORES FOR KEY STAGE 2 TESTS IN ENGLISH, 12 MATHEMATICS AND SCIENCE 4.5 Age standardised scores tables Key stage 2 reading test 2007 Age in years and months Raw score *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** ***

15 AGE STANDARDISED SCORES 13 Key stage 2 reading test 2007 Age in years and months Raw score *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** 50 *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** ***

16 LEVEL THRESHOLD TABLES AND AGE STANDARDISED SCORES FOR KEY STAGE 2 TESTS IN ENGLISH, 14 MATHEMATICS AND SCIENCE Key stage 2 mental mathematics test 2007 Age in years and months Raw score *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** ***

17 This page has been left blank for your notes. AGE STANDARDISED SCORES 15

18 LEVEL THRESHOLD TABLES AND AGE STANDARDISED SCORES FOR KEY STAGE 2 TESTS IN ENGLISH, 16 MATHEMATICS AND SCIENCE Key stage 2 written mathematics test 2007 Age in years and months Raw score *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** ***

19 AGE STANDARDISED SCORES 17 Key stage 2 written mathematics test 2007 Age in years and months Raw score

20 AGE STANDARDISED SCORES 18 Key stage 2 written mathematics test 2007 Raw score Age in years and months *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** ***

21 AGE STANDARDISED SCORES Fold out this flap to read the full table of age standardised scores for mathematics test A and test B.

22 29 Bolton Street London W1J 8BT Telephone: Minicom: Fax: Website: About this publication Who is it for? Headteachers and English, mathematics and science teachers of year 6 pupils. What is it for? This booklet provides tables for converting test marks into national curriculum levels and age standardised scores for the reading test, mathematics test A and test B and the mental mathematics test. Related materials Key stage 2 Assessment and reporting arrangements. For more copies A PDF version of this booklet and the related materials listed above can be downloaded from the NAA website at The National Assessment Agency is part of the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority QCA/07/3118