Assessment and reporting

St Joseph’s Parish School has in place an assessment and reporting process that helps us provide the best information to parents, caregivers and students and also identifies those areas that students may need particular assistance. This is what drives our assessment, along with our requirements to provide information about a child’s progress and achievement The Schools Assistance (Learning Together-Achievement through Choice and Opportunity) Act 2004.

Central to all educational assessments at St Joseph’s, there is a focus on student learning and how we improve the learning programs to meet the needs of individual students.

Assessment is integral to learning and aims to improve the quality of each student’s learning. It also provides students, teachers, parents and guardians with information that will help them to better understand the student’s learning needs and improve educational programs to meet those needs.

Both students and teachers are expected to participate in the assessment, review and evaluation of student achievements.

Teachers use a range of assessment tools which include anecdotal records, checklists, observation grids, diagnostic tests, unit summaries, audio and video recordings, digital photos, student self assessment notes, annotated responses and rubrics.

REPORTING SCHEDULE

Early in Term 1 we have an information evening, at which students and parents have an opportunity to explore the learning environment of their class and have informal discussions with teachers.

In Term 1 a formal, scheduled discussion (Parent/Teacher Interview) takes place between parent(s) and teacher.  This is option is also formally offered in Term 3 (this is an optional offer).  Such discussions can take place at any time through out the year and in fact are encouraged upon request by the parent to their child's class teacher. 

Towards the end of Term 2 a written report will be sent to parents.  This report will focus on the First Semester's work.

At the end of Term 4 another written report will be sent to parents providing a comprehensive summary of the students’ progress throughout the year, with the main focus being on the work completed in the Second Semester.

Literacy Assessment

All students Reception to Year 6 are screened and monitored using the Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills (DIBELS 8th). In additional, all children in their 5th term of school are assessed using the Early Years Assessment instrument to gather data about their early literacy development. Students identified at risk of reading and writing difficulties participate in the Sounds Write which is our evidenced based phonics intervention program.

Numeracy Assessment

QuickSmart is our evidenced based numeracy intervention program. 

NAPLAN Testing

The school participates in the State Literacy and Numeracy (LAN) tests. These occur when the student is in Year 3, 5 & 7 usually in May. The school receives an extensive report of students' achievements. The results are always carefully analysed and used to review the success of current programs and to design intervention programs for individual students. Parents receive a detailed report of their child’s results. This report provides parents with information about the child’s comparative achievement against the achievements of all students of that year level across the state.