Inside The Black Box

Why have I not read this report until now? How often have I heard the phrase 'inside the black box' used and taken no real meaning from it? Having read this report by Black & William, I can reflect on many of the scenarios that they talk about. For example, marking at the end of the term or a block of work. How wrong that now appears when the results are for my Excel sheet to state who will win the Science prize for the year rather than analyse the results and amend my plans to meet the needs of children. How often have I looked at the end result and presentation rather than the process? Too many times. If one thing, from all this reading on assessment, I now have a clearer picture why I should be assessing. It is not about marks it is about finding where a child is and working out the next steps to help them in their learning. This is what I was taught at college but have to admit over the years have fallen into the trap of assessing for the sake of it. Thankfully, I have awaken to this poor practice and hope, with further research and action, that the additional time spent, will produce fruitful results.