Bradfield School design and technology department have spent the past four years working on a new way of assessing their students, using their very own GAP (good, assessment, progress) journal.
Every student in Years 7, 8 and 9 receives a GAP journal at the beginning of the year in their design and technology lessons. Students record their target and aspirational grade in the journal at the start of the year and begin their rotations into the different material areas, completing a range of projects covering the different disciplines of the subject.
In order to demonstrate progress across the year, the GAP journals are designed to follow the students from project to project. This means that students will receive a full GAP assessment for every project completed, ranging from four to six projects each year.
During the beginning lessons of the project, lessons 1-3; students are expected to record some ‘good’ verbal feedback from their teacher referring to the work completed so far. This is the G in the GAP and is known as the G comments. This can be completed as a starter, plenary or throughout the lesson.
In lessons 2-4, the teacher records a progress target in the students GAP journals. A generic comment on how they student has started the project is usually included and then a progress code (the P comment) is set for the student, e.g. # E T 1 (Evaluation & Testing – target 1)
Each teacher has designed a set of progress targets for each project that is taught at key stage 3 under the skills areas taken from the GCSE product design specification. Students receive these progress targets back & record the full version of the progress target in their GAP journals themselves.
Towards the finishing lessons of the project, students can return to their GAP journals, once again as a starter or plenary activity, students can add more to their G comments and state if and how they have completed their P comment set by their teacher earlier on in the project.
When the project is completed, the teacher completes the assessment part of the GAP (the A) by commenting on student’s attainment and attitude whilst awarding progress stars relating to the skills areas taking from the GCSE specification. Teachers also state if students have completed their progress target.
Students then move on to their next project and during lessons 1 -2 receive their assessment feedback from the previous project. Students are asked to count their progress stars and add them to their progress builder in their journals. This progress builder grows throughout the year as the students learn and demonstrate more skills.
To find out more about this assessment process, take a look at the resources from Bradfield School: