Assessment and Computing - A Practical Guide to Teaching Computing and ICT in the Secondary School - page 86

that the mark dominates, and the comment loses its impact ( see Bloxham, 2007).
You need to consider the implications of this finding very carefully. Think about
including targets and strengths as part of your feedback process; praising and
allowing pupils to know where to improve, and on what they could usefully focus.
MODERATION
In assessing your pupils' work you need to be able to compare their performance
with that of others. This requires some kind of moderation activity. Moderation is
the process during which groups of assessors agree common standards.
When schools use a variety of different teachers to deliver the subject it is
essential that the Computing subject leader provides an opportunity for that
delivery team to participate in internal moderation. This will ensure that the
expectations on pupils are similar across the teaching team.
In addition, participation in regional moderation events is particularly helpful in
developing a common understanding of standards and developing accuracy in
assessment.
For externally accredited awards, the awarding body will provide material for
which they have agreed a grade. This should then be used by the school assessing
team for internal moderation.
It is important that you gain as much experience with this as possible, and even
if you are still training take any advantage of any opportunity provided to shadow
the process.
ADVICE: Attend the assessment training events held by the awarding bodies. It
may also be useful for you to undertake some work as an assistant examiner.
Task 4.10
Moderation
Participate in a moderation session. Keep a note of how your standards compare
with the rest of the team you work with.
Whatever assessment method is used, it is important to remember that during
moderation or 'levelling' exercises, sufficient evidence should have been recorded,
so that other teachers looking at the same evidence would be able to come to the
same conclusions. To this end, it is good practice for a 'context' document to be
produced, setting the background of the assessment task, overviewing the 'soft'
evidence, and explaining the thinking behind the judgements made.
Task 4.11
E-assessment
Have you had experience of on-screen assessing? How do you think you would
cope if all work to be marked was only electronic? What do you think would be
the problems you might have? What are the advantages?