The education secretary has refused to abandon plans to introduce the new baseline assessment for four and five-year-olds.
Asked if the government would “do the right thing” and scrap its intention to bring in the Reception baseline assessment, which is due to be rolled out on a national scale in September, Gavin Williamson said simply: “No, we won’t”.
The assessment, which evaluates children’s skills in English and maths, is designed to provide a baseline for the Department for Education (DfE) in measuring pupils’ progress between their first weeks in school and their final Sats results in Year 6.
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Addressing Mr Williamson in the House of Commons yesterday, Margaret Greenwood, MP for Wirral West, said: “A University College London study of the government’s pilot of the Reception baseline assessment last year found that the test caused anxiety, distress and a sense of failure in many children - and we’re talking about four-year-olds here.
“So will the government do the right thing and abandon its plans to bring in the Reception baseline assessment?”
The education secretary replied: “No, we won’t.”
Asked if Mr Williamson meant the assessment would go ahead as planned in September, the DfE said more details would be released shortly.
Ms Greenwood tweeted afterwards: “The Reception Baseline Assessment pilot last year caused many 4 year olds anxiety, distress and a sense of failure.
“I’ve just asked Gavin Williamson if he will scrap the RBA. He said No. Seems he doesn’t care about their mental health & wellbeing.”
The Reception Baseline Assessment pilot last year caused many 4 year olds anxiety, distress and a sense of failure. I’ve just asked Gavin Williamson if he will scrap the RBA. He said No. Seems he doesn’t care about their mental health & wellbeing.
- Margaret Greenwood MP (@MGreenwoodWW) June 22, 2020
The decision was met with a significant backlash on social media, with one head tweeting: “I can’t believe they think we are going to be doing this! No opportunity for training and preparing teachers and we don’t even know how we will be teaching in September.
“Rather hoping for a local lockdown so we can’t do it. Ok, I’m making a bad taste joke here but it’s so wrong.”
Nancy Stewart, from campaign group More Than A Score, told Tes: “Gavin Williamson’s response was both insulting and a travesty. If the government does proceed with RBA in September, it will be against the expert opinions of heads and teachers and will mean a chaotic start to school for the nation’s four-year-olds.
Agree - his response was unacceptable & extremely high handed. I hope heads refuse to participate in this farce.
- Gill Ditch (@gillditch55) June 22, 2020
“When young children enter school, they will have had many different experiences of the current public health emergency. Schools want to prioritise settling them in and focusing on their welfare.
“Reception teachers should not be wasting valuable time administering a bureaucratic test in English and maths, particularly one that has been widely condemned as pointless, unreliable and inappropriate.
“The tests will not help children to learn, or teachers to teach. Schools carry out their own much more careful, personal and accurate informal assessments of reception pupils. The government will lock away the results of its tests for seven years and has still not revealed how it will use this data to measure schools.
My son turns 10 this year. A bright, happy spark at nursery. All snuffed out by year 2.I cannot get him to engage or be happy to learn. One size does not fit all and I will forever resent testing in education from such a young age as I lost my happy little boy because of it.
- Coughfit (@Coughfit1) June 22, 2020
“Gavin Williamson’s statement proves the government’s real agenda: an obsession with collecting data from young children simply for the sake of it, with no regard for the current crisis or the consequences of mass testing of four-year-olds.”
The DfE said in April that it intends for the new baseline assessment to go ahead as planned in September, despite concern from campaigners that this would “make life impossible for everybody”.
The UK’s largest education union has thrown its weight behind a campaign to ditch the new assessment amid “unprecedented disruption” caused by the coronavirus crisis.
Demeaning education in its literal sense: Replacing meaning with measurement shows an ignorance of the nature and purpose of education. So, progress becomes end measure subtract start measure. Typically simplistic, retrograde, and sad.
- Peter Lacey (@ecarda1) June 22, 2020
And the Early Education charity has called for the introduction of the assessment to be delayed “by at least a year”, as learning has been “so disrupted” by school and nursery closures.
Heads have also said introducing the new baseline assessment in September may not be “practical or sensible”, as it is “unlikely” schools will be operating as normal.
And the internationally-recognised specialist behind the early years foundation stage (EYFS) profile, Jan Dubiel, has called for a “hybrid model of teacher-led observational assessment” to replace the baseline test.
I can’t believe they think we are going to be doing this! No opportunity for training and preparing teachers and we don’t even know how we will be teaching in September. Rather hoping for a local lockdown so we can’t do it. Ok, I’m making a bad taste joke here but it’s so wrong.
- Mermaidheadteacher ?♀️ (@doc_mermaid) June 23, 2020
In February, research by the NEU teaching union found that Reception teachers believe the baseline test makes pupils anxious, and young children being tested are “scared of getting it wrong”.
A YouGov survey also found that two-thirds of parents oppose the new assessment.
A pilot of the test was carried out in September 2019, but DfE figures revealed that more than 7,000 primary and infant schools refused to take part.
So are we seriously having to do it from Sept when the children havent been in nursery for 6 months! What a fun way to start school ?
- Mrs Head (@HeadteacherPrim) June 22, 2020
The DfE has been approached for comment.
