Hackney Governors’ Conference 2016
Baselines and
Progression
EYFS Attainment
• How is Early Years attainment measured?
• How are judgements reached?
• How are schools able to demonstrate progress
through the Early Years?
• What is the Reception Baseline?
• In what ways can schools use Reception Baseline?
• What statutory reporting is required at the end of
Early Years?
EYFS Attainment
EYFS Ages and Stages
Birth to 11
months
8 to 20
months
16 to 26
months
22 to 36
months
30 to 50
months
40 to 60 +
months
The ELG for each
aspect is in bold at the
end of the final stage
22 to 36 months
Writing
• Distinguishes between the different marks they make.
30 to 50 months
• Sometimes gives meaning to marks as they draw and paint.
• Ascribes meanings to marks that they see in different places
40 to 60+ months • Gives meaning to marks they make as they draw, write and paint.
• Begins to break the flow of speech into words.
• Continues a rhyming string.
• Hears and says the initial sound in words.
• Can segment the sounds in simple words and blend them together.
• Links sounds to letters, naming and sounding letters
• Uses some clearly identifiable letters to communicate meaning
representing some sounds correctly and in sequence.
• Writes own name and other things such as labels, captions.
• Attempts to write short sentences in meaningful contexts.
How are Judgements Reached?
Observations
• It involves practitioners observing children to
understand their level of achievement, interests and
learning styles, and to then shape learning
experiences for each child reflecting those
observations. In their interactions with children,
practitioners should respond to their own day-to-day
observations about children’s progress and
observations that parents and carers share
Statutory framework for the early years
foundation stage (2014)
EYFS Attainment
EYFS Statutory Framework
Development Matters
Assess through observing children and match against
Developmental Stages bands
Emerging
Developing
Secure
Schools identify children with ‘age expected’ (or ‘typical’)
attainment, and those who are above or below ‘typical’
On Entry Attainment
Nursery
Most children are likely to be working
within the development matters band for
30–50 months, having shown competence
in the preceding band for 22–36 months.
Attainment on entry is likely to be below
age-related expectations where a
substantial proportion of children in a
school do not demonstrate all of the
elements in the 22–36 month band.
On Entry Attainment
Reception
Most children are likely to be within the
development matters band for 40–60+
months, in addition to all of the elements in
the preceding band for 30–50 months.
Attainment on entry is likely to be below agerelated expectations where a substantial
proportion of children in a school do not
demonstrate all of the elements in the 30–50
month band.
EYFS Attainment
• Once individual attainment is established, the school
can show cohort attainment
• In each of the seven areas of learning (or 17 strands)
the school can express the percentage of children
with Typical, Above Typical or Below Typical
attainment.
• Tapestry, Target Tracker, SIMs, 2Simple, Orbit, EYFS
Tracker, Classroom Monitor
• Relative attainment of key groups
How are schools able to
demonstrate Progress?
Grade Descriptor for Outstanding:
Gaps between the attainment of groups of children
and all children nationally including disadvantaged
children, have closed or are closing rapidly. Any gaps
between areas of learning are closing.
School Inspection Handbook
Handbook for inspecting schools in England under
section 5 of the Education Act 2005 (2015)
Baseline Assessment
Reception Baseline
Assessment
‘We will build on the existing body
of evidence and work with experts
to create criteria for the baselines
which will count for the progress
measure. Assessments will be
sought with evidence that they are
strong predictors of key stage 1
and key stage 2 attainment, whilst
reflecting the age and abilities of
children in reception.’
Reforming Assessment and
Accountability (2014) p. 5
Is Reception Baseline assessment
statutory?
Reception baseline assessment is not mandatory; schools
may decide not to adopt an approved baseline scheme.
However, there is a strong incentive to do so.
In 2023, schools that do not use an approved baseline
assessment in 2016 will be judged solely on the
attainment of their pupils at the end of key stage 2, i.e.
they will have to meet the attainment floor standard.
www.Gov.uk
The Department for Education will only use the outcomes
from the reception baseline to develop a cohort measure of
progress. The reception baseline will not be used to track
individual pupil progress.
The reception baseline should not affect the nature of
provision in early years and it is not intended to be used to
hold early years providers to account; it is a base to measure
progress for primary schools. A progress measure is important
to celebrate the work done by schools with more challenging
intakes and recognises the vital work on narrowing the gap
that takes place in reception and key stage 1.
What is assessed for Reception Baseline?
Communication and language, literacy, and numeracy.
Personal, Social and Emotional Development and Physical
Development are offered by some providers but will not
be measured against in 2023
End of EYFS Assessment
The Profile provides parents and
carers, practitioners and teachers
with a well-rounded picture of a
child’s knowledge, understanding
and abilities, their progress against
expected levels, and their
readiness for Year 1.
End of EYFS Assessment
Each child’s level of development must be assessed
against each of the 17 Early Learning Goals. Practitioners
must indicate whether children are meeting expected
levels of development, or if they are exceeding expected
levels, or not yet reaching expected levels (‘emerging’).
This is the EYFS Profile.
Statutory framework for the early years
foundation stage (2014)
Defining a ‘Good level of
Development’
Children will be defined as having reached a GLD at the
end of the EYFS if they achieve at least the expected level
in:

the early learning goals in the prime areas of learning
(personal, social and emotional development; physical
development; and communication and language) and;

the early learning goals in the specific areas of
mathematics and literacy.
School Performance
Data Booklet
The future of the Early Years
Foundation Stage Profile?
The Early Years Foundation Stage Profile is statutory in
2016, however from September 2016 the EYFS Profile
will no longer be compulsory.
Under the current framework, Ofsted require schools to
show measurable progress and narrow gaps relative to
national indicators.