Assessment Policy
Escola Eleva’s Assessment policy has three main objectives:
1. to measure learning;
2. to help and stimulate the learning process;
3. to improve teaching and learning.
These goals are achieved with different types of assessment - which are implemented gradually, accompanied by teacher feedback, with the possibility of retakes for assessment and a final recovery. In this section, we explain each of them as well as present our Grade Descriptors, rules for Promotion by the Council, Parent Teacher Conference (PTC), Immediate Promotion, Remediation and Retention.
Types and Progression of Assessment
Types of assessment
At Escola Eleva we have three types of assessment: formative, summative and external.
Summative assessment evaluate learning, and meet the first objective of measuring learning through a more formal assessment. They result in a concept or a grade that indicates how much the student has learned about one or more of the grade level’s expected learning objectives in the respective assessment period.
Formative assessment are for learning, and that take place throughout the learning process. They aim to offer a diagnosis regarding the objectives that will be measured in the summative evaluations. Based on the identification of points for improvement, individual or collective feedbacks are carried out. Classes can also be adjusted and records are made to monitor the strategies adopted and student progress. Formative assessment will not account for students grades.
We use multiple assessment instruments for summative and formative assessment including, for example: projects, presentations, research, group work (always with individual grades), student portfolio and, in the specific case of summatives, also formal exams.
September, 2021
THIS POLICY IS CURRENTLY BEING REVISED
BY THE INSTRUCTIONAL LEADERSHIP OF ESCOLA ELEVA
Finally, external assessments allow us to monitor the student's progress in relation to national and international standards and, consequently, strengthen our instructional planning. Some examples of external assessments used at Escola Eleva are English proficiency exams (AAPPL), starting in Elementary School, and mocks for National Exams (ENEM), starting in High School.
Progression of assessment
Aiming to respect the maturation process of the students, our assessment process evolves gradually over the school years. We start with daily and continuous assessment in a follow-up character in Kindergarten and in the first Primary School and start inserting moments of formal assessments, while continuing our practices with formative assessment and our commitment to the diversity of instruments used.
From Kindergarten to Grade 3, the assessments are not reprobatory. Children are continuously evaluated through formative activities in the classroom, generating learning records. These records are evaluated by the teacher and consolidated into each student's Report Card and Portfolio. The Report Card, or Learning Report, presents the teacher's assessment of how the child is developing in the learning objectives worked during the evaluation period. The Portfolio, in turn, elucidates the learning evidence of some essential objectives defined in the curriculum and presents a more detailed analysis of the teacher made according to specific rubrics developed for each of these objectives. Both documents, Report Card and Portfolio, are presented to families at the end of each evaluation period: every six months in Kindergarten and every two months in Primary School.
From the 2nd semester of the 3rd to the end of the 5th year, students start to take bimonthly summative assessments of Portuguese, English Languages Arts, IPC, Mathematics and History/Geography. On bimester 1 and 3 (S1, S3), the summative assessments are carried out over the respective periods on spaced dates. On bimester 2 and 4 (S2, S4), the summative assessments are scheduled by the division coordination, concetraded over the course of two weeks. Each summative assessment must have learning objectives communicated to students in advance. In addition to these formal moments, we continue with the continuous assessment of each student through training activities in the classroom, recorded and analyzed in the student's portfolio.
September, 2021
THIS POLICY IS CURRENTLY BEING REVISED
BY THE INSTRUCTIONAL LEADERSHIP OF ESCOLA ELEVA
At the end of the bimester, we continue to consolidate the assessment in the Portfolio and Report Card, with an evaluation by learning objective, a general concept attributed by subject (A+, A, B, C or D), and comments of the (a) teacher on the child's development in the subjects assessed. The student’s Portfolio will gather the results of formal assessments and activities that demonstrate students’ achievemt of specifc learning goals.
From Grade 6 to 12, we take another step in the progression of assessments to start working with grades and more moments of formal assessment. In bimesters 1 and 3 (S1, S3), summatives are composed of at least two assessment events per subject, with the possibility of using multiple evaluation instruments. In bimesters 2 and 4 (S2, S4), 80% of the summative assessments are placed on formal exams, which are scheduled by the division coordination, concetraded over the course of two weeks. Every summative assessment must have learning objectives communicated in advance. In addition to the summative assessments, students from the 10th to the 12th year take multidisciplinary mock exams twice a year. At the end of each bimester, the result of the summative assessments are communicated through a grading scale from 0 to 10.
Make-up assessments
If the student cannot attend a formal summative assessment, it will be necessary to justify its absence to be eligible for a make-up assessment. These will take place after class and right after the formal exam period (in the case of bimesters 1 and 3), and there may be several subject tests in the same day.
Please note: there will be no further make-up test.
September, 2021
THIS POLICY IS CURRENTLY BEING REVISED
BY THE INSTRUCTIONAL LEADERSHIP OF ESCOLA ELEVA
Grade descriptors
Feedback and Parent-Teacher Conferences (PTC)
Feedback is an essential part of Escola Eleva's assessment policy in order to make the student increasingly aware and at the center of their learning process. Our teachers continuously provide individual and collective feedback to students, especially at the time of formative assessments, to help them establish goals and improvement strategies. In addition, at the end of the bimester, our teachers formalize a feedback in the student’s Report Card.
Twice a year, families have the opportunity to meet our teachers and talk one-on-one about each student's academic development. These are our Parent-Teacher Conferences (PTCs).
Retakes (Grade 4 to 12)
From the 1st to the 3rd semester, students are allowed to do retake for their summative assessment as a second opportunity to demonstrate proficiency in the learning objectives proposed by the discipline, regardless of the grade or concept obtained. In Upper School, teachers will define the number of summative events and the number of formative events according each subject. Retakes can be done individually (one retake per event) or grouped (retake that groups two or more summative events).
To carry out the retake, the student must have completed all formative assessment suggested by the teacher during the respective bimester. These formative activities can be suggested during class, study hall period or as a homework assignment. The retakes must have the same level of difficulty as the summative assessments of the respective bimester. Grades will only be substituted if the result of the revaluation is superior to the summative one. Otherwise, the first result remains.
For students with unsatisfactory results in bimester 1-3 (concept C or D or grade equal to or less than 6.0), retakes are strongly indicated. Whenever possible, activities connected to the learning objectives to be retrieved will also be proposed to the student by the teacher during study hall periods.
September, 2021
THIS POLICY IS CURRENTLY BEING REVISED
BY THE INSTRUCTIONAL LEADERSHIP OF ESCOLA ELEVA
Immediate Promotion, Remediation and Retention (Grades 4 to 12): Immediate Promotion
From Kindergarten to Grade 3, there is no formal school failure.
In Grade 4 and 5, for direct approval, students need to obtain an yearly concept of C or higher. The yearly concept is calculated from a subjective analysis that considers the frequency of each bimester evaluation and its trend.
From Grade 6 to 12, students need to obtain an Yearly Average equal to or higher than 6.0 in each subject for approval.
TheYearly Average for Grade 6 to 9 is calculated as follows:
Grade 6 to 9: Average = (B1 + B2 + B3 + B4) / 4
● B1, B2, B3 e B4 represent the average of summatives of the discipline in the respective bimesters. The bimonthly average is calculated individually by each teacher.
The Yearly Average for Grades 10 to 12 is calculated based on the weighting of the bimester grades and, eventually, the Mock exams performed by the students throughout the year.
Remediation
Students who do not reach the minimum concept or grade in the Yearly Average will be entitled to remedial classes on days provided for in the School Calenda. 100% presence in remedial classes is mandatory. Upon completion of these classes, the student will undertake a new assessment, the Recovery Test.
September, 2021
THIS POLICY IS CURRENTLY BEING REVISED
BY THE INSTRUCTIONAL LEADERSHIP OF ESCOLA ELEVA
For the promotion of students in Grade 4 and 5, a minimum concept C is required in the Recovery Test.
For the promotion of students in Grade 6 to 12, the average between the Yearly Average (YA) and the Recovery Test is equal to or greater than 6.0, according to the following formula:
6- 12º: (YA + Recovery Test) / 2 > or = 6,0
The student who does not obtain the minimum grade required in the Final Recovery will be retained.
Promotion by the Council
If a student is not approved after final recovery, they will have their development analyzed by the Council.
The Council usually ratifies the final result obtained, but in specific situations as provided for in Brazilian legislation, it is allowed to promote a student who, despite the insufficient grade, has demonstrated an evolution of learning and commitment throughout the school year.
Promotion by the Board is not permitted for a student who:
I. obtains an yearly average lower than 5.0 in one or more subjects; II. obtains an yearly average lower than 6,0, or concept D, in 3 or more subjects;
III. has been previously promoted by the Council within the same Grade level or division.
The Council is composed of the school Director, the Division Coordinators and Counseling Coordinators, a representative of the school’s sponsoring entity, the school Secretary, and the teachers of the student.
September, 2021
THIS POLICY IS CURRENTLY BEING REVISED
BY THE INSTRUCTIONAL LEADERSHIP OF ESCOLA ELEVA
External Assessment
External assessment allow us to track our students' progress against national and international quality standards. They are created by educational organizations outside the Eleva School. We currently apply the following external assessments: AAPPL, Mock ENEM exams.
Policy Review
The Eleva School Assessment Policy may be revised at the end of the school year, with a view to seeking continuous improvement and alignment with the philosophy and practices of the and Escola Eleva. The school's pedagogical leadership team leads the review process and representatives of all stakeholders are involved.