Teaching Insights

Assessment: Formative, Flexible, and Focused on the Future

Let’s get one thing straight: assessment in foundation subjects is not about numbers. It’s not about tracking progress in a spreadsheet or generating colourful graphs for governors. It’s about informing teaching—full stop. In the core subjects, assessment often drives interventions and dictates progress expectations. However, in foundation subjects, the assessment process is different, more nuanced, and less tied to hard data. It’s not about whether a child can recall a specific historical fact but whether they can grasp the overarching concept or skill the subject seeks to impart.

In primary schools, assessment in foundation subjects plays a formative role. It’s not about holding children to rigid benchmarks but about understanding where they are and adapting the journey accordingly. If a class struggles with a topic, the teacher isn’t reaching for intervention schedules or after-school catch-ups. They’re looking at their planning, tweaking it, and finding new ways to help the class get it. It’s a continuous loop of planning, teaching, assessing, and adapting—focused on ensuring that children are building on their knowledge in a meaningful way.

Imagine this: a class is grappling with timelines in history. The first lesson didn’t quite land, and most of the children are still mixing up BC and AD. The teacher notices this—not because they’ve given a formal test but because they’ve seen the confusion in the work and heard the questions during the lesson. What happens next? Not a remedial session outside of class. Instead, the next lesson might use a more hands-on approach—maybe a physical timeline across the classroom floor or a group activity to sort events into order. The teacher adjusts the content in real time, ensuring every child has the chance to engage fully.

This kind of flexibility is what makes assessment in foundation subjects so valuable. It’s immediate, it’s responsive, and it’s entirely focused on what the children need right now. And the best part? This approach ensures that foundation subjects remain vibrant and engaging. They’re not reduced to dry data points; they stay creative, exploratory, and, most importantly, fun. Foundation subjects work best when they’re a dynamic part of the curriculum, free from the rigid structures that can sometimes constrain core subjects.

What Weight is Given When They Aren’t Assessed?

Here’s the thing: if a subject isn’t assessed, it’s always going to feel like it’s sitting in the back seat. That’s just the reality of a system that values what it can measure. But in primary schools, that’s not a weakness—it’s a deliberate choice. Foundation subjects are deliberately not assessed in the same way as core subjects because their role in a primary education is different. They aren’t here to meet national targets; they’re here to give children a rich and rounded experience that complements their learning in reading, writing, and maths.

When foundation subjects aren’t assessed formally, it gives schools the freedom to prioritise core subjects while keeping the curriculum broad and balanced. It’s about making the most of limited time. After all, there are only so many hours in a school day, and reading, writing, and maths need to dominate. They’re the keys to everything else. These subjects ensure children have the fundamental skills needed to access the depth and breadth of the curriculum as they move through education. Without them, even the best-planned foundation subject lessons won’t hit their mark.

But this doesn’t mean foundation subjects don’t matter. It means they play a supporting role. They’re not the ones carrying the weight of accountability, and that’s okay. Their value isn’t in their measurability; it’s in the experiences they provide. Foundation subjects create moments that spark creativity, critical thinking, and exploration. They help children connect to the world around them, offering a broader context to the literacy and numeracy skills they are working so hard to master.

Comparing Primary and Secondary Approaches

A useful comparison can be made with PE in Years 10 and 11. By this stage in secondary school, PE is often a non-assessed subject unless taken as a GCSE option. For many students, it’s a practical slot in the timetable, valued for its role in encouraging fitness and teamwork. But let’s be honest: if deadlines are looming for assessed subjects, PE is often the first to be sacrificed. It’s not unusual for pupils to be pulled out of PE lessons to catch up on coursework or attend interventions for core subjects. This trade-off isn’t unique to secondary schools—it reflects the reality of education systems that prioritise measurable outcomes.

The same dynamic exists in primary schools with foundation subjects. While they remain an essential part of a child’s education, they are not the main focus. And just like PE in secondary school, the lack of assessment signals their supporting role in the broader curriculum. Teachers are not spending hours marking detailed projects in art or setting formal tests in geography. Instead, they’re using observation and informal feedback to adapt their teaching and ensure that lessons remain relevant and engaging.

What Is the Real Value of Assessment?

The real value of assessment in foundation subjects lies in its ability to shape future planning. Teachers use it to pitch lessons at the right level, ensuring children are neither overwhelmed nor under-challenged. For instance, if a class finds map-reading tricky in geography, the teacher might adjust the next lesson to include more step-by-step guidance or collaborative work. It’s about creating a learning experience that’s tailored to the class in front of you—not about collecting data for its own sake.

At the end of the year, assessment in foundation subjects is often reduced to one purpose: writing the end-of-year report. Teachers summarise a child’s progress, noting whether they’ve met the expected standards and highlighting areas of strength. But let’s face it: this process can feel more like an exercise in ticking boxes than a meaningful use of time. The reports serve their purpose for parents, but for teachers, their day-to-day use of assessment is far more valuable.

Reframing the Role of Assessment

So, where does this leave us? It leaves us with a need to reframe how we view assessment in foundation subjects. It’s not about collecting data or ranking pupils—it’s about supporting teaching and learning. It’s about ensuring that children are getting the most out of every lesson and that teachers have the flexibility to adapt their approach when something isn’t working. And above all, it’s about recognising that the true value of foundation subjects isn’t in their assessment but in the experiences they provide.