UoB ITE Partnership (FET): Grading Trainees against the Teachers’ Standards

All trainees are assessed within the framework of and in relation to the Professional Standards for Teachers and Trainers in England. Graded observations throughout the training period help to inform these assessments.

  • Trainees are assessed at all stages of their training. This is so that they understand their progress in relation to the impact they are making on learner progress and that they take an active role in their professional development.

Trainees keep a record of their assessments in their teaching files, making them accessible to University tutors and college-based mentors. They are also stored on a central database. Mentors also retain copies of assessment and observation records.

  • Assessment allows college and university tutors to track trainees’ achievements so that progress can be enhanced via appropriate interventions and action planning.

This assessment is supported by a triannual traffic light system where progress and intervention are tracked.

  • The ITE Partnership monitors progress and achievements of whole cohorts of trainees (by subject, gender, etc.) in order to inform improvement planning at all levels.

The official record of trainees’ grades (for monitoring purposes) is held on the Partnership Database.

  • All grades are awarded using centre-devised criteria, informed by the Professional Standards.

These are published in PiE Handbooks and are available on the Partnership website.

Initial assessment report / Trainee progress is reviewed following completion of the first module, against six categories: subject knowledge/academic potential, English and mathematics skills, communication skills, planning, inclusion and reflection. This assessment of progress and potential enables early intervention to take place if required.
Interim Assessment Grades / Trainees receive three grades that provide evidence of the trainee having achieved competence in professional values and attributes, professional knowledge and understanding, and professional skills.
Final Assessment on teaching and professional competence / Trainees receive three grades that provide evidence of the trainee having achieved competence in professional values and attributes, professional knowledge and understanding, and professional skills.
Observation grades / Trainees are graded through observations of practice throughout the training period. These grades help inform the interim and final assessment grades.
Final Grade / On completion of the programme a final Ofsted grade for each trainee is determined. The ITE Partnership’s expectation is that all UoB trainees will have met the criteria to be graded 1 or 2 at the point of course completion. Therefore, bespoke arrangements are put in place for any trainees whose overall achievement is graded below 2.
The final Ofsted grade will be awarded as follows: 1 = Exceeds standards, 2 = Meets standards, 3 = Requires Improvement.

Final Ofsted Grades

For a trainee’s final Ofsted grade to be 1:

learner progress and learning over time must be good or better than expected;

minimum of two areas graded 1 overall

no grade 3 or 4 for any Standard.

For a trainee’s final Ofsted grade to be 2:

pupil progress and learning over time must be at least as expected;

at least two areas graded 2 overall;

any grade 3 areas must be scrutinised and would require grade 2 features (utilising assessment against the sub-headings);

no grade 4 for any Standard.

For a trainee’s final Ofsted grade to be 3:

  • pupil progress and learning over time is not always as expected;
  • most areas graded 3 overall;
  • no grade 4 for any Standard.