Dave Mellor, AlphaPlus’ Director of Assessment shares his thoughts on the challenges of closing the virtuous circle of teaching, learning and formative assessment. When teachers plan their lessons, they set out what they expect their class to know or be able to do at the end of the lesson.  However just because a teacher has

At AlphaPlus we develop a range of assessments for different clients. Each assessment produces indications of a learner’s performance; this article discusses two common approaches we use to help learners and teachers interpret this information. Why do we need standardised scores? All assessments result in raw scores. This relates to the total number of marks

Unconscious bias: a prejudice or stereotype individuals hold about certain groups of people that they aren’t consciously aware of having. We are all guilty of it. Born with a predisposition to favour the familiar, unconscious bias is impossible to avoid. Our background, life experiences and cultural contexts shape our attitudes and values. Whether it is

AlphaPlus is delighted to announce that we are working with the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) to deliver the International Early Learning Child Well-being Study in England on behalf of the Department for Education. On this Page: What is IELS? AlphaPlus’ role Timeline FAQs Privacy Contact us What is IELS? The International Early

John Winkley Director of Business Development shares his thoughts about on-screen formative assessments Formative assessment is the process used by a teacher or learner to review and check learning, with a view to adjusting future teaching and learning based on what learners do and do not understand. Crucially, the assessment questions themselves are not ‘formative’;

Professional standards and national assessments Professional standards set out the skills, knowledge and behaviours that represent technical and ethical competence for a profession and support professional growth. Professional standards can: set clear expectations about effective practice within a profession and identify entry points into a profession enable professionals to reflect on their practice, individually and

Hannah Rowe and Priya Dutta, Assessment Managers at AlphaPlus, talk about their experience working with the Department for Education on the National Assessment Accreditation System (NAAS). Background AlphaPlus worked with the Department for Education from 2019 to 2023 on the National Assessment and Accreditation System (NAAS) for child and family social workers. NAAS enabled child

Ben Rockliffe, AlphaPlus’s Deputy Director of Assessment explains how to ensure assessment content is inclusive of culture, equality and diversity. As an international education services company specialising in assessment, AlphaPlus spends a lot of time creating assessments. Clearly, we focus a lot on the subject and level of the content being assessed, but there are

AlphaPlus has been acquired by AQA, the UK’s leading assessment organisation. AQA is the UK’s biggest exam board, setting and marking around half the GCSEs and A-levels taken in England each year. It is a world leader in assessment, with a cutting-edge research department focusing on advancing assessment and a joint venture with Oxford University

No matter who is sitting an assessment – whether they are learners in a school or candidates for a professional assessment – it is crucial that inclusion and accessibility have been considered in the assessment development process. As assessment developers, we must ensure that the assessment is testing candidates’ ability in the assessment topic and