National Agenda Testing in Dubai
For the academic year 2020-21, KHDA have stated that: “Given the exceptional circumstances confronting all education communities, reliable data is essential for schools to determine students’ capabilities and gaps in their knowledge.”
Their stated priorities are that:
- Schools make informed decisions about protocols to ensure that assessment information is as valid and reliable as possible
- clearly determine students’ starting points at the beginning of the academic year
- make the necessary provisions to ensure students continue to make progress
- continue to track students’ achievements throughout the year
The recommended components supplied by GL Education are:
- Potential to learn – CAT4
- Academic achievement – PT Series
- Readiness to learn - PASS
We have summarised the requirements for these tests in the section below.
KHDA state that “Using a curriculum-specific assessment along with available CAT4 and PASS data should provide schools with the tools to develop a comprehensive assessment plan tailored to students’ educational needs, as well as to triangulate ALL assessment information. This plan should help schools to monitor more effectively and support better learning outcomes.”
To help schools in developing a comprehensive assessment plan, GL Education is running a range of Data Triangulation and Return to School training programmes this term. More information can be found here and here.
Potential to Learn Testing with CAT4 – academic year 2020-21
The suggested grades for CAT4 are grades 5, 7, 9 and 11 (years 6, 8, 10, 12).
New schools that have not previously tested with CAT4 are advised to test all their students from grade 3-9 (years 4 -10).
Schools are encouraged to test more grades/years in primary schools.
Refer to the table below to identify the appropriate test level for each grade/year.
|
CAT4 Level |
Grade |
Year |
|
X |
1 |
2 |
|
Pre-A |
2 |
3 |
|
A |
3 |
4 |
|
B |
4 |
5 |
|
C |
5 |
6 |
|
D |
6 |
7 |
|
E |
7 |
8 |
|
F |
8 / 9 |
9 / 10 |
|
G |
10 / 11 |
11 / 12 |
Benchmark testing with the PT Series – academic year 2020/21
At the end of academic year 2020/21, students should be tested with the appropriate test for that grade / year. This will allow progress to be measured for the full academic year. Testing should take place between 2nd May and 17th June 2021.
KHDA recommend that all students in grade 3 – 9 (year 4 – 10) take the Progress Test Series in May/June 2021.
Our Progress Tests in maths, English and science are available for schools following UK, IB, Pakistani, Canadian and Philippine curriculums.
Refer to the table below to identify the appropriate test for each Grade / Year.
|
Year (UK) |
Grade (IB, Others) |
Level: Progress Test Maths |
Progress Test English |
Progress Test Science |
|
4 |
3 |
9 |
9 |
9 |
|
5 |
4 |
10 |
10 |
10 |
|
6 |
5 |
11 |
11 |
11 |
|
7 |
6 |
12 |
12 |
Not Required |
|
8 |
7 |
13 |
13 |
13 |
|
9 |
8 |
14 |
14 |
14 |
|
10 |
9 |
15 |
15 |
15 |
Individual student example
A student who is in Year 6 for academic year 2020-21 should sit the level 11 tests in May/June 2021.
Please note: The PT Series assessments are currently not compatible with iPads or tablet and must be administered using a desktop computer or a laptop only. You can find out more about the Testwise minimum system requirements here:
https://help.testingforschools.com/pages/viewpage.action?pageId=3309849
Testing window
Summer Progress Test Series 2021:
2nd May to 17th June 2021
Data Sharing Agreement and Declaration of Use
All schools are required to sign and return a data sharing agreement. This enables us to share assessment data with school inspectors and regulators to support school evaluation. Bespoke inspection reports cannot be shared with you until we have received a revised agreement (signed after September 2020). Please note that all PT Series test data (including archived data) will be shared with the regulator.
Complete Data Sharing Agreement here
If you have any queries about data sharing, please contact us on international@gl-education.com
Updating student records
During registration, schools must clearly identify all Emirati students. Click here for further guidance on how to achieve this on the Testwise platform.
Webinar – updating for new academic year.
Training
We offer a wide range of online training courses to support schools in using GL assessments as well as in analysing data from a wide range of tests to gain greater insight. With options including timetabled presentations, moderated courses with flexible working, and completely self-guided content, it’s easy to find a course that suits your needs and schedule.
Find out more on our training overview page.
Product Support
Technical Support
Our hours of support for any technical or administration queries increase during the testing window. All times are GMT.
Advice on testing or buying tests
Sunday-Thurs: 7:30AM-4PM
Tech support
Sunday: 5.30am – 2pm
Monday – Thurs: 5.30am – 5pm
How to order
Email international@gl-education.com with your testing requirements.