At a basic level, a baseline assessment, as conducted by Cambridge’s Centre for Evaluation and Monitoring (CEM), is a tool designed to help students and teachers find out what a student already knows and can do at a particular moment in time. Such an assessment is typically provided at the beginning of a course of study and helps teachers to better understand students when they begin a year group, class or enter the school.
The Cambridge baseline assessment has been in use by various institutions across the world. Established in 2019, the Oxbridge International School (OXIS) is among the schools that have seen the value of the baseline assessment. As owner and chairman Dr Rolph Balgobin puts it, the assessment has helped the school to unlock every child’s potential.
What It Is
The baseline assessment is an objective measure that considers a student’s cognitive and non-cognitive skills at the time of testing. It is curriculum-independent and offers instant insight to the student, educator and even parents. When used well, baseline assessments can give more than just baseline information – they can provide data that helps monitor trends over time, while also providing value-added insights that help instil best practice.
For schools, the data from a baseline assessment is critical for various reasons. First, it helps to provide a personalised assessment that informs learning. Second, the objectivity of the assessment ensures that there’s a clear view of the student’s strengths and areas of improvement. This is particularly helpful, as educators can pinpoint learning gaps and needs, ensuring that learning plans address them. Where early interventions are needed, the baseline assessment offers insight into what should be done. Finally, the assessment data also helps schools track student and cohort progress, ensures effective resource allocation and is a good tool for measuring the impact of teaching.
How It Has Helped OXIS
According to Dr Balgobin, the baseline assessment ‘gives [the school] extra insight into a child’s ability.’ This insight, combined with what the school sees from other evaluations such as progression or semester tests, enables teachers to learn more about what a child is capable of. OXIS integrates the baseline assessment with other daily activities and evaluations, ensuring that the results are comprehensive and informative.
Every eight weeks, OXIS plans meetings with all parents of all children and uses the baseline assessment as the basis for these sessions. The end result is productive and positive engagements that are objective about a child’s learning journey.