Attitudes of Children and Parents to Key Stage 2 Science Testing and Assessment

This research report was commissioned by the Trust in January 2009 to provide information on parents' and pupils' views of testing and assessment in science at Key Stage 2 (year 6). The report is the first to look at the attitudes and concerns of children and parents on the way science is assessed in primary school. Around 1000 school children in England and Wales took part in the survey, which was designed with the involvement of children themselves in collaboration with researchers from Queen’s University Belfast.

According to the findings, the vast majority of children surveyed found science assessment useful and liked to know how well they were performing. However most preferred the use of end-of-topic testing and investigations to assess their performance, rather than SATs testing. This is a valuable opportunity to use research evidence to inform policy discussions and decisions, as well as informing any future work by the Trust related to assessment.

Download full report [PDF 8MB]

Download executive summary [PDF 550KB]