A question we sometimes get when schools first start using Pupil Progress is why our trackers contain NEA units, when JCQ guidance note that NEA feedback should only be given at a general level. This article explains why this is and why we recommend utilising the NEA unit on your tracker.
What does the JCQ say about providing feedback on NEA units?
In the JCQ's (Joint Council for Qualifications) instructions for conducting non-examination assessments, some guidance is given around what advice and feedback teachers can give to students on their NEA in the task-taking stage:
Unless specifically prohibited by the awarding body’s specification, teachers may:
• review candidates’ work and provide oral and written advice at a general level;
• having provided advice at a general level, allow candidates to revise and re-draft work.
General advice of this nature does not need to be recorded or taken into account when the work is marked. (p.5)
Similarly, in the same guidelines, the JCQ also note that teachers must not provisionally assess work and then allow the candidate to revise it.
In turn, this can cause some confusion amongst new Pupil Progress users, who can understandably feel as though tracking NEA units on the platform goes against this guidance, with our trackers providing specific, data-driven feedback instead of general notes.
However, whilst the above may be the case for the students' final NEA submissions, the same guidance does not apply to your own practice assessments.
Our position on tracking NEA units
Pupil Progress provides you with the tools to track and monitor your attainment data effectively, although of course it is ultimately up to the teacher to ensure that they are following JCQ processes. For this reason, we don't recommend sharing the information from your Pupil Progress tracker's NEA units with students for the piece of work they will be submitting.
Our platform allows you to record your own practice assessments of an NEA, that wouldn't be submitted for final grades. This can be a great opportunity to provide detailed feedback to your students in the same way that you would in a mock paper for an exam unit.
As your students reach the end of the qualification, you can also record marks at the point in which you are assessing, where you then would not allow students to revise their submissions.
What can I do if I don't want the NEA unit to show altogether?
Whilst many Pupil Progress users find great value in setting practice NEA assessments to their classes, it is completely up to you and your best judgement as an educator to show the units on your tracker that you need. There may also be some instances where a practice NEA assessment is not suitable, such as a student's IRP presentation in AQA A-Level MFL.
The NEA unit is set as visible by default on all trackers where there is one, but it's really easy for users with School Admin or Leader of permissions to hide this. From your tracker, simply click Edit Assessments -> Quick Edit and untick the classes for which you don't want the NEA to show, before saving your changes.
Once hidden from your tracker in this way, you will no longer see the NEA unit when entering data, and no details about it will show on your students' reports. You can re-show the NEA unit at any time by reversing the previous steps.
📖 Pupil Progress Tip
If you'd like to track your in-progress NEA submission without having this data show on the student report, you're able to enter your marks into the Forecast area where it is only visible by teaching staff 🚀