On-entry assessments of pupils in reception class: September 2017 to August 2018

This is used to determine the stage of development and interests of the child according to the Foundation Phase profile and framework.

These assessments are based upon a series of unobtrusive observations of each child following their entry into reception class.

Four areas of learning are observed.

1. Language, literacy and communication skills (in either Welsh or English).
2. Mathematical development.
3. Physical development.
4. Personal and social development, well-being and cultural diversity.  

This approach helps practitioners to understand the child’s learning style and interests as well as their developmental stage.

The data reflect the wide range of developmental maturity that we expect at this age, which is well within the normal range for children at entry to school, especially with the age variability at the point of school entry.

This headline includes one of the national indicators used for the purpose of measuring progress towards the achievement of the 7 Well-being goals for Wales. This is national indicator 6, the measurement of the development of young children, and progress will be tracked using the Personal, Social Development, Well-Being and Cultural Diversity area of learning. Please see the annual Well-being of Wales report for further information.

Main points

• Around 6 in 10 pupils aged 4 are at a stage of development in mathematics and language, literacy in communication in English that would be consistent with or greater than their age according to the framework, with around 9 in 10 pupils within one stage of the development consistent with their age.
• There is a different distribution for language, literacy and communication in Welsh, with around 1 in 3 pupils at a stage of development that is consistent with or greater than their age. This can be explained by the number of pupils from non-Welsh speaking households whose parents choose to enrol them at a Welsh medium school. To put this into context, by the end of the Foundation Phase around 90% of pupils achieve the expected outcome in this area of learning.
• In personal and social development, well-being and cultural diversity, around 7 in 10 pupils aged 4 are at a stage of development in this area of learning that would be consistent with or greater than their age according to the framework, with around 9 in 10 pupils within one stage of the development consistent with their age.
• For all areas of learning there is a different distribution pattern of developmental progress for boys compared with girls as they mature at different rates and on average girls are at a higher stage of development. This is consistent with other studies such as the Millennium Cohort Study and data from the Schedule of Growing Skills collected under the Flying Start programme.

Next publication date

From 2019, the results from the on-entry assessments will be published in August alongside the results from teacher assessments at the end of the Foundation Phase, Key Stage 2 and Key Stage 3.