Assessment Design
Discover our approach to designing and delivering fair and reliable assessments
The right assessments give you accurate and useful information about the learner population and national performance. We are experts in designing assessments that reliably measure the right things in the right way. We have a long history of undertaking large scale assessment design, development and quality assurance for government agencies, awarding bodies and educational publishers. We take the time to understand our clients’ objectives and context, and then co-design and establish the systems needed to build capability.
From formative tests to national summative exams, from academic to professional, it’s important to use the right assessment to measure what you want learners to be able to do. Different assessments deliver different insights and knowing which one is right for your curriculum and the outcomes you want to review is key.
Every year, over 1 million students take AQA exams
1,000,000 students
10,000 questions
900 exams
1,000 examiners
From capability building to designing assessments, our services include:
- Evidenced assessment design and development
- Quality assurance
- Assessment blueprints and specifications
- Assessment training
- Summative assessment
- Formative assessment
- Design of reports
High quality assessment
We help our clients develop consistent, high quality assessments that maintain standards over time. We provide a complete, end-to-end service that covers everything from designing different types of assessment to awarding grades and outcomes. Our rigorous approach ensures valid and reliable assessment design – good, clear questions, free from bias, that give the right information about the learner.
Summative exams
Curriculum-based summative exams that test knowledge and skills to a depth and breadth appropriate to age and ability, supporting progression and reliably evidencing standards of attainment.
Project-based assessment
Project-based assessments that develop independent research skills, and test and evidence the ability to analyse and synthesise complex information.
On-screen tests
Adaptive, on-screen tests for summative high stakes exams or to support learning and measure learner progress over time. We are a recognised leader in the design and use of adaptive assessment, for both formative and summative assessment.
Vocational assessment
Based on continuous collection of real-world evidence and skills-based assessment, ensuring a learner is performing at the standard required for employment in their chosen field.
Formative assessment
To give students immediate feedback on their learning and give the teacher rich data about class progress, enabling them to support their students on their individual learning journeys.
Outsource or upskill?
We can provide out-sourced services to design, develop, deliver and evaluate your assessments. We can also equip you with the knowledge and skills to deliver your assessment operations in-house through our extensive training programmes.
Case study: Designing professional assessments
We have worked with the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) in the UK to design, develop, maintain and evaluate their Test of Competence (TOC), used for nurses and midwives who qualified outside the UK. The test is designed to assess a candidate’s ability to meet the NMC’s standards of proficiency and to practise safely, effectively and in accordance with the NMC’s Code of Conduct. Our role involved developing a bank of multiple-choice questions, producing support materials, and quality assurance of other suppliers.
Formative Assessments in the UK
We have developed time-saving and reliable formative assessment resources – Exampro and Testbase. These resources include searchable question banks that repurpose content from past exam and test papers at the most granular level. The content is mapped to relevant curriculums, including GCSE and A-level specifications and the English national curriculum. Offering great flexibility, they can be mapped to other curriculums and frameworks, and content such as regional exams can be converted into question banks.
Exampro has helped teachers tailor assessments to the needs of their students from ages 11 to 18 for almost 30 years. Its searchable question banks contain thousands of past questions for over 50 AQA GCSEs and A-levels and other qualifications. Ready-made assessments, on-screen delivery and automarking are available. Reporting tools provide valuable analysis and insights.
Testbase enables teachers to repurpose content from the English national curriculum tests quickly and efficiently, to build bespoke, differentiated assessment resources for ages 5 to 11. With searchable banks of thousands of questions as well as ready-made resources, and a suite of summative tests including insights and analysis, Testbase can be used at every point in the teaching and learning cycle.
Case study: Assessment services for medical certification bodies
Find out how we help medical certification bodies operate their assessments according to internationally recognised best practice.
Our London office
AQA Global Assessment Services
Lynton House
7-12 Tavistock Square
London
WC1H 9LT
UK
Offices in Manchester, Milton Keynes, Bahrain, Hong Kong
