Assessment in Early Childhood Education in England

Abstract

This chapter focuses on assessment, and the different purposes that it serves in relation to the accountability culture. It describes the policy context in England, the assessment requirements and the purposes that assessment serves. The chapter presents the two readings of assessment, based on a consideration of compatible or competing paradigms. It examines what these different readings of the accountability culture offer, and the implications for understanding assessment as a policy tool, or as relational and ethical practice. There are four sectors of pre-school education providers–private, voluntary, independent and maintained; all are inspected by the Office for Standards in Education (OFSTED) and all are required to provide assessment data that show children’s progress and achievements. The comparative potential of such documentation is also used by regulators such as OFSTED as a surveillance mechanism, a ‘coercive tool’ which allows for the efficient and manageable comparison of data within and across educational settings.