Year 1 phonics screening check FAQs

The Year 1 phonics screening check is a short, light-touch assessment to confirm whether individual pupils have learnt phonic decoding to an appropriate standard.

It will identify the children who need extra help so they are given support by their school to improve their reading skills. They will then be able to retake the check so that schools can track pupils until they are able to decode.

Year 1 pupils in maintained schools, academies and Free Schools will take the phonics screening check in 2012 between 18 and 22 June.

Schools will be able to administer the check at any time that suits them during the week of the 18 to 22 June 2012. If a child is absent during that week, the school can administer the check up until Friday 29 June 2012.

Yes. It will be a statutory requirement for all schools to carry out the screening check.

A leaflet that explains the phonics screening check to parents is available to download from the associated resources section of this page.

Schools and local authorities can access support and guidance including an assessment and reporting arrangements (ARA) document, which sets out the statutory requirements. This can be downloaded from the ARA page of our website: http://www.education.gov.uk/schools/teachingandlearning/assessment/a00197251/assessment-and-reporting-arrangements.

Other guidance, including a Check administrators’ guide (CAG), training video and sample materials can also be found on the phonics page in support materials. Here is a link to the page: http://www.education.gov.uk/schools/teachingandlearning/assessment/keystage1/a00200415/year-1-phonics-screening-check-materials

Information on the phonics page of our website explains how the check was designed for the pilot.

A summary of the independent evaluation of the pilot, which took place in June 2011, is also available.

Sample materials are available to help familiarise teachers with the check. These are available in the Testing and Assessment section of our website.

It will be a short, simple screening check to make sure that all pupils have grasped fundamental phonics skills and to see that nobody slips through the net. It comprises a list of 40 words and non-words, which a child will read one-to-one with a teacher. Find out more about the type of words and non-words that may be used.

Half the words cover phonics skills which tend to be covered in Reception, and half the words are based on Year 1 phonics skills.

The standard used in the check was agreed through two separate standard setting exercises involving around 50 teachers whose Year 1 classes participated in the pilot check. The panels agreed the standard descriptor as the basis for their discussions. This descriptor is in line with the expectations in good quality phonics programmes for the end of Year 1.

Here is a link to the standard descriptor: http://www.education.gov.uk/schools/teachingandlearning/pedagogy/a00198207/faqs-year-1-phonics-screening-check

Each panel looked at the words in the check and agreed a cut score with the standard descriptor in mind. The results from the two panels were very similar, validating the outcome.

In the pilot we trialled 18 different versions of the screening check. Each one had a slightly different threshold for the expected level ranging from 31 to 34 out of 40.

The threshold for 2012 will be included in the screening check materials which will remain secure until the start of the check week (18 June 2012). 
 

Thirty-two per cent of six year olds who took the screening check reached the expected level, which was set by about 50 teachers whose schools were involved in the pilot.

When considering the outcomes of the pilot, it should be noted that pilot schools were only given details of the content and structure of the screening check shortly before the check took place. Pilot schools were therefore not familiar with the screening check when planning their teaching and learning, and so the pilot results might not be a good predictor of national performance.

The Government recognises that ambitions for the phonics check are more challenging than the current trajectory towards reading at the end of Year 2. But we make no apology for being ambitious about aiming for high standards in the teaching of reading. We believe that if children get the fundamental skill of reading using phonics right early on it will give them a flying start and allow them to move quickly to reading books for themselves and achieving even more in the future.

Evidence from around the world shows that a systematic approach to the teaching of phonics gives children the best start in their reading. We recommend that some schools might like to consider their approach to teaching phonics, and make sure they are setting suitable high expectations for pupils’ progress in Year 1.

Setting a more rigorous standard in the phonics check, in line with what the evidence shows us pupils can achieve, will help schools to ensure their pupils are secure at level 2 by the end of KS1. The standard on the phonics check has been set by a group of 50 teachers involved in the pilot. It is based on the expectations in good quality phonics programmes already used widely in schools, such as Letters and Sounds.

The assessment will be age-appropriate, with children sitting with a teacher who they know and reading one-to-one. It should be an enjoyable activity for children which takes no more than a few minutes.

It should be taken by as many pupils as possible, and we have worked closely with SEN specialists to make this happen. Where necessary, adjustments will be made and appropriate guidance provided.

For pupils who are working well below the level of the screening check (for example, if they have shown no understanding of letter-sound correspondences), there will be a disapplication process so they do not have to take part. Parents should be informed if a child is disapplied.

Further information is available in the ARA: http://www.education.gov.uk/schools/teachingandlearning/assessment/a00197251/assessment-and-reporting-arrangements)

and CAG: http://www.education.gov.uk/schools/teachingandlearning/assessment/keystage1/a00200415/year-1-phonics-screening-check-materials

Non-words are an established assessment method in many schools, and are included in many phonics programmes. They are included because they will be new to all pupils, so there won’t be a bias to those with a good vocabulary knowledge or visual memory of words. Pupils who can read non-words should have the skills to decode almost any unfamiliar word. The evidence from the pilot showed that a significant majority of teachers agreed that including non-words in the assessment was suitable.

The evaluation shows that children generally enjoyed the non-words. Of course, it is important that children understand the difference between real words and non-words. Some teachers in the pilot reported that some pupils were confused, and we have taken steps to address this, including helping teachers to introduce the non-words clearly.

Schools’ results will not be published, although schools will have to tell parents their child’s results. Schools will be given the flexibility to inform parents in the way they think most suitable. Data will be available on RAISEOnline, for use by schools, local authorities and Ofsted as part of their inspections process.

The phonics screening check has been developed by phonics experts and in consultation with headteachers, teachers and other experts. It has been piloted in around 300 schools and independently evaluated.

Yes – this will be a statutory screening check which academies have to carry out according to the terms of their Funding Agreement.

Yes, we expect the class teacher to carry out the check with most pupils. Administering the phonics check requires a teacher’s professional judgement, and a significant majority of respondents to our public consultation agreed that a teacher should do the check. 

Every child is different, but in the pilot most children took between four and nine minutes to complete the assessment.

Schools will not receive funding for the phonics screening check, as national assessments are a part of their core work. Schools wanting to buy phonics products or training to support their teaching can receive match-funding of up to £3000 when they buy through an approved catalogue. Every school was sent a hard copy of the catalogue at the end of October 2011 but it is also available online. For further details, please see the phonics matching-funding page on our website.

No. All relevant Key Stage 1 schools are required to take part. We will send materials to schools based on school census data.

Further information is available in the ARA: http://www.education.gov.uk/schools/teachingandlearning/assessment/a00197251/assessment-and-reporting-arrangements).

The screening check will identify children who have phonic decoding skills below the level expected for the end of Year 1 and who therefore need extra help. Schools will be expected to provide extra help and children will then be able to re-take the assessment in Year 2.