ABSTRACT
If teachers have a class that includes young people with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), they first have to find out what everyone can do and then tailor activities to fit their learning needs. Assessment should be about discovering what a pupil can do, not highlighting what they cannot. It is about helping children understand what has enabled them to get to a certain point and identifying strategies by which they can progress further or, if required, in alternative directions. Assessment for learning (AfL) is about identifying an individual's needs and working out the best way to help them achieve their goals. Assessment tasks provide a sense of focus to lessons and modules, allowing youngsters to piece together their short-term learning and build towards something bigger. Working towards assessment tasks enables both long and short-term targets to be set. To be inclusive, targets must be personalised and realistic – related to what the students themselves can do.
