The 1980s and the introduction of the
National Curriculum and the TGAT model of assessment: the case of history
and the 45 boxes
It was suddenly discovered that all subjects could be
broken down into several discrete 'profile components', and (miraculously)
there were 10 levels of attainment in all these components- in every
subject. This was an important discovery because it meant that it would be
possible to make comparisons between schools, LEAs, teachers, departments,
and even different curriculum subjects, by looking at what levels pupils
were achieving. Assessment became a powerful method of ensuring
accountability in education. It meant that there was a basis for comparison
between schools and LEAs other than those based on examination results at
16 and 18, because these comparisons could be made on pupils aged 7, 11 and
14. Paul Black has made the point that the main reason that the TGAT Report
on Assessment was accepted by the government of the day was that it
provided a tool for accountability in education. In the unlikely event of
you wanting to find out more about 'the 45 boxes' model, see T. Haydn
(1994) 'The case of history and the 45 boxes: a case study of the impact of
the TGAT testing model', Curriculum Journal,
Summer, pp. 215-233.
Breaking the subjects down into lots of 'bits', or
'attainment objectives' meant that teachers could address pupils' learning
needs much more precisely and specifically. In the case of history, there
were 3 'profile components' (major strands of the subject to try and get
better in); knowledge and understanding of history, Interpretations of
History, and Use of sources. Each strand had 10 levels of attainment, and
the idea was that pupils would gradually work their way up the ladders of
attainment in the 3 'areas' of history by achieving each of the objectives.
There were 45 'boxes' altogether in history. Interestingly, there were
about 180 boxes in Geography- (is Geography 3 times as big as history?).
for primary teachers who were attempting to assess pupils to a level in all
subjects, there were hundreds of boxes to think about.
This was not the first attempt to chart out a model of
progression in history, (see, for instance, HMI, 1885, History in the
primary and secondary years, London, HMSO), but it was a very influential
one because it was the one that was put in place at the time of the
inception of the National Curriculum in 1991.
It is difficult to fit in all 45 of the boxes from the
'Mark 1' National Curriculum for History assessment model on a web page, so
I have just taken 2 of the 3 attainment targets to show the model of
progression for history in the 1991 version of the N/C for history.
| |
Attainment target 2:
Interpretations of History |
Attainment Target 3:
Use of sources |
| Level 1 |
Understand that stories may be about
real people or fictional characters |
Communicate information from a
historical source |
| Level 2 |
Show an awareness that different
stories about the past can give different versions of what happened |
Recognise that historical sources can
stimulate and help answer questions about the past |
| Level 3 |
Distinguish between a fact and a point
of view |
Make deductions from historical sources |
| Level 4 |
Show an understanding that deficiencies
in evidence may lead to different interpretations of the past |
Put together information from
different historical sources |
| Level 5 |
Recognise that accounts of the past may
differ from what is known to have happened |
Comment on the utility of an historical
source by reference to its content, as evidence for a particular
enquiry |
| Level 6 |
Demonstrate how historical
interpretations depend on the selection of sources |
Copmare the value of sources for a
particular task |
| Level 7 |
Describe stengths and weaknesses of
interpretations of an historical event or development |
Judge the reliability or value of
sources with reference to the corcumstances in which they were
produced |
| Level 8 |
Show hw attitudes and circumstances can
influence an individual's interpretation of historical
events/developments |
Show how a source which is unreliable
can nevertheless be useful |
| Level 9 |
Explain why different groups or
societies interpret and use the past in different ways |
Understand that value of source depends
on questions asked |
| Level 10 |
Show an understanding of the issues
involved in trying to make history as objective as possible |
Explain the problematic nature of
historical evidence showing that jusgements using historical sources
are often provisional |
What happened to the '45 boxes'
model? Assessment in history in the 1990s
Back to assessment homepage
Back to History PGCE |
