Hagbourne School
Marking, Feedback and
Presentation Policy
Hagbourne CE Primary School
September 2013
Marking, Feedback and Presentation policy
Aims:
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The aim of marking is to give pupils feedback on their learning and attainment, and let them know
how to improve further
Marking should clearly show whether children have met the learning objective and where
appropriate the success criteria for the work
Marking and assessment should involve the children, and encourage them to play an active role in
their own learning, assessment and identification of targets /next steps
Guidelines:
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Teacher and pupils need to be very clear about the Learning Objective and Success Criteria. Marking
should focus on these.
The title of each piece of work is the Learning Objective for the session.
If the Learning Objective has been achieved it must be highlighted in green along with up to three
examples of this learning highlighted within the work.
Do not use pencil or red pen.
If the Learning Objective is partially met it must be underlined in green highlighter with a solid line or a
dotted line. Written or oral feedback will be given to the child as to how the work can be improved.
If the learning objective has not been met it will be left blank. On these occasions, written or oral
feedback will be given to show why the objective was not met and how this can be improved.
Pink Highlighter is used to show children they have to act upon the comment
Marking, especially in writing and maths, should take the form of ‘closing the gap’ comments,
identifying the gaps in attainment in a piece of work and asking children to go back to their work to
make additions or amendments (see appendix 1). Where this is done, the class teacher should plan
time in the next lesson for pupils to make these additions. These should be made by children in a
different colour to the pen or pencil used originally to make the amendments clear.
Work of good quality will be praised. Stickers, stamps or house points may be used in books to reflect
this.
Teachers should aim to discuss marking with pupils as often as possible.
Pupils should be involved in evaluating their own work or that of a partner using success criteria (peer
and self assessment).
Teachers record any misconceptions or problems in applying skills on their planning or records of
attainment. These notes are then used to inform subsequent planning, especially for targeted group
teaching which is used flexibly to address any key problems.
Marking is completed as soon as possible after the end of the lesson. This is to ensure that children are
given feedback about their attainment as close as possible to the learning being completed. Typically,
marking should be complete by the next time the child continues their learning in the subject; this
ensures comments are meaningful, and allows misconceptions to be addressed before they become
embedded.
Teachers may typically mark some pieces of work in more detail than others and this depends on the
subject, the Learning Objective and the group or individual pupil.
Teachers have the highest expectations of the standard of work which will be produced by all pupils at
all times. Writing produced outside the daily literacy lesson, for example, will be of the same standard
and quality of that produced at the end of a unit of dedicated literacy work.
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Any A4 sheets stuck into books should be trimmed on all edges and stuck to take a whole A4 page (in an
A4 book). If sheets are folded then the Learning Objective should be written so it can be read without
unfolding the work.
DUMTUM is used from Year 2 upwards.
o Date,
o Underline,
o Miss a line,
o Title (in the form of Learning Objectives),
o Underline,
o Miss a line,
In Year One, the Learning Objective in the form of an ‘I can…’ statement may be written by the pupil,
their teacher or teaching assistant, or stuck into the book on a sticker or piece of paper
In maths, children record one number or symbol in each box and work down the page and only use
pencil. Use of a margin on the right hand side of the page (drawn with a ruler) to show workings.
It will be assumed that unless one of the following codes has been used then the work has been completed
independently or the use of an ‘I’ .
The following codes or stamps may be used:
 GW = Guided group work with teacher or TA
 TA = Help given by TA
 T = Help given by teacher
 S = Supply teacher
Foundation Stage
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English
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Recording in the Foundation Stage takes many
forms and feedback is usually verbal.
When recording in books, a comment may be
written and shared with the child.
Key Stage One
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Maths
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In Y1, the approach taken to marking is similar to that in
Foundation Stage. Feedback is generally verbal,
although some comments for discussion with the child
may be included in the book.
As the child moves through Y1 and into Y2, teacher
comments will become more detailed. Closing the Gap
comments will be used, identifying some positive
elements and asking children to look again at other
aspects of their work and make a given amendment or
improvement.
Children neatly underline mistakes themselves when
they spot them.
Rubbers are used at the teacher’s discretion.
Words which the teacher thinks should be spelt
correctly (up to 3) will be highlighted in pink and correct
spelling written in the margin or bottom of the page.
Children should write them out at least 3 times.
Incorrect punctuation and grammar will be highlighted
in pink or circled and children should be given time to
correct these.
As with writing, initially the majority of marking is
through verbal discussion. Teachers keep notes on
plans of children who have not met, met or exceeded
their learning objective, and this feeds directly into
planning.
As children start to record, correct work is shown with a
tick.
Incorrect work to be dotted or a question mark (not a
cross)
Incorrect work is discussed and noted on planning if
appropriate.
Numbers which are incorrectly formed will be
highlighted in pink and correct formation written in the
margin or bottom of the page. Children should write
them out at least 3 times.
Children identify mistakes with a single pencil line
through the error.
Rubbers are used at the teacher’s discretion.
Key Stage Two
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The approach used in Y2 continues from Y3
onwards.
Closing the Gap comments are used to give
feedback, both on successful elements and those
which are next steps for the child.
Mistakes are shown by a pencil line drawn through
the error. This is done using a ruler.
Black school pens to be used from Yr 4 onwards.
Rubbers are used at the teacher’s discretion.
Words which the teacher thinks should be spelt
correctly (up to 3) will be highlighted in pink and
correct spelling written in the margin. Children
should write them out at least 3 times.
Incorrect punctuation and grammar will be
highlighted in pink or circled and children should
be given time to correct these.
The approach in Y2 continues from Y3 upwards.
Correct work is ticked and incorrect work is
indicated with a dot or a question mark. Where
possible, some of these errors should be corrected
in the next session – as with writing, teachers
should plan time for this to take place.
In Y2 and above, closing the gap comments are also
used when marking maths work. These may be in
the form of corrections (‘can you spot where you
went wrong on number 2?’) or quick moving on
activities (‘well done for multiplying by 100 – have
a go at showing me what happens when these 2
numbers are divided by 100’).
Rubbers are used at the teacher’s discretion.
Closing the gap comments
What are they?
Closing the gap comments include statements which prompt the pupil to:
o Elaborate or extend (“tell me more about…”)
o Add a word or sentence (“add a word which…”)
o Change the text (“Find a better word for…”)
o Justify a choice (“Why…?)
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Where time is planned for pupils to act on them, they have been shown to be an effective way of
making pupils evaluate their writing in a directed and scaffolded way…they have no choice but to look
at your comment, reflect on what you have written and why, and then make the necessary changes.
Example closing the gap comments:
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How did the character feel here? Can you add a sentence to show me?
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Complete this sentence: “He was so surprised he ….”
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Complete this to add into the place I have put *: “He barked
ly”.
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Choose one of these or write your own to finish with: “he couldn’t believe his eyes”, or “he ran
around in circles feeling confused”.
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Write down 3 adjectives /adverbs / more powerful verbs you could have used instead of…
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Go back and add in 2 missing full stops / commas / question marks...
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Look at the 2 sentences with * next to them. Can you turn them into a complex sentence using a
connective and a comma?
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OR Look at the sentence I have put * next to. Can you use your editing symbols to break this into 2
shorter sentences?
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Look at the sentence I have highlighted. Which 2 things make this a good sentence?
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Put a // where you could have started a new paragraph, and explain underneath why this would
have been a good place.
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Use one of these words at the start of a sentence to increase the flow of your ideas: as a result,
consequently, furthermore.
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Can you turn your final statement into a question, which makes the reader think about this topic
further?
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Add a topic sentence to the beginning of paragraph 1 to introduce the reader to what ideas you
will be talking about in this section.
Practicalities
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Link to success criteria, or use to consolidate recently completed work
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Highlight (in green) effective examples of sentences, words etc to show pupils exactly what you are
looking for, and where they have got it ‘right’
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Plan 5 minutes for pupils to act on comments…ensure this is when a TA is available to assist with
reading for lower-achieving pupils (start of the day…start of the lesson…end of the morning…start
of the afternoon)
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Ensure all pupils have a comment which they need to address
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Use alongside more general moving on, summative comments
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Use once a week? For every substantial piece of writing?
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When marking, only use comments when marking which move pupils forward and provide targets
or areas to address. Comments like ‘good’ do not move a child’s learning forward, and should not
be used.