School reform minister Nick Gibb last month announced a teacher-led commission on “assessment without levels” to highlight best practice assessment models.
The group’s members were revealed on Monday and met for the first time the following day.
Alongside representatives from Ofsted and Ofqual, the commission members include four former or current headteachers: John McIntosh, Shahed Ahmed, Mark Neild and Alison Peacock. Two directors of researchers: Daisy Christodolou at charity Ark and Sam Freedman at TeachFirst. The final members are Natalie Packer, an independent special educational needs consultant, and Durham University professor Robert Coe.
Questions were raised on social media about the appropriateness of calling it a “teacher-led” commission, given the panel make-up. A Department for Education spokesperson said: “This is a teacher-led commission and it is misleading to say otherwise. Half the commission’s members – including the chairman – are current headteachers who will draw on their considerable experience of teaching.”
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