In general terms, schools taking part in a survey are expected to:

• from school records identify the pupils who have been randomly selected to take part in the survey
• inform parents/carers of  the pupils about the survey and provide them with the opportunity to withdraw their child from the survey if they so wish
• make arrangements for the pupils in the sample to take the written assessments and to complete a questionnaire 
• make the necessary arrangements for field officers to carry out the practical assessments - if required
• provide, for some of the pupils, examples of classwork - typically pieces of extended writing - marked and moderated in school
• provide some attainment information for each pupil in the sample
• arrange for teachers to complete a teachers’ questionnaire. 

The information provided above gives a general idea of what is involved in a survey. There can be variations from survey to survey.  Schools taking part in a survey are told the specific requirements for that survey. 

Identifying the pupils

The pupil sample takes the form of a list of pupil identifiers, based on the identifiers generated by the management system used by the school. Each pupil in the sample is given an SSA pupil identifier that is used for all the processes of the survey. 

To make it easier for schools to administer the survey, local authorities are asked to help schools match names to these identifiers. Some local authorities do this matching centrally and forward the lists of identifiers and names to the schools. Other authorities offer advice to the schools on how the matching can be done. In these ways schools can identify the pupils who have been selected to take part in the survey.  

The list of names matched to identifiers is retained by the school. At no point is the school required to forward the list to the SSA team. 

Fuller guidance is provided to schools taking part in each survey.

Informing parents/carers

As part of the preparations for the survey, schools are sent a letter that they are asked to send to the parents/carers of every child taking part in the survey.

The letter explains the purpose of the survey, what pupils are expected to do, and how the results will be reported. If parents/carers want to withdraw their child from the survey for any reason, they are asked to contact the school to request the withdrawal. The school should then make sure that the pupil does not take part.

Making arrangements for the written assessments and questionnaires

In the survey each pupil completes two or three written assessment booklets - the arrangements vary from survey to survey. For P3 and P5 each booklet requires around 40 minutes; for P7 and S2 each booklet requires around 60 minutes. These assessments are not timed examinations, so there can be some flexibility in the time. Pupils also need some time to complete the pupil questionnaire.

The written assessments are normally delivered to schools in late April or early May and are due to be returned by early June, although the exact dates vary from survey to survey. Schools have, therefore, at least four weeks to administer the written assessments.

Schools have considerable flexibility about when they administer the written assessments.

There can be variation in these timings from survey to survey. Schools taking part in a survey are told key dates well in advance to assist them with their planning.

Making arrangements for the practical assessments

It is likely that some special arrangements may be necessary in schools for the practical assessments. For example, the field officer may want to use one of the school’s computers to assist with the assessment of pupils’ skills in using ICT. The arrangements will vary from survey to survey. The specific arrangements for each survey will be raised by the field officers.

Providing examples of classwork

For most surveys schools are asked to provide examples of classwork for some of the pupils. This classwork is usually a piece of extended writing, done as part of the pupils’ course.  SSA prefers to use pieces of writing which have been written as part of normal classwork, rather than imposing a writing task on the pupils.

Schools are asked to arrange to have each piece of writing marked twice in school, using the national writing criteria. The examples of writing are then returned to SSA for national moderation. 

Fuller guidance is provided to schools taking part in each survey.

Providing attainment information

Schools are asked to provide attainment information for each pupil taking part in the survey. This is usually the 5-14 level most recently attained in mathematics, reading, and writing. When appropriate, similar information is also requested for science and social subjects.

Arranging for completion of the teachers’ questionnaire

Teachers of the stage(s) taking part in the survey may be asked to complete a questionnaire. In general terms the information provided in response to the questionnaire helps to set the context for each survey.