This section focuses on the whole-school development of assessment for learning.

We know that to be effective, the development of assessment for learning requires whole-school leadership for learning and a whole-school commitment to strengthening teaching and learning, improving achievement and progress for all learners.

'Teachers are familiar with many of the elements of assessment for learning: they lie at the heart of outstanding learning and teaching. They involve teachers changing what they do, day by day, to respond to their pupils. When they do this within a whole school context that establishes the priority of assessment for learning, supported by effective systems for tracking pupils' progress, the impact of assessment on learning is likely to be considerable'

(A vision for teaching and learning in 2020, Ref: 04255-2006DOM-EN)

Therefore, the key to successfully developing assessment for learning is distributed leadership, with everyone in a school taking responsibility for learning and working collaboratively. This includes developing children as independent learners taking a lead in their own learning.