What makes a Good Question Level Analysis?

Answer: Detailed Analysis

Described by some as the magic bullet, Question Level Analysis is now becoming more popular in schools across the country.

Many free grids are available over the internet designed to help break assessments down as a guide for teachers but they do not give you the forensic or time saving analysis you need. In fact – some of them don’t even do analysis at “question level”.

DAISI Education has been creating QLA for schools all over the country for over 10 years. Our Question Level Analysis has been proven to help schools improve* their results over time. Therefore, as a team of education analysts, we know what makes a good one and how it can save time and raise attainment. The answer is the level of ANALYSIS.

*80% of schools who used DAISI Question Level Analysis over three years have seen an increase in their attainment.

So what makes a Good QLA?

Ten Question to ask…

1. Do you have to search in many places or is it delivered in one go?

Remember the aim of this analysis is to save you time as a head/teacher so you are not searching through lots of data to find the answer. You need something that does all that for you.

All DAISI QLA arrives as one PDF report sent direct to your inbox

2. Does the analysis look at Individual Questions or just general topics? 

Most Question Analysis actually only gives you the heads up around different topics but what if, you wanted to look at the different types of question? Were your pupils better at the quick questions and struggle with the longer ones? Knowing this could really benefit your planning in the years to come. .

All DAISI QLA analyses every Question in detail as well as uniting them into topics

3. Does it break my results down into my individual cohorts, including vulnerable pupils? 

What about your disadvantaged/non-disadvantaged, SEN, EAL or mobile/non-mobile pupils? Why spend your time having to go through the data again and again when you could get the analysis to do that for you? Like with the ASP, it can take you a long time. A good QLA that does it for you.

All DAISI QLA analyses every cohort so you don’t have to break the results down

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DAISI Education QLA | What is in a DAISI QLA? | School Feedback | How QLA can Help

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4. Can you look at how different cohort types did on individual questions?

There is a lot of research that proves that different pupils learn in different ways. If you can help your different cohorts in a way that better reflects their ability in the tests, the marginal gains for your pupils could really help your overall results..

All DAISI QLA analyses every cohort and every question

5. Can you break down where the marks were lost?

This is really helpful for future curriculum planning. With proper analysis and insight, you can see how marks could be improved with specific interventions and help teachers to refine their lesson planning to deal with the different types of questions in the future..

All DAISI QLA analyses every Topic to allow to see where you can make a difference.

Click here to see how one school used DAISI QLA to make a real difference

6. Can you come back to your QLA Analysis in future years?

Looking back at educational trends can be very powerful. A whole school focus can be implemented, checked and refreshed allowing for real improvements. You cannot see QLA for previous years in ASP.

DAISI QLA can build on previous learning – re-order every year to create the full picture.

80% of schools who used DAISI Question Level Analysis over three years have seen an increase in their attainment.

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DAISI Education QLA | What is in a DAISI QLA? | School Feedback | How QLA can Help

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7. How is it presented? Charts? Written Statements?  

Data can be so difficult to understand and use properly. Some teachers choose to avoid it feeling it becomes judgemental and overbearing but if used and presented in the right way – it becomes a powerful tool for change. Ask yourself, how are the findings of the analysis presented to you? Is this something you could easily share with your teaching staff, colleagues or governors in a way that helps them help your pupils better or will you have to re-produce it again at a later date?

All DAISI QLA has single page views with clear graphs and charts, colour coding and benchmarking

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8. Is the Maths analysed out of 110 marks (as per the actual paper) or are the total marks in each topic much higher? 

Make sure all the analysis is correct and the percentages are calculated from the total number of marks. Some QLAs are general but this is not helpful if you want to use the figures for intervention at a later date. It is also misleading. 

DAISI QLA is accurate and individually checked by Analysts

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DAISI Education QLA | What is in a DAISI QLA? | School Feedback | How QLA can Help

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9.  Can you find comparisons within your LA/MAT thus allowing for best practice and collaborative working?

Too often, teachers feel their school is an island. “Our school data cannot be replicated anywhere else, our problems are our problems.” However, in most cases, this is not the case. By understanding how your pupils are achieving on different questions or in their different cohort groups, you have more chance for learning and collaborating with others. 

DAISI QLA is created for your school but gives you the national and (where available) the local picture

Order as a MAT or Federation and we’ll give you a FREE overview report

10. Can you use the same analysis with current Year 5 or 6 to help plan ahead? 

The answer is Yes! Many teachers use past KS2 SAT papers as a mock test as part of preparation for SATs. They are doing this so they can quickly find out how much of the Year 4 and Year 5 learning pupils can recall  and how they are progressing in Year 6 compared to the previous year’s national averages. By using the same Question Level Analysis for your mock tests and your end of year SATs, comparison through out the year becomes a lot easier and more consistent.

DAISI QLA is available for Mock SATs and then again for your SATs Results

Why not use the same format for all your detailed analysis? Or one of our Baseline Assessments?

DAISI Education

Thank you for reading this article.

At DAISI Education, we believe every school—regardless of size or budget—deserves access to powerful improvement tools.

Using raw DfE data, we’ve built tools that give schools immediate, meaningful insight — revealing patterns by topic, cohort, and more. Our reports do the heavy lifting: clear statements, powerful graphs, and intuitive charts that show exactly why results look the way they do — and where to act next.

For over 12 years, schools have trusted QLA Results (KS2 SATS) with QLA Transition (Secondary) and QLA Mock SATs added to support progress. And the impact is proven: 80% of schools who used our Question Level Analysis consistently saw increased attainment.

In 2019, we were proud to be recognised as a World Class Supplier by the World Class Schools Network for our outstanding work in supporting school improvement across the UK.

For more information – visit www.daisi.education | Find other Blog articles by clicking here