Understand the difference
Here's how the Department for Education (DfE) and Ofsted use these terms.
Attainment | Progress | |
The academic standard that pupils reach in, for example, assessments and exams. It's usually recorded as grades, scores or levels, and it indicates a pupil’s result at the end of a Key Stage (KS). | Pupils’ achievements over a period of time, for example from KS2 to KS4. It’s the difference between pupils’ previous attainment and current attainment. When measuring a pupil’s progress, the DfE also takes into account the progress of pupils with similar starting points. |
Read more about these terms in the DfE's guidance on understanding