Day 14 of 20 · AI for Teachers
Your Assessment Machine
⏱ 5 min
📊 Beginner
You've just completed Week 2. Take a breath. Look at what you've built over the last seven days — not just individual skills, but a complete assessment and reporting system powered by AI. A system that does in hours what used to take weeks.
Let's zoom out and see the full picture.
What you built this week
Here's everything that's now in your toolkit:
Day 8 — Marking and Feedback at Scale. The AI-assisted marking workflow: feed in your rubric and student responses, get draft feedback, review and personalise. Formative and summative prompt templates. The golden rule — AI drafts, you decide.
Day 9 — Quiz and Test Generation. Generating quizzes, end-of-unit tests, and diagnostic assessments with Bloom's taxonomy alignment. Full mark schemes generated alongside questions. Parallel versions for differentiation.
Day 10 — Data and Tracking. Pasting assessment data into AI and getting gap analysis, intervention lists, pupil premium comparisons, and trend analysis. Turning numbers into action plans in minutes instead of hours.
Day 11 — Report Writing. The report-writing revolution: 30 seconds of student notes in, polished personalised report comment out. Batch processing for full class sets. Tone control for different contexts. From multi-week ordeal to single-sitting task.
Day 12 — IEPs and SEN Documentation. AI-drafted SMART targets, strategies, and EHCP contributions. Sensitive, structured, and always reviewed with your SENCO. Better documentation in less time.
Day 13 — Self-Assessment and Peer Feedback. Student-friendly rubrics, structured peer feedback frameworks, reflection prompts, and the long game of building learner independence.
That's not six random tools. That's a system. Each piece connects to the others. Your assessments feed your data analysis. Your data analysis informs your reports. Your reports reference your targets. Your self-assessment tools build the independence that reduces your future marking load.
Knowledge Check
Why is it important to see the Week 2 skills as a system rather than individual tools?
A
Using all six tools makes you look more productive
B
Individual tools don't work on their own
C
Schools require teachers to use AI for all six tasks
D
Each component feeds into the others — assessments generate data, data informs reports, reports reference targets — creating an integrated workflow
A system is more powerful than a collection of tools. When your assessments feed directly into data analysis, which informs your intervention planning, which shows up in your reports, which connect to IEP targets — the whole process becomes coherent and efficient. Each piece strengthens the others.
The time saved — let's do the maths
Let's be conservative about the time savings. Here's what a typical teacher might save per week and per reporting cycle by using AI for assessment and reporting tasks:
Marking and feedback: If you mark one class set per week with AI assistance instead of from scratch — saving 2-3 hours per set — that's 2-3 hours per week.
Quiz and test generation: Creating one assessment per week with AI instead of manually — saving 1-2 hours each — that's 1-2 hours per week.
Data analysis: Running quick analyses after each assessment instead of waiting for formal data drops — saving maybe 30-45 minutes each time. Call it 1 hour per week across all your classes.
Report writing: During report season, the savings are dramatic. If AI cuts a 25-hour process to 3 hours, that's 22 hours saved per cycle. Even spread across the year, that's significant.
IEPs and SEN documentation: For a teacher with 10 students on their SEN register, saving 20-30 minutes per IEP review adds up to 3-5 hours per review cycle.
Conservative weekly estimate: 4-6 hours saved per week on assessment and reporting alone.
That's not a small number. That's the difference between working until 9pm and finishing at 5. That's the difference between a Sunday spent marking and a Sunday spent with your family. That's the difference between burning out in year 5 and still loving this job in year 15.
The non-negotiable principles
Before we move on, let's anchor the principles that make all of this work responsibly:
AI drafts, you decide. Every piece of feedback, every report comment, every IEP target gets your professional review before it reaches a student, parent, or official file. No exceptions.
Protect student data. Use first names only or pseudonyms when entering student information into AI tools. Never include full names, dates of birth, addresses, or other identifying information. Follow your school's data protection policy.
Your professional judgement is irreplaceable. AI doesn't know your students. It doesn't know that Kai has been struggling at home, that Priya needs to be pushed harder, or that Marcus responds best to humour. You do. That knowledge is what transforms AI-generated drafts into genuinely meaningful documents.
Start small, build confidence. You don't have to use AI for every assessment task tomorrow. Pick one area — maybe marking, maybe reports — get comfortable with it, refine your prompts, and expand from there.
Knowledge Check
What is the estimated weekly time saving from using AI for assessment and reporting tasks?
B
About 30 minutes per week
C
Approximately 4-6 hours per week on a conservative estimate
D
It doesn't save any time because you still have to review everything
The time savings come from AI handling the initial drafting — of feedback, assessments, data analysis, reports, and documentation — while you handle the reviewing, refining, and personalising. The review step takes far less time than creating from scratch. Conservatively, that's 4-6 hours per week across all assessment and reporting tasks.
I teach Year 10 Geography. Next week I have to:
1. Mark a class set of 28 coastal management essays
2. Create an end-of-topic test on Tropical Storms with a mark scheme
3. Write progress reports for 6 students on my SEN register
Map out exactly how I would use AI to handle each task this week. Include the prompts I'd use, the time each task would take, and the total time saved compared to doing it manually. Be realistic.
**Your AI-Powered Assessment Week — Year 10 Geography**
---
**Task 1: Mark 28 Coastal Management Essays**
Manual time estimate: 4-5 hours (10-12 min per essay)
AI-assisted time estimate: 1-1.5 hours
Step 1 — Prep your rubric prompt (5 min, one-time):
"Here is my marking rubric for GCSE Geography extended writing: [paste rubric]. For each student essay I give you, provide: a suggested level and mark, two specific strengths referencing their writing, one area for development with a concrete example, and a target for improvement. Tone: encouraging but honest. Address the student as 'you.' Keep feedback under 120 words."
Step 2 — Batch process in groups of 5-7 (40-50 min):
Paste 5-7 essays at a time. Review each piece of feedback as it comes through — adjust anything that doesn't sound right, add personal touches, check the level is fair.
Step 3 — Quality check (10-15 min):
Scan all 28 comments together. Check consistency — are you awarding the same level for similar quality? Adjust any outliers.
Total: ~1.5 hours. **Time saved: ~3 hours.**
---
**Task 2: End-of-Topic Test — Tropical Storms**
Manual time estimate: 2-2.5 hours (questions + mark scheme)
AI-assisted time estimate: 20-30 minutes
Prompt:
"Create an end-of-topic test for GCSE Geography, Tropical Storms. AQA specification. Mixed ability Year 10. Include: 5 multiple choice questions (1 mark each), 4 short answer questions (2-3 marks each), 1 case study question on Typhoon Haiyan (6 marks), and 1 extended response on reducing the effects of tropical storms (9 marks). Total: 30 marks. Time: 40 minutes. Generate a full mark scheme alongside each question, including indicative content for the extended response at Level 1, 2, and 3."
Review: Read through all questions. Check factual accuracy. Adjust difficulty if needed. Ensure the case study question matches what you actually taught. Print.
Total: ~25 minutes. **Time saved: ~2 hours.**
---
**Task 3: Progress Reports for 6 SEN Students**
Manual time estimate: 2-3 hours (20-30 min per student)
AI-assisted time estimate: 40-50 minutes
Step 1 — Prepare notes (15-20 min):
For each student, jot down: current working level, key strength, area of need, one specific positive moment this term, and target. Use first names only. 2-3 minutes per student.
Step 2 — Generate reports:
"Write progress report comments for the following 6 students. These are SEN progress reports. Tone: positive but honest, focused on individual progress rather than comparison to peers. Include specific strengths, acknowledge challenges sensitively, and give a clear next target. 100-150 words each.
[Paste your notes for all 6 students]"
Step 3 — Review with SENCO lens (15-20 min):
Read each comment carefully. Does it accurately reflect the student? Is the language sensitive and appropriate? Would you be comfortable sharing this with parents? Adjust as needed.
Total: ~45 minutes. **Time saved: ~1.5-2 hours.**
---
**Weekly Total:**
| Task | Manual | With AI | Saved |
|------|--------|---------|-------|
| Essay marking (28) | 4.5 hrs | 1.5 hrs | 3 hrs |
| Test + mark scheme | 2.5 hrs | 0.5 hrs | 2 hrs |
| SEN progress reports (6) | 2.5 hrs | 0.75 hrs | 1.75 hrs |
| **Total** | **9.5 hrs** | **2.75 hrs** | **6.75 hrs** |
That's almost 7 hours back in one week. One week.
↻ Replay conversation
Almost seven hours back
Read that table again. 9.5 hours of assessment work compressed into under 3 hours. And the quality isn't lower — in many cases it's higher, because you're reviewing AI-generated drafts with fresh eyes rather than writing your 28th essay comment while exhausted at 10pm.
This is what a system does. It doesn't just save time on one task — it transforms the entire workflow of assessment and reporting.
Your complete AI-powered assessment system — six tools working together to give you back your time.
Knowledge Check
What's the single biggest mindset shift required to use AI effectively for assessment?
A
Moving from "I must create everything from scratch" to "I review and refine AI-generated drafts using my professional expertise"
B
Accepting that AI is always right
C
Spending more time on technology training
The shift isn't technical — it's psychological. Many teachers feel guilty about not writing every comment, every question, every report from scratch. But your value isn't in the typing. Your value is in the professional judgement — knowing what's right for each student. AI handles the production. You handle the decisions.
Your Week 2 challenge
Here's your challenge before tomorrow: use AI to mark your next set of books.
Pick one class. One assignment. Paste in your rubric, feed in student responses, and generate draft feedback. Review every comment. Personalise where needed. Time yourself.
Then compare: how long did it take with AI versus how long it would have taken manually? Write down the number. Keep it somewhere visible. Because next time the marking pile feels overwhelming, that number is your reminder that there's a better way.
What's coming in Week 3
Next week shifts from assessment to communication, resources, and classroom practice. You'll learn to use AI for:
- Parent communication — emails, letters, and difficult conversations
- Resource creation — worksheets, presentations, and differentiated materials
- Teaching students about AI — because they're already using it, and they need guidance
- Professional development and career tools
You've built the assessment system. Now it's time to strengthen everything around it.
Final Check
What is the best first step to take after completing this week's lessons?
A
Wait until you've completed the entire course before trying anything
B
Pick one class, one assignment, and use AI to mark it — timing yourself to measure the real time savings
C
Email your headteacher about AI
D
Immediately switch to using AI for every assessment task across all classes
Start with one manageable task. Experience the time saving firsthand. Build confidence with the workflow. Then expand. Trying to change everything at once leads to overwhelm and abandoned tools. One class, one set of books, one evening — that's all it takes to see the difference.
📚
Day 14 Complete — Week 2 Done
"You don't have scattered tools anymore — you have a system. Marking, quizzes, data, reports, IEPs, self-assessment. One integrated workflow. Now use it — and take your evenings back."
Tomorrow — Day 15
Parent Communication Made Easy
Next week covers communication, resources, and using AI responsibly in the classroom — including teaching your students about AI.