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Stockport School |
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Stockport School |
Recent media and political debate has highlighted the increased and often conflicting pressures on schools having to cope with difficult children.
Stockport School wishes to focus on key issues in the assessment and management of children so that a framework for whole school approach can be established that is developmental, informed and sensitive to their needs.
The Whole School Development Plan and the Action Plan following the Ofsted Inspection highlight particular areas of targets which will improve systems and structures used to identify and respond to the needs of pupils, and to help them to develop more positive attitudes to school.
STAFF DEVELOPMENT
Staff Development in this area in an ongoing process. The focus of the INSET session delivered by Geoff Hannah in March '97 on Positive Behavioural Management began the school's move towards establishing a whole school approach.
The introduction of the Home/School Partnership Statements over the last 18 months involving New Entrants at KS3 and also transition to KS4 and examination courses have positively affected the school's partnership with parents. The involvement of other agencies via the SEN Co-ordinator has meant more support for specifically identified individual pupils. Agencies involved have included:
Stockport School wishes to establish procedures for the oversight of pupils' academic progress and personal development. Early recognition of under performance will trigger support mechanisms and the home/school partnership.
Such a procedure will be used to:
a) foster pupils' self-worth;
b) monitor and evaluate appropriateness of curriculum
It is hoped that all pupils will come to understand that their efforts and attainment are of value.
OBJECTIVES
Implementation of consistent criteria to monitor pupil progress:
1. Establishment of agreed criteria for the monitoring of pupil progress by September 1997.
2. Clear marking strategies and target setting by all subject areas by September 1997.
3 . Performance report to parents of pupils in KS4 in:
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4. Reductions of exclusions due to disruptive behaviour in the classroom.
| No. Excluded | Temporary | Permanent |
| 1995-1996 | 43 | 9 |
| 1996-1997 | 45 | 5 |
| 1997-1998 - Target | 20 | 2 |
5. Introduction of Positive Behavioural Management strategies in the classroom.
6. Introduction of the Student Planner September 1997 to KS3. Positive use of the Planner to be the basis of Home/School communications and the recording of achievement.
7. Testing of ALL Year 7 pupils in September 1997 to establish base criteria.
8. Appointment of Head of Year 6. The appointed person:
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| Student Planners for all KS3 | 1500.00 |
| NFER CAT Testing for Year 7 | 1200.00 |
| “Effectiveness of Learning” Programme (recording of Pupil achievement and effort) | 1800.00 |
Staff Development:
| 600.00 800.00 1600.00 |
| Following appointment of Year 6 Head of Year and Primary Liaison - supply costs for liaison process | 1000.00 |
| Total | 8500.00 |
The Project Director only came to the school as Deputy Head in September 1997 and therefore had not been involved in the original bid. However, he had previous experience of involvement in GEST funded EBD projects in Wales.
The overall aims of the project were to help establish procedures for the oversight of a student's academic progress and personal development. Seven objectives were identified and eight targets set. The objectives relate largely to:
The evaluation was carried out in relation to each of the eight targets related to the above and to the management and reduction of disaffection and disruption.
Central to monitoring progress has been the introduction of planners. The Planners are used not only to monitor academic progress but also are the interface between home and school. They are managed and monitored by Heads of Year. The school has introduced a Tutor Review Day (off timetable) where Form Tutors agree a statement with pupils about their progress based on assessments in the planner. This relates to student self assessment and would seem to meet a stated aim of emphasising to students that their views are valued thereby fostering self worth. This system has been extended to the rest of the school (helped by outside sponsorship) and enables closer monitoring.
The introduction of the planners and their positive use, involving students in target-setting and recording achievements, also met Target 6 which was:
Positive use of the Planner to be the basis of Home / School communications and the recording of achievement.
A further means of monitoring student progress has been successfully implemented at KS4 through the use of an Electronic Monitoring System (EMS) which is described under 3 below.
All subject areas are using target-setting. This together with using consistent marking strategies can be used to monitor the appropriateness of the curriculum against student achievements and behaviours which is a longer term aim and outside the scope of this year's project.
The introduction of an electronic monitoring system (EMS) has facilitated not only monitoring progress by teachers but also reporting to parents. Agreed criteria are used by staff inputting information about attainments, attitudes and behaviours. A computer report is made three times a year, relating current statements to the previous three reports. This has proved valuable already and will be more so in that both parents and staff can identify trends (e.g. weaknesses in certain subjects). Over the year the information input has been concerned more with attitudes and behaviour (and used to identify students `at-risk'). In its next phase of development academic subject information will be added. EMS will be used for the whole school from September 1998.
The system has improved communications with parents in an `objective' manner and the fact that such reporting is available three times a year maintains regular contact. It would seem feasible that parents will feel more involved and supportive of the school which has `daily' contact through planners and regular summative progress reports.
It is too soon to expect dramatic improvements in exclusions on the scale identified in the original proposal. However, the closer monitoring of attainment and behaviour together is expected to bring about a reduction and this target will be used to evaluate progress in a year's time.
There has been staff development in counselling, improving curriculum development and on behaviour management but the `package' identified as Positive Behaviour Management was not adopted during the year.
The project enabled the introduction of baseline assessment using NFER CAT assessment. This was used together with pre-entry information about SEN, EBD and primary SAT's results to create a database. This has yet to be fully developed in order to achieve coherence, but work is continuing. It will be useful not only in terms of looking at `value-added' for attainment and behaviour but will be important for monitoring and evaluating the appropriateness of the curriculum and giving staff, parents and pupils even more information about progress. This should be seen as part of the school's drive for raising `Effectiveness of Learning'.
An appointment was made and the Head of Year has been particularly effective in identifying potentially disaffected/disruptive pupils in Year 6, prior to entry. The Head of Year 6, instead of `moving-up' a year, will stay on for a further year in order to extend the liaison work he has started. In particular he will work closely with Year 6 teachers on curriculum continuity and identifying student ability levels as part of the data collection for baseline assessment.
Other strategies are also planned for the coming year which demonstrate that work on disaffection and disruption is high among the school's priorities. One initiative will be to introduce Key Skills Development into Year 9 (including Study Skills). This is an extension of improving curriculum access as a means of preventing disaffection/ disruption.
Despite several staffing changes over the year, the school will continue to develop strategies to prevent and reduce disaffection and disruption and would have appreciated further funding to develop specific initiatives. Several aspects of the project are now firmly embedded within the school's systems (particularly in the Planners and EMS). The school will now re-examine and re-evaluate its original proposal in the light of current status, as more information about student abilities, attitudes, behaviour and attainments is available.
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