/ Providing Inspection Services for
Department of Education
Department for Employment and Learning
Department of Culture, Arts and Leisure
Education and Training Inspectorate
Report of a Focused Inspection
St Colman’s Primary School
Dromore
Inspected: November 2005
CONTENTS
SectionPage
STATISTICAL INFORMATION
1.INTRODUCTION1
2.THE QUALITY OF THE CHILDREN’S WORK1
3.CONCLUSION5
APPENDIX7
BASIC INFORMATION SHEET (BIS) - PRIMARY SCHOOLS
A. i. School: St Colman’s Primary, iii. Date of Inspection: W/B 28.11.05
Dromore
ii.School Reference Number: 503-6000 iv. Nature of Inspection: Focused -
Mathematics and ICT
B.
School Year / 2001/02 / 2002/03 / 2003/04 / 2004/05 / 2005/06Year 1 Intake / 15 / 18 / 12 / 15 / 8
Enrolments
Primary / 84 / 90 / 88 / 90 / 82
Reception / 6 / 2 / 1 / 0 / 0
Nursery Class/Classes / 0 / 0 / 0 / 0 / 0
Special Unit / 0 / 0 / 0 / 0 / 0
The enrolment for the current year is the figure on the day of notification of inspection.
For previous years it is the figure in the annual return to the Department of Education.
The calculations at C and D should be based on the total of the primary and reception enrolments only.
C.Average Attendance for the Previous School Year
(expressed as a percentage):95.43%
Primary &NurserySpecial Reception Unit Unit
D. i.Number of Teachers
(including the principal and part-time teachers):4.200
(Full-time equivalent = 25 teaching hours)
ii.PTR (Pupil/Teacher Ratio):19.52 NI PTR: 20.0
iii.Average Class Size:20
iv.Class Size (Range):15 to 28
v.Ancillary Support:
Number of Hours Per Week: i.Clerical support:25
ii. Official Making A Good
Start Support: 15
iii. Additional hours of other
classroom assistant support:45
vi.Number of pupils with statements of special educational needs:3
vii.Number of children who are not of statutory school age:0
viii. Percentage of children entitled to free school meals:0%
1.INTRODUCTION
1.1St Colman’s Primary School is situated approximately half a kilometre north of the centre of the town of Dromore, County Down. Almost all of the children come from the town and the surrounding area. The school enrolment has decreased over the past three years and is currently 82; none of the children are entitled to free school meals.
1.2Prior to the inspection, all families received a confidential questionnaire seeking their views about the life and work of the school. Just over 47% of the questionnaires were completed and returned to the Department of Education (DE) with almost 81% of the respondents taking the opportunity to write additional comments. The responses in the questionnaire indicated that the majority of parents were satisfied with most aspects of the school’s provision. In particular, they highlighted that they were appreciative of the friendly and supportive atmosphere in the school, the progress made by the children and the commitment of the staff. The concerns raised by the parents were discussed with the Principal who expressed his commitment to addressing and resolving all of the issues.
1.3At the time of the inspection a new Board of Governors (BoG) was in the process of being selected. The BoG were unable to attend the planned meeting with the inspection team at end of the first day of the inspection, however, the inspection team held separate meetings with individual BoGs during the period of the inspection. The BoGs highlighted the caring and supportive ethos in the school and the commitment of the staff to the welfare of the children. The BoGs, however, sought clarification on aspects of school organisation, management and information on the attainment of children.
1.4The inspection team also met with all of the year 6 children to hear their views about the school. The children reported that they felt happy and safe in school and knew whom to turn to for help and advice. In addition, they indicated that they appreciated the care and support of their teachers, enjoyed their schoolwork and valued the friendships which they have made.
1.5The inspection focused on the work in mathematics, information and communication technology (ICT) and pastoral care, including arrangements for Child Protection.
2.THE QUALITY OF THE CHILDREN’S WORK
2.1The physical environment of the school is good and conducive to learning. In the classrooms and circulation areas, there are informative posters and examples of the children’s current and previous work. These are used successfully to celebrate their achievements and to promote their confidence and self-esteem. For example, displays of certificates and photographs, record important and successful events in the life of the school. The standard of maintenance and caretaking throughout the school is very good.
2.2The Principal and staff have established a pleasant, supportive atmosphere for learning and teaching; there is a strong sense of family and community within the school. The children are eager to learn, friendly, courteous to visitors and their behaviour is exemplary. Relationships between the teachers and the children are very good; the children enjoy school, they display considerable respect for their teachers and for one another. The classroom assistants provide helpful support for the teachers in their day-to-day work. The school operates a merit system to reward positive behaviour; there is a good balance between rewards and sanctions and this is contributing well to the positive ethos which is evident throughout the school. In class, the teachers make good use of praise to motivate and encourage the children; assemblies are organised on a regular basis to celebrate the children’s achievements. Circle time is used well in both key stages and the teachers manage the sessions effectively. The children benefit from the regular opportunities to discuss sensitive issues and to develop attitudes of tolerance and responsibility.
2.3The school has identified the need to review and update its child protection policies. Effective procedures are not yet in place whichenable the staff to implement fullythe guidelines outlined in the DE Circular 1999/10, ‘Pastoral Care in Schools: Child Protection’ and in the DE Circular 2003/13, ‘Welfare and Protection of Pupils Education and Libraries (Northern Ireland) Order’ and this situation needs to be addressed urgently to include, training and awareness raising for all staff and BoGs,the further development of both complaint and referral procedures and, the adoption of more effective record-keeping system.
2.4There is a wide range of extra-curricular, sporting activities for the children which includes coaching in archery, gymnastics, Gaelic football, netball and yoga. The children also benefit from cycling proficiency lessons, singing in the school choir and participating in a range of educational visits, competitions and cross community events. The school places a strong emphasis on environmental awareness and through the activities organised by the Eco-committee, of children and teachers; the school has achieved a Bronze Award in the “Eco-Schools” programme.
2.5As part of the overall programme for health education, the staff have introduced successfully the “Boost Better Breaks”; the children in both key stages are encouraged to eat fresh fruit on a daily basis. In addition, to promote the “Water is Cool” initiative, the children are encouraged to bring in bottled water to drink in school at regular intervals during the day.
2.6The school demonstrates a strong commitment to maintaining and developing links with the parents, and further work on advising parents about curricular matters is planned for. Throughout the year, the parents are informed regularly about the life of the school through the school newsletter. The Parent Teacher Association (PTA) meets regularly and through a number of well-organised social, educational and fund-raising events, makes a significant contribution in terms of time, energy and finance to the life of the school.
2.7Three of the four teachers have responsibility for a composite class which includes two year groups. This places considerable demands on these teachers in terms of planning, teaching, monitoring and evaluating the work of each year group. All of the teachers prepare well for their lessons and maintain useful weekly and half-termly planners. The planning, however, needs to focus more on identifying learning outcomes and achievement and ensure that the classroom practice is differentiated even more effectively to promote improvement in all of the children’s learning. For example, some of the more able children would benefit from greater challenge in some aspects of their work.
2.8All of the teachers are committed to the welfare and education of the children. During the inspection, the quality of the teaching was always satisfactory and on occasions, it was good. In the best practice, the tasks were well-suited to the range of abilities within the class and the teachers organised and planned purposeful learning activities which built on the children’s prior learning. Features of many of the lessons observed included the clear explanation provided by the teachers, the pace of the work, the skilful questioning to assess the children’s progress, and the consolidation of the learning during and at the end of the lessons. This effective practice should be disseminated and developed more consistently across the school; an agreed policy for learning and teaching has the potential to achieve this.
2.9The children are responsive to their teachers and settle quickly to their work. In the group activities they engage readily in discussion, ask and answer questions, show confidence and follow instructions accurately and promptly.
2.10The school is in its second year of the Northern Ireland Numeracy Strategy (NINS). There is evidence of this having a positive impact in aspects of the mathematics provision, for example, in promoting mental work and processes across the school; the teachers are aware that further development work is required.
2.11In all classes, the teachers plan topics across the key areas of mathematics including number, shape and space, measures and handling data. In general, these topics are chosen sufficiently frequently to ensure progression. Individual lessons are well-prepared; the teachers make regular use of well-chosen materials and school-produced resources to support the children’s learning. In the best practice, the teachers place a strong focus on demonstrating, discussing, questioning and using practical activities to advance the children’s mathematical thinking.
2.12The majority of the children display a very good interest, competence and confidence in mathematics. A number of children also display flexibility in their thinking and carry out tasks accurately and neatly. The vast majority of the children enjoy their work in mathematics and are often motivated when there are well-planned and purposeful classroom experiences which address their particular needs and abilities. They work enthusiastically on the tasks set and, when required, benefit from effective individual support provided by their teachers and classroom assistants. In both key stages, there are, however, a small number of children whose basic numerical competence is insecure. Although these children are given good support within class, the forms of support being offered should be evaluated and kept under review. By the end of key stage (KS) 2, the vast majority of the children have a firm foundation in mathematics and for many, their attainment is good.
2.13The school is reviewing its policy and scheme of work for learning and teaching in mathematics and has identified appropriately some important areas for further development, including promoting, mental processes and investigative mathematics. The development and application of numeracy in other subjects, the local environment and real life or everyday situations need to be promoted more regularly and used as realistic contexts for extending mathematical learning. In addition, the school’s recent involvement in the NINS should also assist in promoting whole-school development and debate on the learning and teaching of mathematics. This should also support and enhance the important work and role of the mathematics co-ordinator.
2.14There are procedures in place to assess the children’s progress and to communicate the outcomes to the parents. Each year the parents receive a detailed written report and there are suitable arrangements established for parent-teacher consultations. The school provides the parents with the results of statutory assessment at the end of KS1 and KS2 which indicate the children’s attainment level and progress.
2.15The children’s work is marked regularly and supportively. In the best practice, the teachers mark and annotate the children’s work, indicating appropriately what has been achieved and how, if necessary, the work could be improved. This good practice should be promoted consistently throughout the school and the children should be made aware, more regularly, of their strengths and areas for improvement.
2.16The recently-appointed special educational needs co-ordinator (SENCO) is effective in overseeing the process of the early identification of children who may require additional support with aspects of their learning. She works effectively with the class teachers, to use the results of standardised tests and classroom observations to prepare helpful individual education plans (IEPs). The teachers review plans regularly and report the children’s progress to their parents. The school has recently re-organised the special educational needs (SEN) programme. In previous years, the school had sufficient funding to employ a learning support teacher to cater for the individual needs of those children who require additional help with their learning. The current provision for the children is mainly within normal class teaching; specific peripatetic support for one child, and classroom assistance to support several children. The SENCO has identified appropriately the need to revise the layout and organisation of the children’s progress records to enable the teachers to monitor and evaluate, even more effectively, the children’s needs, progress and attainment. There is a need, however, to review the current time-tabling arrangement for SEN provision to ensure further support for those children who require additional help with their learning.
2.17During the inspection, the children engaged in a range of worthwhile play activities, which encouraged them to work together, share, collaborate, observe, explore and to be imaginative. The children are very well-settled, engage purposefully with the activity and work co-operatively with one another. Some of the play activities, however, are limited in scope and under-resourced. In addition, the current programme does not provide for adequate progression in the development of the children’s skills and interests. The school needs to review its provision for structured play and it would benefit from the support of the Southern Education and Library Board (SELB) Curriculum Advisory and Support Service (CASS). The review needs to identity, clearly, the learning outcomes matched to the maturity of the children, continuity and progression in the children’s play experiences, and the improvements in the play environment. Further, the programme for structured play should be based more effectively around curricular themes, which promote language and develop the children’s understanding of scientific and mathematical concepts.
2.18The teachers have successfully completed their New Opportunities Funding (NOF) ICT training. The new computers, which the school received as part of Classroom 2000 (C2K), have been distributed throughout the classrooms. Over the past three years, the school has entered the children in year 7 for the information technology (IT) accreditation at KS2 organised by the Council for the Curriculum, Examinations and Assessment (CCEA). The children have been successful in all four of the ICT strands; this good work should be disseminated further within the school. The children report that they use computers at home to extend and develop their schoolwork.
2.19The school has identified ICT as priority in the School Development Plan (SDP); it is in the early stages of developing its provision in the use of ICT to support learning and teaching across the curriculum in both key stages. At present, there is no whole-school guidance on the use of ICT to support learning and teaching, nor is there a progressive scheme to monitor and evaluate the children’s attainment. It is timely that the ICT co-ordinator, under the effective guidance of the ICT support services of the SELB, has recently drawn up an action plan to develop, monitor and evaluate the children’s work and attainment across the four ICT strands. It will be important that in this planning there is an appropriate balance between the ICT skills taught and their creative application across the curriculum, particularly to extend and challenge the more able children.
2.20In the best practice observed, in both key stages, the teachers ensured that the children using the computers have sufficient support and guidance if required. They explained the expected learning outcomes at the beginning of the lesson and selected suitable ICT activities which were matched to the children’s abilities. In addition, the teachers made good use of the digital projector to enhance whole-class teaching, and the digital camera to record and reinforce important aspects of the children’s learning activities.