/ 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
Carnalbanagh Primary School
Glenarm
Inspected: October 2004
CONTENTS
Section Page
STATISTICAL INFORMATION
1. INTRODUCTION 1
2. THE QUALITY OF THE CHILDREN’S WORK 1
3. CONCLUSION 3
APPENDIX 1 4
APPENDIX 2 5
BASIC INFORMATION SHEET (BIS) - PRIMARY SCHOOLS
A. i. School: Carnalbanagh Primary iii. Date of Inspection: W/B 18.10.04
ii. School Reference Number: 301-0470 iv. Nature of Inspection: Focused
Mathematics
& ICT
B.
School Year / 2000/01 / 2001/02 / 2002/03 / 2003/04 / 2004/05Year 1 Intake / 8 / 5 / 3 / 9 / 8
Enrolments
Primary / 41 / 44 / 41 / 46 / 48
Reception / 1 / 0 / 0 / 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): 97.2%
Primary & Nursery Special Reception Unit Unit
D. i. Number of Teachers
(including the principal and part-time teachers): 2.84
(Full-time equivalent = 25 teaching hours)
ii. PTR (Pupil/Teacher Ratio): 16.9 NI PTR: 20.0
iii. Average Class Size: 16
iv. Class Size (Range): 13 to 20
v. Ancillary Support:
Number of Hours Per Week: i. Clerical support: 6
ii. Official Making A Good 10
Start Support:
iii. Making A Good Start funding -
additional hours and other
classroom assistant support:
vi. Number of pupils with statements of special educational needs: 2
vii. Number of children who are not of statutory school age: -
viii. Percentage of children entitled to free school meals: 6.25%
1. INTRODUCTION
1.1 Carnalbanagh Primary School is situated in the Glens of Antrim, in a rural location between Larne and Ballymena. The majority of the children live in the surrounding area. The enrolment has increased steadily over the last five years. Approximately 6% of the children are entitled to free school meals. About 17% of the children have been identified as requiring additional support with their learning.
1.2 The arrangements for the inspection of pastoral care and child protection included meetings with the Board of Governors (BoG) and with the children in year 6. The parents were given the opportunity to respond to a questionnaire on the school’s provision; 75% of the parents responded, with 18% of these respondents taking the opportunity to write additional comments. The responses indicated that the parents and the BoG are wholly supportive of all aspects of the work of the school; in particular, the distinctive ethos of the school was greatly valued. The findings from the inspection support these views. The children in year 6 reported that they feel safe in the school and they spoke enthusiastically about their learning experiences.
1.3 The inspection focused on the work in mathematics and information and communication technology (ICT) across the curriculum. It also evaluated the school’s procedures for pastoral care, including child protection.
2. THE QUALITY OF THE CHILDREN’S WORK
2.1 There is a strong caring ethos in the school. The teachers know the children and their families well. The relationships throughout the school are excellent. The children are courteous and friendly; they often support one another during lessons. The staff have created an environment conducive to learning in the main school building. The teachers build the children’s self-esteem through their sensitive and inclusive approach during lessons. The Comenius project, which links the school to other small rural schools across Europe, provides excellent opportunities for the children to extend their knowledge and understanding of other cultures and ways of life.
2.2 The school has a useful policy for pastoral care and there is clear evidence that the policy is implemented in practice. In almost all aspects of provision, the school is implementing the guidance outlined in the Department of Education (DE) Circular 1999/10, “Pastoral Care in Schools: Child Protection”. There is a need for the governors to receive relevant training in regard to their responsibilities for child protection.
2.3 The teachers have prepared comprehensive schemes of work, half-termly plans and daily notes to guide learning and teaching. Appropriately, the school is reviewing the schemes of work for mathematics in the light of their involvement in the Northern Ireland Numeracy Strategy (NINS). The work in mathematics is guided by a useful action plan, which specifies appropriate success criteria and timescales for progress.
2.4 The quality of teaching is often good and at times excellent. The teachers have high expectations for the children’s achievements and they employ a wide range of teaching approaches including practical, group and investigative work. The activities are generally well matched to the age and ability of the children within each of the composite classes. In a few instances, the pace of work is too slow. The children are well-motivated and enthusiastic learners; they respond willingly and show initiative in researching information.
2.5 The school is currently developing a programme for structured play. The children’s work is often set in real-life and relevant contexts that stimulate their interest and enthusiasm. The helpful planning for play needs to include clear learning outcomes for each session and needs to specify ways of assessing how these outcomes are achieved in practice.
2.6 In general, the children make good progress in their mathematics through a programme, which reflects an appropriate balance of written and practical activities. They have frequent opportunities to engage in mental mathematics; in the best practice seen, these activities are used to develop the children’s mathematical reasoning and suitable time is given to sharing considered and extended explanations of their thinking. This emphasis on oral work needs to be disseminated more consistently in classroom practice in order to develop further the children’s skills in talking about mathematics and listening to one another. A wide variety of resources is used to promote the children’s learning. The children have excellent opportunities to apply their mathematical learning in real and relevant situations, which stimulate their interest and consolidate their understanding of important concepts. The children demonstrate flexibility with number and are confident in their understanding of measures and most aspects of shape and space. There is some lack of progression in their work in data handling. By year 7, the children achieve good standards in mathematics and can apply a wide range of mathematical concepts to both familiar and unfamiliar situations. There is clear evidence that the school’s participation in NINS has benefited the children’s learning.
2.7 The school has made good progress in the development of ICT as a resource for teaching and learning. Recently acquired software and hardware are used effectively to enhance the children’s learning experiences in all classes. The children use word-processing packages skilfully to support their writing and they use the Internet to find information. During the inspection, the older children produced an informative booklet on ways of preventing bullying in school; the high quality of the presentation provided clear evidence of their ICT competence. The children require more opportunities to use software packages to develop their skills in data handling and control.
2.8 The provision for those children identified as requiring special help with their learning is excellent. There is appropriate early diagnosis of the learning needs of individual children and suitable education plans are prepared to address their needs. The children learn with their peers through activities, which are suitably and sensitively matched to their respective abilities. When appropriate, the children receive effective one-to-one support from the teachers or the classroom assistants. There is clear evidence that the children enjoy their experiences and are making good progress. The regular contact between the school and the parents is a major factor in the success of the provision.
2.9 The Principal provides strong and effective leadership. She has a clear vision for the development of the school and is committed to improving the children’s learning. She is highly supportive of her colleagues for whom she provides an excellent role model. The teachers are deployed in ways that make best use of their expertise and they work together as an effective team. The classroom assistants provide excellent support for the children.
The School Development Plan (SDP) outlines a number of important areas for improvement; the plan needs to simplified and phased within a manageable timescale.
2.10 There are serious deficiencies in the accommodation, which have a detrimental affect on the children’s learning. These deficiencies are set out in the appendices to the report.
3. CONCLUSION
3.1 The strengths of the school include the:
· caring family ethos and the pastoral care of the children;
· high quality of much of the teaching;
· industrious and conscientious staff (including ancillary staff and the classrooms assistants);
· mutual support and co-operation shown by the children;
· broad range of the children’s learning experiences and the high standards achieved in mathematics;
· provision for children requiring special help with learning;
· leadership of the Principal;
· strong support of the local community;
· effective links with schools in other parts of Europe.
3.2 The areas for improvement include the:
· need to provide accommodation which is suitable for all aspects of the children’s learning;
· need to disseminate more widely the existing good opportunities for the children to learn mathematics through talking and listening.
3.3 The school has strengths in many aspects of its educational and pastoral provision. The inspection has identified a few areas for improvement, which are included in the SDP; these need to be addressed if the school is to meet as fully as possible the needs of all the children.
APPENDIX 1
DEFICIENCIES IN THE ACCOMMODATION
· There are insufficient teaching spaces for the children and as a result, a group of children are taught in the kitchen of the nearby church.
· Storage is inadequate.
· There is no staff room.
· Administrative accommodation is inadequate.
· There is no space for small group work.
APPENDIX 2
Health and safety
· A group of children are taught in the kitchen of the nearby church; the cooker is in close proximity to the children’s workspace.
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Copies of this report may be obtained from the Inspection Services Branch, Department of Education, Rathgael House, 43 Balloo Road, Bangor, Co Down BT19 7PR. A copy is also available on the DE website: www.deni.gov.uk