Summary Report: 2nd School Self-Evaluation Monitoring Visit 27th March 2012
Focus of Visit: SPRA (Single Plan for Raising Attainment) Priority 1
 SPRA Priority 1 Target: To make teaching and learning more consistent,
both between and within classes
 Target 1 Objectives:
2. To increase access to learning through the use of multiple IDP strategies in every lesson
3. To develop pupils’ enjoyment, ownership and confidence in learning through increased opportunities to apply
learning skills in ‘open-ended’ and ‘real-life’ situations
5. To develop pupils’ awareness of personal targets and ‘next steps’ in learning
 Purpose of Visit: To enable governors to observe first-hand the extent to which the
school’s new Policy for Teaching, Learning and Assessment Policy consistently reflects and
drives teaching and learning in classroom practice throughout the school.
 Context: A new Teaching, Learning and Assessment Policy was developed as part of the
school’s Raising Attainment Plan for 2010-11, following two significant blocks of CPD and
co-coaching:
o the first focussing on the DCSF Inclusion Development Programmes for schools
(featuring strategies for increasing inclusion access to Wave 1 Quality First
Teaching for pupils with Speech, Language & Communication needs, Autistic
Spectrum needs and Social /Emotional / Behavioural needs);
o the second focussing on what makes the difference between satisfactory and good
/ good and outstanding teaching (with particular attention to the current Ofsted
Criteria for judging the Quality of Teaching and Learning).
The Teaching, Learning and Assessment Policy makes clear the school’s commitment to
promoting an inclusive culture of learning in which each individual pupil is central to the
processes of teaching, learning and assessment for learning in their lessons.
This academic year, all members of teaching staff share a Performance Management
Target which is related to the school’s Teaching and Learning Policy as a means of
achieving the objective set out in Priority One of the scchool’s Single Plan for Raising
Attainment: To make teaching and learning more consistent, both between and within
classes:
To ensure that VAK, IDP, Response Partners, 6Rs, TASC and other principles of best
practice outlined in the school’s T&L Policy are embedded within Wave 1 teaching.
Appendix A of theT & L policy sets out a ‘checklist’ of effective pedagogies agreed
through consultation with staff which put the learner ‘in the driving seat’ and enable
pupils to see themselves as active participants in the learning process and learners
encourage pupils to take responsibility for their own learning, aim for higher
achievements and develop a healthy work ethic. Staff and members of the Governing
Body agreed the use of this checklist to focus classroom observations on a during selfevaluation monitoring visits for 2011-12.
On November 8th 2011, 6 members of the Performance & Standards Committee spent 10
minutes in each of the school’s 6 classrooms, undertaking a ‘Learning Walk’, using the
checklist of pedagogies as an evidence-gathering tool. This was followed by a ‘What’s
Working Well’ group discussion. A summary report was generated and shared with
teaching staff, who were invited to review and reflect on this summary document and to
choose two strategies from the checklist they feel they would like to develop in their own
practice in the Spring Term (e.g. one new; one to develop / embed).
They were asked to work in partnership with a colleague to undertake co-coaching
observations in the form of ‘drop-ins’ to support this aspect of their CPD and the Head
teacher will undertake ‘drop-in’ observation visits to monitor the impact of this on
classroom practice during the Spring and SummerTerms as part of the Performance
Management cycle.
 Format of Second Visit:Members of the Governing Body involved in the 1st School
Self-Evaluation Monitoring Visit on 8th November 2011 felt that whilst 10 minutes in each
classroom was enough to give them a general insight or ‘flavour’ of teaching and learning in
the school, it was not long enough to enable them to gain a clear / deep enough
understanding of the strategies used and their intended impact.
As a result, it was decided that on their second visit, members of the Governing Body
would spend half an hour observing in two classrooms each with a fellow governor, before
joining together for group discussion.
On 27th March, 9 members of Governing Body observed in two classrooms each, using the
checklist of pedagogies set out in Appendix A of theT & L policy as an evidence-gathering
tool. This was followed by a ‘What’s Working Well’ group discussion. Governors were
joined on this occasion by the Head teacher from Houghton Primary School, who observed
with the Head and joined governors for discussion. On this occasion, Alison West (the
school’s Associate Advisor), was scheduled to participate, but was unable to attend on the
day.
Members of the Governing Body wish to make it very clear to staff that their
observations are in no way intended as a judgement of the teaching and learning they
witnessed. Their objective was purely to see what the new Teaching, Learning and
Assessment Policy looks like in practice ‘on the ground’. However, through discussion it
became clear that several conclusions about what’s working well could be drawn from the
evidence collected.
 What’s Working Well
Evident in all / most classrooms:
 Interactive learning
 Visual / practical resources were in use / available for use
 The visual timetable was available for all children to see & use
 Enthusiastic teaching
 Inclusion at all levels
 Cross-curricular displays
 Basic skills displays embedded
 Reference to 6Rs through display (in some classess 6 R’s are embedded
within the culture of the class)
 Established vocabulary for learning (on display and in use)
 VAK teaching
 Significant time dedicated to Pupil Talk
 Teachers modelling to support learning
 Modelling and reinforcement of ‘technical’ language and vocabulary for
learning
 Collaborative learning
 Constructive, task specific praise and feedback in use
 Excellent behaviour creates an atmosphere in which learning can take
place
Also evident in some classrooms:
 Opporunities planned for pupils to reflect on and evaluate their own
learning through mini-plenaries – e.g. against Success Criteria
 Targetted ‘Close the Gap’ groupwork
 In some classes, teachers’ understanding of ‘Talk for Learning’ and
collaboration was deep and therefore highly effective in the quality of
puil talk it produced
 Personalised level of challenge within task and feedback
 Children applying challenge which had been modelled by teacher in their
own partner work
 Clear Review, Revisit, Practice and Apply structure clearly in use – as
shared with children too
 Pupils invited to reflect on prior learning
 Constructive feedback which challenged children’s thinking
 Relationships between class teacher and pupils very strong and
underpinned by class teacher’s excellent knowledge of all pupils
Celebrations
 Behaviour for Learning
 Culture & language of Learning – ‘drips from every part of the school’
 Pupil Talk & Collaborative Work – consistent quantity
 Enthusiastic teaching and learning
 Display to support learning
Areas for development
 Pupil Talk & Collaborative work – consistent depth and quality &
confidence of all pupils to feed back clearly, proudly and audibly
 Targetted Close the Gap and challenge work
 Inclusive display to support learning
Format of next Self-Evaluation Monitoring visit (Autumn term 2012):
To be decided: e.g. full lesson or half observations in pairs to acquaint
governors with Big Writing or Big Maths (and how these systems support /
promote Teaching and Learning aims set out in the school’s T & L Policy.