Earlswood Junior School

BRAMBLETYE JUNIOR SCHOOL

Reporting inspector: Mrs Barbara E Parker

p.1

BRAMBLETYE JUNIOR SCHOOL

Dates of inspection: 13 th – 16 th March 2000

p.1

BRAMBLETYE JUNIOR SCHOOL

Inspection carried out under section 10 of the School Inspections Act 1996 This report may be reproduced in whole or in part for non-commercial educational purposes, provided that all extracts quoted are reproduced verbatim without adaptation and on condition that the source and date thereof are stated.

p.1

BRAMBLETYE JUNIOR SCHOOL

Further copies of this report are obtainable from the school. Under the School Inspections Act 1996, the school must provide a copy of this report and/or its summary free of charge to certain categories of people. A charge not exceeding the full cost of reproduction may be made for any other copies supplied. Brambletye Junior School - 3

p.2

INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

School address: Brambletye Park Road Redhill Surrey

p.3

INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Appropriate authority: The Governing Body

p.3

INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Date of previous inspection: October 1996 Brambletye Junior School - 4

p.3

INFORMATION ABOUT THE INSPECTION TEAM

Team members Subject responsibilities Aspect responsibilities

p.4

INFORMATION ABOUT THE INSPECTION TEAM

Mrs Barbara E Parker Registered inspector Art Music French School characteristics and effectiveness Results and achievements Teaching Further improvement Mr Paul Widdowson Lay inspector Attitudes, values and personal development How well the school cares for its pupils Partnership with parents Mr John Linstead Team Inspector Information technology Geography History Leadership and management

p.4

INFORMATION ABOUT THE INSPECTION TEAM

Mr Maurice Leyland Team Inspector Science Physical education Curricular and other opportunities Effectiveness of assessment Mrs Raminda Arora Team Inspector Mathematics Religious education Equal opportunities Special educational needs English as a second language The provision for pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development

p.4

INFORMATION ABOUT THE INSPECTION TEAM

Mr Ian Lloyd Team Inspector Staffing, accommodation and learning resources English Design and technology Brambletye Junior School - 5 The inspection contractor was:

p.4

INFORMATION ABOUT THE INSPECTION TEAM

School haus Limited Riverbank Station Road Old Ollerton Near Newark Nottinghamshire NG22 9BN

p.5

INFORMATION ABOUT THE INSPECTION TEAM

Any concerns or complaints about the inspection or the report should be raised with the inspection contractor. Complaints that are not satisfactorily resolved by the contractor should be raised with OFSTED by writing to:

p.5

INFORMATION ABOUT THE INSPECTION TEAM

The Registrar Inspection Quality Division

p.5

INFORMATION ABOUT THE INSPECTION TEAM

Alexandra House 33 Kingsway London WC2B 6SE Brambletye Junior School - 6

p.5

PART A: SUMMARY OF THE REPORT 7

Information about the school How good the school is What the school does well What could be improved How the school has improved since its last inspection Standards Pupils’ attitudes and values Teaching and learning Other aspects of the school How well the school is led and managed Parents’ and carers’ views of the school

p.6

HOW HIGH ARE STANDARDS? 11

The school’s results and achievements Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

p.6

INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Brambletye is a large junior school for boys and girls seven to 11 years old. There are 331 full-time pupils on roll. Pupils’ attainment on entry is broadly average. Fewer than eight per cent of the pupils are eligible for free school meals. This figure has decreased over time and is now below the national average. The number of pupils with special educational needs - 64 - is also declining and is in line with the national figure. An above average number of pupils have Statements of Special Educational Need. Pupils come from a wide range of backgrounds, with about a quarter of them living in below average socio-economic circumstance. Four per cent of pupils speak English as an additional language - this is high in comparison with most other schools.

p.7

HOW GOOD THE SCHOOL IS

Brambletye is an effective school. Standards are in line with nationally expected levels and improving because teaching and learning is good. Leadership and management are effective. The head teacher, staff and governors work together well to provide a stimulating learning environment. The pupils’ attitudes to learning are very good, which significantly impact on their achievements during lessons and over time. The school gives sound value for money.

p.7

HOW GOOD THE SCHOOL IS

What the school does well • Standards are above average in some aspects of English, mathematics, science, information technology, religious education and physical education. • Teaching and learning is good in many classes and often very good in Year 6. • The school makes good provision for pupils with special educational needs and English as an additional language. • Pupils have very good attitudes to school; behaviour and relationships are good. • The school makes effective use of test results to improve teaching and learning. • The school promotes parental involvement in their children’s learning well. There is good information for parents about what their children are taught and how well they are learning. • Leadership and management are effective in bringing about changes and improvements to curriculum provision, standards and teaching. Finances are used well to support developments.

p.7

HOW GOOD THE SCHOOL IS

What could be improved • The inconsistent day-to-day assessment and recording of what pupils learn during lessons and over time in order to identify what to teach them next. • Teaching in Years 3 and 5 in particular. • The impact foundation subject co-ordinators in particular have on bringing about improvements in their subjects. The areas for improvement will form the basis of the governors’ action plan.

p.7

HOW THE SCHOOL HAS IMPROVED SINCE ITS LAST INSPECTION

The school has made good progress since it was last inspected in October 1996 and has successfully addressed most of the key issues. Teaching is now good overall and standards have improved in mathematics year-on-year. Pupils’ spelling, grammar and use of punctuation are better than they were, and standards have risen overall in science. Pupils’ computer skills have improved significantly because of good improvements to learning resources and better teaching arrangements. The analysis of pupils’ answers in national tests has resulted in adaptations to curriculum planning, which has improved greatly. Financial planning has improved: the best principles for value are applied effectively and priorities for development are supported well. Attendance is better than it was and behaviour is good. Pupils with special educational needs make good progress. Assessment arrangements and procedures are continuing to improve but more

p.7

HOW THE SCHOOL HAS IMPROVED SINCE ITS LAST INSPECTION

needs to be done to improve the recording and use of assessment of pupils’ previous achievements. Brambletye Junior School - 8

p.7

STANDARDS

The table shows the standards achieved by 11 year olds based on average point scores in National Curriculum tests.

p.8

STANDARDS

Performance in: All schools similar schools Key

p.8

STANDARDS

English B C B C well above average above average A B Mathematics D C C C average below average C D Science D C E E well below average E

p.8

STANDARDS

Last year, the school’s results in the national tests for 11-year-olds were above average in English, average in mathematics and well below average in science. In comparison with similar schools, they were broadly the same in English and mathematics, but well below in science. Standards in science have, however, improved this year to in line with 1998 standards, with the majority of pupils in Year 6 achieving levels expected for their age. The school’s results over time vary from subject to subject, but taking the three together, the school trend is broadly in line with the national trend. Evidence from the inspection shows that standards are broadly average in all three subjects and that the school is on course to meet its targets. Standards are particularly good in the work seen in aspects of literacy and numeracy. Games and swimming skills are good and musical performing and composing skills are well developed. Computer desktop

p.8

STANDARDS

publishing skills are above average, but pupils’ knowledge about the use of technology in the wider world is under developed. Standards in religious education meet the requirements of the locally Agreed Syllabus overall. Pupils’ knowledge and understanding of the Christian faith are good, but pupils are less secure when talking about other world religions. Standards in art are not high enough. Achievements in all other subjects are as expected.

p.8

PUPILS’ ATTITUDES AND VALUES

Attitudes to the school Very good. Pupils are attentive in lessons and concentrate well. They usually find the work suitably demanding, challenging and interesting, particularly in Year 6. Consequently, they work productively and at a good pace.

p.8

PUPILS’ ATTITUDES AND VALUES

Behaviour, in and out of classrooms Good. There are some occasions in Year 5, when some pupils do not find the work interesting or demanding enough and behave inappropriately.

p.8

PUPILS’ ATTITUDES AND VALUES

Personal development and relationships Good overall. Pupils enjoy helping around the school. Staff know their pupils well. The school council allows pupils to contribute to decision making.

p.8

PUPILS’ ATTITUDES AND VALUES

Attendance The most recent figures available show that attendance has improved significantly and is now good.

p.8

PUPILS’ ATTITUDES AND VALUES

Pupils’ attitudes to school and learning are very good and contribute to the success of their learning during lessons and over time. Because the teachers share learning intentions with the pupils, pupils are involved in monitoring their own progress at the end of lessons. Relationships between pupils and staff are built on mutual trust and respect and pupils enjoy coming to school. Consequently, attendance is improving. Brambletye Junior School - 9

p.8

TEACHING AND LEARNING

Lessons seen overall Good Inspectors make judgements about teaching in the range: excellent; very good; good; satisfactory; unsatisfactory; poor; very poor. ‘Satisfactory’ means that the teaching is adequate and strengths outweigh weaknesses.

p.9

TEACHING AND LEARNING

Teaching in English, mathematics, science and physical education is good overall. It is satisfactory in all other subjects. Due to insufficient evidence, no overall judgement is made in art and geography. Over half of the 68 lessons seen were good or better and nearly 20 per cent of them were very good. Just under half of the very good teaching was in Year 6, and the rest in Years 3 and 4. Nine per cent of the lessons seen were unsatisfactory. They were mainly in Years 3 and 5, where pupils are not always suitably challenged and subject knowledge is sometimes limited.

p.9

TEACHING AND LEARNING

Lesson introductions are lively and hold the interest of the pupils well. Most teachers manage pupils well. Lesson planning is good and questions are well focused to extend pupils’ learning. Basic numeracy and literacy skills are taught well in English and mathematics lessons and through work in other subjects. However, pupils are sometimes given too much guidance in their science investigation work and problem solving methodology in mathematics and this slows their learning. Computers are used well to support learning, and homework is good in quantity and quality and helps pupils with their work in school. Some teachers have good subject knowledge in some subjects, whilst a small minority have some gaps in aspects of for example, information technology, art, religious education, and design and technology. There are some good examples of teachers using assessment information well to build pupils’ learning, but this is

p.9

TEACHING AND LEARNING

inconsistent across the school. Records of achievement do not give sufficient information about pupils’ previous learning, and time is often wasted finding out what pupils know. Marking is inconsistent across the school in quality and usefulness.

p.9

TEACHING AND LEARNING

The teaching of pupils with special educational needs and English as an additional language is good and the school meets the needs of all their pupils effectively.

p.9

OTHER ASPECTS OF THE SCHOOL

The quality and range of the curriculum Satisfactory. There is insufficient time allocated to foundation subjects, limiting pupils’ achievement and progress in art in particular.

p.9

OTHER ASPECTS OF THE SCHOOL

Provision for pupils with special educational needs This is good. Pupils’ work is well matched to their individual learning targets. Pupils are well supported in lessons and withdrawal sessions and consequently make good progress.

p.9

OTHER ASPECTS OF THE SCHOOL

Provision for pupils with English as an additional language Good. Pupils’ language needs are identified and pupils are well supported through repetitive structured language activities, appropriate use of their first language, and suitable artefacts to enhance learning.

p.9

OTHER ASPECTS OF THE SCHOOL

Provision for pupils’ personal, including spiritual, moral, social and cultural development Good provision for social and moral development; sound provision for spiritual and cultural development. Opportunities for spiritual reflection and developing pupils’ knowledge of cultural traditions other than their own are unplanned and limited.

p.9

OTHER ASPECTS OF THE SCHOOL

How well the school cares for its pupils Good. Staff provide effective support and guidance for pupils. Assessment is under-developed.

p.9

OTHER ASPECTS OF THE SCHOOL

The school has established a good partnership with parents. The literacy and numeracy strategies have been implemented effectively and health education is well taught. The provision for swimming is good. Time is sometimes used inefficiently during the school day and lessons do not always start on time, particularly in the afternoon. Consequently, time for foundation subjects is limited.

p.9

HOW WELL THE SCHOOL IS LED AND MANAGED

Brambletye Junior School - 10 Aspect Comment

p.10

HOW WELL THE SCHOOL IS LED AND MANAGED

Leadership and manage- ment by the headteacher and other key staff The head teacher’s leadership and management are strong and purposeful. The role of subject co-ordinators is under-developed, particularly in the foundation subjects.

p.10

HOW WELL THE SCHOOL IS LED AND MANAGED

How well the governors fulfil their responsibilities Good. The governing body takes a keen interest in the school and works hard to fulfil its duties. It holds the head teacher suitably accountable for standards.

p.10

HOW WELL THE SCHOOL IS LED AND MANAGED

The school’s evaluation of its performance The head teacher and governors are very clear about what and where the strengths and weaknesses are. The monitoring of teaching is insufficiently developed to provide all staff with areas for development.

p.10

HOW WELL THE SCHOOL IS LED AND MANAGED

The strategic use of resources Satisfactory. Finances are well managed and used effectively. Staffing is adequate, accommodation is very good and learning resources are good overall.

p.10

HOW WELL THE SCHOOL IS LED AND MANAGED

The head teacher provides effective leadership in the raising of standards and the school’s progress towards its development priorities. He is well supported by an energetic governing body that has a good appreciation of what needs to be done. The school has made a good start in improving teaching and learning in the core subjects in particular. The role of the subject co-ordinators is under-developed and their influence on improvement in their subjects is limited, particularly in foundation subjects. The principles of best value are applied appropriately.

p.10

PARENTS’ AND CARERS’ VIEWS OF THE SCHOOL

What pleases parents most What parents would like to see improved • Their children like school. • Behaviour is good and their children know right from wrong. • Recent efforts by the school to improve punctuality and attendance. • The good teaching. • The approachability of staff and the way they deal with concerns or suggestions. • The way the school encourages pupils to work hard and to achieve their best. • The way the school helps pupils to become mature and responsible. • The new computer suite. • Improvements to the provision for pupils with special educational needs. • The unrealistic demands made on them to help their children with work at home, and that it is sometimes too difficult. • The range of after school clubs for pupils in Years 3 and 4. • The allocation of time to foundation subjects. • The information they receive about how their children are progressing in the foundation subjects.

p.10

PARENTS’ AND CARERS’ VIEWS OF THE SCHOOL

Inspectors agree with all of the comments. The school recognises the need to review their homework procedures and accept that sometimes parents are required to help their children too much with their work at home. The after-school clubs are so well supported by pupils in Years 5 and 6, that pupils from other year groups cannot be included. The allocation of time for some of the foundation subjects is lower than average and the school is to review its use of time during the day in order to try to create more time for these subjects. The quality of reports is inconsistent from class-to-class and some teachers do not give sufficient information about the pupils’ achievements in foundation subjects. Brambletye Junior School - 11

p.10

The school’s results and achievements

1. The results of the 1999 national tests for 11-year-olds indicate that standards are above average in English, in line with nationally expected levels in mathematics, and well below average in science. That year, the pupils at Brambletye achieved similar results in English and mathematics to other pupils in similar schools, but their results were well below them in science. These pupils made appropriate progress in English and mathematics, based on the local authority’s analysis of their attainment on entry in 1995, but they did not reach expected levels in science, indicating problems with teaching and learning in this subject.

p.11

The school’s results and achievements

2. The trend in test results over the last four years has been variable from subject to subject, although taking English, mathematics and science together, the overall trend between 1996 and 1999 is broadly in line with the national trend. Results in mathematics have improved year-on-year since 1996. English results dropped between 1996 and 1998 to broadly average and rose again in 1999 to above average. Whilst science results have improved slightly overall, they declined between 1996 and 1997 to below national levels and rose again in 1998 to average levels. Between 1998 and 1999, although they stayed the same, they failed to improve at the same rate as other schools nationally.

p.11

The school’s results and achievements

3. Evidence from the inspection shows that standards in all three subjects this year are broadly as expected in relation to national averages. The implementation of the national strategies for literacy and numeracy are impacting well on standards in English and mathematics and the school’s sufficiently challenging targets in both subjects are set to be met or exceeded. Because of the good teaching of word skills, pupils use of grammar in their writing is particularly good and they use a good range of punctuation correctly. Their spelling is usually accurate, including difficult polysyllabic words. They read fluently, expressively, and with good understanding. A number of the higher attaining pupils scan ahead to try to deduce what is happening, and so that they can emphasise particular words correctly. Their number skills are well developed and most pupils in Year 6 work confidently and competently with numbers up to and beyond 1000. They understand the

p.11

The school’s results and achievements

relation between fractions, percentages, and decimals and many convert one to the other confidently and accurately. They are given some problem solving exercises, but their investigative work in mathematics is under-developed in general and they do not have sufficient opportunities to select apparatus or use their own methods to find answers.

p.11

The school’s results and achievements

4. The school has worked very hard to address the weaknesses in science. They have improved the science curriculum to include more investigation work and to support teachers in building systematically on pupils’ learning from year-to-year. Teaching in Year 6 is better than it was, and teachers throughout the school have more secure subject knowledge through effective support from the subject co-ordinator and appropriate in- service training. Consequently, pupils’ learning has improved. Their knowledge and understanding of life and living processes is particularly good. Their attainment in experimental and investigative work is sound, but is too often over-directed by teachers. Pupils are given insufficient opportunities to create their own tests and to record the results in their own way. Nevertheless, because of the overall improvement, the school is on course to reach its targets of eighty per cent at Level 4 and above in this year’s tests.

p.11

The school’s results and achievements

5. Boys perform better than girls in all of the three core subjects. This is due partly to the school’s deliberate strategy, adopted some years ago, to focus specifically on the boys during lessons in an attempt to alleviate their inappropriate behaviour at that time. The school has recognised that this did, however, start to become a part of the school culture and staff have started to redress the balance by ensuring girls receive equal attention. For Brambletye Junior School - 12 example, the head teacher recognised last year that he mainly selected boys to answer questions during assembly and now makes a conscious effort to involve the girls as well. There was no incidence of boys being given more attention than girls in any of the lessons seen.

p.11

The school’s results and achievements

6. Standards in information communication technology are broadly as expected by the time the pupils leave the school. Pupils’ desktop publishing skills are good and by the time they reach Year 6, most pupils confidently produce news sheets and reports incorporating a range of text, pictures and graphs. Pupils of all ages are proficient in inputting data into the computer to produce graphs, tables and charts. They are less secure, however, about the use and purpose of technology in the wider world.

p.12

The school’s results and achievements

7. Standards in religious education meet the requirements of the locally Agreed Syllabus. Pupils have a particularly good knowledge and understanding of the Christian faith by the time they leave the school, but are less secure about the festivals and rituals of other world religions such as Hinduism, Judaism and Buddhism.

p.12

The school’s results and achievements

8. Standards in swimming and games are high, due in the main to effective teaching in physical education and good coaching at the local swimming pool. Pupils’ musical performing and composing skills are well developed, but their attainment in art is below expected levels by the time the pupils leave the school. This is mainly because of an inappropriate amount of time allocated to art lessons, and teachers’ lack of subject knowledge and insecurity in teaching artistic skills and techniques. Standards in other aspects of physical education and music and in all other subjects are as expected for pupils of this age.

p.12

The school’s results and achievements

9. Standards are improving and pupils’ learning is getting better due to recent improvements to the quality of teaching throughout the school, and the particularly good teaching in Year 6. Teachers make good demands on pupils and progress during lessons is mainly good. Pupils with special educational needs make good progress towards their individual learning targets during lessons and withdrawal sessions, and over longer periods of time. Standards achieved by pupils with Statements of Special Educational Need are as expected, given their ability and learning difficulties. Their work is well targeted in accordance with the requirements of their Statements and these pupils make sound progress. The attainment of pupils with English as an additional language is generally in line with their classmates. It is below average for pupils who are new arrivals and on Stages 1 and 2 of English acquisition. Nevertheless, their quality of learning is good and

p.12

The school’s results and achievements

most make good progress over their time in school, due mainly to well organised individual support from suitably trained staff.

p.12

Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

10. Pupils of all abilities, including those with special educational needs and English as an additional language, have very positive attitudes towards school, impacting significantly on their good learning. Pupils enjoy school and find the work interesting and challenging. In lessons, they are attentive and concentrate well on the tasks they are given. Consequently, their learning is enhanced and they work productively in the time given. They share resources willingly and work independently and collaboratively in pairs and small groups when, for example, composing and performing ‘battle’ music. Pupils regularly engage in discussion and answer questions enthusiastically, enabling teachers to be clear about what they already know. After school, many pupils enjoy a range of extra curricular activities including netball, football, and cross-country running, and show a keen interest in sport. This contributes well to their personal development and the good standards and

p.12

Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

effective learning in games. 11. Behaviour is good. Pupils move around the school in an orderly manner and this is very evident when they come into school from the playground. Pupils are polite and display Brambletye Junior School - 13 good manners. They open doors for adults, are helpful to visitors, and respect property. During playtime, pupils are lively and boisterous, but there is no evidence of rough or aggressive behaviour, isolation, or harassment. In the classrooms, behaviour is good, but there are isolated incidents of inappropriate behaviour during some lessons in Year 5, sometimes due to pupils’ disinterest in the work set. Some of these pupils have, however, individual behaviour programmes, and are receiving help with their difficulties.

p.12

Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

12. Most pupils have a clear understanding of right and wrong and are well aware of the school’s code of conduct. Pupils of all ages are very much involved in establishing their own class rules. They consider the impact of their actions on their classmates and develop good respect for the feelings, values and beliefs of others.

p.13

Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

13. Relationships between pupils and between pupils and adults in the school are good, and pupils feel secure to approach staff with any problems or concerns they have. At the induction day for new pupils, Year 6 pupils are paired with the new Year 3 pupils to help them and show them around the school. This relationship extends to when the pupils start school, with the older ones looking after them during their first few weeks.

p.13

Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

14. Pupils’ personal development is good. Pupils take responsibility for getting out equipment and putting it away in their own classrooms. This is extended in Year 6 to setting up equipment for assembly and supervising the younger children during wet playtimes. This helps to develop pupils’ confidence and maturity. Many pupils volunteer for ‘litter duty’ in the playground and to help clear away at lunchtime. Each class elects a boy and girl as their school council representative. The council meets every half term, allowing pupils to put forward their ideas and opinions as to how the school can be improved. This gives them a feeling of ownership of the school - of which they feel proud. The school operates a team system where points are awarded for good work, behaviour, and effort, and each team elects captains from Year 6 who are responsible for collecting and tallying house- points on a weekly basis and have an important role to play during the inter-team sports

p.13

Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

15. The school has worked hard to improve its attendance rate and there has been significant improvement in attendance this year. Although the attendance rate of 92 per cent in 1998/9 was below the national average of 94 percent, the school has worked hard to raise it to 95 per cent this year, and attendance is now good. The school has a very low rate of unauthorised absence. Pupils come to school on time and good attendance and punctuality has a positive impact on their attainment and progress. During the afternoon session in particular, however, time is not used as efficiently as it could be and lessons do not always start on time. Valuable time is lost, with the result that time for foundation subjects is limited.

p.13

HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

16. The quality of teaching and its impact on pupils’ learning is good. This is an improvement since the last inspection when teaching was satisfactory overall. During the inspection, over half of the 68 lessons seen were good or better and nearly twenty per cent of them were very good. Just under half of the very good teaching was in Year 6, and the rest in Years 3 and 4. Teaching is good overall in English, mathematics, science, and physical education, due in the main to effective planning in these subjects and recent in-service training in the teaching of literacy, numeracy and science. No overall judgement is made about the quality of teaching in art and geography as insufficient evidence was found. Teaching is sound in all other subjects, although there are some small gaps in a few of the Brambletye Junior School - 14 teachers’ subject knowledge in art, design and technology, religious education and

p.13

HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

17. The teaching is inspirational in Year 6. Teachers subject knowledge is good. For example, in a music lesson, the teacher explained the tasks very clearly and used technical vocabulary correctly. This resulted in good understanding by the pupils, who then worked productively on their musical compositions of battle sounds. Their learning of musical structure was extended well and they developed good understanding of how musical compositions can ‘tell a story’, with a beginning, middle and an end. Introductions to lessons are lively and hold the interest of the pupils very well. Lessons move at a very brisk pace and consequently pupils’ learning is rapid. The work is meaningful and well matched to pupils’ assessed needs.

p.14

HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

18. Pupils are generally well managed throughout the school, although there are a few in Year 5 who behave inappropriately at times. Particularly the more experienced teachers deal with these pupils effectively, however, engaging them successfully in interesting work. Consequently, their misbehaviour does not impact too detrimentally on their learning. There are times, for example in a science lesson about seed germination, however, when pupils are unsure about what to do and why they are doing it and their interest and concentration wavers, slowing their progress.

p.14

HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

19. Basic numeracy and literacy skills are taught well. The teaching of letter sounds and spelling patterns is particularly good. For example in Year 4, when contrasting two poems and looking at spelling patterns at the end of words, pupils recognise rhyming couplets and all of them contribute confidently to the lesson. Numeracy is well taught, with pupils encouraged to look for patterns in number to aid their mental calculation skills. Teachers encourage them to share their thoughts with others and to talk about, for example, how they partition two digit numbers in order to multiply them in their heads. They explain, for example, how they split 64 multiplied by 40 into six times four and add two noughts; four times four and add one nought; and then add 2400 and 16 to get 2560.

p.14

HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

20. Numeracy and literacy is promoted well through work in other subjects. For example when reading questions about first quadrant co-ordinates from worksheets in Year 6 and counting note lengths and beats in bars in music in Year 4 and 5. Older pupils are encouraged to make notes when watching a video about the Spanish Armada and to use them to write accounts of the event from the point of view of one of the sailors. They carry out research about Tudor Britain and write about life in different times.

p.14

HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

21. Computers are used well to support learning in other subjects such as typing stories in literacy lessons and organising newspaper front pages about accidents and injuries sustained by children in Victorian times in history. Pupils create different graphs in mathematics and science, and computer generated pictures to support their work in art.

p.14

HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

22. Lesson planning is good throughout the school, although the implementation of the plans is not always as successful in Year 5, where there is a lack of teaching experience. Nevertheless, this weakness has been identified and the head teacher and senior managers are currently effecting improvement. Teachers throughout the school are very clear about what pupils are to learn during the lessons and share the learning intentions openly with their pupils. This gives direction to lessons and purpose to tasks. It gives pupils added motivation and holds their interest well. Constant reminders are given about how much time pupils have left to complete their work. This adds urgency and challenge for pupils to get on and achieve in the time available, such as in Year 5 when working on homophones, similes and metaphors. Brambletye Junior School - 15 23. Questions are usually well focused and effective in probing pupils’ understanding and

p.14

HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

extending their thinking. They are usually worded with good forethought and to make pupils think carefully - such as in a Year 6 mathematics lesson on interpreting first quadrant co-ordinates when the teacher asks “What is the most important historical feature in G8?” Some teachers probe pupils’ learning well during lessons and adapt their interventions appropriately to suit pupils’ changing needs, such as when pupils in Year 4 practise sending and receiving a basketball, with the teacher coaching individuals appropriately with good regard to their acquired skills. This is inconsistent, however, and sometimes lesson plans are adhered to too rigorously with insufficient regard given to pupils’ changing needs as the lesson progresses.

p.15

HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

24. The use of assessment to inform teaching and learning is satisfactory overall, but inconsistent across the school. There are some good examples of teachers evaluating the outcome of lessons and recording this information to ensure that the next lesson builds on pupils’ prior learning, particularly in Year 6. Some teachers make notes about the achievements of individual or groups of pupils on their weekly lesson plans, but not all teachers take appropriate note of their recordings to adapt work for or to support particular pupils the next day.

p.15

HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

25. Six of the 68 lessons seen were unsatisfactory overall. They were mainly in Years 3 and 5, where a minority of teachers have limited subject knowledge and expertise. There was some mismatch of work to ability, with insufficient account taken of pupils’ previous achievements to set work. In a Year 3 mathematics lesson, for example, pupils found the work too easy and finished it quickly, limiting their progress. In an art lesson in Year 5, teaching did not make high enough demands on pupils’ artistic skills and the pictures produced were not of a sufficient quality. Lesson organisation did not always work, and pupil management was sometimes ineffective. Consequently, pupils’ learning in some lessons was slow and the standards achieved were too low. For example, in a science lesson in Year 3 the noise level was too high for carrying out investigations on sound and, for various reasons, pupils struggled to conduct a meaningful test and the results were

p.15

HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

26. Homework is good in quantity and quality and impacts well on standards in lessons. Sometimes, however, the pupils find the work difficult to do, either because they are unable to do it without help from adults, or because the equipment and materials they need are not readily available in their homes. They find investigation science work most difficult. For example, when asked in Year 6 to find ten powders and dissolve them in water, some of them struggled to find that many! Some parents are unhappy about how much they are expected to help their children, for example, with model making at home, and find the work difficult themselves at times. The school makes unrealistic demands on parents at times, and although those that are able to help their children contribute significantly to their learning, the school recognises the need to reconsider its requirements of and demands made on parental help with homework.

p.15

HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

27. The teaching of pupils with special educational needs and English as an additional language is good. Class teachers provide group teaching or individual support for these pupils in the classrooms. The special educational need co-ordinator and English support teachers work closely with the support agencies to ensure effective teaching strategies are employed in order to meet the needs of individual pupils in lessons and withdrawal sessions. Some of the learning support assistants are suitably trained to support pupils with special educational needs and they contribute well to pupils’ learning and progress. Individual Education Plans are implemented well and pupils’ learning targets are realistic and attainable. Pupils with English as an additional language take a full and active part in lessons. Teachers have appropriate regard to their stages of learning in English. They are fully aware of the range of language needs of the identified pupils and plan their work

p.15

HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

effectively, with clear learning targets and well matched tasks, and they make good use of Brambletye Junior School - 16 interesting and stimulating resources to interest and motivate the pupils. The English support teachers are involved in planning literacy and numeracy lessons with the class teachers, having good regard to the vocabulary and language component of the lessons. They support pupils well in these lessons and sufficient attention is given to supporting pupils’ home languages.

p.15

HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

28. Because the teaching is good, pupils’ learning is enhanced considerably during lessons, particularly in Year 6. Teachers make good demands on pupils, who usually find the work inspiring and interesting, and consequently work productively and with sustained concentration. Because teachers share the learning intentions with them and they know that the tasks are set for a particular purpose, pupils understand what they are doing and why. There are times, however, when they are over-directed in science investigations, and problem solving opportunities in mathematics are limited. There are insufficient opportunities for pupils to plan their own science investigations and decide for themselves how to solve mathematical problems.

p.16

HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

29. Marking is inconsistent across the school and does not always indicate to pupils how they can improve their work next time. Plenary sessions are generally good, with some teachers talking about what pupils will do the next day in order to build on what they have learnt that day. Sometimes, however, there is too little time left at the end of lessons to hold in-depth discussions about what has gone on and these sessions are sometimes rushed and therefore ineffective.

p.16

HOW GOOD ARE THE CURRICULAR AND OTHER OPPORTUNITIES OFFERED TO PUPILS?

30. The school provides a satisfactory range of curricular and other learning opportunities including the teaching of French to pupils in Years 5 and 6. Statutory requirements are fully met, including the teaching of religious education, health and sex education, and the dangers of drugs’ misuse. The provision of swimming is a particular strength; pupils are encouraged to continue to attend coaching sessions at the local swimming pool from Year 4 onwards until they can swim at least 25 metres. The teaching time allocated art and music are below average and other foundation subjects are under-represented on the school’s timetables, apart from physical education. This impacts detrimentally on standards in art in particular and aspects of other subjects such as music and geography.

p.16

HOW GOOD ARE THE CURRICULAR AND OTHER OPPORTUNITIES OFFERED TO PUPILS?

31. Since the previous inspection, there have been several improvements to curriculum planning, which is now satisfactory. The staff have worked hard to implement schemes of work for most subjects and more detailed and structured weekly or daily lesson planning. These, along with the helpful medium term plans, give good guidance to teachers and help them to build pupils’ learning systematically over time. A number of these schemes, however, are out-of-date and need reviewing. They are too lengthy to be taught in the time allowed particularly for some of the foundation subjects. For example in art, there is too much detail and teachers cannot possibly cover all of the aspects intended in the time allocated. Pupils’ preparation for the next stage of their education is satisfactorily enhanced in Year 6, with a good homework programme and visits to the local high school.

p.16

HOW GOOD ARE THE CURRICULAR AND OTHER OPPORTUNITIES OFFERED TO PUPILS?

32. The strategies for literacy and numeracy have been successfully introduced, with effective impact on standards in word skills and mental arithmetic in particular. Planning for literacy and numeracy lessons is particularly good. It follows the national strategy format and ensures pupils’ learning is built systematically over time. Pupils in Year 6 take part in optional lunchtime mathematical computer activities to raise standards further. This gives them the opportunity to work on the computers independently, whilst being able to call on the effective support of a teacher if and when necessary.

p.16

HOW GOOD ARE THE CURRICULAR AND OTHER OPPORTUNITIES OFFERED TO PUPILS?

33. The provision for extra-curricular activities is satisfactory. There are a range of clubs, including music and computer, and various sporting activities. These are so well supported Brambletye Junior School - 17 that only pupils from Years 5 and 6 are able to take part. Pupils develop good basic physical education skills through good coaching in for example, netball, football, and cross-country running. There are regular sporting fixtures with other schools, which give pupils good opportunity to compete with pupils of their own age and to develop self- confidence and good social skills.

p.16

HOW GOOD ARE THE CURRICULAR AND OTHER OPPORTUNITIES OFFERED TO PUPILS?

34. There is good provision for the pupils’ personal, social and health education. Health and sex education are taught well through the science curriculum, with very good use of visiting specialists, such as the police to explain the dangers of drugs’ misuse and the nurse to help with the sex education programme, enhancing provision further. Pupils become fully aware of the benefits of strenuous exercise for their hearts and muscles during physical education lessons.

p.17

HOW GOOD ARE THE CURRICULAR AND OTHER OPPORTUNITIES OFFERED TO PUPILS?

35. The curricular provision for pupils with special educational needs and English as an additional language is good. All of these pupils access the curriculum at an appropriate level, informed by their individual learning targets and well supported by classroom assistants and appropriately trained support staff. The language demands of the curriculum for pupils with English as an additional language are analysed and supported, for example, through the use of repetitive language, the provision of well-structured activities, support for vocabulary development, and use of their first language. Trained support staff make effective use of visual aids, artefacts and story props to enhance pupils’ learning further.

p.17

HOW GOOD ARE THE CURRICULAR AND OTHER OPPORTUNITIES OFFERED TO PUPILS?

36. Access to the Internet is being introduced to enrich the pupils’ links with the wider world. Well organised visits, both locally and further afield are used to contribute to pupils’ learning in geography, history, and religious education. Some opportunities are taken to use the local area for geographical field studies, such as visits to the local railway station and shops and looking at local land use. Residential visits are used well to develop the pupils’ self-confidence and social skills away from home.

p.17

HOW GOOD ARE THE CURRICULAR AND OTHER OPPORTUNITIES OFFERED TO PUPILS?

37. The school’s links with the community are sound. The experiences of recorder players going out to entertain members of the local community, and members of sports teams playing fixtures against other schools, suitably broadens pupils’ spiritual and social development. Opportunities for pupils to take part in such events as Opera Bravo, the mufti-day for Mozambique and visits by such organisations as the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children, give pupils a wider perspective of the world in which they live.

p.17

HOW GOOD ARE THE CURRICULAR AND OTHER OPPORTUNITIES OFFERED TO PUPILS?

38. The school has effective links with local schools. There are good links between the staff of the local infant and high schools. There is an appropriate interchange of records between the schools to help the continuity of pupils’ education.

p.17

HOW GOOD ARE THE CURRICULAR AND OTHER OPPORTUNITIES OFFERED TO PUPILS?

39. The provision for pupils’ spiritual understanding is satisfactory. Spirituality is effectively promoted through assemblies and work in art, drama, music, poetry and literature and religious education. These experiences are limited, however, particularly in religious education, art and music. Assemblies, organised around themes such as choice, anger, hope, life, death, greed and courage, contain suitable spiritual content and opportunities for reflection. Pupils are presented with Christian themes as well as ideas and problems faced by all, through stories such as the ‘Story of Adam’ to raise pupils’ awareness of The Creation.

p.17

HOW GOOD ARE THE CURRICULAR AND OTHER OPPORTUNITIES OFFERED TO PUPILS?

40. The provision for pupils’ moral development is good. The school places a high priority on the teaching and understanding of moral values. The ethos of the school is firmly based on respect, care, concern, and the valuing of others. The sense of ‘family’ encourages pupils to reflect on their actions and those of others. The school effectively teaches right from wrong. Due attention is given to the reinforcement of codes of acceptable behaviour Brambletye Junior School - 18 and the sharing of positive values. The pupils respond well, enjoying their work and showing care for the school. Moral values are taught well through stories, songs and discussions. Both teachers and support staff provide good role models and encourage pupils to relate well to each other and behave courteously. Most pupils and of all ages, are well disciplined and understand what makes an orderly school. The school promotes a

p.17

HOW GOOD ARE THE CURRICULAR AND OTHER OPPORTUNITIES OFFERED TO PUPILS?

good understanding of citizenship through, for example, opportunities for pupils to argue for and against selling a piece of school land to the owners of a chain of fast food restaurants. Pupils present their case sensibly and discuss the moral and social issues and implications effectively. Pupils are encouraged to raise money for charities through selling cakes and participating in events such as the Mufti-day to raise money for the Mozambique flood disaster.

p.18

HOW GOOD ARE THE CURRICULAR AND OTHER OPPORTUNITIES OFFERED TO PUPILS?

41. Good provision is made for the pupils’ social development through daily school life. The local educational visits, pupils’ personal and health education programme and a range of extra curricular activities play a major part in developing pupils’ moral and social awareness. Class monitors and the Year 6 school council representatives are given appropriate opportunities to take on duties and responsibilities, which they carry out with confidence. Pupils are encouraged to relate well to each other and act courteously. The quality of relationships between adults and pupils is good. The school, as a caring community, values its members and encourages different groups of pupils to integrate well together both at work and play.

p.18

HOW GOOD ARE THE CURRICULAR AND OTHER OPPORTUNITIES OFFERED TO PUPILS?

42. The provision for pupils’ cultural development is satisfactory and fostered through the celebrations of the Christian festivals, assemblies that highlight other religious festivals such as Eid-ul-Adha and Ramadan, and visits and visitors to the school. Pupils’ own cultural heritage is promoted successfully through some opportunities to appreciate art, dance, and music. The school promotes respect for the cultural diversity reflected in society. However, there are insufficient opportunities to develop pupils’ understanding of the central beliefs and practices of different faiths, or to appreciate the art, dance, music and the way of life of people from other cultures. As a result, pupils’ appreciation of the richness and diversity of culture in the wider world is less well developed. The provision of multicultural resources and social and cultural links with the wider community are also limited.

p.18

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

43. The school provides a safe and caring environment for its pupils and staff, and creates a good learning environment for all pupils regardless of their gender, background, or academic ability. There is an effective health and safety policy and governors conduct a termly health and safety check of the school. Any issues are recorded and appropriate action is taken and monitored by the Governing Body. There are clear procedures for dealing with accidents and most staff are appropriately first aid trained. All accidents are recorded appropriately. Pupils with special medical needs are known to all staff and parents are made aware of the school's policy on dispensing medicine to pupils.

p.18

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

44. The school has a very effective child protection policy and the staff handbook contains well detailed guidelines for staff on how to recognise children who may be at risk. There are two named members of staff responsible for child protection.

p.18

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

45. The school has a detailed behaviour policy with a clear system of rewards and sanctions that are applied consistently throughout the school. The very good procedures for monitoring and promoting good behaviour have had a significant impact on raising the standard of behaviour throughout the school over time, and establishing a good environment for learning. Reported incidents of bullying are effectively dealt with by the head teacher, who is directly involved with the 'no blame' bullying policy. Registration procedures are computerised and the school has worked hard with parents and pupils to Brambletye Junior School - 19 successfully improve levels of attendance and punctuality.

p.18

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

46. The school provides effective support and guidance for all its pupils including those with special educational needs and English as an additional language. In Year 6, pupils attend a junior citizen’s scheme, which is organised by the emergency services with input from a wide range of other organisations. The pupils learn about personal safety and are advised on how to deal with a range of potentially dangerous situations such as abduction, railway and water safety, and how to call the emergency services.

p.19

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

47. Pupils of all ages learn about the dangers of drugs’ misuse through visits by the police liaison officer and members of the life education centre. Sex education is taught within the science curriculum and there is a dedicated sex education programme for pupils in Years 5 and 6.

p.19

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

48. There are good links with the feeder infant schools, which Year 3 teachers visit with the special educational need co-ordinator. There is an induction day where pupils visit the school to familiarise themselves with its layout and have lunch. Local secondary schools hold their open day simultaneously which allows all Year 6 pupils to visit their chosen school. These procedures ensure a smooth transition into school and on to secondary education.

p.19

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

49. Teachers know the pupils well and personal development is effectively monitored. A pupil profile for the year is included in the annual report to parents and pupils are asked to make their own comments on what they consider have been their most significant achievements during the year and set their own targets for further development. Thus encouraging them to take an interest in their own educational learning and progress.

p.19

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

50. Assessment is satisfactory overall, but there are some weaknesses in the recording of pupils’ achievements, and inconsistencies in its use by teachers to inform teaching and learning throughout the year in all subjects, and at the end of the year in foundation subjects. Although much work has been done to address this issue since the last inspection and the school’s assessment and recording systems and procedures are developing appropriately, there is still some work to do. Since the last inspection, the school has put in place a variety of effective end-of-year testing systems and procedures for English, mathematics and science. Assessment files give the level of attainment each pupil achieves in each of the three core subjects at the end of each year. These provide a useful bank of information to inform end-of-key-stage target setting and to track pupils’ progress as they move through the school. The information is also used to identify those

p.19

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

pupils who need extra help in mathematics, pupils with special educational needs, those with English as an additional language, and pupils who would benefit from extra language work under the Additional Literacy scheme.

p.19

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

51. Detailed information about pupils’ achievements within the levels is not kept, however. Information passed from teacher-to-teacher is sparse and consequently, teachers have to spend time at the beginning of the year or topics finding out what pupils already know, understand and can do. This wastes valuable time, does not ensure pupils’ continual development and slows progress unnecessarily. Formal assessment in other subjects does not take place. This has a detrimental effect on the continuous building of skills from year-to-year as teachers are unsure about what individual or groups of pupils have learnt before and consequently, what to teach them next.

p.19

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

52. The school uses assessment information from the end-of-year tests well to identify gaps in pupils’ learning and to adapt curriculum planning. For example in science, the school’s analysis of the pupils’ answers to questions in the 1998 and 1999 national tests highlighted particular weaknesses in both teaching and learning. As a result, a new scheme of work was introduced to ensure pupils’ continuous learning, lessons were Brambletye Junior School - 20 monitored by the co-ordinator, and staff were given some additional in-service training to improve their subject knowledge. The resulting improvements to teaching and curriculum planning have led to better standards in science this year.

p.19

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

53. The school has established a good partnership with parents, which has a positive impact on the quality of pupils' learning and the progress pupils make. Parents are very supportive of the school and the majority feel that their children receive a good education in a safe and caring environment. There are some parents who feel that homework is not suitably adapted to reflect the different attainments of their children and that they are required to help their children too much with practical tasks. Those parents who support and help with homework, however, have a significant impact on their children's attainment and progress. Whilst the school provides a number of extra curricular activities for the older children, some parents feel that younger pupils are not sufficiently well catered for and that the range of activities is limited.

p.20

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

54. The school provides good quality information to parents through the school brochure, the governors' annual report to parents, and regular newsletters. Pupils’ annual progress reports provide good information on pupils’ attainment and progress in the core subjects but in some classes the quality of information on foundation subjects is restricted to what has been taught during the year, rather than what pupils have learnt. Consequently, whilst parents know what their children have been taught, they are unclear about what they know, understand and can do in each of the subjects.

p.20

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

55. A number of parents are actively involved in the school and help with reading, cooking, art and craft, the library and games. They contribute significantly to pupils’ learning and enhance their progress well. Others help supervise the pupils on school trips and residential visits organised in Years 4 and 6.

p.20

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

56. There are regular consultation meetings for parents and sufficient opportunities are given for parents to discuss their children’s learning and progress with the teachers. Parents of pupils with special educational needs are involved in their children’s reviews and are kept informed about their learning targets. The school has held workshops on numeracy, literacy and additional literacy support, and keeps parents suitably up-to-date on what is being taught in school, with a timetable of events being sent out at the beginning of each term.

p.20

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

57. Parents are encouraged to contact staff if they have any problems or concerns and the head teacher is readily available to talk to parents. An appropriate home school agreement has been introduced, with more than 90 per cent of parents signing up. There is a home school reading book in which parents are encouraged to monitor and comment on the reading their children do at home, giving teachers an idea of their pupils’ success.

p.20

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

58. There is an active friends association, which raises over £2000 annually to support the school through the purchase of equipment and improving facilities. They organise a range of social and fund raising activities throughout the year.

p.20

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

59. The school has worked closely with social services to support a family from Kosovo whose daughter came to the school eighteen months ago. She, like all pupils in the school with English as an additional language, now speaks English sufficiently fluently to be able to interpret for their families.

p.20

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

60. Leadership and management are satisfactory overall. The head teacher’s leadership and management are strong and purposeful, and are having a positive effect in raising Brambletye Junior School - 21 standards, particularly in mathematics and science. The school’s aims and values are reflected in its policies and practices and are apparent in all areas of the school’s work. The head teacher and teaching staff have formed a good relationship with the governing body and work together well to carry out initiatives identified in the school development plan. Staff work and plan together effectively and share their skills willingly. These factors have enabled the school to act upon issues raised in the previous report and bring about good progress towards achieving improvement. Because of staff and governors’ commitment to raising standards and the success of the head teacher up-to-now in improving aspects of teaching and learning, the school is in a strong position to make

p.20

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

61. The head teacher has a clear view of the strengths and weaknesses of the school and provides strong and positive leadership. He has a high profile around the school, for example supporting teachers, working with the ‘no blame bullying‘ pupil groups, and leading collective acts of worship. He has monitored some lessons and provided critical judgements to successfully raise teaching performance in, for example, physical education in Year 5. However, despite the beneficial effects of this practice, it has does not include all members of staff and all subjects. Consequently, not all teachers are sure about what does and does not work in their teaching and of points for further development. However, the proposed amendments to the senior management structure in the autumn term is intended to enable the delegation of some administration tasks and thus free the head teacher for more monitoring of teaching and learning.

p.21

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

62. All subject co-ordinators have benefited from the head teacher’s comments following his scrutiny of their subject development plans, schemes of work, and curriculum planning. Their roles, however, especially with regard to the monitoring of teaching and learning, are substantially under-developed, limiting their influence on improving standards in their subjects. Some of them, in art for example where the co-ordinator is new to post, lack clear direction for the development of their subjects and are unsure about what and where the subject strengths and weaknesses lie. The work of all support staff, including classroom assistants, midday supervisors, administrative and maintenance personnel makes a positive contribution to the good ethos permeating the school and the creation of an effective learning environment.

p.21

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

63. The governing body, recently re-formed, takes a keen interest in the school and works hard to carry out its duties very effectively. There is a good variety of expertise within the group and the school is beginning to make use of this, for example through advice on computers, financial management, and first aid and medical provision. The chair of governors has played a leading role in the planning and introduction of the computer suite and other governors are currently involved in developing this facility further. Individual governors support core subject and special educational needs co-ordinators, which has resulted in a good flow of information about developments and issues to the governing body as a whole. Since the governing body is still relatively new, an effective policy of familiarisation and the development of trust and good liaison between it and the school staff has been adopted. An action plan has been drawn up by the head teacher, which

p.21

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

outlines the ways in which the governing body intends to establish ways of working and formulate its vision for the school’s future development. The governing body fulfils its statutory duties, having taken steps to ensure that its annual report to parents, found to have some omissions in the last inspection, now meets statutory requirements.

p.21

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

64. School development planning is satisfactory. The school has a brief but clear development plan covering a period of two years, focusing appropriately on improving standards and the quality of teaching and learning. There are specific targets, costings, and dates. Although lacking in detail, it nevertheless has improved significantly since the previous inspection and identifies relevant priorities needed to raise standards. It is augmented by the school’s arrangements for staff training and co-ordinators’ action plans (which vary Brambletye Junior School - 22 from giving a very clear picture for improvement in the subject, to vagueness about strengths and weaknesses and the way forward), and provides the school with an appropriate working document. Review dates are appropriately set and the plan gives comprehensive guidance on its evaluation. The head teacher ensures that all staff, including support staff, are involved in the identification of priorities and the drawing up of

p.21

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

the plan. This has developed a good sense of ownership and common agreement on what needs to be done to raise standards. Governors are fully involved in the reviewing and amending of these plans and receive regular reports on the progress of its implementation.

p.22

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

65. The school’s budgeting procedures and financial planning and management are good. Finances are devolved to support the priorities set out in the school development plan following rigorous assessment of the cost effectiveness of different ways of meeting the need. For example, lengthy and detailed analysis was made of different options for improving standards in information and communication technology. Following a thorough assessment of all of the options, the plan to provide a suite fitted with particular computers was decided upon. The effectiveness of this option, in terms of what effect it is having on standards, was carried out and future improvements to this provision will be based on the findings. The school operates a good system for ensuring that the best value is obtained when making any resource or service purchase, and involves both subject co-ordinators and administration staff. The school has in place very good systems for ensuring the

p.22

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

integrity of financial transactions, ordering, delivery, and invoicing procedures. Subject co- ordinators receive regular reports on the spending of the budget allocated to their subjects. The school’s administrative officer prepares monthly budget reports, which are thoroughly scrutinised by the head teacher with copies sent to all governors. The finance committee meetings are attended by the administrative officer who adds to the quality of information available to governors. The grants for supporting pupils with special educational needs and English as an additional language are used appropriately. In relation to the context within which the school works and the standards it achieves, it gives satisfactory value for money.

p.22

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

66. At the present time, no systematic appraisal of staff takes place. However, the head teacher meets with teachers once a year during which they discuss the findings of any lesson observations that have taken place. Subject development plans are discussed and appropriate measures are taken to help to raise standards – more successfully in some subjects than in others and particularly in those where co-ordinators have a clear idea of what is happening across the school. Some co-ordinators assess the standards pupils achieve through looking at pupils’ work, but there are too few opportunities for them to improve standards, teaching, and learning through direct lesson observation.

p.22

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

67. The use of staffing, accommodation and learning resources is satisfactory overall. The number, qualifications and experience of teachers and support staff match the demands of the curriculum satisfactorily. Teaching staff benefit from a structured programme of in- service training that is planned in response to the school’s priorities, for example special educational needs. Training for the implementation of the national literacy and numeracy strategies has been a prominent feature in the last year and classroom assistants have been included in the programme appropriately. There are good procedures for the induction of new staff and support for newly qualified teachers. These are clearly set out in the relevant policies and work well in practice. New members of staff are well supported by the head teacher and colleagues and there is a comprehensive and useful staff handbook to inform them of the school routines and general procedures.

p.22

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

Brambletye Junior School - 23 68. The standard of accommodation is very good. The site is extensive, well maintained and secure. Rooms are clean and spacious and specialist teaching areas, for example craft, music and food technology rooms, have been set up to ensure that pupils benefit fully from the space available. Outside areas are more than adequate, providing ample space for physical education, games, and extra-curricular sporting activities. The relocation of the library to an outside building has posed problems of access. However, these have been largely overcome by ensuring appropriate access for teaching groups during the school day and a rota system for individual pupils at lunch times. There is a well-resourced dedicated computer suite at the heart of the school. This is used effectively for information communication technology lessons during the school day and is an important resource for

p.23

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

enthusiastic pupils before and after school.

p.23

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

69. Learning resources are good. In most subjects, shortcomings in the provision of resources have been identified and effectively addressed. The core subjects in particular are well supported. However, some gaps remain. Although there are some resources to support pupils’ growing awareness of Britain as a multicultural and multi-faith society, these are still relatively sparse. Brambletye Junior School - 24

p.23

WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

(1) Ensure assessments are carried out consistently in all subjects and used effectively to inform pupils’ work and to avoid time wasting reassessments by: a) ensuring all teachers assess pupils’ achievements against the identified learning criteria during lessons or over a series of lessons; b) improving teachers’ recording of pupils’ achievements in all subjects by implementing an effective record keeping system to inform teachers in sufficient detail what individual or groups of pupils already know in all of the aspects of all of the subjects; c) improving teachers’ use of assessment records to plan the work pupils do next and the support they receive (paragraphs 23, 24, 51, 80, 95, 118, 123, 139);

p.24

WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

(2) Improve the quality of teaching in Years 3 and 5 in particular by: a) putting more structure and rigour into the monitoring and evaluating of teaching and using the information to make sure that individual teachers understand what does and does not work well in lessons and what they need to do to improve their teaching across all subjects; b) improving the systems to enable staff to identify and share qualities of good and very good teaching; c) setting measurable, individual professional development targets that teachers work towards over an agreed period of time (paragraphs 11, 18, 22, 25, 61, 66, 89, 98, 144);

p.24

WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

(3) Develop the role of the subject co-ordinators in order to improve their contribution to the raising of standards by: a) involving them in monitoring the quality of teaching and learning in their subjects through, for example, lesson observation, discussions with pupils, examination of colleagues’ planning, and scrutinising of pupils’ work; b) increasing their involvement in the identification of priorities for development and improving the quality and usefulness of their subject action plans (paragraphs 62, 66, 103, 108, 115, 123, 134, 139, 146);

p.24

WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

In addition to the key issues above, there are some minor weaknesses that governors’ should have regard to in their action plan:

p.24

WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

1. Pupils’ under-developed knowledge and understanding of technology in the wider world and other religious faiths, and skills in scientific investigation, mathematical problem solving, and art (paragraphs 6, 7, 9, 28, 85, 86, 94, 96, 100, 140) 2. Gaps in some teachers’ subject knowledge in information technology, religious education, design and technology, and art (paragraphs 16, 102, 107, 126). 3. The under-development of pupils’ spiritual and multi-cultural awareness (paragraphs 39, 42). 4. The loss of time during the school day, and the resulting under-emphasis on some foundation subjects (paragraphs 15, 30). 5. Inconsistencies in marking and its usefulness in assessment and informing pupils how to improve their work (paragraphs 29, 80) Brambletye Junior School - 25

p.24

Summary of the sources of evidence for the inspection

Number of discussions with staff, governors, other adults and pupils 46

p.25

Summary of teaching observed during the inspection

Excellent Very good Good Satisfactory Unsatisfactory Poor Very Poor

p.25

Summary of teaching observed during the inspection

0 19% 37% 35% 9% 0 0 The table gives the percentage of teaching observed in each of the seven categories used to make judgements about lessons.

p.25

Information about the school’s pupils

Pupils on the school’s roll Nursery Y3 – Y6

p.25

Information about the school’s pupils

Number of pupils on the school’s roll (FTE for part-time pupils) 331

p.25

Information about the school’s pupils

Number of full-time pupils eligible for free school meals 17 FTE means full-time equivalent.

p.25

Information about the school’s pupils

Special educational needs Nursery Y3 – Y6

p.25

Information about the school’s pupils

Number of pupils with statements of special educational needs 6

p.25

Information about the school’s pupils

Number of pupils on the school’s special educational needs register 64

p.25

Information about the school’s pupils

English as an additional language No of pupils

p.25

Information about the school’s pupils

Number of pupils with English as an additional language 13

p.25

Information about the school’s pupils

Pupil mobility in the last school year No of pupils

p.25

Information about the school’s pupils

Pupils who joined the school other than at the usual time of first admission 17

p.25

Information about the school’s pupils

Pupils who left the school other than at the usual time of leaving 19

p.25

Attendance

National comparative data 5.4 National comparative data 0.5 Both tables give the percentage of half days (sessions) missed through absence for the latest complete reporting year. Brambletye Junior School - 26

p.25

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2

Number of registered pupils in final year of Key Stage 2 for the latest reporting year 1999 50 28 78

p.26

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2

National Curriculum Test/Task Results English Mathematics Science

p.26

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2

Boys 38 36 34 Numbers of pupils at NC level 4 and above Girls 21 16 16

p.26

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2

Percentage of pupils School 76 (64) 67 (61) 64 (72) at NC level 4 or above National 70 (65) 69 (59) 78 (69)

p.26

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2

Teachers’ Assessments English Mathematics Science

p.26

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2

Boys 27 31 34 Numbers of pupils at NC level 4 and above Girls 19 16 15

p.26

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2

Percentage of pupils School 59 (65) 60 (61 63 (65) at NC level 4 or above National 68 (65) 69 (65) 75 (71) Percentages in brackets refer to the year before the latest reporting year. Brambletye Junior School - 27

p.26

Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

Black – Caribbean heritage 1 Black – Caribbean heritage 0 0

p.27

Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

Black – African heritage 1 Black – African heritage 0 0

p.27

Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

Any other minority ethnic group 7 Other minority ethnic groups This table refers to pupils of compulsory school age only. This table gives the number of exclusions of pupils of compulsory school age, which may be different from the number of pupils excluded.

p.27

Teachers and classes Financial information

Total number of qualified teachers (FTE) 13.6 Financial year 1998/99

p.27

Teachers and classes Financial information

Number of pupils per qualified teacher 24

p.27

Teachers and classes Financial information

Education support staff: Y3 – Y6 Total expenditure 621223

p.27

Teachers and classes Financial information

Total number of education support staff 11 Expenditure per pupil 1894

p.27

Teachers and classes Financial information

Total aggregate hours worked per week 131 Balance brought forward from previous year 21934

p.27

Teachers and classes Financial information

Balance carried forward to next year 3106

p.27

Teachers and classes Financial information

Qualified teachers and support staff: nursery

p.27

Teachers and classes Financial information

Total number of qualified teachers (FTE) 0

p.27

Teachers and classes Financial information

Number of pupils per qualified teacher 0

p.27

Teachers and classes Financial information

Total number of education support staff 0

p.27

Teachers and classes Financial information

Number of pupils per FTE adult 0 FTE means full-time equivalent. Brambletye Junior School - 28

p.27

Results of the survey of parents and carers

Percentage of responses in each category

p.28

Results of the survey of parents and carers

Strongly agree Tend to agree Tend to disagree Strongly disagree Don’t know

p.28

Results of the survey of parents and carers

My child is making good progress in school. 38 51 5 2 5

p.28

Results of the survey of parents and carers

Behaviour in the school is good. 33 58 5 1 3

p.28

Results of the survey of parents and carers

My child gets the right amount of work to do at home. 23 59 15 2 2

p.28

Results of the survey of parents and carers

I am kept well informed about how my child is getting on. 25 58 13 2 2

p.28

Results of the survey of parents and carers

I would feel comfortable about approaching the school with questions or a problem. 54 38 5 1 2

p.28

Results of the survey of parents and carers

The school expects my child to work hard and achieve his or her best. 53 44 3 0 1

p.28

Results of the survey of parents and carers

The school works closely with parents. 34 54 11 1 1

p.28

Results of the survey of parents and carers

The school is well led and managed. 43 46 3 0 8

p.28

Results of the survey of parents and carers

The school is helping my child become mature and responsible. 42 52 4 0 3

p.28

Results of the survey of parents and carers

The school provides an interesting range of activities outside lessons. 28 43 19 1 9 Brambletye Junior School - 29

p.28

ENGLISH

71. In 1999, the school’s national test results for 11-year-olds were better overall than other schools nationally, although the percentage of pupils attaining the expected level and the higher level was broadly the same. Results were in line with those schools with similar characteristics. The trend in standards over the last four years has been variable. Test results in 1996 were well above the national average, but fell in 1997 and 1998, against a rising national trend, to average levels. However, the profile of the school has changed since its reorganisation in 1994 from a middle to junior school. During that year, pupils starting in Years 3 and 4 were from different feeder schools and there were fewer higher attaining pupils in both groups. These pupils, nevertheless, made sound progress in English based on the local authority’s analysis of their attainment on entry in 1994 and exit in 1997 and 1998, reflecting the change in test results during these two years. Recent

p.29

ENGLISH

improvements in the quality of teaching and learning, brought about mainly through the implementation of the national literacy strategy, are having a positive effect on standards. Evidence from the inspection supports the view that pupils’ attainment in English is broadly in line with nationally expected levels by the time the pupils leave the school. The targets set in agreement with the local education authority are realistic and on course to be met or exceeded.

p.29

ENGLISH

72. Over the last four years, boys have consistently scored higher levels than the girls in the end of key stage tests. This is due partly to the school’s deliberate strategy, adopted some years ago, to focus specifically on the boys during lessons in an attempt to alleviate some inappropriate behaviour at that time. Teachers have started to redress the balance now, however, by ensuring girls receive equal attention. No incidence of boys being given more attention than the girls was seen in lessons or at other times during the inspection, or of them achieving higher than girls.

p.29

ENGLISH

73. Standards in speaking and listening are satisfactory. Pupils are attentive in class and respond well to teachers’ good questioning. Because teachers explain the tasks clearly, pupils know exactly what they have to do. Most pupils, including those with English as an additional language, express themselves clearly when talking in groups or suggesting alternative versions of the story of ‘The Three Little Pigs’ in class discussion. In almost every class, there are a few pupils who are highly articulate. They use complex sentences, have a wide vocabulary and use specialist words with confidence. For example when discussing different devices in poetry or features of grammar, they employ the right words in the right context. Pupils use Standard English as a matter of course, following the teachers’ example. However, in one discussion it was apparent that many pupils did not understand the distinction between accepted figures of speech and fashionable slang, for

p.29

ENGLISH

example, when discussing examples of hyberpole, they referred to them as “OTT” (over the top).

p.29

ENGLISH

74. Attainment in reading is satisfactory overall, with a number of strengths. Pupils approach their reading with confidence and the majority tackle a wide range of books confidently, including those with English as an additional language. Because they are eager to learn, their progress is often good. Teachers encourage pupils to think carefully about what they are reading, extract key information, and look for meanings beyond the literal. The majority are equally enthusiastic about word-level work. Teachers’ good emphasis and concentration on letter sounds and spelling patterns during literacy lessons is resulting in improvements both to pupils’ sight vocabulary and their ability to tackle unknown words. Consequently, by the end of the key stage, most pupils read fluently and accurately. Higher attaining pupils read with appropriate intonation, emphasis and phrasing. Not only Brambletye Junior School - 30

p.29

ENGLISH

do they understand what they are reading as they read it, they are also developing the ability to ‘read ahead’ in order to get the correct phrasing, for example when they try to express the humour in the ‘Harry Potter’ series of children’s books.

p.30

ENGLISH

75. Pupils with special educational needs make good progress with their reading. When literacy targets are included in their Individual Education Plans, the pupils know what they are and work successfully towards them. Initiatives such as the ‘TRACKS’ programme are effective in extending pupils’ sight vocabulary. When they read aloud, these pupils make good use of context clues and most recognise and correct their own mistakes if their first guess does not make sense.

p.30

ENGLISH

76. Most pupils enjoy their reading. Because of this, they choose books with enthusiasm from the good selection of fiction and non-fiction books in classrooms, the library, or ‘Matilda’s Corner’ – all of which provide a pleasant and comfortable environment in which to relax and enjoy reading. Pupils record their reading in diaries, and many are involved in a scheme that rewards them for reaching a target number of ‘reads’, increasing their interest and motivation further. Because of regular access to and use of the library, pupils know how to find non-fiction books on different topics and use the ‘contents’ and ‘index’ pages correctly to locate specific information.

p.30

ENGLISH

77. Although writing is less secure than reading, standards are satisfactory and show signs of improving. Standards in grammar, spelling and punctuation are good. The way that pupils tackle worksheet exercises on identifying and amending writing errors demonstrates their growing understanding of correct grammatical forms. Because of the appropriate variety of their writing experiences, all pupils, including those with special educational needs and English as an additional language, gain confidence in tackling different kinds of writing. Consequently, in Years 5 and 6 books in particular, there are examples of dialogues, plays, lists, instructions and persuasive writing, in addition to the regular stories. Pupils learn progressively as they move through the school so that by Year 4, the handwriting of most pupils is well formed and joined. In Year 5, when producing a simulated diary of a passenger on the ‘Titanic’, pupils use known facts about the episode to produce a

p.30

ENGLISH

convincing personal account. Year 6 pupils study the features of different genres and their writing is interesting and varied. Higher attaining pupils construct complex sentences, whilst average pupils work hard to extend and improve their skills. Many pupils have difficulty getting started on writing tasks but on the somewhat limited occasions that they are taught how to plan their writing in a structured way, this is less of a problem.

p.30

ENGLISH

78. The development of literacy skills is supported appropriately through work in other subjects. When teachers introduce new vocabulary, they talk about the meaning of technical or specialist words and subsequently, pupils begin to use them correctly in their speech and written work. For example, when ‘time’ is studied in mathematics or ‘vibration’ in science, pupils are encouraged to and do use new terms confidently. This is less evident in music and art, however, where teachers’ subject knowledge is less secure and consequently technical vocabulary is often avoided. Pupils make good use of writing skills to support their studies across the curriculum. During the week of inspection, for example, pupils took notes in a history lesson about the Spanish Armada, jotting down the key facts as they watched a video. Other pupils used ‘bullet points’ when summarising their findings in a technology lesson where they had investigated the behaviour of pulleys. Information

p.30

ENGLISH

technology makes a useful contribution to English. Pupils write stories on the computer and record key words during class discussion. In one lesson seen, a word-processing program was used effectively to write a poem in rhyming couplets and to ensure that the lines were properly arranged.

p.30

ENGLISH

79. The quality of teaching is good overall. No unsatisfactory lessons were seen. In half of the lessons, teaching was good and in a small number it was very good. The best lessons were characterised by a brisk pace and a wide variety of different challenges packed into Brambletye Junior School - 31 the time available, such whole class teaching on both text and word-level work, independent work well matched to each group’s abilities, and an effective summing up of the main points of the lesson. Teachers interact well with their pupils and use questioning effectively to stimulate pupils’ thinking and clarify their understanding. The good subject knowledge of teachers, enhanced by the national literacy strategy, and the genuine enthusiasm they display is striking and stimulates pupils to become fully involved in the tasks set, such as when pupils are encouraged to analyse the structure of limericks and

p.30

ENGLISH

80. The literacy strategy has been fully implemented and is proving effective, particularly in developing pupils’ basic word skills. Teachers have a good understanding of the overall structure of the strategy and plan their lessons well. Daily and weekly plans are thorough and coherent and give good structure to the lessons. However, teaching is less effective when the work is not well matched to pupils’ needs, resulting from teachers’ inadequate use of assessment information especially when planning the group tasks. In these instances, the work is either too difficult so that pupils cannot work independently or it is too easy and time is wasted. For example, when pupils are faced with a blank sheet for their writing and are not sure how to start, or conversely when they are allowed twenty minutes for the completion of a simple worksheet. Marking of pupils’ written work is inconsistent in its usefulness. Comments, such as “You have not tried very hard”, do not

p.31

ENGLISH

make it clear to pupils what they must do to improve. However, in some classes, a standard set of symbols is used to indicate where corrections need to be made and comments are constructive.

p.31

ENGLISH

81. Pupils have a good attitude to the subject. They display a real interest in English, whether examining the rules of grammar, punctuation and spelling or discussing stories and poems. Pupils enjoyed the topic on humorous poetry and sharing their favourite poems with each other. They work productively in lessons, especially when teachers use the time well and set clear deadlines for the completion of tasks. Teachers are very clear what they want pupils to learn and share this information well with their pupils. Pupils have individual learning targets, which they aim to achieve over time. This results in a raised level of pupils’ awareness of their own learning and a clearer understanding of what they need to do to make progress.

p.31

ENGLISH

82. Since the last inspection, several new initiatives have been introduced, which are just beginning to affect standards. The implementation of the literacy strategy has been supported by the purchase of a range of new resources and the library has been refurbished. Support from the local education authority’s literacy consultant, along with a programme of monitoring teaching throughout the school, have resulted in better teaching. The adoption of optional national tests and a standardised reading test help to monitor standards. Moves to improve the quality of writing include strategies to help pupils plan their extended writing more systematically. An action plan for the subject has been drawn up in which appropriate priorities for development are clearly identified, including improving the quality of pupils’ extended writing.

p.31

MATHEMATICS

83. The results of the 1999 national tests for 11 year-olds were in line with other schools nationally and those with similar characteristics. Based on the local education authority’s analysis, these results were as expected given these pupils’ attainment on entry in 1995. The trend of attainment over time has been one of continual improvement year-on-year since 1996, with particularly good improvement between 1997 and 1999. Inspection findings reflect the view that standards are in line with nationally expected levels, with a significant number of pupils achieving the higher level in number and algebra. This encouraging improvement is a direct result of the successful measures taken by the school including the introduction of extra lunchtime classes and the setting of pupils in Brambletye Junior School - 32 ability groups. The school’s successful implementation of the national numeracy strategy is already impacting well on standards in mental arithmetic in particular. The school’s

p.31

MATHEMATICS

thorough analysis of the results of the optional testing at the end of Years 3, 4 and 5 highlights pupils’ strengths and weaknesses in the subject and is carefully used to set targets for individuals. The overall targets set in agreement with the local education authority are realistic and on course to be met or exceeded.

p.32

MATHEMATICS

84. An analysis of results over recent years shows that the performance of boys in the tests is better than that of girls. However, this is currently being addressed and was not found to be so during the inspection.

p.32

MATHEMATICS

85. Standards have improved overall since the last inspection in 1996, particularly in numeracy and basic number skills. However, pupils’ ability to use and apply their mathematical skills and knowledge to solve problems is still limited because insufficient teaching time and attention is given to investigative and problem solving activities. Teachers rely too much on commercially produced workbooks which limits pupils’ breadth and range of ‘hands on experience’ opportunities most necessary for mathematical learning. Nevertheless, pupils understand how to use and interpret simple data in bar and line graphs. Because of good access to the computers and effective computer skills’ teaching, they make appropriate use of computer programs for data handling. They do not, however, have sufficient knowledge of where to use different types of graphs, for example line graphs to show rainfall measurements recorded over time in geography and

p.32

MATHEMATICS

have too few opportunities to record their own data in different forms.

p.32

MATHEMATICS

86. By the time they leave school, most pupils work confidently with numbers to 1000 and recall multiplication facts up to ten. Equivalent fractions are understood by most Year 6 pupils and the higher attaining confidently find one-fifth of a pound and convert fractions to decimals and percentages. Most pupils solve money and measurement calculations confidently, and employ a range of strategies to use the four operations of computation effectively. Most pupils identify and recognise the properties of common two-dimensional shapes and draw them variously orientated on grids, but because of their lack of experience and opportunity, their ability to solve problems and to use units of length, capacity and time in practical contexts, is limited.

p.32

MATHEMATICS

87. Pupils make sound progress during their time in school. The quality of teaching has improved since the last inspection, impacting well on pupils’ learning, particularly in number and algebra. The organisation of teaching in ability sets in Years 5 and 6 ensures work is suitably adapted to meet pupils’ assessed needs and enhances pupils’ progress during lessons. Pupils in these year groups show increased competence in the use of different strategies to analyse and solve number problems. They experience a range of mathematical activities and appropriate emphasis is placed on application of knowledge and rapid acquisition of numeracy skills. Pupils with special educational needs make good progress. Their learning accelerates where tasks are closely matched to their individual learning targets and are in progressive, manageable steps. Year 3 pupils are gaining an understanding of counting forwards and backwards in fours and exploring multiples of two,

p.32

MATHEMATICS

five and 10. Most can spot features of patterns on a 100 square. Year 4 pupils are developing accuracy in arranging simple fractions in order. Year 5 show increased competence in reading analogue times and converting them into digital. Year 6 successfully plot points on graphs using four quadrant co-ordinates. They demonstrate developing confidence to explain their work and record it with improved understanding.

p.32

MATHEMATICS

88. Pupils’ attitudes in mathematics are good. Pupils of all ages persevere and approach the tasks with good interest and enjoyment, particularly when provided with challenging opportunities, ‘hands on’ experiences, and real life situations. Most adopt good work habits and collaborate well in pairs and groups. Presentation of work is generally good. Most pupils apply themselves well to their tasks and are willing to ask questions and Brambletye Junior School - 33 communicate what they have learnt. Relationships are good and promote effective learning.

p.32

MATHEMATICS

89. The quality of teaching in mathematics is good. It is consistently good in Year 6 in particular where half of the lessons seen were very good. There was one unsatisfactory lesson in Year 3 where the work was not matched accurately to pupils’ abilities. Teachers have good knowledge of the subject and because of this, they make good demands on pupils in whole class and group sessions. Consequently pupils’ learning is good. Teachers use suitable teaching methods and effective organisational strategies. Where teaching is best, lessons move at a brisk pace, there is clear purpose to tasks, and activities are well matched to pupils’ ability and provide suitable challenge, particularly in Years 5 and 6 where pupils are taught in attainment sets. Good teaching approaches include effective exposition, the promotion of good quality discussion and opportunities for consolidation and practical work. Most teachers manage pupils skilfully with appropriate expectations of

p.33

MATHEMATICS

behaviour. Teachers’ day-to-day assessment and recording of pupils’ achievements is inconsistent. It, and the marking of pupils’ work (although generally positive and completed regularly), is not always diagnostic and used to inform future planning. Teachers’ assessments of what pupils learn during lessons and subsequently know, understand and can do, are insufficiently detailed and are not used effectively to set future work all of the time by all of the teachers. A suitable amount of homework is set to extend what is learnt in school and this helps to consolidate pupils’ understanding well.

p.33

MATHEMATICS

90. Pupils’ skills in numeracy make a positive contribution to pupils’ attainment and progress in other subjects and numeracy is promoted effectively through work in, for example, music and design and technology when counting beats in a bar and measuring materials for model-making.

p.33

MATHEMATICS

91. Mathematics has been a recent focus for development. The school is fully committed to raising standards, and the successful implementation of the numeracy strategy is already impacting positively on this. Subject leadership and management are very effective; lesson monitoring has already led to improvements in individual teaching and learning. Each classroom is equipped with an appropriate range of basic mathematical equipment organised for ease of access, and resources for the teaching of numeracy are adequate, but there are insufficient resources for some practical work, for example too few clocks for work on time.

p.33

SCIENCE

92. The percentage of pupils reaching the expected level and above in the 1999 national tests for 11-year-olds was well below other schools nationally and those with similar characteristics. The trend in standards over time at Brambletye is one of overall improvement, however, with results rising from below the national average in 1997 to in line with the national average in 1998. Between 1998 and 1999, however, standards in science in most schools rose considerably. Although at this school a similar percentage of pupils in 1998 and 1999 reached the expected Level 4 and above, their results did not keep in line with the rising trend nationally, and dropped to well below the national average. The school has worked hard, however, to put into place several effective strategies, which are now beginning to have a positive effect on the teaching and learning throughout the school. Consequently, inspection evidence shows that this year, most

p.33

SCIENCE

pupils in Year 6 are achieving expected levels for their age and the school is on course to achieve its target of eighty per cent of pupils at Level 4 and above by the time the pupils leave the school. The performance of boys has been better than girls in the tests over the last four years, but this was not significantly apparent during the inspection. 93. A thorough analysis of teaching and learning took place last year, following the 1999 tests, including the careful study of pupils’ answers to test questions, scrutiny of pupils’ work, and lesson observations. Weaknesses were found in investigative and experimental Brambletye Junior School - 34 science, teachers’ planning, and the quality of teaching in Year 6 in particular. The school has successfully addressed all of these issues. The co-ordinator for science has supported Year 6 teachers, offering advice and support and improving their subject

p.33

SCIENCE

knowledge considerably. Planning has been standardised throughout the school, based on the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority scheme. Teachers identify what they want pupils to learn by the end of lessons, and share their intentions openly with the pupils, increasing pupils’ interest and motivation. They plan a good range of activities with particular emphasis on experimental and investigative science, such as investigating what seeds need to germinate and plants need to grow.

p.34

SCIENCE

94. By the end of the key stage, pupils achieve above average standards in their knowledge and understanding of life processes and living things, with most pupils having a good understanding of the functions of the heart and how energy reaches the muscles through the circulatory system. Although opportunities for experimental and investigative science have increased, pupils’ experimental and investigative skills are not yet fully developed due to over direction and the lack of opportunities for the pupils to create, plan, and carry out their own investigations.

p.34

SCIENCE

95. The school has made good progress since its last inspection in 1996. Standards are broadly the same, but higher attaining pupils’ needs are met more effectively. Curriculum planning has improved considerably and pupils’ learning is built more systematically over time. Assessment remains a weakness in some classes.

p.34

SCIENCE

96. Nevertheless, all pupils, including those with special educational needs, make good progress in their development of scientific ideas and understanding. Pupils in Year 3 make simple observations and draw their own conclusions about, for example, how sound is produced by vibration, recording their work in either pictures or written accounts. Year 4 pupils create and conduct experiments in groups to discover their own pulse rates and how they are affected by vigorous exercise. They make sensible predictions about what might happen and record the data accurately on tables and graphs. They then interpret the information to draw their conclusions. Year 5 pupils have a satisfactory knowledge and understanding of the insulation properties of various materials and know through their practical investigations that water evaporates and air has weight. They have a secure grasp of the conditions plants require to grow healthily and brighter pupils appreciate that

p.34

SCIENCE

germination does not require the same conditions. They are taught well how to record their results using a variety of formats, but have not yet had opportunities to use their own initiative when recording.

p.34

SCIENCE

97. The quality of teaching is good. Three-quarters of the lessons seen were good or very good; a quarter was unsatisfactory. All of the lessons in Years 4 and 6 were very good. A particular strength is the sharing of lesson objectives and learning targets with the pupils, challenging them well and increasing their motivation. Because teachers’ introductions and instructions are clear, pupils understand what work they are to carry out in order to achieve the targets. This builds their confidence well, especially when their previous learning is probed through skilful questioning by some teachers and their answers are listened to with respect. The best teaching in Years 4 and 6 in particular is inspirational, interesting, and delivered with enthusiasm, motivating pupils to pay careful attention and take a full part in the lesson. Well-organised group or individual tasks, with suitable resources readily available, encourage pupils’ participation well. The pace is brisk with

p.34

SCIENCE

pupils being made fully aware of the time left for them to finish their work. Pupils react positively to this and work industriously and with enjoyment. The majority of lessons conclude with a useful discussion. Teachers use questions well during these times to ascertain what has been learned through the sharing of pupils’ work and opinions. The skills of teaching experimental and investigative science are improving, but there is still a tendency for some teachers to over-direct pupils rather than encourage them to develop their own ideas and ways of working. Assessment of pupils’ progress during some lessons Brambletye Junior School - 35 is good, with some teachers intervening well whilst pupils are working to check progress and give helpful advice. Some teachers evaluate pupils’ progress towards the learning outcomes of the lesson well, which they then take into consideration when planning future

p.34

SCIENCE

work. This is not, however, carried out consistently across the school and is a weakness remaining in part from the last inspection.

p.35

SCIENCE

98. There is some unsatisfactory teaching in Years 3 and 5, where tasks are not always pitched at an appropriate level and teachers do not always have due regard to what pupils’ already know, understand and can do. Lesson organisation is not always appropriate for the tasks set and teacher’s management skills do not always ensure a quiet, controlled learning environment, causing pupils to lose interest and behave unsuitably and consequently, make very little progress.

p.35

SCIENCE

99. The school is committed to and is in a good position to improve the teaching of science and raise standards because of the effective leadership and management of the subject and recent improvements to long and medium term curriculum planning. The co-ordinator provides keen leadership, backed up by good help and co-operation from the head teacher and the local education authority’s advisory service. Her action plan contains appropriately well focused strategies designed to consolidate the improvements made and to raise standards further through relevant priorities for development incorporated in the school development plan.

p.35

ART

100. By the time the pupils leave the school at 11, their artistic achievements are not as high as expected for pupils of this age. Their learning is limited and consequently, their knowledge and understanding of different artistic techniques are weak and their observational drawings and paintings do not incorporate sufficient depth and perspective. Although pupils are reminded by teachers to look carefully at and to pay good attention to detail in order to draw accurate representations of what they see, such as body parts and segments of fruit, they are unsure about how to apply shading effectively to create a three dimensional effect. They mix their own paints, however, and incorporate good detail into their work. They are aware of different techniques used by different artists, such as ‘dabbing’, but their artistic vocabulary is weak and they do not know or use the correct terminology when talking about art. They are given opportunities to copy the work of other

p.35

ART

artists and can name some painters, but are vague about the different styles in which they work and consequently are unable to use them to influence their own artistic style. They carry out little evaluation of what does and does not work in their own pictures and the work of others, and so have little lasting impression of what works well and why.

p.35

ART

101. Pupils have good attitudes towards their work in art. They talk enthusiastically about their past work. They are given a sufficient range of artistic experiences, but standards in art have clearly declined since the last inspection. This is because there is too little time allocated to the teaching of art and it does not have a sufficiently high enough profile throughout the school. It is under-represented in the school’s curriculum and confined much of the time to illustrating work in other subjects, such as drawing pictures of Islamic pilgrimages in Year 5 and animal habitats in Year 6.

p.35

ART

102. Only two art lessons were seen during the inspection so no overall judgement is made about the quality of teaching. However, from discussions with pupils and the co-ordinator and the limited range of artwork seen around the school, it is clear that techniques and skills are not taught in sufficient depth to enable pupils to achieve high enough standards. This was particularly evident in a Year 5 lesson seen where the work produced was low quality. Teachers are unclear what artistic skills pupils are to acquire during lessons, with vague and sometimes too broad learning intentions such as “to produce a painting in the style of a famous painter”. It is unclear from this what skill or technique pupils are to learn, Brambletye Junior School - 36 why and how. Computers are used effectively to create pictures and pupils use the software with confidence and creativity.

p.35

ART

103. The co-ordinator is temporary and new to the school and as yet, has very little idea about standards in art or what needs improving. She monitors resources and ensures displays are attractive and changed regularly, but does not focus sufficiently on standards, teaching and learning. Although her subject knowledge is good, she has not yet been able to gain a real feel for what is happening around the school and does not observe the teaching of art or see colleagues’ plans. The scheme of work is too lengthy and impossible to teach in the time available. Staff ‘pick and choose’ particular aspects from it, but then other teachers do not know what has been taught in previous years or what pupils have learned. Assessment is weak, but there are plans to develop systems and procedures so that teachers are clearer about pupils’ previous achievements.

p.36

DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

104. Good improvement has been made since the last inspection when standards were below expected levels and a number of weaknesses were identified. Inspection evidence shows that by the time the pupils leave the school, their achievements are as expected for their age. Pupils now work with a variety of materials and practise a range of joining and construction techniques and finish and decorate their products appropriately, for example in the ‘shoe-box’ project. They think more carefully about design, and plan in advance. They are developing good skills in evaluating strengths and weakness and looking for ways to improve their products such as the best way to attach wings to a cardboard cut- out of Icarus to achieve a realistic effect.

p.36

DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

105. Construction skills are sound. Pupils in Year 3 investigate the action of levers using card and paper fasteners; they are aware of the limitations of the material and adapt their ideas accordingly, for example, taking care not to punch holes too near the edge of card, which may cause tearing. Some pupils in Year 6, however, are unfamiliar with the properties of modelling clay and realise too late that their designs of artefacts from the ‘Mary Rose’ cannot easily be implemented with this material, but learn nevertheless through their mistake. In addition to ‘making’ projects, pupils have sufficient opportunities to discover some basic mechanical principles, for example the behaviour of pulleys and belt-drives, and the ways they can be used. These lessons have a genuine ‘investigative feel’ and pupils are very clear about their findings.

p.36

DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

106. Pupils respond well to the subject. They are enthusiastic about making things and listen carefully to instructions. They express themselves clearly when asked to identify strengths and weaknesses in their designs or report back on their investigations. Use of the specialist craft room creates an atmosphere of excitement and anticipation.

p.36

DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

107. The quality of teaching is satisfactory overall. It was good in one lesson seen in Year 6. The newly implemented scheme of work supports teachers well in planning their design and technology lessons, although, due to time constraints, the scheme has been ‘slimmed down’ from the one originally adopted. Teachers question pupils well to help them clarify their ideas and provide a good mix of explanation, demonstration, and practical work. Safety aspects are adequately covered. Insecure subject knowledge and lack of confidence on the part of a small number of teachers results in teachers being unable to Brambletye Junior School - 37 think of examples to explain key principles and sometimes giving incorrect technical information.

p.36

DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

108. Much of the improvement achieved in the subject has been due to practical initiatives like the fitting out of the specialist craft room and the thoughtful purchase of new resources including wood, plastics, cloth, clay and construction kits to supplement a good supply of recycled materials. The co-ordinator provides effective leadership and management through the selection of resources and dissemination of planning ideas as well as general advice and support. However, she does not monitor teaching and learning and consequently, her influence in raising standards is limited. There are no assessment procedures in place to inform teaching, particularly from year-to-year, limiting pupils’ continual development in the subject.

p.37

FRENCH

109. French is taught to pupils in Years 5 and 6 once a week for approximately forty minutes. Teachers speak French fluently and there is sufficient documentation to support them in their lesson planning. Aims and objectives are clear; pupils are taught French in the main to increase their European awareness.

p.37

FRENCH

110. Pupils’ competence meets the general aims and objectives of the planned course. By the time they leave the school, a number of pupils speak words, phrases or short sentences competently. They use an increasing range of French vocabulary and their fluency and pronunciation is better than it was. Many pupils ask and answer questions in French about a range of topics, including their families and the weather. They are learning to read and write the language, when making up for example their family tree, and are developing an appropriate awareness of French culture.

p.37

FRENCH

111. Pupils have positive attitudes towards their work in French lessons. They are enthusiastic about learning another language and find the lively lilt of the French language fun. Some of them express pride in being able to converse with their older brothers or sisters at home and feel well prepared for secondary education. They are pleased that through their lessons and practice at home, their French speaking has improved over time and those that visit France say that they can now understand some of what is being said.

p.37

FRENCH

112. Only two lessons were seen during the inspection, so no overall judgement is made about the quality of teaching. However, what was seen was satisfactory. Teachers’ subject knowledge is secure. Lessons are well organised and teachers are clear about what pupils are to learn by the end. This gives good direction to teaching and clear purpose to tasks. Pupils’ learning is built systematically as the lessons progress. An appropriate emphasis is put on conversational French in both year groups, as well as building pupils’ skills in reading and writing the language. Pupils are encouraged to use French all of the time during the lessons and the teachers slip comfortably and skilfully from French to English and back again to support the less confident ones.

p.37

FRENCH

113. There is an appropriate range of resources including books, games, and audio and videotapes and tape players to support teaching and learning.

p.37

GEOGRAPHY

114. Due to the way in which the geography Programmes of Study are arranged in the school’s curriculum, only one lesson was planned during the time of the inspection. The scrutiny of pupils’ work and the displays around the school failed to produce sufficient evidence from which to make a valid judgement about standards, teaching, or learning. Evidence for other Brambletye Junior School - 38 judgements is based on discussions with pupils, staff and the subject co-ordinator, and the scrutiny of planning documents.

p.37

GEOGRAPHY

115. Since the last inspection, the school has produced a geography policy and a scheme of work that provides adequate coverage of the Programmes of Study. There is still a lack of geography expertise amongst the staff, however, and there are still no procedures in place for formally assessing the attainment of pupils or of gauging the standard of teaching through lesson observations.

p.38

GEOGRAPHY

116. The majority of the activities planned take place in the summer term, when pupils in Year 6 take part in a field visit around which most of their geographical studies are planned. Pupils in other years study either a Caribbean island, features of the school’s locality, or rivers.

p.38

GEOGRAPHY

117. In discussions, pupils have indistinct memories of the geographical work they have undertaken and do not speak with any confidence about many geographical concepts. When prompted, however, they recall some features of rivers, weather conditions, and the ‘water cycle’. During the inspection, pupils in Year 5 used weather data previously collected over a period and were able to use a computer to produce a variety of graphs to show their results.

p.38

GEOGRAPHY

118. The school has sufficient resources to provide for the different strands of the subject. It plans the stepped introduction of The Qualifications and Curriculum Authority’s schemes of work from September this year. This provides the opportunity for a greater breadth and balance for the subject as well as planned assessments of attainment and learning, both of which are lacking at the moment.

p.38

HISTORY

119. By the time the pupils leave the school, their attainment is appropriate for pupils of their age. Pupils in the older classes have good recall of factual information about various historical events such as the Spanish Armada, the reigns of Tudor monarchs, and the wives of Henry V111. Their knowledge of the everyday lives of people living in different periods of history, in Roman, Saxon, and Tudor times for example, is more restricted. They tend to make bald comparisons between ‘rich’ and ‘poor’, with little idea about the quality of life for everyday people of the time. They have some idea of the passing of time and talk about some of the differences between ‘now’ and ‘then’, but are unsure about why things have changed.

p.38

HISTORY

120. Teaching and learning is sound overall across the key stage. There was some good teaching seen in Year 6. Teachers provide an appropriate range of experiences to help pupils’ understanding of historical events. Pupils watch and take notes on video re- creations of the Spanish Armada, for example. They dress up as Victorians, and ‘act’ as chimney sweeps. They use Roman numerals in mathematical calculations, and design and make Roman brooches and Saxon houses in art and design and technology. They carry out research, producing evidence in their own words. They have good opportunities to use computers to generate mock Victorian newspapers. This enables them to research accidents to young children and to reproduce front-page accounts of these events and to empathise with those children, whilst extending their literacy skills. However, the opportunities for pupils to write at length as though living in past times, and thus gain more

p.38

HISTORY

121. Satisfactory progress has been made since the last inspection. Teachers have reduced their use of undemanding worksheets, which are now more closely allied to the ability of the pupils and the lesson’s learning objectives. Teachers on occasion give pupils the opportunity to discuss the veracity of forms of evidence, for example in the accounts of Brambletye Junior School - 39 the Spanish Armada given by surviving sailors from both sides. However, this practice is inconsistent and consequently not all pupils know what makes a particular source of evidence more reliable than another. When the teaching focus is on the people of a period rather than ‘the facts’, pupils’ learning is much enhanced. For example, pupils in Year 4 make in-depth examinations of the lives of street urchins and poor people in Victorian times, culminating in the production of a musical based on the lot of street urchins and the work of Dr. Barnado. Teachers make good use of visits to Hampton Court

p.38

HISTORY

and Lullingstone to give pupils first hand experience of buildings and artefacts associated with their studies of the past. The school makes appropriate use of visiting companies in order to provide opportunities for ‘first hand’ experience, including The Goddess Athena, The Rainbow Theatre, and older people living in the neighbourhood. Pupils benefit from days in school devoted to different times in history such as Victorian and Roman days, with a Greek day soon to follow.

p.39

HISTORY

122. The school’s resources for history are adequate to meet the needs of the Programmes of Study, although there is a lack of historical artefacts. This lack has been offset through the use of the local authority’s lending services, however.

p.39

HISTORY

123. There is no formal assessment of pupils’ attainment and learning or of the standard of teaching. The role of the co-ordinator is undeveloped with, for example, little opportunity for her to make an input to planning or to assess standards across the school.

p.39

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

124. By the time the pupils leave the school, their use of technology to communicate and handle information exceeds expected levels and their use of technology to model and simulate different situations and program and control devices is appropriate for pupils of their age. Most pupils work out, enter, and test a sequence of instructions for making models and confidently solve control problems that occur. Pupils use the computer confidently to simulate a situation and to make choices. For example, pupils in Year 5 produce their own school plans, putting in mazes, ponds and paths, and amend them as the viability of their choices fail to stand up to challenges from their classmates. In Year 6, pupils confidently explore spreadsheets in order to see what the consequences of a particular decision are. Pupils use computers well to show information in a variety of ways and to input and manipulate data. They produce, for example, stories, poems, charts,

p.39

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

graphs and pictures using the word processing programs and more advanced data portrayal facilities. Pupils have less well-developed knowledge of how technology influences our everyday lives.

p.39

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

125. Improvement since the last inspection is good, brought about largely through the provision of direct, whole class teaching using the newly created computer suite. During lessons, teachers closely monitor the progress of individual pupils and provide help where and when it is needed. This has led, particularly in communicating information, to pupils accessing and confidently using a wide range of the computer’s facilities. For example, pupils in Year 3 use the computer routinely to produce different forms of writing. They access different fonts, change the print size, use the ‘spell check’ facility, cut and paste sections of their work as well as paragraph it, and use the preview option before printing off their work. They produce play scripts that have the correct layout, devise and record their own musical compositions, and create imaginative signs and pictures. Teachers in the older classes make good use of data collected by pupils to teach them how to use

p.39

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

spreadsheets to produce reports for their ‘topic’ presentations. For example, data collected on the weather is checked and inputted into the computer database, cut and pasted from a spreadsheet to create different forms of graphs, and then incorporated into pupils’ weather report writing.

p.39

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

126. The quality of teaching is satisfactory overall. There was some very good teaching seen in Brambletye Junior School - 40 Year 4. The expertise and subject knowledge of teachers of computers is satisfactory overall, but it varies from good to insecure. Where it is more secure, pupils make faster, more rapid progress during lessons. For example, pupils in Year 4 quickly learn the functions of different icons, the way to scroll through different fields, and to carry out a single file search. Good use is made of focused questions, demonstrations of techniques, and close monitoring of what pupils are doing. Pupils are set challenging tasks in order to practise the skills being developed and maintain high levels of concentration. This ensures rapid progress, and the lessons move along at a brisk pace, with pupils becoming increasingly confident in carrying out the required operations. Where teachers’ knowledge

p.39

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

is less secure, there is a tendency for teachers to make use of the higher attaining pupils to assist those having difficulties. These pupils provide appropriate advice and instruction and in so doing enhance their own understanding of the functions being used. Although teachers have sufficient expertise and understanding to ensure pupils progress, they need too much time to determine where individual pupils have gone wrong. This leads to pupils having to wait for individual attention and time is lost. With better understanding, teachers could pre-empt errors, provide more secure guidance and demonstration, and thus make better use of the time available.

p.40

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

127. The school makes good use of The Qualifications and Curriculum Authority’s scheme of work, which ensures all strands of the National Curriculum Programmes of Study are covered in sufficient depth. It has invested a great deal of time, effort and finance in providing a suite of computers, which successfully enables whole classes to be taught together. The presence of information technology is much in evidence around the school and this is a significant improvement since the last inspection. There are well-detailed plans to improve the provision in this subject through a programme of extension and renewal as well as providing the school with its own external website. The latter offers an exciting opportunity for pupils and the school generally to reach a wide audience with their work and communications.

p.40

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

128. The need to extend teachers’ understanding, knowledge and skills has been identified and suitable courses are available with teachers expressing a willingness to attend.

p.40

MUSIC

129. By the time the pupils leave the school, standards in music are as expected for pupils of this age. Pupils’ attainment was good at the time of the last inspection, but the school accepts that music is no longer a high profile subject within its curriculum. It receives a below average amount of teaching time and the range of extra-curricular activities has decreased. Nevertheless, there is still a music club and some pupils receive good quality tuition in recorder playing.

p.40

MUSIC

130. Pupils’ learning in performing and composing is particularly good. Pupils’ ability to read symbols correctly in order to play instrumental compositions is built systematically over time and pupils of all ages have a well-developed awareness of pulse and rhythm. They understand that different notes represent a certain number of beats, and play rhythms confidently and with developing accuracy. They sing with good diction and awareness of tempo and pitch. They know that their bodies can be used to produce musical sounds by, for example, tapping and clapping. Pupils in Year 6 chose appropriate instruments to represent sounds such as horses galloping into battle and soldiers fighting. They listen attentively to music and suggest, for example, which sections of the music represent the witches casting spells in ‘Night on Bare Mountain’. Their musical vocabulary is limited, however, and they do not understand or use terms such as ‘dynamics’, ‘duration’, or

p.40

MUSIC

‘tempo’ accurately to describe what they hear. They talk knowledgeably about composers and their works, such as Vivaldi’s Four Seasons. Brambletye Junior School - 41 131. Pupils have good attitudes towards their work in music. They work creatively and productively when making up class or small group musical compositions. They talk confidently about music they have listened to in the past and sensibly about how to create sounds to represent, for example, rain or lightening. They concentrate well in lessons and listen attentively to the teacher. They follow instructions on taped lessons well and join in enthusiastically with the singing and playing.

p.40

MUSIC

132. The quality of teaching in the lessons seen was good overall. It was very good in one lesson in Year 6 where the teaching was inspirational; through her own enthusiasm, the teacher motivated pupils very well. Her subject knowledge is particularly good and the lesson moved at a brisk and lively pace, holding the interest and attention of the pupils well. The other lessons seen were generally well prepared and organised, mainly due to an effective curriculum over view, which supports teachers well and ensures that they build pupils’ learning systematically over time. Teachers and pupils are very clear what is to be learnt by the end of the lesson. Because of this, lessons are well structured, tasks are meaningful and purposeful, pupils are motivated, and consequently learning is good. Although some teachers rely on taped lessons, they use them very effectively, stopping and starting the tape appropriately and stressing particular points, such as clarity of diction

p.41

MUSIC

133. Pupils use computers appropriately to compose music. Tape recorders are used to record pupils’ music so that they can listen to, evaluate, and if appropriate, change it later. Literacy is promoted well when reading lyrics from songbooks and pupils’ numeracy skills are developed successfully when counting beats represented by particular notes and the beats in a bar.

p.41

MUSIC

134. Leadership and management of the subject are satisfactory. The co-ordinator has plans to raise the profile of music throughout the school, and to improve pupils’ singing skills and the range of extra-curricular clubs. She has clear direction for the promotion and improvement of the subject, although her influence is limited because of her lack of involvement in monitoring lessons. She is unsure where individual teachers’ strengths and weaknesses lie and, therefore, how she can help colleagues to improve their teaching. There are no agreed whole school assessment systems or procedures and teachers are unclear about what pupils already know when they join their class at the beginning of the year.

p.41

PHYSICAL EDUCATION

135. By the time the pupils leave the school, their attainment is in line with that expected of pupils of a similar age. Standards are high in games and swimming, due in the main to effective teaching in both these aspects. This is a similar judgement to the previous inspection. Only one dance lesson and one gymnastics lesson were observed during the inspection, but scrutiny of the planning documentation shows that all of the aspects of physical education are taught.

p.41

PHYSICAL EDUCATION

136. The high standards in swimming are attained through the good level of instruction by suitably qualified staff at the local swimming pool. Pupils are confident in the water, and know how to rest and float in a variety of positions either on their backs or fronts. A good proportion of the pupils use a recognised crawl stroke, while others propel themselves along using less sophisticated strokes.

p.41

PHYSICAL EDUCATION

137. Pupils learn the skills of different sports as they pass through the school. The youngest pupils are beginning to use a variety of ways of transferring a football, hockey ball and basketball to a partner, using appropriate passes successfully but not all are confident when receiving the ball. There is satisfactory control when Year 4 pupils strike a stationary hockey ball, but they have difficulty when moving and hitting at the same time. Year 4 Brambletye Junior School - 42 pupils successfully perform several traditional British country-dances, with improving skills at dancing rhythmically when working as a group. Pupils in Year 5 show sound imagination when balancing in pairs, using different combinations of hands and feet when connecting with a partner. Girls in the after-school netball club show a good standard of passing, changing direction, moving into a space and shooting. Year 6 pupils perform

p.41

PHYSICAL EDUCATION

sustained energetic activities well over fixed periods of time and show good progress when comparing performances each week. The majority of pupils across the school have a good awareness of the benefits of physical activity on the heart and body. They wear suitable clothing and footwear, following the good example of their class teachers.

p.42

PHYSICAL EDUCATION

138. The quality of teaching is good. Some very good teaching was seen in Year 6. The greatest majority of lessons observed were good, with a third very good. None of the lessons seen were unsatisfactory. Lesson learning targets are clear, with a good range of activities designed to achieve them successfully. Teachers use the medium term plans conscientiously to ensure that all aspects of physical education are taught and consequently, pupils’ skills develop naturally from year-to-year. Teachers intervene in pupils’ learning well, coaching them effectively, resulting in good progress during lessons and over time. Pupil demonstrations are used well to demonstrate good practice and are usually accompanied by helpful coaching comments from the teachers, designed to help pupils improve and develop their skills and understanding. Pupils listen carefully and work hard to improve their own standards, especially successful when they are given

p.42

PHYSICAL EDUCATION

opportunities to comment on their own or the work of others and then provided with further time to refine their work. Teachers have good subject knowledge, resulting in good instruction and support, and well-planned lessons. Pupils of all ages are very keen to take part in individual, paired and group activities, which form the basis of most lessons. There is good development of pupils’ collaborative skills, which help them when playing small group or team activities. Pupils make good progress in their understanding of the need for warm-up and cool-down activities. The oldest pupils explain clearly the benefits to muscles of these activities and perform them conscientiously. Teachers use assessment well during the lesson followed by good use of demonstrations to make helpful coaching points. This helps pupils gain a further understanding of the particular skills being practised and improves their standards. Pupils enjoy physical education lessons and

p.42

PHYSICAL EDUCATION

respond very positively – especially when the class teacher is enthusiastic. Teachers’ management skills are generally good which sets the tone of a lesson and encourages pupils to work hard and produce their best work. The majority of pupils with special educational needs make good progress.

p.42

PHYSICAL EDUCATION

139. The co-ordinator is very supportive and supplies a good range of materials designed to help teachers to develop pupils’ skills appropriately as they move through the school. Resources are good and kept in good condition. Pupils benefit from very good accommodation with a well-resourced hall and huge playing fields. Swimming lessons are organised well to give pupils who haven’t learned to swim further opportunities each year. The co-ordinator has taken on increasing responsibilities confidently, with helpful guidance from the head teacher. Extra-curricular games activities are well-organised, with good support from several members of staff and much enjoyed by pupils. Their skills and confidence are much enhanced by the competitive events against other schools. Further development planned includes sharing good practice and in-service training to further improve staff competence and confidence. Methods of formal assessment and record

p.42

PHYSICAL EDUCATION

keeping are not in place, so teachers are unsure of the stage of development pupils’ skills are at, particularly at the beginning of the year. The co-ordinator has monitored planning but has not observed teaching and learning in lessons and is therefore limited in influencing improvements to teaching. Brambletye Junior School - 43

p.42

RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

140. By the time the pupils leave the school, their attainment meets the requirements of the locally Agreed Syllabus for religious education. Most pupils know about the life of Jesus Christ through stories from the Bible and demonstrate adequate knowledge of His teachings. Many understand the deep meaning of religious stories, when exploring, for example, relationships and what good friends are, as they enact the story of the Good Samaritan. They talk about and learn how to deal with problems through the story of the Last Supper and The Betrayal. Pupils have some knowledge of other major world religions and appropriate respect for the life of people from various religious and cultural backgrounds. However, their knowledge of faiths other than Christianity, such as Judaism, Hinduism and Islam is limited. They have insufficient knowledge of the festivals of other religions, the key people, the places of worship and holy books.

p.43

RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

141. Pupils’ progress is satisfactory overall. Pupils with special educational needs make satisfactory progress both in lessons and throughout their time in school. They receive appropriate help from teachers and classroom assistants. Pupils in Years 3 and 4 learn about the early work of Jesus and His life in the Jewish society. They reflect on the moral of the story of The Sower and learn about farming in the olden days. Year 5 pupils study Islam and learn about the importance of prayer to Muslim people. They know that Muslims pray five times a day and prepare before prayers in a very special way. Pupils also visit the local places of worship such as, the church and the mosque, and take note of their special features.

p.43

RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

142. There has been satisfactory progress overall since the last inspection but two of the identified weaknesses remain in part. Pupils’ understanding about other world faiths is still somewhat limited, although they have some knowledge of religious festivals of world faiths other than Christianity, and spirituality is still under promoted through religious education.

p.43

RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

143. Pupils’ attitudes and responses are generally positive. They listen carefully to the teachers’ explanations and stories used in lessons. They behave well in class and respond to questions with confidence. Most pupils show a positive willingness to talk about and share personal experiences.

p.43

RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

144. The quality of teaching is satisfactory overall. In the lessons observed, the teaching was good in Year 6 but unsatisfactory overall in Years 4 and 5, with pupils making too little progress. Teachers generally manage pupils well and ask appropriate questions. However, their subject knowledge is insecure. They do not always use an appropriate range of activities and suitable artefacts to maintain the interest of all pupils. Assessment of pupils’ work is not carried out in any formal way and teachers are unclear what pupils already know, understand, and can do in the different aspects of religious education. The marking of work is limited, with few comments to encourage pupils to greater effort.

p.43

RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

145. The teaching of religious education makes good contributions to pupils’ literacy skills. Recording of information in lessons often involves pupils writing their own accounts of the stories. Teachers are supported appropriately by the scheme of work, based on the locally Agreed Syllabus, but they do not plan systematically to build on pupils’ learning from year- to-year. The school assemblies support religious education learning well and extend pupils’ knowledge. However, they do not sufficiently focus on promoting pupils’ spiritual development.

p.43

RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

146. There is an experienced co-ordinator who is keen to ensure that religious education retains an appropriate status in the school curriculum. The teachers are suitably guided in their teaching of the subject, but the monitoring role of the co-ordinator is under-developed and consequently her influence on identifying strengths and weaknesses and bringing about improvements is limited. Resources including multicultural artefacts to teach pupils Brambletye Junior School - 44 about other religions of the world are inadequate. The range and quality of religious education books is satisfactory.

p.43