St Columba's Catholic Primary School

SCHOOL

Dates of inspection: 30 April- 3 May 2001

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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.

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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. St Columba’s Catholic Primary School - 3

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Type of school: Nursery, Infant and Junior

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

School address: Tong Street Dudley Hill Bradford

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Appropriate authority: The Governing Body

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Date of previous inspection: January 1997 St Columba’s Catholic Primary School - 4

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE INSPECTION TEAM

Team members Subject responsibilities Aspect responsibilities Mr M Newell Registered inspector Art and Design The school’s results and achievements. How well are pupils taught? What should the school do to improve further? Mr B Harrington Lay inspector Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development. How well does the school work in partnership with parents? Ms A Dakin Team inspector Special educational needs Mathematics Music Mr D Carpenter Team inspector English as an additional language. English Mrs C Deloughry Team inspector Foundation Stage How good are the curricular and other opportunities offered to pupils? Mrs F Gander Team inspector Science Design and technology Equal opportunities Mrs P King Team inspector Information and communication technology Geography How well does the school cares for its pupils?

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE INSPECTION TEAM

Mrs S Walker Team inspector History Physical education How well is the school led and managed?

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE INSPECTION TEAM

The inspection contractor was: Lynrose Marketing Limited Bungalow Farmhouse Six Mile Bottom Newmarket Suffolk CB8 OTU

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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: The Registrar Inspection Quality Division

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE INSPECTION TEAM

Alexandra House 33 Kingsway London WC2B 6SE St Columba’s Catholic Primary School - 5

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PART A: SUMMARY OF THE REPORT 6

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

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HOW HIGH ARE STANDARDS? 11

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

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AREAS OF THE CURRICULUM, SUBJECTS AND COURSES 33

St Columba’s Catholic Primary School - 6

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

St. Columba’s Catholic Primary School is situated in Dudley Hill, an area about 3 miles from the city centre of Bradford. There are 395 pupils presently attending the school, 54 of whom attend the nursery on either a full or part-time basis. The rate of pupil mobility is high and a significant percentage of pupils do not spend their full educational lives at the school. The attainment of children when they start school is well below average with a small percentage of children having poor language and social skills. The percentage of pupils that have special educational needs or a statement of special educational need is above the national average. The percentage of pupils who are eligible for free school meals is above the national average. No pupils presently attending the school speak English as an additional language, although due to pupil mobility there are times when such pupils do attend the school. A small but significant percentage of travellers’ children

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HOW GOOD THE SCHOOL IS

This is an improving school where the strengths clearly outweigh the weaknesses. The good, and on occasions very good, teaching that is a feature of most classes is presently enabling the majority of pupils to make good strides in their learning and to achieve well in relation to their ability level. The good attitudes to school and the very good behaviour shown by the majority of pupils make an important contribution to the quality of learning that exists in the school. The school makes very good provision for the personal development of pupils and this is helped by the good range of learning opportunities that are provided both within the formal curriculum and activities that are provided outside of lessons. The manner in which the school cares for its pupils is very good. Taking all the factors into account the school is currently providing good value for money.

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What the school does well

• Most pupils in school are achieving well in relation to their relatively low starting point. • The good and on occasions very good quality of teaching ensures that pupils make good strides in their learning. • The good quality opportunities provided within the curriculum and outside lessons enhance pupils’ learning. • Pupils’ good attitudes to school and the very good behaviour shown by the vast majority of pupils add significantly to the learning environment in school. • The school makes very good provision for the personal development of pupils. • Very good procedures are in place to ensure pupils’ welfare and well being with excellent procedures in place to promote good behaviour. • Teaching support staff make a valuable and valued contribution to the good progress that pupils with special educational needs make. • The headteacher provides effective leadership that impacts positively on the quality of

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What could be improved

• Standards in writing. • Procedures to monitor and evaluate how well the school is doing. • Pupils’ attendance. The areas for improvement will form the basis of the governors’ action plan. St Columba’s Catholic Primary School - 7

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HOW THE SCHOOL HAS IMPROVED SINCE ITS LAST INSPECTION

The school has made satisfactory progress since the time of the last inspection in 1997. Standards appear to have dipped in English, mathematics and science since the last inspection but this can be explained by the fact that the school has a greater number of pupils with special educational needs and a high level of pupil mobility. These factors have a major impact on the standards that are achieved in different year groups. The quality of teaching has improved significantly and the issues regarding unsatisfactory standards in information and communication technology, design and technology and physical education have been successfully addressed. The school has put much successful effort into monitoring the quality of teaching in literacy and numeracy. However it has rightly identified the need to develop a rigorous programme of school self-evaluation across all aspects of the curriculum and school life in order to have an even

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HOW THE SCHOOL HAS IMPROVED SINCE ITS LAST INSPECTION

greater impact on the standards that are achieved and to address any inequalities in the standards of teaching. The commitment of the headteacher, staff and governors to improving the quality of education that the school provides indicates that the school is well placed to continue to improve.

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STANDARDS

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

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similar schools

English C D E E well above average above average A B mathematics E E E* E average below average C D science D E E* E Well below very low E E*

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similar schools

The above table shows the school’s results at the end of Key Stage 2 in the National Curriculum tests over a three year period compared with all schools and compared with similar schools for the year 2000. The data shows that in 2000 the school’s results were well below average in English. In mathematics and science they were very low and were in the lowest five per cent of schools nationally. The school did not perform well when compared to similar schools.

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similar schools

This data however does not tell the whole picture. When the results over the three year period are taken together the rate of improvement is similar to that found nationally. Over the same three year period the percentage of pupils with special educational needs increased and the school’s results were further affected by the high rate of pupil mobility which means that a significant percentage of pupils do not spend their full educational lives in the school. The inspection findings paint a more positive picture and pupils of all abilities, including the higher attainers and pupils with special educational needs are achieving well. The effective implementation of the National Literacy and Numeracy Strategies together with mostly good quality teaching means that standards are improving. Standards in listening are good and reading standards at the end of Key Stage 2 are at an average level although standards in writing and speaking are below average. Standards in

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similar schools

mathematics overall are just below average with numeracy standards at an average level. In science, the rigorous revision programme and the effective use of specialist teaching at the end of the key stage has resulted in standards improving to an average level. In English, mathematics and science the majority of pupils are now achieving well in relation to their ability and making St Columba’s Catholic Primary School - 8 good progress, although on occasions there is some variability between classes for the younger pupils. The school set itself challenging targets in literacy and numeracy for 2001 and is to review these in light of the improving nature of the school. This is appropriate.

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similar schools

Standards in information and communication technology, art and design, design and technology, history, geography, music and physical education are at an average level overall at the end of Key Stage 2.

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similar schools

Pupils in Key Stage1 benefit from good teaching that impacts positively on their learning. By the age of seven standards in listening are good and at an average level in reading. Standards in writing and speaking are below average. In mathematics and science standards are below average although pupils’ number skills are at an average level. Given the relatively low starting point of many pupils, the standards that are achieved show that they are making good progress and achieving well in relation to their prior attainment. Standards are at an expected level for seven year-olds in most elements of information and communication technology, art and design, design and technology, geography, history, music and physical education.

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similar schools

Children start school with well below average levels of attainment and a small percentage of children have poor language and social skills. The children get a good start in the Foundation Stage, make good progress and achieve well in relation to their attainment when they started school. By the time that pupils start in Year 1 their attainment in personal, social and emotional development exceeds the nationally recommended Early Learning Goals. Attainment in physical and creative development is at an expected level. Despite the good progress that children make their attainment in communication, language and literacy, mathematics and knowledge and understanding of the world is below average as a consequence of children’s low starting points.

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Aspect Comment

Attitudes to the school Good. The great majority of pupils have good attitudes to school and show good levels of enthusiasm for the different learning activities that they are asked to take part in. Behaviour, in and out of classrooms Very good. Apart from a small number of boys the standard of behaviour shown by pupils in classrooms and around the school is very good and helps to create a very positive learning environment. Personal development and relationships Very good. The school promotes the personal development of pupils very effectively. This together with the high quality of relationships adds considerably to the ethos of the school. Attendance Poor. Despite the commendable efforts of the school attendance rates, although improving, remain well below the national average. The poor attendance rates of some pupils have a most negative impact on their learning, the progress that they make and the standards that they

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Teaching of pupils: aged up to 5 years aged 5-7 years aged 7-11 years

65 Lessons seen overall. Good Good 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. St Columba’s Catholic Primary School - 9 During the week of inspection teaching was excellent in 3 per cent of lessons, very good in 32 per cent of lessons, good in a further 43 per cent and satisfactory in 20 per cent of lessons. A small percentage of teaching, 2 per cent was unsatisfactory. Lesson observations and scrutiny of pupils’ work show that on occasions there is some variability in the quality of teaching for pupils in the same year group but in different classes.

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Teaching of pupils: aged up to 5 years aged 5-7 years aged 7-11 years

The school has successfully introduced the National Literacy and Numeracy Strategies and the effective manner in which they are being taught is contributing significantly to an improvement in standards. The oldest pupils in the school are taught in ability groups for literacy and numeracy and this is proving to be an effective initiative in enhancing the quality of pupils’ learning. The use of specialist teaching in science at the end of Key Stage 2 is proving equally successful and shows the readiness of the school to explore new initiatives in order to raise standards. On other occasions when teaching is at its best, tasks set are vibrant and challenging and teachers seize upon every opportunity to further pupils’ learning. Examples of this quality of teaching were seen in the Foundation Stage and at Key Stages 1 and 2. The needs of the higher attaining pupils are usually met and pupils with special educational needs benefit from good quality support provided

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Teaching of pupils: aged up to 5 years aged 5-7 years aged 7-11 years

by classroom assistants. This support makes a significant contribution to the good progress that the pupils make. Although there are some excellent examples of the marking of pupils’ work being used to outline what pupils need to do to improve, this excellent practice is not a consistent feature in all classes.

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Aspect Comment

The quality and range of the curriculum Good. The school provides a broad and balanced curriculum. The good range of learning opportunities provided outside of lessons, including homework and breakfast clubs and a range of sporting activities add much to the quality of pupils’ learning.

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Aspect Comment

Provision for pupils with special educational needs Good. The good provision and support for pupils with special educational needs make a significant contribution to the good progress that they make towards their targets.

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Aspect Comment

Provision for pupils’ personal, including spiritual, moral, social and cultural development Very good provision is made for pupils’ personal development with provision for pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development making an important and significant contribution. The school very successfully promotes pupils’ personal development alongside their academic development.

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Aspect Comment

How well the school cares for its pupils Very good. This is a very caring and supportive school with excellent procedures in place to promote and maintain good behaviour. Procedures for analysing test and assessment data are not rigorous enough.

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Aspect Comment

The school provides good quality information for parents and puts much time and effort into continuing to examine ways in which the school and parents can work together in an effective manner for the benefit of the children. A reasonable number of parents help in school and many parents are keen to support their child’s learning at home by completing reading diaries or ensuring that homework tasks are completed and returned on time to school. St Columba’s Catholic Primary School - 10

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Aspect Comment

Leadership and management by the headteacher and other key staff Satisfactory overall with the headteacher managing and leading the school well. He has played an important role in helping to improve the school and is well supported by an increasingly effective senior management team. The school has rightly identified the need to provide a clearer role for the senior management team, subject co- ordinators, and team leaders in monitoring teaching and learning in subjects other than literacy and numeracy. There is a good team spirit evident in the school with all staff showing a steely determination to improve standards. How well the governors fulfil their responsibilities Satisfactory. The Governing Body is very supportive of the school and fulfils its statutory duties in an effective manner. Governors recognise the need to be more active in holding the school to account for the quality of education it provides.

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Aspect Comment

The school’s evaluation of its performance Satisfactory. The school has effectively monitored the quality of teaching and learning in literacy and numeracy which has helped to improve standards. The strategic use of resources The school makes good use of all its available resources to help raise standards and is particularly effective in the way that it uses the individual skills of teachers in areas such as science, music and dance. The school applies the principles of best value well when purchasing goods and services. There is an appropriate number of teaching staff to meet the demands of the curriculum and a good number of support staff who add much to the quality of pupils’ learning. Although the quality and adequacy of accommodation and resources are satisfactory overall the school does not have an adequate or well-stocked library. This restricts the opportunities for pupils to undertake independent study. In addition the siting of the toilets for pupils at Key Stage 1 detracts from the

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Aspect Comment

attractive learning environment that staff are trying to create.

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What pleases parents most What parents would like to see improved

• The fact that children like coming to school. • The good progress that children make. • The quality of teaching. • The expectations that the school sets. • How the school is led and managed. • The way in which the school helps children to become mature and responsible. • The amount of homework. • The standard of behaviour. • Information about how their child is progressing. • Closer working links with parents. • A wider range of activities outside of lessons.

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What pleases parents most What parents would like to see improved

Inspection findings support many of the positive views held by the majority of parents. The amount of homework that the school provides is good and extends pupils’ learning. The behaviour of the vast majority of pupils is of a very good standard. The school provides good information about how children are progressing through parents’ evenings, annual reports as well as informal opportunities during the school year if parents approach the school. In addition information is provided for parents about the different areas of work that the children are covering. The school is continuing to explore the already satisfactory working links with parents in order to improve the impact that the partnership could have on children’s learning. The school provides a very good range of activities outside of lessons that include a homework club, a breakfast club as well as sporting and musical activities. These activities add much to pupils’ personal as well as academic

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What pleases parents most What parents would like to see improved

development. St Columba’s Catholic Primary School - 11

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The school’s results and achievements

1. On the basis of the 2000 end of Key Stage 2 National Curriculum tests pupils’ attainment is well below average in English. In mathematics and science attainment was very low and was in the lowest 5 per cent of schools nationally. The school’s results were well below average when compared to similar schools in all subjects. Until a dip in 2000 the school’s results had been improving and taking the three years 1998 to 2000 together improvement in standards was similar to that found nationally. The test results do not paint the full picture. The percentage of pupils with special educational needs has increased over the last three years with the group of pupils in 2000 having a particularly high number. Results were further depressed by the fact that a relatively high percentage of pupils had not spent their full educational lives at the school and those that joined the school within the previous two years started school with low levels of attainment.

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The school’s results and achievements

2. Inspection findings paint a far more positive picture of attainment by the end of Key Stage 2. Pupils are benefiting from good quality specialist teaching in science and effective teaching in English and mathematics where pupils are taught in ability groups. These factors together with the successful implementation of the National Literacy and Numeracy Strategies and more rigorous programmes of revision are making a significant contribution to pupils’ learning and to the good progress that pupils are currently making. As a result standards in listening are above average and at an average level in reading and science. Standards in writing and speaking are below average and, while standards in number are at an average level, attainment overall in mathematics is just below average. Pupils of all abilities are achieving well. The higher attainers are being sufficiently stretched and challenged. The targets that the school has set for English and mathematics in 2001 are to

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The school’s results and achievements

be reviewed in light of the improving standards. This is appropriate. Although the youngest pupils at this key stage are making satisfactory progress overall in English, mathematics and science the quality of teaching is not always consistent between classes and as a consequence progress is sometimes better in one class than the other. The school is presently experiencing a period of greater staff stability with a greater number of permanent teachers in post. This is having a most positive impact on the quality of pupils’ learning.

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The school’s results and achievements

3. By the time they leave school many pupils read with confidence and expression. They have a satisfactory knowledge of authors and show the ability to comprehend the text that they have read. Speaking and listening skills are satisfactory overall with listening being the stronger element. Pupils listen attentively and follow instructions well. Although pupils are always keen to contribute to discussions and debates their expressive vocabulary is limited. Writing standards are improving but remain below average. The school is doing much to promote literacy across the curriculum and this reinforces writing skills. However at present pupils find it difficult to write extended pieces of writing or to sustain characterisation or plot through the course of the story. Pupils’ number skills are at an average level. The effective implementation of the National Numeracy Strategy is improving their ability to calculate quickly and accurately. The weaknesses are that pupils are not as

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The school’s results and achievements

confident or competent in areas such as using and applying their mathematical knowledge to solve problems of increasing complexity. In science, standards at the end of Key Stage 2 are currently at an average level. The emphasis that the school places on investigative work enables pupils to carry out and understand the concept of fair testing to a satisfactory level. Pupils’ scientific knowledge is satisfactory overall with weaknesses in physical processes where it is unsatisfactory. St Columba’s Catholic Primary School - 12 4. The end of Key Stage 1 National Curriculum tests show that pupils' attainment is well below average in reading, writing and mathematics. Teacher assessments in science also show attainment to be well below average. When compared to similar schools, attainment in writing and mathematics is at an average level but is below average in reading. Inspection findings show standards in listening to be above average and standards in

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The school’s results and achievements

reading to be average. Standards in writing and mathematics overall are below average, although pupils’ number skills are at an average level. Standards in science are below average overall with standards in one of the Year 2 classes at an average level. This difference can be explained by the fact that one class has a higher percentage of pupils with special educational needs and the teacher is not as confident in the teaching of science. The overall picture at this key stage however shows that the quality of teaching is good and the successful implementation of strategies for teaching literacy and numeracy is paying dividends. As a consequence, given the low attainment levels when pupils start school, pupils are making good strides in their learning, are making good progress and achieving well in relation to their ability. Tasks that are set are usually challenging and help to ensure that the higher attainers achieve as well as they could.

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The school’s results and achievements

5. By the age of seven pupils attain average standards in reading. They are directly taught the skills to enable them to tackle unfamiliar words. They are confident and accurate readers even if they lack a little expression when reading out loud. Pupils listen with good levels of interest and concentration but do not always have the vocabulary to express their views and opinions lucidly. Standards in writing are improving but at present are unsatisfactory, mainly because pupils are not able to use an expressive vocabulary or pieces of writing simply fizzle out after a lively opening. Standards in mathematics overall are unsatisfactory although number skills and knowledge are at an average level. Pupils find difficulty in estimating and measuring accurately and in tasks that require them to use problem-solving skills. In science there is variability in attainment between classes and this impacts negatively on the overall level of attainment because a significant minority of pupils find

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The school’s results and achievements

difficulty in grasping scientific concepts and recording their work and findings.

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The school’s results and achievements

6. In information and communication technology pupils’ attainment is at the nationally expected level at the end of both key stages. However not enough use is made of computers to support work in other areas of the curriculum. In art and design, design and technology, geography, history music and physical education pupils’ attainment is at the expected level by the end of both key stages although there are some weaknesses in food technology, mapping skills and in musical composition. A common feature of many of these foundation subjects is that the present quality of teaching is good, mainly because pupils’ prior attainment is being systematically built on and developed. This means that pupils' learning is being enhanced and the progress that they make is good. However, this has not been consistently the case over time in all classes and, as a consequence, progress over time has only been satisfactory.

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The school’s results and achievements

7. When children start school attainment levels are well below average with a small percentage of children having particularly poor language and social skills. The children get a good start in the Foundation Stage. The good and on occasions very good teaching ensures that all children make good progress and achieve well in relation to their level of attainment when they started school. By the time pupils start in Year1 attainment in personal, social and emotional development exceeds the nationally recommended Early Learning Goals. Attainment in physical and creative development is at an expected level. Despite the good progress that children make, their attainment in communication, language and literacy, mathematics and knowledge and understanding of the world is below average as a consequence of children’s low starting points. St Columba’s Catholic Primary School - 13 8. The school’s provision for pupils who have special educational needs is good and has a

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The school’s results and achievements

positive impact on their progress and achievement. Children with special educational needs are quickly identified when they come into the nursery and if necessary placed on the school’s register of special educational need. Throughout the school the good progress that pupils make in literacy and numeracy is due to the practical nature of their individual education plans and the good teaching they receive. Learning support staff make a valuable contribution to the quality of learning and the good progress that pupils make. Although at the time of the inspection there were no pupils in school for whom English is an additional language, the school has procedures in place to support such pupils when they are present in school. These procedures include gaining support from the Local Education Authority and ensuring that pupils are fully integrated and included into the life of the school and have full and open access to the curriculum. Such procedures are effective in helping

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The school’s results and achievements

to make sure that pupils make similar progress to their classmates. The school has a fluctuating number of travellers’ children that attend the school. Only a very small number were present at the time of the inspection. However the support and provision that is available is good. The school benefits from the services of a Local Education Authority support teacher who works very closely with class teachers and support staff in meeting the needs of the pupils. The good quality teaching and support that the pupils receive results in the cultural heritage of the pupils being recognised and celebrated and enabling them to take a fully integrated part in the curriculum and life of the school. This builds pupils’ confidence, enhances their learning and makes a significant contribution to the good progress that they make.

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The school’s results and achievements

9. This is an improving school where standards are rising. The above average number of pupils with special educational needs, the high rate of pupil mobility and the well below and in some cases poor attainment levels when pupils start school are all factors that impact adversely on levels of attainment. Rigorous procedures to monitor the quality of teaching and learning in literacy and numeracy have been successful in improving teaching and learning in these areas of the curriculum. The school recognises the need for similar procedures in other subjects. Although there is some variability between some classes, the overall quality of teaching in school is now stronger than at the last inspection and impacting most positively on pupils’ progress. The school is always trying new strategies such as specialist teaching, teaching pupils in ability groups and setting up breakfast and homework clubs to enhance learning. All these initiatives have proved successful. The

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The school’s results and achievements

school recognises that there is still work to be done in improving standards, improving attendance and in evaluating the work and performance of the school. Inspection evidence indicates that the school is well placed to continue to improve and that the test results of 2000 will be greatly exceeded in the coming years.

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

10. .Pupils throughout the school have good attitudes to the school and to their work and this makes a significant contribution to the effective learning environment that is prevalent within the school. The attitudes and behaviour of pupils have remained a strong feature of school life since the time of the last inspection. In the Foundation Stage children develop good personal and social skills which help them to become more independent, for example, dressing and undressing themselves and managing their own personal hygiene needs. They are also given plenty of opportunities to state their preferences and make choices and are expected to respect property and help with the tidying up at the end of a session. Most children co-operate enthusiastically with these responsibilities and this impacts positively on their learning. St Columba’s Catholic Primary School - 14 11. At Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2 the pupils readily set to work when requested, are

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

prepared to offer solutions to problems, and are generally keen to please their teachers. A large number of pupils arrive early to attend the breakfast club and to take part in educational games. These activities provide positive preparation for the day ahead. Almost all parents responding to the survey agreed that their children like school and that this impacts positively on the good progress that they make. Most pupils are pleased to be engaged in conversation with adults and to discuss their work, and many are excited by new learning. Their commitment to their work and the concentration that is sustained enable pupils to make significant contributions to their own learning and to the learning of those around them. Pupils with special educational needs have similar positive attitudes to their work and frequently have individual education plans that set targets for improvements in attitudes and behaviour. In class, the vast majority of pupils show a desire to co-operate

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

with others and to please their teacher and other adults.

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

12. With the exception of a small number of boys at Key Stage 2 the behaviour of pupils in and around the school is very good. Teachers and other adults in school continuously monitor pupils’ behaviour and support those pupils who find it difficult to behave well all of the time. Pupils with behavioural difficulties receive a high level of support and this enables them to make the progress appropriate to their abilities. Such guidance ensures that the school’s expectations for behaviour are reinforced at regular opportunities and with the exception of a very small number of pupils in Key Stage 2, pupils respond very well to these requirements. Pupils’ very good behaviour makes a substantial contribution to learning as it permits lessons to proceed without undue interruption and with a pace conducive to effective learning. A small number of parents responding to the survey do not think that behaviour in school is good, but this is not the finding of the inspection team. The recent

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

exclusion was implemented when all other sanctions had been exhausted.

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

13. Personal development and all relationships in school are very good. Adults provide very good role models for pupils and pupils are aware that adults in school are supportive and can help to resolve difficulties. Classroom assistants routinely monitor the responses and attitudes of pupils during lessons and, in accord with the teacher, praise good work and put strategies in place to help those pupils in need of additional guidance. Adults in school work to engender an atmosphere of emotional and physical security in which pupils thrive. Pupils respond well to praise and enjoy working co-operatively. When opportunities are provided for pupils to undertake personal research pupils respond with great maturity, responsibility and enthusiasm. Playtimes and lunchtimes are well supervised and provide further opportunities for pupils to develop their social skills by sharing and taking turns. In all classes, pupils enjoy monitorial roles and taking responsibility. Opportunities for pupils to

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

use their initiative are well promoted within the classroom and pupils initiate fund raising activities, for example, with little prompting from adults. During the inspection there was no indication of any oppressive behaviour, pupils generally being very respectful of the feelings and beliefs of others.

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

14. Attendance is poor. The rate of attendance for the last year was 91.5%, which is well below the national average. The corresponding rate of unauthorised absence is above the national average. The school is constantly aware of the need to improve attendance and is to be commended for the very good quality action plan it has recently put in place to co- ordinate the identification, monitoring and support of those pupils whose attendance causes concern. Attendance shows signs of improvement as a result and is making a significant impact on pupils’ rate of learning. St Columba’s Catholic Primary School - 15

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

15. During the inspection, the quality of teaching was excellent in 3 per cent of lessons, very good in 32 per cent of lessons, good in a further 43 per cent and satisfactory in 20 per cent of lessons. A small percentage of teaching, 2 per cent was unsatisfactory. Teaching overall is judged to be good but there is some variability between classes in the same year group, particularly in Year 3. Teaching is consistently good and often very good for the older pupils in the school, with strong and effective examples of teaching seen in most year groups particularly in Years 1, 2 and 4. The quality of pupils’ learning reflects the quality of the teaching, and is at its best when work enthuses the pupils, challenges and meets the needs of all pupils and ensures that pupils make big strides in their learning. The school has shown a readiness to use different strategies and introduce new initiatives to improve

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

pupils’ learning and achievement. The older pupils in school are taught in ability sets for English and mathematics, and benefit from specialist teaching in science. The school employs outside specialist teachers in music and dance to further enhance pupils’ learning. All these initiatives have proved successful in helping to raise standards. Overall the quality of teaching makes an important contribution to the quality of pupils’ learning and teachers show a readiness to reflect critically on their teaching in order to improve further.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

16. The school has experienced some instability in staffing in recent years caused by staff absence and changes in staffing. This resulted in some classes being taught by several different teachers. This had an adverse effect on the progress that pupils made. The school is now benefiting from far more stability in the staffing structure and three permanent newly qualified teachers as well as a new deputy headteacher have been appointed within this academic year. Inspection findings indicate that the quality of teaching now prevalent in the school means that the school is well placed to improve standards. This is further reflected in the fact that teaching has improved significantly since the time of the last inspection when 20 per cent of lessons were judged to be unsatisfactory.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

17. The quality of teaching in the Foundation Stage is good and at times very good. Teaching in both the nursery and reception classes is equally good. This ensures that children make a good start to their educational lives and make good progress towards the nationally recommended Early Learning Goals even though they may not attain them because of the their low level of attainment when they start school. Teamwork is a strong feature in the Foundation Stage. The teachers work very closely together and the planning and organisation of the curriculum is very good. They maintain careful records of the children’s progress and pay close attention to their individual needs. The contribution made by the nursery nurses and the classroom assistants, who are closely involved in the planning, evaluation and record keeping is highly valued and makes an important impact on the quality of children’s learning and progress. The adults all set a very good example by

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treating the children and each other with mutual respect, tolerance and consideration. The activities that are planned are often vibrant and challenging and opportunities are usually seized upon to promote and enhance children’s’ language and communication skills. However, on occasions opportunities to direct the children’s attention to the printed word are missed and by not always locating the class libraries in a suitably prominent position, staff are not sufficiently encouraging the children to choose to read a book.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

18. The National Literacy Strategy has been successfully implemented across the school and is having a positive impact on helping to improve standards and enhancing pupils’ learning. Pupils of all ages and abilities are responding well to the structure of the strategy. The fact that the lesson objectives are shared with the pupils gives them a greater awareness of what they are expected to learn and also allows them to take a greater responsibility for their own learning. The shared work in most classes is well taught and the summary St Columba’s Catholic Primary School - 16 session at the end of the lesson is being used productively to consolidate and extend pupils’ learning. Across the school the careful selection of shared text often enthuses the pupils and helps to sustain their interest for longer periods of time. Phonics are taught well at Key Stage 1 and this helps pupils to develop a greater awareness of letters, sounds and

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

words. Reading skills are taught directly and well which means that pupils have a good range of strategies that they can use when confronted with new words. Although writing standards are improving the school has rightly identified the need to ensure that writing skills are taught in a direct and progressive manner. This is important if pupils are to be able to take notes, write well for different purposes and to write extended pieces of writing which keep the reader hooked from start to finish. This is not the case at the present time and is a contributory factor to the below average standards in writing at the end of both key stages. Pupils find difficulty in sustaining an idea or story line and pieces of work fizzle out after a lively opening.

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19. The National Numeracy Strategy has also been introduced in an effective manner and this too has played an important part in helping to raise standards. The quality of teaching is good. Teachers know how to teach basic numeracy skills well. Most lessons have a good structure that involves a whole class activity, group work and a summary session. The opening mental agility activities that are a feature of all lessons are taught well and with a high degree of pace, fun and challenge. This motivates the pupils and sets the tone for the rest of the lesson. A most positive impact that the strategy has brought is the fact that in most lessons teachers are encouraging the pupils to explore and investigate different ways to solve problems and to try out lots of different strategies. This is effective because it means that the learning of all pupils in the class is being advanced when these strategies are shared with the whole class.

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20. The school has introduced teaching by ability groups in English and mathematics for the older pupils in the school. This has proved to be a successful initiative that is helping to raise standards and to improve the quality of pupils’ learning. The lessons are well organised and there is a very careful match of work to the differing ability levels of the pupils. Even though pupils are of similar ability the teachers still provide a range of tasks that take account of the sometimes, small degrees of difference in pupils’ ability. Within lessons the questioning is carefully structured so that it challenges pupils’ thinking but at an appropriate level. The fact that pupils are of similar ability means that teaching can proceed at a brisk and challenging pace safe in the knowledge that the vast majority of pupils will fully understand what is being asked of them. Pupils are comfortable and confident with

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

this teaching arrangement and look forward to their lessons knowing that should they have any misunderstandings or misconceptions they would have no hesitation in asking for help or guidance. Throughout the school there are some good examples of pupils’ literacy and numeracy skills being developed further in subjects such as science when asked to measure accurately and record findings in different formats; in geography when drawing charts and graphs; in history when they are asked to explain why Henry V111 acted as he did and in design and technology when pupils have to estimate and measure accurately and then carry out a written evaluation of their work. Although these are good examples there are other opportunities missed to extend pupils literacy and numeracy skills in other areas of the curriculum which prevents progress from being stronger. A similar situation arises with the use of computers. Good examples were seen of computers being used for

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

research purposes and to support pupils’ learning in geography and mathematics lessons for example, but on other occasions opportunities are not grasped and the chance to extend pupils’ learning is missed. 21. Teaching for pupils with special educational needs is good overall. Teachers are quick to support the lower attaining pupils and those with special educational needs, in any group St Columba’s Catholic Primary School - 17 activity. This has a positive impact on the progress that they make in lessons and allows them to achieve better than might be expected. However, in some subjects such as history, pupils’ written and recorded progress would be better if they were given work which more closely matched their needs, rather than completing the same work as the rest of the class. Pupils with statements of educational need are well taught by the individual support assistants assigned to them and all work is well matched to their needs. The learning

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support assistants that work with all pupils with special educational needs make a valuable and valued contribution to pupils’ learning. Their incisive questioning, sensitive support and patient attitudes allow pupils to attempt aspects of lessons that would otherwise prove difficult. This results in pupils being fully included in all aspects of lessons and helps to ensure that they can take a full and active part in the life of the school as a community. The use that is made of the often-good quality individual education plans is variable. Where practice is at its best teachers take careful account of the targets that are included in the plans and ensure that there is a close match between the work that is set and the individual needs of the pupil.

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22. The school has a fluctuating number of pupils on roll that are travellers’ children. The school benefits from the services of a Local Education Authority support teacher who visits when the children are in school. The quality of teaching for these children is of a good standard. The support teacher and the class teachers and classroom support assistants work closely together to ensure that the needs of the children are constantly met. Every opportunity is seized upon to celebrate the culture of the children with the rest of the pupils in the class. As a result the children feel fully included in lessons and the life of the school. The good quality of teaching and support helps to ensure that the children make good progress and achieve as well as they can.

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23. The size of the school means that there are two classes in each year group. In most instances the quality of teaching is of a similar quality but there are on occasions differences that impact negatively on pupils’ learning. Examples were seen in Years 2 and 3. In Year 2 weaknesses in science are linked to subject knowledge and confidence not being as strong. In Year 3 it is linked to a lower level of expectation that results in pupils not consistently making the progress of which they are capable. The school is aware of this and is already tackling the issue. The needs of the higher attaining pupils are usually met because the work that is set is usually challenging and demanding and ensures that pupils achieve as well as they are able.

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24. At both key stages teachers generally have a secure subject knowledge in most subjects. When this is the case teachers’ own knowledge and enthusiasm rubs off on the pupils and brings an added dimension to the quality of learning. Where subject knowledge is not as secure in subjects such as science and information and communication technology, learning is not as effective and opportunities are missed to really push on and extend pupils’ knowledge and skills. The school recognised that not all staff felt confident in the teaching of subjects such as design and technology, dance or music. To combat this the school brought in external teachers to teach the subjects to some classes. The good quality of teaching that the external teachers provide has led to an improvement in standards because these teachers have good skills in their chosen subjects and impart them well to the pupils. The pupils learn a good range of skills in design and technology,

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learn complex sequences of movements in dance and improve their singing skills within each and every lesson. The enthusiasm of the teachers promotes a real sense of enjoyment in the pupils and there is often disappointment when the lessons come to an end.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

25. The quality of relationships between the pupils and staff is very good and this helps to create an effective learning environment in the vast majority of lessons. Pupils are St Columba’s Catholic Primary School - 18 expected to value the contributions of their classmates and they often do. The balance that is struck between discussion time and recording time is usually about right. Pupils are often provided with opportunities to undertake research tasks and they respond with great enthusiasm. Such opportunities are limited however because of unsatisfactory library facilities. The management of pupils is generally strong across the school but occasionally pupils become restless when for example, the teacher continues to question the pupils about their prior learning rather than providing them with the facts that would advance their learning. Resources for lessons are well prepared, ensuring that lessons get off to a brisk

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start. The best teaching makes sure that this pace is maintained and that deadlines are set throughout the lesson that keeps the pupils on their toes.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

26. The teachers give plenty of verbal support through the lessons and this helps improve pupils’ self-esteem as well as pointing out areas for improvement. There are examples for instance in Years 5 and 6 where the marking of pupils’ work is of a high standard and clearly outlines what pupils need to do to improve. Pupils take on board the comments and there is a visible improvement in the standards achieved. This very good practice is not consistent across the school. Targets are increasingly being set for pupils which are then pasted into their books. This is a good and effecive way in which to more actively involve pupils in their own learning. Over 90 per cent of parents that responded to the questionnaire sent out before the inspection felt that the quality of teaching in the school was good and that their child was making good progress. The parents’ perceptions are generally accurate and are supported by the findings of this inspection. About a quarter of

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parents expressed dissatisfaction with the amount of homework that is set. Inspection findings however show that the range and amount of homework that is set is good and adds to the quality of pupils’ learning. In addition the homework clubs that the school runs bring a further dimension to pupils’ learning and provide a valuable learning resource for pupils that find some difficulty in completing the tasks that are set for them.

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PUPILS?

27. The school provides a broad and balanced curriculum for its pupils with a good range of learning opportunities on offer outside the formal curriculum. This combination currently provides an effective and successful platform for pupils’ learning. The school meets all statutory requirements in relation to the curriculum and overall the curriculum and other learning opportunities offered to pupils are good. Curriculum provision has improved since the last inspection. The school has recently adopted the Qualification and Curriculum Authority’s guidelines as a framework for teaching and learning in the foundation subjects. If rigorously followed these guidelines will ensure that a good range of knowledge and skills across all the subjects will be taught and that pupils’ prior attainment will be built on and developed. This has not consistently been the case in all classes over time due mainly to changes in staffing. Policy documents for all subjects are in place but some are in need of

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updating to take account of more recent changes in the form and content of the National Curriculum. The school has implemented the National Literacy and Numeracy Strategies successfully and this has had a most positive impact on the quality of pupils’ learning and the standards that are achieved. During the inspection good examples were seen of pupils’ literacy and numeracy skills being enhanced in other areas of the curriculum such as history, geography and science. This good practice is not as consistent across the school as it could be to have its biggest impact on helping to raise writing standards . The curriculum that is provided in the Foundation Stage is good. It takes full account of the nationally recommended Early Learning Goals and offers a good range of exciting and challenging learning opportunities that do much to enthuse the children and that add much to the quality of learning. St Columba’s Catholic Primary School - 19

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28. Curriculum planning has clear learning objectives and these are shared with the pupils and form part of their evaluation of their own achievements and progress. Teachers in parallel classes plan their work jointly to ensure that pupils in each year group receive similar learning experiences but the quality of these experiences sometimes varies according to the quality of the teaching. Pupils in Years 5 and 6 are now organised into ability sets for the teaching of English and mathematics and pupils in Year 6 are receiving specialist teaching in science. Although these are recent innovations, inspection evidence indicates that the arrangements are already having an impact on standards.

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29. The school has a good Equal Opportunities policy and addresses the question of educational inclusion in an appropriate manner. In those policy documents needing revision the area of inclusion has not yet been fully incorporated into the documentation. No major issues arise concerning gender differences in progress or attainment although there is some inconsistency on occasions in the progress that pupils in different classes make. The school is already addressing the issue.

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30. The good provision that is made for pupils with special educational needs ensures that throughout the school pupils make good progress towards the targets that are set for them. A good range of support is available and the school is served well by the dedicated support staff currently in place who make a significant contribution to pupils’ quality of learning. Teachers also work effectively to provide work at an appropriate level of challenge for the small group of higher attaining pupils in each year group. The ‘’Better Reading Partnership’’ is also having a beneficial impact on standards in reading and is doing a great deal to raise levels of confidence in pupils’ work across the curriculum. Opportunities for learning have also been enhanced by the establishment of a ‘’Breakfast Club’’ and ‘’ Homework Club’’, which are attended by a considerable number of pupils and where pupils are give educational tasks to complete or are assisted with homework tasks.

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PUPILS?

31. The school provides a very good range of extra-curricular activities. Breakfast club commences at eight o’clock each morning when pupils have food and a drink prior to playing learning games or taking part in the ‘’Better Reading Partnership’’. Lunchtime clubs provide support for older pupils in their homework tasks and opportunities for computer work. There is a wide range of extra-curricular sporting and other activities available at the school during the course of the year. In addition there are other sporting and dance activities that are run by outside agencies to which the pupils have full and open access. Often the school is in use until mid evening. All the activities that are provided either by the school or outside agencies provide good quality additional learning opportunities and many pupils attend and thoroughly enjoy themselves. A significant minority of parents feels that the school does not provide a wide enough range of activities outside of lessons.

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Inspection findings do not concur with this view.

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32. The school makes good provision for pupils’ personal, social and health education. Although there is no formal whole school programme for the subject beyond the Foundation Stage, incidental opportunities taken by class teachers and topics within the science and religious education curricula enable all appropriate topics to be addressed. The school recognises the need to formalise approaches to the subject and has appointed a subject co-ordinator who, with good support from the Local Education Authority, has already received significant training in elements of personal, social and health education. This is already starting to pay dividends in the quality of provision that is being made.

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33. The provision that the school makes for the spiritual and cultural development of pupils is good and is very good for pupils’ moral and social development. This is similar to the judgement made at the time of the previous inspection and continues to be a major St Columba’s Catholic Primary School - 20 strength of the school. Close links are maintained with the church and a Catholic ethos permeates throughout the school, which promotes a strong sense of caring and belonging. There is an area set aside in each classroom as an altar where pupils can record their Good News. Prayers are displayed and are said at different times of the day. In one Year 2 class a quiet reflective time was observed when a special prayer was said for a pupil who had lost his grandfather. Year 1 pupils shake hands at the end of the day as a sign of peace. All these examples help to create a tangible sense of spirituality across the school.

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34. The pupils develop a clear sense of right and wrong. The school rules, formulated by staff and pupils, are displayed in each classroom and are generally followed. The adults in the school have a high expectation of the pupils’ behaviour and the pupils respond positively to this. Social and moral issues are frequently discussed throughout the day. In Year 4, for example, the class teacher made very good use of an opportunity that arose for the pupils to assess the difference between people behaving well because of a moral principle or basing their conduct on the likelihood of being caught. These instances and others reinforce the strong moral code that permeates the life of the school and makes a significant contribution to how well pupils behave.

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35. The breakfast and the homework clubs and the very good range of extra curricular activities are providing very good opportunities for the pupils to develop socially. There is a genuine atmosphere of mutual respect between staff and pupils throughout the school and pupils co-operate and play well together. Older pupils become aware of the needs of others because of the opportunities that are provided for them to look after younger pupils and hear them read and to regularly support charities, such as CAFOD and Red Nose Day. The pupils use their initiative on these occasions and raise money by organising activities, such as a pyjama and slippers day or an Easter egg raffle. The residential visits organised for Years 5 and 6 provide an excellent opportunity for the pupils to live together away from home and to significantly enhance their social development.

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36. Good opportunities are provided for the pupils’ cultural development. All pupils are taken on educational visits to museums and outdoor centres. They participate in the Bradford Festival and perform at various venues in the community, singing carols and dancing for the elderly. They are learning traditional dancing from a volunteer teacher, and enjoyed participating in a workshop led by a local author. They gain insights into some aspects of the multicultural society in which they live, through studying different world faiths in their religious education lessons, and from visits to school from artists such as an Indian music ensemble and a West Indian drummer. The pupils also have the opportunity to learn about the culture of traveller children who attend the school and this adds to their cultural awareness. 37. The school has good links with the community that it serves. A good range of visits to

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museums, parks, and other places of interest extend pupils’ learning experiences. The school has very good links with the local supermarket and in addition to pupils visiting the store, representatives of the company come into school to discuss discrete activities such as baking. Local authors have read and discussed their books with older pupils and by doing so have encouraged pupils to write their own stories. The local credit union organises a savings scheme for pupils, and younger pupils visit the credit union as part of their study of the locality.

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38. There are very good relations with the high school to which most pupils transfer. Well- established transfer arrangements exist. These include a full day visit to the high school in the summer term by Year 6 pupils so that they may sample lessons and share in the social aspects of the high school. The Year 7-year leader from the high school makes effective pastoral visits to the primary school. Year 5 and Year 6 pupils are invited to all high school productions. Year 10 students attend the breakfast club in school to help pupils St Columba’s Catholic Primary School - 21 within the ‘’Better Reading Partnership’’. This enhances the standards in reading for identified pupils over a ten-week period and also provides them with excellent pupil role models to emulate. The school has very good links with the local teacher training college and is host to several student teachers each year who bring an added dimension to pupils’

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

39. The school’s procedures for maintaining pupils’ welfare and health and safety are very good. This is a very caring and supportive school where pupils feel valued and respected. These high standards have been maintained since the time of the last inspection.

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

40. There are very good procedures and practices in place to ensure the well being of all pupils. Teachers know their pupils well and provide a very safe and secure learning environment where pupils can concentrate on their learning. Pupils are well supervised at all times and, when appropriate, they are reminded of the need to be careful. The headteacher is nominated to deal with issues of child protection and is responsible for “looked-after” children. He has received training for this role in which he is supported by the deputy headteacher. The school works closely with outside agencies for the benefit of the pupils, for example, the school nurse, the education social worker and the Catholic Care Worker. These strong links support pupils who may be experiencing temporary difficulties so that disruption to their social and academic development is kept to a minimum. Three members of staff have received training in first aid and first aid kits are strategically placed

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about the school. Risk assessments of the premises are conducted annually and any hazards identified are corrected. Safety equipment is tested annually and there are termly checks upon the effectiveness of the evacuation procedures.

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

41. Procedures for monitoring and promoting good behaviour are excellent and contribute greatly to the effective learning environment that is prevalent within the school and to supporting pupils’ personal development. Very good systems are in place to formally record pupils’ behaviour and set targets for improvement where necessary. Parent consultation notes and actions for parental support are included as appropriate. There is a positive culture of praise and encouragement in the classroom and the pupils’ good behaviour is recognised and celebrated in assemblies. When pupils behave in an inappropriate manner, teachers carefully discuss targets for improvement with the pupils and the pupils are expected to play an active part in helping behaviour to improve. Very good procedures are in place to deal with bullying or oppressive behaviour should it occur. Discussions with pupils shows that they feel confident and secure to speak to any adult

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and that they feel confident that that their concerns will be dealt with quickly, confidently and in confidence.

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

42. Despite the fact that attendance rates are poor and absence, both authorised and unauthorised, well above the national average the school has good procedures in place for monitoring and promoting good behaviour. Weekly liaison with appropriate outside agencies and the presentation of awards for good attendance are raising awareness and helping to promote the importance of good attendance. A number of absences are associated with illness and, in these circumstances, the school nurse is usually involved. The introduction of the breakfast club has improved punctuality and classes are keen to win the new attendance trophy. The school continually reinforces the benefits of regular and punctual attendance with parents and pupils alike and is to be commended on the time and effort it devotes to stressing the link between good attendance and effective learning. St Columba’s Catholic Primary School - 22

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

43. Teachers are effective in the manner in which they monitor the personal development and well being of pupils with special educational needs. The school identifies these pupils at an early age. Initial targets are set and specific strategies are implemented. If these are not successful then an individual education plan is put in place and the pupil’s progress is carefully recorded and reviewed on a regular basis. On occasions the targets that are set in the individual education plans are not always specific enough and make the measuring of progress more difficult to accurately assess. Learning support staff make a vital contribution to the learning and the progress that pupils with special needs make. All classroom assistants have received training in literacy and numeracy, and special support assistants have received additional specialist training appropriate to the needs of the children whom they support. These factors help to ensure that pupils are fully integrated

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and included in lessons and in the life of the school as a community.

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

44. Although at the time of the inspection there were no pupils present in the school that had English as an additional language, good procedures are in place to ensure that their welfare is catered for. The school caters for a small but significant number of children from travelling families. The welfare and needs of these children are catered for very well. The school benefits from the very good support of a Local Education Authority teacher who works very closely with the staff of the school and with parents. This effective liaison results in children being fully included in the life of the school with their cultural heritage being recognised and celebrated. This adds much to the self-esteem and confidence of the travellers’ children.

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

45. Procedures for assessing pupils’ attainment and progress are satisfactory overall but the school is not making rigorous enough use of the data to have its greatest possible impact on helping to raise standards. The school carries out assessments when children start school and the information is used in appropriate manner to help identify children who may have special educational needs or higher attaining children. Activities are then planned to match the ability of the children although occasionally not enough attention is given to planning tasks based on the test results that consistently stretch and challenge the needs of the higher attainers. At Key Stages 1 and 2 a range of standardised tests, reading tests, and optional standardised assessment tests are administered in addition to the statutory tests for 7 and 11-year- olds. These end of key stage results are analysed and the outcomes are increasingly being used to identify elements of the subject where

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performance is weaker. The school has analysed test papers and looked for questions where pupils have found difficulty. The information is used to inform curriculum modifications in English and mathematics. The information has, for example, identified weaknesses in writing. This has led to the inclusion of individualised targets in pupils’ notebooks, linked to National Curriculum attainment levels, indicating a clear focus for improvement, with pupils being aware of their targets. This is impacting positively on standards.

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

46. The analysis of test and assessment data however is not as effective as it could be. It has been used well in mathematics and English to identify areas of weakness and to pinpoint where classroom support needs to be targeted. However not enough analysis is carried out for example of how pupils in the same year group but in different classes compare. Or given the high pupil mobility that is a feature of the school, how pupils that have spent all their educational lives in the school compare to more recent arrivals. This means that the school is not always able to clearly show the ‘’value-addedness’’ that the present good quality of teaching is providing or in effectively setting targets for year groups, groups of different pupils or indeed individual pupils. The school has concentrated on the analysis of data relating to English and mathematics and very little analysis of science test results and

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

assessments has taken place. This restricts the school’s ability to assess if pupils are achieving well enough or to identify specific areas for improvement. There are no formal St Columba’s Catholic Primary School - 23 procedures in place to assess and systematically track the progress that pupils make in the foundation subjects. The school is currently examining the possibilities of more actively involving pupils in setting their own targets for improvement. This is good practice as it means that pupils take a greater responsibility for their own learning and adds considerably to their personal as well as their academic development.

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

47. In general, parents are satisfied with the work of the school which is a similar situation to the one prevalent at the time of the last inspection. Almost all parents responding to the survey think that the school expects their children to work hard and achieve their best, and that the school is helping their children too become mature and responsible. They believe that the teaching is good and that the school is well led and managed. However, a number of parents do not feel that the school works closely with parents and would not feel comfortable about approaching the school with concerns. Inspection findings show that the school works hard to forge a strong and effective working partnership with parents but that it is equally looking at ways in which the partnership can be improved to have a greater impact on pupils’ learning and the progress that they make. Little direct evidence was found to indicate that the school is difficult to approach with a problem or concern even

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

though a small percentage of parents find this to be the case. The school is already looking at ways to address this concern by for example using the Catholic Care support worker that is attached to the school as a link between the home and school.

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

48. Overall the school has good links with parents and provides them with a good range of documentation and regular newsletters to keep them informed about the progress of their children and the life of the school. The induction procedures that are in place are of a good standard and help to ensure that children make a pleasant start to their educational lives. Annual pupils’ progress reports are of a good quality and provide a clear insight into the strengths and weaknesses of individual children. The consultation evenings for parents that are held twice a year provide opportunities for parents to review their children’s progress. Parents are also welcome to visit the school on a more informal basis to discuss any concerns that they might be having about their child’s academic or social development. Additionally, the school informs all parents of the current curriculum topics and the homework schedule, and each term provides parents with the school operation

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

guidelines, which assist the smooth running of the school. Nevertheless, a significant number of parents do not feel that they are kept sufficiently well informed about how their child is getting on. These perceptions are not supported by the inspection findings.

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

49. Parents make a satisfactory contribution to their children’s learning, particularly in the use of home-school diaries and journals which provide a communication link between parents, pupils and teachers. A number of parents, grandparents and friends work in the school as volunteer helpers and provide additional opportunities for learning. A number of parents have attended courses organised by the school such as “Coping with our Kids”. Parents have responded well to the recently re-established parent-teacher association and those involved are very keen to support the work of the school. The manner in which the school works with parents overall is similar to that reported at the time of the last inspection with the school constantly looking to develop links with parents that will have the most beneficial impact on pupils’ learning and achievement.

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HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

St Columba’s Catholic Primary School - 24 50. The quality of leadership and management is satisfactory overall with some significant strengths and some areas for further development that would impact positively on improving standards and the quality of pupils’ learning. These revolve mainly on the implementation of sharper and more rigorous procedures to monitor the quality of teaching and learning in subjects other than literacy and numeracy and more effective use of test and assessment data to help improve standards. The school wrote a good quality post inspection plan and has made satisfactory improvement since the last inspection.

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HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

51. The headteacher provides good leadership in important areas of school life. He has played a pivotal role in establishing and implementing effective procedures to monitor the quality of teaching in literacy and numeracy. The headteacher has ensured that the school’s provision for pupils’ social and moral development is very good, as is the educational and personal support for pupils. Under his leadership significant time and effort have been put into developing positive attitudes in the pupils and ensuring that standards of behaviour are good. This has proved successful even with pupils who present challenging patterns of behaviour. During the last three years the quality of teaching has improved. All these factors have added much to the quality of learning that is prevalent within the school. In addition the very positive ethos that is present allows the school to provide for inclusion well and enables pupils to achieve better than might be expected in relation to prior

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HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

attainment. The school is committed to improving standards in a caring and supportive environment. 52. There is a very concise and accurate school development plan that has identified what the school needs to do to improve. It mirrors many of the findings of this inspection report, but lacks a clear and sharp overview of how the responsibilities for monitoring of teaching and learning and the analysis of test and assessment data are to be shared between the headteacher, the senior management team, team leaders, subject co-ordinators and the assessment co-ordinator. The headteacher has recognised the need to make sure that roles and responsibilities are precisely defined and sufficient responsibility is delegated to individuals to enable them to make a greater contribution to improving standards and the quality of pupils’ learning. There is an appropriate commitment shown by all who work at the school to improving standards and the school is well placed to succeed further.

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HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

53. The present senior management team is relatively new. The deputy headteacher arrived at the beginning of the academic year and plays an important role in improving links with the parish and co-ordinating special educational needs. She has already helped to put a number of useful initiatives in place including a good quality action plan to improve the pupils’ attendance rates. Although such initiatives are recent the early signs are that they are proving successful in helping to raise standards and the quality of education that the school provides. The senior management meets on a regular basis and plans are in hand to develop a clear role for each member in monitoring the work of the school. Inspection evidence indicates that all members of the senior management team share a vision for improving standards and with clearly defined roles will form an effective partnership in moving the school forward.

p.24

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

54. Co-ordinators provide adequate leadership overall. There has been a relatively high staff turnover and many teachers are either beginning to get to grips with their roles or are waiting for newly qualified teachers to take over at the beginning of the next academic year. Co-ordinators do not routinely monitor lessons, except in literacy and numeracy where a programme of observations linked to national initiatives is in place. This has proved to be most successful and effective in raising standards and improving the quality of teaching and learning. There is a need to ensure that similar procedures are implemented in the monitoring of other subjects. Co-ordinators have however monitored a sample of pupils’ work in other subjects and have identified some variability in teachers’ expectations in St Columba’s Catholic Primary School - 25 parallel classes and variability in the quality of marking of pupils’ work, both of which are

p.24

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

55. The governors’ involvement in the life of the school is satisfactory overall. The Governing Body has ensured that strategies for performance management have been put in place with the headteacher and staff being set appropriate objectives with a suitable timetable for reviewing progress towards these targets. There are however areas where the role of the Governing Body could be improved further. The Chair of Governors visits the school on a regular basis and is actively involved in the life of the school as a community. He has a good grasp of the school’s strengths and weaknesses and has a very good and effective working relationship with the headteacher. Although governors are kept well informed by the headteacher and relationships between the school staff and governors are of a high standard, procedures are not in place for governors to formally monitor the work of the school. This prevents the Governing Body from being as effective as it could in holding the

p.25

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

school to account for the quality of education that it provides. 56. The school has made satisfactory progress since the time of the last inspection in 1997. Standards appear to have dipped in English, mathematics and science since the last inspection but this can be explained by the fact that the school has a greater number of pupils with special educational needs and a high level of pupil mobility. These factors have a major impact on the standards that are achieved in different year groups. The quality of teaching has improved significantly and the issues regarding unsatisfactory standards in information and communication technology, design and technology and physical education have been successfully addressed. The school has put much successful effort into monitoring the quality of teaching in literacy and numeracy but has not been as effective in other areas of the curriculum.

p.25

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

57. The role of management of special educational needs is shared between the part-time special needs co-ordinator and the deputy headteacher. This is a new arrangement, their individual roles are clearly defined and the pair work very well together. The two co- ordinators have a good quality action plan that shows that they have a clear vision for the future and a suitable awareness of the strengths and weaknesses of the present system. They have already introduced a system of music therapy, which is benefiting individual pupils.

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HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

58. The reviews for pupils with a statement of special educational need are properly organised and are up-to-date. There is an appropriate system of teachers maintaining files on pupils with special educational needs in their class. However, it is clear that individual teachers make different uses of such information. In the cases of best practice, files are well organised and up-to-date and the register shows clearly, which pupils are at what stage. Teachers are using individual education plans as working documents highlighting and annotating what works and when targets have been achieved. In other cases the plans are not being used effectively to support and enhance pupils’ learning. The co-ordinators have already recognised the need for a clearer view of how these files are to be used to improve teachers’ knowledge of pupils with special educational needs, to raise standards and to improve further pupils’ progress.

p.25

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

59. The quality of financial planning and its impact on pupils’ learning and achievement is good. All available funds are put to good use to improve pupils’ learning. Funds are well managed by the headteacher and bursar who prepare the budget for analysis by the finance committee of the Governing Body. Financial planning is appropriately related to the requirements of the school development plan. For instance, the school plans to employ a full time teacher to enhance the teaching and learning of the lower attaining pupils. The school also assesses the impact on pupils’ learning of major spending decisions. For St Columba’s Catholic Primary School - 26 example the school has assessed the improvement in standards after spending additional money on learning support assistants and computer equipment.

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HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

60. The headteacher and governors apply the principles of best value for money in financial spending well. The funds allocated to pupils with special educational needs are having a positive impact on their achievement. Day to day administration is carried out most effectively by administrative staff, which frees up teachers to work with pupils. The school makes effective use of new technology. Although financial management is effective, there has not been a financial audit since the last inspection.

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HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

61. The match of number, and qualifications and experience of the teachers to the needs of the pupils and to the curriculum is now good. This is an improvement since the last inspection when the school had a number of teachers who were absent. There have been staff changes that have continued until this academic year. It has resulted in some classes of pupils being taught by a variety of supply teachers who have had varying expertise and experience in teaching all subjects, which has impacted on pupils’ learning and achievement. In addition this instability has led to weaknesses in the school’s ability to co- ordinate and manage all subjects effectively. However, following the appointment of three newly qualified teachers at Key Stage 2, and the appointment of a new deputy headteacher the school is now in a good position to tackle any identified weaknesses in curriculum provision.

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HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

62. The school has a good number of classroom and learning support assistants. This has a positive impact on the progress pupils make as all classes and lessons benefit from their extra support. Many have a long association with the school, both as employees and as parents. The skills, both in supporting academic progress and pupils’ personal development are good, and they are used effectively in classes where there are a high percentage of pupils with special educational needs.

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HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

63. Arrangements for staff development are satisfactory. The professional development needs of teachers and support assistants are linked to the needs of the school. For example, the professional development needs of the new special educational needs co-ordinators have been clearly identified through discussion. The school has rightly identified the need to ensure that all teachers receive good quality training to enable them to carry out their roles and responsibilities for co-ordinating their subject areas and analysing test and assessment data in order to further improve the quality of education and raise standards. The school has good procedures for the induction and mentoring of new staff, and makes good provision for the training of new teachers.

p.26

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

64. The accommodation is satisfactory overall and adequate to teach the National Curriculum. However, some of the weaknesses identified at the time of the last inspection, for example, the lack of an adequate and well-stocked library where pupils can gain experience of, enjoy looking for and reading books, are still apparent. The school has a small library area but the size of it and the number of books are not adequate for a school of this size. The use of this area is further restricted by the siting of the new interactive white board for teaching information and communication technology. Although this facility is enhancing pupils’ computer skills it prevents use of the library at certain times of the day. Pupils now have access to a computer room and this is beginning to have a positive impact on raising standards in information and communication technology. However, it is too small for whole classes to be taught at one time and this prevents pupils’ learning and progress from being

p.26

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

65. There have been some improvements to the decoration of the accommodation since the last inspection, especially to the decoration at Key Stage 2, which is bright and clean, and St Columba’s Catholic Primary School - 27 provides a pleasant learning environment. The majority of classrooms throughout the school are very well organised and displays support pupils’ learning and provide evidence of their achievements. However, this good quality decoration is not apparent in all the other areas of the school. This is further compounded by the design of the building for pupils in the Foundation Stage and in Key Stage 1. There are many small bays and areas, which, while they provide good areas for individual work make it difficult to use with larger groups of pupils and to supervise. Toilet provision at Key Stage 1 is unsatisfactory as they are sited on thoroughfare corridors which impacts negatively on the learning and working

p.26

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

66. The grounds surrounding the school are sufficient for the needs of the pupils and for teaching certain aspects of the curriculum. The pupils make good use of the grassed areas, during physical education and during their lunch and break times. The school has an enclosed garden area, which some teachers use when teaching aspects of the environment and science. This has a positive impact on pupils’ learning. The outdoor facilities for the children in the Foundation Stage are good and provide safe and secure areas for physical development and play, and make a positive impact on their development.

p.27

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

67. The range and quality of resources are satisfactory in most areas of the curriculum, and are good for children in the Foundation Stage. The school library however does not contain a large enough number of good quality books. Overall there are sufficient resources for the number of pupils in the school and this impacts positively on pupils’ progress. The resources available to teach information and communication technology have improved since the last inspection when they were judged to be unsatisfactory. This is the result of the national funding initiative and it is having a positive impact on the progress pupils make and the standards achieved. However, the school is holding onto some out of date equipment and resources. This is beginning to cause problems for storage and restricts access to resources that are needed. St Columba’s Catholic Primary School - 28

p.27

WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

68. In order to improve standards and the quality of education that the school provides the headteacher, staff and governors should:

p.28

1) Raise standards in writing by:

§ continually and consistently providing opportunities for pupils to write for a variety of audiences and purposes; § ensuring that pupils are systematically and progressively taught the necessary skills to enable them to write extended pieces of writing that pay sufficient attention to detailed description, sustaining plot and characterisation and the use of expressive language; § ensuring that opportunities are fully exploited to enhance pupils’ writing skills in other areas of the curriculum. (paragraphs 3, 5, 18, 92)

p.28

test and assessment data have a bigger impact on raising standards by:

§ developing clearer and more precise monitoring roles for the headteacher, senior management team, team leaders, subject co-ordinators and the assessment co-ordinator (paragraphs 52, 53, 54); § ensuring that the monitoring of the quality of teaching and learning in all subjects is carried out in a rigorous and consistent manner so that the good practice that exists is disseminated and any inconsistencies between classes are tackled (paragraphs 50, 56, 104, 106, 113, 118, 123, 129, 156); § making sure that test and assessment data is thoroughly analysed and the information used to track pupils’ progress and to set clear targets for improvement (paragraphs 46, 50, 63, 96, 106, 113, 128); § Ensuring that the Governing Body plays a more active and effective role in holding the school to account for the quality of education that it provides (paragraph 55).

p.28

learning and standards of attainment by;

§ ensuring that the very good action plan that the school has devised to address this issue is rigorously implemented and followed and progress towards an improved attendance rate is carefully monitored (paragraph 14).

p.28

learning and standards of attainment by;

In addition the school should consider the following less important weaknesses in the action plan:

p.28

learning and standards of attainment by;

§ ensure that the marking of pupils’ work is used consistently as a tool to clearly outline what pupils need to do to improve (paragraphs 26, 54, 127, 134); § continue to examine ways to improve the standard of accommodation, particularly at Key Stage 1 (paragraph 65); § seek to provide better quality library provision and further enhance information and communication technology resources to help support pupils’ work across all subjects (paragraphs 25, 64, 67, 93, 96). St Columba’s Catholic Primary School - 29

p.28

Summary of the sources of evidence for the inspection

Number of discussions with staff, governors, other adults and pupils 45

p.29

Summary of teaching observed during the inspection

Excellent Very good Good Satisfactory Unsatisfactory Poor Very Poor

p.29

Summary of teaching observed during the inspection

The table gives the percentage of teaching observed in each of the seven categories used to make judgements about lessons.

p.29

Information about the school’s pupils

Pupils on the school’s roll Nursery YR-Y6

p.29

Information about the school’s pupils

Number of pupils on the school’s roll (FTE for part-time pupils) 29 366

p.29

Information about the school’s pupils

Number of full-time pupils eligible for free school meals 129

p.29

Information about the school’s pupils

Number of pupils with statements of special educational needs 10

p.29

Information about the school’s pupils

Number of pupils on the school’s special educational needs register 22 167

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Information about the school’s pupils

English as an additional language No of pupils

p.29

Information about the school’s pupils

Number of pupils with English as an additional language 9

p.29

Information about the school’s pupils

Pupil mobility in the last school year No of pupils

p.29

Information about the school’s pupils

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

p.29

Information about the school’s pupils

Pupils who left the school other than at the usual time of leaving 43

p.29

Attendance

National comparative data 5.2 National comparative data 0.5

p.29

Attendance

Both tables give the percentage of half days (sessions) missed through absence for the latest complete reporting year. St Columba’s Catholic Primary School - 30

p.29

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1

Number of registered pupils in final year of Key Stage 1 for the latest reporting year 2000 20 29 49

p.30

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1

National Curriculum Test/Task Results Reading Writing Mathematics

p.30

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1

Boys 11 13 16 Numbers of pupils at NC level 2 and above Girls 26 27 28

p.30

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1

Percentage of pupils School 76(72) 82(76) 90(94) at NC level 2 or above National 83(82) 84(83) 90(87)

p.30

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1

Teachers’ Assessments English Mathematics Science

p.30

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1

Boys 11 15 15 Numbers of pupils at NC level 2 and above Girls 26 24 21

p.30

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1

Percentage of pupils School 76(73) 80(67) 73(63) at NC level 2 or above National 84(82) 88(86) 88(87)

p.30

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1

Percentages in brackets refer to the year before the latest reporting year.

p.30

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2

Number of registered pupils in final year of Key Stage 2 for the latest reporting year 2000 29 27 56

p.30

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2

National Curriculum Test/Task Results English Mathematics Science

p.30

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2

Boys 16 12 17 Numbers of pupils at NC level 4 and above Girls 13 11 17

p.30

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2

Percentage of pupils School 52(65) 41(56) 61(67) at NC level 4 or above National 75(70) 72(69) 85(78)

p.30

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2

Teachers’ Assessments English Mathematics Science

p.30

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2

Boys 15 18 19 Numbers of pupils at NC level 4 and above Girls 17 15 18

p.30

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2

Percentage of pupils School 57(61) 59(67) 66(67) at NC level 4 or above National 70(68) 72(69) 79(75)

p.30

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2

Percentages in brackets refer to the year before the latest reporting year. St Columba’s Catholic Primary School - 31

p.30

Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

Black – Caribbean heritage 5 Black – Caribbean heritage

p.31

Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

Black – African heritage Black – African heritage

p.31

Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

Any other minority ethnic group Other minority ethnic groups

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Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

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.31

Teachers and classes Financial information

Total number of qualified teachers (FTE) 19 Financial year 1999

p.31

Teachers and classes Financial information

Number of pupils per qualified teacher 24.4

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Education support staff: YR – Y6 Total expenditure 706819

p.31

Teachers and classes Financial information

Total number of education support staff 25 Expenditure per pupil 1633

p.31

Teachers and classes Financial information

Total aggregate hours worked per week 477 Balance brought forward from previous year 37133

p.31

Teachers and classes Financial information

Balance carried forward to next year 26513

p.31

Teachers and classes Financial information

Qualified teachers and support staff: nursery

p.31

Teachers and classes Financial information

Total number of qualified teachers (FTE) 1.0

p.31

Teachers and classes Financial information

Number of pupils per qualified teacher 29

p.31

Teachers and classes Financial information

Total number of education support staff 4

p.31

Teachers and classes Financial information

Total aggregate hours worked per week 105

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Teachers and classes Financial information

FTE means full-time equivalent. St Columba’s Catholic Primary School - 32

p.31

Results of the survey of parents and carers

Percentage of responses in each category

p.32

Results of the survey of parents and carers

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

p.32

Results of the survey of parents and carers

My child is making good progress in school. 56 37 7 0 0

p.32

Results of the survey of parents and carers

Behaviour in the school is good. 50 39 11 0 0

p.32

Results of the survey of parents and carers

My child gets the right amount of work to do at home. 32 38 22 4 4

p.32

Results of the survey of parents and carers

I am kept well informed about how my child is getting on. 38 27 30 5 0

p.32

Results of the survey of parents and carers

I would feel comfortable about approaching the school with questions or a problem. 61 29 9 1 0

p.32

Results of the survey of parents and carers

The school expects my child to work hard and achieve his or her best. 68 31 1 0 0

p.32

Results of the survey of parents and carers

The school works closely with parents. 38 39 18 5 0

p.32

Results of the survey of parents and carers

The school is well led and managed. 30 60 7 2 1

p.32

Results of the survey of parents and carers

The school is helping my child become mature and responsible. 45 50 4 0 1

p.32

Results of the survey of parents and carers

The school provides an interesting range of activities outside lessons. 36 37 19 3 5 St Columba’s Catholic Primary School - 33

p.32

AREAS OF LEARNING FOR CHILDREN IN THE FOUNDATION STAGE

69. Most of the children are admitted to the nursery class soon after their third birthday, where they attend part time until they enter one of the two reception classes during the year they attain the age of five. There were, during the inspection week, 15 nursery and 31 reception class children on the special educational needs register. When children start school attainment levels are well below average with a small percentage of children having poor language and social skills. The children get a good start in the Foundation Stage, make good progress and achieve well in relation to their attainment when they started school. By the time that pupils start in Year1 attainment in personal, social and emotional development exceeds the nationally recommended Early Learning Goals. Attainment in physical and creative development is at an expected level. Despite the good progress that children of all abilities make attainment in communication, language and literacy, mathematics and

p.33

AREAS OF LEARNING FOR CHILDREN IN THE FOUNDATION STAGE

knowledge and understanding of the world is below average as a consequence of children’s low starting points.

p.33

AREAS OF LEARNING FOR CHILDREN IN THE FOUNDATION STAGE

70. The provision for the children, especially the quality of teaching, throughout the Foundation Stage is good, and in some aspects, is very good. This impacts very positively on their learning. Teamwork is a strong feature in the Foundation Stage. The teachers work very closely together and the planning and organisation of the curriculum is very good. They maintain careful records of the children’s progress and pay close attention to their individual needs. The contribution made by the nursery nurses and the classroom assistants, who are closely involved in the planning, evaluation and record keeping is highly valued and makes an important impact on the quality of children’s learning and progress. The parents freely express their appreciation of the staff and the quality of education that their children receive.

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AREAS OF LEARNING FOR CHILDREN IN THE FOUNDATION STAGE

Personal, social and emotional development.

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AREAS OF LEARNING FOR CHILDREN IN THE FOUNDATION STAGE

71. The level of personal, social and emotional development of many children when they start school is well below average. The constructive relationships fostered by the staff together with highly effective teaching enable the children to make very good progress and most achieve the Early Learning Goals in this area, with a small number going beyond this by the time they enter Year 1.

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AREAS OF LEARNING FOR CHILDREN IN THE FOUNDATION STAGE

72. The adults all set a very good example by treating the children and each other with respect, tolerance and consideration. The quality of teaching is never less than good and on occasions very good because staff provide plenty of opportunities throughout the day, which help the children to learn to share and take turns. They give positive encouragement and support to those children who find this difficult by carefully explaining the reasons for good social behaviour. The children also develop skills which help them to become more independent, for example, dressing and undressing themselves and managing their own personal hygiene needs. They are also given plenty of opportunities to state their preferences and make choices and are expected to respect property and help with the tidying up at the end of a session. Most children co-operate enthusiastically with these responsibilities.

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AREAS OF LEARNING FOR CHILDREN IN THE FOUNDATION STAGE

73. The ‘’Good News’’ board is used very well by staff to help children develop an interest and insight into the thoughts and feelings of others. The children participate in a group discussion, sharing pleasurable or exciting experiences, such as the arrival of a new baby. St Columba’s Catholic Primary School - 34

p.33

Communication, Language and Literacy

74. Many children, on entry, have well below average skills in this area of development and although they make good progress, especially in speaking and listening, most do not achieve the Early Learning Goals before entering Year 1.

p.34

Communication, Language and Literacy

75. The quality of teaching is good with examples of very good practice. All the adults place a high priority on speaking and listening throughout the day, making very good use of the opportunities that arise to extend the children’s vocabulary and to encourage them to listen and respond verbally. They use and reinforce the appropriate terminology in different curriculum areas and provide opportunities for the children to share their ideas and feelings with adults and each other. This enhances children’s learning. A strong emphasis is placed on role-play, from which the children learn and use appropriate language in different and imaginative settings. During the week of the inspection, for example, a focus was placed on shops. One reception classroom became organised as a whole town, and there was a Post Office in the other with the nursery concentrating on the bakery. This topic generated much activity and interest, resulting in lively conversations and the development of valuable

p.34

Communication, Language and Literacy

76. The children’s written work is well below average. In the nursery they experiment by making marks on paper when playing in the shop or house corner, and a minority learn to write their names. By the end of the reception year a similar minority attempts to copy or write a few simple words or letters, but their skills are limited. The teachers provide good opportunities for the children, during their play, to attempt to write for different purposes, such as menus, lists and postcards, but are not focusing sufficiently on teaching the children the skills of writing, such as holding their pencils effectively or to form letters correctly.

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Communication, Language and Literacy

77. The children enjoy listening to stories. The younger ones in the nursery handle books competently, know that print conveys meaning and most are able to “tell” a story from the pictures. Many children in the reception classes are beginning to recognise some common words on sight and are able to read the labels on the displays. Most recognise some initial sounds and occasionally will identify a final letter sound. This skill is being reinforced very well using a computer programme, which is having a beneficial effect on the children’s learning and progress. Most children join in when reading the Big Books during the Literacy Hour, and a minority are beginning to read individually and in small groups. The teachers, however, are missing opportunities to direct the children’s attention to the printed word at other times during the day. Furthermore, by not always locating the class libraries in a suitably prominent position, they are not sufficiently encouraging the children to choose to

p.34

Communication, Language and Literacy

read a book or helping to promote an early love of literature.

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Mathematical Development

78. Most of the children enter school with below average attainment in mathematics and will not attain the Early Learning Goals by the end of the reception year. However they make good progress in this area because the quality of teaching is good and ensures that children learn effectively through both structured play and more formal numeracy sessions.

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Mathematical Development

79. The teachers provide the children with a wide variety of learning experiences that help them to count and recognise the numbers 1 to 9, with a significant minority going beyond this. The children are interested and well motivated because the teachers are imaginative and make learning fun. In the nursery, for example, iced biscuits are set out on mats to match patterns of five, with the children doing simple subtraction calculations as they eat their snacks. The tablemats are of different shapes and colours, which stimulates further St Columba’s Catholic Primary School - 35 discussion and extends the mathematical vocabulary of the children. The wide range of shopping experiences in the reception classes are also enjoyable and have led to some valuable work on coin recognition and simple money transactions. The frequent and varied opportunities for children to play and explore the possibilities of sand and water provide

p.34

Mathematical Development

practical situations in which children can discover differences in volume and capacity. The children talk about patterns and can recreate these, threading objects or printing shapes in a particular sequence. Most children accurately recognise and name colours and two- dimensional shapes by the end of the Foundation Stage.

p.35

Mathematical Development

Knowledge and Understanding of the World.

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Mathematical Development

80. Although the children make good progress in their knowledge and understanding of the world in the nursery and reception classes, their attainment when they enter Year 1 is below that expected nationally. The learning of children however is consistently enhanced by the good quality of the teaching.

p.35

Mathematical Development

81. The teachers work very hard and provide a wide variety of stimulating experiences and materials to enrich and broaden the children’s knowledge and understanding of the wider world which is limited. When, for example, the baker from a local shop visits the nursery, he brings various loaves and ready-made dough. The children are encouraged to extend their observational and investigative skills by watching the yeast foam and the dough change shape and suggesting words to describe the sensations of hot, cold, hard and soft. The older children make a simple pictorial map of a street following a local visit to the shops, and in one classroom a shop is set up displaying early 19 th Century packets and tins of food, supported by dressing up clothes of the same period.

p.35

Mathematical Development

82. The nursery staff encourage the children to choose from a good range of construction materials such as assorted sizes of bricks and Lego in order to create different structures, such as boats, roads and shops. This has been very effective in developing the children’s imagination and their ability to select appropriate materials for a particular purpose. Good opportunities are provided for investigation. Groups of children, for example, excitedly discover that a hole can be melted in a large ice cube by pouring water onto it.

p.35

Mathematical Development

83. The children in the reception classes are developing good computer skills. The teachers make very good use of the interactive white board, which the children thoroughly enjoy when practising their number and letter recognition skills. As a result they have become very competent when using the computers in the suite where they confidently manipulate the mouse to select an appropriate icon or item from the tool bar.

p.35

Mathematical Development

84. The children’s physical development is at an expected level and most children will achieve the Early Learning Goals by the end of the reception year. The teaching is good and this enables the children to make effective progress in the development of their physical skills.

p.35

Mathematical Development

85. The nursery has a large, secure outdoor area that allows the children to play safely using bicycles, scooters and prams. The staff ensure that the area is used well and encourage the children to play energetically. The children respond with great enthusiasm. This exercise and the utilisation of the indoor climbing frame and trampoline which the children use with confidence and good control is having a positive effect on their physical development.

p.35

Mathematical Development

86. These activities and skills are developed further in the reception classes, where the children have regular access to an outside grassed area. The children are directly taught St Columba’s Catholic Primary School - 36 the skills to help them improve and develop their skills of throwing, catching and hitting, using bats and beanbags. Lessons are also held in the school hall using some of the large apparatus. A volunteer helper teaches the children traditional dancing on a weekly basis. They perform well and work with enjoyment and high levels of motivation. They demonstrate a good sense of rhythm and space and, although some of the steps and movements are quite intricate, they display good body balance and control.

p.35

Mathematical Development

87. Children of all abilities make good progress in this area and by the time they enter Year 1 they attain the nationally recommended Early Learning Goals. The good quality of teaching means that children’s imaginations are extended well through painting and drawing. They are taught how to mix colours and select variously coloured crayons, pastels and paints in order to create their pictures and illustrations. They use a wide variety of materials for collage work and different media for printing, such as sponges, blocks, hands and fingers. They take part in action songs, singing tunefully and enthusiastically whilst clapping or beating time with percussion instruments.

p.36

Mathematical Development

88. Excellent opportunities are provided for role-play. Ideas are stimulated by providing attractive dressing-up clothes, good quality equipment in the ‘’Home Corner’’ and a wide range of different shops in the classroom. The nursery children turn one of the pedal carts into a delivery van when playing outside. All adults frequently join in with these activities, which makes them more fun and contributes positively to the development of the children’s imagination and language.

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ENGLISH

89. The results of the National Curriculum tests for 2000 show that at the end of Key Stage 1 standards in reading and writing were well below the national average when compared to all schools and below average in reading but average in writing when compared with similar schools. On the basis of the 2000 results attainment at the end of Key Stage 2 was well below average in English when compared with all schools and when compared with similar schools. Inspection evidence indicates that standards in reading are now average at the end of both key stages but remain below average in writing. Standards in spelling are below average in Key Stage 1 but are in line with national standards at the end of Key Stage 2. Standards in speaking are below average at the end of Key Stage 1 and just below at the end of Key Stage 2. Standards in listening are above average throughout the school. Pupils, including those with special educational needs, make good, and sometimes

p.36

ENGLISH

very good, progress in all aspects of their work in English. There are no significant differences between the progress made by boys and girls. At the time of the inspection there were no pupils for whom English is an additional language.

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90. Standards in speaking are not at the level expected for the great majority of the pupils within the school, although they are good for a small percentage. Pupils start school with low levels of attainment and a limited vocabulary that presents a significant barrier to their learning in Key Stage 1 and in the early part of Key Stage 2. The quality of the teaching ensures that pupils make good progress in developing their verbal skills. By Years 5 and 6 pupils have become much more confident in their speaking and pupils in Year 5 were keen to read out the work they had been doing based on replicating the style of the text ‘’The Little House in the Big Woods.’’ Standards in listening are good throughout the school. Teachers expect pupils to listen to them and to one other and they respond accordingly. In all classes pupils were observed processing instructions and following requests and also listening respectfully to one other. Good listening skills are a factor in the good progress

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St Columba’s Catholic Primary School - 37 being made by pupils of all ages and are an important part of the improvement in vocabulary that takes place as they move through the school. By the time they reach Year 6 pupils describe their work accurately and fluently and are starting to ask more demanding questions of their teachers and of one other. In all classes teachers are creating opportunities for the development of skills in speaking and listening by their use of shared reading sessions and group discussions. In a discussion following their shared reading, pupils in Year 5 demonstrated that they appreciated the author’s use of word power to create the feeling of suspense in the story.

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91. Pupils in both key stages are reading to a satisfactory standard and some of the higher attaining pupils in all years are reading to a good standard. Many of the pupils gain confidence from shared reading activities, particularly at Key Stage 1 when their vocabularies are still somewhat limited. In a Year 2 class the teacher worked with pupils with special educational needs during a group reading session and they were able to engage in a lively discussion of the likely outcome of the story being shared. Older pupils are able to recount stories that they have read or heard. Teachers encourage them in the development of their predictive skills so that they are able to anticipate the author’s intentions. By the end of Year 6 pupils are taking a keen interest in a wide range of literature although they are held back by lack of access to a good quality school library facility. Authors such as Gene Kemp, Anne Fine and Michael Hardcastle are well known to them.

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Pupils in Year 5 currently have Gene Kemp as their author of the moment and the subject co-ordinator has also arranged for authors such as Bill Ford to visit the school. Despite the lack of a good library teachers have been successful in fostering the reading habit amongst their pupils. The many language-rich displays around the school are also promoting reading skills and the measured use of descriptive terms and subject vocabularies is very helpful, although some displays have insufficient pupil input. The school also promotes reading skills through the ‘’Better Reading Partnership.’’ This is a reading buddy scheme with students from a local high school and a number of pupils have made considerable leaps of progress as a result of access to this concentrated help.

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ENGLISH

92. Standards in writing are below the national average at the end of both key stages. The school has made the improvement in writing a priority target in its planning and there are signs that standards are rising. Some good examples of writing were seen across the school. In Key Stage 1 pupils were taking great pride in their sentence and word work based on their reading of ‘’Lazy Ozzie’’ and were clearly making good progress in developing their skills in writing. However fewer pupils possess the writing skills to keep a story going after a lively opening and the vocabulary that is used is somewhat limited. Teachers have raised their expectations for the quality of writing produced by their pupils and this shows in work such as the personal biographies produced by pupils in Year 4 and the genre writing being done by pupils in Years 5 and 6. Extended writing remains the area most in need of further development even though pupils are beginning to improve their

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performance in this field. By transferring skills gained in literacy sessions to other subjects of the curriculum, notably history and geography, pupils are acquiring further experience in extending their writing. However some teachers miss opportunities to enhance pupils’ writing skills across other subjects and this prevents progress from being stronger.

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93. Pupils at the end of Key Stage 2 discuss the ways in which authors use the written word to communicate with different audiences and some are well informed concerning the style of writers such as Anne Fine. Many of them like and are keen to imitate the styles of authors who write about topics and experiences that are familiar to them in their own lives. The quality of handwriting and spelling also improves as pupils progress through the school and teachers are using their marking to encourage pupils in targeting improvements of this nature. Pupils’ workbooks now have target sheets attached to them and these are having an increasing impact on motivation as well as giving teachers a useful insight into the St Columba’s Catholic Primary School - 38 progress being made by individual pupils. Although examples of written work produced using computers were visible in classrooms and workbooks this remains an area for

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94. The quality of teaching and learning in English is good throughout the school and during the inspection some very good and excellent teaching was seen. This represents a major improvement over the findings of the previous inspection report. Good teaching is having a significant impact on the good progress being made by pupils in both key stages. The school has implemented the National Literacy Strategy successfully and pupils’ skills in literacy are improving. Older pupils in the school are now receiving specialist teaching in ability groups and this is also beginning to have a beneficial impact on standards. Analysis of the work in the pupils’ workbooks suggests that the push to raise standards to an average level in writing is close to being realised by the end of Key Stage 2. The school has rightly identified the need to ensure that pupils are directly taught the necessary writing skills that will enable them to write extended pieces of writing that sustain a plot,

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characterisation and use an expressive vocabulary. This begins in Key Stage 1 where pupils find difficulty in keeping a story going after a lively and interesting beginning.

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ENGLISH

95. A notable feature of the inspection was the way in which teachers and pupils acted together to make the teaching and learning of English an enjoyable experience. Pupils in Key Stage 1 love their stories and are proud to share their work with one another and with visitors. By the end of Key Stage 2 there is a critical awareness of the importance of literature and teachers are successful in their use of the language of inclusion in their use of stories from the pupils own and other cultures. A Year 5 class made very good use of the ‘’Grandpa Leicester’’ text as an illustration of customs and behaviours from the Indian sub-continent. Teachers and pupils shared in celebrating the work done by members of each class and pupils would applaud spontaneously when a piece of work was read out. Pupils with special educational needs are well integrated into the activities being carried out and their work is valued with equal esteem by their peers. Although there are excellent

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examples of pupils’ individual education plans being used to support and enhance pupils’ learning this very effective practice is not as consistent across the school as it should be and restricts pupils’ learning and progress. Pupils of higher attainment are usually being stretched towards their potential and by the end of Key Stage 2 are responding enthusiastically to the expectations of their teachers. Good provision and teaching is made for the traveller children who are fully involved and included in lessons. This has a positive impact on their learning. At the time of the inspection the school had no pupils for whom English is an additional language. The co-ordinators for English and special educational needs are however fully aware of the range of support required and the points of access to such support from the Local Education Authority should it be needed.

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ENGLISH

96. The joint subject co-ordinators for Key Stages 1 and 2 have a good overview of the teaching of English throughout the school. The Key Stage 2 co-ordinator is involved in the specialist teaching in Year 6 that is clearly having a beneficial impact on standards. The school is rightly reviewing the targets that it has set itself for literacy in 2001 as a result of the improving standards. Through the use of regular reading tests and optional Standardised Tests teachers are building up a useful portfolio of assessment information. The school is now moving towards a more effective analysis of the information available in order to inform future planning and to give more focus to the attempt to raise standards further. Marking is generally thorough and up-to-date but scrutiny of pupils’ workbooks suggests that in some classes there are too many pieces of unfinished work, although this situation is not helped by the high level of pupil absence in some year groups. Although the

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ENGLISH

school has a small library resource area, it is in a corridor and is also used for teaching purposes and is not convenient for access. This impacts adversely on the acquisition of library skills and also on the opportunities for pupils to engage in individual research St Columba’s Catholic Primary School - 39 activities. Other resources are satisfactory and are effectively deployed and used in all classes. On the basis of the inspection findings the school is making good progress towards achieving its targets for improvements in standards in English.

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MATHEMATICS

97. The results of the 2000 National Curriculum tests for 11-year-olds show that when compared to all schools attainment is very low and is in the bottom five per cent of schools nationally. When compared to similar schools attainment is well below average. In the 2000 tests for 7-year-olds attainment is well below average when compared to all schools but at an average level when compared to similar schools. Inspection findings paint a far more positive picture. Standards are just below average at the end of Key Stage 2 and below average at the end of Key Stage 1. Pupils’ number skills are however at an average level at the end of both key stages. Standards were at a higher level at the last inspection. Differences between test results, inspection findings and an apparent fall in standards since the last inspection can be explained by the fluctuating numbers of pupils with special educational needs and a high rate of pupil mobility, both of which are important factors to

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be taken into consideration at this school. Standards are also improving. This is because of effective teaching, the rigorous and successful implementation of the National Numeracy Strategy and sharper procedures to monitor the quality of teaching. The school is rightly reviewing the targets it has set itself for numeracy in 2001 as a consequence of the improving standards. There are still areas that need to be improved but the overall picture is that pupils are achieving well in relation to their ability. Pupils are keen and enthusiastic learners and pupils of all abilities are making good progress. Pupils with special educational needs are well supported and most are set challenging targets in their individual education plans. The higher attaining pupils are generally but not always set suitably demanding work. Both these factors have a most positive impact on pupils’ learning.

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MATHEMATICS

98. By the end of Key Stage 1 the pupils’ level of attainment overall is below average but number skills are at an average level. Given the well below average starting point of many pupils’ attainment when they start school this represents good progress. The effective implementation of the National Numeracy Strategy means that pupils have increasingly been provided with opportunities to develop their mental agility skills. Most pupils have mental recall of addition and subtraction facts to at least ten and a significant percentage go beyond this. Pupils have a secure knowledge of place value and can count and match words and numerals up to a hundred. Most count on in two’s and recognise odd and even numbers. They understand simple work on fractions. The teaching is providing pupils with opportunities to examine different ways in which to solve number problems and the higher attaining pupils recognise that there are different ways of arriving at the same answer.

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MATHEMATICS

However not all pupils are secure in this area of mathematics. An area of weakness is that many pupils are not able to transfer their number skills to written problems and are unsure when problems are presented in different formats. Pupils do not have a good grasp of mathematical language or terminology. Pupils have a satisfactory knowledge of two and three-dimensional shapes and measure using standard and non-standard measures. This measuring is not as accurate as it could be. Evidence is available of pupils handling data in graphs but not all pupils are able to interpret the data accurately.

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MATHEMATICS

99. The school has spent a considerable amount of time and effort in improving pupils’ number skills and its efforts have paid off. By the end of key Stage 2 pupils’ number skills are at an average level and pupils are becoming increasingly comfortable and confident with mental arithmetic calculations. The opportunities provided by the following of the National Numeracy Strategy means that pupils are provided with tasks on a daily basis that test St Columba’s Catholic Primary School - 40 their mental agility and tackle calculations with increasing speed and accuracy. Pupils have a satisfactory knowledge of number facts and recall is at an appropriate rate. Pupils add and subtract decimals to two places and have a satisfactory grasp of fractions. Not all pupils are confident at carrying out division and multiplication of large numbers. The school has introduced a more rigorous programme of revision to help pupils with the national

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MATHEMATICS

curriculum tests. This is appropriate because pupils are not adept at using their number skills when problems are presented in an unfamiliar manner. On occasions pupils have the necessary skills to solve quite complex problems but are unsure what is being asked of them. This impacts negatively on the standards that they attain. Pupils’ knowledge of shape space and measures is satisfactory overall although estimating and measuring for some pupils is not as accurate as it could be. Pupils’ ability to record data using different formats is appropriate with the higher attainers showing a good level of interpretation. Pupils’ ability to use an appropriate mathematical vocabulary to talk about and explain their work is a weaker element of the subject. Some good examples were seen of pupils’ numeracy skills in other areas of the curriculum such as science and geography but there are other occasions when opportunities are missed and this together with missed

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opportunities to use computers to support pupils’ learning sometimes prevents progress from being even stronger.

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MATHEMATICS

100. The pupils display good attitudes to learning and the older pupils have very good attitudes. The pupils really enjoy the mental tasks that are now a feature of all mathematics lessons. They join in the activities with great enthusiasm and clearly enjoy the tasks that are set. Within lessons behaviour is good and often very good. The pupils work productively and when work is challenging and demanding pupils rise to the occasion and concentrate for prolonged periods of time. Occasionally when work is not at this level a small minority of pupils become restless and do not listen attentively and do not complete enough work. This however is the exception rather than the norm as in most lessons the good quality of behaviour and positive attitudes add significantly to the quality of the learning environment.

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MATHEMATICS

101. The quality of teaching during the inspection was good. The school has undergone several staffing changes in recent years and this has led to some inconsistency in the quality of teaching and has contributed to the fact that over time progress has not been as good as it is now. Although there are still some inconsistencies in teaching for different classes in the same year group the picture that emerges is that the overall good quality of teaching is ensuring that pupils of all abilities are making good progress and making good strides in their learning. The teachers’ organisation of pupils is good and in most instances teachers have a high expectation of behaviour and they challenge the pupils by setting a good pace and matching the work to the differing ability levels of the pupils. This means that pupils remain interested, concentrate and behave well and their learning is enhanced. Good use

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MATHEMATICS

is made of support staff who do much to ensure that pupils with special educational needs make good progress. In the best practice teachers make good and effective use of pupils’ individual education plans to plan work but on occasions not enough attention is paid to the targets that are in the plans and this impacts negatively on pupils’ learning. The needs of the higher attaining pupils are usually taken into account and as a result these pupils make good progress. Examples were seen however of work for some of the youngest pupils at Key Stage 2 not being challenging enough and pupils not making the progress of which they were capable.

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MATHEMATICS

102. Lessons have a good structure that involves a whole class activity, group work and a summing up session at the end of the lesson. The opening mental agility activities that are a feature of all lessons are taught well and with a high degree of pace, fun and challenge. Pupils respond well when they clearly understand what it is they are to learn in a particular lesson and work productively when deadlines or time scales are set. The summary sessions are being used in an effective manner to find out if the stated lesson objectives St Columba’s Catholic Primary School - 41 have been achieved. In the best teaching, the outcomes of the summary session are then used to amend and extend the next range of learning activities that have been planned. This adds much to the quality of pupils’ learning.

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MATHEMATICS

103. The older pupils in the school are taught in ability groups for mathematics. This is proving to be an effective initiative. The good and often very good quality of teaching that is a feature of many lessons for these pupils is having a significant impact on pupils’ learning and attainment. The teaching ensures that there is a very good match of tasks to the abilities of the pupils. Even within the ability groups different tasks are provided for different pupils because teachers have an excellent grasp of the needs of individual pupils. Teachers continually ask the pupils to examine different methods of solving problems. The different methods are then shared with the rest of the class and as a result the learning of all pupils is enhanced. Lessons have pace, expectations are high and the quality of teaching together with the pupils’ desire to learn form a powerful combination. Examples of good and very good teaching were also observed at Key Stage 1 where the teachers’

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MATHEMATICS

subject knowledge, enthusiasm and readiness to directly teach the skills to enable pupils to become young mathematical investigators adds much to pupils’ attainment and progress. Homework is used well to further pupils’ learning. The homework clubs that the school runs are a very good and effective aid to learning. They give pupils access to good quality support and guidance and this means that any problems that they are experiencing are dealt with in a sensitive and positive manner. Although pupils’ work is marked on a regular basis the opportunity is not being used by all teachers to outline to pupils what they need to do to improve. Where it is used in this manner there is a visible improvement in the quality of work achieved.

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MATHEMATICS

104. The two co-ordinators manage the subject well and have a good grasp of the strengths of the subject and what needs to be improved. During the last two years there have been effective procedures in place to monitor the quality of teaching and learning which have improved the quality of teaching. This has included formal lesson observations with feedback given to the individual teachers concerned. Co-ordinators have monitored colleagues’ planning and although there has been some scrutiny of pupils’ work, this has not been regular enough to have its biggest possible impact on helping to raise standards. Together with the headteacher, the co-ordinators have analysed the results of national curriculum tests and used the information well to identify areas where pupils have struggled. The co-ordinators and headteacher realise that there is now a need to take this analysis of data to a more sophisticated level. This is to include analysing the performance

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MATHEMATICS

of pupils in the same year group but in different classes, a more detailed examination of attainment by gender and tracking the progress of pupils that have started at the school at times other than the official start times. This is good practice and will enable the school to more accurately quantify the added value that the school is providing as well as targeting specific areas or groups of pupils for improvement.

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SCIENCE

105. The results of the National Curriculum tests for 11-year-olds in 2000 showed that pupils’ attainment in science was very low and was in the bottom five per cent of schools nationally. The school also performed well below average when compared to similar schools. Teacher assessments at the end of Key Stage 1 in 2000 showed pupils attainment to be well below average. Although there are weaknesses still to be tackled, inspection findings paint a more positive picture with attainment at the end of Key Stage 2 at an average level and attainment at the end of key Stage1 below average. The differences between inspection findings and test and assessment results can be explained by the fact that the groups of pupils in 2000 had a far higher percentage of pupils with St Columba’s Catholic Primary School - 42 special educational needs. At the end of Key Stage 2 the use of specialist teaching is having a most positive impact on pupils’ learning and attainment. There are some

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SCIENCE

differences in attainment between the two Year 2 classes which can be mainly explained by the differing natural ability levels of the groups of the pupils and to a lesser extent the differing confidence and expertise of the individual teachers. As a result one class is attaining the nationally expected level while one is not. On the basis of the 2000 National Curriculum test results standards appear to have fallen since the time of the last inspection but this can be explained by the fluctuating number of pupils with special educational needs and the high level of pupil mobility that is a feature of this school. The school is well placed to improve standards further in the coming years.

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SCIENCE

106. Most pupils in the school, including those with special educational needs are making good progress. There are however some occasions when there is variability in the level of expectation of teachers in different classes in the same year group. Examples of this were seen in Years 3 and 4. When this is the case progress is just satisfactory. In other year groups progress is consistently good and on occasions very good. The improvement in standards at the end of Key Stage 2, is the direct result of both Year 6 classes being taught for science by the same teacher who has very high expectations of attainment, behaviour and presentation. This arrangement ensures that standards are the same in both classes and that pupils make good and sometimes very good progress. A similar teaching arrangement has been used with Year 5 classes and analysis of work shows a consistency in standards and pupils making similarly good progress in both classes. The

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SCIENCE

school is currently examining extending this highly effective teaching arrangement across the key stage in order to have a greater impact on pupils’ learning and to further improve standards. In addition the school has rightly identified the need to put more rigorous procedures in place to monitor the quality of teaching and learning and to carry out a sharper analysis of test and assessment data and set targets for improvement. Such procedures if rigorously implemented should impact positively on standards.

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SCIENCE

107. By the end of Key Stage 1, pupils’ ability to carry out investigations is satisfactory, and those who have special educational needs are given good support to complete the work. However pupils are not proficient at recording their findings in different formats. The majority of pupils make simple predictions, make observations about changes taking place and higher attaining pupils know that when carrying out tests that conditions must be the same. Although pupils describe what happens in their scientific investigations their ability to explain why things happen as they do using an appropriate scientific vocabulary is unsatisfactory. By the end of Key Stage 2, pupils’ confidence to carry out investigative work has increased. They make predictions, and, with support, test their ideas and record their results using different forms. For example, they use graphs, tables and written descriptions. Pupils write descriptions of what they have done, use scientific vocabulary

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SCIENCE

they have been taught and draw conclusions. However, not many pupils are able to set an hypothesis and there is no evidence of pupils using information and communication technology to monitor changes in their experiments, although they are able to use it to research different topics, and from it produce information cards on animals and habitats.

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SCIENCE

108. By the end of Key Stage 1, most pupils have a satisfactory understanding of the needs of living things, but for the lower attaining pupils this level of understanding is quite basic. The majority of pupils understands the differences between living and non-living things and classify living things according to their characteristics. Pupils know that they should eat certain food to remain healthy, and are able to label the major bones in the body. By the end of Key Stage 2, pupils’ knowledge of living things is at a satisfactory level. They have made sufficient progress so that they are able to carry out research on animals and their habitats, and show that they have an understanding of how animals adapt to their surroundings. Most pupils name the major organs of the body, and understand that St Columba’s Catholic Primary School - 43 exercise causes the heart to pump faster. They know the meaning of germination, how

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SCIENCE

plants attract insects for pollination, but lower attaining pupils are unable to indicate where plants should be kept to thrive.

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SCIENCE

109. By the end of Key Stage 1, pupils have satisfactory understanding of materials and their properties. Most pupils know that materials change if they are heated or cooled, and higher attaining pupils understand that some changes cannot be reversed. By the end of Key Stage 2, pupils have made good progress in their understanding of materials, changes and chemical reactions. They investigate solutions, the solubility of sugar and salt, and make predictions about the amounts needed for saturation. They understand evaporation and show their results in graph form. All pupils categorise materials as solid, gases or liquids, and younger pupils at this key stage consider, through experimentation, which materials make the best insulators.

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SCIENCE

110. By the end of Key Stage 1, pupils’ knowledge and understanding of physical processes are below national expectations, and they make less secure progress in this aspect. Although most pupils understand ‘Forces’ in terms of pushing and pulling, they find it difficult to explain about electrical circuits, the occurrence of night and day, and how sound travels. This insecure progress in this aspect continues in Key Stage 2, although pupils do achieve more in Years 5 and 6 where the teachers are more confident in this aspect. By the end of this key stage pupils understand why the seasons occur and know that shadows can differ depending on the light source. They construct simple circuits using one switch, and have a satisfactory understanding of gravity.

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SCIENCE

111. The overall quality of teaching and learning in the lessons seen during the inspection was good with some evidence of variability between classes in the same year group. The school has used the individual skills of teachers in a most effective manner at Key Stage 2. This use of specialist teaching has proved to be very successful in improving standards and the quality of pupils’ learning. In these lessons planning is of a high standard and clearly outlines scientific objectives that pupils are to learn. The constant use of technical language helps to heighten the expectation level of the pupils. The enthusiastic manner of the teaching linked to the very secure subject knowledge of the teachers enthuses the pupils who are eager to learn and develop their skills as scientific investigators. Behaviour and the attitudes that the pupils have towards learning in these lessons are very good and make a most positive impact on the quality of learning and the progress that pupils of all

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SCIENCE

abilities make. In the most effective lessons very good use is made of the skills of support assistants who in turn enhance pupils’ learning through sensitive and well-focused support. When teaching is successful in other areas of the school it is because the lessons are purposeful, move at a brisk pace and pupils are fully aware of what they are to learn. In addition good guidance is given at the end of the lesson on how pupils’ performance and behaviour could be improved. When pupils are provided with opportunities to carry out investigative work they do so with maturity and are keen to explore and find things out for themselves. They work well together and listen attentively to one another when explaining their observations. All these factors help to make a pleasant and productive working environment where pupils are enjoying themselves as well as adding to their scientific skills and knowledge.

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SCIENCE

112. When teaching is not at this high level it is because teachers do not have high enough expectations in terms of what pupils are to achieve, how much work pupils are to complete within a lesson or sequence of lessons or in how work is presented and marked. This is sometimes linked to a lack of subject knowledge while on other occasions teachers do not provide enough guidance as to what pupils need to do to improve. The quality of teaching sometimes varies between classes in the same year group and as a result the learning of one group of pupils can be quicker and more secure than another. There are very good St Columba’s Catholic Primary School - 44 examples of teaching being clearly planned to meet the needs of the higher and lower attaining pupils and when this happens pupils’ learning is significantly enhanced. The quality of teaching and provision for the traveller children is good and impacts positively on

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SCIENCE

113. A good quality scheme of work has been recently adopted, and the policy has been updated. The subject is co-ordinated by two temporary co-ordinators and has had a series of different subject leaders since the last inspection. There are plans to hand this subject over next year to one of this year’s newly qualified teachers but the school has rightly identified that the teacher may need additional support and training to help her carry out her responsibilities in an effective manner. Procedures to monitor the quality of teaching and learning are not embedded in school practice and this has a negative impact on pupils’ learning and attainment because strategies are not in place to disseminate the good practice that exists or to tackle the identified weaknesses. The present co-ordinators however have a good grasp of what is needed to help improve standards and are correct in their assertions that there is a clear need for a more detailed analysis of test and

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SCIENCE

assessment data to identify weaknesses in attainment of elements of the subject or by differing groups of pupils. In addition they have targeted the need for in service training of staff to develop teachers’ subject knowledge and expertise and in turn improve the quality of pupils’ learning.

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ART AND DESIGN

114. Attainment in art and design is at an average level for pupils’ ages at the end of both key stages. Pupils of all abilities make satisfactory progress in their learning as they move through the school because they are introduced to an appropriate range of techniques and given the opportunities to work with a wide range of materials such as crayons, pastels, paint and fabrics. Progress has been more secure during the last twelve months because greater attention has been paid to ensuring that pupils’ prior attainment and experiences have been systematically built on and developed. When teaching is good within an individual or series of lessons the pupils respond with great enthusiasm and make good strides in their learning. Examples of such teaching were observed at Key Stage 1 during the inspection. Standards have been maintained since the time of the last inspection.

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ART AND DESIGN

115. By the end of Key Stage1 pupils have acquired satisfactory drawing skills and make accurate observational drawings of fruit and plants. The pupils are provided with satisfactory opportunities to experiment with colour and to use shades that they feel are appropriate for the purpose. The pupils respond well to this and as a result are confident in mixing colour to produce the desired effect. Teachers do not over direct the pupils and so finished pieces of artwork show signs of originality. Good links are often made with literacy. Pupils are encouraged to describe how different materials feel or how the textures of different fruits compare. Pupils create their own pictures based on the work of Jaqui Poncelet and in doing so use a variety of different materials. The finished products are of a satisfactory standard. Although pupils know the names of some famous artists they are not conversant with their lives or work. Discussions with pupils show that they see the

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ART AND DESIGN

importance of looking at ways of improving their work. The pupils do not have sketchbooks where they could practice and refine their work and help to improve the finished product.

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ART AND DESIGN

116. The pupils continue to acquire knowledge and skills at a satisfactory rate during Key Stage 2. They are directly taught the skills to enable them to become competent at carrying out observational drawings to a satisfactory standard. They are introduced to concepts such as perspective and line and tone, and taught to use techniques such as shading to help bring pictures to life. Pupils show a good understanding of how the use of different pencils St Columba’s Catholic Primary School - 45 can produce very different results. They recognise pieces of artwork that are abstract in nature. Good examples were seen of pupils combining the use of watercolours and the pupils’ own visual interpretation of Macbeth. When examining the subject of portraits the pupils looked at many famous examples and techniques before undertaking a self-portrait. This enhanced pupils’ learning and enabled them to improve their original attempts to

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ART AND DESIGN

create portraits of an appropriate standard. Pupils have a satisfactory awareness of the work of famous artists such as Kandinsky, Van Gogh, Lowry and Klee and produce their own pieces of work to a satisfactory standard based on the style and techniques of such artists. The use of sketchbooks in most classes enables pupils to try out different techniques, which in turn improves pupils’ learning and the finished products.

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ART AND DESIGN

117. The pupils enjoy taking part in art and design lessons and show good levels of concentration. When provided with opportunities to do so pupils enjoy nothing better than experimenting with colour mixing or working with different materials. They are always ready to listen to advice from their teachers and readily show appreciation of one anothers’ work. These factors together with the very good standard of behaviour that is a feature of many lessons contribute significantly to the quality of pupils’ learning. The pupils with special educational needs receive good levels of support from classroom assistants and this enables them to take a full and active part in all lessons. The skilful teaching that involves them in discussions and evaluations of finished work means that they are fully included in all activities and this improves their confidence, self-esteem and the quality of their learning.

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ART AND DESIGN

118. The quality of teaching and learning overall for all pupils in the school is satisfactory with instances of good practice at Key Stage 1. When teaching is at its best the pupils are directly taught the necessary skills to enable them to become competent artists. These skills include mixing techniques, shading skills to enable them to gain a sharper eye for observation or simply holding scissors or tools correctly. The end result is that pupils’ learning improves and the finished products are of better quality and show signs of originality. Teaching draws pupils’ attention to the work of famous artists but still emphasises the need to produce their own work in the style of an artist rather than an exact copy. Teaching for the younger pupils in school uses artistic experiences such as the drawing of exotic fruit or tie-dyeing as a golden opportunity to extend pupils’ descriptive powers and in doing so extend their vocabulary. This is good practice. Opportunities are

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ART AND DESIGN

sometimes missed at Key Stage 2 for pupils to use computers for either research or design purposes and this hinders pupils from making better progress in extending their artistic knowledge or in advancing their designing skills. Pupils have had few opportunities to visit art galleries or to benefit from artists or craftspeople visiting the school, all of which would add to pupils’ cultural as well as artistic learning. The co-ordinator has only just taken responsibility for the subject and as such as had no opportunities to monitor the quality of teaching and learning in the subject. The subject has not been a priority area for the school and co-ordination of the subject has been limited and unsatisfactory over time. The school has clearly identified the need for a more rigorous approach to evaluating how well the pupils are achieving and what improvements are necessary. This is appropriate if standards are to improve further and if the good practice that exists within the school is to

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DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

119. The school has made satisfactory improvements to some aspects of this subject since the last inspection. Through in-service training, and the employment of new teachers there has been an increase in the confidence and expertise that teachers have throughout the school. This has been further supported by the skills that the new teachers have brought to St Columba’s Catholic Primary School - 46 the school and is ensuring that pupils make satisfactory progress as they move through the school. Resources have improved. In addition, the school has effectively used the expertise of a voluntary teacher for teaching Year 6 pupils and as a result the standards of attainment at the end of Key Stage 2 have improved since the last inspection. However the role of the co-ordinator is not at an appropriate level and as such is not successful in helping to improve standards further.

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DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

120. Overall, pupils’ attainment at the end of both key stages is at an average level. Pupils of all ages and abilities, including those with special educational needs make satisfactory progress by the time they reach the end of each key stage. The traveller children are fully included in all activities and make similar progress to their classmates. However, pupils’ progress in the food technology aspect of the subject is less evident as the school does not keep sufficient records or evidence of pupils’ achievements. Evidence from work on display around the school, from that seen in lessons, and from discussion with pupils shows that by the end of Key Stage 1 pupils have designed and made books, different types of puppets, a model of the ‘Well’ from the nursery rhyme ‘Pussy is in the Well, and a model of a spider on the wall from the rhyme ‘Insy, Winsy Spider’. These are all of a satisfactory standard. The pupils have used different types of resistant materials, such as

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DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

card, plastic and wood in an appropriate manner and have a satisfactory understanding of how to draw a design and make a simple list of the materials they need. They use some of the tools recommended for their age in a satisfactory manner, but have less experience of using small hand tools, such as hammers and saws

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DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

121. During their time in Key Stage 2 the pupils continue to make satisfactory progress in their knowledge and understanding of the subject and attain average standards by the end of the key stage. However progress does sometimes vary between classes and is dependent on the expertise of individual teachers. Younger pupils in this key stage discuss and demonstrate clearly how they have taken a box apart and looked at the component parts. Their own designs show that they have understood that boxes are designed to make the best use of materials and that they must be of a specific size and shape for the contents. Displays of work and discussion with pupils show that they produce good designs of wheeled vehicles, and the resulting models are made from a variety of different materials, are similar to the original designs and are very carefully made. Once again pupils have used materials such as wood, card and plastic, and there has been some introduction of

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DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

textiles. This use of differing materials adds to the quality of the finished products and adds to the level of originality.

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DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

122. The quality of teaching and learning is satisfactory over time with examples of good and very good teaching seen during the week of inspection. The lessons seen included a good emphasis on the designing, selection of appropriate materials, and evaluation of the finished items. In Year 6 the teacher encouraged the pupils to think about the efficient use of materials in the manufacturing process in industry. This enabled pupils to start to think about the wider implications of designing and prepares them well for secondary education. In this lesson pupils were challenged to arrange the component parts of a trainer in the least possible space. This produced great enthusiasm and excitement in the pupils and helped to produce a really positive attitude to learning. The majority of teachers have a good knowledge of the subject and of the requirements of the National Curriculum. However, there is some confusion between what is taught in science and what is part of

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DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

design and technology, and this affects the progress pupils make. For example, a design and technology lesson in Year 3 focused too much on the scientific concept of air being used to produce movement, instead of allowing pupils to developing design and problem solving skills. St Columba’s Catholic Primary School - 47 123. The school has recently adopted national guidelines provided by the Qualification and Curriculum Authority as the basis for teaching and learning in the subject. If rigorously followed this will help to ensure that pupils systematically acquire appropriate knowledge and skills and that prior attainment will be built on and developed. However, the school has yet to think how it will provide adequately for the food technology element of the subject. The co-ordination of the subject has been unsatisfactory although there is an appropriate action plan in place which identifies accurately areas for development and improvement

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DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

within the subject. The fact that there has been little monitoring of teaching and learning means that the co-ordinator has had no opportunities to disseminate the good practice that clearly exists within the school and to tackle weaknesses in both provision and teaching. This impacts adversely on the quality of pupils’ learning and the progress that they make.

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GEOGRAPHY

124. Standards in geography are at an average level at the end of both key stages. Pupils in Year 2 are aware of features of islands and compare issues such as transport and other aspects with life on the mainland. Mapping skills are developing in a satisfactory manner so that pupils add a key to identify main features on a map. Pupils can draw a simple map of their locality and plot their route to school, and a significant percentage identify the location of Bradford on a map of Great Britain, as well as the location of some seaside towns. The pupils contrast key features of town and countryside, and are beginning to understand the difference between physical and man-made features. They make judgements on positive and negative features of their locality, and have linked this to work in literacy by writing letters to the local council requesting action on negative aspects. The continuous unit in the

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GEOGRAPHY

scheme of work, ‘Where in the world is Barnaby Bear’ is used well to develop a satisfactory awareness of places in the world and different features such as deserts and rivers so that pupils begin to link maps with real places.

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GEOGRAPHY

125. By the end of Key Stage 2 pupils have a good understanding of physical features such as mountains and rivers, and recognise the effects of water on land from a study of erosion and flooding. They have a satisfactory awareness of world climate zones, and have studied seasons, rainfall and temperature locally and around the world, building well on their ability to use tables and graphs. They understand the concept of co-ordinates but pupils’ mapping skills are not well developed and pupils in Year 6 have unsatisfactory recall of Ordnance Survey maps and symbols. Pupils’ understanding of links between land use and physical features is sound, and they appreciate the effects of changing land use. Their environmental awareness is good and they debate issues such as the need for recycling, improving the school and local environment. However their ability to record their ideas does not always match their oral skill.

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GEOGRAPHY

126. Progress for pupils of all abilities, including those with special educational needs, is satisfactory overall, at both key stages. The traveller children are fully included in all activities and effective and sensitive use is made of their own experiences. Progress for the older pupils at Key Stage 2 is currently good. This is directly linked to the good quality of teaching. Pupils respond positively to lessons, showing good levels of co-operation and behaviour. They respond to teachers’ questions eagerly and offer ideas with confidence but some demonstrate limited recall of earlier work. The positive attitudes that the vast majority of pupils have to the subject have a positive impact on the good quality of learning that is a feature of many lessons.

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GEOGRAPHY

127. Teaching is satisfactory overall with some good teaching evident in Key Stage 1 and in Key Stage 2. Features of good teaching include good teacher knowledge and enthusiasm, effective use of questions, and effectively chosen resources. Pupils are made aware of the St Columba’s Catholic Primary School - 48 objectives of lessons, which helps them to focus their learning. In some year groups there is a difference in the quality of work in parallel classes, and for some of the younger pupils at Key Stage 2 the work lacks challenge with an overuse of undemanding worksheets. This impacts negatively on pupils’ learning and the progress that they make. A positive feature of much teaching is the encouragement of debate and the linking of geography to real life experience and current local, national and international issues so that the subject comes to life and pupils are motivated to learn. This has been aided by good quality newsletters

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GEOGRAPHY

aimed at older pupils and parents to link geography to world events. All classrooms display maps which are used to reinforce current learning so that sense of place and awareness of types of maps is reinforced as pupils move through the school. Good links are made with numeracy for example in the production of charts and graphs, and information technology is used well to support the subject with older children, through production of flow charts, use of the Internet, multimedia modelling and the interactive whiteboard. Scrutiny of pupils’ written work indicates that the quality of marking is variable, and where good includes dialogue to encourage pupils to think about their work. Where it is less satisfactory it is cursory and praises work without commenting on pupils’ learning of geographical skills or knowledge.

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GEOGRAPHY

128. Improvement since the last inspection is satisfactory. Standards have improved especially at the end of Key Stage 2, although mapping skills are still not strong. Some teaching in Key Stage 2 was unsatisfactory at the last inspection but is now good, and more able pupils are usually but not always provided with tasks that are demanding and challenging. Insufficient monitoring of planning and lack of assessment to inform future planning remain as issues, but resource deficiencies have been dealt with.

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GEOGRAPHY

129. The headteacher is acting as caretaker co-ordinator until a new subject leader is identified. Provision includes good use of the local area and a nearby environmental centre, and geographical skills are developed in residential visits to the Yorkshire Dales. Information technology is being used well in some classes but more resources are needed to ensure its use throughout the school. The introduction of a new scheme of work based on guidance from the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority should, if rigorously followed, ensure good curriculum coverage and continuity and progression. Not enough has been done to monitor the quality of teaching and learning in the subject across the school. This impacts negatively on pupils’ learning because procedures are not in place to disseminate the good practice or to tackle the weaknesses. This has already been identified by the school as an area for improvement.

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GEOGRAPHY

St Columba’s Catholic Primary School - 49

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HISTORY

130. Standards at the end of both key stages are in line with what is expected of pupils aged seven and eleven and pupils of all abilities including those with special educational needs make satisfactory progress. The traveller children make similar progress to their classmates. The standards have been maintained since the time of the previous inspection.

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HISTORY

131. By the end of Year 2 most pupils are achieving as well as they should do and a minority are achieving better than this. Discussions with pupils confirm that they are secure in their knowledge of the Great Fire of London and have some insight into the life of Florence Nightingale. For example, boys and girls know that Samuel Pepys was an eyewitness and that he recorded events in his diary. A few pupils understand the concept of a firebreak and give good reasons for one being made. Pupils have a satisfactory understanding of everyday life in the past and possess secure chronological skills. Pupils explain changes in their own lifetime but sometimes lack the expressive vocabulary to articulate their thoughts clearly.

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HISTORY

132. By the end of Year 6 most pupils are achieving as well as they should do in view of their attainment on entry. Pupils record their research findings about Greeks’ way of life as bullet points. This makes an effective link with what they are learning about note taking and research skills in literacy. Pupils draw appropriate comparisons, for example, between the life styles of the peoples of Athens and Sparta. Pupils continue to develop a stronger sense of chronology and many opportunities are provided for the pupils to compare life styles and cultures in different periods of history. Pupils have a satisfactory understanding that historical stories may have changed as they have been passed down generations and show a sound awareness of how artefacts can provide vital clues as to how people in the past lived.

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HISTORY

133. Teaching is satisfactory overall, with some good teaching at Key Stage 2 seen during the inspection. Examination of pupils’ previous work shows that teaching is sometimes variable from parallel classes in the same year group. When this happens the teacher’s expectations are too low and this affects how well pupils learn. However, across the school pupils’ learning is satisfactory overall because pupils have good attitudes to the subject, are keen to acquire new knowledge and skills and behave well. Learning is particularly good in one Year 4 class because pupils are being encouraged to think and to draw conclusions for themselves, for example when considering the problems of Henry the Eighth and how he solved them.

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HISTORY

134. Lessons are planned in an appropriate manner and what pupils are to learn is clearly stated. When this is shared with the pupils it improves their learning because pupils are fully aware of what is expected of them. Teachers make good use of time lines to ensure that pupils understand which period they are studying. Pupils co-operate well together and their learning is enhanced when opportunities are provided for them to carry out research tasks, for instance on Viking longboats. Teachers make good use of their time in lessons to support lower achieving pupils, but this is not always evident in previous work where pupils appear to struggle with the tasks set. Marking is not always as effective as it could be in improving pupils’ learning because it does not always make clear what pupils need to do to improve. Pupils come into school with low levels of vocabulary and this is still evident in work in Key Stage 2, where pupils struggled to name a ‘sail’ on a Viking boat, a ‘penny

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HISTORY

farthing’ bicycle and did not know what a ‘navvy’ did for a living. In less effective parts of lessons, teachers rely too heavily on pupils’ previous knowledge instead of providing a taught session that imparts a suitable range of facts that would advance their learning. St Columba’s Catholic Primary School - 50 135. Leadership and management are satisfactory overall. A newly qualified teacher will take over responsibility for the subject in the near future. Although no lessons have been monitored there has been some limited monitoring of pupils’ books, which recognised similar issues to those raised above, although no action has yet been taken. Resources are broadly satisfactory to support pupils’ learning and teachers make use of good quality pictures and captions to illustrate specific aspects of their topics. The curriculum is enriched by educational visits, for example to Eden Camp and a Viking village and this not

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HISTORY

only enthuses pupils and contributes to their social development, but also widens their knowledge of how people lived in the past.

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INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

136. The standard of pupils’ work in information and communication technology is at an expected level at the end of both key stages. The good quality of teaching that is now a feature of the school means that pupils of all abilities are currently making good progress. Over time however teachers’ knowledge and confidence has not been as high. This together with shortages in resources means that progress made by pupils of all abilities and travellers’ children has been satisfactory overall. 137. Pupils’ confidence and skill in using a mouse in Year 1 enables them to select and drag on screen as well as input from a keyboard, producing labelled drawings of parts of a plant using Kidpix as part of their learning in science. By the end of Year 2 pupils have confidence with the art packages, and higher-attaining pupils use it independently, selecting colours and adding text to their drawing in geography. Most are confident in

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INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

drawing lines and filling spaces with colour. They use word-processing satisfactorily for the production of simple text, changing text size and fonts, and use a computer for research, as in Year 2 where pupils have collected information on animals and added their own sentence to it. 138. Development of control technology is satisfactory for Key Stage 1 pupils who can give simple instructions to a programmable toy, some with assistance from other members of their group or an adult. They understand the importance of clear instructions and the role of control in everyday equipment. Some pupils lack confidence in talking about their work, although teachers and classroom assistants use questions well to encourage pupils to think about their work and solve problems encountered. Teachers encourage independent work and equipment is well prepared so that pupils are able to quickly access software and print their completed work. They save and retrieve their own files but a significant

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INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

percentage of pupils require help to do this. Where classroom assistance is available it is used well to facilitate group work and allow use of the limited space in the computer suite. 139. By the age of eleven, pupils use computers with confidence. Pupils’ access to computers as they move through the key stage has been limited by lack of equipment and facilities, for example no Internet access. This has now been addressed. The school has recently adopted the guidance from the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority as its scheme of work. Pupils are therefore catching up in some year groups so that coverage of the National Curriculum programme of study is fully addressed by the end of Year 6. The recent acquisition of laptop computers has enabled whole class teaching and appropriate timetabling of the subject for one lesson a week and this has enhanced pupils’ learning. In Year 4 the benefits of this are evident in work on cutting and pasting to edit text as a whole

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INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

class activity, and in Year 6 work on spreadsheets, with pupils working to a satisfactory standard. In English at Year 5 pupils show good use of word-processing skills such as changing font and size, use of bold and cut and paste, and importing images for writing newspaper articles. These skills are also demonstrated in drafting, editing and redrafting formal letters of complaint in Year 6. St Columba’s Catholic Primary School - 51 140. Pupils develop their research skills throughout Key Stage 2 by retrieving information from the Internet and CD-ROM to support work in other subjects. In Year 6 the interactive whiteboard was used well during the inspection to introduce pupils to a CD-ROM in preparation for using it independently for research in geography. They have recently begun to use electronic mail in a competent and confident manner. No evidence of control or monitoring was seen in Key Stage 2 during the inspection but is evident in teachers’

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INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

medium term plans. Older pupils have learned well how computers are used in business after visits from representatives from national retailing and utilities companies. There are however still missed opportunities for computers to be used to support work in other areas of the curriculum that would enhance pupils’ learning further. 141. Teaching is presently good throughout the school. Planning is focused well around clear learning objectives and includes ongoing assessment of attainment. Although some teachers lack confidence they have satisfactory knowledge of information and communication technology, and use and reinforce technical vocabulary well so that pupils learn the language of the subject. Forthcoming training for all staff should improve knowledge and confidence levels further. Questions are used effectively to draw out recollections of prior learning and challenge pupils to offer ideas. The computer suite

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INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

presents organisational challenges because of its small size, and is mainly used in Key Stage 1 where adult support allows for smaller groups. Non-teaching assistants provide good support for groups and whole classes. Carefully selected pairings by teachers to support lower attaining pupils contribute to effective learning in the suite and in whole class sessions, but less attention is given to providing more challenge for higher attaining pupils. The Easter club for higher-attaining Year 6 pupils, supported by Education Action Zone funding, provides good extension opportunities and curriculum enrichment, as well as training for a classroom assistant which will contribute to development for other staff. Teachers use ongoing assessment well, noting pupils’ errors and misconceptions and using them as a basis for reinforcing learning. 142. Pupils’ attitudes to information and communication technology are very good. They co-

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INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

operate well when working in pairs and are particularly willing to support classmates with special educational needs. Although all are eager to use the computer they accept the organisational restrictions in the computer suite and make good use of their learning opportunities. Progress is presently good throughout the school, and in some year groups learning is rapid as pupils are catching up with the new curriculum. 143. Since the last inspection progress has been satisfactory, although many developments are recent. Standards of attainment are now satisfactory, the computer suite, although small, has been set up, and laptop computers provided to enable whole class teaching. Decisions to use the suite mainly for Key Stage 1 and the laptops for Key Stage 2 mean that best use is made of available resources. Teaching has improved significantly and is now good overall in both key stages. 144. The subject is led with enthusiasm and good subject knowledge so that teachers are

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INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

supported by well-organised resources and guidance. Resources are adequate but the limited size of the computer suite restricts pupils’ learning despite the best efforts of the teachers and support staff. There is a clear plan to move the subject forward, including production of a portfolio of levelled work to support teachers’ assessment, and end of unit tests to facilitate tracking of progress. The school’s scheme of work, although requiring some modification while pupils catch up, is clearly reflected in teachers’ practice. St Columba’s Catholic Primary School - 52

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MUSIC

145. Inspection findings indicate that pupils’ attainment is at an expected level for pupils at the end of both key stages. Most of the music observed during inspection concentrated on singing. The school has adopted the Qualification and Curriculum Authority’s guidelines as the basis for teaching and learning across the school. This document if rigorously followed will help to ensure that pupils’ experience the full range of musical experiences including composition and appraisal. Discussions with pupils suggests that composition is the weaker element of the subject and that pupils have not over time been provided with regular and systematic opportunities to compose music where previous learning has been built on and extended. In all other aspects of the subject pupils of all abilities and the travellers’ children make satisfactory progress and acquire skills and knowledge at a steady rate. Standards have been maintained since the time of the last inspection.

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MUSIC

146. At Key Stage 1 pupils are provided with opportunities to sing both within assemblies and in class music lessons. Pupils sing enthusiastically and the quality is of a satisfactory standard. Pupils recall songs from memory. Pupils have satisfactory knowledge of instruments such as violin, trumpet, and maracas. Pupils are provided with opportunities to play tuned and untuned instruments but evidence indicates that fewer opportunities are provided for pupils to compose their own music and in doing so develop a deeper understanding of how different sounds can be used to evoke different moods and feelings. Pupils listen to pieces of music from different composers in assemblies but do not know the names of many composers or their compositions.

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MUSIC

147. Pupils sing well at Key Stage 2 and benefit from the services of a keyboard player who is employed two days a week to accompany music lessons. By the end of this key stage pupils sing with expression and an awareness of phrasing. Pupils have a good knowledge of different songs and are always ready to listen to advice as to how they can improve their singing. This improves the rate of learning and the quality of their singing. When pupils are given the opportunity to play a simple accompaniment they can keep a steady beat or simple ostinato. However the lack of opportunity to create their own music or to play in parts prevents learning from being stronger and stifles creativity. Pupils have a satisfactory knowledge of famous composers such as Mozart, Vivaldi and Beethoven and of musicals such as Oliver Twist and Cats. The higher attaining pupils are well aware of the different sections of an orchestra with most pupils able to name a wide range of musical

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MUSIC

148. The school is keen to promote a love of music in its pupils. The school choir sings at different venues in the locality and many opportunities are seized upon for pupils to sing or play musical instruments in assemblies and school productions. Visitors to the school have included a group of drummers from Africa and a trio consisting of a guitar, flute and mandolin player. These visits included practical workshops for the pupils as well as demonstrations. A small number of pupils receive musical tuition for woodwind instruments and guitar from visiting peripatetic music teachers. In its attempt to make pupils more aware of music from different cultures the school has purchased instruments such as an afuche cabasa and ocean drum whilst realising that there is still a need for the purchase of further such instruments to extend pupils’ cultural awareness. The school has introduced a programme of music therapy for pupils with special educational needs and

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MUSIC

this has proved to be a successful and effective initiative that is enhancing pupils’ learning.

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MUSIC

149. The pupils really enjoy music lessons. There is a sense of anticipation as lessons begin and the vast majority of pupils are always ready to sing with gusto. Pupils listen to instructions well and follow them with little hesitation. Pupils show good levels of confidence in lessons and many are ready to sing or conduct with very little self- St Columba’s Catholic Primary School - 53 consciousness. The older pupils show a good awareness of their own learning and will readily take on board constructive criticism to help improve their level of performance. The standard of behaviour is often good and on occasions very good. These positive attitudes and high standards of behaviour add considerably to the quality of the learning environment that is a feature of many lessons. The quality of accompaniment provided by the visiting keyboard player adds much to the musical ambience. The pupils greatly appreciate this

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MUSIC

and there is a collective sigh of disappointment when the lesson comes to an end.

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MUSIC

150. The quality of teaching over time has been satisfactory with examples of good teaching observed during the week of inspection. The school has rightly recognised the need to ensure that all teachers follow the Qualification and Curriculum Authority’s guidelines so that all elements of the music curriculum are covered in sufficient depth and pupils consistently achieve levels of which they are capable. Pupils’ progress and learning over time has sometimes been hindered by a lack of confidence or subject knowledge by some teachers. Where teaching is good, at the end of Key Stage 2, the teachers make good use of a visiting keyboard specialist but at the same time make very pertinent and direct teaching points which immediately improve the level of pupils’ performance. The teachers assess the quality of singing in terms of accuracy and then ask pupils to practice and refine their performance as they listen carefully to the changes of key. This together with

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MUSIC

the manner in which the teaching encourages the pupils to listen to the different moods and feelings that the music evokes leads to greater expressiveness and accuracy in pupils’ singing. The enthusiasm that teachers show in music lessons is plain to see and this has a positive impact on the pupils who often rise to the sense of occasion.

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MUSIC

151. Music has not been a high priority for development in recent years. The co-ordinator has provided plenty of informal advice to colleagues, provided relevant information at staff meetings and has attended in–service training to further develop her own knowledge and expertise in this area of the curriculum. No opportunities have been provided for the co- ordinator to monitor standards or teaching and learning in the subject across the school. The school recognises that this is not a satisfactory arrangement and when the subject is identified as a priority area time is to be made available for the co-ordinator to assess strengths and weaknesses in provision, teaching and learning. This is appropriate.

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PHYSICAL EDUCATION

152. Few lessons were seen during the inspection due to timetabling arrangements. However from the evidence gained it is clear that the standards that are achieved are at an expected level by the end of both key stages. Pupils of all abilities and the travellers’ children make satisfactory progress as they move through the school. Standards have improved since the last inspection as a result of a better level of provision and better quality of teaching. Both these features have had a positive impact on the quality of pupils’ learning

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PHYSICAL EDUCATION

153. Year 2 pupils move around the hall, making the best use of the space available and paying due attention to safety. Boys and girls move around the floor and apparatus appropriately. They know how to move using either their head, or their back or their foot held high. Pupils are always ready to take on board comments from teachers that help to improve their level of performance. One class is better than the other parallel class at putting together a sequence of movements with good control, poise and balance. Pupils at this key stage show a satisfactory awareness of the need for warm up and cool down activities and of the importance of physical exercise for a healthy lifestyle.

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PHYSICAL EDUCATION

154. By the time that they leave the school most pupils can swim 25 metres unaided. By Year 5 pupils quickly learn how to perform a variety of unfamiliar traditional dances. Working in St Columba’s Catholic Primary School - 54 same gender groups, they perform complex routines, using traditional movements, such as ‘stripping the willow’ and ‘weaving’. Although they do not move elegantly, all necessary movements are included. In Year 4 pupils throw, bounce and pass large balls to their partners with appropriate accuracy, power and precision. Observation of extra-curricular activities shows that by the age of eleven pupils have satisfactory small ball and games skills. They understand the concept of marking and show a competitive but fair edge to all games that they take part in.

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PHYSICAL EDUCATION

155. The quality of teaching and learning is satisfactory overall, with some good lessons seen during the inspection. This is a major improvement since the last inspection. Teachers are now well supported by a very detailed scheme of work that tells them precisely which technical skills to teach pupils and how to use pupils’ to demonstrate good practice so that all pupils’ learning is improved. These are effective and allow pupils to achieve as well as they should do. Due to teachers’ improved confidence and enthusiasm for the subject, pupils behave well in lessons and enjoy the activities. Year 2 pupils co-operate well using well-known routines to put out the apparatus. Pupils who do traditional dancing co-operate together well to allow the dance to take place without any silliness. The school uses the skills of an external dance teacher for these sessions and the good quality of teaching ensures that pupils develop their skills well in addition to thoroughly enjoying themselves.

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PHYSICAL EDUCATION

All pupils with specific special educational needs are well supported by adults so that they play a full part in lessons.

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PHYSICAL EDUCATION

156. Leadership and management are satisfactory overall. Immediately after the previous inspection the school ensured that all staff were provided with suitable in-service training to improve their skills. The present co-ordinator has been in post for too short a time to have had an impact on raising standards still further. However the school recognises that there is a need for the co-ordinator to monitor teaching across the school to help support a push to improve standards. The school is fortunate to possess generous outdoor space for teaching games outside, but the two halls are heavily timetabled in the afternoon, which leads to some short sessions. There are broadly sufficient resources, but larger classes do not have sufficient small apparatus for each pupil. The wide range of extra-curricular activities that the school and other external organisations run on the school premises suitably enrich pupils’ learning. The higher attaining pupils have good opportunities to show

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PHYSICAL EDUCATION

what they can achieve when they win a wide range of sporting competitions.

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