The Rosary Catholic Primary School

THE ROSARY CATHOLIC PRIMARY SCHOOL

Dates of inspection: 17 th – 20 th March 2003

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THE ROSARY CATHOLIC PRIMARY SCHOOL

Full 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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THE ROSARY CATHOLIC PRIMARY 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. The Rosary Catholic Primary School - 3

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Type of school: Infant and Junior School

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

School address: Bridge Road Saltley Birmingham West Midlands

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Name of chair of governors: Father B Kelly

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Date of previous inspection: 12 th January 1998 The Rosary Catholic Primary School - 4

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE INSPECTION TEAM

Team members Subject responsibilities Aspect responsibilities

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE INSPECTION TEAM

25461 Joan Walker Registered Inspector How well are pupils taught? What should the school do to improve further? 1329 Kevern Oliver Lay Inspector How well does the school care for its pupils? How well does the school work in partnership with parents? 26571 Peter Dunn Team Inspector Science, History, Special Educational Needs How good are the curricular and other opportunities offered to pupils? 11227 John Moles Team Inspector Information and Communication Technology, Geography The school’s results and achievements. How well is the school led and managed? 22434 Sandra Bradshaw Team Inspector Music, Foundation Stage, Educational Inclusion Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development 28832 Nick Stafford Team Inspector Mathematics, Design and Technology, Physical Education 29424 Vivienne Stone Team Inspector English, Art and Design, English as an Additional Language The inspection contractor was: Quality Assurance Consultants The Hucclecote Centre

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE INSPECTION TEAM

Churchdown Lane Hucclecote Gloucester GL3 3QN 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 Complaints Manager Inspection Quality Division The Rosary Catholic Primary School - 5 Alexandra House 33 Kingsway London WC2B 6SE The Rosary Catholic Primary School - 6

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PART A: SUMMARY OF THE REPORT 6 – 9

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? 10 – 12

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

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AREAS OF THE CURRICULUM, SUBJECTS AND COURSES 30 – 46

The Rosary Catholic Primary School - 7 The Rosary Catholic Primary School - 8

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

The Rosary Catholic Primary School is situated on the eastern edge of the city of Birmingham. The Saltley area has high levels of deprivation. The number on role is 368 and their age ranges from three to 11. There are 202 boys and 166 girls. It is bigger than other primary schools nationally. Children who are entitled to free school meals number 129 and is above the national average. The number of pupils on the record of special educational needs is 40, of which four have statements of special educational needs, and is slightly below the national average. The number of pupils from ethnic minority backgrounds is 185, which is high. The number of pupils for whom English is not their mother tongue is 171, is very high and of these, 56 are at the early stages of language acquisition. There are 39 children in the nursery and 47 in the reception class. Attainment on entry to the reception classes is below average for the local education authority.

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HOW GOOD THE SCHOOL IS

This is a good school. Overall, by Year 6, pupils achieve well, have very good attitudes to their work and behave very well. The teaching is good overall. The school is very well led and managed, which has been influential in improving standards. The school provides good value for money.

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HOW GOOD THE SCHOOL IS

What the school does well  Standards in mathematics and science are above average in both key stages; standards in history exceed expectations for seven-year-olds and 11-year-olds.  Overall, teaching is good throughout the school.  Pupils are making good progress in information and communication technology in both key stages.  Pupils’ attitudes to school, relationships, behaviour and their personal development are very good.  The provision for pupils’ social, moral and spiritual development is very good.  The provision, for pupils with special educational needs and for pupils for whom English is not their mother tongue, is good.  The leadership by the headteacher and deputy headteacher is very good.  The school has made good improvement since the last inspection.

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HOW GOOD THE SCHOOL IS

What could be improved  Develop further the role of subject co-ordinators to use the data from assessment, monitoring and scrutiny of pupils’ work to further develop their subjects and raise standards in teaching, learning and attainment.  The role of the governing body needs to be more active in holding the school to account and to develop further their expertise in monitoring and evaluating areas for improvement within the school development plan.  Improve the marking and presentation of pupils’ work.  Review the teaching time given to some subjects and the length of individual lessons in literacy and numeracy. The areas for improvement will form the basis of the governors’ action plan.

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HOW THE SCHOOL HAS IMPROVED SINCE ITS LAST INSPECTION

The school was previously inspected in January 1998. It has made good progress since then and has the capacity to sustain that improvement. The number of initiatives within the school development plan have been reduced and specific standards prioritised for development. Governors are more fully involved in the leadership and management of the school. However, this area requires further development. Standards in information and communication technology have improved. Pupils’ knowledge and understanding of the processes in design and technology have improved. Higher-attaining pupils are suitably and regularly challenged within most classes and homework is used effectively to support the raising of standards in basic skills.

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STANDARDS

The Rosary Catholic Primary School - 9 The table shows the standards achieved by pupils at the end of Year 6 based on average point scores in National Curriculum tests.

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STANDARDS

Performance in: all schools similar schools Key

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STANDARDS

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

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STANDARDS

Current inspection findings judge that, by the end of Year 6, standards in mathematics and science are above average and in English at the national average. Standards, in history exceed expectations and in all other subjects, standards meet expectations. Standards have improved in information and communication technology since the last inspection due mainly to extensive training of staff and the new computer suite.

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STANDARDS

Current inspection findings judge that, by the end of Year 2, standards in mathematics and science are above expectations. Standards in all areas of English meet expectations. In history standards exceed expectations and in all other subjects, standards meet expectations.

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STANDARDS

By the end of the Foundation Stage, standards in mathematical development exceed expectations and in personal and social development, communication, language and literacy, knowledge and understanding of the world, creative development standards meet the expectations of the Early Learning Goals.

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STANDARDS

Pupils with special educational needs and pupils for whom English is not their mother tongue make good progress in their learning because of effective support from class teachers and support staff.

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STANDARDS

While there have been variations in standards over the period from 1998 to 2002 the general trend has been one of rising standards for pupils at the end of Year 6 that closely matches the national rise in standards. Targets set for improved standards in English and mathematics for 2003 are realistic and are likely to be achieved.

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PUPILS’ ATTITUDES AND VALUES

Attitudes to the school Very good. Pupils show positive attitudes to school and in lessons. They clearly enjoy school and are prepared to work hard.

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PUPILS’ ATTITUDES AND VALUES

Behaviour, in and out of classrooms Very good. Pupils behave well in lessons, at playtimes and lunch-times and when moving around the school.

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PUPILS’ ATTITUDES AND VALUES

Personal development and relationships Relationships between pupils, and between pupils and adults, are very good.

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PUPILS’ ATTITUDES AND VALUES

Attendance Despite the considerable efforts of the school, attendance remains unsatisfactory when compared with schools of a similar type.

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PUPILS’ ATTITUDES AND VALUES

This is a fully inclusive school and relationships between pupils of all abilities, backgrounds and gender are very good and contribute to the positive attitudes seen in the majority of lessons.

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TEACHING AND LEARNING

Teaching of pupils in: Nursery and Reception Years 1 – 2 Years 3 – 6 The Rosary Catholic Primary School - 10 Quality of teaching 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.

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TEACHING AND LEARNING

Teaching in the Foundation Stage is good, with strengths in all six areas of learning. Relationships with children are very good, and effective use is made of resources to support their learning. There is a good balance between adult-led activities and those the children choose for themselves.

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TEACHING AND LEARNING

Strengths of teaching in Years 1 to 6 include very good relationships between pupils and teachers. Teachers manage pupils well and make good use of resources, including support staff, to help pupils in their learning. Lesson planning meets the different learning needs of pupils by ability and age group. Lesson objectives are shared with pupils at the start of lessons, which enables them to take a full part in their own learning. Plenary sessions are used well by the teachers to assess what the pupils know and understand and also what pupils have not understood. In less effective teaching, weaknesses include; teachers’ knowledge of the subject, expectations of what pupils can and cannot do, pupils’ understanding of the learning intentions and management of pupils.

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TEACHING AND LEARNING

The teaching of literacy is good; teachers implement the National Literacy Strategy effectively in lessons. The key skills of reading and writing are taught successfully. The teaching of numeracy in Years 1 to 6 is good. Teachers successfully implement the National Numeracy Strategy. The teaching of number is good and contributes to improving standards. Effective teaching of these key skills has contributed to the improved standards.

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OTHER ASPECTS OF THE SCHOOL

The quality and range of the curriculum The quality and range of learning opportunities are good. However, the balance of the curriculum needs to be reviewed. Insufficient time is given to physical education at Key Stage 2 and lessons are frequently too long in literacy and numeracy in both key stages.

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OTHER ASPECTS OF THE SCHOOL

Provision for pupils with special educational needs Very good. Pupils receive effective support from teachers and dedicated support staff. The specific targets in individual education plans are clear and well defined to enable pupils to make good progress. In some classes, the plans are not always sufficiently integrated with the learning focus of lessons so that pupils’ progress is not as good as it could be.

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OTHER ASPECTS OF THE SCHOOL

Provision for pupils with English as an additional language Very good. Pupils receive effective support from teachers and dedicated support staff.

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OTHER ASPECTS OF THE SCHOOL

Provision for pupils’ personal, including spiritual, moral, social and cultural development Very good with significant strengths in spiritual, moral and social development that contributes effectively to pupils’ good behaviour and relationships. Cultural development is good.

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OTHER ASPECTS OF THE SCHOOL

How well the school cares for its pupils Good. Pupils are well cared for in the school. Assessment procedures are satisfactory. The school is fully inclusive.

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OTHER ASPECTS OF THE SCHOOL

Parents who attended the meeting and who returned questionnaires were mainly supportive of the work of the school. The school has sound procedures for assessing pupils’ learning in English, mathematics and science and usually the results from this information are used satisfactorily to plan pupils’ future work.

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HOW WELL THE SCHOOL IS LED AND MANAGED

Leadership and manage-ment The leadership by the headteacher and deputy headteacher is very good. They The Rosary Catholic Primary School - 11 by the headteacher and other key staff have a very clear vision for the future of the school and are well supported by the senior management team.

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HOW WELL THE SCHOOL IS LED AND MANAGED

How well the governors fulfil their responsibilities Satisfactory. While they take active part in the life of the school they are less secure of the strengths and areas for improvement and in accounting for the performance and improvement of the school.

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HOW WELL THE SCHOOL IS LED AND MANAGED

The school’s evaluation of its performance Good. The headteacher and his colleagues have a clear and developing understanding of the school’s strengths and areas for improvement.

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HOW WELL THE SCHOOL IS LED AND MANAGED

The strategic use of resources Good; funding for special educational needs and English as a second language is used efficiently. The ICT suite is used with increasing effect to support pupils’ learning.

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HOW WELL THE SCHOOL IS LED AND MANAGED

The school has good levels of staffing and the accommodation is good. Resources are adequate to meet the needs of the curriculum and are used effectively to support pupils’ learning. The school’s application of the principles of best value in its spending decisions is good.

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PARENTS’ AND CARERS’ VIEWS OF THE SCHOOL

What pleases parents most What parents would like to see improved  Their children like school.  Teaching is good.  The school expects their children to work hard.  The school helps their children to become mature and responsible.  Behaviour is good.  Their children get the right amount of homework.  The school working more closely with them.  A minority of parents believe leadership and management of the school could be better.  The provision of activities outside of lessons.

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PARENTS’ AND CARERS’ VIEWS OF THE SCHOOL

Eleven parents attended the meeting with the registered inspector and 109 questionnaires were returned. Inspection findings support the positive views of the parents. The school works hard to keep parents informed of its day-to-day activities. The inspection team found that extra-curricular activities are good and include a variety of activities. The inspection team found that the leadership and management of the school are very good. The headteacher has a very clear vision for the future of the school. The Rosary Catholic Primary School - 12

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

1. Children’s attainment on entry to the nursery is average for the local education authority. In the current academic year, 65 per cent of children in the nursery transferred to the reception classes. The school’s official assessments undertaken in the first few weeks after children start in the reception classes indicated that their attainment was good. However, inspection evidence indicates that children’s attainment on entry to the school was slightly weaker in personal, social and emotional development and in communication, language and literacy and satisfactory in mathematical development. The senior management team agree with these findings. Children make good progress in the nursery and reception classes and by the time they enter Year 1 the majority of children in the current reception year are likely to achieve the Early Learning Goals in all areas of learning.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

2. Pupils’ achievement in Years 1 and 2 is good. Standards in the 2002 national tests for Year 2 pupils in mathematics were above average, writing was average and reading was below average when compared with national results, but each subject was well above average when compared with schools in similar contexts. This is the result of good teaching of these particular subject areas in these year groups. Inspection findings confirm that attainment by the end of Year 2 is above average in mathematics, science and history, and average in English and all other subjects of the curriculum.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

3. Pupils’ achievement during Years 3 to 6 is good. Standards in the 2002 national tests for Year 6 pupils in mathematics were above average, in English were average and in science were below average when compared with national results, but in English and mathematics they were well above average and science were average when compared with schools in similar contexts. Inspection findings are that attainment by the end of Year 6 is above average in mathematics, science and history, average in the core subject of English and at the expected level in all other subjects of the curriculum. The improvement in the standards in science is the result of a particular focus on the teaching of this subject resulting from the school’s analysis of its test results, and planning and the quality of teaching has improved as a result of very good management of the subject. While there have been variations in standards

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

over the period 1998 to 2002 the general trend has been one of rising standards, for pupils at the end of Year 6, that closely matches the national rise in standards. Targets set for improved standards in the core subjects for 2003 are realistic and are likely to be achieved.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

4. In Year 3 to 6, there has been a particular emphasis on development of writing based on planned opportunities for speaking and listening to develop pupils’ use of language and blocks of work to develop the features of different genre using the writing process. This emphasis has been successful in raising standards in English.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

5. Throughout the school an emphasis on mathematical vocabulary and mental mathematical strategies has successfully maintained above average standards in the subject. In history, a good grounding in an awareness of the past in the earlier years of the school is well developed in the later years through the good interpretation of sources of evidence. However, the use of skills taught in literacy, numeracy and information and communication The Rosary Catholic Primary School - 13 technology to support learning in other subjects is under-developed and does not enable pupils to understand how their learning in one subject can improve learning in another subject

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

6. In the previous inspection, standards in information and communication technology were judged to be below average across the school. The improvement in standards is the result of considerable staff training for both teachers and learning support staff, the alteration of the existing building to incorporate a well equipped information and communication technology suite and the appointment of an information and communication technology technician to maintain the equipment in good running order and the regular use of this very good resource to improve pupils’ achievement. Standards in Years 3 to 6 in design and technology have improved because a new scheme of work has been put in place to ensure better progression through these years.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

7. The progress of pupils with special educational needs is good and is the result of carefully targeted support by the special educational need co-ordinator. Pupils are identified early and appropriate targets set to address their particular needs. They make good progress as a result of the well focused support they receive, either through extra help from the class teacher or learning support staff within class and when withdrawn as small groups. Gifted and talented pupils are well supported and encouraged to extend their talents further through good quality extra-curricular activities. The pupils who are learning to be bilingual make good progress throughout the school. This is the case both for pupils who are at an early stage of learning English and for those who enter the school with a greater command of the English language. This enables them to benefit from all the learning opportunities offered by

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

the school and to achieve well. Results of national tests indicate that by the end of Year 6, pupils are achieving in line with those with English as a home language.

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PUPILS’ ATTITUDES, VALUES AND PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT

8. Overall, pupils have very good behaviour and attitudes to school. Relationships in the school between pupils and teachers and among pupils themselves are also very good. Clearly standards have been maintained since the previous inspection. All teaching staff are consistent in the respectful way that they treat pupils and this is a key factor in the high standards of pupils’ personal development.

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PUPILS’ ATTITUDES, VALUES AND PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT

9. Pupils’ very good attitudes to their work make a significant contribution to the calm working atmosphere that prevails in the school. Pupils are keen to come to school. They show evident enjoyment of the many interesting activities provided for them in lessons and out of school. For example, in discussions with pupils and during observations of lessons, pupils listened carefully and responded to questions enthusiastically. They show respect for others and are pleased to celebrate each other’s successes. During celebration worship, pupils clapped and showed interest as pupils were congratulated for their efforts and awarded prizes for entering competitions. In lessons, most pupils work hard and try to achieve standards set by their teachers. However, not all pupils’ work is presented well. Children in the Foundation Stage show good levels of concentration for their age in work and play.

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PUPILS’ ATTITUDES, VALUES AND PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT

10. Pupils with special educational needs have good attitudes to school and learning. Because most support is in class they feel included and valued. The caring ethos and respect The Rosary Catholic Primary School - 14 for others, which exists in the school, ensure these pupils are respected and supported by the whole community and as a result, they feel secure in their development.

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PUPILS’ ATTITUDES, VALUES AND PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT

11. Pupils with English as an additional language have the same very good attitudes to school as their classmates. They enjoy coming to school and feel well supported. They respond to the inclusive ethos of the school, which values them as individuals. This actively promotes their confidence and persistence, which in turn helps them to work hard in lessons.

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PUPILS’ ATTITUDES, VALUES AND PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT

12. Pupils’ behaviour in all classes is very good. Pupils of all ages conduct themselves very well and are polite and courteous to staff and visitors to the school. In all the lessons observed, pupils’ behaviour made a significant contribution to their achievements and the good progress they made. They understand what is expected of them and older pupils present good role models to younger pupils in their mature conduct. There is a strong emphasis on respect and is this promoted very well by all staff who expect pupils to respect the feelings of others. Consequently, relationships are very good between pupils and between pupils and adults. Pupils have a good understanding of the impact of their actions on others. Pupils readily take on board the opportunities for responsibility, such as participating in the school council, but these opportunities could be developed enabling pupils to show more

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PUPILS’ ATTITUDES, VALUES AND PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT

initiative and independence. The range of educational visits, visitors and after-school activities, all contribute to pupils’ personal development.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

13. The previous inspection judged the quality of teaching to be ‘mainly good and is a strength of the school’. Current inspection findings show that overall teaching is good throughout the school and contributes to the improvement in standards, particularly in English, mathematics, information and communication technology and science. During the inspection, almost one in five lessons observed were very good or better, including one excellent lesson in music. Almost two out of every five lessons were good and it was the same for lessons in the satisfactory category. There were a small number of lessons judged to be unsatisfactory for reasons related to weaknesses in teachers’ subject knowledge, particularly in science, management of pupils in physical education and teachers’ expectations in physical education and mathematics. The picture of teaching contained in the parents’ responses to the questionnaire indicates that they believe teaching is good and this

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

inspection team confirms their judgements.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

14. Overall, the quality of teaching and learning in the Foundation Stage is good. The teaching observed was characterised by high expectations, good use of time, the wide range of resources and the way in which tasks challenged children’s thinking, which made the children want to succeed. Planning ensures that all children have equal access to the rich and varied curriculum, and the contributions of the support staff who work in the school are greatly valued. Careful assessments during lessons take good account of children’s progress towards achieving the Early Learning Goals. The teachers value children’s work and opinions. This is confirmed by the careful way in which children’s work is displayed, which provides bright and cheerful classrooms.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

15. The quality of teaching and learning is good for pupils aged five to seven years. It ranges from satisfactory to very good. Teaching is good in science, information and The Rosary Catholic Primary School - 15 communication technology, geography, mathematics, music, English and sound in all other subjects. The quality of teaching and learning for pupils aged seven to 11 is good overall. It ranges from unsatisfactory to excellent. It is good in English, history, information and communication technology, music and art and sound in all other subjects.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

16. Inspection evidence indicates there are a number of factors that contribute to the best teaching:

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

 the teachers’ knowledge and understanding of the subject;  the teaching of basic skills;  planning is very good and takes into account pupils’ individual learning needs;  high expectations of pupils’ work and their behaviour;  a very good variety of teaching methods;  the pace of the lesson, which is brisk with no time wasted;  the very good use of assessment information to ensure that what the pupils do next is closely matched to their individual needs;  the very good use of the final or plenary sessions to assess the progress pupils make in lessons.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

17. In the best lessons, teachers show good subject knowledge, which is passed on to pupils with interest and enthusiasm. Teachers ensure that pupils’ knowledge and use of correct vocabulary is good, for example, in a very good lesson in mathematics one pupil said “ Sir I used the inverse operation to check my answer”. Lessons proceed at a lively pace. For example, in a Year 5 history lesson, the teacher used quick fire open-ended questions to challenge pupils. In end of sessions, teachers not only assess accurately what the pupils know and understand but also what aspects the pupils do not understand. For example, in a very good English lesson in a Year 6 class, the teacher gave feedback as to how pupils could improve their work through more careful and better use of commas and more attention to handwriting even though they were writing to timed targets.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

18. Where teaching could be improved, the following factors were found in the lessons observed:

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

 some weaknesses in teachers’ knowledge and understanding of the subject;  learning intentions were not always made clear to the pupils;  teachers’ expectations of what the pupils could achieve were not high enough and restricted pupils’ progress;  worksheets not always appropriate to the planned learning intentions or to the pupils’ needs;  management of the pupils;  providing clear guidance to pupils about what needs to be improved;  ensuring that all pupils’ work is presented well;  helping pupils to understand how marking of their work can help them to improve.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

19. The teaching of pupils with special educational needs is good overall and well targeted to the pupils’ individual needs. The skilled learning support staff give much help to these pupils, both in lessons and on some occasions when pupils are withdrawn in small The Rosary Catholic Primary School - 16 groups. The teachers pay good attention to the teaching of basic skills in lessons. The specific targets in individual education plans are clear and well defined to enable pupils to make good progress though few include targets for numeracy. In some classes, the individual education plans are not always sufficiently integrated with the learning focus of lessons so that pupil progress is not as good as it could be. The use of information and control technology to support pupils with special educational needs is under-developed.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

20. The support for pupils whose first language is not English is good. The teachers take responsibility for developing the language skills of these pupils, supported by advice from the co-ordinator for pupils with English as an additional language. This means that pupils’ language skills are developed alongside their learning in different subjects. Another strength is the use the school makes of the expertise of learning support staff, some of whom are able to speak to some pupils in their home languages. This contributes to the progress made by pupils, especially those in the early stages of learning English. In lessons, teachers ensure that pupils who are learning English as an additional language are well supported, although teachers’ planning does not make specific reference to arrangements for these pupils.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

21. The teaching of literacy is good and has a positive impact on the standards achieved. Teachers plan lessons effectively and different tasks are planned for pupils with various capabilities. In the best lessons, learning objectives are shared with the pupils and, therefore, they are fully aware of what they are supposed to learn by the end of the lesson. Teachers manage all pupils well and behaviour is very good.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

22. The teaching of numeracy is good and makes a significant contribution to the improving standards. The National Numeracy Strategy is implemented effectively and learning objectives are shared with the pupils. There is a strong emphasis on the correct use of mathematical vocabulary and number work. Lesson planning meets the learning needs of all pupils. Relationships are very good and there is a very purposeful atmosphere to the lessons, which contributes to pupils working hard.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

23. In most lessons, relationships are very good and teachers manage the pupils successfully. Overall, pupils’ attitude to work is very good. Usually teachers’ expectations are high and because pupils know and understand what is expected of them they work hard to achieve their learning intentions. Teachers make effective use of learning support staff who work with groups of pupils, including those with special educational needs and for pupils for whom English is not their mother tongue. Resources, including the library, artefacts and the computer suite are used effectively to support and motivate pupils. However, the computers in the classrooms are not used extensively enough to support and extend the skills that have been learned in the computer suite. Homework is used well to support pupils’ learning.

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TO PUPILS?

24. The quality and range of learning opportunities provided for children in the nursery and reception classes are good. A strong emphasis is placed on promoting children’s personal, social and emotional development, which allows them to grow in confidence and relate well to each other. This is important as many of the children enter the school with insufficiently developed personal and social skills and low self-esteem. A wide range of well The Rosary Catholic Primary School - 17 organised, meaningful activities match the needs of the children and successfully promote their learning. They make good progress in the six areas of learning expected for this age group. This gives the children a secure foundation on which to base the future demands of the National Curriculum.

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TO PUPILS?

25. The curriculum for pupils in Years 1 to 6 is broad and relevant, but lacks an appropriate balance. The school’s emphasis on literacy and numeracy in the timetable has resulted in too much time being allocated for some subjects at the expense of others. For example, English and mathematics lessons sometimes last an hour and ten minutes, which is too long and results in pupils losing concentration. These sessions are usually in the morning and lack the variety that a foundation or another core subject could bring. Planned activities that make links with other subject areas fail to sufficiently enrich the curriculum to further engage and motivate pupils. In other subjects, time is not always used wisely, such as in a physical education lesson for Year 5 that spent too much time organising pupils and left very little time for active participation. An analysis of the balance of time used for the foundation subjects and science suggests that the time allocated for physical education in

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TO PUPILS?

Key Stage 2 is nearly half of that recommended by the national schemes currently in use by the school.

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TO PUPILS?

26. The National Literacy and Numeracy Strategies have been successfully implemented and this has contributed well to improving standards in English and mathematics. In science, some classes have restricted opportunities for pupils to plan and carry out investigations. This limits the development of their enquiry skills, a key aspect of the subject. The provision of information and communication technology has been much improved since the last inspection with the introduction of a computer suite that allows for whole-class teaching of key skills in the subject. However, there are insufficient opportunities for pupils to use and further develop these skills to support their learning in other curriculum areas.

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TO PUPILS?

27. The school has worked hard to develop new ways of supporting pupils’ learning. A full time ‘Learning Mentor’ funded through the ‘Excellence in Cities’ scheme works closely with pupils to help them improve their learning and self-esteem. This is making a difference to the relationships between pupils, parents and the school and is playing its part in helping to raise standards. The school also has a ‘Sure Start’ team working with the parent and toddler group.

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TO PUPILS?

28. There is a commitment to developing the pupils’ creative talents through providing opportunities to work with a range of visitors, including theatre groups and musicians. The school has very close links with its church where pupils participate in a range of festivals and celebrations. Pupils are also provided with the opportunity to take part in a range of educational visits such as to Polesworth Abbey, Alton Castle and local museums so that the curriculum is enriched and made more exciting and interesting.

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TO PUPILS?

29. The provision for after-school activities is good with pupils able to join a range of clubs such as accelerated learning, art, bible club, as well as a wide range of sports that include basketball, badminton and cricket. Several of these clubs are run by specialist staff from outside the school providing pupils with a wider range of learning opportunities and contact with additional adults other than the teaching staff. The ‘Saltley Young Peoples’ Parliament’ gives pupils the opportunity to meet and express opinions within the community and to raise their awareness of citizenship. Swimming lessons are organised at the local pool and by the time they leave the school almost all pupils can swim the nationally expected 25 metres as well as having a good knowledge of water safety. All statutory requirements are The Rosary Catholic Primary School - 18 met. The curriculum is further enriched by the school’s involvement in the accelerated

p.17

TO PUPILS?

learning project and peripatetic lessons for gifted and talented pupils.

p.18

TO PUPILS?

30. While the curriculum currently lacks an appropriate balance, it has improved since the last inspection. Planning is now related more closely to levels of attainment and there is now a scheme in place for design and technology. Procedures are thorough and make sure that sufficient emphasis is given to teaching and learning skills. They incorporate national guidelines and provide teachers with clear information about key learning objectives and the skills to be taught. There is now a need to ensure that assessment information from lessons has a greater impact on future teaching and learning so that pupils can make better progress.

p.18

TO PUPILS?

31. The curriculum is fully inclusive and enables pupils to have equality of access to all aspects of school life. The provision for pupils with special educational needs is good. The teachers plan carefully to meet the needs of pupils in all lessons, but especially in literacy and numeracy. Learning support staff enable pupils to understand and tackle their work with confidence and develop independent learning skills. Learning could be further improved if individual education plans were used on a regular basis to help ensure that pupils focus on the learning targets within the plans on a daily basis. A strength of the support is that pupils do not miss out on the experiences of their peers. The school makes good provision for pupils learning English as an additional language. When pupils are at an early stage of learning English they get well targeted support from teaching assistants who are effectively deployed

p.18

TO PUPILS?

to support pupils who need extra help. Greater support is available for the younger pupils. Because they get this effective support early in their education, they make good progress and are well prepared for participating in the full curriculum offered by the school. Older pupils, who enter the school with limited English, receive additional support, which varies with their needs. The school places a high priority on providing opportunities for all pupils to develop their vocabulary and their skills in speaking and listening in every subject and this is of particular help to bilingual pupils.

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TO PUPILS?

32. There is good provision for pupils’ personal, social and health education. The school works hard to make this area of the curriculum more structured and has recently produced a draft policy linking it with work on citizenship and religious education. The pupils’ social development is promoted by the extra-curricular programme and by the variety of visits available. Pupils have some opportunities, in and out of classrooms, to take responsibility, which supports their personal development. This is an area that the school needs to develop further. A school council that met during the week of the inspection and featured a visit from the Director of Education for Birmingham further develops pupil decision-making skills. Outcomes from meetings are prominently displayed so that all pupils are aware of the council’s work. As part of their science work, pupils are encouraged to develop good attitudes towards healthy eating and learn about the misuse of drugs. Since the last

p.18

TO PUPILS?

inspection, the school governors have decided to offer sex education based on a scheme from the Diocesan Religious Education Team called All That I Am .

p.18

TO PUPILS?

33. The provision for pupils’ spiritual, moral and social development is very good while for cultural development, it is good. This is a similar judgement to that made by the last inspection. Spiritual development is very effectively promoted through the way the school encourages pupils to explore values and beliefs and the impact that these have on peoples’ lives. This is effectively provided across the curriculum through personal social and health education, assemblies and opportunities in various subject areas to experience reflection and The Rosary Catholic Primary School - 19 wonder. Pupils think carefully about human feelings and emotions when putting together class rules and discussing events that take place in the world today and in the past. They are encouraged to value and respect the different traditions and religions while looking for similarities between them. All pupils pray during the acts of collective worship and benefit

p.18

TO PUPILS?

from the opportunities for quiet reflection. They enjoy the music and singing as well as on some occasions the theatre presented by groups of pupils. The provision allows pupils to grow, flourish and develop a tolerance and understanding of each other and to be aware of the wider world. They enjoy the visits to the local Roman Catholic Church and participate in various festivals.

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TO PUPILS?

34. Provision for pupils’ moral and social development is very good. The school teaches pupils the difference between right and wrong and helps them behave well, both individually and in groups. Pupils are considerate towards each other and work well together. For example, a group of Year 6 pupils developed a short theatre piece to illustrate the need for love and understanding. They worked hard together to ensure that the play was of a high enough standard to perform to the school during an assembly. Very good relationships exist between the older and younger pupils, with older children often seen helping the young ones move around the school at busy times and holding doors for each other. Staff are very good role models for the pupils to copy because they lead by example. Pupils regularly collect money for charity including raising funds for schools in Rwanda. The very wide range of extra-curricular activities, including visits to places of interest, also make a very good

p.19

TO PUPILS?

contribution to pupils’ social development.

p.19

TO PUPILS?

35. The provision for pupils’ own cultural development is good. The school provides a curriculum which helps pupils develop their understanding of art, music and literature. This provision is reinforced through regular assemblies and by visits to museums and places of interest. There is good provision for learning about other cultures. For instance, as part of the music curriculum pupils have enjoyed visits from Irish, Asian and African musicians. A display in the corridor featuring Around the World Schools celebrates the pupils’ on-going link with a school in Rwanda.

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TO PUPILS?

36. The links with the community make a good contribution to pupils’ learning. There exist very close links with the local Roman Catholic Church with priests leading assemblies and providing pupils with an insight into the nature of religious experience. There are visits from the police and fire service as well as the school nurse to further support pupils in developing a safe, healthy lifestyle. The school has strong links with a very wide range of secondary schools, which helps prepare pupils for their next phase of education. Liaison arrangements between primary and secondary staff are very good so that pupils and parents become fully aware of the changes that transfer will bring.

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

37. The Rosary School’s governors and staff are fully committed to ensuring that their pupils spend their days in a healthy, safe and secure environment. There are two fully trained first aiders on-site throughout the school day. During lunch-times a large, well trained, multi- cultural team of supervisors takes good care of the pupils. There are regular fire and evacuation drills and safety inspections of the whole site. In addition, the caretaker carries out daily checks to make sure that everything is all right. Satisfactory risk assessment and The Rosary Catholic Primary School - 20 management procedures are already in place, but the school is seeking ways of improving them. Security arrangements are very good.

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

38. Arrangements for child protection are rigorous and very good. The school works closely with all the appropriate local agencies. All staff, including the lunchtime supervision team, are aware of the procedures that they must follow if they are concerned about any aspect of the health and well-being of their pupils. Proper arrangements to control and protect pupils’ access to the Internet are in place.

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

39. The provision outlined in the statements of special educational needs is implemented appropriately. Arrangements for the review of these statements are good. Liaison with other agencies is very good. The special needs co-ordinator is very effective and is currently developing the monitoring of the pupils’ performances against standardised levels of progress to inform future learning needs.

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

40. The assessment of pupils with English as an additional subject is good. The school makes an early assessment of the ability of bilingual pupils to speak, listen, read and write English and uses this information well in targeting support for those pupils who need it. Regular checks are then kept on their progress. The school has recently adopted recommended national assessment scales, which makes it easier to compare the progress of pupils with English as an additional language with that of their classmates. Good use is made of the results of statutory and voluntary tests to identify trends in performance of different ethnic groups and to target support when necessary. When the pupils take extended holidays from school, the school provides work packs to prevent them falling too far behind in their learning. The school has a selection of books in different languages, which helps to make the

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

pupils feel valued as well as encouraging them to read in their home languages.

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

41. The school is determined to improve pupils’ attendance, which at the moment is below the national average. The governors have set clear, challenging targets for improvement over the next two years. The computer-based attendance monitoring systems are very good. Teachers, the administration team, the education welfare officer and the learning mentor work very closely together to ‘target’ the parents and carers of pupils who are too often absent or late for school. A recently introduced reward scheme for classes that achieve one hundred per cent attendance for a whole week is proving to be very successful. One problem, with which the school has to deal with, is the prolonged absence, during term time, of children who are taken to their family homes in, for example, Pakistan. While the school understands the cultural and family reasons for this it does its utmost to discourage it and sets a limit of six weeks on the amount of time that a pupil can be away from school.

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

42. All of The Rosary School’s pupils are well known to the adults who work with them. Teachers and support staff pay close attention to their pupils’ learning needs. There are very good informal systems for monitoring and encouraging pupils’ personal development. These systems are not however supported by any formal tracking and record keeping systems.

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

43. Teachers and learning support staff work together to ensure that pupils, whatever their ability or problems, make progress. The learning mentor plays a key role in this through the support she gives to pupils who have particular worries and problems. The bilingual support for pupils, who are still not fluent in English, is particularly effective. An example of this occurred in a Year 3 and 4 science lesson about heat insulation in which such pupils gave The Rosary Catholic Primary School - 21 excellent answers about the difference in the heat-retaining qualities of bubble-wrap and paper.

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

44. Teachers expect their pupils to work hard and behave well. They successfully operate the school’s low-key approach to behaviour and discipline. In some classes, there are posters, developed by pupils, which spell out the set of simple rules that everyone must follow. Good behaviour, contributions to all aspects of school life, and successes in class work are recognised through house points and certificates. When serious behaviour problems do arise the school collaborates with parents to develop a strategy for dealing with the situation.

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

45. Rosary School is a multi-cultural, caring community. The attitudes and values, which underpin this, are evident in all aspects of school life from the very spiritual and prayerful assemblies to every day fun and games in the playground. There is, a zero tolerance attitude to racism and bullying. The headteacher and the parents of the pupils involved deal with any incidents that do occur. During the course of the inspection, no evidence of either bullying or racism was seen by or reported to the inspection team.

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

46. Staff value pupils equally as individuals, whatever their needs, and work hard to make sure that they get the best from their time at school. More-able pupils and pupils with special educational needs do well because they get challenging work that meets their needs appropriately. Throughout the school, there is no bias in respect of pupils’ capacity to learn, so that all pupils have equal access to the curriculum. For instance, in the Foundation Stage one pupil with hearing impairment whose radio aid had ceased to function was provided with additional support to ensure that she was able to achieve the activity set. All pupils are included in extra-curricular activities. Pupils for whom English is not their mother tongue and speak no or very little English when they first join the school, receive very good support from learning support staff. By conversing with them in their mother tongue and in English

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

pupils take part in all activities with confidence and understanding. All pupils are included in every aspect of school life. The raising of pupils’ awareness of a pluralist society is good and all ethnic groups are valued.

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

47. The school is keen to encourage pupils to take on responsibilities and to build up their self-esteem. They are given day-to-day responsibilities in the classroom, collect and deliver registers and older pupils help to look after younger ones. The school council is treated very seriously. It has its own notice board and meets regularly to discuss important issues. Recently, for example, it challenged the school’s rules about girls’ uniforms but did so in a mature and appropriate manner.

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

48. The procedures for assessing pupils’ attainment and progress are satisfactory, with some good elements. From assessment on entry to the school, the school has developed comprehensive testing procedures in English, mathematics and science, which are now being extended and developed in other subjects. The school makes good use of data to identify trends and variations in performance in English, science and mathematics. In mathematics and science the data is well used to match work to individual needs and targets for the pupils are becoming increasingly precise. Science assessment has made good progress since the last inspection. In English the findings of assessment are not used systematically to match teaching to learning needs and targets set for pupils are used with differing effects by different The Rosary Catholic Primary School - 22 teachers. The co-ordinator aims to put all assessment data on a network allowing all staff

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

easy and quick assess to data on individual pupils.

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

49. The use of assessment data to identify pupils’ attainment and to inform future work in other subjects is variable; being good in the Foundation Stage and in supporting special educational needs and satisfactory in all other subjects areas except in art, which is unsatisfactory. The school has made good progress in setting up procedures to identify the standards reached by pupils and is aware of the need to improve the impact of these findings on future practice. At times, the systems used to level pupils’ work are not detailed enough to identify the strengths and weaknesses in individual strands of a subject area. For example, in physical education it is difficult to separate out a child’s varying abilities in the different areas of the curriculum, except in swimming.

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

50. The use of day-to-day assessment of pupils’ work in class is, at best, very good but in some classes teachers do not regularly pick up on individual, or common, misunderstandings and take steps to address the issues.

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

51. The co-ordination of assessment is good. The co-ordinator has a clear view of the future development of assessment in the school and has put in place initiatives, such as improved diagnostic assessments in mathematics, which are having a positive effect on raising standards. Once the procedures identified in the assessment and marking policies are systematically applied, assessment should be a strength of the school. The capacity for improvement is good.

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

52. Overall, the quality of educational and personal support and guidance is satisfactory, with some good elements. Staff are caring and the assistant learning mentor provides very good support for individual pupils. The recently introduced ‘family life’ and the framework for intervention programme will assist monitoring of personal development. The standard of teachers’ marking is inconsistent throughout the school. At its best, teachers’ marking help pupils to understand how well they have achieved and where they need to make improvements. However, a significant proportion of marking only marks the work correct or incorrect or offers encouragement; on a few occasions work was praised as good when it fell below the individual pupil’s usual standard. Marking was recognised as a concern in the last inspection. The co-ordinator is aware of the need to improve marking and a policy on marking has been drawn up, and should assist teachers in their future practice.

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

53. Parents are really pleased to be able to send their children to The Rosary School. They value the beliefs and standards that the school promotes and the fact that it is a tolerant, multi-racial community. They are confident that the school really cares for their children and helps them to learn and mature. With very few exceptions, the parents who completed the pre-inspection questionnaire and spoke to the inspection team thought that the school was well led and managed. They have confidence in the headteacher and the rest of the staff. Everyone signs up to the home-school agreement and the majority of parents stick rigidly to the school’s attendance procedures. The Rosary Catholic Primary School - 23 54. Formal information such as the prospectus and the governors’ annual report to parents is comprehensive. Regular newsletters and notices keep parents in touch with what is going on in and around the school and the local community.

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

55. Parents of pupils with special educational needs are kept well informed as to their child’s progress. They are invited to the termly reviews and encouraged to support the school’s work with activities planned for home use.

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

56. The school works hard to develop links with parents of pupils learning English as an additional language. The school’s bilingual teaching assistants play a major role in maintaining positive relations between parents and the school. When new pupils with English as an additional language are entering the school, the school endeavours to ensure that translators for the main languages represented are available and written information to support the induction of new pupils to the school is available in translation. The school has yet to display signs in a range of the languages spoken by the parents of pupils in the school and this reduces the opportunities to ensure that parents with different home languages feel valued.

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

57. Sixty-five per cent of reception children come from the Rosary’s on-site nursery. There are very close links between it and the rest of the school and, as a result, the transfer arrangements from one to the other are very good. They include a range of taster and introductory visits and briefing sessions for both pupils and parents. In Year 6, as pupils are preparing to move on, the school organises visits and information evenings to help pupils and parents choose the most suitable secondary schools.

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

58. Parents receive formal information about how their children are getting on through termly meetings with teachers and an end-of-year report, which is sent home just before the summer term’s meeting. Pupils’ learning targets are discussed at the first meeting and reviewed at the other two. The school has worked hard in the last couple of years to encourage as many parents as possible to attend formal meetings. The result is that around 75 per cent of parents now come along and the school makes special arrangements to contact as many as possible of those who do not attend. The end-of-year reports are detailed, personalised and give clear statements of how pupils are getting on in all subjects as well as their general and personal development. Where appropriate, they contain results of national tests and some have general targets for improvements.

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

59. The governors, headteacher and the rest of the staff firmly believe that they and the parents are partners as far as the education and care of all their pupils is concerned. They therefore welcome parents into school and operate, as far as possible, an ‘open door’ communication system. The teachers, the deputy headteacher and the headteacher are nearly always around at the beginning and the end of the day for a ‘quick word’. A simple appointments system ensures that parents who need a longer or more formal session are seen as quickly as possible.

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

60. The parent governors make an important contribution to the work of the governing body. They work closely with the other governors, the headteacher and staff to ensure that pupils get the best out of their time in The Rosary School. All parents are regularly The Rosary Catholic Primary School - 24 consulted, through questionnaires, meetings and informal contacts for their ideas and views about what can be done to improve the school.

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

61. The school is working hard to develop further its links with parents through, for example, the siting of a Sure Start Centre and a mothers’ and toddlers’ group on the school premises and its plans to set up a youth club. Very few parents actually come into school to help out on a regular basis, but they do attend assemblies and many more are happy to help out with one-off events. The newly formed Parents’ Association is very active and has already donated nearly £1000 to school funds through its social, fund-raising events. The Parents’ Association also helps to run the very successful pre-school club. As a result of all these initiatives, there is a steady, relaxed coming and going of parents throughout the school day. The highly efficient administration team contributes to this atmosphere because it knows the majority of parents very well and provides a warm welcome for anyone who comes to the

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

62. In spite of all of the above initiatives a small number of parents feel that they do not have close links with the school and have difficulty getting information about how their children are getting on. The headteacher is aware of this problem and already is seeking ways to overcome it.

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HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

63. Under the headteacher’s and deputy headteacher’s very good leadership, the school has made good improvement since the last inspection. This has been achieved by maintaining and improving the high levels of care and support given to all pupils and, at the same time, raising expectations amongst all staff of pupils’ academic achievements, particularly in the area of information and communication technology.

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HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

64. The headteacher and deputy headteacher place the aims and values of the school at the centre of their work. The headteacher has a clear vision for how he sees the school developing over the next few years. He is committed to the appointment of staff that are skilled teachers in particular subject areas that the school is seeking to promote and the improvement and support for all staff in the school through performance review. The deputy headteacher shares the headteacher’s vision and is a very good role model for the staff, she is closely involved in developing staff through the performance review process and day-to-day support in the classroom. The ethos of the school is central to their leadership and the results of this strong leadership are seen through the very good racial harmony that exists in the school and in the very good provision for pupils’ spiritual, moral and social development, the

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HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

high standards of care for pupils and the successful inclusion of pupils of all capabilities, gender and backgrounds into school life.

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HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

65. The headteacher has created a strong senior management team that is committed to delegation as part of professional development. As a result, members of staff give good support to the headteacher in the conscientious way that they carry out their duties and responsibilities. Most are new to this level of responsibility, but are developing their management skills under the skilled guidance of the senior management team. For example, co-ordinators carry out classroom observations, frequently in conjunction with the headteacher or deputy headteacher. They undertake the scrutiny of work across the school The Rosary Catholic Primary School - 25 and are assembling subject portfolios of assessed work. However, they have yet to gain sufficient experience in linking these strategies to the development of their subject, for example, through the refinement of schemes of work to apply the use of learning in literacy,

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HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

numeracy and information and communication technology to the raising of standards in their own subject. The contribution made by non-teaching staff is highly valued by the headteacher and deputy headteacher and teaching staff and non-teaching staff are important members of the school team and contribute significantly to pupils’ learning. The pairing of teachers in both experience and age group taught has done much to aid planning, give confidence and relieve unnecessary burdens.

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HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

66. The work in the Foundation Stage is well managed and soundly led. There are good systems in place to ensure that children have a good start to their school life. Teachers and support staff work well together to provide a secure environment where children achieve well and learn happily.

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HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

67. Pupils with special needs are well supported in lessons. The co-ordinator for special educational needs provides good leadership. Although in post for just over a year, she has already built up a considerable expertise in dealing with pupils with special educational need and ensures that all statutory requirements are met. All paper work is kept up to date and finances are carefully allocated so that statement provision is guaranteed. She works well with the governors’ special needs committee so that the governing body is kept informed concerning matters relating to educational special needs. As a result pupils with special educational needs learn well.

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HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

68. The leadership and management of provision for pupils with English as an additional language are good. The co-ordinator has ensured that teachers and learning support staff have received training in supporting bilingual pupils and provides valued on-going advice. The funds to support pupils with English as an additional language are used well and additional support for these pupils is allocated appropriately. However, the co-ordinator has other responsibilities in school, which reduces the time that she has available to carry out her role in relation to pupils learning English as an additional language.

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HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

69. The governors have played an important part in enabling the headteacher to establish himself rapidly in the leadership of the school. A new committee structure has been put in place and clear terms of reference established, by this means, they are beginning to increase their influence in shaping the future direction of the school. This is an improvement since the previous inspection. Many are new to their responsibilities and have yet to establish their role as critical friend to the school. The governors need to ensure they are more fully involved in monitoring and evaluating the school’s work more rigorously; are fully aware of the strengths and areas for improvement in the school’s performance, and in being more active in holding the school to account. However, the governors are keen to develop the means of undertaking regular monitoring of the areas for improvement identified in the

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HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

school improvement plan. This plan clearly identifies responsibilities, targets, success criteria and costs and gives good guidance to governors and staff in implementing short-term and long-term priorities. This is an improvement since the previous inspection. The priorities are appropriate to the continued development of the school. The senior management team has been effective in implementing the priorities up to the present date and the governors are now well placed to enhance their role in ensuring the continued effectiveness of the plan. The Rosary Catholic Primary School - 26 70. The school’s improvement plan is good with the governors, staff, parents and children all involved in its preparation and implementation. Financial management by the headteacher and the administration team is very good. The school’s income per child is above the national average, but is very much in line with the actual amounts received by those schools, which

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HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

are similar in size, type and location to The Rosary School. The principles of best value are conscientiously applied at all stages of planning, budgeting and spending to ensure that the pupils get the best possible education that the school can provide. So-called ‘Special Grants’ are properly used. The headteacher is particularly successful at organising and funding school improvements through a range of national and local contacts and initiatives. The school provides good value for money.

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HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

71. There are sufficient teachers and learning support staff to ensure that the curriculum is delivered. In the last couple of years there has been a major shift in the numbers of teachers and support staff. The former has fallen and the latter has risen as part of a deliberate drive to ensure that pupils, particularly those with special educational needs and for whom English is not their first language, have the best possible one-to-one support. Everyone has an up to date job description. Appraisal and professional development programmes are in place not only for teachers but for non-teaching staff as well. A typical example of this is the use of national standards and qualifications to help learning support staff develop and receive formal recognition of their knowledge and skills. The induction arrangements for newly qualified teachers and other staff are good. As far as the former is concerned they include close

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HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

support from a mentor, time for preparation and access to the local authority’s training programmes.

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HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

72. The school makes good use of new technology such as computers, videos and electronic cameras. It is used not only in the new computer suite and the every day aspects of the school’s administration but also, for example, to display and record activities such as the visit of the local authority’s Director of Education to the school council. There is also a school website, which recently has been featured as ‘the site of the week’ by the local authority.

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HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

73. The school occupies a large sprawling site. The buildings, which date from the 1960s, are in generally good condition and include a recently refurbished caretaker’s house. In recent years, there have been a number of modifications, which have helped to make best use of the available space, and others are in the pipeline. The accommodation is good overall although some classrooms are on the small side and do not have sinks and running water. There is also a shortage of storage space. About half of the school has been redecorated in the last two years and plans are in hand to do the same in the rest of the school. All the toilets have been refurbished to a high standard. There are two playgrounds and a well equipped outdoor activity area for early years’ pupils. There is a sizeable grassed area, which is used when the weather permits. In a corner of the site, there is a self-contained nursery building,

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HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

74. The lack of a proper, spacious library, which the previous inspection team highlighted, has been put right and there is a good, large new computer suite. Teaching and learning resources are now satisfactory across the whole of the curriculum. The Rosary Catholic Primary School - 27 The Rosary Catholic Primary School - 28

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WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

In order to raise standards and improve the quality of education, the headteacher, staff and governors should:

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WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

(1) Develop further the role of the subject co-ordinators:

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WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

 to use the data from assessment, monitoring and scrutiny of pupils’ work to further develop their subject and raise standards in teaching, learning and attainment. (See paragraphs: 30,48,50,65,100,116,120,125,136,142,147 and 154)

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WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

(2) Develop further the role of the governing body by:

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WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

 ensuring all governors are fully involved in monitoring and evaluating the school’s work more rigorously;  ensuring all governors are more fully aware of the strengths and areas for improvement in the school’s performance;  being more active in holding the school to account. (See paragraph 69).

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WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

(3) Improve teachers’ marking and the presentation of pupils’ work by:

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WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

 providing clear guidance to pupils about what needs to be improved;  helping pupils understand how marking of their work can help them to improve;  ensuring that all pupils’ work is presented well and in accordance with the school’s policy;  monitoring the quality of presentation of pupils’ work on a regular basis. (See paragraphs: 52,99 and 108).

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WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

(4) Ensure that time is used effectively within the school day to enable all subjects to be taught to sufficient depth by:

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WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

 undertaking a review the time given to physical education at Key Stage 2 in accordance with the requirements of the published schemes of work used by the school;  to review the length of some literacy and numeracy lessons, which are over an hour long. (See paragraphs:9,18,25,98,99,113,148 and 153).

p.28

WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

In addition to the key issues above, the following less important areas for development should be considered for inclusion in the action plan:

p.28

WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

 Despite the considerable effort by the school, pupils’ attendance remains unsatisfactory. The school should continue to do all it can to improve pupils’ attendance. (See paragraph 41).  Skills taught in literacy, numeracy and information and communication technology should be used more consistently to support learning and raise standards in other subjects. (See paragraphs: 5,25,26,97,104,113,116,130,139 and 142). The Rosary Catholic Primary School - 29 The Rosary Catholic Primary School - 30

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Summary of the sources of evidence for the inspection

Number of discussions with staff, governors, other adults and pupils 68

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Summary of teaching observed during the inspection

Excellent Very good Good Satisfactory Unsatisfactory Poor Very Poor

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Summary of teaching observed during the inspection

The table gives the number and percentage of lessons observed in each of the seven categories used to make judgements about teaching. Care should be taken when interpreting these percentages as each lesson represents slightly over one percentage point.

p.30

Information about the school’s pupils

Pupils on the school’s roll Nursery YR – Y6

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Information about the school’s pupils

Number of pupils on the school’s roll (FTE for part-time pupils) 39 329

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Information about the school’s pupils

Number of full-time pupils known to be eligible for free school meals 12 117

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Information about the school’s pupils

Special educational needs Nursery YR – Y6

p.30

Information about the school’s pupils

Number of pupils with statements of special educational needs 0 4

p.30

Information about the school’s pupils

Number of pupils on the school’s special educational needs register 0 40

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Information about the school’s pupils

English as an additional language No of pupils

p.30

Information about the school’s pupils

Number of pupils with English as an additional language 171

p.30

Information about the school’s pupils

Pupil mobility in the last school year No of pupils

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Information about the school’s pupils

Pupils who joined the school other than at the usual time of first admission 13

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Information about the school’s pupils

Pupils who left the school other than at the usual time of leaving 24

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Attendance

National comparative data 5.4 National comparative data 0.5

p.30

Attendance

Both tables give the percentage of half days (sessions) missed through absence for the latest complete reporting year. The Rosary Catholic Primary School - 31

p.30

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1 (Year 2)

Number of registered pupils in final year of Key Stage 1 for the latest reporting year 2002 26 17 43

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Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1 (Year 2)

National Curriculum Test/Task Results Reading Writing Mathematics

p.31

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1 (Year 2)

Boys 19 22 24 Numbers of pupils at NC level 2 and above Girls 16 16 15

p.31

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1 (Year 2)

Percentage of pupils School 81 (85) 88 (83) 91 (89) at NC level 2 or above National 84 (84) 86 (86) 90 (91)

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Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1 (Year 2)

Teachers’ Assessments English Mathematics Science

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Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1 (Year 2)

Boys 20 24 22 Numbers of pupils at NC level 2 and above Girls 16 14 15

p.31

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1 (Year 2)

Percentage of pupils School 84 (83) 88 (85) 86 (89) at NC level 2 or above National 85 (85) 89 (89) 89 (89)

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Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1 (Year 2)

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

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Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2 (Year 6)

Number of registered pupils in final year of Key Stage 2 for the latest reporting year 2002 23 22 45

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Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2 (Year 6)

National Curriculum Test/Task Results English Mathematics Science

p.31

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2 (Year 6)

Boys 19 18 20 Numbers of pupils at NC level 4 and above Girls 18 17 16

p.31

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2 (Year 6)

Percentage of pupils School 82 (67) 78 (73) 80 (90) at NC level 4 or above National 75 (75) 73 (71) 86 (87)

p.31

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2 (Year 6)

Teachers’ Assessments English Mathematics Science

p.31

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2 (Year 6)

Boys 15 18 20 Numbers of pupils at NC level 4 and above Girls 16 17 16

p.31

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2 (Year 6)

Percentage of pupils School 69 (52) 78 (71) 80 (89) at NC level 4 or above National 73 (72) 74 (74) 82 (82)

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Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2 (Year 6)

Percentages in brackets refer to the year before the latest reporting year. The Rosary Catholic Primary School - 32

p.31

Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

Categories used in the Annual School Census No of pupils on roll Number of fixed period exclusions Number of permanent exclusions

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Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

White – any other White background 4 0 0

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Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

Mixed – White and Black Caribbean 12 0 0

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Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

Mixed – any other mixed background 7 0 0

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Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

Asian or Asian British - Pakistani 102 0 0

p.32

Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

Asian or Asian British – Bangladeshi 6 0 0

p.32

Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

Asian or Asian British – any other Asian background 4 0 0

p.32

Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

Black or Black British – Caribbean 21 0 0

p.32

Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

Black or Black British – any other Black background 6 0 0

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Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

The table refers to pupils of compulsory school age only. It gives the number of exclusions, which may be different from the number of pupils excluded.

p.32

Teachers and classes Financial information

Total number of qualified teachers (FTE) 14 Financial year 2002/2003

p.32

Teachers and classes Financial information

Number of pupils per qualified teacher 21.1

p.32

Teachers and classes Financial information

Education support staff: YR – Y6 Total income 876868

p.32

Teachers and classes Financial information

Total number of education support staff 12 Total expenditure 810052

p.32

Teachers and classes Financial information

Total aggregate hours worked per week 294 Expenditure per pupil 2195

p.32

Teachers and classes Financial information

Qualified teachers and support staff: nursery Balance brought forward from previous year 78924

p.32

Teachers and classes Financial information

Total number of qualified teachers (FTE) 1 Balance carried forward to next year 66816

p.32

Teachers and classes Financial information

Number of pupils per qualified teacher 39

p.32

Teachers and classes Financial information

Total number of education support staff 2

p.32

Teachers and classes Financial information

Total aggregate hours worked per week 50

p.32

Teachers and classes Financial information

Number of pupils per FTE adult 13 The Rosary Catholic Primary School - 33 FTE means full-time equivalent.

p.32

Recruitment of teachers

Number of teachers who left the school during the last two years 13

p.33

Recruitment of teachers

Number of teachers appointed to the school during the last two years 8

p.33

Recruitment of teachers

Total number of vacant teaching posts (FTE) 0

p.33

Recruitment of teachers

Number of vacancies filled by teachers on temporary contract of a term or more (FTE) 1

p.33

Recruitment of teachers

Number of unfilled vacancies or vacancies filled by teachers on temporary contract of less than one term (FTE) 0

p.33

Recruitment of teachers

FTE means full-time equivalent. The Rosary Catholic Primary School - 34

p.33

Results of the survey of parents and carers

Percentage of responses in each category

p.34

Results of the survey of parents and carers

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

p.34

Results of the survey of parents and carers

My child is making good progress in school. 65 30 4 1

p.34

Results of the survey of parents and carers

Behaviour in the school is good. 58 37 2 2 1

p.34

Results of the survey of parents and carers

My child gets the right amount of work to do at home. 54 37 6 2 1

p.34

Results of the survey of parents and carers

I am kept well informed about how my child is getting on. 56 33 8 1 2

p.34

Results of the survey of parents and carers

I would feel comfortable about approaching the school with questions or a problem. 58 36 3 1 3

p.34

Results of the survey of parents and carers

The school expects my child to work hard and achieve his or her best. 74 22 1 1 2

p.34

Results of the survey of parents and carers

The school works closely with parents. 37 44 7 2 10

p.34

Results of the survey of parents and carers

The school is well led and managed. 41 43 9 3 5

p.34

Results of the survey of parents and carers

The school is helping my child become mature and responsible. 56 40 3 1

p.34

Results of the survey of parents and carers

The school provides an interesting range of activities outside lessons. 42 35 6 3 14

p.34

Results of the survey of parents and carers

Other issues raised by parents At the Parents’ Meeting one parent was very concerned that there was no member of the teaching staff who represented Black Caribbean pupils and therefore understood their culture. However, there are learning support assistants from ethnic backgrounds. It was pointed out by another parent at the meeting that there was an after school club at Norton Hall for pupils from ethnic minority backgrounds. The Rosary Catholic Primary School - 35

p.34

AREAS OF LEARNING FOR CHILDREN IN THE FOUNDATION STAGE

75. Provision for children in the Foundation Stage is good. The quality of teaching in both the nursery and reception classes is good and children, including those with special educational needs and those for whom English is not their mother tongue, make satisfactory progress. The newly appointed co-ordinator leads an effective team and children are provided with a rich range of well planned learning experiences suited to their individual needs. The potential for further improvement is good.

p.35

AREAS OF LEARNING FOR CHILDREN IN THE FOUNDATION STAGE

76. Children are admitted to the nursery on a full-time basis in the September of the academic year in which they reach their fourth birthday. Many of them then transfer to the reception classes on a full-time basis in the September of the year in which they become five years old. At the time of the inspection there were 86 children attending full-time in the Foundation Stage of learning. The good introduction procedures, together with the very high quality relationships, mean that children soon feel secure; this enables them to settle quickly into their class routines.

p.35

AREAS OF LEARNING FOR CHILDREN IN THE FOUNDATION STAGE

77. Attainment on entry to the nursery is average in all areas of learning for this age group. In the current academic year, 65 per cent of children in the nursery transferred to the reception classes. The school’s official assessments, undertaken in the first few weeks after children start school, indicated that children’s attainment was above average. However, inspection evidence indicates that children’s attainment on entry to the school was just below average in personal, social and emotional development and in communication, language and literacy and average in mathematical development. The senior management team agree with these findings. Inspection evidence indicates that by the end of the year, the majority of children in the current reception year are likely to achieve the Early Learning Goals in all areas of learning.

p.35

Personal, social and emotional development

78. Good teaching enables children to make sound progress towards achieving the early learning goals in this area by the end of the reception year. This reflects the sensitive teaching, both in the nursery and reception classes, where children are constantly encouraged to feel confident about what they can achieve. The children settle quickly into the routine of the nursery where their personal and social development is given high priority, which has a positive impact on their learning and in creating a very happy atmosphere. Children for whom English is not their mother tongue are given very good support. Specially qualified learning support staff converse with children in their own language while constantly developing their understanding and use of English. This enables them to participate fully in all activities and make good progress in all areas of learning. Children quickly become independent and soon learn how to put on their aprons and hang them up after each activity.

p.35

Personal, social and emotional development

They put on their own coats when visiting the outside play area. In the reception classes, all children dress and undress independently for physical education. They take turns and adhere to the class rules, such as the number of children allowed to work on the computer. Behaviour is very good because activities capture the children’s interest and the teacher’s management strategies are good. The children select their own activities in free choice The Rosary Catholic Primary School - 36 sessions and because the purpose of the tasks is carefully explained, they play there productively. Because they know that their contributions will be greatly valued, children’s confidence is growing rapidly. In the reception classes, the children settle to more structured activities, such as literacy and numeracy, and show the ability to maintain attention for longer periods of time. They carry out instructions carefully and confidently.

p.35

Personal, social and emotional development

79. All adults working with children in the nursery and reception classes treat each other with courtesy and respect. This leads to trusting relationships and helps the children to develop an awareness of others and to develop very good relationships with adults and other children.

p.36

Communication, language and literacy

80. As a result of good teaching in both the nursery and the reception classes, children achieve well in this area and most achieve standards expected for children of this age when they enter Year 1. By the end of the reception year, most children use speech well to interact with others, listen attentively and respond with enjoyment to stories and rhymes. They make satisfactory progress in literacy as the reception teachers have devised a wide range of activities for the daily literacy time to increase children’s interest, knowledge and understanding. As a result, most children are on course to meet the recommended learning goals for communication, language and literacy.

p.36

Communication, language and literacy

81. Most children talk readily about their own experiences and the things that interest them. Adults show children that they value their efforts at communicating and all children benefit from individual support and lots of encouragement. Children in the nursery and in the reception classes are provided with an appropriate range of activities to develop their use of language through role-play. In one reception class, the teacher had provided a very attractive Travel Agency. Children became totally involved in selecting and booking holidays to exotic destinations as they discussed their choices and used their writing skills to complete the forms. The children listen carefully and particularly enjoy listening to stories. Children in the nursery discuss the pictures in books and make relevant observations, such as comparing the shape of an avocado pear to an egg as the teacher read ‘Avocado Baby’. They laughed with

p.36

Communication, language and literacy

delight as the baby grew and got stronger and stronger. By the time children enter the reception classes, they talk about books using appropriate language, such as page, word and title. Many children talk about the main events in their favourite stories. By the end of the reception year, many children recognise familiar words in simple texts and associate sounds with letters. A few build their sounds to make simple words. There is good progress in writing from the meaningful scribbles in the nursery to writing their own names unaided and other key words without help. Most children have satisfactory pencil control and learn to form their letters well. The teaching of reading is well structured, from the sharing and looking at books in the nursery to the more formal learning of words and regular phonic practise in the reception classes.

p.36

Mathematical development

82. Children enter the reception classes with mathematical skills, which are average. They make sound progress and by the end of the reception year many are likely to reach the expected standards. Numeracy is well taught and consequently the children achieve well. In the nursery, number rhymes and counting songs are used appropriately to promote children’s The Rosary Catholic Primary School - 37 early understanding of counting. Other opportunities for counting are used when calling the register or discussing the number of children taking part in an activity. They develop their skills in a variety of ways. For instance, they cut out shapes of fruit and stuck the chosen number in a fruit bowl. They learn to add numbers together by making pictures of three bears to illustrate the story of ‘Goldilocks and the Three Bears’. By the end of the reception year most children count beyond 20 when counting out loud. They have an idea what the numbers

p.36

Mathematical development

one to ten represent and write their numbers unaided. They make good use of this knowledge to solve simple addition and subtraction problems. In a reception class, children transferred their counting skills to share coins. They make sound progress in their knowledge and understanding of shape and pattern. In their early work, children are provided with a suitable range of practical experiences such as sorting and ordering games, jigsaw puzzles and building with bricks. Resources are good and the variety of practical experiences provided encourages children to participate in real-life situations. For instance, buying items from the class shop and paying for their holiday in the Travel Agency.

p.37

Mathematical development

83. Overall, teaching is good. Elements of the framework for teaching mathematics are introduced gradually to ensure a smooth transition to Year 1.

p.37

Knowledge and understanding of the world

84. Children enter the nursery with a basic general knowledge that the teacher and nursery nurses build on appropriately, helping them to learn more about the world around them. Most children are on course to reach the expected standards by the end of the reception year. Activities are carefully planned and organised using themes such as People who help us . In the reception classes, children were able to learn about the responsibilities of the school lollipop lady. They enjoyed using the zebra crossing, remote controlled traffic lights and uniform of the lollipop lady to learn safety issues involved when crossing the road. The learning support assistant was able to speak to children for whom English is not their mother tongue in order to help them understand and to participate in the class discussion. She very skilfully used both Punjabi and English to communicate with them at an appropriate level.

p.37

Knowledge and understanding of the world

Children develop their ability to use tools and equipment. In connection with the story about a bear that went to the moon, children made honey sandwiches for the picnic. They planned the order in which they would carry out the task and carefully used knives to spread and to cut, finding out about the texture and consistency of food materials.

p.37

Knowledge and understanding of the world

85. Computer skills are well taught; thus children are gaining confidence in logging on and off, selecting a program, controlling the mouse and saving their work. They develop their sense of direction by learning to program Roamer to move forwards and backwards.

p.37

Knowledge and understanding of the world

86. Children are provided with a good range of construction toys and materials for them to explore and use their skills to make models. They listen to bible stories and learn to respect the feelings of others and the importance of saying sorry. Children are aware of the significant events in their lives and are encouraged to share special things that they have achieved when they meet together at the beginning and end of the day.

p.37

Physical development

87. Children develop their physical skills rapidly because of the good quality of teaching. Teachers make good use of the secure outside play areas in both nursery and reception areas. The Rosary Catholic Primary School - 38 Both these areas are well resourced, but there is a need to resurface both areas and to provide additional large apparatus. The co-ordinator has plans for this work to be carried out in the near future. Children in reception classes also make very good use of the school hall to ensure that physical skills are developed systematically. Children move confidently on the apparatus and run, jump and skip with increasing control. However, there is a need to ensure that children have opportunities to explore all the space, create their own movements and to be physically active throughout the lesson rather than waiting too long for their turn to practise. Children are increasingly aware of the need to exercise because teachers draw their

p.37

Physical development

attention to issues of health and safety. Children in the nursery enjoy working together with the parachute, taking turns to run underneath and delight in the experience.

p.38

Physical development

88. Within the classroom, children in the reception classes develop increasing hand control through cutting activities and practising their handwriting. Children in the nursery draw and paint using a variety of media and pick up small items of equipment when engaged in play activities and when rolling out and using cutters to make shapes with play-dough. Teaching fully maximises what the children can do in this aspect of their physical development.

p.38

Creative development

89. Overall children make satisfactory progress developing their creative skills. In both the nursery and the reception classes there are good opportunities for children to use their imagination when playing in the home corner and in other role play areas set up by the teachers. Children use a wide range of materials and techniques to produce pictures, paintings and prints. They have investigated how to make different shades of colours by adding white or black. Teachers celebrate the work children have done and the rooms are decorated with paintings of People who help us . Much of their artwork is related to the stories they know and children clearly enjoyed illustrating the story of The Three Billy Goats Gruff . Their skills in cutting and sticking are developing well because of the well-planned opportunities to practice. Because teachers are good role models, children sing songs and nursery rhymes and often move rhythmically in time to the music. They know the words of

p.38

Creative development

many songs and accompany their singing with vigorous appropriate actions.

p.38

Creative development

90. Overall the quality of teaching and learning in the foundation stage is good. Teaching staff plan and review activities together regularly to ensure that children have equal access to the rich and varied curriculum. The contribution of the highly skilled teaching assistants who work in these classes is greatly valued. Careful assessment during class lessons takes good account of children’s progress towards achieving the Early Learning Goals. This ensures that all are fully included in activities.

p.38

Creative development

91. Good links are made between literacy and numeracy and other subjects to make the best use of time. Teachers have similar very good relationships and high expectations of good behaviour. Children in the foundation stage are very well cared for.

p.38

ENGLISH

92. Standards in English are average when compared with those expected nationally at the end of Year 2 and Year 6 so that overall standards have been maintained at the level reported The Rosary Catholic Primary School - 39 at the last inspection. The achievement of pupils by Year 2 is good. They enter the school with attainment that is below average and by Year 2 have reached average standards. They continue to make satisfactory progress and maintain average standards by the end of Year 6. In the Year 2 statutory tests in 2002, pupils achieved better in writing than in reading. This is because of the emphasis the school is placing on raising standards in writing. However, evidence from the inspection does not indicate a difference between standards in reading and writing. The achievement of pupils with special educational needs is good because they have good support from learning support staff in lessons. Pupils with English as an additional

p.38

ENGLISH

language also make good progress. The effective teaching of speaking and listening skills particularly supports them and contributes to their progress.

p.39

ENGLISH

93. Pupils achieve satisfactory standards in speaking and listening by Year 2 and Year 6. By Year 2 most pupils are good listeners and they follow instructions well. Pupils make relevant comments and take turns during speaking. For example, in a Year 1 and 2 lesson pupils asked appropriate questions of a classmate who replied confidently in the character of the wolf in Little Red Riding Hood. They speak in full sentences and make their meaning clear. Pupils with English as an additional language are well supported in developing their vocabulary and sentence structure through targeted questions and the examples of adults and other pupils. By Year 6, most pupils speak clearly and confidently in pairs and when presenting their work to the class. During the inspection, they shared their ideas in pairs about how to plan a story from an agreed dilemma and then presented their conclusions to the class. Teachers are conscious of the need to extend pupils’ speaking skills to encourage the

p.39

ENGLISH

use of a wider and more precise vocabulary. They plan good opportunities for pupils to listen, ask questions and give explanations. They also use drama and role-play to help pupils develop their skills in expressing themselves. This is an improvement since the time of the last inspection.

p.39

ENGLISH

94. Standards of reading are average by the end of Year 2. Pupils develop a range of strategies to support their reading and use their knowledge of letter sounds well to help them. They have a good understanding of the main events and characters in traditional stories. Higher-achieving and average pupils read fluently with good expression and attention to punctuation. Most lower-attaining pupils use letter sounds successfully to try to build up unknown words. Pupils talk enthusiastically about stories that they have read, but they are less familiar with their authors. This enthusiasm is fostered by the good range of books available in the classrooms for pupils to take home to share.

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ENGLISH

95. By the end of Year 6, pupils continue to achieve average standards in reading. Higher- and average attaining pupils read expressively with good understanding and have favourite authors such as Jacqueline Wilson, Jean Ure and Catherine Jinks. They talk about the motives of characters in the books they are reading and infer meaning from the texts that they read. Lower-attaining pupils read with less fluency and enthusiasm, but their reading is accurate and they use a range of strategies confidently to establish meaning. Pupils know how to use information from books to support their studies. This was seen in a Year 5 history lesson when pupils drew conclusions about the lives of children in Victorian times using a range of texts. Guided reading sessions are timetabled in addition to the daily literacy lesson, but the effective use of this time varies between classes. The activities provided during this

p.39

ENGLISH

time are not always sufficiently focused to contribute to the reading development of all pupils and this reduces the progress made by pupils during this time. The Rosary Catholic Primary School - 40 96. Standards in writing are average by the end of Year 2. Pupils of average ability put their ideas into sentences, which they punctuate with capital letters and full stops. Higher- attaining pupils write confidently and extend their ideas into lively stories. Some average and higher-attaining pupils are developing a joined handwriting style and most of these pupils spell short common words and longer regular words correctly. They use wordbooks well to support their writing, but are sometimes too dependent on the teacher to provide spellings and this reduces the time they spend writing. Lower-attaining pupils and those with special educational needs make good progress in attempting independent writing when supported by

p.39

ENGLISH

97. By the end of Year 6, pupils use writing for a range of purposes within English and in other subjects, although they do not have planned opportunities to practise in other lessons what they are learning about writing. For example, pupils in the Year 3 and 4 class learn how to write instructions in English for making a sandwich rather than writing instructions for something they are learning in another subject. This reduces opportunities to reinforce their learning. Most pupils in Year 6 use paragraphs to structure their writing and are developing their use of vocabulary to add interest to their writing. Lower-attaining pupils in Year 6 use descriptive language well. For example, when learning how to improve the build-up to a story they wrote, ‘It was completely empty and dark. Suddenly she heard thundering footsteps like a volcano erupting. Finally, she saw two fiery red eyes’. This is the result of

p.40

ENGLISH

good teaching, which has linked reading and writing to provide the pupils with models on which to base their work. The use of nationally recommended exemplar planning for lessons in Year 6 makes a positive contribution to raising the standards of writing in this year.

p.40

ENGLISH

98. The previous inspection noted that all work was presented to a high standard. Currently, not all work is well presented. This is particularly true for the lower-attaining pupils and when pupils are working to time. Pupils in Year 6 do not all use a consistent joined hand. The need to improve standards of handwriting has been recognised by the school and is being addressed. Teachers do not always provide a good model of handwriting when writing in front of the pupils or insist that work is presented as well as possible.

p.40

ENGLISH

99. The quality of teaching has improved since the previous inspection and is now good overall with examples of very good teaching of the older pupils. Teachers have good knowledge and understanding of the subject so that skilful questioning and explanations ensure that pupils understand their work and are challenged. Praise is used well to show pupils that their work is valued and to encourage higher standards. Teachers plan their lessons well. However, in some lessons, the learning intentions are not sufficiently precise or phrased in language that the pupils can understand. This reduces the opportunities for pupils to know what they are expected to learn in the lesson or to assess their own learning. In a very good lesson, however, when the learning intentions were very clear, pupils were actively encouraged to judge how well they and their classmates had succeeded in writing a story, using a range of strategies to make their writing more interesting. This challenged the pupils

p.40

ENGLISH

to think about how to improve their work resulting in higher standards. The quality of marking varies between classes. When teachers use the marking policy consistently, they make regular comments to encourage and instruct and give effective points for improvement. This is not the case in all classes and reduces the progress made by pupils in these classes. Relationships are very good and teachers manage pupils’ behaviour very well. As a result, pupils work hard, show interest and most sustain their concentration throughout the lesson. When the length of the lesson is too long for the age of the pupils, they find it difficult to The Rosary Catholic Primary School - 41 maintain high levels of concentration to the end. The last part of the lesson has less focus than other parts. This reduces opportunities for teachers to reinforce and assess pupils’ learning. Learning support staff are well used and provide effective support for pupils,

p.40

ENGLISH

especially those with special educational needs and those with English as an additional language.

p.41

ENGLISH

100. The co-ordinator for English is enthusiastic and has worked hard to develop both his own subject knowledge and that of the teachers in the school. His leadership of the subject is good and he has a clear vision for the future development of the subject. Management of the subject is satisfactory. The co-ordinator has revised the subject policy and scheme of work, both of which now provide good guidance about teaching literacy. However, he has had insufficient opportunities to check up on the implementation and effectiveness of these in every class. This results in some inconsistencies throughout the school. The school has developed a system of setting individual targets for pupils. These are not having as much impact as possible on raising standards because they are not worded in a way that pupils can easily understand. Pupils do not therefore refer to them when producing their work. The

p.41

ENGLISH

school has already identified that information and communication technology is currently under-used to support pupils’ learning in English. When used in classrooms, its use does not always contribute to pupils’ learning. For example, higher-attaining pupils used a classroom computer to write a story, but were frustrated by their lack of keyboard skills, which slowed the pace of their work. The school is currently well placed to further raise standards in English as the new initiatives introduced become embedded in practice consistently throughout the school. The Rosary Catholic Primary School - 42

p.41

MATHEMATICS

101. In the 2002 national tests for seven-year-olds, results were above the national average and well above the average when compared with similar schools. The number of pupils achieving the higher Level 3 in the tests was well above the national average. Over the last three years results have improved in line with the national trend, with girls doing better than boys.

p.42

MATHEMATICS

102. In the 2002 national tests for 11-year-olds, results were above the national average and well above the average when compared to similar schools, especially the number of pupils achieving the higher Level 5. Over the last three years, results have improved faster than the national trend, with boys doing better than girls. For both seven-year-olds and 11-year-olds the teachers’ predictions for their results in the 2002 tests were accurate.

p.42

MATHEMATICS

103. The standards reached by the pupils are an improvement on the findings of the last inspection. The school has been awarded the quality mark for its teaching of basic skills.

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MATHEMATICS

104. The findings of the inspection, using the evidence from work scrutiny and lesson observations, agree with these findings. The school’s policy of setting (in groups according to pupils’ ability) part of the timetable for mathematics in Year 2 and Year 6 plays a significant part in raising standards. The standards reached in number work are above that of other aspects of mathematics, such as shape and measures. The pupils were especially adept at manipulating the four operations of addition, subtraction, division and multiplication. A middle-ability group in Year 2 were already working on the three times tables and fractions of numbers, while more-able pupils could all use mental recall of the four times table with confidence when solving a problem. The school has recognised the need to increase the amount of time spent in applying number skills in practical and problem solving situations and some lessons were seen developing just such areas of mathematical thinking. Year 3

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MATHEMATICS

pupils were learning how to retrieve and analyse information from a database and Year 6 pupils were looking at compound interest. However, the historical under-emphasis on problem solving and inconsistency among teachers in using opportunities to apply the pupils’ knowledge to investigations or links to other subjects has affected the rate of pupil progress; though the situation is improving. There are examples of information and communication technology being used to support mathematics, but its use to support learning in mathematics is limited. The good, comprehensive regime of testing is effective and findings are well used to inform planning; as a consequence standards are rising.

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MATHEMATICS

105. Pupils make good progress in both key stages, especially in number work. Pupils who need extra support to reach the expected levels for 11-year-olds are supported through ‘booster classes’ that help them to progress more quickly. Learning support staff are used effectively to support pupil’s learning. This is particularly beneficial for pupils who have special educational needs or for whom English is not their mother tongue.

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MATHEMATICS

106. The behaviour of pupils is very good. They concentrate hard and try to succeed. Pupils are very supportive of each other and when fellow classmates make mistakes they encourage them to persevere or offer them advice. Pupils settle quickly to independent tasks. The attitude of pupils to mathematics is good overall, but in those lessons and classes where teaching is over-directive and pupils are not challenged or stimulated enough, they can lose concentration. Attitudes are very good in those lessons where pupils are actively engaged in the learning process. The Rosary Catholic Primary School - 43 107. Overall the quality of teaching is good. In Key Stage 1, it is at least satisfactory and often good or very good. In Key Stage 2, the quality of teaching is more variable, ranging from very good to unsatisfactory, with half the lessons observed being satisfactory. Where it is good or better, there is appropriate emphasis on the development of specific subject

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MATHEMATICS

vocabulary and effective, targeted questioning builds on pupils’ knowledge. Pupils with special needs or English as a second language are well supported by learning support staff who re-phrase questions or answers to ensure inclusion. Key Stage 1 teachers are especially effective in providing lessons that make number work tangible to pupils and caters for pupils with different learning styles; in a lesson on learning the three times tables both visual and auditory inputs were supported by a clapping pattern. Tasks are also matched closely to pupils’ ability and build sequentially on previous work. Where teaching is less effective, work is heavily directed and there are insufficient opportunities for pupils to explain their thinking and to articulate their ideas. On occasions, independent work lacks challenge for the more able; in an otherwise good lesson in Year 1 their understanding of money combinations,

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MATHEMATICS

up to ten pence, was not developed by the subsequent task set. Setting in Year 2 and Year 6 is characterised by work that closely matches ability. Grant funding has enabled workshops to be run, which involve pupils and their parents, or assistants, to work on a mathematically- based activity, often based around games.

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MATHEMATICS

108. The quality of marking of work varies from teacher to teacher. Marking is generally complete giving praise, discussing presentation or identifying if the lesson the objective has been understood, but few targets or discussion of errors are given to aid the pupil’s future mathematical development. There is a satisfactory level of resources for mathematics, including apparatus and equipment for older pupils, which is an improvement from the last inspection.

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MATHEMATICS

109. The co-ordinator provides good leadership of the subject. He has formed an action plan to meet the priorities identified through analysis of the school’s needs, which provides a clear focus for improvement. The robust analysis of the findings of diagnostic assessments is increasingly effectively used to identify areas for improvement for individuals and for the school as a whole. The capacity for improvement is good. As the recent initiatives and proposed developments impact on the subject’s development, standards should rise further.

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SCIENCE

110. Since the last inspection, standards attained by pupils have risen and many aspects of the way the subject is taught have improved. In 1998, standards were reported as being in line with national averages throughout the school. The results in the 2002 Key Stage 1 teacher assessments, were slightly below in four of the study areas and well below in experimental and investigative work. National test results at the end of Year 6 were below the national average, but in line with results when compared with similar schools. Findings from this inspection, show attainment by the age of seven and 11 is above average. As most pupils start school with below average skill levels, this represents good progress for pupils of all abilities in relation to their prior attainment, including those with English, which is not their mother tongue.

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SCIENCE

111. The quality of teaching and learning is good, being particularly strong in Year 1 and Year 2 and in some classes in Years 3 and 5. In these classes the teachers’ subject knowledge The Rosary Catholic Primary School - 44 is secure making for carefully planned lessons where activities build on previous work enable pupils to use their prior knowledge and understanding to support their learning. In the introductions and during lessons there is precise explanation of the work to be covered so that pupils are clear about what they are going to learn and how to set about doing the activities. Teachers have high expectations of what pupils can do, which results in challenging, interesting work. Pupils are given sufficient opportunity to carry out investigations to use and develop their skills of scientific enquiry. This was particularly evident in a mixed age Year 1 and Year 2 class in which they were investigating different light sources and how to record

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SCIENCE

their results. Pupils were full of enthusiasm and fascinated by the light boxes that showed how objects looked in daylight, torchlight or without light. A good emphasis is placed on pupils using the correct scientific vocabulary so that they are able to discuss their ideas. A good example of this was in a Year 3 lesson, where liquids were being kept warm in containers wrapped in various materials and the temperature changes measured over time. The teacher’s skilled questioning led to pupils using and understanding terms such as degrees, temperature, prediction and conclusion. Pupils were excited and surprised at the changes in temperature recorded and keen to discuss and suggest why there were differences in the results recorded.

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SCIENCE

112. A weakness in the teaching in some of the Year 5 and Year 6 classes is the over reliance on the use of commercial worksheets as a means of recording results and planning experiments. This not only hinders pupils developing the skills of finding their own way of showing what they have found out, but also prevents them from using what they have been taught to plan their own investigations. There are too few opportunities to carry out experiments other than those planned by teachers for the whole class. This makes the work less interesting, fails to sufficiently challenge pupils and limits the development of scientific enquiry skills. Attitudes and behaviour in all the classes observed were at least satisfactory and most of the time very good. In all science lessons, pupils worked well together, relationships with teachers were very good and contributions to discussions were valued and celebrated. Pupils are keen to share their knowledge and understanding and enjoyed most of

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SCIENCE

their science work, particularly when they were able to set up investigations to test their predictions. An example of this was in a Year 5 class, where there was a gasp of delight when the teacher announced that the lesson would involve the making of a straw recorder to help investigate why sound changes.

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SCIENCE

113. Marking is generally good and helps pupils understand how to improve. The best examples encouraged pupils to interpret their results more carefully and correct misunderstandings about scientific facts. For instance, understanding which materials can be changed back to their original state and which cannot. Where marking was less successful it failed to alert pupils to the importance of making on-going observations and putting them in the report of the investigation so that they can be discussed and evaluated. Work in some books was unfinished and contained experiments that were poorly recorded because teachers had low expectations and frameworks for report writing had not been well taught. In these cases, there was little evidence of progress because marking had not been used to inform future teaching and learning. Very little reference to other curriculum areas was observed during class observations. The lack of cross-curricular opportunities fails to support the

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SCIENCE

transfer of skills between subjects, particularly those learnt in English and mathematics. Because pupils have not been alerted to the opportunities available to use previously learnt skills some find it more difficult to write up investigations or to interpret the data presented in graphs and tables. The Rosary Catholic Primary School - 45 114. All areas of knowledge with the exception of human reproduction are covered. This was also the case at the last inspection, but recently governors have ratified the use of a new scheme from the Diocesan Religious Education Team called All That I am , which will include human reproduction. The current Year 5 pupils are due to start the new scheme this summer.

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SCIENCE

115. Pupils in Year 2 understand the different properties of materials and how this affects the use we can put them to. They can identify which foods are healthy and which are not. Many have a good grasp of what a test is and what makes it fair. They can describe in detail the life cycle of the frog and know that animals change with age. The use of scientific vocabulary is usually correct and this helps pupils express their ideas and knowledge of science. Pupils in Year 6 know how to collect evidence and have a very secure knowledge of fair testing. They make predictions and draw conclusions from a variety of recorded data. Scientific vocabulary is used appropriately and pupils had a good knowledge of animal habitats, materials and the properties of gases, solids and liquids. They knew which units of measure to use in order to make comparisons when investigating, for instance millimetres to

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SCIENCE

116. The subject is very well led by the subject co-ordinator who has a clear view of the subject’s strengths and weaknesses and has created an action plan that focuses on raising standards through better resources, sharper assessment and higher expectations of teaching. When time allows, teaching is observed and staff receive feedback. Plans and workbooks are regularly scrutinised along with the national statutory and non-statutory tests results, to help inform standards and future teaching and learning. However, class teachers do not always use this information successfully. This is limiting improvement in some aspects of teaching such as scientific investigation and the methods planned to promote learning. Strategies are now being developed to make stronger links with the existing, useful planning procedures. The subject has a high profile in the school because the subject leader makes it so and is also

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SCIENCE

part of the school’s overall strategy to develop further the standards achieved. The opportunities for pupils to be involved in collaborative work activities make a positive contribution to pupils’ personal and social development. There are too few opportunities for pupils to use their information and communication technology skills to support their learning, particularly in the recording and the analysis of scientific data. The accommodation is good, but resources are only adequate and restrict the opportunities for developing pupils’ investigative skills.

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ART AND DESIGN

117. Standards in art and design are close to those expected nationally by the end of both Year 2 and Year 6 and pupils make satisfactory progress. This is a similar picture to that at the last inspection. The increased teaching time now given to literacy and numeracy has encroached on the time available for art and prevented standards from rising further.

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ART AND DESIGN

118. Four lessons were observed during the inspection and evidence is also drawn from displays of pupils’ work, talking with pupils and analysing pupils’ work. Pupils in Year 1 have developed their understanding of pattern and design and produce repeating patterns. They use papier-mâché to make containers and mix colours to make new colours and The Rosary Catholic Primary School - 46 different shades. By Year 2, pupils use sketching pencils well to record their observations of leaves. They observe closely and apply their knowledge of shading to their work. They are familiar with the work of William Morris and name different types of pattern. Pupils in Year 4 investigate how to make patterns they have designed by printing, using polystyrene tiles. By Year 6, pupils have further developed their skills of observation and apply this when they paint careful still life pictures of a vase of flowers. However, as at the last inspection, there

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ART AND DESIGN

are few examples in the school of high quality work produced by higher-attaining pupils in art.

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ART AND DESIGN

119. The teaching of art and design is satisfactory overall. Teachers plan thoroughly for the lessons, but are not sufficiently specific about what they want the pupils to learn in the time available in the lesson. For example, in a Year 2 lesson, pupils were unsure about whether to hurry to complete a pattern or to concentrate on their observational sketching. Teachers do not plan sufficient opportunities for pupils to experiment with their own choice of materials or to represent their own feelings. This was seen in the Year 1 lesson when pupils, who were decorating containers, were not given a choice about what to use for the decoration and their work was very teacher directed. Because sketchbooks are not used consistently throughout the school, the opportunities for pupils to undertake preparatory work to which they can refer when planning the final product are reduced. As a result, pupils do

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ART AND DESIGN

not build systematically on their knowledge and skills. Learning support staff are well used by teachers to support those pupils with special educational needs and with English as an additional language. This enables them to take a full part in the lessons with confidence. Teachers manage the pupils well so that pupils treat resources with care and work very well together, supporting each other. They enjoy their work in art and are thrilled when, for example, they see the results of their printing.

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ART AND DESIGN

120. The co-ordinator for art and design is newly appointed to the school and as yet has not had the opportunity to influence the development of the subject. She recognises that there are enough opportunities for pupils to draw and work with paint, but that there are insufficient opportunities for pupils to work on three-dimensional projects. The assessment of pupils’ work in art and design is unsatisfactory and this reduces the progress that pupils make because the teaching is not based on what pupils know, understand and can do. This contributes to the lack of work demonstrating high quality. The lack of a sink or wet area in Year 1 limits the opportunities for independent work by these pupils. Information and communication technology is beginning to contribute to art and design such as when pupils in Year 4 use computers to design and draw Viking longships, but its use remains under- developed. Resources are adequate to meet the needs of the curriculum.

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DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

121. No lessons in design and technology were being taught during the inspection. However, using evidence from the scrutiny of pupils ’ work on display , the co-ordinator’s subject portfolio, discussions with pupils and staff and from teachers’ plans, it would appear that pupils attain satisfactory standards in the subject. Since the last inspection standards have been maintained at the level expected for seven-year-olds and have improved for pupils at the end of Key Stage 2. Knowledge and understanding of 11-year-olds of structures and mechanisms and the working properties of a wide range of materials, as well as their use of tools, is now satisfactory. The Rosary Catholic Primary School - 47 122. A national scheme with a progressive development of pupil’s skills has been introduced. Appropriate tools and resources have been purchased and staff expertise has been developed through staff training. The design and technology projects are organised in a two-

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DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

year cycle of topics, of which each topic is taught intensely over a two-day period. Recent staff training has improved the knowledge and confidence of the staff in teaching design and technology.

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DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

123. The evidence indicates that the stages of designing, making and evaluation of finished products are each given due importance. A Year 6 display, covering the topic of soft toys, showed satisfactory understanding of the need to ensure safety in designing toys; e.g. they were not to be too small so as to stop children swallowing them or to have sharp edges. Pupils in Year 3 talked enthusiastically about making up pop up books, but they appeared to have had little chance to decide on the appropriate materials for the task. Year 5 worksheets, and discussion with pupils, indicated that they could suitably evaluate their constructed musical instruments. They gave reasoned arguments for why their instruments may not sound as they intended; e.g. they put in too many peas and not enough sticks so that the peas rushed down and therefore it did not sound like a rainmaker.

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DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

124. The reporting on the subject to parents has improved. Two years ago the reports were inconsistent and in some cases referred to art only. The latest reports to parents now cover design and technology appropriately.

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DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

125. The subject is satisfactory managed by the recently appointed co-ordinator. The introduced scheme meets curriculum requirements for the subject, but the topics were not timetabled specifically to support, and be supported by, other subject areas being covered at any one time. To date she has not monitored teaching in this subject area, but expects to do so in the near future. She has upgraded the amount of resources to a satisfactory level and organised a system to aid retrieval of equipment. The equipment is of a good standard and is appropriately locked away when not in use. The storage space available for the subject is unsatisfactory and the area used is shared with some of the caretaker’s cleaning equipment.

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GEOGRAPHY

126. Standards of attainment in geography meet national expectations by the end of Year 2 and Year 6. All pupils, including those for whom English is not their mother tongue and those pupils with special educational needs, are well supported by teachers and learning support staff and this enables them to achieve appropriately and make satisfactory progress. Standards attained in the previous inspection met expectations at Key Stage 1 and exceeded expectations at Key Stage 2.

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GEOGRAPHY

127. Pupils in Years 1 and 2 benefit from teachers’ effective use of the local area to develop geographical skills. For example, by the end of Year 2, pupils have developed a satisfactory understanding of their own environment by carrying out a survey of the types of buildings in the area and using of aerial photographs to understand how their school sits at the centre of a diverse area of housing, colleges and industry. They further extend their knowledge by carrying out a survey into how pupils in their class travel to school. They compare their home environment with that of other areas of Britain through the use of post cards from around Britain. The Rosary Catholic Primary School - 48 128. Pupils in Year 3 extend their learning appropriately by considering the effects of a new road system in the area. Year 6 pupils study how the physical and climatic environment directly affects life in an Indian village. They learn how land use needs to be balanced

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GEOGRAPHY

between subsistence and cash crops. They expand this study by looking at the effect on the flora and fauna of the destruction of an area of rain forest in South America. In both cases, pupils demonstrate empathy with the people and problems of the areas studied. Such thoughtful learning makes a significant contribution to pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development.

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GEOGRAPHY

129. The quality of teaching and learning is satisfactory with some that is good. Teachers manage their pupils well, have a good structure to the lesson and effectively use resources and visits to support pupils’ learning. As a result, pupils have positive attitudes, behave well and are interested in learning. They work very well together and listen with interest when others speak. They confidently put forward ideas secure in the knowledge that their views will be taken seriously.

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GEOGRAPHY

130. The curriculum is satisfactory. It is appropriately broad and balanced over each of the age groups. Assessment procedures are satisfactory and include a useful portfolio of assessed work that aids teachers in understanding standards of work expected. Resources are satisfactory. The use of information and communication technology to support learning in the subject is insufficiently well developed. The subject co-ordinator is knowledgeable and has a clear view of how to develop the subject. He is particularly keen to expand the use of local visits because visits to places that are distant from the school are difficult to fund. He regularly monitors teaching. This is an improvement since the previous inspection. He is seeking to improve the use of information and communication technology to support learning in geography. The Rosary Catholic Primary School - 49

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HISTORY

131. Standards in history at the end of Year 2 and Year 6 are above those expected nationally. This is an improvement on the findings of the last inspection where standards met national expectations. All pupils, including those with special educational needs and those in the early stages of learning English, make good progress overall. This is consistent with the previous report. The improvement is largely due to further improvements in planning, better teaching and the way pupils’ understanding of history is enhanced by practical, enquiry based approaches that draw on a range of primary and secondary sources. Year 5 pupils, for example, research what it was like to be a child in a Victorian mine by scrutinising first hand accounts of the time and various illustrations made by the artists who visited the mines.

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HISTORY

132. Pupils in Year 2 know about key moments in history and can identify significant changes over time. For instance, because of their work on the Great Fire of London, pupils knew that houses today are less likely to be made of wood and packed very closely together and that this was one of the contributing factors to the Great Fire spreading so rapidly. These pupils use historical sources to answer questions about famous people such as Florence Nightingale and Samuel Pepys. In recalling what they could remember, responses included “ Florence Nightingale was very kind. She was a nurse in the battle and helped soldiers get better”. By Year 3 and Year 4 pupils are beginning to explain clearly the characteristic features of life in ancient Egypt and use and understand a range of specialist terms such as goddess, hieroglyphics and ancient. For example, they imagined they were on holiday in ancient Egypt and wrote post cards home using the new vocabulary to describe what it was

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HISTORY

like to be there. Opportunities such as these reinforce work in literacy and enable pupils to use skills learnt in other curriculum areas to record and communicate their work in history. The pupils’ understanding of Tudor and Victorian times is further extended through visits from Professor Mc Ginty’s Amazing Time Travel Detective Tales and the Mobile Museum. Pupils were able to handle and investigate artefacts, wear clothing of the period and participate in drama activities to experience life in the past. This is a very good example of making the curriculum interesting and helping pupils to understand how the past differs from today.

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HISTORY

133. By Year 6, pupils describe key characteristics of a period and discuss in detail the changes that happened during that time. For instance, one child interviewed her grandfather about life during the war using her own questions, collating further information from other pupils to produce a fascinating insight into the social implications of World War II. The past is also brought to life through the local study of buildings bombed during the war, including the school’s church which still, according to the pupils, has evidence of masonry damage caused in 1941.

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HISTORY

134. The lessons observed during the inspection and the quality of work in pupils’ books supports the judgement that teaching is good overall. The key features of the good teaching were the very secure subject knowledge, planning that had a clear focus that was shared with pupils so that they knew what they were going to learn and how it fitted in with previous work and activities that were interesting and relevant to pupils’ own experiences. In all the lessons observed, questioning that probed and challenged was an important aspect of the teaching because it enabled pupils to respond like historians and use their enquiry skills with reference to primary and secondary source materials. The Rosary Catholic Primary School - 50 135. Pupils’ attitudes to history are good in all year groups. They enjoy learning about the past. This was also a feature of the last inspection report. In looking through pupils’ work,

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HISTORY

there is evidence that the curriculum provides a structured approach to learning as pupils progress through the school. On most occasions, worksheets are used judiciously. Where they are not used well it is because they too often prescribe how pupils should record their work, thereby limiting opportunities to demonstrate actual understanding. Information and communication technology is, on some occasions, used to support pupils’ history studies. For instance, pupils illustrated their impressions of The Great Fire of London using computer paint programmes. There was no evidence of the Internet being used to further extend pupils’ research skills.

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HISTORY

136. Subject leadership is good. An action plan is in place and funded to enable the priorities to be implemented in order to further improve teaching and learning so that standards continue to rise. Teaching is observed, pupils’ work from across the school is scrutinised and planning is taken in each week to check for curriculum coverage, progression and the quality of intended teaching. Teachers receive feedback and staff meeting time is sometimes used to raise whole-school issues concerning improvement. There is now a greater need to use the information gained from the assessment procedures to inform future teaching and learning and to increase the opportunities for pupils to use their skills from other curriculum areas to further develop their work in history. Resources are adequate and well organised with good use being made of the Birmingham library for the loan of additional artefacts.

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

137. According to the previous inspection, pupils’ standards were below national expectations by the end of Year 2 and Year 6 and their progress was unsatisfactory. Since then, there has been intensive staff training that has fully included learning support staff as well as teaching staff, there has been an effective revision of the subject scheme of work and significant improvements to the quantity and quality of resources. As a result, the improvement in standards has been good. Standards by the end of Year 2 and Year 6 are now at the expected level with those for pupils of this age. All pupils, including those for whom English is not their mother tongue and those with special educational needs, now make good progress.

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

138. The quality of teaching and learning is good overall and makes a significant contribution to the standards achieved. Most of the direct teaching takes place in the school’s new computer suite and this enables the majority of pupils to have individual access to a good quality computer. This means that teachers and learning support staff can maximise the time pupils spend practising and improving their skills and enhancing their knowledge of information and communication technology. The teaching is characterised by an atmosphere of enjoyable learning with all pupils being purposefully engaged. Pupils’ good behaviour and sustained concentration greatly enhanced the quality of learning and the development of skills. As a result, by the end of Year 2, pupils are confident and skilful in their use of computers. They confidently log on, drag components and text using the mouse, respond to questions asked on the screen, save their work to a personal portfolio and close programs

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

down. For example, one group of pupils remodelled the home of the three bears and created scenarios showing Goldilocks talking to the bears in the living room or working in the The Rosary Catholic Primary School - 51 modern kitchen. Pupils know that precise instructions must be entered into a keypad if a small robot is to follow a particular course across the floor.

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

139. By the end of Year 6, good teaching ensures good progress in pupils’ achievement and the development of their skills and they have now caught up with pupils of a similar age and produce standards that are at national expectations for their age. Lessons in information and communication technology are characterised by teachers’ and learning support assistants’ good knowledge of the effective use of equipment and software, and this had a positive effect on pupils’ achievement. In some lessons, pupils are taught how to narrow down their research on the Internet and how to be economic in the use and precision of keyboard entries to reduce time on line. In one lesson where teaching was very good, the teacher also made clear links between learning the Internet skills and the art and design technology work being undertaken by the class. This type of practical link between learning in different subjects is

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

an area for development. By the end of Year 6, pupils successfully develop a wide range of technical skills. These include retrieving information from CD-ROM’s, searching the Internet, using e-mails, word processing and simulations, and the use of control technology and they are fully aware of the significance of the application of information and communication technology both in and out of school.

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

140. Teachers manage and organise pupils’ learning well in the computer suite, and make particularly effective use of learning support staff. They carefully group or pair pupils, where mutual support is judged to be of benefit to learning, and give additional help and thus enabling pupils with special educational needs to learn well. Teachers recognise that for some pupils for whom English is not their mother tongue, computers are an effective learning tool and a means by which they can demonstrate skills that are not purely reliant on language acquisition.

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

141. As a result of the provision of good quality resources, space to work, carefully structured teaching and good levels of support, pupils are keen to undertake the activities set. They concentrate hard, persevere when things do not work as they expect, use their initiative and complete activities with determination. These very good attitudes and behaviour mean pupils cover a considerable amount of work in each session and learn well as a result.

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

142. The curriculum for information and communication technology is broad and pupils learn a good range of skills as they move through the school. Currently, these skills are not used sufficiently well to support learning in other subjects. Assessment procedures are satisfactory, but do not, despite the increase in staff confidence and knowledge, identify individual targets for improvement particularly for pupils already skilled and knowledgeable in the use of information and communication technology. The school has recently built a spacious and well equipped information and communication technology suite. This very good resource is well maintained by an experienced information and communication technology technician. This means that teachers can plan lessons secure in the knowledge that equipment will be working well. The school has provided considerable training for teachers and learning support assistants and this has resulted in an increased confidence

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

among staff and this increased confidence, coupled with good resources has resulted in a rapid improvement in the quality of learning offered to pupils and improved standards of attainment. The suite is used well by children in the foundation stage and this means that pupils are familiar with computer keyboards and the use of a mouse and are well prepared for their work in Year 1. The subject is very well led by a knowledgeable co-ordinator; he is The Rosary Catholic Primary School - 52 keen to increase the use of computers in classrooms to raise standards in other subjects of the curriculum. The school is well placed to raise standards further.

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MUSIC

143. By the age of seven, standards of attainment meet national expectations. At the previous inspection, standards for this age group were said to be above the national average. By the age of eleven, standards meet national expectations. This reflects the findings of the previous inspection. The quality of teaching, overall, is good. As a result all pupils, including those with special educational needs and those for whom English is not their mother tongue achieve appropriately. Standards of singing throughout the school are good. Pupils sing in tune and with obvious enjoyment during their acts of worship. Unfortunately there are missed opportunities for developing pupils’ appreciation of a variety of music by regularly playing music as pupils enter and leave the hall and providing information about the titles and composers of music.

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MUSIC

144. Pupils in Year 2 sing and clap to a rhythm and maintain a steady beat. They are developing their understanding of the difference between rhythm and beat. During an effective lesson in Year 2 pupils identified a quick and a slow rhythm as the teacher played some recorded African music. Pupils greatly enjoyed singing along to this. The appropriate use of a wide range of percussion instruments enhanced their learning. Because the teacher used clearly focused questions, pupils played their instruments in time to the music.

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MUSIC

145. In Year 3, pupils gradually involved themselves by swaying to the pulse of the music because the teacher provided good demonstration and encouragement. Pupils confidently expressed their feelings associated with two pieces of music and could identify the pulse. In Year 4, pupils respond well to the challenge of creating their own rhythmic patterns. They demonstrate that they appreciate the efforts of others as they present their work to the rest of the class. By Year 5, pupils develop their understanding of rhythms and endeavour to clap a steady rhythm while others sing. They sing with great enthusiasm especially when their teacher accompanies them on a guitar. Year 6 pupils consolidate their learning and understanding of rhythms and develop their skills of performing, composing and appraisal. In an effective lesson in Year 6, pupils appraised Brazilian music and composed rhythms to accompany it as they sang. They have begun to appreciate the importance of notation.

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MUSIC

146. Pupils’ behaviour is very good in lessons although lapses do occur when the pace slows and when management of pupils is less secure. In the best lessons, pupils listen carefully and appreciatively to other’s contributions and are eager to ask and answer questions. Teachers are careful to celebrate good achievement and this raises confidence and self- esteem considerably.

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MUSIC

147. The quality of teaching is good overall. Currently, there is a temporary co-ordinator who is keen to maintain the standards set by the previous post holder. There is a need to develop the monitoring of teaching and learning in music and for the inclusion of music to enhance other subjects. Although pupils are involved in composition, their skills of notation are not sufficiently developed. The contribution of specialist teaching enhances the music curriculum and there are plans to develop this and involve more pupils in learning to play instruments. During a brass instrumental lesson, pupils made great progress in their learning because the teacher had excellent knowledge of the subject, provided challenging work and inspired the pupils to do well. Pupils’ cultural development is supported well by the use of a The Rosary Catholic Primary School - 53 wide range of percussion instruments and music from other countries. Pupils’ cultural

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MUSIC

development is well supported by visitors to the school. Groups of Irish and Asian dancers and an African band raised pupils’ awareness of a range of music and the significance to different cultures. Resources are good and are well used throughout the school.

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PHYSICAL EDUCATION

148. Standards in physical education at both the end of Year 2 and the end of Year 6 in gymnastics, games and swimming meet national expectations. These standards are similar to those noted in the previous report. Due to timetabling factors, no dance or athletics lessons were observed during the inspection. All the sections of physical education identified in the national curriculum are provided for, but the time allocated to teaching the subject is well below recommended times in Key Stage 2. By the end of Year 6, most pupils meet the national expectation of being able to swim 25 metres unaided.

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PHYSICAL EDUCATION

149. Children make satisfactory progress in both key stages, and pupils with special educational needs, make good progress in Key Stage 1. In some classes in Key Stage 2, progress is, at times, restricted by the time lost organising the pupils and by the time they actually spend practicing a skill. Learning support staff are effectively used to support children.

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PHYSICAL EDUCATION

150. Pupils’ attitudes are good. They can, for example, explain the importance of warming up and cooling down. They enjoy gymnastics and games and can reach higher than expected national standards when challenged. For example, in a Year 1 lesson, over half the pupils in a lesson were able, by the end of the session, to kick a ball side-footed and show awareness of the need to stand sideways on when striking a ball with a racquet. Pupils effectively link together movements in a gymnastic sequence, with their technical skills being satisfactory.

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151. Overall, the standards of behaviour in lessons are good, directly reflecting the quality of teaching. In those lessons where there are established routines, and teaching is pacy, behaviour is very good. However, in two Key Stage 2 lessons observed, pupils were unclear of what was expected of them and as a result the behaviour of some pupils deteriorated. In paired, work the pupils co-operate happily, with more-able pupils supportive of less-able partners, often encouraging them and offering advice.

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152. The quality of teaching is satisfactory overall. However, there is a wide variation in quality of teaching throughout the school, the better teaching being in Key Stage 1. Of the six lessons observed, one was very good, four were satisfactory and the sixth lesson was unsatisfactory. Standards in teaching in Key Stage 2 are not as high as they were in the last inspection. In a very good games lesson, the teacher, supported by an effective learning support staff, ensured the pupils made very good progress by modifying the tasks to each child’s ability and she used pupils’ performances well to demonstrate good practice. Her enthusiasm for the subject motivated the children. In the unsatisfactory lesson, routines were not established, resulting in lost curriculum time and very few teaching points were given to help improve pupils’ skills while they were practicing. Consideration needs to be given to the

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suitability of the space for the activity undertaken; on two occasions, in Key Stage 2, tennis skills were practised in the confines of the hall when larger outside hard surfaces were available. All teachers are suitably attired and they ensure that pupils are fully warmed up at the start of the lesson and cooled down at the end. The Rosary Catholic Primary School - 54 153. The planned curriculum is satisfactory, but in Key Stage 2 the time allocated is only just half the recommended time and this limits the opportunities for pupils to develop their skills. Outside visitors demonstrate dance from differing cultures, but few opportunities are taken to enable the pupils to experience such activities at first hand. The physical education programme is well supported by a wide range of extra-curricular activities, such as basketball, football for boys and girls, volleyball, and netball. Currently, the school has had successes in

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netball and football in tournaments and the school is to be congratulated on the role such extra-curricular activities play in enriching the physical education programme. The extra- curricular activities play an important part in raising the skills of the many pupils who join the clubs.

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154. The subject is satisfactorily managed by an enthusiastic co-ordinator. She has monitored some lessons and put in place procedures to assess pupils’ standards, but the knowledge gained is not yet used systematically to improve the quality of teaching and learning throughout the school. She has identified gymnastics and dance as areas for development and has organised relevant training. She has upgraded the quality and storage of resources and broadened the range of extra-curricular activities and inter-school events. Resources to teach physical education are satisfactory, with outdoor hard playing surfaces being good. The school uses an off-site field and a local swimming pool. A grant has been awarded to upgrade the large apparatus in the hall.

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