Vigo Village School

VIGO VILLAGE SCHOOL

Full inspection carried out under section 10 of the School Inspections Act 1996 Vigo Village School – Page 2 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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VIGO VILLAGE 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. Vigo Village School – Page 3

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

School address: Erskine Road Vigo Village Meopham Gravesend Postcode: DA13 0RL

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Date of previous inspection: 11 June 2001 Vigo Village School – Page 4

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Subject responsibilities Aspect responsibilities

29262 Mr N Hardy Registered inspector Mathematics Information and communication technology Physical education What sort of school is it? The school’s results and achievements How well are pupils taught? How well is the school led and managed? What should the school do to improve further? 19320 Mrs B Attaway Lay inspector Pupils’ attitudes, behaviour and personal development How well does the school care for its pupils? How well does the school work with parents? 19774 Mrs M Docherty Team inspector English English as an additional language Art and design History Citizenship

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Subject responsibilities Aspect responsibilities

30000 Mr J Tresadern Team inspector Science Design and technology Geography Education inclusion and racial equality Special educational needs 23453 Mrs C Cressey Team Inspector Foundation Stage Music Religious education How good are the curricular and other opportunities offered to pupils?

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Subject responsibilities Aspect responsibilities

PBM Inspection Services Ltd PO Box 524 Cheadle Staffordshire ST 10 4RN

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Subject responsibilities Aspect responsibilities

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:

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Subject responsibilities Aspect responsibilities

The Complaints Manager Inspection Quality Division

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Subject responsibilities Aspect responsibilities

Alexandra House 33 Kingsway London WC2B 6SE Vigo Village School – Page 5

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PART A: SUMMARY OF THE REPORT 6

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

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HOW HIGH ARE STANDARDS? 10

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

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Vigo Village School is of similar size to many other primary schools with 215 pupils attending on a full time basis. It serves the village of Vigo and the rural community that surrounds it. Almost all pupils are from a white heritage. Three pupils have English as an additional language; the main other language spoken is Bengali. A below average number of pupils are eligible for free school meals. The number of pupils known to have special educational needs is below average overall but some year groups have relatively very large numbers of pupils with special educational needs compared others. The number of pupils with statements of special educational needs is above that seen in many other schools. The social and economic circumstances of pupils are wide-ranging but overall are above average. Attainment when children first enter the reception class is typical for their age.

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HOW GOOD THE SCHOOL IS

This is an improving school. Behaviour is good. Pupils have positive attitudes to learning and work hard. Standards attained by pupils in Year 6 are now broadly average in English. They remain below average in mathematics and science because past weaknesses in the curriculum left gaps in pupils’ knowledge. These shortcomings are being successfully remedied. Standards achieved by younger pupils are showing clear signs of improvement. The quality of teaching has improved since the last inspection and it is particularly good in the reception class, in infant classes and for older junior pupils. The leadership of the school is now good and the headteacher, staff and governors have contributed positively to the development of the school since the appointment of the new headteacher in September 2002. Currently the school provides satisfactory value for money.

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What the school does well

• The quality of teaching and learning in the reception class, in the infants and for older junior pupils is good. • The attitudes of pupils towards learning and their behaviour are good and the relationships they form with one another are very good. • The positive leadership qualities of the headteacher are enabling the school to make good progress in improving the quality of education provided. • The improvement made to the assessment systems and monitoring of the educational curriculum has enabled the school to identify gaps in pupils’ knowledge, helping to raise the standards achieved. • The identification of the priorities for future development of the school and the vigour with which these are being addressed.

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What could be improved

• The standards in mathematics and science, initially to the national average level then to that seen in other schools taking their pupils from similar social backgrounds. • The standard of pupils’ knowledge, understanding and experience in information and communication technology. • The consistency in the quality of teaching to that of the best across all classes. 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 last inspected in June 2001. Since that time, the school has made improvement in many areas of the curriculum and in the running and organisation of the school and improvement overall is satisfactory. Appropriate amounts of time are now provided for each subject in the curriculum and this provision is carefully monitored by the headteacher. Test results are now rigorously analysed enabling the school to focus on specific areas for improvement such as the content of pupils’ writing, handwriting, spelling and how well boys are performing in lessons. Systems to assess and record individual pupil’s attainment and progress have been established. The interruptions to lessons caused by assemblies and musical tuition have been eliminated. Systems to check what pupils know and can do have been developed by improving marking and by staff regularly checking the quality of pupils’ work. The school recognises and accepts that there is a greater need to check on

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HOW THE SCHOOL HAS IMPROVED SINCE ITS LAST INSPECTION

the quality and consistency of teaching and this appears in their school improvement plan. The quality of teachers’ planning is regularly checked by the headteacher and some subject co-ordinators. This enables them Vigo Village School – Page 7 to check if an appropriate curriculum is being provided for pupils of differing abilities. Targets for improvement are now set for pupils in some subjects such as English and mathematics to encourage an improvement in standards. Subject co-ordinators have been given greater roles and responsibilities and now produce plans for the development of their subjects. Progress against these plans is measured by the headteacher. Although the provision of an outdoor area for reception age children has not yet been fully achieved, considerable progress has been made.

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STANDARDS

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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Key

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

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Key

The table shows that standards in English and mathematics were at average levels when compared with pupils in all schools nationally in 2002. Standards in science were below average. When measured against pupils in schools taking their pupils from similar social backgrounds, results were below average in English and well below average in mathematics and science. The new leadership of the school is making a determined effort to raise these standards but the improvements in the curriculum and in teaching made since September 2002 are not yet showing in the test results. Indeed, results for pupils in the current Year 6 are unlikely to rise in the current round of tests because of the well above average number of pupils with special educational needs. While pupils made satisfactory progress in English in the juniors when compared to the standards they achieved at the end of the infants, progress in mathematics was below expected levels and well below in science. Results over the last five

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Key

years show standards rising at a rate slower than seen nationally.

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Key

Results in the infants in 2002 were above average in reading with an above average number of pupils achieving the more difficult Level 3. Standards were at average levels in writing and mathematics. When compared with pupils attending similar schools, infant pupils achieved satisfactorily in reading but well below average in writing and below average in mathematics.

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Key

Pupils with special educational need achieve satisfactorily when they are supported in lessons. Where support is not available the rate of progress slows. The targets for improving these pupils learning are outlined in their individual education plans and are well matched to pupils’ needs. Pupils who have English as an additional language make satisfactory progress and are supported from within the schools own resources.

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Aspect Comment

Attitudes to the school Good. Almost all pupils enjoy coming to school, like their teachers and work hard in lessons. Behaviour, in and out of classrooms Good. Pupils are polite and thoughtful towards others, listen carefully to what they are asked to do and play well together at break times. Bullying is not an issue. Personal development and relationships Good. When given the opportunity pupils respond well to responsibility. Relationships between pupils and with adults are very good. Vigo Village School – Page 8 Attendance Satisfactory. Attendance is at similar levels to those seen in other schools.

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Aspect Comment

Relationships between pupils and between pupils and adults are very positive and make a strong contribution to the ethos of the school. Despite attendance only being at satisfactory levels, punctuality is good and helps learning get off to a prompt start.

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Teaching of pupils in: Reception Years 1 – 2 Years 3 – 6

Quality of teaching Very good Good Satisfactory 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 of pupils in: Reception Years 1 – 2 Years 3 – 6

The amount of satisfactory teaching is similar to that seen in most schools but, overall, there is less teaching that is good or better than usually found. Most of the good or better teaching occurs in the reception year, Years 1, 2, 5 and 6. The quality of teaching has improved since the last inspection with more lessons seen that were judged to be good, very good or occasionally excellent. The National Literacy and Numeracy Strategies have been introduced appropriately and teachers have the necessary knowledge and training to teach these subjects appropriately although there are occasions when pupils are not provided with work that provides an appropriate challenge. There is some inconsistency in the quality of teaching and this results in standards not being as high as they could be by the end of Year 6. The teaching in the reception class is of a consistently very good quality and helps children make a good start to their education. The majority of the teaching in the infants is good and

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Teaching of pupils in: Reception Years 1 – 2 Years 3 – 6

good progress is now being made, despite the staffing difficulties experienced earlier in the year. Progress slows a little in Years 3 and 4 because there is often too little challenge for pupils of higher ability and the pace of learning slackens. The quality of teaching improves again in Years 5 and 6 with pupils in these age groups making good gains. The teaching satisfactorily meets the need of pupils with special educational needs and they learn appropriately.

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Aspect Comment

The quality and range of the curriculum. Good. The quality of the curriculum has improved since the last inspection. Attention has been paid to the balance and relevance of what pupils learn and a good range of visits and visitors enriches the curriculum. Provision for pupils with special educational needs. Good. The support staff working with pupils with learning difficulties, are hard working and dedicated to improving the education of these pupils. Provision for pupils with English as an additional language. Satisfactory. The school supports the small number of pupils who have English as an additional language appropriately in lessons and this enables them to join in all activities. Provision for pupils’ personal, including spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. Satisfactory. Provision for pupils’ moral and social development is good and is improved through the good provision for extra-curricular activities. The provision for

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Aspect Comment

spiritual and cultural development is satisfactory. More could be done by the school to widen pupils’ experience of different cultures and faiths. How well the school cares for its pupils. Satisfactory. Child protection procedures are good. Attention to health and safety issues are satisfactory. Procedures for assessing pupils’ progress are satisfactory in English, mathematics and science but more needs to be done in other subjects.

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Aspect Comment

The schools partnership with parents is good. Parents receive regular letters about school events and information on the curriculum. Parents volunteer regularly to help in the school. There are a good range of extra-curricular activities provided by the school and visit and visitors regularly enrich the curriculum. Vigo Village School – Page 9

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Aspect Comment

Leadership and management by the headteacher and other key staff Good. The quality of the leadership and management of the school has been improved, good progress has been made on all the issues raised in the last inspection report and the main issues of raising academic standards and the quality of teaching are being vigorously tackled. How well the governors fulfil their responsibilities Good. Governors are much more aware of their roles and responsibilities and are taking an increasingly active role in the management of the school. The school’s evaluation of its performance Good. This has improved considerably and the school now carries out a rigorous analysis of information and through this has identified the necessary areas for improvement in pupils’ learning. The strategic use of resources Good. The headteacher and governors have worked hard to improve its efficiency since the last inspection and has now got a much closer understanding of its

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Aspect Comment

budgetary position. Increased improvement grants have been acquired to improve the quality of learning and the fabric of the building.

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Aspect Comment

The number and qualifications of teaching and support staff are good. Recent appointments have increased the subject strengths on the staff and additional training has improved staff skills and knowledge. The accommodation is good and further improvements such as an area for the outdoor education of the reception pupils and a computer suite are well advanced. The level of learning resources is currently satisfactory. Both the headteacher and governors have a good understanding of best value and regularly examine ways to make the school more efficient.

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What pleases parents most What parents would like to see improved

• That their children like attending school, that they are making good progress and that behaviour is good. • Parents believe that teaching is of good quality and the children are expected to work hard. • Almost all parents believe the school is well led and managed. • A minority of parents believe that pupils do not receive the correct amount of homework. • More than a third of parents feel that they are not well informed about the progress their child is making and a quarter believe that the school does not work closely with them. • A small minority of parents think that there are insufficient extra-curricular activities outside lessons.

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What pleases parents most What parents would like to see improved

The inspection team agrees with parents that the setting of homework could be more consistent. Parents interviewed at the time of the inspection are happy with the levels of information and praise the quality of pupils’ reports. The school provides a good range of extra-curricular activities. Vigo Village School – Page 10

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

1. Evidence from the inspection shows that standards for eleven-year-olds are at satisfactory levels in English. Standards in writing are at average levels. Standards in mathematics are currently below average level because pupils have too many gaps in their mathematical knowledge that, until recently, have not been sufficiently recognised or remedied. This has resulted in too few pupils achieving the more difficult Level 5 and too many pupils achieving below the average Level 3. Standards in science for pupils currently in Year 6 are well below average, again because of gaps in their knowledge and insufficient attention being paid to carrying out scientific investigations. These judgements are more positive than first appears because of the high proportion of pupils who have special educational needs in the cohort and the disrupted teaching they have experienced due to high staff turnover. Since the previous inspection,

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

standards in English have improved, have remained at similar levels to those previously seen in mathematics but have fallen in science. Current standards for seven-year-olds are average in reading, writing, mathematics and science.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

2. In 2002, the pupils in Year 6 achieved standards that were at average levels in English and mathematics when measured against all schools, but below average levels in science. When compared to schools taking their pupils from similar social areas, standards in English were below average and those in mathematics and science were well below those seen in other similar schools. When progress was measured against what these same pupils achieved at the end of the infants their progress was satisfactory in English, below average in mathematics and well below that expected in science. An average number of pupils achieved the more difficult Level 5 in English but the number reaching this level in mathematics was below average and well below average in science. Although the girls in the school achieve higher results in the English tests than do the boys there is no such clear trend in mathematics and science. Taken over the last five years, the improvements in results achieved by the school have been

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

at a rate less rapid than those seen in most schools.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

3. In 2002, the seven-year-old pupils achieved results that were above average in reading and at average levels in writing and mathematics when measured against all schools. When judged against similar schools results were at average levels in reading, well below average in writing and below average in mathematics. A well above average proportion of pupils achieved the more difficult Level 3 in reading, illustrating good levels of challenge and progress in this area. However, a higher than average proportion of pupils failed to achieve the expected Level 2 in reading. Results in reading have risen at rates more rapid than those seen in many other schools since 1999. Similar numbers of pupils achieved Level 3 in writing when compared to other schools with more than the expected percentage reaching Level 3 in mathematics. Over the last five years results in writing fell sharply between 1998 and 2000 before climbing

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

again to reach average levels. Results in mathematics were at average and sometimes above average levels until 2000 before falling sharply in 2001, only to rise again in 2002 to levels seen in many other schools. Despite the disruption to their education over their time in the school, and especially over the last nine months, by the end of Year 2 most pupils achieve at the expected level in all subjects except geography, where standards are below those expected.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

4. Pupils with special educational needs make satisfactory progress when measured against their prior attainment. Most of these pupils experience difficulties with literacy and numeracy and are one or more years behind in their development. In lessons where they receive support from the teaching assistants, their progress often matches that of their peers, but falls when this support is not available. Their personal learning targets, that are well considered and appropriate for their needs, are set out clearly in their individual education plans. These are regularly reviewed. The small number of pupils identified as having English as an additional language are well catered for from within the schools own resources and they are making satisfactory progress overall.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

5. When children first enter the school their attainment is similar to levels expected for their age. This does, however, vary from one year to the next. They make good progress in all the required areas of learning with Vigo Village School – Page 11 almost all children reaching their early learning goals before they leave the reception class. This is the result of consistently good teaching and planning which ensures that all children receive the challenge they need.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

6. The targets set for how well pupils will achieve in English and mathematics at age eleven will, in this school year, provide a considerable challenge for staff and pupils. Improved systems of assessing pupils’ progress are being put in place. These will ensure that targets are sufficiently challenging and focused clearly on sustaining momentum to pupils’ learning. Governors are appropriately involved in the setting of these targets.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

7. Evidence from the inspection shows that standards in many other subjects in the curriculum are similar to those at the time of the previous inspection. Standards achieved by pupils in Year 6 in history, religious education and in design and technology are at the expected level and at levels seen previously. Standards in geography have improved and are now at satisfactory levels although standards in the infants are still below expected levels because of the disrupted nature of their teaching over the last nine months. In the last inspection report no judgements were made on standards in music, physical education and art and design. Standards are now above average in music, at average levels in art and design but again, no judgement can again be made on physical education because of the limited opportunities to see pupil performance during the inspection. Standards in information and communication technology have fallen

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

and are now below the levels expected today. This is largely due to the school not keeping up with the rate of improvement seen in other schools. The current headteacher has well developed plans for the establishment of a computer suite and the development of pupils’ skills to help in raising standards.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

8. Current standards of speaking and listening skills of pupils in Year 2 and Year 6 are good. Many pupils are confident and articulate speakers and, when given the opportunity, are able to provide detailed answers and provide reasoned arguments when discussing issues. In many classes this is due to the challenging questioning provided by teachers, which requires the pupils to think hard before answering. There are, however, some inconsistencies in the quality of questioning, especially for those pupils in lower junior classes. Standards in reading are good overall and reflect the above average standards previously seen in recent test results. In Year 2, pupils have well-developed skills that enables them to work out unfamiliar words. They re-tell stories with good attention to the main parts and include suitable detail. By Year 6 many pupils read accurately and with good expression. Many are becoming skilled at reading “between

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

the lines” of what the author intended. They are able to discuss the writing of different favourite authors giving reasons why, for example, the vivid detail of the description or the way the story keeps the reader interested and engaged. Standards of writing in both Year 2 and Year 6 are currently satisfactory. In their writing, many of the younger and more able pupils are producing interesting and well-punctuated sentences. They pay suitable attention to including exciting vocabulary which increases the reader’s interest. The quality of spelling is not as good as it should be with many regularly spelt words often incorrectly spelt. This is unsatisfactory and more attention needs to be paid to this area. By Year 6, pupils show a satisfactory understanding of the differing styles of writing, for example, when writing up a science investigation or providing an account of a visit. A suitable variety of writing tasks is set for pupils including

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

comprehension, grammar, expressing opinions and story telling. Average and more able pupils spell accurately although there are still common inaccuracies in the work of less able pupils. Overall, progress is satisfactory. Although the quality of presentation of pupils’ work is satisfactory amongst older pupils improvements need to be made to that of younger junior pupils.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

9. Standards of work in mathematics are currently at expected levels in the infants but below average by the end of the juniors, a judgement similar to that made at the time of the last inspection. By the end of the infants, most pupils have a satisfactory understanding of number to 100 and are able to carry out simple calculations using money. They use their understanding of mathematics to solve mathematical problems and this is helped by their increasingly well developed mathematical vocabulary. They understand and use accurately terms such as longer, shorter, more and less than. Many pupils in Year 2 show an increasingly good understanding of fractions and are beginning to use half and quarter confidently. More able pupils in Years 5 and 6 can explain the methods they use to solve problems, describing these using accurate vocabulary. The progress made by junior age pupils has not always been sufficient and this has resulted in

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

standards that are lower than they should be. Most pupils have gaps in their mathematical knowledge and understanding because these have not been identified in the past. In some classes, more able pupils have not progressed sufficiently quickly because they have been kept on the mathematics curriculum for that Vigo Village School – Page 12 year group rather than being allowed to progress at the faster rate that their ability would allow. This is unsatisfactory. The subject is under the leadership of a new co-ordinator who is taking vigorous steps to address and eliminate this. The skills learned in mathematics are used satisfactorily in other subjects. Measuring skills are used in design and technology, co-ordinates in geography and the data collected on, for example, favourite foods and hair colour is used to create graphs using information and communication technology.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

10. In science, standards of current work are satisfactory in the infants and well below average in the juniors. The pupils in Year 2 enthusiastically demonstrate their growing knowledge of scientific investigation when they discussed the parts of a plant that help it to grow. Older pupils also complete a limited number of scientific investigations but a scrutiny of their work reveals that much of their work is limited to note taking. This is recognised by the new subject co-ordinator and changes are being made.

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

11. Pupils’ attitudes to school are good, and are at similar levels to those at the time of the last inspection. Most pupils listen attentively to teachers and to each other. They persevere when given difficult tasks, such as in a Year 5 information, communication and technology lesson, where pupils listened carefully to instructions. Pupils of differing abilities were proud of their achievement when they completed a program instructing the computer to draw a series of shapes. This successfully raised their self-esteem. A wide variety of extra-curricular activities are offered for most ages and pupils participate with enthusiasm. Most parents consider their children enjoy school.

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

12. Behaviour in class and in the playground is now good and almost all parents agree; at the last inspection it was satisfactory. The minor issue of inconsistency of pupil management raised at the previous inspection has been addressed well. Behaviour strategies and sanctions are now included in the behaviour policy and this gives uniformity throughout the school. The recently introduced additional playground games have improved behaviour at lunchtimes. Lunchtime assistants are interacting well with pupils and this enables pupils’ interest in activities to be maintained. Bullying is rare and instances are dealt with promptly and effectively. In the reporting period, one pupil has been excluded on two occasions; this pupil has now left the school.

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

13. Relationships between pupils and teachers are very good, compared to satisfactory at the last inspection. Pupils work and play together well, listen to each other’s views, share and discuss ideas as in a personal, social and health education lesson when discussing how people can be honoured. Younger pupils are successfully taught to take turns and demonstrated their understanding by raising hands to answer questions. Pupils are welcoming and want to share their experiences of school life with visitors; they willingly stand aside for adults. A good range of award systems celebrate pupils’ successes in class and whole school assemblies, rewarding success in all areas of school life. These contribute well to raising behavioural standards and pupils’ self esteem. All pupils receive at least one award each year and this is good practice.

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

14. Personal development is good throughout the school, with some very good instances of initiative by older pupils. They collect lunch orders, ensure the house point book is up-to-date and set up the overhead projector prior to assembly. Two pupils tidied the lunch boxes on a trolley because they saw them as unsafe. All Year 6 pupils have delegated responsibilities. Older pupils support younger ones through the buddy system and this in turn enables infant pupils to develop confidence, for example in ensuring a hurt friend receives adult help. A residential visit for older pupils contributes well to pupils’ personal development, for example allowing the opportunity to consider the impact of tourism on the local environment.

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

15. Attendance is satisfactory, in line with national averages and with other local schools. At the last inspection attendance was reported as being good. An increase in the number of children taken out of school for holidays in term time has reduced attendance levels. Levels of unauthorised attendance are the same as the national average.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

Vigo Village School – Page 13 16. The teaching is satisfactory overall but with strengths in the reception class, the infants and in classes containing older juniors. The quality of teaching has improved since the previous inspection with more teaching that is good or better and no unsatisfactory teaching seen. There are clear indications that the quality of teaching has improved over the last year. An examination of pupils’ work dating from September 2002 shows that it often lacked a suitable level of challenge, especially for more able pupils. The amount of work completed was limited, presentation of work showed a lack of care and corrections were not always completed. Good progress has been made in all these areas although the school recognises that further improvements need to be made. Recent key appointments, clearer guidance for teachers, higher levels of expectation of what pupils can achieve in most classes and more stable staffing arrangements

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

have all helped in achieving this improvement.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

17. The teaching of children in the reception class is very good and enables them to make good progress. Attainment when pupils first enter the school is similar to that expected for children of this age. Skilful teaching and the development of good relationships help children settle into the school quickly and ensures that they behave well, co-operating well with each other. The teacher and support staff organise a wide range of challenging activities that interest and absorb children. Planning is of very good quality and covers all the nationally agreed areas of learning, ensuring that all children have the opportunity to learn what is required by the end of the reception year. Children’s independence is developed well through providing a choice of activities for them to increase their experiences. The development of physical skills has, until recently, been more restricted but additional resources have been purchased and future

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

alterations to the school building should enhance provision further. Assessments of children’s work and how they develop socially are rigorously kept and used very well to plan what pupils should learn next. Children with special educational needs are identified at an early stage and supported well to enable them to make good progress. Those children with English as an additional language are provided with sensitive support to enable them to acquire appropriate language skills and progress well.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

18. The teaching of pupils in the infant classes during the lessons seen in the inspection was good overall. A small number of lessons were given grades that indicate very good and, on one occasion, excellent teaching. The quality of current planning is good and sets out clearly what pupils are to learn, building carefully on what they already know. Pupils’ work in their books does not, however, show this because previously there was a heavy reliance on worksheets and, especially in Year 2, pupils being taught by a series of temporary teachers between September and April. This resulted in gaps in pupils’ learning. Many of these have been identified and prompt action taken to resolve the problems. There is now an experienced teacher in Year 2 and this has improved provision. Expectations of what pupils can achieve have been raised and this is helping to improve standards. Assessments of what pupils know and can do

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

are now carefully kept and used well to help with planning what pupils need to learn next.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

19. In the junior classes the quality of teaching is satisfactory overall, but with the best teaching being concentrated in the upper junior classes. In the best lessons, pupils know clearly what they are to learn and the tasks provided offer a good challenge to all abilities. What they have learned is tested at the end of lessons and helps teachers make judgements on pupil progress. In lessons seen in lower junior classes the level of challenge is not always appropriate for the needs of all pupils, for example, when the more able pupils remain on the Year 3 curriculum rather than be allowed to progress to more difficult work. This is unsatisfactory. The school, through its monitoring procedures, has identified this for action. While questioning techniques are good in the best lessons, where teaching is only satisfactory, additional rigour is required to test if pupils know what they have learned.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

20. Teaching of pupils with special educational needs is good. When available, support assistants ensure that pupils know very clearly what they have to do in lessons. Where appropriate, pupils are withdrawn from lessons and receive additional attention from well-briefed and skilled staff. All pupils are integrated into most lessons, although, where additional, small group help is required, this is provided by skilled and experienced support staff. The small number of pupils who have English as an additional language receive good support and are well integrated into school life. Support staff are used very well in most instances, working with groups of pupils, both in lessons and when they are withdrawn, often recording the progress pupils make and the answers they give. For many pupils, progress slows when support is withdrawn. Vigo Village School – Page 14 21. The main strength of much of the teaching is in the planning of lessons. This has been improved over the

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

last months so that there is now a greater focus on what should be learned and when this is appropriate. Assessment of what pupils know and can do, an area of concern in the last inspection report, has also been improved, especially in English, mathematics, and science, although the school accepts that there is need for further development in other areas of the curriculum. This has enabled the school to identify gaps in pupils’ knowledge and to take action to rectify deficiencies. The management of pupils has also improved since the last inspection and is now consistently good across classes. Lessons move with a good pace in most instances and attention is paid to the amount of time to be spent on the different sections of the lesson. The headteacher has taken positive action to ensure that the time spent on all areas of the curriculum is appropriate. The marking of pupils’ work has been reviewed, work is regularly

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

marked in most classes, useful targets for what pupils must improve next are set and comments designed to improve the quality of work are written into pupils’ books. The setting of homework is satisfactory but could be improved by formalising arrangements and improving regularity.

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

22. Since the previous inspection the curriculum has improved and is now good. The school now has a broad and balanced curriculum, which makes learning interesting. The school effectively meets the needs of its pupils through the provision of a good range of quality learning opportunities. All statutory requirements are met and all staff are now competent in implementing the literacy and numeracy strategies. The use of specialist teachers for music and coaches for games enrich pupils learning.

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

23. A well-planned curriculum ensures that sufficient time is now available for all subjects. Policies and schemes of work are in place and these ensure that skills, knowledge and understanding are effectively built on as pupils progress though the school. However, there is still a lack of sufficient opportunities to develop the investigative aspect of science.

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

24. The careful planning of the teaching and learning and the thoughtful way pupils are grouped for different activities and subjects ensures that work is well matched to their ages and attainment. Such arrangements are very carefully monitored and pupils are moved between groups and sets to best meet their needs.

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

25. The curriculum provided for children in the Foundation Stage is now very good. Careful planning provides the children with a wide range of challenging and focused, practical first hand experiences to promote the nationally agreed early learning goals.

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

26. Arrangements for pupils’ personal, social and health education have improved and are now good. They are underpinned by an effective scheme of work and the school’s values and beliefs. There are agreed policies for sex and drugs education in place and the school has a clear commitment to providing pupils with age- related knowledge and understanding.

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

27. The school has a very clear commitment to equality of opportunity and this is very apparent in the way all pupils, from the youngest to the oldest, are fully included in the teaching and learning. This has a positive effect on the self-esteem of all pupils and impacts on the progress they all make. The curriculum prepares pupils well for the next stage of their education.

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

28. The provision for pupils with special educational needs is good. They experience a curriculum that is the same as other pupils and are included well in the work of the school, enabling pupils to be supported across a range of curriculum subjects, but with emphasis being given to literacy and numeracy. During lessons, work is generally well matched to the needs of pupils on the different stages of the Code of Practice. Where pupils are withdrawn from classes, work is carefully linked to what the rest of the class is learning. When pupils are withdrawn for special sessions that do not relate to the curriculum, for example when receiving support for behavioural, emotional or social difficulties, care is taken to avoid the same subjects being involved each time.

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

29. The school involves the community well, providing a good range of extra-curricular and sporting activities to enrich the statutory curriculum and enhance personal and social skills. Clubs include French, country Vigo Village School – Page 15 dancing, football, netball, rugby, art, drama, choir and recorders and all are available at lunchtimes or after school to ensure all pupils have a chance to take part. The use of visitors and visits promotes pupils’ interest and extends their independence, knowledge and understanding. A visit to a ballet at Covent Garden greatly enriched pupils’ creative development and older pupils look forward with great anticipation to their residential visit to the Isle of Wight. Links with local businesses and the Parish Council have resulted in monies becoming available for resurfacing the playground and the acquisition of a new television. Pupils develop a good awareness of their responsibilities in belonging to a community as they

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

take part in local festivals and join in community groups such as the orchestra and choir. Pupils also work with the local Scout group to clear a site to provide better sports facilities for the school and the scout group.

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

30. The school has good links with other schools and groups. Children who attend the village pre-school group are invited to visit before they begin formal school in the reception class. This, along with a staggered intake, eases their transfer to main school and helps them settle well. Before pupils transfer to the secondary school, information on pupils’ progress is exchanged and pupils are able to enjoy time at their new school to familiarise themselves with routines and staff to ensure a happy and secure transfer. Local schools share training initiatives to improve skills and competencies in order to improve the quality of teaching and learning.

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

31. The school makes satisfactory provision for the pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development, which is a similar picture to the last inspection. The school improvement plan identifies multi-cultural education as a priority area for development, focusing on helping pupils become well informed citizens of modern Britain.

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

32. There is satisfactory provision for pupils’ spiritual development across the curriculum. There are suitable opportunities for pupils to reflect on ideas within the school assemblies. For example, in the week of inspection, pupils were encouraged to reflect on how we become stronger by working together for a common purpose. Pupils are often encouraged to see the beauty of God’s creation in the lovely school garden, and Year 3, for example, on their environmental walk were struck by the natural beauty of flowers and plants. In Year 2 pupils examined and touched the radiating ridges of a shell as they looked for patterns and texture. Religious education lessons make a positive contribution to spiritual development, and children use discussion to talk about important issues, for example why their friends are special. In a Year 6 history project on the period after World War II, pupils considered the development of the feeling of

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

freedom, how this was expressed in fashion and the huge spread of interest in alternative religions and spiritual renewal.

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

33. There is good provision for pupils’ moral development. Pupils understand the difference between right and wrong and why there is a need for rules. They explain why “golden time” is enjoyed by those pupils who have earned it by good behaviour and why other children forfeit it. Codes of conduct and school rules are displayed around the classrooms, and achievement in work and overall behaviour is rewarded by house points. Teachers use opportunities across the curriculum to make pupils aware of moral issues. For example, in an English lesson, pupils prepare arguments for and against capital punishment and discuss the sanctity of life. In history, pupils considered the effects of immigration and the development and impact of racist ideas on British society. Such work prepares them to be informed citizens of multicultural Britain.

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

34. Provision for pupils’ social development is good. There are many opportunities in lessons for pupils to work collaboratively or to talk together before feeding back ideas to the class. In such activities they take turns well and build on each other’s ideas, giving clear evidence that they are considering others’ points of view. There are opportunities for pupils to act as house captains and monitors, and they understand their roles and responsibilities well. Pupils demonstrate high levels of courtesy around the school and are able to talk with confidence to adults in the dining room. Pupils look after each other and behave well, even when not directly supervised. They participate in clubs and school visits with confidence and appropriate behaviour. Displays around the school focus on work completed by groups, for example the seaside display at the school entrance and the collection of papier-mâché masks produced by the art club. An excellent

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

opportunity for pupils to demonstrate their interest in supporting each other’s learning was seen in Year 4 where the exhibition of artefacts, souvenirs and precious objects to supplement the school’s resources, enriched the class’s learning about the ancient civilisation of Egypt. One pupil, fascinated by the work, Vigo Village School – Page 16 brought in a bandaged figure of a doll in its own shoe-box sarcophagus to demonstrate their understanding of the mummification process.

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

35. Provision for pupils’ cultural development is satisfactory overall. The school improvement plan identifies the need to address cultural issues across different subjects of the curriculum. The school works hard to ensure that opportunities are provided for children to talk about events and the people who have had an impact on modern society, for example the work of Wilberforce against slavery and Florence Nightingale on hospital care. In history they visit the places which help them understand the study of the past, and in art have had opportunities to look at the designs of African masks. One pupil linked this to the masks of Morris dancers who had performed recently in the village. Pupils understand that the mask designs in different cultures and at different times have specific meaning linked to, for example, harvest and religious belief. Pupils have opportunities to study the music and art of Europe, but have insufficient opportunity to

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

consider the musical and artistic traditions from across the world. The school has addressed this through the invitation to Caribbean and Ghanaian musicians to perform and by focusing on multicultural books during a recent book week. The school recognise that they can do more to draw on the diverse cultural traditions represented in modern British society. Vigo Village School – Page 17

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

36. The school’s provision for pupils’ welfare is good overall and this has been maintained since the last inspection. Staff, both teaching and non-teaching, know individual pupils very well and this makes an important contribution to the high standard of teacher and pupil relationships and to pupils’ enjoyment of school. The school is cared for well and all staff and governors ensure pupils work in a safe environment. The school is in the early stages of promoting the importance of healthy eating and a few pupils were observed eating fruit at break times.

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

37. There are good child protection procedures in place that meet locally agreed procedures. Staff are fully aware of who to go to and how to respond to any disclosure. First aid training is good and a refresher course has been arranged. Good practice is followed by the daily recording of medicines administered in school. The school has taken part in the Kent Safety in Action programme and pupils have benefited from learning about possible dangers such as building sites, water and strangers.

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

38. There are good induction procedures for all pupils who join the school. Year 6 pupils transfer to a large number of different secondary schools, but all benefit from good induction procedures.

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

39. Procedures for monitoring pupil behaviour are good and this is reflected in the improvement in the standards seen. Staff talk about bullying regularly and openly. This contributes well to pupils’ understanding of handling such situations.

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

40. The monitoring of pupils’ personal development is good and undertaken through observations and individual targets. Monitoring has highlighted that pupils presently have no corporate voice and this has led to the imminent setting up of a school council. This will enable pupils to express their ideas on how the school should develop; for example they are to be asked to contribute to the behaviour policy.

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

41. The monitoring of attendance is satisfactory, but not rigorous enough and relies on visual checking. The school is trying to reduce the current level of unauthorised absence. Individual class teachers are responsible for following up unauthorised absences and letters to parents are prepared individually. The time of teachers, administrative staff and parents would be used more effectively if a standard letter were used with space for parents’ comments. Parents are reminded regularly that pupils’ education is disadvantaged by holidays taken in term time. When pupils are absent without reason, the systems used for checking with parents or guardians that the pupils are safely at home are not always on the first morning of absence or within a few minutes of the attendance register being taken.

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

42. Procedures for assessing pupils’ attainment and progress are satisfactory. The information gained is used to track the progress of individual pupils in English, mathematics and science. Similar procedures are being introduced for other subjects but are not yet fully developed. The information is also used to set individual pupils’ targets, to identify groups of pupils who need specific support through focus groups, to help curriculum planning and to identify whole school issues such as the need to raise standards in scientific enquiry and to improve the writing of boys. From Year 1, external tests are used as part of the annual assessment of all pupils. Progress is also assessed every half term using tests produced by the school. The marking of pupils’ work is completed using guidance provided by the policy. This is mostly satisfactory but there are some inconsistencies in quality.

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

43. The school successfully supports pupils with special educational needs through well-established procedure that meet the Code of Practice. Pupils with special educational needs are identified early. They are closely monitored, with frequent evaluation of their progress, linked to targets identified on their individual education plans. These targets are precise. Teachers have clear criteria and procedures for placing pupils on the special needs list and teaching is appropriately targeted to support learning.

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

44. Parents have a satisfactory view of the school and believe positive changes are now occurring. Most parents responding to the questionnaire say that children are expected to work hard, the teaching is good and that they feel comfortable in approaching the school with any problems. Although a large majority of Vigo Village School – Page 18 parents believe that their child is making good progress, a significant minority report that they are not kept well informed about their child’s progress. Parents spoken to during the inspection were happy with the information provided, praising pupils’ annual reports. The school cannot explain why this apparent discrepancy should occur, but a recent reminder to parents explains clearly the new arrangements for access to the school and teachers and is in line with the open door policy.

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

45. Three consultation evenings are held annually, but only in the spring and summer terms do parents have the opportunity to discuss formally their child’s progress. Almost all parents attend consultation evenings and the school makes good efforts to ensure that those who do not are offered alternative arrangements or are spoken to in the playground. This is good practice.

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

46. Parents have benefited from a mathematics evening and they have expressed interest in similar occasions for English and science. The sharing of pupils’ topic work with parents in advance of the homework being set has given good support to some pupils through the opportunity to make visits with their families before the topic begins. Parents receive an informative twice-termly newsletter and they are pleased with the quality of this communication. The school’s web-site gives useful information, such as school dates until summer 2004. Parental suggestions are welcome and the proposed new forum for parents will provide a useful platform for suggestions to be heard clearly.

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

47. Pupils’ annual reports are of good quality and parents have an opportunity to discuss them with teachers. Areas for improvement are suggested, for example “to widen the variety of books read” or in Year 5 “working towards Level 4” and this gives parents a good understanding of progress made during the year. Reports are being updated to include a personal profile, recommendations for actions by parents and a homework report. This will give parents additional, useful information. Homework is monitored by the headteacher. The school acknowledges that parents of younger children would benefit from guidance on spelling and reading and that homework diaries should be used consistently well in all classes.

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

48. Parents, grandparents and members of the community give good support to the school through their help in school, especially parents of younger children. Help is not only with class activities such as reading and spelling, but also supports the extra-curricular activities such as the art club. The Parent, Teacher and Friends’ Association is very active and has enabled pupils to benefit from additional equipment such as the refurbishment of the junior playground.

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HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

49. The newly appointed headteacher is providing positive and purposeful leadership and management for the school with a very clear focus on raising academic standards and improving the quality of teaching. Clear roles and responsibilities for teachers, support staff and governors have been defined, resulting in those involved developing a good understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of the school and knowing what must be done to bring about improvements. The strengths identified in the last report have been maintained and in most cases built upon, resulting in a school where most pupils retain good attitudes towards learning. The areas for improvement raised in the last inspection report have been tackled vigorously under the new leadership and good progress has been made, especially in improving the curriculum and teaching. The school’s senior managers and governors recognise that there is still much

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HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

work to be done in many areas, for example, in the provision for reception age pupils’ outdoor education and in information and communication technology. The headteacher has managed the high teaching staff turnover very well and good appointments have been made to strengthen the levels of skill on the teaching force. Morale has been improved with staff readily accepting change and positively contributing to improvements in the school.

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HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

50. The governing body is very supportive of the school and is committed to the necessary further improvement. They understand and fulfil their statutory duties satisfactorily and have sought to improve their monitoring of areas of responsibility, for example, the health and safety of staff and pupils. Through its committee structures, the governing body are taking an increasingly active role in the management of the school, for example, working with senior staff to improve the financial management of the school and to balance its budget. Governors are increasingly provided with the information they need to be able to offer advice and guidance to the school on areas for improvement. With their confidence growing they now Vigo Village School – Page 19 take an active role in monitoring recent developments and in reviewing pupils’ performance and progress. A much clearer understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of the school is being developed through

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HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

additional training and governors now have the ability to seek out answers rather than wait to be told.

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HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

51. The monitoring of the quality of teaching is satisfactory. Although a scrutiny of the quality of pupils’ work is completed, the regularity and rigour of classroom observations is in need of review. Some observations of English and mathematics have taken place but this has not been extended sufficiently to other subjects. As part of their leadership role, co-ordinators have produced plans for the further development and raising of standards in their subject areas. This is increasing their awareness of the relative strengths and weaknesses in their subjects and what remains to be done to bring about improvements. A planned programme of additional training for teachers is in place, focusing on identified areas of professional development for teachers and support staffs. This is increasing their teaching skills. Teachers and support staff new to the school, receive appropriate help and advice from colleagues although, this too has recently

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HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

been improved. A more rigorous system of analysing the pupils’ academic performance is now in place and areas of strength and weakness in pupils learning are now more clearly identified. This has enabled the school to make improvements in several curriculum areas. The very clear focus for many of the recent changes have been to improve standards across all subjects. Although the school recognises that immediate improvement in standards in English, mathematics and science are unlikely, there are strong signs of rising standards in the infants and upper juniors. The school development plan is a good quality, carefully considered document which includes priorities to improve the quality of the curriculum through staff development, continuing to improve the quality and range of assessment and recording procedures and to develop the school environment through careful financial planning.

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HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

52. The school manages its budget well. The new headteacher identified a potential deficit budget and, together with the governing body, has taken vigorous action to ensure that the school lives within its means. Funding has been earmarked to improve resources in curriculum areas such as information and communication technology and to the fabric of the school. The school’s continued investment in skilled classroom support staff is having a positive impact on the standards achieved by pupils.

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HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

53. There is a good match between teachers’ subject skills and the needs of the curriculum. New appointments, especially the appointment of a deputy headteacher, have strengthened the overall subject expertise, and this is already having a positive impact on teaching and subject development. The quality of the accommodation is good and is well maintained. Space within the building is used well and additional grants have been sought to improve the outdoor reception area and to provide additional teaching space for information and communication technology. Outside, the playgrounds provide pleasant areas for pupils to relax and to use the wide variety of equipment the school provides to keep them occupied during breaks. Learning resources are adequate and support the delivery of the curriculum. The school is aware of the need to extend resources in some areas such as mathematics and geography. A thorough audit would

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HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

help determine levels of learning resources in the school. Vigo Village School – Page 20

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WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

54. The school has succeeded in improving standards in English and geography in the juniors since the last inspection but standards have fallen in mathematics, science and information and communication technology. These variations in standards are caused by inconsistencies in the quality of teaching, particularly in Years 3 and 4, by not identifying the gaps in pupils’ knowledge and understanding and by not sufficiently challenging the more able pupils. Although good improvements in these areas have been made since the last inspection and especially during this school year the headteacher and staff, with the support of the governing body should:

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WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

q raise standards in mathematics and science, initially to the national average level then to that seen in other schools taking their pupils from similar social backgrounds by:

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WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

o rigorously identifying those pupils who need specific help in these subjects and identifying the gaps in their knowledge and skills;

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WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

o setting short-term targets for individuals, groups and classes to remedy these shortcomings;

p.20

WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

o setting long-term targets in each year group for the proportion of pupils attaining or exceeding the expected level for their age group and reporting these regularly to the governors; (Discussed in paragraphs 1-10, 79-84 and 85-89)

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WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

q improve the standard of pupils’ knowledge, understanding and experience in information and communication technology by:

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WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

o improving the resources available for use in extending the knowledge, understanding and confidence of pupils and teachers in using computer technology;

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WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

o increasing the effectiveness and consistency with which basic skills and techniques are taught;

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WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

o regularly using pupils’ new information and communication technology skills in other subjects across the curriculum to expand their learning;

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WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

o ensuring the continuing development of teachers’ skills and knowledge in the subject;

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WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

o setting targets for what pupils should be able to do in each year group and recording progress carefully; (Discussed in paragraphs 1-10 and 110-112)

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WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

q improving the consistency in the quality of teaching across all classes by:

p.20

WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

o improving the rigour and regularity of monitoring the quality of teaching across all subjects;

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WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

o providing relevant training and support to help teachers develop professionally where necessary;

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WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

o setting targets to increase the amount of teaching that is good or better;

p.20

WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

o increasing the opportunities for pupils to develop independent learning skills;

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WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

o improving the teaching of investigative science. (Discussed in paragraphs 16-21) Vigo Village School – Page 21

p.20

Summary of the sources of evidence for the inspection

Number of discussions with staff, governors, other adults and pupils 34

p.21

Summary of teaching observed during the inspection

Excellent Very good Good Satisfactory Unsatisfactor y Poor Very Poor

p.21

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 more than two percentage points.

p.21

Information about the school’s pupils

Number of pupils on the school’s roll (FTE for part-time pupils) 215

p.21

Information about the school’s pupils

Number of full-time pupils known to be eligible for free school meals 10

p.21

Information about the school’s pupils

Number of pupils with statements of special educational needs 3

p.21

Information about the school’s pupils

Number of pupils on the school’s special educational needs register 24

p.21

Information about the school’s pupils

English as an additional language No of pupils

p.21

Information about the school’s pupils

Number of pupils with English as an additional language 3

p.21

Information about the school’s pupils

Pupil mobility in the last school year No of pupils

p.21

Information about the school’s pupils

Pupils who joined the school other than at the usual time of first admission 11

p.21

Information about the school’s pupils

Pupils who left the school other than at the usual time of leaving 20

p.21

Attendance

National comparative data 5.9 National comparative data 0.5 Vigo Village School – Page 22 Both tables give the percentage of half days (sessions) missed through absence for the latest complete reporting year. Vigo Village School – Page 23

p.21

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 21 14 35

p.23

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

National Curriculum Test/Task Results Reading Writing Mathematics

p.23

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

Boys 17 17 19 Numbers of pupils at NC level 2 and above Girls 12 12 14

p.23

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

Percentage of pupils School 83 (88) 83 (88) 94 (88) at NC level 2 or above National 84 (84) 86 (86) 90 (91)

p.23

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

Teachers’ Assessments English Mathematics Science

p.23

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

Boys 18 19 21 Numbers of pupils at NC level 2 and above Girls 11 13 13

p.23

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

Percentage of pupils School 83 (88) 91 (88) 97 (96) at NC level 2 or above National 85 (85) 89 89) 89 (89)

p.23

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

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

p.23

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 26 21 47

p.23

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

National Curriculum Test/Task Results English Mathematics Science

p.23

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

Boys 18 18 22 Numbers of pupils at NC level 4 and above Girls 20 17 20

p.23

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

Percentage of pupils School 81 (58) 74 (74) 89 (100) at NC level 4 or above National 75 (75) 73 (71) 86 (87)

p.23

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

Teachers’ Assessments English Mathematics Science

p.23

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

Boys 14 22 13 Numbers of pupils at NC level 4 and above Girls 21 18 15

p.23

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

Percentage of pupils School 74 (61) 85 (65) 60 (77) at NC level 4 or above National 73 (72) 74 (74) 82 (82)

p.23

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

Percentages in brackets refer to the year before the latest reporting year. Vigo Village School – Page 24

p.23

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

p.24

Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

White – any other White background 0 0 0

p.24

Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

Mixed – any other mixed background 0 0 0

p.24

Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

Asian or Asian British – Pakistani 0 0 0

p.24

Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

Asian or Asian British – Bangladeshi 3 0 0

p.24

Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

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

p.24

Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

Black or Black British – Caribbean 0 0 0

p.24

Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

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

p.24

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. Vigo Village School – Page 25

p.24

Teachers and classes Financial information

Total number of qualified teachers (FTE) 9.3 Financial year 2001-2002

p.25

Teachers and classes Financial information

Number of pupils per qualified teacher 23.1

p.25

Teachers and classes Financial information

Education support staff: YR – Y6 Total income 452,453

p.25

Teachers and classes Financial information

Total number of education support staff 8 Total expenditure 468,355

p.25

Teachers and classes Financial information

Total aggregate hours worked per week 157 Expenditure per pupil 1,976

p.25

Teachers and classes Financial information

Balance brought forward from previous year 31,321

p.25

Teachers and classes Financial information

Balance carried forward to next year 15419

p.25

Recruitment of teachers

Number of teachers who left the school during the last two years 6

p.25

Recruitment of teachers

Number of teachers appointed to the school during the last two years 2

p.25

Recruitment of teachers

Total number of vacant teaching posts (FTE) 1

p.25

Recruitment of teachers

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

p.25

Recruitment of teachers

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

p.25

Recruitment of teachers

FTE means full-time equivalent. Vigo Village School – Page 26

p.25

Percentage of responses in each category

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

p.26

Percentage of responses in each category

My child is making good progress in school. 33 57 6 1 3

p.26

Percentage of responses in each category

Behaviour in the school is good. 26 69 3 0 2

p.26

Percentage of responses in each category

My child gets the right amount of work to do at home. 16 64 15 2 3

p.26

Percentage of responses in each category

I am kept well informed about how my child is getting on. 18 48 31 3 0

p.26

Percentage of responses in each category

I would feel comfortable about approaching the school with questions or a problem. 44 48 6 0 2

p.26

Percentage of responses in each category

The school expects my child to work hard and achieve his or her best. 39 58 1 1 1

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Percentage of responses in each category

The school works closely with parents. 17 54 19 6 4

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Percentage of responses in each category

The school is well led and managed. 27 62 3 0 8

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Percentage of responses in each category

The school is helping my child become mature and responsible. 25 65 2 1 7

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Percentage of responses in each category

The school provides an interesting range of activities outside lessons. 25 52 10 5 8 Vigo Village School – Page 27

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AREAS OF LEARNING FOR CHILDREN IN THE FOUNDATION STAGE

55. Children in the Foundation Stage are taught in the reception class and start school in the September before their fifth birthday. Since the previous inspection the provision has improved significantly and is now very good. The school now provides the children with a wide range of challenging and focused, practical first-hand experiences to promote the early learning goals. Teaching is consistently very good in all areas of learning, enabling the majority of children to learn quickly. Teaching assistants provide very high quality support to enhance learning. Staff have a very secure understanding of how young children learn and of the importance of play. Emphasis is placed on providing exciting and challenging first-hand experiences linked closely to what children need to learn to reach the national early learning goals. Outdoor play provision is now of a particularly high standard and activities and tasks both inside and outside the classroom are very

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AREAS OF LEARNING FOR CHILDREN IN THE FOUNDATION STAGE

well planned to enable children to make rapid progress in learning to read, write and count. Relationships are very good and as a result children feel valued, secure, work hard and are very proud of their achievements and behave very well.

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AREAS OF LEARNING FOR CHILDREN IN THE FOUNDATION STAGE

56. Initial assessments, conducted shortly after admission to school, indicate that the overall attainment levels of most children entering the reception class are similar to those expected nationally. This has a very positive effect on children’s learning and progress. Particular emphasis is placed on developing children’s learning in literacy and mathematics. Most children, including those with special educational needs and those for whom English is an additional language, achieve well in relation to what they know and can do on entry to the reception class. Progress is good and almost all children will reach the early learning goals in all areas by the end of the reception year, with a significant number reaching them well before they leave the reception class.

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AREAS OF LEARNING FOR CHILDREN IN THE FOUNDATION STAGE

57. All staff have a very secure understanding of what children are expected to have learned by the end of the reception year. Sessions provide a very good balance of teacher-directed activities and those children choose for themselves. There are very well planned, interesting and challenging activities to promote children’s literacy and number skills; puppets and soft toys add interest to learning and make it fun. Elements of the literacy and numeracy strategy are implemented very well for children and this has a very positive effect on their achievement. High quality, imaginative play situations provide very good opportunities for children to develop their imagination and use their literacy and number skills in ‘real’ situations. The sensitive use of praise and encouragement very effectively promotes positive behaviour and develops eager and confident learners. Staff give very clear precise instructions and support, building up

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AREAS OF LEARNING FOR CHILDREN IN THE FOUNDATION STAGE

confidence and skills, and as a result, children are clear about their activities and what they are expected to learn and how they can be successful. Staff use questions, comments and observations very well to extend learning and to assess children’s progress in order to plan for future learning. Staff know the children well and set different tasks and challenges to enable all children to achieve well. The assessment of children’s learning is rigorous and staff use their knowledge of children’s progress to plan the next step in the teaching and learning. These effective procedures are used well to identify any children with special educational needs and extra support is available to enable children to make good progress. Children learning English as an additional language are supported well and advice is sought from the county specialists.

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AREAS OF LEARNING FOR CHILDREN IN THE FOUNDATION STAGE

58. Parents are kept well informed of their children’s progress and are very supportive of all the activities the school provides. Parents regularly work in the reception class to provide children with effective additional support. The staff work very well together and make school an enjoyable experience which promotes a love of learning, impacting well on children’s attitudes and progress.

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Personal, social and emotional development

59. Children enjoy coming to school and are eager to learn new skills, explore new ideas and develop positive relationships with adults and each other. The rules and routines of school life are explained clearly and, as Vigo Village School – Page 28 a result, children are confident in knowing what is expected of them. Very good attitudes to learning are fostered as children are reminded to ‘put on their thinking caps’ before the start of each session. Children are becoming independent learners as they choose and record their own tasks and activities. All children work independently for sustained periods of time and respond well to the challenge of ‘very hard work’. They work particularly hard to improve their skills of reading, writing and number. Relationships are very strong and through together-times and religious education lessons children are encouraged to reflect on their feelings, actions and experience. Well-planned activities and careful explanations help children to

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Personal, social and emotional development

develop confidence and eagerness in learning. When engaged in structured activities, children are very well supported by teachers and assistants, who help them to work with considerable concentration. Intervention is aimed at developing children’s independence and just the right balance is struck between children being told how to do something and giving them helpful prompts on how to do things for themselves. Children are never left to struggle without adult support. This has a very positive effect on the rate of learning of early literacy and numeracy skills. Children work well together in twos or small groups, sharing ideas and reinforcing and extending their learning. Resources and space are very well organised and are easily available and accessible to children to extend their independence and learning. Children make good progress in the development of their social and personal skills so that, towards the end of their

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Personal, social and emotional development

year in the reception class, they are attaining above the expected levels.

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Communication, language and literacy

60. Through very effective teaching, the majority of children achieve the early learning goals by the beginning of Year 1. Children are good listeners as they respond enthusiastically to instructions, explanations, stories, rhymes and music. Very high quality play situations, together-times and planned formal activities provide good opportunities for children to develop their speaking skills. Children use language well to negotiate roles and responsibilities, for example, children use persuasive language well when deciding who is going to water the garden or plant flowers. Exciting teacher-directed activities and the encouragement of the ‘class puppet’ help children to recognise familiar letters, sounds and words. Most children recognise and write their names independently. Children now make good progress with their writing skills. A stimulating writing area, ‘office’ and ‘garden centre’ provide children with lots of rich opportunities to write for different

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Communication, language and literacy

purposes and audiences. Children eagerly write letters, lists and messages or record their observations, such as when planting seeds. Higher attaining pupils write with increasing accuracy using well-formed letters, capital letters and full stops and are able to make very good attempts at spelling difficult words such as ‘through’. Children display a love of books as they curl up with a book in ‘The Enchanted Reading Corner’.

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Communication, language and literacy

61. Most children know about authors and illustrators and the conventions of books and readily retell stories and predict what might happen from pictures. More able children are reading simple books with confidence using their knowledge of sounds to read unfamiliar words and they are beginning to understand the nuances and humour of the written word. All children take books home on a regular basis to share with family members and this has a very positive effect on children’s progress in learning to read. Appropriate elements of the literacy strategy are implemented for children in the reception class and this has a positive effect on their achievements.

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Mathematical development

62. Because of very effective teaching the majority of children achieve the early learning goals by the beginning of Year 1 and a significant number do so well before the end of the reception year. The teacher provides a wide range of exciting and practical activities to promote mathematical understanding. Most children recognise numbers to 20, enjoying exploring numbers up to 100 and make good attempts to write them accurately. Children are learning to count in twos with confidence. Learning is reinforced well as they sort socks and ‘smelly wellies’ into pairs. Interesting activities using role-play, puppets and interactive displays develop children’s understanding of early addition and subtraction. Excellent interactions from the teaching support assistant encourages more able children to partition a group of 12 objects and write number sentences using appropriate symbols for ‘add’ and equals. Children who learn at a less rapid rate

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Mathematical development

enjoy exploring the sand tray to discover groups of different coloured ‘creepy crawlies’. Through well- planned topic work, both inside and outside the classroom, children are able to explore number, pattern, shape and measurement. Children consider size, shape and position when playing with small world toys, building imaginary homes for animals from large boxes or measuring and comparing the height of their Vigo Village School – Page 29 sunflowers. Appropriate elements of the numeracy strategy are implemented for children in the reception year and this has a positive effect on children’s achievements. Vigo Village School – Page 30

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Knowledge and understanding of the world

63. Very effective teaching enables the majority of children to achieve the early learning goals well before the end of the reception year. Children are developing a good understanding of the world around them. The natural curiosity of young children is enhanced as staff encourage them to talk about their discoveries and experiences. They learn about the passage of time through celebrating birthdays and festivals. An interactive display helps children learn the order of the days, months and seasons. They learn about the homes of different animals and can classify them according to different habitats, such as the sea, jungle and desert. Children are developing very good scientific skills. The garden area is an excellent resource to develop children’s understanding of the environment and children take great pride in planting of flowers and caring for the birds. High attaining children are aware that their plants need sun and water to grow.

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Knowledge and understanding of the world

Children work independently with a wide range of construction toys discovering how things are made and move. Children are competent users of information and communication technology to support their learning. They operate the tape recorder to listen to stories and use calculators, telephones and tills when taking on the role of shopkeeper, optician and customer in the play situations.

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Knowledge and understanding of the world

64. Through the celebration of Christian Festivals such as Christmas, Easter and Harvest, children are developing a good understanding of the Christian faith and community and learn about other cultures and religions through activities related to Eid and Diwali.

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Physical development

65. The majority of children achieve the early learning goals by the end of the reception year. Provision has improved significantly since the last inspection. Outdoor activities are now very well planned and provide a high quality extension to the classroom. Within the classroom and safe play area, children regularly experience a wide range of quality activities and challenging tasks to promote their physical development. As a result, children show good co-ordination, control and an awareness of themselves and others as they move around the classroom and school. The recent acquisition of new-wheeled toys is a great favourite and children are learning to manoeuvre them well as they incorporate them into their dramatic play. Structured physical education and dance lessons promote further physical development and children have good opportunities to negotiate climbing and balancing equipment and to develop skills using small

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Physical development

apparatus, such as bats and balls. Emphasis is placed on developing children’s skills when handling small equipment, such as pencils, scissors, paintbrushes, construction toys and malleable materials. Most children competently handle a variety of tools and materials and small equipment safely and with care. They show increasing dexterity when handling pencils, scissors, brushes, construction toys and jigsaws.

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Creative development

66. Teaching very effectively extends children’s experiences in art, music and imaginative play. Well- structured music lessons and a good range of musical instruments, songs and rhymes help to develop children’s understanding of sound and rhythm and pattern. Most children can keep a steady beat and can interpret simple notation when singing the ‘tea – coffee’ song. There are very well planned teacher-directed activities to develop children’s understanding of colour, shape and pattern. Materials such as paint, sand and water are regularly available for children to explore on a regular basis. There is a wide range of exciting materials available from which children can choose to create their own designs, pictures, models and collages. Children have made very high quality ‘relief sculptures’ incorporating their understanding of two and three-dimensional shapes. Observational paintings of flowers and plants show a good understanding of

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Creative development

the use of appropriate colours to represent what they see. Imaginative play is very well resourced and provides children with exciting opportunities to develop their imagination as they become opticians or gardeners. Children act out various dramas in their role-play, exploring and using different and appropriate language, voices and props to support different characters. Staff are always on hand to extend and challenge children in their play, developing their ideas. These well-planned interventions have a very positive effect on the quality of the teaching and learning. Vigo Village School – Page 31

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ENGLISH

67. Current standards in Years 2 and 6 are satisfactory. In Year 2 they are good in reading and speaking and listening and at average levels in writing. In Year 6 standards are still only average because of the significant number of pupils who are not yet achieving the expected level for their age. Good teaching in Year 6 is, however, helping pupils to make good progress during this year. The school believes this is due to the setting arrangements which provides for the teaching of pupils by ability and which has supported higher attaining pupils in particular. Inspection evidence supports this view and recognises that lower attaining pupils’ performance has also been “boosted” by additional group work, with well deployed and well trained teaching assistants. This intervention has allowed these pupils to make better than expected progress. The school has also time-tabled extra “writing workshop” time, which has allowed pupils to

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ENGLISH

practise their new found writing skills in longer pieces of work. These standards are an improvement since the last inspection.

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ENGLISH

68. In the 2002 tests for seven-year-olds reading standards were above average and writing average when compared with schools nationally. When compared with schools with a similar intake to Vigo Village School they were well below average. The percentage of pupils achieving better than expected standards was above average in reading and at average levels in writing. At eleven, the percentage of pupils achieving expected standards was average but below average when compared with schools with a similar intake. The percentage of pupils achieving better than expected was broadly average, with girls achieving better than do boys. The trend of improvements over the last few years has been below that found nationally. Early indications of standards achieved in national tests in 2003 point to further improvement.

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ENGLISH

69. Inspection evidence indicates that while standards are improving overall, there are still a significant number of pupils who attain standards below those found typically at seven and eleven. There is insufficient evidence to show how the setting has benefited lower attaining pupils. The school has not monitored the impact of these arrangements on the progress of particular groups of pupils. During the week of inspection, teaching in the lower sets in English was generally less effective. The school has worked hard to achieve the improvement in writing and progress has been satisfactory in this area. The implementation of guided writing and reading activities, designed to help pupils read and write with more confidence, and the additional time given to reading and writing workshops is having a positive effect.

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ENGLISH

70. Speaking and listening skills are developing well with good standards observed in Years 1 and 2 and 6. Pupils are encouraged to discuss their work and talk about the books they are studying. In informal conversations with inspectors they talked with confidence about their life in Vigo school and the subjects they are studying. Teachers provide a wide range of opportunities for pupils to talk together in lessons, and there is high expectation of pupils listening attentively to each other’s contributions. In one class, pupils discussed why children in the playground of “The Demon Headmaster’s” school stood around in miserable circles. Their ideas were highly imaginative and allowed them to infer the author’s meaning well.

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ENGLISH

71. In Year 2 speaking and listening standards are good. Pupils talk with confidence about the texts they are studying. In Year 6 pupils talk about the subtle difference between “synopsis” and “summary” and explain how they are looking for evidence of the characteristics of synopsis from a range of texts.

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ENGLISH

72. Standards in reading are generally good. In Year 2, pupils read well with appropriate expression, using text details such as punctuation and choice of vocabulary to bring added meaning. They are able to summarise a story well, recognising and understanding literary forms, for example “he quaked in his boots”. Pupils tackle unfamiliar words well. For example, in tackling the word “stretched” they put together the sounds from letter clusters “str”, “et”, “ch”, combining this with their knowledge of “-ed” endings for past tense. These kinds of skills were well demonstrated. Occasionally, pupils failed to correct an error even when the reading made no sense. For example “the water twinkled good” (“tasted”). This suggests they would benefit from more guided reading with experienced adults rather than with the silent reading activities that many classes currently timetable. Higher attaining pupils can confidently explain the more complex

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ENGLISH

phrases and recognise how they bring added meaning to text, for example "the land slipped by”, meaning “the boat sailed by the land”, is a more dramatic way of describing the action.

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ENGLISH

73. In Year 6, pupils summarise stories well and read confidently with good expression. They derive understanding from the author’s implied meaning, recognising the description of a boat “that had known Vigo Village School – Page 32 the sea too long” held a great deal of additional information about the age and condition of the vessel. They talk about favourite authors with confidence, evaluating the work of John Franklin and Anthony Horowitz with good judgement, “He builds up suspense but does not give too much away”. One lower attaining pupil could not decipher the word “Horace”, but knew it must be a name because of its capital “H” and the overall sense of the sentence. Another recognised why the family refrigerator was “a good speller”, drawing on her own experience of magnet letters on her own fridge door at home.

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ENGLISH

74. Standards in writing are satisfactory in Year 2. Pupils are beginning to write well-formed sentences which are punctuated appropriately. They use exclamation and question marks to bring particular meaning to a sentence and are learning how to improve openings and endings of stories to good effect. Spelling, however, is unsatisfactory; high frequency words are inconsistently spelt and pupils are not transferring their spelling knowledge when writing in other subjects. Some pupils are not yet consistently marking the beginning and end of sentences with a capital or full stop. Teachers’ marking in books suggests low expectation for completing work and correcting spellings. Higher attaining pupils are beginning to use speech punctuation to distinguish ongoing action or description and dialogue. They use interesting and powerful verbs and adjectives to improve the overall quality of their work to engage a reader’s interest.

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ENGLISH

75. Standards in writing in Year 6 are satisfactory. Pupils are developing their skills and knowledge in writing for different purposes and different effects. For instance, they contrast the typical grammatical features of autobiography and biography and the difference between fact and opinion in journalistic writing. They are coming to understand that different types of writing have particular and predictable features which can be used to produce a conventional text for a specific purpose. Pupils are also developing their creative writing skills. They study poetry and are learning how poets can create moods and meaning through the rhyme and rhythm of poetic forms and describe natural phenomena artistically. Higher attaining pupils are able to summarise meanings in classic poetry, for example when reading “The Highwayman” they reduced one verse to its basic elements - “He wore posh clothes” – with simplicity and accuracy. They recognise how

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ENGLISH

poetry often personifies natural phenomena, for example fog “wrapping himself around the land”. All pupils are learning how to lay out a letter both for formal and informal purposes, and writing stories, drawing on their English language work on sentence structure, punctuation and story development.

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ENGLISH

76. Teaching and learning are generally good and sometimes very good, particularly in Years 2 and 6. The National Literacy Strategy Framework supports teaching well and planning indicates activities which will allow pupils at different levels of attainment to achieve the learning objectives. This is also the case in mixed-age lessons where pupils of similar attainment work together. Teachers share the learning objectives with pupils and generally review learning at the end of lessons. They explain carefully what pupils need to do to make progress. For younger pupils, puppets become an audience for new learning, which is often very motivating for them. In most lessons, teachers’ questioning is good, helping pupils clarify their thinking and pushing on their learning. In a very good Year 6 lesson this was particularly well demonstrated, with the teacher drawing pupils’ attention to the characteristics of a synopsis and the need

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ENGLISH

to keep these in mind as they worked on their own story “blurb”. In a less successful lesson, the teacher’s questioning was not rigorous enough to ensure that all understood and achieved the learning objective. In this lesson, pupils needed to understand that authors imply meaning through a description. The teacher accepted a straight description, which reduced the pupils’ understanding of the way authors imply meaning. Teaching assistants are well deployed and effective when working with lower attaining pupils and those with special educational needs. Their intervention and support allows these groups of pupils to achieve the learning objective at an appropriate level.

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ENGLISH

77. Leadership of the subject is very good. The subject co-ordinator is an expert literacy teacher. She is aware of what the school needs to do to improve standards, and, working with the support of the senior management team, has reviewed current practice and identified important improvements which will have the most impact on standards over time. She has checked planning, pupils’ work in books and the progress individuals make through the newly introduced tracking systems. She has analysed results of national tests to see where the school needs to strengthen teaching generally or offer pupils additional support. The school has implemented new ideas to support progress, including “writing workshops” and guided reading and writing approaches, which, when fully exploited, help children explore the meaning and structure of texts. This will have an impact on their own writing. The “writing workshop” allows pupils to

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ENGLISH

improve on a first draft of extended writing, looking at spelling, structure, and choice of words. Analysis of the school’s own assessment records and national test results allows the school to identify those pupils Vigo Village School – Page 33 who may need support outside ordinary classroom provision under the guidance of a trained teaching assistant. All children have learning targets which help them evaluate their own progress. The setting arrangement brings higher attaining pupils from two year groups together. While the range of experience and attainments is planned for in these mixed-age classes, the school has not yet developed ways of checking whether this is having an equal impact on progress at all levels of attainment. Inspection evidence indicates that higher attaining pupils are making better progress while attainment remains below expectation in the lower set. Resources for English are satisfactory. Blackboards and individual pupil

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ENGLISH

whiteboards are used well to explain tasks and allow pupils to demonstrate their understanding as lessons proceed. For example, in a very good Year 1 lesson pupils held up words with the spelling combination “oa” to demonstrate their knowledge and wrote sentences with words such as “boat”, “coat” and “goat” to emphasise their understanding.

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ENGLISH

78. Pupils do not routinely visit the library in school, though some go to the small library in Vigo Village hall and public libraries in local towns. There is no evidence of higher attaining older pupils researching topics in depth in the library or developing library skills or a more scholarly approach to their own learning.

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MATHEMATICS

79. Standards are at average levels by the end of the infants but below average by the end of the juniors. This represents a decline in standards since the previous inspection. Standards for pupils in Year 6 are not expected to improve on those seen in the national tests taken in 2002. This is because of the above average number of pupils in the cohort who have special educational needs and because of the inconsistent teaching they have received following the high turnover of teaching staff. This has resulted in gaps in pupils learning which, until recently, have not been identified. These difficulties are being addressed and improved assessment and recording systems are contributing to raising standards. Pupils in junior classes are taught in ability sets and there is some evidence that this is helping to raise standards although the school is yet to carry out a rigorous review of its success. Even so, standards are

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MATHEMATICS

not as high as they could be because of weaknesses in some year groups. Some teachers, especially in the younger junior classes, do not have sufficiently high expectations of what pupils should know and do and do not always provide work that appropriately challenges all pupils. Teaching is stronger in the upper juniors and has been strengthened by the appointment of a new deputy headteacher who has particular expertise and enthusiasm for mathematics. This is helping to raise standards amongst Year 5 and 6 pupils in particular, and his influence is beginning to be felt across the whole school. There is little difference between the performance of boys and girls. Pupils with special educational needs make satisfactory progress.

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MATHEMATICS

80. Pupils in Year 2 have a satisfactory understanding of numbers and values to 100 and are able to complete accurately addition and subtraction problems up to this number. They are able to solve problems using these skills. Their mathematical vocabulary has been extended but many pupils experience difficulties with ideas such as longer and shorter. They understand and recognise odd and even numbers and mental calculations are beginning to be developed appropriately. Most pupils are able to tell the time accurately to the half and quarter hour. Names of two-dimensional shapes such as octagon, hexagon and pentagon are identified accurately and pupils are able to construct graphs using a range of data they have collected.

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MATHEMATICS

81. The skills of mental calculation are being taught satisfactorily, especially to the more able pupils in Year 6 who demonstrate good skills in multiplying numbers more than 1000 by 4 and can explain how they do this. However, too few pupils have a thorough knowledge and understanding of multiplication and division facts because these have not been systematically taught. There are significant gaps in the knowledge and understanding of many pupils and too few have a secure grasp of mathematical ideas and concepts. There are occasions in pupils books where work of similar levels to that seen in previous years is covered and this shows that insufficient care has been taken to ensure that pupils build on their previous skills. However, considerable time and effort are being spent on rectifying this by the new headteacher and the mathematics co-ordinator to ensure that pupils build on what they already know. Indications in pupils’

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MATHEMATICS

books are that this is succeeding, and that the coverage of the curriculum is improving. Pupils aged 11 use their information and communication technology skills appropriately to create pie, bar and line graphs using data that they have collected. They recognise acute and obtuse angles and many know how to measure angles using a protractor. The mathematical vocabulary of more able pupils is developed Vigo Village School – Page 34 satisfactorily but many average and less able pupils struggle to interpret what they have to do when faced with solving mathematical problems. This is one of the reasons why standards are not higher. Although many pupils are able to calculate the perimeter and area of rectangles, there is little evidence of them knowing how to calculate the area of more complex shapes.

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MATHEMATICS

82. The standard of teaching seen during the inspection was never less than satisfactory but varied in quality with the best lessons being excellent. The quality of work in pupils’ books does not always correspond with this. In the autumn and spring terms there were examples of work that was unfinished, corrections not completed and many instances where there was an over-dependence on work sheets. This problem was partially the result of staffing difficulties and inconsistent use of the curriculum guidance. Pupils work produced over recent months shows an improvement in quality, challenge and presentation but the school recognise that these improvements need to be built upon to ensure that standards in all classes are raised.

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MATHEMATICS

83. In the best lessons, teachers have planned well to build on pupils’ previous learning. Expectations of how pupils will behave are high and pupils are interested and work hard. A good level of challenge is provided. Pupils in Years 5 and 6 benefited from this in a lesson on co-ordinates in which they extended their understanding of negative numbers very well when plotting points in four quadrants. In less successful lessons, the work provided is not an appropriate challenge for all pupils, for example, the work provided for the most able pupils in Year 3. This results in a slowing of progress. The school recognises the need to revise this approach in younger junior classes.

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MATHEMATICS

84. The National Numeracy Strategy has been introduced satisfactorily. Teachers’ use the planning structure provided satisfactorily and where teaching is best, pupils are enthusiastic about what they are to learn. Appropriate attention is paid to the amounts of time to be spent on the different elements of the lesson and this leaves time for pupils to complete their tasks. What pupils are to learn in lessons is usually shared with them and this ensures that they know what they are to learn. Mathematics skills are used appropriately in other subjects such as science, design and technology and information and communication technology. For example, pupils in Year 6 use spreadsheets to calculate weekly pocket money expenditure. Pupils’ attainment is being more regularly assessed and results are being carefully analysed. This is enabling the school to identify the gaps in the curriculum and in what pupils know. The

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MATHEMATICS

leadership of the subject is now the responsibility of the new deputy headteacher who is enthusiastic and knowledgeable and has very clear ideas on the developments needed to raise attainment.

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SCIENCE

85. The standard of work in Year 6 is well below average. Standards in Year 2 are broadly in line with those found in most schools nationally. Compared with the standards found at the time of the last inspection, standards have declined in Year 6. However, these standards reflect the impact of an unusually large number of pupils with special educational needs in the current cohort. While the standards found in Year 2 are below those attained in national teacher assessments in 2002, they are an improvement on the standards found at the time of the last inspection and have been achieved against a background of disrupted teaching. There is still insufficient, high quality investigative work recorded by the pupils and higher attaining pupils are not sufficiently challenged by the tasks set in all classes, despite the good quality of much of the teaching seen during the inspection. Co-ordination of the subject is now good,

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SCIENCE

however, and good progress is being made in redressing the deficiencies in the curriculum and in teachers’ planning. The support received by pupils with special educational needs enables them to make satisfactory progress.

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SCIENCE

86. Pupils make satisfactory progress in the infant years and are enthusiastic about what they will find out in their scientific enquiries. Analysis of pupils’ work shows that these investigations are particularly good in Year 1 where pupils can record their findings, such as about the different types of movements of creatures, in the form of a picture graph. In Year 2, evidence reveals that pupils have previously undertaken too few investigations to develop securely the full range of their enquiry skills and an over-use of worksheets has resulted in pupils lacking opportunities to use their own extended writing skills to record observations and findings. A change of teacher is having a positive impact on the quality and standard of their work. Vigo Village School – Page 35 87. While pupils in the junior years undertake their work with interest and behave well in lessons, their progress overall has been unsatisfactory. This is now being tackled rigorously. Pupils develop their

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SCIENCE

knowledge of scientific enquiry appropriately and include studies of life processes and living things, materials and their properties and physical processes as they progress through the junior years. For example in Year 6, high attaining pupils plan and carry out their own investigation into the ease with which water will pass through different soils. In earlier years, the pupils have investigated the strength of magnets, describing their method and recording the results and they compare the effects of exercise on pulse rates. However, the examination of pupils’ work shows that in all years too much of the work is recorded in note form without due attention being paid to an appropriate method of recording their findings and conclusions. Some work, especially the work completed earlier in the school year, is unfinished and poorly presented. There is also a lack of evidence that higher attaining pupils are being sufficiently

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SCIENCE

88. The teaching is never less than satisfactory and many lessons contain good features. Weekly plans are based upon national guidelines and lesson plans are detailed. Marking is generally satisfactory and support staff are used well when they are available, and are able to offer good help to pupils. Teaching is effective when teachers have specific and high expectations of their pupils, setting tasks that are clearly matched to the different abilities of the pupils. For example, in a good Year 1 lesson, following a stimulating hunt outside the classroom for living and non-living things, the teacher set challenging follow-up tasks for pupils of differing abilities. This ensured that low attaining pupils could do the work while high attaining pupils had a more difficult task to complete. A Year 3 lesson was less effective because the questioning did not sufficiently challenge pupils’ thinking and understanding and there was too little focus

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SCIENCE

on appropriate recording of methods, results and conclusions.

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SCIENCE

89. Management of the subject is now effective. The co-ordinator knows the areas for improvement and is taking appropriate action. Much has improved since the time of the last inspection. The subject is now part of the school development plan. The time allocated for the teaching of science has been increased and is this is now satisfactory. The co-ordinator checks the quality of teachers’ planning which teachers now produce using the national guidance. A start has been made on checking the quality of pupils’ work and of the teaching in lessons. To improve standards further, the systems for checking should become more rigorous. A system is now in place to measure pupils’ progress accurately. The level and condition of learning resources have been audited and they are being enhanced, for example through the purchase of a commercial support scheme and more information and communication technology programs.

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SCIENCE

Evidence from the scrutiny of pupils’ work and lessons seen indicates that the teaching of scientific enquiry has improved but the school recognises the need for further development.

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ART AND DESIGN

90. The attainment of seven-year-olds and eleven-year-olds is in line with that typically found for their age. Only two art and design lessons were observed, one in Year 2 and the other in Year 3, so it was not possible to make an overall judgement on teaching and learning, though the teaching in both lessons was good and the pupils made good progress. Judgements on achievement have been based on discussions with pupils, work in sketchbooks and on display, and from a scrutiny of teachers’ planning.

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ART AND DESIGN

91. In Year 2 pupils are developing good observational skills when creating portraits and drawing plants and other natural materials found in the school gardens. They sketch with confidence, using lines and shading to suggest overall form. Much of the work in their sketch-books, which is drawn together over time, demonstrates that children are using different media and techniques, including paper sculpture, weaving, paint mixing and printing. In Year 6, pupils study the way different artists represent movement. Pupils linked this work to their study of physical movement in science and gymnastics in physical education. They use a range of techniques, including the small movement of a template of a figure to suggest the continuity of movement in an acrobatic roll or the flow of rowers moving their oars continuously. This work was of high standard, and was displayed alongside written descriptions of the sequence of movements

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ART AND DESIGN

that drew together different aspects of pupils’ learning well.

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ART AND DESIGN

92. Pupils progress satisfactorily and the subject is used appropriately in other areas of the curriculum. For example, Year 5 linked their artwork to information and communication technology to help them produce Vigo Village School – Page 36 designs inspired by Matisse’s “The Snail”. This work, was achieved by using the graphical tools and then resizing and rotating shapes to achieve a similar effect to the French artist. In Year 1, pupils produced self-portraits with careful attention to skin tone. They drew on the work of Van Gogh, recognising that thick paint and visible brush strokes were part of the style they were attempting to reproduce.

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ART AND DESIGN

93. In the two lessons observed, teaching and learning were good. Both teachers knew what they wanted pupils to learn in the lesson and used the natural environment effectively to inspire pupils’ work. Planning in both classes allowed pupils to work in small groups with an adult to support pupils’ with special educational need or, as in Year 3, to allow them to go on an environmental walk in small groups. During this walk, pupils explored the school grounds, looking for patterns and unusual shapes to bring back and show to the rest of the class. One of these groups recorded their investigation with a digital camera. The practical and visual elements of these lessons, with pupils exploring the texture, pattern and colour of natural objects allowed all pupils, including those with special education needs, to make good progress, and the quality of work was inspired by the beauty of all they saw. Both teachers’ subject knowledge was

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ART AND DESIGN

strong, which allowed them to help pupils interpret what they saw artistically and to choose an appropriate pencil or pastel to complete the work. Both teachers encouraged pupils to understand that the first task of an artist is to look and be inspired by the beauty of the environment.

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ART AND DESIGN

94. Co-ordination of the subject is underdeveloped and is part of the heavy portfolio that the headteacher carries. Art and design and other subjects of the curriculum, including drama, are to be brought into a new planning arrangement with a member of staff identified as co-ordinator of a newly created art faculty. The school continues to use the sketch-book which was in place at the last inspection. It is not currently exploiting this resource to record ideas and investigate techniques and a range of media. Work is not annotated or dated, nor marked to give pupils feedback on their efforts. The school has made little improvement since the last inspection on assessment of the subject, though each class now has appropriately time-tabled art and design lessons. Work around the school suggests an appropriate range of opportunities to develop pupils’ artistic skills, knowledge and understanding.

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DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

95. Standards of attainment at the ages of seven and eleven years are broadly typical of those found in all schools nationally. This is the same as those found at the previous inspection. Evidence is limited to the two lessons observed, analysis of pupils’ work throughout the school and discussion with pupils. There is currently no designated co-ordinator for the subject but teachers plan their work using national guidelines. A system for assessing pupils’ progress has just been introduced but is not yet fully developed. Resources are adequate. All pupils, including those with special educational needs, make satisfactory progress.

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DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

96. By Year 2, pupils study real life examples of products using actual items or pictures such as of a camper van and set out their design drawings. They list the steps they will take and the tools they will need. They use a variety of materials to make effective buildings and moving pictures and use tools such as saws and drills to make wheels that move on axles. Their recorded work showed no evidence, however, of evaluations of their products.

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DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

97. By Year 6, pupils have a good understanding of the design and technology process. They plan their work well, for example drawing clear diagrams of different ways they can create moving pages in a storybook. They understand how to use tools safely and the importance of hygiene in preparing food. They link design and technology with science by making an electric circuit to light a lighthouse. The pupils use a variety of techniques to join fabrics, cardboard fillets to join wood and make cogs and pulleys to create mechanisms. They evaluate their products, for example testing shelters for strength and waterproofing and they suggest improvements. Analysis of pupils’ work folders, however, showed little evidence of records being kept of the evaluation phase. It also showed no evidence of products being disassembled to learn how they were constructed.

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DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

98. No lessons were seen in the junior years. The quality of teaching in the two infant lessons was good. They were well planned and well managed with good resources. Good support from class assistants and helpers enabled pupils of all abilities to participate fully. The design and technology process was Vigo Village School – Page 37 developed well. For example, in the Year 1 lesson, the pupils were provided with a variety of fruits and vegetables to exercise their cutting and display skills. Then the tasks set encouraged them to evaluate their products using words and pictures. In the Year 2 lesson, the teacher gave clear ideas about producing a logo and clear instructions for making wheels on axles. Safety was emphasised in both lessons with the result that all pupils used their knives, saws and drills with care and behaved very well. Both teachers also used the lessons well to develop the language skills of the pupils. One pupil for whom

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DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

English is her second language talked clearly and with emphasis on the working sequence she had employed, “I thought of the picture and then we discussed it!”

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GEOGRAPHY

99. The evidence base for the inspection judgements is limited to two lessons seen and analysis of pupils’ work and displays throughout the school. Standards are in line with national expectations in Year 6. This is an improvement on those found at the time of the last inspection. Standards are below the expected level in Year 2. This is the same as those found at the last inspection, however, in the past year teaching in Year 2 has been highly disrupted and the work of Year 1 pupils is now good. The co-ordinator has a clear plan of action to improve standards in the subject. Currently, map skills are developed well throughout the school. However, there is a lack of depth and rigour in most studies of places and little evidence of the development of enquiry skills. Pupils with special educational needs and English as an additional language make satisfactory progress through the support they receive.

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GEOGRAPHY

100. By the end of Year 2, the progress of most pupils is unsatisfactory. Pupils in Years 1 and 2 study the local area, distinguishing between human and physical features and marking different land uses on a map. They also study places that contrast with their home area, drawing comparisons between Vigo and the imaginary Isle of Struay and identifying attractive and unattractive features in a seaside resort. In Year 2, however, some of the early work lacks depth, and there is over-use of worksheets that require one word responses. This results in a lack of description and analysis and limits the development of the pupils’ literacy skills.

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GEOGRAPHY

101. Pupils progress well in the junior years, particularly in Years 5 and 6. Year 6 pupils make good use of their map skills in preparing for a visit to the Isle of Wight. For example they identify and locate features using four figure grid references. Evidence from the scrutiny of pupils’ work showed that pupils in Years 5 and 6 make detailed studies of places, different types of environments and of features associated with coasts. The work in Years 3 and 4, however, develops map skills well but lacks a sufficient depth of knowledge and understanding in place and feature studies. In most classes, the work gives insufficient challenge to higher attaining pupils and there is little evidence of the development of enquiry skills.

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GEOGRAPHY

102. The quality of the teaching in the two lessons seen was good. They were well planned, with good resources and activities that were well matched to the different abilities in the classes. Support staff were used well to make the learning of lower ability pupils effective. For example, in a Year 1 lesson about a seaside resort, the work was based upon evidence taken from a computer program used by the pupils. Lower attaining pupils worked with a class helper to make a poster while higher attaining pupils practised extended writing skills in producing a brochure. Other pupils worked enthusiastically to write a postcard. In the Year 6 lesson, a stimulating question sheet provided a good base for the practice of map referencing skills.

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GEOGRAPHY

103. Management of the subject is good. The co-ordinator and some staff have been on subject development courses. The co-ordinator monitors medium term plans and the work of pupils. She has introduced an assessment system that permits the tracking of individual pupils’ progress but no monitoring of teaching is currently undertaken. Resources are adequate and together with those relating to information and communication technology are being augmented. Fieldwork is undertaken in the area around the school and in contrasting places in the United Kingdom.

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HISTORY

Vigo Village School – Page 38 104. Due to timetabling arrangements only one lesson of history was seen. Judgements on attainment, therefore, are based on a scrutiny of work in books and on display, teachers’ planning and on discussions with pupils.

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HISTORY

105. Pupils in Years 2 and 6 achieve standards that are broadly in line with those expected for their age. This is a similar picture to the last inspection. Pupils, including those with special educational need, make satisfactory progress. By Year 2 pupils have an appropriate knowledge of the subjects they are studying, for example they know how toys have changed over time and have visited the Bethnal Green Museum of Childhood to support their learning. One pupil talked about her grandmother’s bear that had become a family heirloom. Pupils have a good knowledge of the devastation caused by the Great Fire of London, but also recognise some benefits of the catastrophe, for example the elimination of plague and the rebuilding of London with materials less likely to burn. Higher attaining pupils understand the impact of such events on the development of present day services, for example fire-fighting and insurance. In informal discussion,

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HISTORY

pupils are able to recall the details of the fire, for example that it started in Pudding Lane.

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HISTORY

106. In Year 6, pupils are beginning to understand that historical research draws on a range of sources to build up a picture of earlier times. For example, in studying the lives of children in the Victorian age, they used illustrations from contemporary books and magazines, personal written accounts of working lives and the strict rules in a typical factory, to bring the topic alive. They are beginning to see that literature can also give a view into historical events. Studies of extracts from stories like Charles Kingsley’s “The Water Babies” highlighted the plight of a child chimney-sweep, and “Oliver Twist” by Charles Dickens, described life in the workhouse and the exploitation of homeless boys.

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HISTORY

107. Achievement is satisfactory overall and pupils study a good range of historical periods. They are developing a sense of chronology through the use of time-lines on which they can locate the period they are studying. They are developing historical enquiry skills, using primary sources, for example Tudor portraits and eye-witness accounts such as that of Samuel Pepys on the Great Fire of London. They understand that such resources have to be interpreted carefully. They consider the impact of historical events on present day life in Britain, for example through interesting work on immigration they are coming to understand the development of multi-cultural Britain. They also study the important issues of racism and equality, though such work would have benefited from clear reference to the civil rights movement and the pioneers of tolerance such as Martin Luther King. Pupils in Year 4 were inspired by their study of

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HISTORY

ancient Egyptians, benefiting from their visit to Maidstone Museum’s Egyptian exhibition and from the enthusiasm of their teacher. They were able to handle artefacts, resources and examples of the hieroglyphics found in this ancient civilisation. One pupil used a hieroglyphics translator from a topic resource pack to rewrite his description of one of the artefacts. Pupils touched the resources with care and awe, recognising the value of such objects, which brought the subject alive for them.

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HISTORY

108. Only one lesson was observed in the inspection period. In this Year 5 lesson pupils studied domestic life of the rich and the poor in Tudor times and contrasted the diet of the rich with that of their servants. They watched video material on the preparation of a banquet and the unhealthy diet of the servants who served it. They were alert to the absence of the potato, and were fascinated to hear that the potato in this period had only just begun to be imported from America. Pupils recognise that the video itself is a secondary source of information which an historian has put together from evidence from other sources, for example written accounts of the ingredients for blood pudding and menus found for banquets.

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HISTORY

109. Curriculum leadership for history is satisfactory. The school has adopted the national guidance and a practical, manageable curriculum plan has been drawn up. This allows pupils to have an appropriate range of activities. Resources have been purchased and artefacts are available from Kent’s loan service. Assessment procedures, however, are under-developed and marking is inconsistent. A number of visits to places of historic interest are planned for each unit of work, which clearly enhances pupils’ learning.

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

110. Standards by the end of the infants are similar to those found nationally but, are below average in Year 6. This represents a similar judgement in the infants to that previously reported, but a fall in standards in the juniors. These findings were reached through observations in a limited number of lessons, a scrutiny of Vigo Village School – Page 39 pupils’ work and discussions with pupils to determine what they know and can do. Much of the problem in the juniors lies in the fact that pupils do not get sufficient time to practise the skills learned in lessons because there is no computer suite in the school and limited access to computers in classrooms. This is despite information and communication technology playing a part in many lessons.

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

111. No teaching was seen in the infant classes. However, collections of pupils’ work show that they understand that computers can be used to store and order information and that this can be used to create graphs of differing types. Examples of this include surveys of car colour and of differing methods of how pupils travel to school. They know how to change font size and colour and show satisfactory mouse skills when using the program to dress a teddy bear. Pupils’ work is enlivened when they import pictures to include in their written work. The teacher in Year 2 provides good opportunities to practise typing and thinking skills when getting pupils to provide answers to questions like “On the way to school …, with pupils providing answers to “I met a .., “I found a.., “I was chased by a .. Pupils’ age eleven are able to use spreadsheets in mathematical investigations, for example, when recording probability in flipping coins or

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

when drawing different coloured discs from a bag. They understand some of the applications that information and communication technology has for industry, for example in the calculation of profit and loss. In a good link with mathematics pupils have extended their understanding of angles and co-ordinates through the use of a roamer and of Logo. Pupils do not have e-mail addresses in school but all those interviewed have experience of this outside school. The school’s internet access is used in subjects such as science, history and geography and pupils are preparing a presentation on what they have found out about the moon, using Power Point. Other skills include saving data, cutting and pasting and being able to interpret information stored on spreadsheets.

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

112. The limited amount of teaching seen was of satisfactory quality. Teachers have received training to improve their skills in teaching information and communication technology and this is helping to raise standards. Plans to improve facilities for computer technology are very well advanced and are expected to be available by the end of the current term. The development of information and communication technology is a prominent part of the school’s improvement plans. The school does not yet have a rigorous system for assessing and recording skills that it could usefully use to plan what pupils need to learn next.

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MUSIC

113. No lessons were seen in Years 1 and 2 and two were seen in the upper part of the school. The standards achieved by pupils aged eleven are similar to those found at the last inspection and are above average. Judgements for Year 2 cannot be made. A majority of pupils between Years 3 and 6, including those with special educational needs, make good progress during their time in school. The music specialist, who is also the co-ordinator for the subject, teaches most music lessons. Her expertise and enthusiasm have a very positive effect on the quality of music in the school. The co-ordinator very well supports class teachers and as a result they are confident in teaching the subject themselves and this further enhances pupils’ learning.

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MUSIC

114. Consistently good teaching helps the pupils build progressively upon their earlier skills. Music lessons are well structured and tasks are challenging. Pupils are given very clear strategies to improve their skills. They are encouraged to think as ‘musicians’ and to use correct musical terms. In Year 6, pupils use an understanding of notation and melody to improve further their singing skills. They use musical vocabulary accurately when talking about their work and in answering questions posed by their teachers. Singing is controlled, has shape, is well pitched and has clear diction. Pupils’ written work shows a good understanding of different types of music and they are able to appraise their own and their parents’ preferences in music using well chosen musical terms such as rhythm, beat and complement. They are developing an enjoyment of music and an appreciation of its contribution to leisure time as they describe

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MUSIC

115. The specialist skills of the co-ordinator and the peripatetic teachers are used well to develop a full range of activities to promote the effective learning of music. A significant number of pupils benefit from the specialist teaching of brass and string instruments, voice and piano. The community use of the school further enhances pupils’ skills as they join the County orchestra and choir and attend summer schools. The well-supported school choir and recorder group are involved in school and community performances. Vigo Village School – Page 40 A recent visit to Covent Garden to see Sleeping Beauty provided older pupils with an unforgettable experience. Their thoughtful writing describes their delight at the costumes, scenery, music and dance and quite obviously gave them an insight into the joys of the creative arts. These activities make a positive contribution to the quality of teaching and learning and provide pupils with good opportunities to extend

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PHYSICAL EDUCATION

116. Only two lessons were seen during the inspection and as a result no judgement can be made on standards at either seven or eleven. No judgement was made on the quality of pupils’ performance in physical education in the last inspection. In the very few lessons seen there were no differences in the standards achieved by boys or girls and pupils with special educational needs were able to join in fully with lessons.

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PHYSICAL EDUCATION

117. In the lessons seen, the quality of planning was appropriate. In the gymnastic lesson pupils showed satisfactory control over their movements and knew why they were warming-up prior to taking vigorous exercise. The use of the apparatus built appropriately on what pupils had practised in their floor work. The teacher used pupils’ demonstration of their skills satisfactorily but could have encouraged greater quality if there had been greater scope for pupils to comment on how movements could have been improved. In a games lesson, the pupils benefited from the coaching of a Kent county cricketer. However, the lesson was not used as productively as possible by the teacher because too little use was made of the development of cricket skills to improve standards and pupils did not practise sufficiently those things they had previously learned.

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PHYSICAL EDUCATION

118. Interviews with pupils indicate that most elements of the physical education curriculum are covered satisfactorily, although dance receives limited attention. Gymnastic work focuses on sequences of movements and pupils understand how long to hold a balance. The school holds a sports day in which all pupils join. Athletic skills are taught such as techniques for putting the shot. There is a limited amount of equipment in some areas for pupils to practise a wider range of activities. Pupils have experienced a suitable range of adventurous activities such as canoeing, climbing and abseiling. Some of these have been experienced on school residential visits and some in outside- school activities. Pupils take part in inter-school activities in football, netball, rugby and basketball and practise their skills both in lessons and in extra-curricular activities after school. Pupils attend swimming in Years 3 and 4 with the majority

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PHYSICAL EDUCATION

119. The curriculum is appropriately planned with a specific focus each half term. Greater attention should, however, be paid to the time spent on each element of the curriculum. The subject co-ordinator has only recently been appointed to the role. She is keen to improve the standards in the subject and has developed an action plan to achieve this. The outside areas are spacious and well laid-out. Attention is paid to the provision of play equipment so that pupils can practise ball skills at breaks and lunchtimes.

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RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

120. Only one lesson was seen in Years 1 and 2 and two were seen in the upper part of the school. Judgements are based on a scrutiny of pupils’ work, teachers’ planning and discussions with teachers and pupils.

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RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

121. Standards at the end of Years 2 and 6 have been maintained since the last inspection and are broadly in line with the expectations of the locally agreed syllabus. However, a scrutiny of pupils’ work shows that standards and the quality of provision vary between classes and that there are significant weaknesses in the lower juniors. As a result of the inconsistencies between classes, the majority of pupils, including those with special educational needs, do not achieve as well as they should. Staffing problems in Year 2 have resulted in the subject being taught infrequently and superficially. This has now been rectified by a change in staff, which has resulted in improvements in the quality of the teaching and learning and pupils are now achieving much better, enabling them to reach typical standards. The subject is now being taught Vigo Village School – Page 41 regularly with enthusiasm and challenge and pupils are beginning to develop a deeper understanding of

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RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

122. The situation is less promising in the juniors where a lack of challenge and low expectations in Years 3 and 4 limit pupils’ progress. There is an over-reliance on work sheets and pupils are too often engaged in low level tasks such as colouring in, or completing dot-to-dot pictures. Pupils do not have sufficient opportunities to use their literacy skills and there is little evidence of independent writing to record and reinforce new learning. In Years 5 and 6 teaching, is much better and progress accelerates, enabling pupils to reach the expected standard. Higher expectations and more challenging tasks enable pupils to develop their understanding of major religions and the impact they have on the way people live. There are good opportunities to record their learning in their own words. For example, pupils in Year 5 wrote a thoughtful poem about the creation and Year 6 pupils brainstorm their ideas about different religions and

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RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

tabulate them in an organised way. Although work is usually marked, in most classes marking refers to presentation or spelling and rarely refers to the quality of pupils’ understanding of the subject.

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RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

123. Younger children learn about the importance of family, customs and celebrations in major world religions. In Year 2, pupils learn to respect the sacred books of different religions. They are intrigued as they carefully handle the Quaran and compare it to the Bible. In the juniors, younger pupils learn about the significance of Easter to Christians and the Five Ks of Sikhism. However, work is often superficial and there are missed opportunities to deepen pupils’ understanding. There is an over- reliance on work sheets that do not challenge pupils’ thinking and there is insufficient written work to indicate progress and reinforcement of new learning. As pupils move into Years 5 and 6 their knowledge base is extended well. They learn about the customs, symbols, festivals, holy books and buildings of major religions. Pupils are encouraged to become inquisitive and questioning about important and significant issues. For example, in

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RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

Year 6 pupils were learning about the Four Noble Truths of Buddhism. The teacher’s use of challenging questions and tasks enabled pupils to recognise the similarities and differences between the Buddhist’s Truths and the Ten Commandments. Higher attaining pupils quickly recognised that the Ten Commandments were based on ‘Shalt nots’ while the Buddhist rules were much more positive. Interesting discussion followed in which pupils were challenged to think about and record how the Buddhist Eight-fold path could be interpreted in their own lives.

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RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

124. The management of the subject is being developed well. The co-ordinator is very enthusiastic and has a good understanding of the strengths and weaknesses in the subject. She monitors pupils’ work and is working with staff to improve the scheme of work and develop links with other subjects in order to make the subject more interesting and relevant to the pupils. There are sufficient resources to teach the subject and information and communication technology is used well to extend children’s knowledge and understanding of other religions. There are, however, insufficient visits and visitors to develop pupils’ understanding of different faiths and beliefs.

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