Newlands Junior School

NEWLANDS JUNIOR SCHOOL

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

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NEWLANDS JUNIOR SCHOOL

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

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

School address: Braemar Road Forest Town Mansfield Nottinghamshire Postcode: NG19 0LN

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Appropriate authority: The Governing Body

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Name of chair of governors: Mr Derek Bennett

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Date of previous inspection: February 1997 Newlands Junior School - 4

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Team members Subject responsibilities Aspect responsibilities

12373 Margaret Dickinson Registered inspector Religious education History Geography Design and technology Art and design Music What sort of a 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?

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Team members Subject responsibilities Aspect responsibilities

8919 John Kerr Lay inspector How well does the school care for its pupils? How well does the school work in partnership with parents? 15023 Ali Haouas Team inspector English Information and communication technology Physical education Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

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Team members Subject responsibilities Aspect responsibilities

23886 Declan McCarthy Team inspector Mathematics Science Special educational needs Equal opportunities English as an additional language How good are the curricular and other opportunities offered to pupils?

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Team members Subject responsibilities Aspect responsibilities

Serco QAA Ltd Herringston Barn Herringston Dorchester Dorset DT2 9PU

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Team members 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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Team members Subject responsibilities Aspect responsibilities

The Complaints Manager Inspection Quality Division

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Team members Subject responsibilities Aspect responsibilities

Alexandra House 33 Kingsway London WC2B 6SE Newlands Junior School - 5

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PART A: SUMMARY OF THE REPORT 6

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

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HOW HIGH ARE STANDARDS? 10

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

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Newlands Junior School is a community school situated to the east of Mansfield. It serves an ex-mining community with significant levels of social and economic deprivation. All pupils come from the local area surrounding the school. The school is of an average size, with 200 pupils on roll. There are more girls than boys, especially in Years 5 and 6. The number of pupils from ethnic minority backgrounds is slightly above average. The number who speak English as an additional language is also above average although no pupils receive extra support in English. Thirty-eight per cent of pupils are on the special educational needs (SEN) register which is well above average. Most of these pupils have difficulties with literacy and numeracy. None has a statement of special educational need. The number of pupils eligible for free school meals is above average. When pupils enter the school, their standards are below average.

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Over the last eighteen months, there has been a 50 per cent turnover in staff. The school has experienced considerable difficulty recruiting teachers for full-time and temporary contracts. At the time of the inspection, two members of staff were supply teachers.

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HOW GOOD THE SCHOOL IS

The school has many significant weaknesses in crucial areas and is not as effective as it should be. From when they first enter the school, not enough account is taken of the pupils’ test results at the end of Year 2. As a result, pupils make unsatisfactory progress and their standards are lower than they should be by the end of Year 6. A third of teaching is unsatisfactory or poor and, although a third of teaching is also good, far more lessons should be good or better. Teaching in English and mathematics is weak and this hinders pupils’ standards. The leadership is not sufficiently clear and decisive to identify weaknesses and bring about improvement in a focused and systematic way. Given these significant weaknesses, the school gives poor value for money.

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What the school does well

• The school supports pupils’ moral and social development well and this has a positive effect on pupils’ good attitudes and their very good behaviour and relationships. • The school has a caring ethos and there is good attention to pupils’ welfare and safety, which means pupils are happy and enjoy school. • There are pockets of good teaching, which is having a positive impact on pupils’ learning. • Teachers use computer technology well to support their planning and teaching.

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What could be improved

• The leadership and management of the school are poor and there is insufficient rigour in finding out where the school’s weaknesses lie and in planning effective and systematic action in order to improve. • Standards are too low in many subjects, including English, mathematics and science, and pupils are not doing as well as they should as they move through the school. • There is a high proportion of unsatisfactory teaching, basic skills of literacy and numeracy are not taught well and pupils’ learning is hindered as a result. • The school does not have adequate systems for assessing pupils on a regular basis and there is poor monitoring of their progress to check all pupils are doing as well as they should. • There are weaknesses in how the curriculum is planned and organised and in how the school provides for pupils’ spiritual and cultural development, so pupils do not benefit from a broad enough

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What could be improved

curriculum. The areas for improvement will form the basis of the governors’ action plan.

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In accordance with section 13(7) of the Schools Inspection Act 1996 I am of the opinion, and

HMCI agrees, that special measures are required in relation to this school. Newlands Junior School - 7

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HOW THE SCHOOL HAS IMPROVED SINCE ITS LAST INSPECTION

There has been poor improvement since the last inspection in February 1997. There are weaknesses in assessment arrangements, the quality of the curriculum, the leadership role of curriculum co-ordinators, and the provision for pupils’ spiritual development, yet all these were highlighted as weaknesses four years ago. Although standards have improved in line with the national trend, they are still lower than they should be. Standards are lower in several subjects than at the last inspection and pupils’ progress is not as good. The quality of leadership and management is now poor but both were judged as good four years ago. The quality of teaching has also declined. These crucial weaknesses mean the school is unlikely to reach its targets for English and mathematics this year.

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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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Performance in:

1999 2000 2001 2001 English E* D E* E* mathematics E* E E E science E D E E

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Key

well above average A above average B average C below average D well below average E

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Key

* similar schools means schools where the proportion of pupils eligible for free school meals is similar to Newlands Junior School.

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Key

In 2001, the English results were in the bottom five per cent when compared with all schools nationally and also with similar schools. English results have been persistently low over the last few years, apart from 2000. Although the school has a well above average number of pupils with SEN, the standards should be higher. The Year 6 pupils who took the tests in 2001 had below average results in writing and average results in mathematics when they were tested at the end of Year 2. This particular group of pupils made poor progress during their four years in the school, hence their poor results. The findings of this inspection show standards by Year 6 are well below average in speaking and listening and writing. Reading standards are a little better though still below average. Standards are below average in mathematics, science, religious education (RE), music and art and design, and design and technology.

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Key

In history and geography, standards are even lower than this and pupils make poor progress over time. When pupils’ below average standards at the end of Year 2 are taken into account, their progress during the four years at the school is unsatisfactory.

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Aspect Comment

Attitudes to the school Good. Pupils enjoy coming to school. They are loyal and appreciate their school. They persevere well with their work and try hard. Behaviour, in and out of classrooms Very good. Pupils behave very well in lessons and when moving around the school. They enter and leave assemblies very calmly. Personal development and relationships Good. They relate very well to adults in the school and to one another. They accept and value each other’s differences. Boys and girls work well together and they treat all pupils, including those from different ethnic backgrounds, with respect. Attendance Satisfactory. Newlands Junior School - 8

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Teaching of pupils in: Years 3 – 6

Quality of teaching Poor 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: Years 3 – 6

Teaching and learning are poor. In a third of lessons, the teaching was unsatisfactory or poor, which is a very high proportion. A third of teaching was also good but there should have been more good or better teaching. The best teaching was seen in Year 3 and the weakest in Year 5. Half of the English lessons and over a third of mathematics lessons were unsatisfactory. The basic skills of literacy and numeracy are not taught well and this holds back pupils’ learning. Teachers manage pupils well. This helps them to concentrate on what they are learning. In the better lessons, teachers plan carefully, set high expectations for all pupils and vary the activities to keep pupils’ interest. Where teaching is weak, all pupils do the same tasks, which are too easy for the above average pupils and too hard for those with SEN. Teachers do not expect enough of their pupils and are too accepting of low standards and poorly

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Teaching of pupils in: Years 3 – 6

presented work. There is far too much reliance on pupils filling and colouring in commercially produced worksheets which do not help them learn.

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Aspect Comment

The quality and range of the curriculum Unsatisfactory. The curriculum is not balanced and pupils do not cover enough work in some subjects. Literacy and numeracy are not developed well through other subjects. Some subjects do not meet the statutory requirements. Provision for pupils with special educational needs Satisfactory. Many pupils make good progress against their individual targets. They often do well when supported by teaching assistants but make less progress when tasks are not planned appropriately. The school has done very little to prepare for the revised Code of Practice for SEN. Provision for pupils with English as an additional language Satisfactory. The small number who speak English as an additional language are fluent speakers and do not need extra help. They are well integrated. Their learning is hindered in the same way as other pupils when teaching is weak. Provision for pupils’ personal, including spiritual,

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Aspect Comment

moral, social and cultural development There is clear emphasis on moral and social provision; both are good. Spiritual and cultural provision are unsatisfactory. Spiritual provision is not planned and assemblies do not contribute well to this. The arts subjects are underdeveloped and do not support pupils’ spiritual and cultural awareness. Pupils are not prepared well for life in a multi-cultural society. How well the school cares for its pupils Satisfactory. The school places good emphasis on pupils’ health, safety and general welfare. Everyone works hard on this and pupils receive good guidance. The weakness is in how well the school checks pupils’ academic performance. Assessment systems are poor and teachers do not take enough account of what pupils can already do when planning work.

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Aspect Comment

Links with parents are satisfactory. Parents like the school. Newsletters could be more informative and detailed. Parents do not receive enough information about the arrangements for homework. The lack of time spent on religious education, art, design and technology, history, geography and music means that the pupils to not built up the skills they need in a steady way. Newlands Junior School - 9

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Aspect Comment

Leadership and manage- ment by the headteacher and other key staff Poor. The headteacher does not give clear and strategic leadership. There is not enough determination that pupils will work to the best of their ability. The commitment to high standards and successful teamwork is not shared amongst all staff. There is a lack of vision in identifying weaknesses and planning how these will be rectified to improve the school. The co-ordination of subjects is ineffective. How well the governors fulfil their responsibilities Poor. Governors are loyal and supportive but have limited impact on the strategic leadership and management of the school. They rely too much on the headteacher and do not reflect critically upon the effectiveness of the school. The school’s evaluation of its performance Poor. Information from tests is not used effectively. The school does not check whether all pupils make enough progress over time. The

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Aspect Comment

monitoring of teaching has not been effective in improving its quality. The headteacher, senior staff and co-ordinators do not monitor pupils’ work and weaknesses have gone unnoticed. The strategic use of resources Satisfactory. Funding is used appropriately. The finances are well administered and efficient systems are in place. The governors have allowed a substantial budget surplus to build up, which exceeds the recommended limit. They have agreed plans to reduce this to an acceptable level within the next 2 years.

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Aspect Comment

Staffing, accommodation and resources are satisfactory. There is a good computer suite. Library facilities are unsatisfactory and restrict pupils’ learning. There are limited procedures for finding out whether spending has been effective, through helping to raise pupils’ standards for example.

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What pleases parents most What parents would like to see improved

§ Their children like school § They make good progress § The school is well led and managed § Teaching is good § Pupils are expected to work hard § 16 per cent of the parents who filled in the questionnaire would like to see better arrangements for homework § 12 per cent feel they do not receive enough information on their child’s progress § 12 per cent feel the school does not work closely enough with them

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What pleases parents most What parents would like to see improved

The inspection team agrees with parents that pupils enjoy coming to school. Inspection evidence does not support other aspects which parents praised. Inspectors found the school should have a clearer homework policy which is implemented consistently. The team found the school has satisfactory links with parents. Newlands Junior School - 10

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

1. In the 2001 national tests at Year 6, pupils’ standards were very low in English and put the school into the bottom five per cent of schools nationally. In mathematics and science, the pupils’ performance was well below the national averages. When compared with other schools nationally, where a similar proportion of pupils are eligible for free school meals, the results were also very low in English and well below average in mathematics and science. Almost half the pupils in this year group were identified as having special educational needs, which is well above average. Nevertheless, this year group should have done better, considering the results the pupils gained at the end of Year 2, shortly before they entered the school. At this stage, reading results were well below average, writing results were below average and, in mathematics, they were average. This shows that the progress of this particular group of pupils regressed between

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

Year 3 and Year 6 in all areas, and in mathematics and writing in particular.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

2. One reason why the test results were poor in 2001 was the difficulties the school had finding supply teachers for one of the Year 6 classes, to cover a teacher who was absent for a prolonged period, due to illness. The school reports up to 17 supply teachers taught one class, which hindered their learning. Anther important factor was that the school did not have any details on how well these pupils performed in the Year 2 tests; this information only came to light during the inspection. This meant that the underachievement of these Year 6 pupils was not picked up at an early stage by the headteacher and teachers. The staffing situation is now much better and the current Year 6 have had a more stable time, with continuity in teaching.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

3. Over the last few years, English and mathematics results have been persistently low and an analysis of the last five years shows, on average, pupils are about a year behind where they should be in both English and mathematics. In science, they are about two terms behind. Boys do not perform as well as girls in mathematics. The trend in the school’s results shows that they have improved at about the same rate as results nationally but the school’s results are at a much lower level than the national averages.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

4. Inspectors’ judgements show standards are well below average overall. By Year 6, standards in English are well below average. In mathematics and science they are below average. Although this is an improvement upon the previous year, inspection judgements show that pupils should be doing much better than they are and standards should be higher across almost all subjects. The proportion of pupils with SEN is still well above average and they make satisfactory progress but average and higher attaining pupils do not make enough progress because work is not consistently well matched to the pupils’ wide-ranging needs. Standards in information and communication technology (ICT) are average and pupils make satisfactory progress. RE, art and design and music are below average and pupils’ progress is unsatisfactory. Standards in design and technology, history and geography are well below average and progress is poor. There was

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

insufficient evidence of physical education (PE) to make a secure judgement. Pupils’ standards in English, science, history, geography and music have declined since the last inspection four years ago.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

5. Pupils are underachieving as they move through the school from Year 3 to Year 6 and their progress is unsatisfactory. In English, they make poor progress. The main reasons for this underachievement are:

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

• the leadership of the school does not focus sharply enough on pupils’ academic performance and the need to strive for high standards; • there is a high proportion of unsatisfactory teaching, particularly in English and mathematics; • the arrangements for assessing pupils are poor and the school does not have robust systems to check how well pupils are doing over time. Newlands Junior School - 11 6. In English, standards in speaking and listening and writing are well below what is expected by Year 6. Reading standards are below average. Many pupils find it difficult to speak with fluency and use only single words or short phrases when answering questions. Teachers could be doing much more in lessons to develop pupils’ speaking skills, for example, by asking questions which require fuller answers, asking follow-up questions to prompt pupils to speak at greater length and by modelling back correct grammar when pupils slip up. Some pupils read fluently

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

and accurately and are able to talk about the books they are reading successfully. However, many are hesitant when reading and discussing their books. The lack of library facilities hinders pupils’ development of library and research skills. A few higher attainers write well and produce a range of writing in different styles. However, a large number of pupils do not write confidently. They use a very limited vocabulary and their punctuation, spelling and handwriting skills are weak. In mathematics, many pupils make sound progress in building upon their previous learning but lower attaining pupils struggle with very basic number skills, such as using two and five times tables when working out calculations. There are fewer pupils working at the higher Level 5 than would be expected by this stage in the year.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

7. One of the reasons for standards in English being much lower than they should be is that subjects such as history, geography and religious education do not make a strong enough contribution to developing the pupils’ reading and writing skills. Scrutiny of pupils’ books and folders shows that they do not complete enough written work, in a range of forms, and they are given far too many commercial worksheets to fill in and colour, which limit the scope for independent writing.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

8. Pupils with SEN make satisfactory progress towards the targets on their individual educational plans. They often learn well when teaching assistants provide literacy and numeracy support and work with them on tasks planned by the teacher. Pupils with SEN do not make enough progress in subjects such as religious education and science because they are often withdrawn from these lessons to work on reading, writing and spelling. Whilst this supports their literacy skills, it affects the progress they make over time in these other subjects.

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

9. The pupils’ good attitudes to school, both in and out of the classroom, are a strength of the school. Pupils are keen to come to school. They show interest and participate in all activities on offer. Many are eager to talk about their work. They show a spontaneous inclination to be helpful and follow the school rules without the need to be prompted. Pupils respond well in assemblies. They listen carefully and reflect on the main messages.

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

10. The standard of behaviour is very good. Pupils are clear about how they should behave. They are courteous and enter readily into conversation with visitors. In the playground, pupils play well together and show care and concern for the other pupils. They show respect for school property and this is reflected in the absence of any graffiti. Since the last inspection there have been only two fixed period exclusions affecting one pupil.

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

11. Relationships between individual pupils and between pupils and adults are very good. Pupils work together happily when they are asked to work with a partner or in groups. This was seen in a literacy lesson when pupils were asked to think of their own ideas when looking at a text together. Boys and girls mix well together. This is a school where all pupils are included fully in school life, regardless of their backgrounds or difficulties.

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

12. Pupils accept responsibilities readily and complete any tasks they are given conscientiously. They take pride in this and can be relied upon by the adults in the school. This is well illustrated by the way pupils help in assemblies with preparing the hall, managing the overhead projector and playing the music for entry and exit. After dinner, pupils happily clear the chairs or help with taking rubbish outside. Pupils are also very willing to help in lessons, for instance they shut down computers at the end of lessons. A weakness is the lack of care and attention many pupils give to their written work. This is often untidily presented; pupils make careless errors and do not take enough care with their handwriting. Newlands Junior School - 12 13. Pupils with SEN and those who speak English as an additional language have positive attitudes to school and behave well in lessons. Pupils with SEN respond particularly well when they

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

receive additional adult support to help them learn.

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

14. Attendance at the school is satisfactory and in line with the national average. Almost all absences are accounted for. Pupils arrive at school on time, which means that there is an orderly and purposeful start to the day.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS OR STUDENTS TAUGHT?

15. The quality of teaching and learning is poor. This judgement is based not only on lessons observed during the inspection but on evidence from inspectors’ scrutiny of pupils’ books and folders. Teaching ranges from very good to poor and there are two distinct extremes. In the lessons seen, whilst just over a third of teaching was good or better, a third was also unsatisfactory and a very small proportion poor. This represents a decline in teaching since the last inspection. Unsatisfactory teaching was observed in all year groups. The high proportion of weak teaching is having a detrimental effect upon pupils’ standards and their progress. Half of English lessons and well over a third of mathematics lessons were judged unsatisfactory during the inspection. This shows that the pupils are not learning the important skills of literacy and numeracy in a steady and assured way. Scrutiny of pupils’ work shows that other subjects do

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS OR STUDENTS TAUGHT?

not make enough contribution to developing pupils’ literacy and numeracy skills. Similarly, computers are not used enough to support pupils’ learning across different subjects. There was very little evidence of pupils using computers, for example, in mathematics, science and geography. Teachers do not plan opportunities to develop these important basic skills across the different subjects of the curriculum.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS OR STUDENTS TAUGHT?

16. Teaching in English is poor. In mathematics and science, teaching is unsatisfactory and it is satisfactory in ICT. There is insufficient evidence to make a secure judgement on teaching in other subjects.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS OR STUDENTS TAUGHT?

17. Almost all teachers manage pupils effectively. They establish good relationships with them and this helps to promote trust and respect. Where teaching is good or better, teachers plan different tasks for pupils, according to their capabilities. In a Year 3 mathematics lesson on sorting data, for example, the teacher planned challenging work for the higher attaining pupils. By the end of the lesson they had a good understanding of Carroll diagrams and were able to place three-digit numbers correctly in different quadrants, according to their attributes. At the same time, lower attaining pupils had an easier task sorting odd and even numbers greater and less than five. This careful planning meant that all pupils learned to use different criteria when sorting data.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS OR STUDENTS TAUGHT?

18. Another characteristic of good lessons is when teachers use questions skilfully to challenge pupils and probe their thinking. In the most successful cases, teachers phrase questions carefully and give pupils time to think and respond. In a Year 6 English lesson, for example, the teacher asked a series of good questions, which made pupils look carefully at a text to find out whether there was an element of ‘half-truth’ or bias. Through this, pupils were helped to identify phrases and stylistic devices which gave them greater insight into how writing is adapted for different purposes. In a very successful Year 3 personal and social education (PSHE) lesson, the teacher helped pupils to think about aspects of racism through asking good questions to bring out their thoughts. Through her quiet manner, she gave pupils confidence and encouraged them to reflect. As a result, they were able to put themselves in the position of a child being

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS OR STUDENTS TAUGHT?

victimised and share their own thoughts and experiences.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS OR STUDENTS TAUGHT?

19. Several teachers plan opportunities for pupils to work in pairs and small groups to break up the lesson and keep pupils’ attention and interest. There were several instances when this was effective. In a Year 4 science lesson, the pupils worked in groups to make a circuit and operate a buzzer. They worked productively and were keen to solve the problem that they had been set. The teacher stopped the pupils at one point and chose a group to demonstrate what they had done. This was effective in prompting the other pupils to try even harder to complete the task. In Newlands Junior School - 13 a Year 3 RE lesson, pupils had several opportunities to share their thoughts with a partner before coming to a decision. This lesson made a good contribution to pupils’ social awareness. For example, the teacher at one point prompted one pupil who immediately put up his hand to consider his partner’s view before responding on behalf of both of them.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS OR STUDENTS TAUGHT?

20. There are some strengths in the teaching of pupils with SEN. When working in classrooms with pupils with SEN, teaching assistants often provide good support, enabling them to learn appropriately. Teaching is often good for these pupils when there is joint planning between the teaching assistant and the teacher. In these situations, the pupils with SEN are working on the same subject matter as other pupils in the class, yet the additional support and encouragement helps them to achieve the task and learn more effectively. Pupils with SEN do not learn as effectively when they undertake the same tasks as other pupils and often find it hard to complete work.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS OR STUDENTS TAUGHT?

21. Where teaching is unsatisfactory, the following characteristics hinder pupils’ learning and hold them back:

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS OR STUDENTS TAUGHT?

• Lessons are not well planned. There is insufficient focus on what pupils of differing abilities will learn during the lesson. In a Year 3 lesson, for example, lower attaining pupils were working on a writing task on poems that tell a story. Although they had support from a teaching assistant, the teacher had not planned how these pupils could be supported to help them structure their writing so that they could succeed. This meant lower attaining pupils struggled and did not work productively. In a Year 5 literacy lesson on the features of fables, the teacher did not focus enough on the main learning objective which meant that pupils were confused and did not make enough headway in learning about fables. In a Year 5 mathematics lesson, the lower attaining pupils did not work on a task that was related to the main learning objective. Instead, they worked on tables so missed out on the opportunity to learn about area, which was the main point

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS OR STUDENTS TAUGHT?

of the lesson. • Teachers’ expectations are too low. They set work that is not challenging enough for the pupils and teachers are too happy with mediocre standards. In a Year 5 literacy lesson, for example, pupils of all abilities were working on a task involving looking for words with very simple combinations of letters, which was at far too low a level for this age. Consequently, the pupils were slow to respond and very few contributed to the teacher’s questions. Many found the work too easy so they did not work hard. As a result, they completed little work. In a Year 3 science lesson on magnets and springs, the higher attaining pupils were restricted by having to undertake the same activity as the other pupils when they could have done a more demanding task. • Teachers do not use a broad enough range of teaching methods to vary learning and inspire their pupils. They spend too much time talking themselves, for example, which

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS OR STUDENTS TAUGHT?

restricts the opportunities for pupils to contribute. This happened in a Year 6 geography lesson where the pupils had to sit for a prolonged period without the opportunity to take part. Several pupils lost interest and started fidgeting. By the time they started their main task, many had lost enthusiasm so they did not work productively. Similarly, in a Year 5 science lesson, the first half of the lesson was heavily directed by the teacher and there was very little opportunity for pupils to take some responsibility for their learning, or to contribute ideas.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS OR STUDENTS TAUGHT?

22. Scrutiny of pupils’ books from each year group and each subject showed several weaknesses in teaching. In most subjects, pupils of all abilities do similar work. In science, for example, teachers to not expect higher attaining pupils to do more complex tasks and explore different methods of presenting their work. In history and geography, the work set for higher and lower attaining pupils is almost always identical. Teachers rely too much on commercially produced worksheets, which often require the pupils to do very little other than filling in words and colouring. This is particularly the case in history, geography and RE. Almost all the work in RE folders falls into this category and pupils do very little independent writing. Work in these three subjects show that too many teachers have low expectations of their pupils and they do not cover enough work. Analysis of the work covered by higher attaining pupils in geography in

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS OR STUDENTS TAUGHT?

Newlands Junior School - 14 Years 3 to 6 shows that during these three and half years, pupils completed fewer than ten pages of independently written work, the remainder was worksheets. In history, and RE, pupils complete very little recorded work in most years. In Year 3, for example, one pupil’s book contained only two pieces of written work and one picture, for a unit of work that spanned 15 hours. In Year 4, another above average pupil only produced four lines of writing when his test results showed he was clearly capable of much more. The quality of marking is often poor. In Year 5, for instance, a pupil whose writing standards were above average on entry to the school wrote one sentence that was ungrammatical and received the comment “Good effort.”

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS OR STUDENTS TAUGHT?

23. In many lessons, teachers do not enthuse and energise the pupils and there is a distinct lack of zest and joy for learning. The significant weaknesses in the quality of teaching are directly affecting the pupils’ progress over time and are a crucial factor in standards being lower than they should.

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STUDENTS?

24. The learning opportunities offered to pupils are unsatisfactory. The curriculum is not sufficiently broad and balanced. Pupils do not cover all the aspects that are necessary to comply with the statutory requirements. These are not met in religious education, history, geography, art and design and music. There has been insufficient improvement in remedying the weaknesses that were identified at the last inspection. The deputy headteacher, who was appointed just over a year ago, has worked hard on improving the way the curriculum is planned. She has worked with teachers on the overall curriculum plan to decide which units of work will be taught each term, across the four years that pupils are in the school. However, there is still much to be done. The quality of planning varies widely across the school and some year groups produce better quality plans than others. Planning does not take enough account of the differing needs

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STUDENTS?

and abilities of pupils. Too often, all pupils cover the same work, irrespective of their abilities. Furthermore, planning does not always follow on from year to year and, as a result, pupils are sometimes taught skills they have learned in earlier years. Most year groups plan together so that pupils within the same year group receive the same learning opportunities. However this does not happen in Year 4. Taken together, these weaknesses in planning mean there are gaps in how pupils develop knowledge and skills.

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STUDENTS?

25. The provision for learning computer skills has improved since the last inspection and is now satisfactory. All pupils are provided with sufficient time to learn computer skills through lessons in the ICT suite. However the teachers do not plan how computers will be used to support pupils’ learning in different subjects, such as mathematics, science, geography or history.

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STUDENTS?

26. Most pupils, including those with English as an additional language, have full access to the curriculum. However, some pupils with SEN are withdrawn from lessons a good deal, for extra support, and they miss out on some subjects. For example during the inspection one pupil was withdrawn from the only RE lesson, and another from the only science lesson that week.

p.14

STUDENTS?

27. The National Literacy and Numeracy Strategies have been implemented in the past two years but not effectively. They have not yet begun to raise standards in English and mathematics because the training and support for both strategies has not led to effective teaching. In both English and mathematics, work is not consistently matched to the different ability groups within the class. Literacy and numeracy are not sufficiently highlighted within the curriculum plans and teachers are not aware of how these basic skills should be developed across all subjects.

p.14

STUDENTS?

28. The curriculum is not appropriately balanced. Adequate time is allocated for numeracy and science but a high proportion of time is allocated to English which has not led to higher standards in English. This affects the time that is given to other subjects. Religious education, design and technology, history, geography and music are not given enough curriculum time and pupils complete very little work in these subjects. This is partly why standards in these subjects are lower than they should be. Newlands Junior School - 15 29. Arrangements for sex and drugs education are satisfactory. However, there are weaknesses in the planning for PSHE. There is no overall plan and no co-ordinator to lead and monitor this important aspect. Some successful PSHE lessons were seen during the inspection, which were having a marked impact upon pupils’ personal development, but much is left to individual teachers to plan what will be taught. Consequently, there is no coherent oversight of this aspect

p.14

STUDENTS?

of the curriculum. The school acknowledges this is a weakness and there are plans to remedy the situation but they have not yet been put into effect.

p.15

STUDENTS?

30. The range of additional activities, including provision for sporting activities and visits, is satisfactory. The school has limited links with the community and has been unable to attract significant funds or assistance from the commercial organisations and industries in the local area. Pupils’ social awareness is supported appropriately through community links, particularly through visitors, such as the local police, who come into school to help with the drugs education programme. Visiting theatre groups come into school to enhance pupils’ experiences and support learning in science and geography. There are visits to some places of interest, such as a local activity centre, and Year 6 pupils participate in a residential trip to develop geographical, scientific and physical skills. However, more use could be made of visits and visitors to bring subjects such as geography, history and religious education alive for pupils.

p.15

STUDENTS?

31. The school works well with the local family of schools, particularly in relation to SEN. Strong links are in place to support developments in SEN and there is good liaison and support from outside agencies, particularly for pupils with medical or behavioural needs, which helps to ensure these pupils are fully included in the life of the school.

p.15

STUDENTS?

32. The pastoral needs of pupils are well catered for as useful information is exchanged between schools. However, there is a weakness in the school’s partnership with the first school. The school has not obtained enough information on pupils’ academic standards before they start the junior school in Year 3. This has meant teachers have not known enough about the pupils’ capabilities and what they need to plan for pupils to help them improve their knowledge and skills further.

p.15

STUDENTS?

33. The quality of provision the school makes for spiritual development is unsatisfactory and has not improved since the last inspection. All assemblies meet the requirements for worship but they do not play a prominent enough part in fostering pupils’ wider spiritual development. Many of the themes support pupils’ moral and social development but not enough attention is directed towards the spiritual dimension. The curriculum plans do not highlight opportunities for spiritual development and, even within the religious education curriculum, opportunities are missed to develop this aspect. They are not encouraged enough to reflect on important issues, celebrate the wonder that is apparent in many subjects and aspects of school life, and come to their own personal beliefs and values.

p.15

STUDENTS?

34. Moral provision is good. Pupils have a well developed sense of right and wrong. The school’s ethos and the positive role models presented by staff and other adults create a good context for pupils to develop their moral values. These are well reflected in the school’s code for behaviour, which spells out clearly the pupils’ rights and responsibilities. Pupils are appropriately involved in reflecting on what is right and wrong, through discussion of their own class rules. PSHE lessons are used sensitively to help pupils discuss and reflect on topics with a moral theme.

p.15

STUDENTS?

35. Provision for pupils' social development is good. This is often reflected in the spontaneity with which pupils are prepared to work together for instance during literacy lessons, when they compare different styles of persuasive writing. Many teachers provide regular opportunities for pupils to work with a partner or in small groups helping them to relate to one another and build a sense of teamwork. Pupils have plenty of opportunities to take on a range of responsibilities, for example to act as monitors when putting resources away at the end of lessons, or taking charge of the music and the overhead projector in assemblies.

p.15

STUDENTS?

36. The school's provision for pupils' cultural development is unsatisfactory. Subjects like music and art do not make a strong enough contribution to this aspect. The need for pupils to develop their Newlands Junior School - 16 understanding and appreciation of other cultures was pinpointed as a weakness at the last inspection and this aspect has not improved enough over the last four years. There are no planned opportunities to expose pupils to the richness of multicultural Britain through curriculum planning, resources and extra curricular opportunities, including using the Internet or establishing contacts with other schools that are more ethnically mixed. Pupils are not being adequately prepared for life in a multi-cultural society. Their knowledge about the beliefs, values and traditions of other cultures is weak because this is not developed sufficiently. This is a gap in their personal development.

p.15

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

37. The provision for the support and welfare of pupils is good and this is a strong aspect of the school. There is a well-sustained ethos of care in the school and a friendly atmosphere, which is appreciated by parents and pupils. Teachers know their pupils well. They work closely with them to cultivate the very good relationships which abound.

p.16

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

38. Procedures for monitoring and promoting behaviour are very good. Almost all teachers have high expectations of good behaviour so little time is lost in bringing classes to order. Throughout the school, the behaviour policy is well followed and guidelines in the staff handbook encourage staff to foster good manners and a sense of self-discipline amongst pupils. On the relatively few occasions when behaviour is not acceptable, staff act quickly and effectively.

p.16

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

39. Procedures for monitoring good attendance are satisfactory. Many parents inform the school when pupils are going to be absent. Where this is not the case, staff are efficient in contacting parents. Attendance is monitored by appropriate use of statistical data.

p.16

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

40. Procedures for child protection and promoting pupils’ well-being and health and safety are good. The school follows agreed guidelines on child protection and the staff know their responsibilities. The staff and governors make routine checks of the premises and equipment and defects are dealt with efficiently. Accidents and injuries are treated promptly, careful records are kept and parents informed when necessary.

p.16

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

41. The provision for supporting and monitoring pupils’ personal development is satisfactory. Through lessons such as science and PSHE, pupils learn how to keep themselves healthy and safe. However, this is not sufficiently co-ordinated and monitored so it is unclear whether all topics are appropriately covered at each age.

p.16

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

42. The school’s systems for assessing how well pupils are doing are weak. Until recently, the school has not gathered enough information on how well each pupil has done in the national tests at the end of Year 2, shortly before they start the junior school. This means the senior management team and teachers have been unaware of the standards pupils have already reached. Without this information, it is difficult to know whether pupils are making enough progress as they move through each year towards Year 6. The school does keep some information from standard tests that are carried out and this is used appropriately to place the pupils in ability groups for English and mathematics. The main weakness is that the school does not assess and record pupils’ performance in relation to the National Curriculum levels for each subject, on a regular basis. There are no systems in place to monitor pupils’ academic

p.16

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

progress carefully, to make sure all pupils are working at the correct level for their age and, more importantly, to check that they have made enough progress from the last time they were assessed. There is no system, for example, for setting targets for each pupil so that teachers can monitor their progress as they move through the year. Targets for writing have recently been introduced but these are at an early stage and have not yet had a chance to influence pupils’ standards of work.

p.16

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

43. The school has made poor progress in improving the school’s assessment procedures, which was highlighted as an important weakness at the last inspection four years ago. The weaknesses in assessment are a crucial reason for pupils not achieving as well as they should. Newlands Junior School - 17 44. All pupils with special educational have good quality individual educational plans which contain relevant individual targets to support the development of literacy and numeracy as well as their personal development. These are reviewed on a termly basis to determine the progress pupils have made and to set new targets for learning. Good records are maintained by the SEN co- ordinator to show the progress pupils make towards their targets. There are insufficient systems within the school for diagnosing pupils’ specific learning difficulties in English or mathematics.

p.16

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

45. The school has satisfactory links with parents. Most parents find it easy to come into school if they have a concern. The school has the support of many parents, including those of pupils with SEN. On the whole, parents find it easy to approach teachers with matters concerning their child’s progress although a few parents report cases of some teachers not being approachable and responsive when they are seeking information or reassurance. Parents are very satisfied with the work their children do and the progress they make. Their main concerns are the arrangements for setting homework and the lack of information provided by the school about homework. They report that homework is set inconsistently and they are not clear what should be happening. The inspectors found that homework is very variable. Teachers are not consistent in how often they set homework and how much they expect pupils to do.

p.17

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

46. The quality of information in general for parents is unsatisfactory. Newsletters are brief and often repetitive. The school prospectus gives some helpful information, especially for new parents, but does not contain sufficient information about the topics that are being covered. This makes it difficult for parents who wish to support their children’s learning at home. The governing body’s annual report to parents, though interesting, contains information which is not accurate, particularly on pupils’ assessment. Pupils’ annual reports are satisfactory on balance. In some subject reports, there are few indications of what pupils need to do to improve.

p.17

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

47. On balance, the extent to which parents are involved in the life of the school and their children’s learning is satisfactory. The school has satisfactory arrangements for drawing up home-school agreements. There is a small core of parents who can be relied upon to help in school, in class and on school activities, such as swimming and school visits. This helps to support pupils’ learning and their social development. An active Friends of Newlands association organises school events to raise valued funds and helps to foster the bond between home and school. The school makes appropriate arrangements for parents’ evenings. Pupils’ reading diaries are well maintained and provide a good link between home and school. They are used well in all classes by teachers and teaching assistants. They also provide an opportunity for parents to comment on their children’s progress, although this does not often happen.

p.17

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

48. Parents are informed of the targets which have been set for pupils with SEN, but are not fully consulted when targets are being developed. However, there are good opportunities for parents to participate in the termly reviews of their children’s individual education plans.

p.17

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

49. The leadership of the school is poor. The school is a caring community and pupils’ welfare and happiness is at the heart of everyone’s work. There is an appropriate emphasis on valuing and including others, regardless of their backgrounds or difficulties, and pupils with SEN; those who speak English as an additional language are well integrated. However, whilst aspects of care are strong, there is a lack of rigour in striving for high standards. The headteacher does not ensure there is a clear focus on pupils’ academic standards and that all teachers are committed to this. Pupils’ progress has not been monitored tightly enough and, as a result, they are not reaching the standards they should and are underachieving whilst they move through the school. For example, it is only very recently that the senior staff have obtained information on pupils’ standards when they start school in Year 3, so that they can be sure all pupils are make steady

p.17

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

progress. Information on how well the pupils currently in Years 5 and 6 performed in comparison with national averages, when at the end of Year 2, was only acquired during the inspection. There is no system in place that tracks pupils’ attainment in relation to National Curriculum Newlands Junior School - 18 levels from the time they enter the school to the time they reach the end of Year 6. The school is at a very early stage in using the information from national assessments and tests to help raise standards.

p.17

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

50. The headteacher does not give a clear, strategic guide to the school’s work. The way the school goes about identifying weaknesses and planning steps to improve is ineffective. The priorities in the current school improvement plan are appropriate: raising writing standards; developing teaching and learning; and improving how the curriculum is planned are all aspects that do need improving. However, progress has been slow with all three of these because there has not been clear and determined leadership to bring about improvements in a structured and systematic way. There are no identified targets in the school improvement plan to ensure implementation of the new revised Code of Practice for SEN from this coming September and to prepare teachers adequately for their new responsibilities for SEN. As a result, progress in preparing for this important change has also been too slow.

p.18

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

51. Another example of the lack of strategic direction is that several of the most important weaknesses that were highlighted as key issues at the last inspection remain weaknesses. These relate to the curriculum, the assessment of pupils, developing the role of curriculum co- ordinators and improving the provision for pupils’ spiritual development. The headteacher does not monitor the effectiveness of the school well. The headteacher’s own evaluation of the school, prepared for the inspection team, presents a better picture than is actually the case. The headteacher stated pupils achieved well, for example, yet this is unsatisfactory. He assessed the quality of teaching as good but inspection evidence shows teaching is poor, with just over a third of lessons judged unsatisfactory or poor.

p.18

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

52. There are significant weaknesses in the management of the school. The role of the subject co- ordinators has not been developed and their leadership role is poor. They have not been expected or enabled to oversee standards in their subject across all classes and year groups. For example, they do not collect in books on a regular basis and check that the National Curriculum is being covered and that pupils are building steadily upon what they learn in previous terms and years. Neither do they have any opportunity to observe teaching in their subjects. The deputy headteacher has been in post just over a year and has taken on responsibility for curriculum planning. She has made a good start in identifying where improvements are needed and set up a shared approach to planning across the school. She is aware of some of the weaknesses facing the school and, with the headteacher, is keen to see improvement. However, the headteacher and deputy headteacher do not meet regularly, other

p.18

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

than on an informal basis, and this hinders school improvement and development. Although there have been several changes in staff, subject co-ordination has not been well managed. One senior member of staff is overloaded, with responsibility for literacy, assessment and special educational needs. It is only recently that all subjects have been assigned a co-ordinator but the staff have very little idea of their role and responsibilities and how to go about leading their subjects. This lack of effective subject co-ordination has had a detrimental effect on pupils’ standards. There is a well-established system for monitoring the quality of teaching, which is carried out by the headteacher but this has not been effective in eliminating the unsatisfactory or poor teaching.

p.18

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

53. The SEN co-ordinator provides unsatisfactory leadership. She works hard to develop systems of support in the school for the SEN pupils. She maintains good relationships and supports teachers and teaching assistants well. However, she has a full teaching timetable and does not have enough time to improve the provision for the many pupils with SEN. She has limited knowledge of diagnostic testing, to identify pupils with specific learning difficulties, and she is not fully aware of computer programs to enhance basic skills for pupils with learning difficulties. She keeps good records of pupils’ progress against their individual education plan targets. However, she does not monitor the quality of teaching and learning for pupils with SEN to ensure they do not miss out on learning opportunities and that teachers plan work that meets their differing needs. Newlands Junior School - 19 54. The governing body provides poor leadership. Governors rely too much on the information that

p.18

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

the headteacher gives them without examining for themselves whether the school is effective. They do not have robust enough systems in place for evaluating the work of the school, such as the curriculum provision, the pupils’ standards and the quality of the teaching and learning. The governing body has not ensured that the key issues and other weaknesses from the last inspection report have been dealt with satisfactorily. As a result, many of these are still very much in evidence and are having a detrimental effect upon pupils’ standards and the progress they make over time.

p.19

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

55. The school controls its finances satisfactorily and governors monitor the financial situation regularly. The school administrator is efficient and supports the headteacher and governors well, providing regular and up to date financial information at every meeting of the finance committee. Special grants are used appropriately, including the additional funds for SEN pupils and to develop computer facilities in the school. However, over the years the school has acquired a large budget surplus which exceeds the recommended limit. The governors and headteacher have put suitable plans in place to reduce this underspend and bring it within the recommended limit within two years.

p.19

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

56. The headteacher and governors understand the need to seek the best value when buying goods and services. They do not, however, reflect on the school’s spending patterns by comparing costs and outcomes with other schools locally and nationally. Governors have not taken suitable steps to evaluate the impact of their decisions on spending and to determine whether they have been effective and had a positive effect upon pupils’ standards and the progress they make.

p.19

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

57. Staff make good use of new technology to support school administration. As a result of the staff training programme for ICT, many teachers access the Internet and use computers frequently, to help them plan lessons and prepare materials.

p.19

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

58. The school is adequately staffed with teachers and there is a good number of teaching assistants. However, there have been considerable difficulties in recruiting teachers for full-time and temporary contracts. Last year, the school had to use a large number of supply teachers to cover a teacher’s absence and this affected the progress of some Year 6 pupils. Arrangements for staff training are unsatisfactory. Teachers, including those who are newly-qualified, do not receive enough ongoing support to help them plan for the wide range of abilities in their class and improve their teaching skills. The need to develop the role of subject co-ordinators has not been addressed. Moreover, there is too much reliance on buying in commercially produced management materials which are not sufficiently tailored to the teachers’ specific needs. These are inappropriate, given the co-ordinators’ lack of experience in leading their subjects and their

p.19

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

lack of awareness of their responsibilities.

p.19

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

59. The school has a team of hard working and dedicated teaching assistants, who are well briefed by the SEN co-ordinator. They often have a positive impact upon pupils’ learning. The school’s approach to performance management is unsatisfactory. Appropriate procedures are in place but the programme is not effective because it has had little impact on improving the quality of teaching and learning or raising standards.

p.19

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

60. Provision for learning resources in the school is satisfactory overall, although there are some weaknesses. The school has effectively used specific grants to purchase enough computers to equip a good ICT suite and this is having a positive impact on the development of pupils’ computer skills. There are limited resources for art, history, geography, music and RE. The school library is located in a corridor and the facilities are unsatisfactory. It is too small and is not used sufficiently by pupils for research or to support reading for pleasure. This was confirmed during the inspection when pupils demonstrated poor knowledge of library skills. The majority of classrooms are spacious enough, with the exception of the fourth teaching area in Year 6, which is too cramped. The school is fortunate to have spacious outdoor play facilities including a large playing field, which is well used throughout the year.

p.19

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

Newlands Junior School - 20 Newlands Junior School - 21

p.20

WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

In order to raise standards across the curriculum, particularly in English, mathematics and science, and to improve pupils’ progress, the governors, headteacher, senior staff and teachers should:

p.21

WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

(1) Improve the leadership and management of the school, by:

p.21

WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

• ensuring the headteacher, deputy headteacher and strategic management team establish a vision for the school that has raising academic standards and improving the quality of teaching and learning at its heart; • devising a school improvement plan to which governors, senior staff and teachers all contribute, in terms of its implementation, monitoring, evaluation and success; • strengthening the strategic role of the governing body in monitoring and evaluating the effectiveness of the school; • reducing the budget surplus to bring it back into line with recommended limit within two years; • establishing a leadership role for all subject co-ordinators, supported by a relevant training programme, to ensure they have rigorous oversight of standards, progress and provision in their subjects; • ensuring the balance of responsibilities for senior staff is more even.

p.21

WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

(2) Improve the quality of teaching and learning, particularly in English, mathematics and science, raise the percentage of good or better teaching and eliminate unsatisfactory teaching, by:

p.21

WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

• putting in place a substantial training programme for teachers to improve their teaching skills, particularly in literacy and numeracy, and raise their awareness of how to make learning more effective; • improving the monitoring of teaching so that is focuses rigorously on the criteria for effective teaching and learning; • ensuring that all teachers accommodate the needs of pupils of all abilities in lessons, particularly the higher attainers and those with special educational needs

p.21

WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

The need to improve teaching and learning is a priority in the school improvement plan.

p.21

WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

(3) Improve the effectiveness of the arrangements for assessing pupils, by:

p.21

WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

• setting up structured and consistent procedures for assessing pupils against National Curriculum levels (and the requirements of the RE locally agreed syllabus) for all subjects; • providing training for teachers to help them know the standard of work they should expect of pupils of varying abilities at each age; • monitoring pupils’ standards and progress as they move through each year; • ensuring teachers use the information from assessments to set targets and to plan effective work for pupils of all abilities, based upon what they already know and can do.

p.21

WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

(See paragraphs 2, 22, 42-43 and 49.) Newlands Junior School - 22 (4) Improve the breadth and balance of the curriculum by:

p.21

WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

• ensuring the statutory requirements are met in all subjects, and that RE planning covers the requirements of the locally agreed syllabus; • checking there is an appropriate balance across subjects and that teachers are clear how much time should be allocated to each; • improving the quality and consistency of the medium-term planning so that the planning in each year groups supports the gradual development of pupils’ skills, knowledge and understanding across all subjects; • ensuring all pupils have full access to the curriculum; • highlighting the scope for developing pupils’ literacy and numeracy skills through the range of subjects and showing how ICT will contribute to learning; • strengthening the school’s provision for the creative and expressive arts and pupils’ spiritual and cultural development.

p.22

WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

(See paragraphs 24-29, 33, 36 and 63.) Newlands Junior School - 23

p.22

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Summary of the sources of evidence for the inspection

p.23

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Number of discussions with staff, governors, other adults and pupils 26

p.23

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Summary of teaching observed during the inspection

p.23

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Excellent Very good Good Satisfactory Unsatisfactor y Poor Very Poor

p.23

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

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.23

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Number of pupils on the school’s roll (FTE for part-time pupils) 200

p.23

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Number of full-time pupils known to be eligible for free school meals 59

p.23

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Number of pupils with statements of special educational needs 0

p.23

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Number of pupils on the school’s special educational needs register 76

p.23

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

English as an additional language No of pupils

p.23

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Number of pupils with English as an additional language 2

p.23

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Pupil mobility in the last school year No of pupils

p.23

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Pupils who joined the school other than at the usual time of first admission 8

p.23

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Pupils who left the school other than at the usual time of leaving 7

p.23

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

National comparative data 5.6 National comparative data 0.5

p.23

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Both tables give the percentage of half days (sessions) missed through absence for the latest complete reporting year. Newlands Junior School - 24 Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2 (Year 6) Year Boys Girls Total

p.23

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Number of registered pupils in final year of Key Stage 2 for the latest reporting year 2001 30 28 58

p.24

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

National Curriculum Test/Task Results English Mathematics Science

p.24

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Boys 9 11 20 Numbers of pupils at NC level 4 and above Girls 16 13 24

p.24

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Percentage of pupils School 43 (62) 41 (51) 76 (70) at NC level 4 or above National 75 (75) 71 (72) 87 (85)

p.24

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Teachers’ Assessments English Mathematics Science

p.24

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Boys 7 11 13 Numbers of pupils at NC level 4 and above Girls 18 20 22

p.24

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Percentage of pupils School 43 (57) 54 (55) 60 (68) at NC level 4 or above National 72 (70) 74 (72) 82 (79)

p.24

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

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

p.24

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

p.24

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Black – Caribbean heritage 0 Black – Caribbean heritage 0 0

p.24

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Black – African heritage 0 Black – African heritage 0 0

p.24

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Any other minority ethnic group 2 Other minority ethnic groups 0 0

p.24

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

This table refers to pupils of compulsory school age only. This table gives the number of exclusions of pupils of compulsory school age, which may be different from the number of pupils excluded. Newlands Junior School - 25 Teachers and classes Financial information

p.24

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Total number of qualified teachers (FTE) 9 Financial year 2000-2001

p.25

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Number of pupils per qualified teacher 22.1

p.25

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Education support staff: Y3 – Y6 Total income 420,856

p.25

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Total number of education support staff 4 Total expenditure 414,092

p.25

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Total aggregate hours worked per week 98 Expenditure per pupil 1,908

p.25

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

FTE means full-time equivalent. Balance brought forward from previous year 35,841

p.25

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Balance carried forward to next year 42,605

p.25

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Number of teachers who left the school during the last two years 3

p.25

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Number of teachers appointed to the school during the last two years 4

p.25

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Total number of vacant teaching posts (FTE) 0

p.25

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Number of vacancies filled by teachers on temporary contract of a term or more (FTE) 0

p.25

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

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

p.25

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

FTE means full-time equivalent. Newlands Junior School - 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. 60 36 2 0 2

p.26

Percentage of responses in each category

Behaviour in the school is good. 48 48 2 0 2

p.26

Percentage of responses in each category

My child gets the right amount of work to do at home. 48 36 14 2 0

p.26

Percentage of responses in each category

I am kept well informed about how my child is getting on. 51 37 10 2 0

p.26

Percentage of responses in each category

I would feel comfortable about approaching the school with questions or a problem. 79 17 2 2 0

p.26

Percentage of responses in each category

The school expects my child to work hard and achieve his or her best. 74 24 2 0 0

p.26

Percentage of responses in each category

The school works closely with parents. 54 32 12 0 2

p.26

Percentage of responses in each category

The school is well led and managed. 67 26 0 0 0

p.26

Percentage of responses in each category

The school is helping my child become mature and responsible. 62 29 7 0 2

p.26

Percentage of responses in each category

The school provides an interesting range of activities outside lessons. 52 36 5 2 5 Newlands Junior School - 27

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ENGLISH

61. Standards are too low and pupils make poor progress as they move up the school, mainly because of the high proportion of unsatisfactory teaching and the lack of a coherent system for assessing and monitoring their progress. There has been insufficient progress in raising standards since the last inspection.

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ENGLISH

62. Pupils’ attainment in speaking and listening is well below the national average by Year 6. Whilst pupils listen well during lessons, their speaking skills are weak. Their responses are tentative and short. Few pupils develop their ideas, speak at length or use a good range of vocabulary. Some good examples were seen where pupils were asked to work together and share ideas. This clearly helped to develop their speaking skills. However, there are no planned opportunities for pupils to listen and speak actively across the curriculum, for instance through structured discussions, role play or drama and presenting work to others, in assembly for example. The lack of a scheme of work and assessment procedures for this important aspect of English means that the majority of pupils make poor progress. The weak speaking skills are also a factor in pupils’ writing standards, which are also low.

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ENGLISH

63. Standards in reading by Year 6 are below average. The above average and some average pupils read fluently and accurately. They talk about the plot and compare what they are reading with what they have read previously. They express their preferences with reasonable confidence and some can justify their choices. However, a greater proportion of pupils read more hesitantly than is often the case by Year 6. They find it difficult to cope with relatively unfamiliar words and are much less forthcoming when invited to comment on aspects such as the plot or the characters in their books. They find it hard to express their preferences or to consider what the author is implying beyond the literal meaning. Progress for most pupils is unsatisfactory. In some guided reading sessions there are no specific objectives for the activity which means pupils to not make clear progress in their learning. There is no overall agreed system for using assessment

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ENGLISH

information systematically to set clear targets. In some year groups, books are not always well matched to pupils’ reading ability; they are either too hard or too easy. Library skills are poorly developed. Discussion with pupils indicates that opportunities for them to use books to research topics are limited. There has not been any improvement since the last inspection school in library facilities and this still inhibits opportunities for pupils to develop their research and independent reading skills. Within the range of books, there are very few examples of resources which promote positive images of black people, women and other cultures.

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ENGLISH

64. Attainment in writing by Year 6 is well below average. A few higher attainers write extensively and produce a range of writing in different genres, including character descriptions, diary entries and playscripts. These pupils use their drafting and redrafting well and are beginning to write coherently in paragraphs. However a high proportion lack confidence and understanding to produce work that uses rich vocabulary or is written in a way that captures and holds the reader’s attention. Pupils’ spelling, handwriting and presentation are poor with many still unable to write in a joined script. The school has identified writing as an area of weakness and has extended opportunities to develop these skills but there is limited evidence of teachers using a range of strategies to improve standards. There were some good examples, such as teachers modelling good writing themselves, which was beginning to have a positive impact, especially in

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ENGLISH

Year 6. However, the inconsistency in the quality of teaching and the high proportion of unsatisfactory teaching mean that improvement is very uneven. This is especially the case in Years 3, 4 and 5, where provision is weakest. The marking of written work is not effective and not focused enough on guiding pupils to improve their work.

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ENGLISH

65. The quality of teaching varies widely between very good and unsatisfactory. Teaching is poor overall. Whilst half of lessons are good or better, half are unsatisfactory and this is far too high a proportion. Evidence from the scrutiny of pupils’ work also shows serious weaknesses in the quality of teaching. Where teaching is good or very good, learning objectives are thoroughly Newlands Junior School - 28 rehearsed with the pupils, to focus their attention on what they will be doing. They are revisited at the end to check that pupils understand and to help them remember what they have learned. In the best lessons, teachers use effective questioning to consolidate pupils’ understanding. This happened in a lesson looking at specific features of texts to see how the author had written in a persuasive style. The teacher was careful to spell out what she expected the pupils to achieve in their writing. She modelled the work effectively, using clear criteria and guidance.

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ENGLISH

Through careful questioning and prompting she highlighted important features and helped pupils to compare texts using different styles of persuasion. In much of the unsatisfactory teaching, these features were lacking. Lessons are not planned effectively to cater for pupils of differing abilities. Pupils do not have the opportunity to practise the skills that they are asked to apply in their independent work. Learning objectives are not thoroughly explained and pupils often do not have a clear idea of what they are learning, how they are supposed to carry out the task and what outcome the teacher is expecting.

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ENGLISH

66. The school's use of the literacy strategy is not effective and skills are not systematically planned and evaluated across the curriculum. Assessment arrangements are not robust and, from Year 3, teachers are not using assessment information to plan appropriate work and track pupils' progress. Target setting is not developed early enough and speaking, listening and writing, in particular, are not assessed systematically, against National Curriculum levels. The leadership of the subject is unsatisfactory. The co-ordinator is not involved in any monitoring of teaching and learning and has not been in a position to influence the development of the subject. Hence she has not been able to pick up the weaknesses in teaching. Although writing has been identified as an area of development, improvements in this area have not materialised. One reason is that the planned strategies are limited in scope and are not linked with the need

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ENGLISH

to improve teaching and learning. Another weakness is that the school has not examined the opportunities to develop writing skills through subjects other than English. Computers are not used sufficiently to support pupils’ learning in English. In most areas of the subject, progress since the last inspection has been unsatisfactory.

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MATHEMATICS

67. Standards are below average in mathematics and pupils make unsatisfactory progress over time. This is a worse picture than at the time of the last inspection, when pupils were judged to be making satisfactory progress. Higher attaining pupils are not given work which is demanding enough and they therefore work at a slower pace then they could. For example, in a Year 3 lesson where pupils were learning to record data on tally charts, some pupils found the work too easy and said that they had already done this in their infant school. There is a marked dip in pupils’ progress in Year 4 because they are often given work which is too easy. For example, all pupils in a Year 4 lesson were given the two, five and ten times tables for homework, which many of them already knew. Another factor, which hinders pupils’ progress over time is the inadequate planning, which does not take enough account of their differing needs and abilities.

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MATHEMATICS

68. In Year 3, most pupils add and subtract in tens and units and higher attaining pupils use the number system to work out different ways of making ten. However, pupils’ understanding of place value is not yet secure. Pupils name common flat shapes and they know the number of sides in a triangle, rectangle and square. They record data in tally charts and Carroll diagrams but most pupils have a limited knowledge of how to interpret data. Pupils in Year 4 do not build sufficiently on what they already know. For example, in handling data, they are still working on recording data on tally charts and higher attaining pupils still draw bar charts and label them. This work has already been covered and more could be expected of pupils.

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MATHEMATICS

69. Pupils in Year 5 use their knowledge of tables to calculate money problems to two decimal places and they plot co-ordinates accurately. Lower attaining pupils use tables for multiplying simple numbers and know three ways of making twenty. Higher attaining pupils use negative numbers to calculate temperature differences but they do not make sufficient progress over time because their work is not extended enough. For example in one lesson all pupils were solving problems using grams and kilograms and there was no distinction between the tasks set for pupils of differing abilities. As a result, higher attaining pupils found the work too easy and Newlands Junior School - 29 completed their tasks quickly. Pupils in Year 6 convert improper fractions into compound fractions and use doubling and halving of two digit numbers in their calculations. Lower attaining pupils recognise simple fractions but struggle with many concepts handling basic numbers.

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MATHEMATICS

Higher attaining pupils know different ways of multiplying two digit numbers successfully. In shape, Year 6 pupils know the properties of solid shapes and higher attaining pupils measure the diameter and circumference of a circle. Pupils do not make enough progress in handling data. They continue to draw bar charts and interpret their results accurately and higher attaining pupils produce line graphs. Progress of all pupils, particularly higher attaining pupils, is further restricted because insufficient homework is set and computers are not currently used in school to develop and extend their learning. Very few pupils are working at the higher Level 5 and the school is not effective in identifying those pupils who could, with additional help and challenge, attain this.

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MATHEMATICS

70. At the last inspection, the quality of teaching and learning was good but it is now unsatisfactory. Far more than a third of teaching was unsatisfactory and only a fifth of teaching was good. Evidence from pupils’ written work also confirms unsatisfactory teaching. Good teaching was seen in a Year 3 and Year 6 lesson. Although most teachers follow the structure of the National Numeracy Strategy in lessons, teachers’ planning of work is unsatisfactory because the same tasks are usually set for all pupils, despite their level of ability. This is because teachers have insufficient knowledge of what pupils already know and can do in mathematics. In the weaker lessons, the planned work is often too easy. In many lessons, teachers do not review how well pupils have done against what they wanted them to learn so neither teachers nor pupils are sure of how much progress has been made.

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MATHEMATICS

71. Teachers have high expectations of pupils' behaviour and pupils' concentration and participation is often good as a result. Most are keen to answer the teachers’ questions. For example, pupils in Year 5 responded enthusiastically to the challenge of finding numbers that were not multiples of ten and thinking of three-digit even numbers and even numbers not less than fifty. Most teachers demonstrate well and involve pupils through effective questioning. However, in the weaker lessons, pupils do not put enough effort into their learning because teachers do not always expect enough of them. In several lessons, teachers do not focus sufficiently on the teaching and use of mathematical vocabulary and pupils often have difficulty in explaining how they carried out a calculation. This affects their ability to interpret written questions. Most teachers use resources appropriately to involve all pupils in mental mathematics, for example

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MATHEMATICS

showing answers using number fans or individual white boards. Nevertheless, some lessons do not follow the guidance of the National Numeracy Strategy at all. This happened in Year 6, with a group of lower attaining pupils, where a whole lesson was heavily dominated by the teacher talking, with no opportunity for pupils to develop their mental calculation skills. Moreover, the teacher did not check that the pupils understood the main concepts so their learning was limited. Teachers do not regularly set time targets or indicate how much work pupils are to complete therefore the pace of learning tends to slow when pupils are required to work independently.

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MATHEMATICS

72. The leadership of mathematics is poor. The co-ordinator, who was also responsible for leading mathematics at the time of the last inspection, has done little to improve the quality of teaching. The monitoring of pupils’ standards of work has been poor. Consequently, the weaknesses in planning for pupils of differing abilities has not been identified and remedied. The termly planning of the subject is unsatisfactory because it is not closely enough based on what pupils already know in mathematics. The lack of assessment procedures is a distinct weakness. Planning is particularly weak in Year 4 because teachers do not ensure their planning build systematically on what pupils have learned previously.

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SCIENCE

73. Standards in science are below the average, which is similar to the judgement at the last inspection. At the last inspection pupils were judged to be making satisfactory and sometimes good progress. Now they are making unsatisfactory progress because work is not sufficiently matched to pupils’ level of ability and teachers’ expectations are too low. There is too much Newlands Junior School - 30 reliance on using commercially produced materials so teachers are not using their knowledge of pupils’ abilities and needs in science to ensure that the work they plan is closely matched to their needs. Evidence from pupils’ work shows that, in Year 3, progress is better because tasks are adapted to cater for pupils’ abilities.

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SCIENCE

74. Pupils in Year 3 name the parts of a flowering plant, compare the properties of different magnetic and non-magnetic materials and record results from investigations on tally charts. Pupils in Year 4 know the various habitats of different animals, they separate solids from liquids by filtration and they investigate and record temperature differences in different parts of the world and in their classroom. Higher attaining pupils make accurate predictions from their investigations and lower attaining pupils identify materials in the classroom that are made from glass and those made from paper.

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SCIENCE

75. Year 5 pupils know that the body needs a healthy and balanced diet for energy, growth and development They know the life cycle of a butterfly and record their investigations when exploring how different musical instruments make sounds. Only the higher attaining pupils show a clear understanding of how to carry out a fair test, make predictions, carry out investigations draw appropriate conclusions and write up their methods accurately. By the end of Year 6, pupils identify differences in fibrous roots and tap roots and understand the concepts of upthrust and gravity as opposite forces. Higher attaining pupils classify animals according to the number of wings and legs they have; they carry out investigations, such as changes in yeast under different conditions and record the relationship between weight and force on a line graph using the correct units of measurement. They have a basic knowledge of the solar system. However,

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SCIENCE

pupils of all abilities are given the same work and evidence from pupils’ work shows that the learning of higher attaining pupils is not sufficiently extended so they do not make as much progress as they should. For example, there was no evidence of work on solar eclipses in the topic the Earth, Sun and Moon. Furthermore there was little evidence from the work of pupils of all abilities that they had sufficient knowledge and understanding of magnetism and electricity in Years 5 and 6. The over-emphasis on worksheets is also holding pupils back because these are not always challenging enough and appropriate for all pupils’ needs and abilities.

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SCIENCE

76. The quality of teaching and learning is unsatisfactory. A fifth of teaching seen was good but over a third of lessons were unsatisfactory. In the best lessons, teachers share what pupils will learn with the pupils so that they all have common aims. Teachers have high expectations of effort and good behaviour. They teach and consistently use scientific language, thus promoting learning. In successful lessons, teachers ask challenging questions so that pupils have a deeper understanding. In a Year 5 lesson, for example, the teacher asked the pupils about the changes in the sun’s position in the sky and the effects of shadows to ensure they understood that the earth moved round the sun. All teachers maintain good relationships in lessons so that pupils behave well and remain focused on their activities. When the teaching is of a high standard, pupils are well motivated and attitudes to work are good.

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SCIENCE

77. In lessons where teaching is unsatisfactory teachers do not ensure that all pupils make sufficient progress. For example, in another Year 5 lesson seen, there was no clear structure to the lesson so learning was not well managed. The higher attaining pupils worked well within their capabilities. They were not given enough opportunity to extend their investigation of the earth’s movement around the sun. In the weaker lessons pupils follow instructions, make observations and try to draw conclusions but they do not develop independent skills of hypothesising, planning and carrying out investigations and drawing conclusions.

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SCIENCE

78. Pupils’ written work is not always marked regularly and pupils do not have a clear idea of how well they are achieving. Teachers have not yet begun to evaluate lessons and the arrangements for assessment are weak. The only pieces of work produced by pupils for focused assessment are the revision tests carried out in Year 6 shortly before the national tests. 79. Leadership of the subject is poor. The headteacher is currently acting as co-ordinator before the new co-ordinator for science takes over next term. Planning for the subject is at an early stage of development. Termly planning for science in Year 4 is particularly weak because teachers do not plan topics together. Planning does not take enough account of pupils’ differing abilities and Newlands Junior School - 31 pupils often do identical work. Computers are not used enough to support pupils’ learning. Systems for checking and recording pupils’ progress are not well developed and there has been

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SCIENCE

no monitoring of the quality of teaching and learning in the subject to ensure that pupils are making sufficient progress. There has been insufficient improvement in these areas since the last inspection.

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ART AND DESIGN and DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

80. Standards in both subjects are below average and pupils’ progress over time is unsatisfactory. This is the same judgement as the last inspection and not enough progress has been made in the intervening four years to raise standards.

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ART AND DESIGN and DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

81. By Year 6, in art and design, pupils’ drawing skills are weaker than what is expected by this age. Their drawing does not show careful attention to fine detail and they do not have a range of sketching techniques. They use pencils to draw harsh outlines rather than looking carefully at what they see and using shading techniques, for example, to achieve different effects. Their painting, based on the style of Lowry, shows a lack of brush technique and control. Pupils do not know the main vocabulary associated with art and find it difficult to talk about their work and the work of famous artists, using appropriate terminology.

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ART AND DESIGN and DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

82. Much of the work in art and design is at a basic level for pupils’ age. In Year 3, for example, they use crumpled tissue paper to make collages but the standards are more typical of younger pupils. Some pupils in Year 3 experiment with colour and use paper to create different effects, through quilling and tubing, for example. They produce some careful pastel work, some of which is evocative and carefully considered. However, standards are lower than they should be by this age. There is a lack of evidence to show pupils steadily develop their skills in art and design and the school does not have a wide enough range of good quality resources to support this. Some classrooms have little or no artwork on display. Discussions with pupils show they find it difficult to recall what they have learned. It is clear they do not have enough regular opportunities to experience art and design and they are not at all clear of the distinction between what they learn

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ART AND DESIGN and DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

in this subject and design and technology. The subject does not play a sufficiently prominent role in developing pupils’ cultural awareness, including their knowledge and appreciation of art from other cultures. Similarly, the school does not place enough value on the importance of art and design in fostering pupils’ spiritual development.

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ART AND DESIGN and DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

83. Many of the weaknesses evident in art and design also relate to design and technology. Year 6 pupils make an air-raid shelter using card, wood, pins and paper. They use simple sewing stitches to make a collage of pupils’ names. In Year 5, pupils use food colouring to ice cakes and they design and make pots and containers. They make Anglo-Saxon warrior helmets in Year 4 and moving creatures, using card and pins, in Year 3. Much of the work in design and technology links to other topics and does not sufficiently support the development of the specific skills associated with design and technology. In a Year 6 lesson on mask-making, for example, pupils spent a lot of time copying ideas from images in books rather than thinking through the design process for themselves. They did not consider the features of a successful mask and the materials and processes they could use. The lesson veered more towards art and design rather

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ART AND DESIGN and DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

than design and technology as pupils became more involved with the decorative elements, such as pattern, as opposed to the main learning objective, which was to design their masks. Again, pupils found it hard to remember what they had covered previously in design and technology and were very unsure of the main stages of the design process and the need for evaluating and modifying their initial designs.

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ART AND DESIGN and DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

84. The leadership of both subjects is poor. There is no art co-ordinator at present and the headteacher is overseeing design and technology on a temporary basis before another teacher takes over. There are weaknesses in the planning of both subjects and in the teachers’ subject knowledge. There is insufficient awareness of the main knowledge and skills that pupils should be developing at each age and this is one reason why standards are lower than they should be. The planning for both subjects focuses too much on how each subject can relate to the topics being covered, mainly in history, rather than on how pupils will develop the specific skills, Newlands Junior School - 32 knowledge and understanding that they need, in a systematic way. ICT is not used enough to support learning in both these subjects.

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GEOGRAPHY and HISTORY

85. Standards in history and geography are well below average and pupils make poor progress over time. This shows a considerable decline in standards and progress since the last inspection. There was insufficient evidence of teaching to make a secure overall judgement on the quality of teaching and learning.

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GEOGRAPHY and HISTORY

86. In history in Year 3, pupils learn about life in the Victorian era. They compare life in those days with their own lives and learn about some of the household utensils that were used at that time, such as a washtub and iron stand. Year 4 pupils learn about Romans and Saxons. They know some facts about how an Anglo-Saxon village would have looked and what villagers did. In geography, pupils learn about plans and maps. They label the main countries of the British Isles and use simple keys. In Year 4, they learn the location of some principal cities of the UK and about the climate of the world. However, there is very little recorded work completed during this year in geography and much is at a very low level for this age. For example, one above average pupil only completed six pages of work during Year 4 of which two pages involved sticking in pictures. In both subjects, there are very few examples of pupils’ independent work. A lot of

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GEOGRAPHY and HISTORY

work is based on filling in commercial worksheets and much of the work is very undemanding, such as drawing pictures and colouring them. Pupils leave a good number of worksheets unfinished.

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GEOGRAPHY and HISTORY

87. In Year 5, pupils learn about the Ancient Greeks. They learn some key dates and compare lifestyles. They learn about the wooden horse of Troy but there is very little recorded work indeed and pupils complete just a few pieces of writing over the year. Some of the tasks are far too simple, such as sticking in pictures that have been provided. This does not contribute effectively to pupils’ learning in history. The progress is poor in this year group. Year 6 pupils learn facts about the Second World War. They relate this to their own lives, in relation to their grandparents’ generation and examine how life has changed today. There is some use of secondary sources, such as a ‘situations vacant’ column from a newspaper of that period which helps pupils to deduce the kind of jobs people did for a living. In geography, pupils in Year 5 continue work on mapping skills, labelling some countries of the world. They learn about rivers

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GEOGRAPHY and HISTORY

but the standard of this work is low. They learn some key vocabulary about the course of rivers and different features. Again, there is far too much reliance upon using commercial worksheets or comprehension exercises as time-filling exercises, which are irrelevant to their learning. There is no evidence of history and geography helping to develop pupils’ numeracy skills and no evidence of computers being used to support their learning. Pupils do not do enough independent writing and both subjects therefore make a poor contribution to pupils’ literacy skills.

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GEOGRAPHY and HISTORY

88. The leadership of history and geography is poor. The co-ordinator does not have an opportunity to monitor standards across the school and to pick up on the weaknesses that exist. She is unsure of what her leadership role entails. The curriculum planning is weak and this is affecting pupils’ standards. There is no clear evidence of pupils’ steadily developing historical and geographical skills in a systematic way as they move through the school. There are no assessment procedures in place for either subject and this also hinders pupils’ progress.

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

89. Standards in ICT are average and have been maintained since the last inspection.

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

90. Pupils in Year 3 learning about databases, collect information about pets and represent it in the form of graphs of various forms. They use appropriate icons to vary the size and switch between different types of graphs. They experiment with ideas seeing what can go wrong and learn to correct any errors. They apply these skills well when they enter information about a car survey and the higher attaining pupils access records and complete questions on the data. Pupils in Newlands Junior School - 33 Year 6 use the Internet well. They log on and access various websites and they are familiar with search engines; for example, they use key words to find information on specified topics. They record the number of searches they can make and learn about how to narrow the search. Through trials, pupils realise the importance of being precise in the use of key words to obtain the information they want. They apply this successfully and print the outcomes of their searches

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

91. Pupils, including those with special educational needs, make satisfactory progress. This is mainly reflected in the confidence pupils have in learning new skills and in the increasing sophistication of software used. They have frequent opportunities to practise their ICT skills. Pupils' positive attitudes and interest in ICT contributes to the progress they make. They listen attentively during lessons, collaborate well when working in pairs and are proud when demonstrating what they can do. They respond positively to requests of help from other pupils and enjoy helping one another.

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

92. There was insufficient evidence to make a secure overall judgement on the quality of teaching and learning. The lessons seen were well structured and planned and had clear learning objectives. Teachers used the data projector well to demonstrate important points or new skills. In this way, all pupils could see the process and apply them instantly. This worked well in one Year 6 lesson, where the teacher explained how to narrow a search when using a search engine. In another lesson, the teacher used the projector well to show how graphs could be represented in different ways. Teachers explained new aspects clearly and used well-phrased questions to focus pupils’ attention on the key learning points. They intervened well and supported pupils so that all were able to achieve the main tasks.

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

93. Provision since the last inspection has improved with the addition of the new ICT suite. This facility is used well and regularly although it is not accessible to pupils outside lesson times and was empty on many occasions during the inspection. The co-ordinator provides satisfactory leadership. He provides helpful guidance to his colleagues. The school has started a programme of staff development which is beginning to show some positive results in the use of the suite. Insufficient use is made of ICT to support learning in other subjects.

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MUSIC

94. Standards are below average by Year 6 and pupils’ progress is unsatisfactory. The school has not had a music co-ordinator since last year, when the co-ordinator left, and there has been a hiatus in developing the subject as a result. Many staff lack the skills and confidence to teach music successfully. They rely mainly on commercial programmes and there are aspects of the curriculum that are not taught regularly which means pupils miss out on some important skills, most notably performing on instruments, composing and appraising.

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MUSIC

95. Singing standards are lower than they should be by this age. Pupils sing regularly in assembly but the accompaniment is taped. The consequence of this is that no-one gives a strong lead to the singing and pupils sing in a subdued and rather lifeless way. They do not produce a strong and confident tone and the singing is often out of tune. In the Year 4 lesson during the inspection, the quality of singing was closer to what is expected of pupils of this age, though pupils needed a lot of encouragement from the supply teacher. Many were unable to sing at the correct pitch for much of the time but, with repeated practice, and gentle insistence from the teacher, the standard steadily improved. This was helped by the teacher, who had a strong voice herself, and led and encouraged the pupils to join in more heartily.

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MUSIC

96. Year 6 pupils are hesitant when talking about music. It is clear that they have not experienced music lessons regularly as they have moved through the school. They rarely use tuned and untuned percussion instruments and they were unable to name many of the instruments owned by the school. Pupils do not understand some of the main terms associated with music at this age. They are unsure of what elements such as dynamics, tempo and texture mean and find it hard to talk about how music is structured and organised. This is because they have not had enough opportunity to experiment with these basic elements through their own practical music- making. Newlands Junior School - 34 97. The leadership of music is poor. No-one is taking the lead for the subject currently and teachers are not being supported and helped to develop their expertise. There are no extra-curricular activities in music or opportunities for pupils to learn instruments from visiting specialists. There

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MUSIC

is no programme for enabling pupils to listen to ‘live’ music, which is a requirement of the curriculum. At present, music makes a poor contribution to pupils’ spiritual and cultural development and is one reason why the provision for arts subjects is weak.

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PHYSICAL EDUCATION

98. There was insufficient evidence of the different aspects of PE to make a secure judgement on pupils’ standards and the progress they make.

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PHYSICAL EDUCATION

99. In Year 3, in games, pupils consolidate throwing and catching skills. They practise this with the help of the teachers’ and other pupils’ demonstrations, using underarm and overarm techniques. The majority improve aiming at a target but many struggle with controlling the ball, partly because not enough time is provided for practice and improvement. They also have limited opportunities to observe good performance and evaluate their own. In Year 6, in games, pupils took part in a series of games focusing on the issues of disability and the right of disabled people to leisure activities. This made a good contribution to pupils’ understanding of how all people should be included in activities, wherever possible, despite their individual difficulties. Pupils discussed how the games were adapted. They were very receptive and applied the rules well for instance by playing goal ball blindfolded and using a disabled chair in a game of table

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PHYSICAL EDUCATION

cricket. Whilst this made a good contribution to their personal development, the lesson did not enable pupils to focus on and improve specific skills.

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PHYSICAL EDUCATION

100. Pupils’ attitudes to learning in PE are positive. The majority are motivated, keen to participate in lessons and understand the importance of listening and following instructions, especially those related to safety. They work well individually and with a partner. They always have an appropriate kit, change quickly and help willingly in carrying equipment at the end of sessions.

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PHYSICAL EDUCATION

101. The quality of teaching in the lessons seen was satisfactory in two and unsatisfactory in one. Where teaching is satisfactory, clear objectives are identified and used to evaluate pupils’ achievement. Teachers brief pupils about the skills to be practised, use demonstrations and intervene to enable them to improve their performance. The teachers’ effective management skills mean pupils are well behaved and respond well to instructions. Where teaching is unsatisfactory, this is mainly due to the teachers' lack of subject knowledge. They do not teach specific skills effectively and there is a lack of opportunity for pupils to evaluate and improve their performance.

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PHYSICAL EDUCATION

102. The leadership of PE is unsatisfactory. Co-ordination is currently being overseen by the headteacher, pending another teacher taking over. Monitoring of the subject is informal and no priorities for developing the subject have been identified to enable the school to focus on improving standards. Standards have remained average since the last inspection. Resources have improved, particularly in games, where the school has benefited from being a member of the Top Sport scheme. These are being used well to help develop and broaden pupils’ skills.

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RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

103. Standards in RE are below the expectations of the Nottinghamshire Agreed Syllabus in relation to learning about religion and learning from religion. Pupils’ progress is unsatisfactory because they do not build up a steady knowledge and awareness of Christianity and other religions. Discussions with pupils also show that this is the case. Year 6 pupils find it very difficult to remember what they have learned in religious education lessons. A few recalled some facts about Buddhism, which they recently covered, but some were unable to remember anything about this topic. Pupils have learned about different faiths between Year 3 and Year 6, including Judaism, Sikhism and Hinduism but they confuse some of the principal practices and beliefs Newlands Junior School - 35 that characterise different religions. Few can name some religious symbols associated with different faiths and several pupils believe that Jews cross themselves when they enter church.

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RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

104. Pupils’ folders in each year group contain very little recorded work in RE. Most of the work that is completed is of a very low level. For example, in Year 6, pupils ticked boxes which required them to recall facts about Buddhism. The task was inappropriate and discussions with pupils showed they had not retained this information. In Year 5, pupils again fill in worksheets or passages of text that are given to them with key words missing – tasks which do not encourage them to learn. In Year 4, an above average pupil’s folder contained only one piece of writing during the autumn term and another above average pupil had only written two lines for one piece of work. Almost all the pupils’ written work is based on factual knowledge about religions and there is no evidence of pupils’ exploring their own ideas, feelings and perceptions. There is also little evidence of work in religious education contributing to pupils’ spiritual and moral

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RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

development. They are not being encouraged enough to learn from religion, which is an important part of the locally agreed syllabus.

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RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

105. There is insufficient evidence to make an overall judgement on the quality of teaching. The two lessons seen during the inspection were very widely ranging in quality because one was very good and the other poor. In the successful lesson, the teacher ensured a very good balance between learning about the Five Pillars or Islam and relating this to pupils devising their own rules for their own lives. The teachers explained aspects of Islam clearly and made sure pupils understood. She dealt sensitively with one pupil’s surprise at the strictness of the rules governing Ramadan and stressed the importance of following beliefs. Pupils had plenty of opportunity to work together the share their ideas with a partner before sharing them with the whole class. This lesson was successful not only in terms of learning in RE but also in the very good contribution it made to pupils’ personal development. In the poor lesson, which was on

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RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

Hinduism, the teacher directed the lesson heavily and talked for too great a proportion of the time. Important points about the Hindu traditions and beliefs were outlined by the teacher but without enough opportunity for the pupils to reflect and respond. One of the main learning intentions was to allow pupils to explore feelings of naughtiness but the pupils had no opportunity to do this. There were no clear gains in learning in this lesson and pupils were confused. Several pupils who arrived late, having been withdrawn for special educational needs work, were not sufficiently included in the lesson and were marginalised as a result.

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RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

106. The leadership of RE is unsatisfactory. The co-ordinator has had an opportunity to review the curriculum plan to show which topics should be covered each term. However, the medium term plans, which indicate the detail of what will be taught, are only in the process of being developed. The quantity of the work in pupils’ folders does not reflect the amount of time that is meant to be spent on RE in each year. The subject is making a poor contribution to the development of pupils’ literacy skills and there is no evidence of pupils using ICT to assist their learning. The co-ordinator has not had the opportunity to oversee teacher’s planning nor to monitor the quality of pupils’ work and the standards they reach. She is therefore unable to monitor whether pupils are covering enough work across both attainment targets of the locally agreed syllabus and whether pupils’ standards are high enough. It is not possible to comment

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RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

on significant changes in religious education since the last inspection as no firm judgement was made on pupils’ standards and achievement at that time.

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