Setting

Mr B Samuel and Mrs M Leech Headteachers Guns Village Primary School 2 Hanbury Road West Bromwich West Midlands B70 9NT

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Ofsted survey inspection programme – Art, craft and design

Thank you for your hospitality and cooperation, and that of the staff and pupils, during my visit on 02 May 2007 to look at work in art, craft and design.

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Ofsted survey inspection programme – Art, craft and design

The visit provided valuable information which will contribute to our national evaluation and reporting. Published reports are likely to list the names of contributing institutions, but individual institutions will not be identified in the main text. All feedback letters will be published on the Ofsted website at the end of each half-term.

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Ofsted survey inspection programme – Art, craft and design

The evidence used to inform the judgements made included: interviews with staff, discussions with pupils, scrutiny of relevant documentation, analysis of pupils’ work, and joint observation of two lessons and a general tour of other classes at work.

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Ofsted survey inspection programme – Art, craft and design

The overall effectiveness of art, craft and design was judged to be satisfactory.

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Achievement and standards

Standards and achievement in the subject are average.

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Achievement and standards

 From below average attainment on entry to the Nursery the pupils make good progress in creative development. Most pupils leave the Foundation Stage with skills broadly in line with national expectations.  The pupils’ spiritual development is provided for well through the subject. For example, their appreciation of nature is evident in their observational drawings. Alexandra House 33 Kingsway London WC2B 6SE T 08456 404040 F 020 7421 6855 enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk www.ofsted.gov.uk  The good rate of progress pupils make in the Foundation Stage slows down in Key Stages 1 and 2 where they make satisfactory progress to reach average standards of attainment.  In lessons, pupils make satisfactory progress because structured teaching ensures that the pace sustains their interest. Their good behaviour and enjoyment of the subject enables pupils of all abilities to work with perseverance to achieve satisfactory outcomes by the end of

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Achievement and standards

the lesson.  The standards seen in pupils’ work are broadly average. However, standards in painting are below average due to insufficient practice in colour mixing and their limited exposure to a wide range of paints.  Appropriate consideration is given to safety issues and pupils use tools carefully.  Displays of pupils’ work are of satisfactory quality and are changed regularly.

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Quality of teaching and learning

 Pupils are given satisfactory support in the Foundation Stage. Teachers and support staff encourage them to try new techniques and teach the skills they need to make images and artefacts. However, opportunities for pupils to explore and investigate materials freely are too few. The activities for role play are well planned to capture pupils’ interest and encourage them to express their imagination and experiment with ideas.  Lessons are planned and structured so that all pupils know what they are expected to learn. Demonstration and regular evaluation during lessons enables pupils to discuss difficulties they encounter and seek solutions.  Teachers successfully contribute to pupils’ cultural development. For example, the pupils are actively encouraged to be discerning in their choice of suitable skin tones to accurately represent ethnic differences. However, the limitations of teachers’ subject knowledge are evident.

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Quality of teaching and learning

Consequently, pupils are unable to use subject specific language confidently in discussing or evaluating their work.  Teaching assistants are deployed well. Pupils with behavioural difficulties are particularly well supported ensuring that they fully participate in lessons and focus on their work.  Opportunities for pupils to work collaboratively are managed effectively.

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Quality of the curriculum

 The school has a sound policy for art, craft and design. However, there is a mismatch between policy and practice particularly in the school’s aim to provide opportunities for pupils to investigate materials freely and to make choices about how they wish to interpret their ideas.  Teachers plan from a nationally recognised scheme of work to provide adequate coverage of the National Curriculum programme of study. However, pupils develop insufficient knowledge and understanding of a range of artists, craftworkers and designers from different times and cultures.  Good links are developing with other subjects, for example, art, craft and design is used effectively for pupils to explore imaginative ideas prior to writing activities.  The school council contributes ideas for the painting of murals by a visiting artist. Pupils’ designs are used for decorating themed rooms such as the underwater world created in the library.

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Quality of the curriculum

 Occasional visits are made to the local gallery to enrich the curriculum.  Outside providers lead clubs that include a creative dimension adding to pupils’ enjoyment of the subject.

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Leadership and management of subject

Leadership and management are satisfactory

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Leadership and management of subject

 The creation of a senior post for developing creativity across the school has led to the recent introduction of systems to monitor and evaluate the subject regularly to identify strengths and weaknesses.  The school is responding appropriately to improve gaps in teachers’ subject knowledge by developing links with outside providers and the local secondary art, craft and design specialist.  Resources are well organised in class bases, however, the range of materials provided for pupils to choose from is too narrow.  Medium term planning is satisfactory. It provides an adequate basis for progression through units of work linked to National Curriculum levels but over time, there is insufficient building on prior learning.

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creativity

A system for assessing pupils’ achievement has been successfully introduced and is used in all foundation subjects. However, it is insufficiently detailed to use as a tool for planning the next steps in learning. It identifies pupils who meet, exceed or fail to meet the target level set for the work but the opportunity is missed to use this valuable information to meet pupils’ individual needs in the short term.

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Inclusion

The curriculum is inclusive. In planning cross-curricular themes for study, careful consideration is given to providing a balance of content to engage and motivate boys and girls. Children with learning difficulties and disabilities have full access to the curriculum and make good progress in lessons.

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Areas for improvement, which we discussed, included:

 to strengthen teachers’ subject knowledge through a robust professional development programme  use information from the current assessment system to plan for pupils’ next steps in learning  ensure that pupils have regular opportunities to explore the work of artists, designers and craftspeople from different times, cultures and countries  develop pupils’ creativity in the subject by allowing them to experiment freely with a good range of materials and make choices.

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Areas for improvement, which we discussed, included:

I hope these observations are useful as you continue to develop art, craft and design in the school.

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Areas for improvement, which we discussed, included:

As I explained in my previous letter, a copy of this letter will be sent to your Local Authority and will be published on the Ofsted website. It will also be available to the team for your next institutional inspection.

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