SCITTELS

Initial Teacher Education inspection report

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Provider address Colegrave Primary School Henniker Road Stratford E15 1JY

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Unique reference number Inspection number Inspection dates Lead inspector 14–17 June 2010 Philip Mann HMI achieve excellence in the care of children and young people, and in education and skills for learners of all ages. It regulates and inspects childcare and children's social care, and inspects the Children and Family Court Advisory Support Service (Cafcass), schools, colleges, initial teacher training, work- based learning and skills training, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It rates council children’s services, and inspects services for looked after children, safeguarding and child protection. Further copies of this report are obtainable from the school. Under the Education Act 2005, the school must provide a copy of this report 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.

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If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk . You may copy all or parts of this document for non-commercial educational purposes, as long as you give details of the source and date of publication and do not alter the information in any way. www.ofsted.gov.uk Reference no. 080190

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Introduction

1. This inspection was carried out by Her Majesty’s Inspectors supported by a team of specialist inspectors in accordance with the Framework for the Inspection of Initial Teacher Education (2008–11) .

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Introduction

2. The inspection draws upon evidence from all aspects of the provision to make judgements against all parts of the inspection evaluation schedule in the framework. Inspectors focused on the overall effectiveness of the training in supporting high-quality outcomes for trainees and the capacity of the partnership to bring about further improvements. A summary of the grades awarded is included at the end of this report.

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Key to inspection grades

Grade 1 Outstanding Grade 2 Good Grade 3 Satisfactory Grade 4 Inadequate

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Explanation of terms used in this report

Attainment is defined as the standard reached by a trainee at the end of their training. Progress is judged in terms of how well a trainee has developed professionally from their starting point to the standard reached at the time of the inspection or at a suitable review point. Achievement is judged in terms of the progress made and the standard reached by a trainee at the time of the inspection or at a recent assessment review point.

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The provider

3. SCITTELS (School-based Initial Teacher Training in East London Schools) was formed in 2002 to provide teacher training within the London Borough of Newham. The partnership provides two routes into primary teaching, namely a one-year professional graduate certificate in education (PGCE) and an employment-based route, both leading to qualified teacher status (QTS). It caters principally for those in the local population who wish to train in the area, often former classroom assistants, and aims to respond to local needs by training teachers who reflect the diverse community. Based at Colegrave Primary School in Newham, the partnership includes nursery, infant, junior and primary schools from the borough.

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A commentary on the provision

4. The following are particular features of the provider and its initial teacher training programmes:

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A commentary on the provision

 effective recruitment and selection procedures, which ensure that those chosen have the greatest potential to be good teachers

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A commentary on the provision

 the professional tutors who play a pivotal role in guiding and promoting trainee progress

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A commentary on the provision

 the drive for continuous improvement by course leaders and centre-based staff.

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A commentary on the provision

5. There are particularly strong features in some programmes that could be applied to other programmes or aspects of the provision by sharing best practice:

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A commentary on the provision

 the tracking of trainee progress on the PGCE course with the tracking of trainees on the employment-based route

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A commentary on the provision

 the comprehensive systems for gathering evidence against the Standards on the employment-based route.

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A commentary on the provision

6. The following recommendations should be considered to improve the quality of the outcomes for trainees:

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A commentary on the provision

 ensure that the quality of training and assessment in all schools in the partnership is of a consistently high quality.

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Context

7. There are currently 35 trainees following the primary course.

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Key strengths

 the promotion of inclusive practice, ensuring that trainees are well prepared for teaching pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities and those who speak a first language other than English

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Key strengths

 the effective recruitment and selection procedures which identify those with the potential to be good teachers for the local area

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Key strengths

 the self-motivated, reflective trainees committed to their own professional development

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Key strengths

 the personalised approach to training and pastoral care that ensures most trainees make good progress

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Key strengths

 the drive for continuous improvement from course leaders and centre- based staff.

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Required actions

9. In order to improve the quality of provision, the partnership must:  ensure that the quality of school-based provision is consistently good across the partnership by:  improving the skills of school-based mentors  increasing the monitoring roles of professional tutors  ensuring that partnership schools are well matched to trainees’ needs.

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Recommendations

10. In order to improve trainees’ progress and attainment, partnership should:  consider how to track trainees’ subject knowledge and incorporate subject- specific feedback and targets into lesson observations on a regular basis.

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Recommendations

11. In order to strengthen the management’s assessment of performance and the impact of action planning the partnership should:  consider how to further develop systems for evaluating the impact of provision on outcomes for trainees, particularly their progress over time

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Recommendations

 consider how to further develop the involvement of schools in evaluating what the partnership does well and in action planning to bring about improvement.

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 3

12. The provider is successful in its aim to prepare trainees to teach in local schools. This is because of the strong focus on the promotion of inclusive practice which ensures trainees are well prepared to teach in the locality. Trainees are recruited from a range of diverse backgrounds from east London to fully reflect the local cultural diversity. This diversity is mirrored in higher proportions of minority ethnic trainees and men recruited into primary teaching than that seen nationally. The attainment of the very large majority of trainees is good.

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 3

13. Recruitment and selection are used effectively to choose the best possible trainees for the course from the field of applicants. Recent modifications to the procedures now provide a sharper focus on the assessment of trainees’ potential to teach. Activities such as observations of trainees working with groups of pupils in a classroom provide detailed information about each trainee based on assessment of their potential rather than on previous academic performance. Assessments made at interview fully inform the individualised training plan for each trainee and serve as a baseline to track their progress throughout the course. Improvements to these procedures have resulted in a reduction in the number of trainees failing to complete the course. Completion rates are now better than the national average.

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 3

14. High expectations are set for trainees and most make good or better progress. They are becoming confident teachers who are reflective about what they do. Trainees are inclusive in their approach and demonstrate empathy with the needs of pupils in their care. They quickly build positive relationships with pupils and colleagues within their placement schools. Trainees engage pupils very well in interactive sessions by using teaching techniques such as ‘talk partners’. They use a good range of behaviour management strategies to maintain a positive working atmosphere. Trainees’ subject knowledge is secure in most areas but some trainees demonstrate weakness in their use of standard English. Resources such as interactive whiteboards are used competently to support pupils’ learning. The vast majority of trainees gather a wide range of evidence in their files against each Standard. These files demonstrate effective

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 3

lesson planning that facilitates clear progression in pupils’ learning and a good understanding of the Every Child Matters outcomes. This is especially so for pupils who speak English as an additional language and for those who have special educational needs and/or disabilities. However, the planning for the most able and those who are gifted and talented is less explicit. Furthermore, in the weaker files there is limited evidence to support the development of trainees’ understanding of recent national initiatives such as the Rose Review on early reading and the Williams report into the teaching of mathematics.

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 3

15. Good-quality training and assessment provide an effective and coherent structure to promote trainees’ progress. Trainees state that they are very pleased with the practical hands-on nature of the course and that good pastoral care ensures that they receive effective individual support when they need it. Good use is made of needs analysis to support the continual development of the individual training plan for each trainee. The recently introduced inclusion module is enhancing the quality of training and personal reflection through extra study. However, the timings of the final assignments in relation to other school placement commitments make for an imbalance in workload for trainees over the year. This can hold up trainee progress. In contrast, good assessment procedures are used to record the progress of trainees and set further targets for them to aim at. Audits are used appropriately to assess trainee subject

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 3

knowledge in English, mathematics and science. However, there is currently no formal tracking of further subject knowledge over the course.

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 3

16. Professional tutors provide high quality support to trainees. Regular lesson observations are undertaken thoroughly and summative assessment forms portray an accurate appraisal of trainees’ achievements. Professional tutors play an increasingly important quality assurance role across the partnership because, as the provider rightly identifies, there are inconsistencies in the quality of school-based tutoring that have an impact on some trainees progress. Some school-based tutors are too inexperienced and do not give trainees lesson feedback with a clear focus on the impact of teaching on pupils’ learning. These weaknesses across the partnership are restricting the overall effectiveness of the provision.

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 3

17. Good quality resources support the trainees’ development effectively. The training centre environment is spacious and well resourced but the quality of resources is more variable in some placement schools. However, trainees make very good use of classroom resources to support their teaching while on placement, such as interactive whiteboards and other practical equipment. The use of professional tutors to support and train school-based tutors located in the same school as themselves makes best use of human resources. The provider is addressing the need to ensure that all trainees have access to good- quality laptop computers and the latest version of software for the interactive whiteboards. However, some laptops are old and in need of replacement. The local authority’s virtual learning platform provides trainees with improved levels of access via the internet to a wide range of texts and resources.

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 3

18. The inclusive nature of the course is a key strength. Trainees are provided with good input on issues related to pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities. They gain good experience in working with pupils who speak English as an additional language but there are missed opportunities to broaden their understanding of the responsibility of schools to promote community cohesion. Nevertheless, trainees make good use of opportunities to visit places of worship and enhance their awareness in a wide range of areas related to diversity. Trainees state that there are no incidents of harassment or bullying and that they are happy to report issues to their professional and/or training managers if the need should arise. The tailoring of individual support is good and there are no significant differences in the achievement of any specific group. However, not all trainees are provided with high quality support in

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 3

school placements to ensure that they make good progress.

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Grade: 2

19. The ability to recognise weaknesses and quickly deal with them is a key strength of programme leadership. Leaders demonstrate an ability to be proactive in their approach to tackling longstanding problems. Teamwork is a strong feature of the hardworking programme manager who works closely in tandem with professional tutors and members of the both executive and group boards to manage and improve provision. Several initiatives have been implemented effectively this year to improve both the quality and consistency of training in schools. There is clearly good capacity of leaders to secure further improvement. However, current impact on overall provision is yet to be fully reflected in all trainees achieving the highest possible outcomes.

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Grade: 2

20. Self-evaluation is broadly accurate and inspectors agree with most judgements within the self-evaluation document, but some are over-generous because they do not fully reflect the current provision and its impact on trainees’ outcomes. However, careful analysis of data this year is leading to the more accurate identification of strengths and weakness in provision across the partnership. Newly introduced but accurate monitoring and quality assurance procedures are enabling programme leaders to identify key priorities for further improvement. For instance, detailed reports by external examiners and other professionals identify areas of weakness in provision.

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Grade: 2

21. The newly appointed programme manager is precise in her approach to analysing progress data related to trainees and monitoring information about the quality of training provision. Good procedures are being introduced to quality assure the performance of both professional and school-based tutors. Self-evaluation takes full account of the views of trainees and there is good involvement of key stakeholders in the process of self-evaluation. However, headteachers and school based tutors are yet to fully contribute to evaluation process and improvement planning.

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Grade: 2

22. Creative solutions have been found to problems such as risk taking in the selection of applicants from underrepresented groups and men in primary teaching. The executive board is quick to respond to local demands and changes to schools within the partnership. There has been rapid development of some effective quality assurance procedures for improving the quality of professional and school-based tutors. 23. Improvement planning is directly linked with self-evaluation and the most appropriate priorities have been correctly identified. There are clearly identified lines of accountability. Targets for improvement are fully calculated and set within manageable timescales. Success criteria are measurable against trainee outcomes. Key stakeholders are engaged in the process through the group board. Issues related to the inconsistencies across the partnership are being effectively addressed and there are already recognisable improvements in a

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Grade: 2

wide range of quality assurance procedures to support improving outcomes for trainees.

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Context

24. SCITTELS provides employment-based initial teacher education, through the graduate teacher programme, to qualified teacher status. It has places for 16 trainees; at the time of the inspection there were 13 trainees on the programme. A number of them are former classroom assistants.

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Key strengths

 the promotion of inclusive practice, ensuring that trainees are well prepared for teaching pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities and those who speak a first language other than English

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Key strengths

 the effective recruitment and selection procedures which identify those with the potential to be good teachers

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Key strengths

 the self-motivated, reflective trainees committed to their own professional development

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Key strengths

 the personalised approach to training and pastoral care, ensuring most trainees make good progress

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Key strengths

 the drive for continuous improvement from course leaders and centre- based staff.

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Required actions

26. In order to improve the quality of provision, the partnership must:  ensure that the quality of training and assessment in all schools in the partnership is of a consistently high quality.

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Recommendations

27. In order to improve trainees’ progress and attainment, the provider/partnership should:  consider how to track trainees’ subject knowledge and incorporate subject- specific feedback and targets into lesson observations on a regular basis

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Recommendations

 consider how to draw on expertise in partnership schools for training and closely match placements to trainees’ needs.

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Recommendations

28. In order to strengthen the management’s assessment of performance and the impact of action planning the partnership should:  further develop the effectiveness of the recruitment and selection processes

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Recommendations

 consider how to further develop systems for evaluating the impact of provision on outcomes for trainees, particularly their progress over time

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Recommendations

 consider how to further develop schools’ involvement in evaluating what the partnership does well and action planning to bring about improvement.

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 3

29. SCITTELS is successful in achieving its aim to meet the needs of the local area and promote inclusive practice. It recruits trainees from east London who reflect the diversity of the local population, and as a result the proportions of minority ethnic trainees and men recruited into primary teaching are above those found nationally. Specific attention is paid during selection to assessing trainees’ knowledge and understanding of pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities, and those for whom English is not their first language. The nature of the training, combining a range of centre-based sessions with the context of the school-based experience, builds on this and equips trainees particularly well for teaching in a multicultural and inclusive borough. The attainment of the very large majority of trainees is at least good and they are successful in gaining employment as teachers in London, more often than not

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 3

30. The provider has high expectations of its trainees. Recruitment and selection processes are effective in selecting trainees not only with the potential to be good teachers, but also with the dedication to follow an employment-based route. Trainees confirm that from the outset the provider makes sure that they are under no illusion about the commitment required to follow this route into teaching. Good use is made of a mix of classroom observation, written tasks and interviews to assess each candidate’s potential to meet the Standards, and the identification of individual needs is used well to tailor pre-course learning. Positive action has been taken with the aim of reducing the small number of trainees who withdraw before the course starts. For example, the provider has examined carefully why this happens and has refined procedures this year to improve retention. Drop-in meetings keep trainees in touch with the provider

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 3

between interview and the start of the academic year, and the indications are that this has reduced the number of pre-course withdrawals this year. The rationale for raising the profile of classroom observation and feedback as part of the selection process and the introduction of a group discussion activity is clear.

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 3

31. The vast majority of trainees are confident, reflective practitioners with a real enthusiasm for teaching. They see themselves as learners, have a clear sense of how well they are doing and what they need to do to improve, and fully accept their personal responsibility for their own professional development, as exemplified in the quality of evidence in their files. Trainees develop good working relationships with colleagues and parents and positive relationships with pupils, drawing on their own professional or personal experience to understand and empathise with pupils’ needs. They use a good range of teaching strategies, including using new technologies, to engage learners and employ good strategies for managing behaviour. Trainees understand how to build pupils’ learning during individual lessons and over a series of lessons, and the need to adapt their teaching to meet pupils’ different needs and abilities.

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 3

However, they do not have the same in-depth understanding as to how to meet the needs of gifted and talented pupils as they do for those who have special educational needs and/or disabilities or those for whom English is an additional language.

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 3

32. In the main, centre- and school-based training combine well to ensure that training is both structured and responsive to need, and takes account of current educational thinking and national initiatives. The training programme outlines clear links between taught sessions at the base school, tasks to be undertaken in schools and observations and assessments of trainees’ practice, ensuring that all the QTS Standards are addressed over the course of the year. A balance of good-quality training sessions and school experience ensures that trainees, including those teaching older age groups, are knowledgeable about the teaching of phonics and early reading. The introduction of a critical research project this year ensures an academic balance to the practical, school- based nature of the course. It contributes to the development of trainees as reflective practitioners and members of a team as they have the opportunity to

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 3

learn from each group’s final presentations. Within this broad framework, good use of the initial analysis of trainees’ strengths and previous experience, as well as identified needs, ensures that individual training plans are personalised. The move this year to weekly training plans keeps training and assessment focused through the use of short-term targets. However, the provider is not closely tracking trainees’ subject knowledge or focusing on it explicitly enough through feedback and targets following lesson observations. 33. Resources are used well. The very large majority of schools are effective training placements and professional tutors play a key role in ensuring that most trainees make good progress. Good links ensure the provider draws on the expertise of the local authority and other agencies to deliver centre-based sessions, although opportunities to involve partnership schools are missed

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 3

because the provider does not have in-depth knowledge of each school’s work. Trainees feel well supported because close attention is paid to both individual progress and pastoral care. Indeed, where a self-motivated trainee is driving their own training, and a school-based tutor and a professional tutor are working effectively together, trainees often make very good progress. However, as the provider has rightly identified, there are some inconsistencies in the implementation of the training programme across the partnership, and particularly in the quality of assessment at school level. The training for school- based tutors has been redesigned this year and the role of professional tutors has been refocused to offer greater support and challenge to school-based tutors; there is evidence that this is bringing about improvement. Nevertheless, there are still examples where the quality of school-based training has not fully

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 3

met trainees’ needs and ensured they make good progress. Furthermore, the quality of some second placements, and the coherence of links between placements, has had an adverse impact on the progress of a few trainees at points during the year. In part this is because the provider does not have the in-depth knowledge of all schools’ strengths and weaknesses to ensure that placements are complementary and closely matched to trainees’ needs. It is also because links between targets from different placements are not always explicit enough.

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Grade: 2

34. The programme manager and professional tutors work effectively together, and in collaboration with the group board, to provide good leadership. There is a commitment to continuous improvement through self-review and reflective practice that mirrors the expectations the provider has of its trainees. At a strategic level, self-evaluation and action planning are clearly linked, as demonstrated by the developments over the last year and plans for the future. The process takes into account the views of partners and external agencies, as well as local needs and national developments in primary education, and indicates that the provider has a good understanding of its strengths and areas for development, although some judgements in its self-evaluation document are too generous. In part this is because some of the actions the provider has taken are relatively recent and have not yet had sufficient demonstrable impact

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Grade: 2

on outcomes for trainees. It is also because the interrogation of data is not yet as incisive as it could be, for example in analysing the overall performance of trainees. Nevertheless, action planning is focused on appropriate issues and on the impact the actions will have on outcomes for trainees.

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Grade: 2

35. At an operational level the programme manager works with professional tutors to monitor the quality of the provision and trainees’ progress on an ongoing basis through the scrutiny of trainees’ weekly training plans and professional tutors’ regular visits to schools. The separation of the leadership roles for the two courses run by the provider has enabled the programme manager for this course to develop tracking systems this year. Based on a successful pilot last year, which accelerated progress, all trainees now have weekly, rather than fortnightly, training plans which identify and provide the means for tracking their targets in relation to the Standards. The size of the cohort makes it manageable for these to be sent to the programme manager so that she has an overview of progress both for individuals and the cohort as a whole and can identify any emerging issues and take appropriate action. Similarly, through the

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Grade: 2

systems introduced for tracking the outcomes of observations of trainees, the programme manager identifies patterns in areas for development either for an individual trainee or the group as a whole. There are good examples where this has led to adaptations to the training programme during the course of the year to ensure that trainees’ needs are met.

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Grade: 2

36. Professional tutors’ visits to schools, observations of trainees teaching and regular checking of their files ensure they have an accurate picture of each trainees’ attainment, their strengths and what they need to do to improve. Professional tutors are generally accurate in their assessments of trainees’ teaching and through their restructured role this year are providing training for, and quality assurance of, school-based tutors’ assessments of trainees. There are formal and informal systems in place to ensure professional tutors report back promptly on their visits to schools so that if any concerns arise remedial action can be taken sooner rather than later. There is evidence that intervention by the provider usually resolves issues so that they do not have a long-term impact on trainees’ progress. The termly grading of trainees’ attainment by the professional and school-based tutors helps the provider to

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Grade: 2

track how well trainees are progressing in relation to their identified starting points at the beginning of the course. However, as the provider acknowledges, there is still work to be done in developing the accuracy of end-of-year targets and refining the systems to measure progress.

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Grade: 2

37. The programme manager and professional tutors attach equally high importance to the ongoing evaluation of provision by trainees, to ensure that their needs are met and that they feel well prepared to teach. There are good examples where they have responded positively to meet a trainee’s request for an additional session, and there are also clear instances where the following year’s training programme has been adapted after considering current trainees’ evaluations. For example, this year there has been a greater focus on assessment practice and the Early Years Foundation Stage in response to feedback from trainees at the end of last year. Equally, schools are consulted on their views and priorities for the future, although in practice they tend to feed back informally through their professional tutor rather than formally evaluating their practice as part of the partnership or being actively involved in

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Grade: 2

38. The partnership has a good track record of ensuring most trainees realise their potential to be good teachers. The main issues facing the provider are ensuring the consistency of assessments of trainees and quality of second placements, and broadening the involvement of partnership schools in delivering training and contributing to self-evaluation and action planning. The work it has done this year, in particular its focus on redefining its programme for training and supporting school-based tutors, together with the enhanced leadership and management capacity as a result of the programme manager only having overall responsibility for one course, demonstrates it is well placed to continue to improve.

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Summary of inspection grades 1

Key to judgements: grade 1 is outstanding; grade 2 is good; grade 3 is satisfactory; grade 4 is inadequate.

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Overall effectiveness

Primary Employment- based routes How effective is the provision in securing high-quality outcomes for trainees? 3 3

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Overall effectiveness

Trainees’ attainment How well do trainees attain? 2 2 To what extent do recruitment / selection arrangements support high quality outcomes? 2 2 To what extent does the training and assessment ensure that all trainees progress to fulfil their potential given their ability and starting points? 2 2 Factors contributing to trainees’ attainment

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Overall effectiveness

To what extent are available resources used effectively and efficiently? 2 2 The quality of the provision To what extent is the provision across the partnership of consistently high quality? 3 3

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Overall effectiveness

Promoting equalities and diversity To what extent does the provision promote equality of opportunity, value diversity and eliminate harassment and unlawful discrimination? 2 2

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Capacity to improve further and/or sustain high quality

Primary Employment- based routes To what extent do the leadership and management at all levels have the capacity to secure further improvements and/or to sustain high-quality outcomes? 2 2

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Capacity to improve further and/or sustain high quality

How effectively does the management at all levels assess performance in order to improve or sustain high quality? 2 2 How well does the leadership at all levels anticipate change, and prepare for and respond to national and local initiatives? 2 2 How effectively does the provider plan and take action for improvement? 2 2

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Capacity to improve further and/or sustain high quality

1 The criteria for making these graded judgements are in the Grade criteria for the inspection of ITE 2008-11 ; Ofsted July 2008; Reference no: 080128. set out in the guidance ‘Complaints about school inspection’, which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.ofsted.gov.uk

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