Setting

Aviation House 125 Kingsway London WC2B 6SE T 0300 123 1231 F 020 7421 6855 enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk www.ofsted.gov.uk

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Mrs K Hancox Headteacher Whetstone Field Primary School Beaufort Way Aldridge Walsall WS9 0HJ

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education (PE)

Thank you for your hospitality and cooperation, and that of the staff and pupils, during my visit on 3 February 2010 to look at work in PE.

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education (PE)

As outlined in my initial letter, as well as looking at key areas of the subject, the visit had a particular focus on the identification of an area of best practice in PE and its impact for pupils.

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education (PE)

The visit provided valuable information which will contribute to our national evaluation and reporting. Published reports are likely to list the names of the contributing institutions but individual institutions will not be identified in the main text.

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education (PE)

The evidence used to inform the judgements included: interviews with staff and pupils; scrutiny of relevant documentation; analysis of pupils’ reports; and observation of two lessons and other activities.

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education (PE)

The overall effectiveness of PE is good.

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Achievement in PE

 Pupils make good progress in PE. They get a good start in the Early Years Foundation Stage where they develop a full range of physical skills. The school’s assessment records show that pupils continue to make steady progress in Key Stages 1 and 2. In 2009, all pupils in Year 6 managed to reach the expected level, with pupils doing particularly well in athletics. Standards in swimming are above average with almost all Year 6 pupils able to swim 25 metres before they leave. In lessons, pupils perform with enthusiasm and show very good attitudes and behaviour. They are encouraged to acquire, develop and apply their skills in a good range of different learning activities.  Pupils’ personal development and well-being are enhanced by their involvement in PE and sport. Pupils say they thoroughly enjoy physical activities and appreciate how being active is an important feature of adopting a healthy lifestyle. They also show good awareness of the

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Achievement in PE

benefits of sport for building teamwork skills and positive attitudes to competitions. Some pupils who are talented at sport are identified and linked with community sports clubs and older pupils are trained as play- leaders to enable them to organise activities for younger children.

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Quality of teaching in PE

 Much of the teaching in PE is led by the subject leader; this provides useful continuity. Lesson planning identifies the learning outcomes for pupils and links well to the National Curriculum programme of study. Lessons are structured suitably and teachers display good subject knowledge by modelling and coaching the skills pupils will be practising. Lessons have a brisk pace and older pupils are given good opportunities to manage equipment and lead aspects of the lesson themselves.  Teachers observe pupils well during lessons and adjust their teaching to match the progress pupils are making. They also encourage pupils to discuss their own and others’ responses and look for ways in which they might be improved. Playground markings are use effectively to help younger pupils understand their use of space. The school acknowledges that sharper differentiation and more challenge for able pupils, and the

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Quality of teaching in PE

introduction of formal assessments at the end of units of work are aspects of teaching which require further improvement.

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Quality of the curriculum in PE

The quality of the PE curriculum is good.

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Quality of the curriculum in PE

 A well-constructed curriculum map includes five of the six areas of learning. Pupils have two hours of PE on their weekly timetables and lessons are synchronised, so that they are able to work on one aspect for an extended period. All pupils are taught by the subject specialist for at least one lesson each week and pupils in Years 3 and 4 attend swimming lessons. Greater variety is being introduced to give pupils more experiences of contemporary and cultural dance. Although older pupils have the chance to undertake a residential visit to a farm, provision for outdoor and adventurous activities lacks breadth.  Teachers look for opportunities to link learning in PE with other subjects in promoting healthy lifestyles. There is a good range of well-attended after- school sports clubs run by staff and visiting coaches. These include activities organised to attract wider groups of pupils, such as judo and

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Quality of the curriculum in PE

cheerleading. Indoor and outdoor accommodation for physical activities, including for children in the Early Years Foundation Stage, is excellent.

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Effectiveness of leadership and management in PE

The effectiveness of leadership and management in PE is good.

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Effectiveness of leadership and management in PE

 Leaders are committed to establishing high-quality provision in PE. The subject is managed well and leaders have a good understanding of the strengths and areas that require development. A subject action plan sets out priorities for improvement. Pupils’ attainment and progress are monitored systematically, although more moderation of assessments is required to test comparative judgements in each key stage. Leaders observe lessons in PE and give good feedback on the quality of teaching. A more systematic approach to using the primary link teacher time would further strengthen quality assurance procedures.  Involvement in the school sports partnership has helped to improve provision. Professional development for teachers, play-leader training and pupils’ attendance at festivals and tournaments are some of the benefits gained. A well-constructed programme of training and support is organised for teachers who are newly qualified. PE and sport are given a high profile

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Effectiveness of leadership and management in PE

with pupils’ achievements celebrated in assemblies.

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Areas for improvement, which we discussed, include:

 extending provision for outdoor and adventurous activities for pupils in Key Stage 2  continuing to develop the systems for assessing and recording pupils’ progress in PE, including the identification of talented pupils and moderating assessments across the key stages  systematically planning the use of primary link teacher time to include more quality assurance activities.

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Areas for improvement, which we discussed, include:

I hope these observations are useful as you continue to develop PE in the school.

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Areas for improvement, which we discussed, include:

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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