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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Mr S Kozlowski Headteacher Kingsworthy Primary School Church Lane Kings Worthy Winchester SO23 7QS

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education (RE)

Thank you for your hospitality and cooperation, and that of the staff and pupils, during my visit on 10 June 2010 to look at work in RE.

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education (RE)

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 without their consent.

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education (RE)

The evidence used to inform the judgements included interviews with staff and pupils, scrutiny of relevant documentation, analysis of pupils’ work and observation of two lessons.

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education (RE)

The overall effectiveness of RE is satisfactory.

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Achievement in RE

 Pupils’ attainment by the end of Key Stages 1 and 2 is in line with the expectations of the Hampshire agreed syllabus reflecting satisfactory achievement.  Pupils develop knowledge and understanding of several religions by the time they leave school. By the end of Year 2, children learn about the importance of celebrations within Judaism and Christianity. They are able to talk about some of the similarities between the Torah and the Bible and the significance these play in the lives of followers. As one child stated, ‘They think of them as God’s words.’  By the end of Year 6, pupils extend their knowledge of other religions by including the study of Islam and Hinduism. Pupils are able to talk about some of the similarities as well as the differences between religions. They begin to reflect upon the importance that places of worship have on bringing communities together. Although pupils enjoy expressing their own

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Achievement in RE

views and reflecting on their feelings in relation to religion and belief, this good practice is inconsistent as pupils move through the school.  The subject makes a good contribution to pupils’ personal development. Pupils enjoy RE and the opportunity to learn about a variety of religions. They are keen to point out that RE is important in helping them to become thoughtful individuals by respecting and understanding differences in religious practice.

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Quality of teaching of RE

The quality of teaching of RE is satisfactory.

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Quality of teaching of RE

 Teaching is satisfactory overall with elements of good practice. These include the good use made of religious artefacts to motivate and stimulate pupils’ interests. Pupils are given an opportunity to work in groups exploring their own ideas as well as those of their peers. They are encouraged to pose questions and make connections with the practices of different faiths. However, this good practice is inconsistent. Some children spend too much time listening and, on occasions, the resources used are too difficult for them to access independently. Few opportunities are given to pupils to assess their own learning or that of their peers.  During lessons, teachers’ questioning is used appropriately to assess pupils’ current understanding of religious concepts. However, on occasions, gaps in teachers’ subject knowledge mean that opportunities are missed to further develop pupils’ understanding.  Teachers are beginning to use their prior assessments of pupils’ learning

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Quality of teaching of RE

to set tasks to meet pupils’ needs. However, these tasks are often not matched appropriately to individual needs. As a result, some pupils are given tasks that lack challenge, and progress is limited.  Although assessment opportunities are identified in some plans, these are not clearly understood by all staff. The school is at the early stages of considering how best to assess pupils’ progress and attainment.  Marking often consists of providing positive reinforcement of pupils’ achievements but as yet does not provides pupils with appropriate advice on their next steps in learning.

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Quality of the curriculum in RE

The quality of the curriculum in RE is satisfactory.

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Quality of the curriculum in RE

 The RE curriculum is in transition. The new subject leader has reviewed past schemes of work to ensure that they are now complete and meet the requirements of the Hampshire agreed syllabus. Further work is needed to ensure that staff are clear about the progression of skills in RE.  The school is beginning to make cross-curricular links with other subjects. Some links have been established with subjects such as art and drama. Pupils say that these opportunities enrich their learning experiences. A variety of resources, such as artefacts and information and communication technology (ICT), are used well to ensure pupils are motivated and keen to learn.  The school has strong links with the local community and St. Mary’s Church. Pupils visit the church and a local vicar regularly takes whole- school assemblies. However, the opportunity to visit places of worship or have a range of speakers from non-Christian traditions is limited.

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Effectiveness of leadership and management in RE

The effectiveness of leadership and management in RE is satisfactory with some good features.

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Effectiveness of leadership and management in RE

 The subject leader is enthusiastic about making the necessary changes to improve RE. A subject action plan has been written based on an accurate self-evaluation. Consequently, the school’s scheme of work has been adjusted and completed for the academic year 2009/10.  The action plan has been reviewed in a timely manner and monitoring has begun. Staff meetings have taken place to introduce the scheme of work and ensure that staff understand the principles behind the locally agreed syllabus. Further training opportunities have been arranged so that changes to assessment and planning can take place.

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Areas for improvement, which we discussed, include:

 developing staff’s subject knowledge so that they are better able to extend pupils’ understanding of religious practice and beliefs  extending the scheme of work to ensure that staff are clear about ways of developing pupils’ skills in RE  introducing structured opportunities to assess pupils’ progress  extending opportunities for pupils to visit a variety of religious places of worship and meet representatives of different religions and beliefs.

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Areas for improvement, which we discussed, include:

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

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Areas for improvement, which we discussed, include:

As I explained previously, a copy of this letter will be sent to your local authority and SACRE and will be published on the Ofsted website under the URN for your school. It will also be available to the team for your next institutional inspection.

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