Tannochside primary HMI follow up report

December 2004

HM Inspectors (HMIE) published a report on standards and quality in Tannochside Primary School in August 2002. In November 2002, North Lanarkshire Council, in collaboration with the school, prepared and published an action plan indicating how they would address the main points for action in the HMIE report within a two-year period.

A North Lanarkshire Council Quality Improvement Officer assessed the extent to which the school was continuing to improve the quality of its work, and evaluated progress made in responding to the main points for action in the original report.

The headteacher and staff, with the support of the authority, had worked effectively to take forward the recommendations contained in the report. Programmes and planning had been improved, resulting in improvements in breadth and balance of the curriculum and in pupils' experiences. Assessment of pupils' progress had been used skilfully, to plan next steps in their learning and to ensure a better pace. Monitoring of work throughout the school had resulted in improvements at all stages and in all curricular areas. Parents were fully involved at all stages of development and were fully committed to improvement in the school.

The school was now well placed to sustain and build on these improvements.

3.  Progress towards the main points for action

The initial inspection report published in August 2002 identified five points for action. This section evaluates the progress made with each of the action points and the resulting improvements for pupils and other stakeholders.

3.1 The school and education authority should continue to improve resources for English language, mathematics and learning support.

The school had made very good progress towards meeting this point for action.

• The headteacher and staff had reviewed the resources in the school. With support from the development officers in North Lanarkshire literacy base, they had identified and purchased resources that met the needs of pupils. New reading materials had increased the pace of learning and extended the range of approaches used within the school. Classroom assistants helped with the organisation of books into levels appropriate to different pupils' needs and with the cataloguing of materials. The authority's library bus visited the school regularly and pupils from the school visited the local library. Books had been purchased for pupils to read at home. The school provided a helpful leaflet, designed with the help of the pupils, to inform parents about reading at home. Additional materials had been obtained for English language for all stages, improving provision and helping teachers meet the needs of all pupils.
  
• New resources, including those for information and communications technology (ICT), had been purchased to support learning and teaching in mathematics. Practical materials introduced at P1to P3 had made learning more interactive. Additional new had been effective in promoting positive behaviour. ICT resources were having a positive influence on learning and teaching in English language and mathematics. A computer programme was being used very successfully to support learning for higher attaining pupils and those needing more support.

3.2  The school should improve the consistency of teachers' expectations of pupils' attainment, presentation of work and ability to think for themselves.

The school had made good progress towards meeting this action point.

• Staff from the authority's literacy base had worked with teachers and had improved their skills in all aspects of literacy. Teachers showed a greater consistency of approach and of expectations. Targeting and tracking of pupils' attainment had led to higher expectations. More pupils reached level E by P7. The quality of pupils' work had improved and some of it was used in displays of good practice in North Lanarkshire's literacy base. Children were more confident about their learning and could talk about their successes and development needs. Teachers had undertaken training in co-operative learning, an approach which encouraged learning through individuals contributing to group activities, and were using these strategies well to help pupils think for themselves. Developments in problem solving in mathematics were also influencing pupils' independent learning in other curricular areas. Teachers' expectations had risen, as a result of sharing good practice across the school and through clearer guidance from the headteacher. The aims of lessons were shared with pupils, helping them to think about their own learning in a structured way.

3.3  Teachers should improve arrangements for forward planning and for assessing pupils' progress.

The school had made very good progress towards meeting this point for action.

• Planning had been reviewed across the school and assessment had been built into curriculum planners. Teachers evaluated their work, with a positive an impact on the identification of next steps in learning. Planning reflected national guidelines and clearly identified what pupils were expected to learn. Staff set targets for learning and monitored pupils' progress. Staff made helpful predictions of pupil progress. They used a range of effective approaches to measure individual pupils progress progress and to monitor the schools performance. Staff training on assessment had helped them provide better feedback to pupils, involving them more fully in learning. Pupils could speak purposefully about their experiences and their progress. Pupils self-assessment and peer assessment were being developed in some classes.

3.4  The school should improve teachers' skills in supporting pupils' learning and make greater use of the expertise of the area network support team.

The school had met this recommendation

• The area network support manager had provided staff training on the role of the learning support teacher. Learning support had been reviewed across the school. The learning support policy had been reviewed and amended in order to have a greater impact on meeting pupils' needs through a rigorous systematic process of identification and action. Staff had undertaken training to improve individualised educational programmes (IEPs) that now identified appropriate long term and short-term targets. Staff were more confident in the identification of suitable targets that would impact on the pupils' learning needs. Teachers had also worked on producing effective group educational programmes where appropriate. The staff had reviewed the North Lanarkshire Council policy on learning and teaching and had embedded the main points in their own developments and practice. Planning time had been given to ensure dialogue between class teachers and the learning support teacher and the headteacher had improved communications with parents

3.5  The headteacher should lead staff in developing more rigorous approaches to self evaluation.

The school had made very good progress towards meeting this point for action.

• All aspects of self-evaluation had improved in the school and there were more rigorous systems in place to monitor learning and teaching and school improvement. The pace of learning had been improved through effective target setting. Pupils were achieving national levels of attainment at earlier stages and a number of pupils in the upper stages of the school had achieved level E in English Language. The monitoring timetable had been agreed and this was having an impact on school improvement. Homework was monitored and the use of a homework diary kept parents informed of the work undertaken by their children and ensured continuing good communication between the home and school. Forward plans were discussed with staff and progress in learning monitored through this process. Staff had undertaken training in the use of national quality indicators to identify strengths and areas for development. This had assisted in consistency across the school and in the development of good teamwork.

With effective support from North Lanarkshire Council Quality Development Service, Tannochside Primary School had responded well to the recommendations of the HMIE report. Staff had improved pupil attainment through the developments in planning, assessment and higher expectations of pupils' work and achievements. The school had improved its procedures and was effective in meeting the needs of all pupils. Monitoring of developments by the headteacher and the involvement of staff in all improvements had resulted in greater consistency and improved teamwork. All staff had been fully involved in the development of the action plan and had worked hard to support the headteacher to undertake the recommendations within the agreed timescale. The school is well placed to continue the improvements achieved to date. North Lanarkshire Council will not publish further reports in relation to the 2002 HMIE report.

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