SKEIN-Momentum

SKEIN Momentum

Joe Askew — Fri, 14 Oct 2016 12:56:34 +0000

SKEIN Momentum

Joe Askew Fri, 10/14/2016 - 13:56

SKEIN Momentum

Gaining and Sustaining Momentum - Case Studies

Joe Askew — Tue, 08 Nov 2016 15:53:18 +0000

Gaining and Sustaining Momentum - Case Studies Joe Askew Tue, 11/08/2016 - 15:53

Island School – a Seeking Momentum School

Island School is an all-through school (having been an 11-16 comprehensive until September 2014). The majority of students (86%) are from Black and Minority Ethnic backgrounds and the proportion of students who speak English as an additional language is well above average (around 40%). Over half (56%[1]) of students at Island School are eligible for Free School Meals. The proportion of students with special educational needs is close to the national average.

Read the full case study here

Forest School- an Approaching Momentum School

Forest School is an 11-18 comprehensive school in London. Total student numbers are around 943, 56% boys and 44% girls. The school is extremely diverse, with over 60% with EAL and around 20% eligible for free school meals. The percentage of students achieving five or more A*-C GCSEs including English and maths has fluctuated over recent years (between 55% and 42%), reaching 50% in 2014 (nearly 10% below the LA average and 3.5% below the national average). The school was placed in special measures following an Ofsted inspection in October 2011. A new leadership team was in place by June 2012 and the school came out of special measures and was rated as requiring improvement at June 2013.

Read the full case study here

River School – a gaining momentum school

River School is a 4-18 community school and sixth form in London. The primary school opened in January 2014 at the behest of the local authority and extended to year two at the time of the research. Total student numbers are roughly 1600 and primary numbers are increasing fast. The school operates across two campuses in different locations. Provision is duplicated across the two sites, each of which is assigned two deputy heads. Students are allocated between the campuses based on data collected by the school to avoid a demographic bias, as one campus is in a significantly less affluent area than the other.

Read the full case study here

Case Studies

Joe Askew — Tue, 08 Nov 2016 15:51:33 +0000

Case Studies

Joe Askew Tue, 11/08/2016 - 15:51

Find Them Here

GSM Report

Joe Askew — Mon, 07 Nov 2016 14:06:17 +0000

GSM Report

Joe Askew Mon, 11/07/2016 - 14:06

Read It Here

Gaining and Sustaining Momentum - River School Case Study

Joe Askew — Fri, 28 Oct 2016 10:43:21 +0000

Gaining and Sustaining Momentum - River School Case Study Joe Askew Fri, 10/28/2016 - 11:43

River School – a gaining momentum school

The school intake has changed in recent years and there are increasing numbers of students with low literacy levels and aspirations, and high levels of EAL. The latter are well above the national average. The school has a large number of students from minority ethnic groups, of which the largest proportion is Turkish. Others are of Greek, black African and black Caribbean heritage. The number of FSM and/or looked after students is over 50%. The percentage of students with disabilities and/or SEND is above national average. The school is well networked nationally through its executive headteacher but less so for members of the senior leadership team and middle leaders.

The school was rated as Good in all categories following its most recent Ofsted inspection in December 2014. Ofsted highlighted the progress of less able students as an area for improvement, together with a lack of consistency in the application of systems and policies by all staff. The percentage of students achieving five or more A*-C GCSEs including English and maths has largely remained stable over the past few years (49%-51%). In 2014, the percentage of students who made expected progress in English was above the national average (79% compared to 75%), whilst the progress in maths was below the national average (59% compared to 71%). The school recruits a substantial number of NQTs (20) and had seven TF participants at the time of the research, although there were no TF ambassadors at the school.

There is an extensive programme of professional learning at River, featuring Teacher Learning Communities and a middle leader development programme plus an in-house MA programme that encompasses the use of action research. The professional learning environment features paired observations and feedback, in-depth book looks conducted by the SLT, specific focusing on particular groups of students (in some cases), and (some) collaborative planning for teachers and middle leaders. Heads of faculty similarly engage in collaborative CPD activities with each other, and mentoring and coaching is used extensively across all colleagues. Some faculty meetings involve CPD, while others do not, and there is some recognition of the value of specialist expertise and effort spent on building it internally. Following a period of centrally led whole school approaches to CPD, the school is moving to a more personalised approach with staff selecting development opportunities from a menu based on school priorities, and sustained over a longer period.

The teaching and learning approach at River aspires to help every student be the best they can be, through achievement/attainment and access to cultural capital and career preparation. The school has an in-house information, advice and guidance unit to promote aspiration, with two staff and regular visits to London cultural events and venues. The school also plans to extend Achievement for All more widely. It explicitly emphasises the importance of teacher creativity and is reluctant to develop a central model of pedagogy. There are, nonetheless some commonly used and encouraged teaching and learning strategies including: the use of starters and plenary activities, use of engaging activities, differentiation/extension, and Assessment for Learning. River’s approach to teaching and learning is based on the proposition that the foundation for good teaching is a combination of behaviour for learning, positive relationships and a focus on aspirations as well as achievement. Fostering independent learning has proved a challenge for River; lack of curriculum time, risk aversion, and student dependence on teacher input are cited as considerable obstacles.

Student-teacher relationships appear excellent, and the school now has a positive behaviour management policy based on rewards, and the support of non-teaching pastoral teams. The belief that inspirational teaching and good relations are key to effective classroom behaviour management is evident across teaching and learning practice at River, and behaviour data are monitored and linked to progress data, which surfaces patterns and enables planned interventions. The one area of behaviour which the school still finds challenging, is behaviour in corridors and the playground. The quality of teaching and learning is constantly monitored via joint observations, book looks, and performance management.

The leadership at River set a vision for the school, that all students will be achieve high standards. Leaders constantly remind staff of their capacity to make a profound impact on students’ life chances. All staff are expected to be good or outstanding teachers, and the senior leadership team are fully engaged in supporting them, having developed and implemented a programme of observations, feedback - and are introducing coaching. The middle leadership CPD strand is focused on middle leadership as well as practical training in mentoring, appraising, lesson observations and feedback. There are regular data windows, involving individual students and teachers, and a monthly data dashboard, including comparison of predicted and current attainment across year groups, and attendance.

Gaining and Sustaining Momentum - Forest School Case Study

Joe Askew — Fri, 28 Oct 2016 10:38:29 +0000

Gaining and Sustaining Momentum - Forest School Case Study Joe Askew Fri, 10/28/2016 - 11:38

Forest School- an Approaching Momentum School

Having come out of special measures the new leadership team embarked on a programme of improvement for the whole school, prioritising action across the four main areas of student achievement, teaching and learning, behaviour and safety and leadership and management. The falling school roll is bringing challenges, not least putting significant pressure on the school budget and impacting on teaching capacity.

CPD at Forest tends to be generic and focused on pedagogy, with lots of teachers teaching beyond their subjects, although there is limited support for subject knowledge (except for literacy- see below). This places the burden of providing subject knowledge support squarely on heads of department who are not necessarily well placed to respond. The professional learning environment at Forest is a collaborative one, including mutual lesson observations (made possible in part by a new open-door policy) and good collaboration in middle leaders’ meetings. Teachers are open to expertise, and the large scale Literacy CPD programme delivered by an external expert team has had an impact on the manner in which all professional learning is carried out. Specialist expertise does exist in the form of support provided by the local authority, and there is targeted support for both NQTs and teachers who have been graded as requiring improvement.

There is a teaching and learning team, led by the deputy head, whose role is to support professional learning. Where observations identify teachers who need to improve in specific areas, the teaching and learning team provides rapid and specific support. Forest holds fortnightly twilight CPD sessions, but attendance is very variable, and there are some worries that the image of professional development which is presented is not an accurate reflection of the reality. Much of what is taking place in school is a reaction to their last Ofsted inspection, but it is unclear how the CPD offer (with the exception of Literacy training and individual coaching) is tied in to the quality of teaching and learning or performance management. There is a strong literacy drive, hence the school’s adoption of the Literacy, Language and Communication programme. In addition to this, Forest is focusing on Assessment for Learning, differentiation, behaviour for learning, independent learning, teacher/student dialogue, and supporting progress. There has been an attempt at a common teaching and learning approach, but not all staff have agreed with or owned this so there is no substantive, shared understanding of what makes a lesson outstanding. Teachers are exposed to strategies and ideas through a number of methods including modelling, but the extent to which there is take-up of these strategies is variable. The leadership team encourages teachers to reflect on practice, and use book looks with both SLT and heads of department to establish overall quality of teaching and learning. There is a review of at least one key stage conducted every term. Behaviour systems are inconsistently applied, and low-level disruption is an issue in need of resolution. However, the use of peer mentors has had a positive impact on stopping more serious behavioural issues like bullying. The senior leadership team are re-launching their behaviour policy, with the aim of raising its profile with staff and students. There is still some way to go in communicating and building ownership of the SLT’s goals around higher aspirations (i.e. going beyond curriculum achievement) for all staff members. The teaching and learning vision and components are not universally shared across the school, inhibiting its capacity to gain and sustain momentum.

Forest’s leadership have a strong moral purpose and their vision and values are crystallised and operationalised through the staff handbook, and both development and departmental plans. The SLT are relatively new and are looking to make a positive impact by providing a good induction for new staff and making sure their expectations are clearly outlined. The teaching and learning team who lead CPD in the school see themselves as role models who must “practice what we preach”. Similarly, leaders of EAL and SEN also see themselves - and are seen as - leaders of practice. Throughout the school, leaders model practice and offer support through mentoring and coaching. The school conducts half-termly reviews of student progress, data summaries are frequently widely circulated, and data are actively used in middle leaders’ and departmental meetings. Performance management, (including formal lesson observations and book scrutinies) are linked to wider school improvement objectives.

Gaining and Sustaining Momentum - Island School Case Study

Joe Askew — Fri, 28 Oct 2016 09:54:17 +0000

Gaining and Sustaining Momentum - Island School Case Study Joe Askew Fri, 10/28/2016 - 10:54

Island School – a Seeking Momentum School

The percentage of students achieving five or more A*-C GCSEs including English and maths has been stable at just under 40% mark for some years. In 2014, the figures were 38% for first entry or 46% for best entry. The value added analysis (Best 8) suggests that the school’s scores in 2014 were slightly below the national average, particularly for disadvantaged students. In 2014, students’ progress and achievement in English were close to national averages. The progress of disadvantaged students in English was particularly impressive: 84% of them made expected progress compared to the national average figure of 75%. Students’ results in maths and science were lower, at 42% (compared to 55% nationally) and 48% (compared to 72% nationally) respectively. In its last Ofsted review, Island School was assessed as Requiring Improvement.

The senior leadership team at Island School have developed a strategic response to this grading, aiming to adapt a few strategies capable of securing progress on many fronts, and devised a School Improvement Plan which aims to achieve Outstanding status. The SIP lays out a series of ambitious targets, including raising the overall percentage of five or more A*- C GCSE results to 60.3% by 2015 (from 45.8% in 2014). It also sets out objectives and milestones for improving the quality of teaching, achievement of students, and leadership and management. To achieve these ambitious goals the school has put in place a number of staff support and development systems including , for example, the use of the whole school TEEP CPD programme and use of video evidence in professional learning (via IRIS Connect).

Island is strong on professional learning. The SLT explicitly model leadership, and the CPD environment overall features the use of Blue Sky portfolios, collaboration (including planning), 22 trained coaches, and the use of impact evidence to inform CPD. Performance management processes are currently being realigned to better link staff and student learning, but targets remain somewhat generic. Colleagues have expressed a desire for more support from specialists, especially in circumstances where they are teaching outside their own subject. The school makes use of IRIS Connect; this is thought useful but time consuming. Professional learning is mostly focussed on whole cohorts rather than on strategies that work for particular sub groups.

School leaders set challenging expectations of students, but there is still room for improvement – the school now needs to make sure it challenges all students, and is making progress on this with co-ordinators for More Able and data handling. There is much good teaching in the school and teachers are aware of the importance of contextualisation and the use of open questions. But the overall quality of teaching and learning in Island is mixed. Problems with stretch and challenge were corroborated by survey evidence.

Relationships between staff and students are complex, with some positive survey responses but also some very negative ones, and peer relationships seem to follow a similar trend. Half of the students surveyed stated that there was a disruption at least once per lesson. The school’s behaviour policy is not yet in a position where it can enhance the learning culture in the school, and pedagogy, especially the development of inspirational teaching, seems to be hampered by an emphasis on behaviour management and control rather than behaviour for learning.

Island’s values and vision are made very clear to all, including during recruitment and via staff appraisals, the School Improvement Plan, and other documents. The senior leadership team have a number of key ambitions, crucially to eradicate inadequate teaching, and to raise teachers’ expectations of what students can achieve. The SLT have made both CPD and the rationale behind approaches visible to all, such as via their CPD policy and “public forum” CPD sessions in which SLT members participate. Student progress data is added to ePortal on a half-termly basis, and data monitoring is conducted using 4 Matric and RAPP meetings, with Blue Sky being used for performance management. Lesson observations track teacher progress against milestones, and the SIP is underpinned by data analysis, both in terms of arriving at objectives and milestones, and monitoring progress towards them. The SLT’s carefully selected and prioritised strategies and actions are poised to take full effect once a more effective approach to behaviour for learning is in place.

[1] ‘Ever six’ FSM figures, source - DfE performance tables

How does SKEIN Momentum relate to the Professional Standard in CPD?

Joe Askew — Fri, 28 Oct 2016 09:50:49 +0000

How does SKEIN Momentum relate to the Professional Standard in CPD?

Skein Momentum is fully aligned with the Professional Standard, and CUREE’s CEO Philippa Cordingley is a key member of the expert panel that developed the Standard.

The process includes consideration of your school’s professional development environment so giving you an insight into how CPDL (continuing professional development and learning) can be further strengthened. This will help you use the Standard to support your school improvement.

Schools that take part in the leadership enquiry will benefit from ongoing support that is in line with the Standard’s expectations of providers.

Joe Askew Fri, 10/28/2016 - 10:50

How does SKEIN Momentum relate to OfSTED?

Joe Askew — Fri, 28 Oct 2016 09:49:49 +0000

How does SKEIN Momentum relate to OfSTED?

SKEIN momentum is not simply a mock Ofsted but it does support schools in fulfilling Ofsted expectations. The service focuses on enabling schools to increase their capacity to accelerate school improvement leading to improved pupil outcomes. Skein Momentum give schools practical strategies to move forwards which align with Ofsted.

Joe Askew Fri, 10/28/2016 - 10:49

You claim that the service is rooted in the evidence about effective school improvement. What is this evidence?

Joe Askew — Fri, 28 Oct 2016 09:48:40 +0000

You claim that the service is rooted in the evidence about effective school improvement. What is this evidence?

The service is based on research that was carried out with Teach First. You can read one of the reports highlighting the evidence here.

Joe Askew Fri, 10/28/2016 - 10:48