SCHOOL IMPROVEMENT REPORT AND PLAN

PART ONE – Standards and Quality Report referencing your previous Improvement Plan and next steps (complete as appropriate):

School: CANISBAY SCHOOL

Head Teacher: Mrs Rhona Moodie

Date submitted: June 2018

Context of the school:

Including some or all of the following: local contextual issues; Scottish Attainment Challenge involvement; factors affecting progress (e.g. staffing changes/issues); and outcomes from authority quality improvement visits etc.

Canisbay Primary School is a rural primary school with a roll of 58 in primaries one to seven and 7 children in the Early Learning Centre (as at June 2018).

The school is situated in the north eastern corner of Caithness in close proximity to John O’Groats.

There are currently 3 class teachers and 1 teacher who supports the nursery for ½ day each week. The structure of the different classes in the current session of 2017/2018 is primary 1/2, primary 3/4/5 and primary 6/7. The organisation of the class groups can sometimes be changed due to the varying school roll and the size of individual year groups.

Our last Quality Improvement Visits were positive (1/12/16 and 17/5/18).

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School Vision, Values and Aims:

Vision – Learning together to be the best we can be (staff, pupils, parents and the community)Values – Respect Inclusion Challenge Safety Responsibility Independence Confidence AspirationAims – • Encourage a sense of belonging, pride and responsibility within the school and to have opportunities to make contributions.

• Provide an inclusive learning environment in which all children feel motivated, successful, valued and supported.

• Ensure individual needs are recognised and met and children have their personal achievements celebrated.

• Enable all children to become confident individuals by providing relevant opportunities and responsibilities within the school setting.

• Welcome and encourage partnerships with parents and the wider community to support children’s learning.

• Present opportunities to access global citizenship activities to develop an understanding of different beliefs and cultures in Scotland and

beyond.

• Promote the health and wellbeing of everyone in the school community.

• Ensure equal opportunities for all and uphold racial equality.

• Value the contribution that all staff make to the school by involving everyone in evaluations and solution finding for future improvements.

• Ensure children have the opportunities to direct their own learning and to engage in self-evaluation.

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• Develop awareness and a sense of responsibility for environmental issues locally and globally (2016)

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Summary of Improvement Report/Plan engagement process:

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Participants Engagement detailsTeachers and other staff

Meetings (minutes, actions)INSET days (overviews, actions, follow up)PRD discussions (recorded)Other professional dialogue

Parents Questionnaires and feedback (collated results and next steps)Parent Council Meetings (minutes)

Pupils Questionnaires and feedback (collated results and next steps)Learning Conversations (recorded in Learning Profiles, evidenced through children)Learning Profiles

Volunteers working in school (such as parents taking after-school activities, 3rd sector engagement etc.)

Informal discussions (feedback recorded)

Other partners Quality Improvement Team – HT conferences, Seminars

Associated Schools Group

ASG meetings held at least once per term – discussions around sharing standards and moderation are consistently held.

Full details of engagement activities can be found in the school’s self-evaluation records.

What have we done to close the attainment gap?Evaluative account explicitly stating the impact of your work on reducing the attainment gap in your context, referring to supporting data. This box must reference the impact of your Pupil Equity Fund spend and, if relevant your Scottish Attainment Challenge spend. Comments must refer explicitly to the National Improvement Framework Priorities as they apply to children and young people at risk of under-attainment through deprivation. We received £4800 of Pupil Equity Money in order to help raise attainment. This was included as an action in the last improvement plan. Our focus was mainly around providing staffing so that children who needed it could get extra one-one support in targets specifically for them. This was all around the areas of literacy and numeracy. We also bought resources to help us to do this extra work, to motivate children and allow them to meet their targets. We carried out the YARC assessment before and after the intervention in order to evaluate progress in literacy. There were also evaluations done in some other ways to assess individual work depending on the work being covered and how it was being implemented. Through formal and informal assessment class teachers and the PSA supporting PEF can see a difference in the identified children’s attainment. Unfortunately due to time and employment delays meant that the PSA was not able to start until later in the session so we feel it could have had more of an impact if it was able to start earlier. We need to look more carefully at our assessment tools for more reliable data as we progress in future.As a staff we have decided that this is a project we would like to continue into next session due to the impact it has had and the focus of the project.

What have we done to improve attainment, particularly in literacy and numeracy? (refer to specific projects and outcomes)The use of our PEF money, detailed above was used to improve literacy and numeracy for individuals.The work we have carried out in order to expand our Learning Profiles should continue to improve attainment as we are improving parent involvement and children are increasingly aware of what they need to do to improve and recognising this for themselves. We have purchased literacy and maths resources for the classes from P4 upwards in order to self-motivate children to progress in their learning. These can be used by all children. We have also worked on improving our tracking in literacy.Sharing Standards and Moderation took place across the Wick ASG in order for staff to discuss expectations of children’s work and how we are conducting assessments. This work initiated lots of discussion and also next steps for continuing this programme and should continue to also have an impact on attainment. The focus this year was on using Key Assessment Tasks incorporating report writing.

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What have we done to improve children and young people’s health and wellbeing? (refer to specific projects and outcomes)Staff in Canisbay School are active listeners so that children can share their concerns and have help to deal with them positively. Evidence from questionnaires shows that we need to ensure that this is consistent at all times, for all children and with all staff so that all children feel that this is the case. We will continue to develop this as an action.By holding regular learning conversations we are also able to let children share honestly where they feel they are in the learning and what they can do to improve therefore achieving positive outcomes. Through extra input from Pupil Equity Funding children are able to improve attainment in areas where they struggle the most therefore boosting their self-esteem. Sharing achievements and meeting targets will also have an impact on children’s health and wellbeing and we do this regularly.

What have we done to improve employability skills and help our children and young people achieve sustained, positive school leaver destinations? (refer to specific projects and outcomes)In our Learning Profiles we include an annual World of Work sheet to promote discussion and thinking around employment. We have also held a themed day and this will become a regular event. Very early next session we will be inviting people who work in different sectors to come in and lead groups with the children. As part of Key Assessment Tasks we discuss skills much more regularly.

Our overall evaluation of the school’s capacity for continuous improvement:* We are confident in our capacity for continuous improvement ☒* We have some concerns about our capacity for continuous improvement ☐

Comment: The staff in Canisbay are committed to improvement, collaboration and are willing to make changes to effect change. Staff collaborate very well between each other. Our information and data is current and analysed effectively looking at many different aspects. We look for any trends or inequalities. It also provides us information so that we can decide upon our areas for improvement. We involve children, staff and parents in our evaluations and also record informal evaluations from other agencies who are involved in our school. We have made good progress on our previous School Improvement Priorities despite various staffing pressures and HT needing to provide more support to Castletown School. This shows the commitment of staff to improvement and the ability to deal with pressures outwith their control.

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QI 1.1 Self-evaluation

for self-improveme

nt

How are we doing? What’s working well for our learners?

What are the features of effective practice in our

school/ELC setting?)FOCUS ON IMPROVEMENTS

FROM LAST YEAR’S IMPROVEMENT PLAN

How do we know? What evidence do we have of positive impact on our

learners?

MAKE BRIEF REFERENCES TO SUPPORTING DATA AND

OTHER INFORMATION

What could we do now? What actions would move us

forward?

IMPROVEMENT PRIORITIES HIGHLIGHTED IN THIS AREA – SIP PRIORITIES SELECTED

FROM THESE

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THEMES (HGIOS?4) Collaborative

approaches to self-evaluation

Analysis and evaluation of intelligence and data

Ensuring impact on learners’ successes and achievements

THEMES (HGIOELC?) Collaborative

approaches to self-evaluation

Evidence-based improvement

Ensuring impact of success for children and families

• CPD is relevant and ties in with personal developments and school improvement

• Discussions take place discussions about self-evaluation, Pupil Equity Funding, developments in School Improvement Plan.

• All staff understand the importance of self-evaluation and take part in discussion as a group or feedback individually.

• Staff have engaged with HGIOS 4 and HGIOELC

• Lots of self-evaluation and discussion for improvement also happens regularly on an informal basis

• Staff are aware of what needs to be improved

• Peer support is very obvious in our school and team work is strong – this has been very important this year as it has been a challenging year.

• Parents, children, staff and other partners’ views are taken into account to form our self-evaluation.

• PRD process, INSET Days, staff meetings, course requests, etc. are mainly geared towards improvement needs as a school and individuals.

• Results of self-evaluation and progress is shared with partners via displays, website and Parent Council

• We actively seek out good practice

Self-evaluation records held by the HT show that improvements are related to findings.

Improvements are also linked to Authority priorities.

Children are mostly aware of their own improvements needs – discussion with children and see Learning Profiles.

Together Times are used as opportunities to share progress on improvements with children – records kept, photos displayed.

Discussion of collated results from questionnaires, results shared with parents. Actions recorded.

We used assessments before and after Pupil Equity projects to evaluate effectiveness.

Our use of Key Assessment Tasks is part of the process to develop assessment of application and depth of learning. This is done through Learning Profiles.

Continue to build on robust methods of assessment before and after projects and to possibly include more children in these assessments.

Continue to build upon the use of Key Assessment Tasks in our Learning Profiles.

Continue to work with partners within the ASG to share standards and moderate across the area.

Engage with benchmarks in order to improve our assessment.

PM Benchmarking tests completed with P7 children in particular to provide HS with detailed info to improve attainment

Follow a self-evaluation calendar as closely as possible.

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to help us in our work, individually and as a school.

• Children are engaged in reviewing their own learning particularly in maths and language work

We are improving the use of self-evaluation to assess impact in different areas.

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QI 1.3 Leadership of change

How are we doing? What’s working well for our learners?

What are the features of effective practice in our

school/ELC setting?)FOCUS ON IMPROVEMENTS

FROM LAST YEAR’S IMPROVEMENT PLAN

How do we know? What evidence do we have of positive impact on our

learners?

MAKE BRIEF REFERENCES TO SUPPORTING DATA AND

OTHER INFORMATION

What could we do now? What actions would move us

forward?

IMPROVEMENT PRIORITIES HIGHLIGHTED IN THIS AREA – SIP PRIORITIES SELECTED

FROM THESE THEMES (HGIOS?4) Developing a

shared vision, values and aims relevant to the school and its community

Strategic planning for continuous improvement

Implementing improvement and change

THEMES (HGIOELC?) Developing a

shared vision, values and aims relevant to the ELC setting and its community

Strategic planning for continuous

• Priorities for change are directly linked with self-evaluation and Highland or Education Scotland Priorities

• Pace of change is appropriate so that impact on learners is realised.

• Continuation of projects will occur if they have not been realised within the expected timescale in order for them to be effective.

• Staff are very committed to discussion of change and development

• Opportunities given within projects for staff to lead

• Children are consulted via questionnaires and through discussion and views are considered and taken forward

• Parents are consulted via Parent Council and questionnaires and views are discussed and taken forward. Feedback is also provided. (Family Learning, Transition, Learning Profiles)

• Staff are willing to take on projects which will enhance children’s experiences and opportunities in a range of ways (residential trips,

• SIP priorities• Staff mostly feel confident with our

own changes and therefore this transfers to impact on children

• Children’s engagement with Learning Profiles

• Working parties – class teachers leading

Projects led by staff Projects very focussed to ensure

improved impact as this has worked well for Learning Profiles and PEF project

Children very involved in projects and understanding the need for them – Learning Profiles (QIO questioned the children in regards to profiling)

Collated questionnaire results Aug 2015 - Transition Jan 2016 – Various linked to

improvements (parent and child) Nov 2016 – Family learning Nov 2017 – Learning Profiles Annual children’s questionnaire

based on learning and positive relationships

CPD Records

Find methods to enable us to involve all staff in changes

Continue to keep moving forward with very focussed projects to ensure greater impact and staff engagement

Ensure children continue to be more aware and involved in school actions.

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improvement

Implementing improvement and change

sporting competitions, assisting children to be able to attend after school clubs, literacy and numeracy competitions, community engagement and performance, Polli:Nation Project, Charity events, Enterprise)

• CPD is relevant and ties in with personal developments and school improvement

• Staff are heavily involved in changes and collaborate really well

• Extensive discussions about self-evaluation, Pupil Equity Funding, developments in School Improvement Plan.

• On some occasions where it is beneficial we work together with staff from Castletown School.

• Learning Community involvement with EYPS and CTs across other centres.

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QI 2.3 Learning, Teaching

and Assessmen

t

How are we doing? What’s working well for our learners?

What are the features of effective practice in our

school/ELC setting?)FOCUS ON IMPROVEMENTS

FROM LAST YEAR’S IMPROVEMENT PLAN

How do we know? What evidence do we have of positive impact on our

learners?

MAKE BRIEF REFERENCES TO SUPPORTING DATA AND

OTHER INFORMATION

What could we do now? What actions would move us

forward?

IMPROVEMENT PRIORITIES HIGHLIGHTED IN THIS AREA – SIP PRIORITIES SELECTED FROM THESE

THEMES (HGIOS?4) Learning and

engagement

Quality of teaching

Effective use of assessment

Planning, tracking and monitoring

THEMES (HGIOELC?) Learning and

engagement

Quality of interactions

Effective use of assessment

Planning, tracking and monitoring

Learning and EngagementEthos and culture is supportive, caring and respectful and I see this on a daily basisEncourage positive relationships and also ask children to feedback on this.Children engaged in learning most of the time.Learning matched to interests and knowledge, choices are given and matched to real life where possibleLearner’s responsibility is encouraged and demonstrated through engagement with targets, success criteria and learning conversations (inc. ELC).Opportunities to share learning with others.I feel that children are aware that their views are sought, valued and acted upon.Resilient Kids programme used throughout school and there are extensive transition programmes in place.Achievements recorded and sharedChildren given a range of responsibilities in class and also through committee work.Nursery outdoor area used regularly and effectively.Free choice and mind mapping used regularly

Assessments – INCAS, SNSA, Big Writing, etc.Follow up from assessment results studied across group/stages/school/genderLearning ConversationsSelf and peer assessments completed by childrenPre-school Development Overview analysis

June 2018 Questionnaire for LearningJune 2018 Questionnaire for Positive Relationships

Junior Road Safety OfficersDaily responsibilitiesHouse captainsCommittee/Club participations – all P4-7 ch’n involved

Very good evaluation of form 1s and Child’s Plan actions and involvement of children and families.Prompt requests or advice or engagement

• Pupil Equity Funding - Continue to use additional staffing to focus on specific numeracy and literacy targets for individual children who need it the most.

• Continue to develop Skills Progression, including further work on DYW and helping children to understand how their achievements help them to develop knowledge and skills for life, learning and work.

• Improve our family engagement through Learning Profiles and Homework

• Tracking system to be improved for maths and HWB

• Continue school and ASG moderation of assessment

• Staff to continue to use Words Up

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in nursery.

Quality of Teaching Staff have a shared vision and are happy

to carry out peer observations resulting in professional dialogue.

Evidence of Skilled Questioning/Higher Order Thinking practice

Teachers are willing to adapt and revise learning environments when necessary, e.g. to meet children’s needs.

Technology is used effectively in classes through use of the computers and ipads, various software and internet applications.

Appropriate and early intervention takes place where possible and is discussed with HT and ASNT.

Good relationships evident between ELC staff and children. Staff are sensitive to their needs.

Children are aware of their rights to be Safe, Strong and Free

Assessment• Extensive analysis of INCAS and SNSA• Tracking discussions• Diagnostic testing – numeracy, emerging

literacy when appropriate/needed, follow up as appropriate

• ORT key word and sounds regular assessments

• Star Writers shared at Together Time• Maths assessments• Big Writing Assessments• NESSY assessments for literacy• Children very involved in self and peer

assessment, oral feedback

with other agencies to seek advice which can result on direct impact on children’s progression

Positive Feedback from Early Years Curriculum Support Officer visit to nursery

Care Inspectorate Report – April 2018Very good – Quality if care and supportVery good - Quality of environment

Safe, Strong and Free programme successful and welcomed.

Learning Profiles signed off this year by the QIO

approaches to be used in Early Years – all appropriate staff now trained

• Introduce a free flow system in nursery for using the outdoors.

• Evaluate how children are able to contribute what they want to learn

Engage more with the Benchmarks in literacy to focus our assessment

Planning improved to ensure that we are covering all areas appropriately

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• Follow up work based on assessment, sometimes individually or wider.

• Achievement of a level discussions• Pre-school development overviews and

collation• Learning conversations linked to Learning

Profiles/My Learning Journey• Learning Profiles updated regularly• Individual targets monitored by children

and evidence improvement• Use of AiFL strategies• Questioning skills to assess

understanding, informing next steps.• Use of Form 1 for concerns and sharing• Know the children well and discuss

learning and assessment• Shared learning intentions and success

criteria• Open evening, parent appointments,

reports and Learning Profiles - regular reporting to parents

• High quality observation in nursery which also lead to next steps.

• Nursery blog on the website used to share learning with families.

• Strategies used to promote family engagement in nursery.

Planning, Tracking and Monitoring• Planning is proportionate, manageable

and clearly identifies learning• Clear structure in place for transition

between classes to ensure continuity of learning and teaching

• Tracking takes place in Nov and May• Moderation between teachers

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QI 3.1 Ensuring

wellbeing, equality

and inclusion

How are we doing? What’s working well for our learners?

What are the features of effective practice in our

school/ELC setting?)FOCUS ON IMPROVEMENTS

FROM LAST YEAR’S IMPROVEMENT PLAN

How do we know? What evidence do we have of positive impact on our

learners?

MAKE BRIEF REFERENCES TO SUPPORTING DATA

AND OTHER INFORMATION

What could we do now? What actions would move us

forward?

IMPROVEMENT PRIORITIES HIGHLIGHTED IN THIS AREA – SIP PRIORITIES SELECTED

FROM THESE THEMES (HGIOS?4) Wellbeing

Fulfilment of statutory duties

Inclusion and equality

THEMES (HGIOELC?) Wellbeing

Fulfilment of statutory duties

Inclusion and equality

Our children are safe and happy Staff demonstrate a caring attitude

and any concerns are passed on to CT and/or HT as appropriate.

Procedures are put in place for vulnerable children/families

All staff are trained in Child Protection. There is a very good awareness of

children’s needs throughout the school so that any staff member can show support to children.

Children are given the chance to express their views, feelings and opinions in a fair way through lessons and in other situations

Programmes are delivered that promote positive relationships, wellbeing, equality and inclusion.

PSA and ASNT used effectively to meet the needs of children

P1/2 teacher was previously an ASN Teacher so brings a lot of experience in this area.

Children, parent and carer involvement is welcomed in nursery.

Positive Relationship Questionnaires – collated results and comparison with previous years

Issues around wellbeing, inclusion and equality are addressed promptly.

Continue to boost learning opportunities in Outdoor Spaces through Pollination Projects and other learning and teaching opportunities

Activities to promote play and wellbeingFizzy Friday gamesMusic MondaysUnique Child in P1/2

Use results from our Positive Relationships questionnaires to inform any further next steps

Ask the P1-4 children about safety in school and to ensure they would know what to do if they did not feel safe either in school or on the school transport – continued action

Progress with our further improvements still in the planning progress in order to further develop our Outdoor Spaces.

Incorporate Health and Wellbeing into our Learning Profiles and introduce a tracking system

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Outdoor Learning has been improved through own teacher’s CPD and putting this into practice and also through involvement in the Polli:Nation Project.

We had new changing facilities and disabled toilet put in place to improve facilities to promote inclusion and intimate care facilities.

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QI 3.2 Raising attainment and achievement/

Ensuring children’s progress

How are we doing? What’s working well for our learners?

What are the features of effective practice in our

school/ELC setting?)FOCUS ON IMPROVEMENTS

FROM LAST YEAR’S IMPROVEMENT PLAN

How do we know? What evidence do we have of positive impact on our

learners?MAKE BRIEF REFERENCES

TO SUPPORTING DATA AND OTHER INFORMATION

What could we do now? What actions would move

us forward?

IMPROVEMENT PRIORITIES HIGHLIGHTED

IN THIS AREA – SIP PRIORITIES SELECTED

FROM THESETHEMES (HGIOS?4) Attainment in

literacy and numeracy

Attainment over time

Overall quality of learners’ achievement

Equity for all learners

THEMES (HGIOELC?) Progress in

communication, early language, mathematics, health and wellbeing

Children’s progress over time

• Thoroughly look into INCAS, SNSA data and SPP data to look for trends in attainment and gender inequality

• Tracking discussions held twice a year, action where needed

• Comprehensive discussions and paperwork at times of transition to ensure no gaps in learning

• Emerging literacy approaches discussed and used

• Words Up Training accessed by early years staff, PSAs and HT

• Maths and literacy planning now used in nursery which helps with detailed planning and improving transition in these areas.

• Learning intentions and success criteria used with children

• Big Writing Criterion amended to improve it as a tool for teachers and children in our setting.

• Personal achievements are shared regularly through together time and on our Achievements Wall.

• Staff are very willing to take part in new

We address areas of concern or where trends are apparent by discussing the next stepsConversations taking place regularly to meet the need of children – actions for children and progress in learning.Children more engaged with target setting, evident through ongoing use of Learning Profiles or work on Form 1s. Parents have the opportunities to be involved.Early assessment and intervention on literacy and numeracy difficulties.Children more aware of targets in writing due to use of Big Writing and assessment.Children more aware of learning intentions – continued discussion evident around this.Learning conversations are happeningAchievement of targets in Child’s PlansInvolvement in Polli:Nation ProjectPositive feedback from community partners after children have been working with them or after workshops

PEF developments will continue Ongoing Profiling and Reporting

– make more use of group work to have Learning Conversations

Profiling and Reporting – work on improving Parent Engagement

Tracking in other areas of the curriculum

Carried over - Utilise the documentation given by the QIO to support tracking conversations

Carried over - Benchmarks engagement

Carried over - HT to keep a track of where children (groups) are in their learning. Create an easy system to keep this up to date particularly for maths, language and Health and Wellbeing.

Continue to keep a close eye on our teacher judgement where children are in their writing progression.

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Overall quality of children’s achievement

Ensuring equity for all children

projects or to accept invitations and seek out involvement in school with other partners including businesses.

• Staff show that they are flexible and caring in ensuring that individual’s needs are being met.

• In the upper stages there is an emphasis on skills for career and throughout school we discuss career opportunities and we are very mindful of ensuring that there are no gender stereotypes and that we can all aspire to be what we want.

• Stepping Stones and My Learning Journey used in nursery to record and view learning. These are also freely accessible to families who attend the centre and also for working families.

• Floorbooks in nursery encourage more child initiated learning

• Open door policy in nursery so families can discuss progress at any time

• Wow moments encouraged and displayed/recorded.

• Development overviews used to inform planning when appropriate

• Good communication regarding needs involving teacher, HT and other agencies.

• Achievements are sometimes shared in school for ex pupils and family members to celebrate their success.

Pupil Equity Fund money was used for resources and Pupil Support Assistant in order to deliver individual and small group support to improve attainment

Pupil Support work completed through the Pupil Equity Fund has been successful and a real difference has been made. Records were kept of the work done and literacy assessments were completed before and after.New testing was used this year forP1, 4 and 7 and feedback provided regarding the new tests as requested by the Authority.Skills feature regularly in Learning Profiles

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ADDITIONAL QI 2.5 Family

learning

How are we doing? What’s working well for our learners?

What are the features of effective practice in our

school/ELC setting?)FOCUS ON IMPROVEMENTS

FROM LAST YEAR’S IMPROVEMENT PLAN

How do we know? What evidence do we have of positive impact on our

learners?

MAKE BRIEF REFERENCES TO SUPPORTING DATA AND

OTHER INFORMATION

What could we do now? What actions would move us

forward?

IMPROVEMENT PRIORITIES HIGHLIGHTED IN THIS AREA – SIP PRIORITIES SELECTED

FROM THESE

THEMESPlease specify (include themes from HGIOS?4 and HGIOELC? as in tables above for other QIs).

Open afternoon After school meetings Phone calls/meetings on request Regular newsletter Learning Profiles ongoing with

children and shared with families once a term.

Indiviudalised next steps and targets for children.

Ongoing assessment shared with children and failies

Parent appointments Involvement requested from other

agencies Child’s Plans Parent Craft Clubs have happened

previously Workshops offered previously for

parents however we need to improve attendance

School achievement board Together time – sharing

acnievements from outwith school Clear homework shared Opportunities for families to support

learning through internet based

More positive effect in situations once discussed with parents at meeting, etc.

Some parents engaging with the Learning Profiles

Lots of parents attend Parent Appointments to discuss children’s learning

Speech and Language improvements through work with therapists

Input from Children’s Services Workers, Physiotherapy, High School and Educational Psychology Service.

Evidence of success in form 1 evaluations and Child’s Plans Reviews.

Parent Craft Clubs have been very successful when done in the past.

Successes are shared on the achievements board – we would like more brought in from home though.

Ongoing questionnaires to families regarding the Learning Profiles

Involve parents more in the process regarding PEF input

Monitor parent engagement with the Learning Profiles by noting comments received each time

Ask parents if they would like more open afternoons or workshops on specific areas.

Improve engagement with newsletters as often information is missed by parents. Could this be done differently?

Ask parents about coming in to volunteer in school for lunch time clubs etc.

Encourage families to present items for the Achievements Board – should we also share these on the School Website

Ensure new families are aware of daily routines and expectations although this also done through the School Brochure at the time of enrolment

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activities set up through school. Use of Pupil Equity Fund in order to

improve outcomes for specified children

School staff provide support to families requiring help for issues outwith school.

Next steps agreed with parents after discussions

Interactive open afternoon with planned engagement

Staff show flexibility, within reason, when parents can’t attend events at specified times

Questionniares Together Time – share and record

achievements

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QI 2.2 Curriculum:

Theme 3 Learning Pathways

(HGIOS?4)/Learning and Development

Pathways (HGIOELC?)

How are we doing? What’s working well for our learners?

What are the features of effective practice in our

school/ELC setting?)FOCUS ON IMPROVEMENTS

FROM LAST YEAR’S IMPROVEMENT PLAN

How do we know? What evidence do we have of positive impact on our

learners?

MAKE BRIEF REFERENCES TO SUPPORTING DATA AND

OTHER INFORMATION

What could we do now? What actions would move us

forward?

IMPROVEMENT PRIORITIES HIGHLIGHTED IN THIS AREA – SIP PRIORITIES SELECTED

FROM THESE

NB – This theme does not need to be evaluated using the six point scale.

There are some children who require a different pathway in their learning and these discussions take place with CT, HT, families and children. These can also be done flexibly to see what works best.

Records are kept in Form 1s and/or Child’s Plans.

Plans have been changed to ensure more information can be passed on and better tracking is taken place of the learning that has been covered. This also helps with multi-composite classes where there is no change of teacher.

Planning begins with Es and Os to ensure appropriate coverage of the curriculum.

All staff take responsibility for developing literacy, numeracy and health and wellbeing across the curriculum.

Outdoor learning opportunities have been further improved through

Form 1s and Child’s Plans in placeIndividualised actions and targetsGood communication with families regarding what works best for their childTransition guideI am part of and witness clear communication between staff which therefore has an impact on meeting children’s needs.Cross curricular working which is flexibleEducation City, Nessy etc. can offer learners the individualisation in their learningPupil Equity Funding has allowed for this individual support to be extended with positive resultsAlternative reading schemes available and show that they are effective when required – this has been further extended this yearResources purchased that allow children to progress through individually for maths and literacyOutdoor learning improvements

Outdoor learning improvements will be continuing

Changes to HWB sheet to ensure we have continuity and progression

Planning folders to be moderated more regularly

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teacher’s own CPD and using this in practice and also through engagement in the Polli:Nation Project.

QI 2.7 Partnerships – theme 3 Impact on Learners (HGIOS?

4)/Impact on Children

and Families (HGIOELC?)

How are we doing? What’s working well for our learners?

What are the features of effective practice in our school/ELC

setting?)FOCUS ON IMPROVEMENTS

FROM LAST YEAR’S IMPROVEMENT PLAN

How do we know? What evidence do we have of positive impact on our

learners?MAKE BRIEF REFERENCES

TO SUPPORTING DATA AND OTHER INFORMATION

What could we do now? What actions would move us forward?IMPROVEMENT

PRIORITIES HIGHLIGHTED IN THIS AREA – SIP PRIORITIES

SELECTED FROM THESE

NB – This theme does not need to be evaluated using the six point scale. Remember to focus on parental involvement.

• Learning profiles continued to be extended and during the 17/18 session these were signed off by the Quality Improvement Team.

Parents’ views were sought on Family Learning in 16/17.

Parents’ views were sought on Learning Profiles

• Teachers will often have meetings regarding supporting individuals and how families could extend learning at home specifically for their child.

• Learning Profiles include aspects that were suggested by parents and are regularly made available for parents.

A copy of the latest sheets are available for children to keep in order to work on targets.

Family Learning Questionnaire Nov 201613 returns out of 33

Do you feel included in your child’s learning? 100% yesDo you feel you are well supported in addressing any difficulties your child may have in their learning? 100% yes.

Do you feel that you have enough information through homework, welcome evenings, handouts, etc. to support your child’s learning? 100% yes

Very positive and helpful comments received regarding the above questions – these help us to identify what is working well and where we can make further improvements.

Number Sacks created and used in

Encourage parents to more actively engage with the Learning Profiles

Continue to find good practice on the most effective ways to engage parents to improve children’s learning.What are the barriers for our families?

Evaluate how much use is made use of Science Sacks, Curiosity Packs, Number Sacks etc.

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• We attend various events that improve impact on learners, e.g. Safe Highlanders, Active Schools, etc.

• We contact other agencies for advice and involvement where necessary

Skills progression for learning, life and work is incorporated within Key Assessment Tasks

nurseryChildren very involved in Learning Conversations and are more confident in sharing this information at homeWeekly homework completed where possible to allow for more flexible homework structures for busy families.

PART TWO – School Improvement PlanSummary: Key School Improvement Priorities (add further rows if required). The priorities selected should be drawn from the possible improvement activities identified in the Standards and Quality Report. Your improvement priorities should encompass the Early Years Setting as well as the Primary School.Improvement Priority Title Relevant QI(s) and Theme(s)Continuous Profiling and Reporting and Improving Parent Engagement

inc Parental engagement through homeworkimproving parental engagement with Learning ProfilesPupil Equity Funding to improve attainment

1.1 Self-evaluation1.3 Leadership of change2.2. The Curriculum2.3 Learning, teaching and assessment2.4 Personalised support2.5 Family learning2.6 Transitions2.7 Partnerships3.1 Ensuring wellbeing, equality and inclusion3.2 Raising Attainment and Achievement ELC Securing Children’s Progress

Tracking and Assessment

inc. Health and Wellbeing tracking to be put in placeEngage with the Benchmarks across Literacy and then MathsSharing Standards across the ASG for Key Assessment Tasks in MathsAssessment will show which children will benefit from extra input to improve attainment

1.1 Self-evaluation1.2 Leadership of change2.2. The Curriculum2.3 Learning, teaching and assessment2.6 Transitions

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and close the gap 3.1 Ensuring wellbeing, equality and inclusion3.2 Raising Attainment and Achievement ELC Securing Children’s Progress

APPENDIX 6: Glossary of terms

Attainment The measurable progress which children and young people make as they progress through and beyond school. This progress is in relation to curriculum areas and in the development of skills for learning, life and work.

Achievement The totality of skills and attributes embedded within the four capacities of Curriculum for Excellence and developed across the curriculum in school and through learning in other contexts.

Creativity The process which generates ideas that have value to the individual. It involves looking at familiar things with a fresh eye, examining problems with an open mind, making connections, learning from mistakes and using imagination to explore new possibilities.

Closing the attainment gap Working to reduce the gap in progress, attainment and achievement between those living in Scotland’s least and most disadvantaged homes. Many children and young people from lower-income households do significantly worse at all levels of the education system than those from better-off homes.

Disadvantage This is a term used to describe the extent to which children experience socio-economic barriers to their progress. It is commonly measured using the Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation (SIMD), which was used to determine which schools received Scottish Attainment Challenge funding, or by considering Free School Meal entitlement, which was used to calculate Pupil Equity Funding allocations.

Equity Treating people fairly, but not necessarily treating people the same. Equity in education means that personal or social circumstances such as gender, ethnic origin or family background are not obstacles to achieving educational potential and that all our young people are well supported to secure wellbeing, skills for learning, life and work and the best possible post-school destination.

Family learning This is a powerful method of engagement and learning which can foster positive attitudes towards life-long learning, promote socio-economic resilience and challenge educational disadvantage. Engagement with families is going to be crucial in addressing the equity gap.

Partners Partners include all individuals or organisations that deliver learning and contribute to the life and work of the school. These may include CLD services, colleges, universities, employers, third sector, community organisations,

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and libraries. GIRFEC partners are the professional partners you work with who help you to address the GIRFEC agenda (e.g. Educational Psychology service, CSWs, Speech and Language Therapy and so on.)

Pupil Equity Funding The Pupil Equity Funding is additional funding allocated directly to schools and targeted at closing the poverty related attainment gap. The Scottish Government has committed to this funding as part of the Scottish Attainment Challenge programme from 2017-18. The Pupil Equity Funding forms part of the £750m Attainment Scotland Fund. It is allocated on the basis of Free School Meal entitlement.

Safeguarding This is a much wider concept than child protection and refers to promoting the welfare of children. It encompasses: protecting children from maltreatment; preventing impairment of children’s health or development; ensuring that children are growing up in circumstances consistent with the provision of safe and effective care, and taking action to enable all children and young people to have the best outcome. Child protection is part of this definition and refers to activities undertaken to prevent children suffering, or likely to suffer, significant harm.

School community This means all children and young people, staff, parents/carers, families and partners who are connected to the school.

Volunteers This means everyone who contributes to the school’s curriculum (in the widest sense) by offering activities and opportunities for children, but who are not employed to do this. Parents running after school clubs or school chaplains offering lunchtime drop-in sessions would be two examples of volunteers.

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