Excellence and Enjoyment: learning and teaching for ... - NALDIC

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Data collected by the School Censussection 3Some of our bilingualpupils had not been highlighted inthe past as they were alreadyachieving national standards … but thematerials have supported us in lookingbeyond these … to looking at whatour more able pupils could andshould achieve.The Race Relations (Amendment) Act 2000 places a duty on schoolsto ‘monitor and assess how their policies affect ethnic minority pupils,staff and parents’. Monitoring by ethnicity and language allows us tocompare the performance of different ethnic groups and assess theneeds of those who seem to be underachieving.Collecting data by ethnicity is a purely mechanical exercise.Monitoring by ethnicity involves the analysis and understanding of thedata that has been collected. Monitoring by ethnicity is a processwhereby information gathered is analysed in order to see whetherethnicity is a factor in learners’ academic performance and whatpatterns emerge in such analysis. It is similar to monitoring by genderwhere statistics are broken down in order to see whether differencesemerge for boys and girls.The School Census, introduced in 2002 and renamed in January2006, collects data about learners including data about ethnicity.The categories for ethnicity are the same as the categories usedin the census.The School Census also collects information about whetheror not English is a child’s first language, and from 2006, forthe first time, gives schools the option to collect data by firstlanguage. Because we know that children learning EAL areamong the highest and the lowest achieving groups nationally, it isimportant that schools look at the achievement of children fromdifferent ethnic groups who are learning EAL. Looking at the overallachievement of children learning EAL could mask significantunderachievement of EAL learners from one particular ethnic group.Children learning EAL come from a wide range of backgroundsincluding, of course, different socio-economic backgrounds. It wasnoted in the NCSL research into effective leadership in multi-ethnicschools (2005) that, although staff in the case study schools talked a lotabout white working-class and white middle-class pupils, minorityethnic groups were only described in terms of their ethnicity.Proper analysis and understanding of data will make it possibleto gain a better insight into the many and complex issues that maycontribute to variations in attainment by different groups of learners.Appendix 3 highlights key questions that will help schools evaluatehow different groups are performing in their school in order to helpidentify how gaps in achievement can be closed.24Excellence and Enjoyment: learning and teaching for bilingual children in the primary yearsIntroductory guidePrimary National Strategy | 0013-2006DCL-EN | © Crown copyright 2006
Identifying priorities and planningfor actionOnce the school has identified how well it is doing in meeting theneeds of bilingual learners through its own school self-evaluationprocess using data analysis tools, and having carried out a review ofits current practices, it will be ready to identify key priorities and actionsfor improvement. One way of linking key priorities together is throughthe development of a termly Raising Attainment Plan (RAP). The RAP isa key instrument that links together, operationally, the areas of aschool’s focus within four areas:section 3• raising standards and accelerating progress (in this case,for bilingual learners);• improving the quality of teaching and learning to meet the needsof bilingual learners;• improving the conditions for learning;• developing the school as a learning community.As a focused short-term operational plan identifying specificimprovements at classroom and whole-school levels to supportchildren’s achievements in a discrete area such as this, the RAPeffectively underpins the school improvement plan. In order toachieve this, RAPs include:• specific targets related to children’s learning, progress andattainment (whole-school and specific group level);• a limited number of objectives and actions linked to the target.Objectives identify what has to be achieved by the end of theterm. Actions identify the tasks which need to be undertaken(by whom and by when) to achieve success;• success criteria which are linked to the targets and used toevaluate outcomes/impact of the actions. The success criteriadescribe what the outcomes will look like when they are achieved;• the monitoring arrangements, timescale and who is tobe involved. Monitoring focuses on making sure actions agreedare undertaken;• evaluation at the end of term by considering the evidence to checkhow well objectives are being achieved.An example RAP is included on the accompanying CD-ROM, whichalso includes audit tools and a self-evaluation grid.Primary National Strategy | 0013-2006DCL-EN | © Crown copyright 2006Excellence and Enjoyment: learning and teaching for bilingual children in the primary yearsIntroductory guide 25
Page 3 and 4: Excellence and Enjoyment:learning a
Page 5 and 6: PrefaceThis publication aims to sup
Page 7 and 8: ContentsSection 1 Introduction 6Thi
Page 9 and 10: The cycle of school improvement5. W
Page 11 and 12: • a culture and ethos within whic
Page 13 and 14: Schools have statutory duties under
Page 15 and 16: The guidance and resources provided
Page 17 and 18: EAL pedagogy: an overviewof the res
Page 19 and 20: Learning and teaching for bilingual
Page 21 and 22: Section 3The role of theleadership
Page 23 and 24: These priorities reinforce the key
Page 25: Coordinating provision for EALThe m
Page 29 and 30: the initiative and all staff should
Page 31 and 32: The key strands of the programme ar
Page 33 and 34: • Keeping up to date with current
Page 35 and 36: Partnership role with parents, care
Page 37 and 38: Schools also need to consider value
Page 39 and 40: Richardson, R. for Derbyshire Advis
Page 41 and 42: appendix 3Primary National Strategy
Page 43: Copies of this pack may be availabl

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