St Joseph’s National School

Ballyadams

Co. Laois

16617H

School Improvement Plan

This plan should be read in conjunction with our School Self-Evaluation Report

Action Period

September 2015 – June 2018

In line with national education initiatives as determined by the Department of Education and Skills, this plan will be kept under ongoing review by the Board of Management and Staff of this school.

School Context

We have six mainstream classes at present. The principal holds a teaching principal position. However, due to falling demographics, it is likely that will reduce to five classrooms for September 2016.

Main Strengths of the School

1. Bright modern and well maintained school.
2. Welcoming atmosphere and environment.
3. Dedicated staff and board of management, committed to the provision of an excellent learning experience for the pupils in their care.
4. Supportive, dedicated and active parent body.
5. Enthusiastic learners who are strong attenders.
6. Positioned within a strong community, supportive of the school ethos.

Areas Requiring Improvement

1. In the area of numeracy, the staff have identified problem-solving as being in need of attention.
2. The measures strand is the strand most in need of improvement.
3. There should be more focus on mathematical language development.

Timeframe

This programme will continue throughout the time period of this SIP i.e. September 2015 – June 2018

We will monitor and review the SIP on an annual basis.

Presented to Board of Management June 17^th 2015

Signed: ­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­____________________

Chairperson

St Joseph’s National School

Ballyadams

Co. Laois

16617H

School Self Evaluation Report

Evaluation Period: September 2014 – June 2015

Report Issue Date: June 2015

1. Introduction

1.1            The Focus of the evaluation

A school self-evaluation of teaching and learning in St Joseph’s N.S. was undertaken during the period September 2014 to May 2015. During the evaluation, teaching and learning in the following curriculum areas were evaluated.

• Numeracy with a focus on an in-depth analysis of the Sigma T results using the Aladdin administrative system.
• Writing genres. 1.2             School ContextFr. Daniel Dunne chairs a busy and dedicated Board of Management. Following in the footsteps of previous boards, members constantly seek to develop and improve the school and its environs, sourcing and replenishing educational resources to enhance the learning of the pupils and support ongoing staff development and national educational initiatives. Through engagement with training provided by CPSMA and active involvement in the area of policy development, board members ensure that the school maintains its commitment to quality educational provision.Attendance by the student body is excellent and there is a happy atmosphere throughout the school. The children are encouraged to participate in a variety of activities including swimming, football, hurling, rugby, athletics, quizzes, choirs, theatrical experiences as well as educational projects such as Write-a-Book, Lego Mindstorms, FIS, Green Schools (during this period we worked towards and achieved our fourth flag). Laois Education Centre, PDST and a variety of sporting and educational organisations support the school in the provision of many of these activities. To enhance our link with the local community, pupils provide a constant stream of material for inclusion on an up to date school blog hosted by Scoilnet. We also set up a school Twitter account in recent months.In working through this process of school self-evaluation as a whole school community, we seek to recognize and acknowledge that which works well within the school, while also examining areas that could further be improved upon in the light of the latest developments, methodologies and research from within the field of education.We collected information from parents, pupils and teachers in preparing this report. We looked at how well our pupils were doing in standardised tests .We discussed progress with teachers and completed teacher reflections. We conducted a pupil/parent online questionnaire. We also completed both pupil and teacher questionnaires.
• 2         The Findings
• In ensuring the provision of a secure and pleasant learning environment, staff members are committed to the maintenance of high standards while constantly seeking to improve educational experiences and learning outcomes. Teachers avail of the opportunities provided by our local Education Centre and online courses to enhance their professional practice often during their own time. The Board acknowledges this staff commitment to their own professional development and to the ongoing broadening of knowledge that it brings to the whole school. The Board also acknowledges the time and experience that staff members share with their students through their involvement in sport, drama and curricular projects, again often during their own time. Participation in these activities greatly enhances the overall educational experience for students.
• The Board of Management and staff are fortunate to have the support of the general parent body. The parent body is supported by an active Parent’s Association (affiliated to the NPA) who, encourage and provide for parental involvement across a wide range of activities throughout the year. Members of the Parent’s Association provide valuable input into policy formation, organize information meetings on policy issues, ensure that social events run smoothly and assist with fundraising throughout the year.
• St. Joseph’s National School, Ballyadams, operates under the patronage of the Bishop of Kildare and Leighlin. It is a bright, recently expanded, Catholic, co-educational, rural, inclusive, mainstream school welcoming of all faiths and open to applicants from within the catchment area. Guided by an enrolment policy and subject to the availability of space, the Board also welcomes applications from outside the catchment area. Due to falling enrollment in recent years, the school lost two teachers in September 2014.
• This is a report on the findings of the evaluation.

• Numeracy  2.1 StrengthsAn examination of the Sigma-T results 2015 showed that in the area of numeracy, pupils achieve above national norms. The average whole-school percentile in 2014 was 77. It was notable that the number and algebra strands are particularly strong with the school average percentile of 70 and 72 respectively. Data and Shape and Space strands are also quite strong. While in the skills section of the Sigma-T in 2015, the school average for Understanding Concepts and Facts was a percentile of 73. 39% of students achieved Stens between 8 and 10. Such findings do not give rise to a sense of complacency on the part of teaching staff. Rather it prompts us to examine if work in any particular area might further improve the learning outcomes for students.72.5% of pupils in 2^nd-6^th class stated that they enjoy Mathematics. The online Parent/Pupil survey supports this view. 96.6% of those who completed the form agreed that they liked Mathematics. The adoption of the school administration system Aladdin and its capacity to input and analyze standardized test scores has greatly aided teachers in monitoring the progress, strengths and weaknesses of individual pupils, class groupings and the whole school cohort. This in turn can inform individual, class and whole-school planning. 2.2 We have decided to priorities the following areas for development: Having examined the Sigma-T scores from May 2013, May 2014 and May 2015 using the Aladdin administrative system, it was found that the Measures strand was the weakest. The staff felt that an audit of mathematical resources and concrete material should take place in order to inform teachers as to what is already available in the school, and to establish specific areas where we are resource deficient and we could look to improve.
• In discussions and analyses from the staff review, it was agreed that the lack of consistency in the mathematical language used throughout the school and at home gave rise to confusion among children. It was suggested that this area be examined in the light of the school mathematics policy and information disseminated to staff and parents.
• Staff members expressed the view that problem solving continues to remain an area for concern. This concern was backed up upon analysis of the Sigma-T scores from May 2014 and May 2015 using the Aladdin administration system. Of the three skills examined and analysed, Solving Problems was by far the weakest, with a school average percentile of 49.1 in 2014 and 50 in 2015. Furthermore, 41.2% of pupils in 2^nd-6^th class stated they disliked problem solving. Our staff survey on problem solving also indicated that, as a school, more attention needs to be given to – enjoyment of problem solving tasks, exposure to a variety of opportunities to experience problem solving inside and outside the classroom, more coherent and whole-school approach to the teaching of problem solving strategies and the use of ICT.
• Learning Support in the area of Mathematics has been increased in recent years and teachers are satisfied with the level of support being provided at the moment.
• Staff surveys and discussions indicate that the school is well resourced with concrete materials.
• Staff feel that there is good collaboration between teachers in the area of Mathematics.
• The introduction of Ready, Set, Go Mathematics Programme has been a success so far. The first cohort of this initiative were included in the Sigma-T standardized tests of May 2014 and the results were very encouraging. In assessing the pupils throughout the year, teachers delivering the programme indicate that pupils have achieved a greater understanding in the area of number as a result of this initiative.

• Progress Made on previously-identified improvement targets

1. Learning Support is targeted at early intervention and in-class support as far as is practicable
2. Learning Support in the area of Mathematics has been extended.
3. Special Education policy has been reviewed and ratified by the board.

1. A questionnaire was administrated to 2^nd-6^th class pupils.
2. We completed a teacher reflection on Mathematics and the teaching and learning of Mathematics within the school.

• Summary of school self-evaluation findings
• Our school has strengths in the following areas:

1. Welcoming and friendly environment.
2. Students performing well in comparison to the national norms in Numeracy. Our average percentile across the school for Sigma-Ts in June 2015 was 79, massively above the national average.
3. Good attendance by pupils and enthusiastic involvement in a wide range of activities. 96.1% attendance for 2014/2015 (15-06-2015).
4. Good Board of Management concerned with constant development of the school.
5. Good parental support and a supportive and active Parent’s Association.
6. Good teaching and learning throughout the school.
7. Teachers feel that the pupils have an excellent understanding of number, the school is well resourced with Maths equipment, assessment procedures are adequate and there is good staff collaboration.
8. Each class uses a variety of organisational styles. Group work and pair work are in use in all classes throughout the school.
9. 5% of children in 2^nd – 6^th Class say they like Mathematics.

The following areas are prioritized for improvement:

1. Our teacher review and pupil score analysis (Sigma-T Test) identified problem solving as an area that needs improvement. Teachers felt that there was need for an agreed whole school approach to support children’s problem solving strategies. All teachers expressed an interest in CPD in relation to problem solving.

1. Our teacher review identified the need for Maths language development.

1. Our pupil score analysis (Sigma-T) identified measures as an area that needs improvement.

Presented to Board of Management June 17^th 2015

Signed: ­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­____________________

Chairperson