Lord Lawson Leading Edge Activities
The DfES invited Lord Lawson to become a Leading Edge School in September 2003. One hundred and three schools were chosen from what the DfES described as "amongst our most successful and progressive secondary schools". Clearly, our track record of outstanding achievements gave us the opportunity to take part in this exciting national programme. Our achievements include:
• DfES Designated Specialist Arts College since 1998
• School Achievement Awards 2001, 2002, 2003
• The most improved Specialist School since 1998.
• On of the most improved school in England 1998 – 2003 (in 1998, 41% of students achieved 5+ high grades in GCSE; in 2003, 79% achieved this benchmark)
• A member of the Specialist Schools Trust Most Improved Club 1998 – date
• A member of the Specialist Schools Value Added Club 2002 – date
• A member of the Specialist Schools 70 Per Cent Club 2003 – date
• Investor in People 1999 – date (redesignated in 2003)
• Teacher Training Agency Open School 2002 - date
These achievements are underpinned by a number of special features, including:
• Purpose built House system
• Fast tracking students to GCSE, AS/A level
• Extensive Vocational Education in Key Stages 3,4 and 5
• Use of new technologies, especially interactive white boards, new teaching methodologies for pace, excitement, variety, engagement
• Extensive community work
• Extended school pilot 2003
• Established approach to remodelling of the workforce
• Continuing Professional Development and International PD
• Head Teacher chairs Northern Steering Group of Specialist Schools Trust and member of National Steering Group
• PFI agreed for 2003 start – new school to be complete by 2006
• A member of an Excellence in Cities Partnership
• A member of an Leadership Incentive Grant Partnership
We were delighted to take up the challenge of playing a leading role in the transformation of Secondary Education. Our approach was based on a number of partnerships as outlined below:
• With Secondary Schools in challenging circumstances (Kenton School, Newcastle, Ashington High School, Northumberland, and Kingsmeadow School in Gateshead)
• With the other established Northern region Arts Colleges (Monkwearmouth School, Sunderland, and Greenfield School, Durham)
• With our five Partner Primary Schools (Portobello, Ravenswood Terrace, Barley Mow, Birtley East and Kibblesworth
• With the other eight Leading Edge Schools in the Northern Region (Cramlington High School; Whitley Bay High School; King Edward VI School, Morpeth; Nunthorpe School; St Thomas More RC School, Blaydon; Beaumont Hill Special School; Macmillan College; St Joseph’s School, Hebburn.)
Areas of Activity
Our original proposal focused on the following areas:
Remodelling the workforce
• Developing the role of support staff and para professionals
• Sharing or delivering services to other schools
Curriculum Innovation
• Work related learning 14-19, e.g. catering, hairdressing/beauty therapy, construction
• Fast tracking
Use of new technologies
• Mobile Interactive whiteboards, digital technology to enhance learning
Continuing Professional Development and International Professional Development
• Becoming a Training School
• Provision of CPD for regional and national Arts Colleges
• Developing the leaders of tomorrow
• IPD
Cross Phase Liaison
• Sharing staff across schools
Progress
We have made progress in each of our partnerships as follows:
Secondary Schools in challenging circumstances
• We undertook a collaborative venture with Kenton School in Newcastle to engage all students at both schools (some 4000 students in total) and a large number of pupils from feeder primary schools, in Arts activities in each of the secondary schools or in the community. There were a huge number of activities during the weeks of the festival, culminating in the final performance day at the Baltic Square in Gateshead. The Lord Mayor of Newcastle, Cllr Mrs Joan Lamb, and Cllr Mrs Robson led delegations of primary pupils from each side of the Millennium Bridge extending a tapestry around the theme of bridges to meet in the centre. This was a very successful occasion, justly capping the weeks of student and staff endeavour.
• We have focussed our activities with Kingsmeadow School around three areas:
1. Training support for Kingsmeadow teachers wishing to gain expertise in teaching post-16 students
2. Curriculum support, especially in Art
3. An exchange of expertise on behaviour management and social inclusion issues.
• Our work with Ashington School, Northumberland, has focussed on curriculum support in Art and Design.
Northern region Arts Colleges
Our work with the Northern region Arts Colleges has centred on exploration of the use of modern software (Kandle) which allows highly professional and detailed analysis of human movement through digital video. This software will be purchased for all schools using Leading Edge funding and there will be joint analysis of the curriculum work and sharing of good practice between the three schools.
Partner Primary Schools
• There has been extensive collaborative work across three of the schools (Lord Lawson, Barley Mow and Kibblesworth) with a jointly employed Medical Adviser. Our qualified nurse, Karen Christie, shares her time between the three schools, giving medical advice and counselling to students and staff. She is also involved in Health Education and other related curriculum initiatives in all schools.
• We are still exploring the possibility of appointing other members of staff who will work across all schools in two areas:
1. Cross phase liaison
2. Technical services
Northern Region Leading Edge Schools
We have worked closely with the other northern schools. Activities have centred around a number of areas, including:
• The development of a website for the nine schools which allows shared experiences, good practice and dialogue to be conducted electronically.
• A radical rethinking of the structure of the Key Stage 3 curriculum
• Professional development for Assistant and Deputy Head Teachers
• Other professional development issues
• Research projects designed to identify successful ways of raising achievement.
National Leading Edge Collaborative
Lord Lawson Of Beamish School has also been invited to take part in the National Leading Edge Collaborative.
Background
Lord Lawson of Beamish Community School has been invited by the DfES to take part in this national project, involving 20 of the Leading Edge Schools around the country. Lord Lawson Of Beamish School is the only school involved from the northern region.
The Challenge
International evidence shows that while the UK education is doing well overall. Our 15 year olds are among the best in the OECD (7th in literacy, 4th in science, 8th in maths). However, our socio-economic group (SEG ) gap is one of the most severe, ranked 21st out of 26 countries.
This is illustrated by the achievement students when divided according to their social class band. Our lowest quartile are ranked 9th in the OECD whilst our top 25% are ranked 1st. No other country suffers from such an extreme tail of underachievement.
Our SEG gap has huge implications for productivity, social justice, social cohesion and personal fulfilment and remains the most intractable barrier facing the Government in raising achievement and meeting our age-phase targets.
The SEG gap can be seen as early as 22 months and stems from economic, social cultural and environmental factors. The link between low income and low achievement are clear. A £150 per week reduction in income during adolescence is estimated to mean a 5.5% reduction in probability of staying on post-16. Conversely, £30-40 weekly allowances have led to a 5.9% increase in participation rates of 16-19 year olds.
The later in the child’s development we intervene to bridge the gap, the harder it becomes. Prior achievement is the main determinant of progress at every stage for instance, 75% of the HE social class gap stems from pre-16 attainment.
Successive attempts at reform have resulted in raising the absolute levels of achievement eg low SEG pupils are now reaching level 4 at age 11 or getting 5 good GCSEs. However, whilst the SEG gap at age 11 has narrowed at level 4 (thanks to the literacy strategy) if has widened at level 5. Some programmes such as Sure Start have delivered real impact on SEG factors, but we have yet to crack the yawning SEG gap which sets us apart from our international neighbours and which continues to result in generations of young people being failed by the education system.
The Aim of the Project
To reduce the within and between-school gap between the achievement of children at KS3 from the top 20% of the socio-economic spectrum and those in the bottom 20% and to document processes and outcomes in such a way as to be nationally replicable. To achieve the goal by testing a new methodology of empowering teachers to work together to identify and then spread ‘what works’ amongst a group of 20 schools, using the principles of rapid cycle improvement.
The Lord Lawson Of Beamish School Project
The Lead Teachers
Three teachers (all Heads of Department) were selected to become Lead Teachers in the project:
Dorothy Love (ICT)
Sam Martin (History)
Sue Nellist (Geography)
The three will work with David Grigg, Head Teacher, who will co-ordinate their work during the time of the project.
Evidence Base
The DfES presented to all schools in the project a range of interventions which evidence from national research suggests may be successful with under achieving students. The four members of staff initially involved in the project reviewed the range of interventions and selected those which seemed most appropriate to the school’s circumstances.
Selection of Students
Year 8 was selected because this was seen as a year in which some students may become disaffected having lost the initial enthusiasm associated with joining a new school and without the focus of Key Stage 3 Tests until Year 9. A distinct Class within year 8 was identified for two reasons:
• It is a class taught by one of the Lead Teachers (Sam Martin)
• It is a middle band containing students who would be within the lowest 20% of achievers in the year group.
Timing
The Project is timed to begin after half term in the Spring Term (Monday 23 February 2004). It will last at least three months, after which progress will be reviewed and the project wound up or extended for a further period of three months.
The Interventions
1. Students will be given a seating plan for each lesson. This will be at the discretion of each subject teacher according to the content of the lesson. The purpose of this is to reinforce with students that lessons are structured around the achievement of work and not a social activity. Their position in the lesson, therefore, must be related to the task in hand.
2. Teachers will provide warm up activities for all students. Again, these will be at the discretion of the subject teacher, but Lead Teachers will supply a range of ideas and examples. The aim is to ensure that there is no wasted time in lessons and that students begin each lesson relaxed and in the most appropriate frame of mind to work and achieve.
3. Students’ progress will be monitored weekly (via Bromcom, a dedicated website or an ad hoc report to Lead Teachers) by subject teachers. Progress will be reported to the DfES weekly by the Head Teacher. Students who make progress will be rewarded by the award of an Achievement Certificate.
4. Parents will be involved throughout the project in order to gain their confidence and support. It is hoped that they will be given ways in which they can support their son or daughter and report on progress or barriers to progress.
Assessment of Students
Students will be assessed in two ways:
1. On national curriculum fine levels to monitor academic progress
2. On attitude and motivation using a 5-point scale where 5 is excellent and 1 is very poor.
Baseline Assessment
The school data base will provide national curriculum fine levels for all students at the start of the project.
Subject teachers will be asked to summarise students’ attitude and motivation up to the beginning of the project using the 5-point scale above.
Outline Timetable
Date Activity
6/7 February 2004 National Development Day with DfES
10 February 2004 SMT Meeting to discuss proposals
11 February 2004 Meeting with subject teachers
12-23 February 2004 Baseline assessment of students
23-27 February 2004 Launch of Project – Lead Lesson by Head Teacher
First Communication with parents
1-5 March 2004 First Parents’ Consultation
5 March 2004 First weekly report
May 2004 End of Action Period 1
DfES Learning Workshop 1
May – August 2004 Action Period 2
Partner Schools
Lord Lawson Of Beamish School will be partnered with other Leading Edge schools during the project to allow for support and exchange of information. In our case, these schools are:
Gordano School, Portishead, Bristol
Sawtry Community College, Cambridge
Resources
The DfES will contribute to expenses for supply cover, travel and accommodation for colleagues to attend the Learning Workshops and Development Days. DfES will also provide additional funding for the activities themselves and, if necessary, equipment to facilitate exchanges between Leading Edge schools.