Annual School Report 2014 [school code] 4538

Transcription

1 Bowen Public School Annual School Report 2014 [school code] 4538

2 School context statement Bowen Public School is a small P4 school located in a residential area in East Orange. The school is modern, well-resourced and receives additional support funding through Aboriginal Equity and Socio-economic Funding programs. Bowen Public School s priority areas are Literacy, Numeracy and Student Engagement. The school implements a range of strong academic programs to achieve increased student learning outcomes. The core values of the school are emphasised through the Positive Behaviour for Learning program, which focuses on the school expectations: We Are Learners, We Are Respectful and We Are Safe. Student Welfare practices are varied, promote a happy and safe learning environment and aid in the development of citizens who are responsible and tolerant of others. Approximately forty percent of the school population identify as Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander and four percent as multicultural. The school caters for a range of students with special learning needs, through special education classes, the successful integration of students with disabilities and the implementation of strong special education programs. The implementation of projects through equity program funding, enabled a fundamental change in the nature of staffing for Bowen Public School. A team teaching model was implemented in Stage 2 and an instructional leader employed in Early Stage 1 and Stage 1. This allowed for emphasis to be placed on Professional Learning for teachers in the form of modelling best practice teaching and learning strategies. Principal s Message It gives me great pleasure to present the Bowen Public School Annual School Report for The purpose of this annual school report is to provide our parents and community with a summary of Bowen Public School s achievements and plans for 2014 as well as our long-term goals has seen many changes for Bowen Public School. Our substantive principal, Mrs Carolynne Merchant, has been working as School Education Director for the Southern Tablelands Schools Network in 2014 and as a result, both Mrs Tracey Graves and I have relieved in the principal role for the year. This has necessitated a number of other staffing changes throughout the year which we have managed with minimal disruption to learning programs and student routines. The school continued to focus on quality teaching and providing professional learning for all staff to promote student learning and achievement. The school priority areas included Literacy and Numeracy, student engagement and attendance, school organisation and leadership. Bowen Public School has established a strong and supportive culture which has student achievement and well-being, quality teaching programs and equitable and inclusive education as its foundations. Equity funding continued to support Bowen Public School by providing opportunities for our involvement in many effective educational programs and the employment of additional staff to support students. It assisted in supporting A Laptop for all students K-2, Language, Learning and Literacy (L3) and Targeting Early Numeracy (TEN) programs. The funding also provided opportunities to work across schools in the areas of curriculum, teaching and learning and professional learning through the pre2 Learning Community. The school implemented the L3 program in Kindergarten and Stage 1 to help students build a strong foundation of educational outcomes focused on literacy. Links with agencies such as Charles Sturt University (which has given the school a telescope and resources to use for teaching and learning and also works with the school to promote careers and further education) increase learning opportunities for the benefit of all students and promote Aboriginal culture. 1

3 Bowen Public School continued to develop the Positive Behaviour for Learning program (PBL), focusing on Safe, Respectful Learners, and provided further activities such as Meteorite Mentors, Bucket Filling, Drum Beat, Got It - Fun Friends and What s the Buzz programs to grow student resilience and opportunities for social development has been an amazing year for Bowen Public School and I am proud and thankful to be part of such a strong school community, which focuses on providing the very best opportunities and outcomes for our students. In 2015, the focus will be on consolidating the changes that have been made along with a focus on 21 st Century learning, developing resilience and relationships, and developing quality systems within the school. I certify that the information in this report is the result of a rigorous school self-evaluation process and is a balanced and genuine account of the school s achievements and areas for development. Rob McPherson Relieving Principal Student information It is a requirement that the reporting of information for all students be consistent with privacy and personal information policies. Student enrolment profile Student Enrolment Gender Male Female Student attendance profile School attendance remains a target area in the school plan and is especially focused on transition to Kindergarten. Overall school attendance has shown improvement over the past few years as a result of strong engagement programs. The school implements an action plan for attendance and works closely with the Home School Liaison Officer and Aboriginal Liaison Officer. A range of strategies for engagement and attendance were implemented in The school has implemented: class based attendance targets, newsletter articles, communication letters and graphs for parents/carers, an attendance raffle in term 4 and SENTRAL as a computer program to assist in the monitoring and recording of student attendance. School Year K Total K Total Workforce information It is a requirement that the reporting of information for all staff must be consistent with privacy and personal information policies. The following table describes the basic staffing component for Bowen in Workforce composition Position Number Principal 1 Assistant Principal(s) 3 Assistant Principal Vision 1 Assistant Principal Hearing 1 Classroom Teacher(s) 5 Support Class Teachers 2 Itinerant Support Teacher Vision 1.6 Itinerant Support Teacher Hearing 2.6 Teacher of Reading Recovery Learning and Support Teacher(s) 1.0 Teacher Librarian 0.4 2

4 School Counsellor 0.5 School Administrative & Support Staff 6 Aboriginal Education Officer (AEO) 1 Total The Australian Education Regulation, 2014 requires schools to report on Aboriginal composition of their workforce. We currently have 1 staff member who identifies as Aboriginal. Teacher qualifications All teaching staff meet the professional requirements for teaching in NSW public schools. Qualifications % of teaching staff Degree or Diploma 100% Postgraduate 12% Accredited with BOSTES 57% Professional learning and teacher accreditation Professional learning is a key element to teaching and learning at Bowen Public School and the school uses not only tied Teacher Professional Learning (TPL) funds but also a significant budget from other areas including National Partnerships. The teaching staff believe that increasing and improving teacher quality is an important aspect of supporting students to achieve learning outcomes. TPL is linked to the school management plan and was provided in a number of ways: The school is strongly linked to the pre2 learning community and this provides a range of professional learning opportunities for staff, including areas such as national curriculum, Stage networks, middle executive leadership, and Principal leadership. Pre2 also provides opportunities for staff to deliver teaching activities via connected classrooms or to participate in these lessons and thus have the opportunity to watch other teachers. Bowen uses its own staff expertise in areas such as PBL, behaviour management, teaching standards and special education strategies to support and train each other. The Early Action For Success (EAfS) program Instructional Leader has provided varied support and training for staff in literacy and numeracy. The staff have participated in professional development around the National Improvement Tool and further opportunities around the teaching standards, and documents such as Great Teaching, Inspired Learning, were planned throughout Bowen has worked with other schools in implementing professional learning opportunities such as ESES, National Improvement Tool, and the Board of Studies English syllabus. Educational expertise has been brought into Bowen Public School for whole school professional learning in working with students who have experienced trauma and for Behaviour Support. The school continues to be strongly involved in PBL, R2L, L3, Best Start, MultiLit and recently TEN, MiniLit/Direct Instruction, ICT XO laptops and Maths Matters. Opportunities have been provided for staff to train in Drum Beat, Got It and What s the Buzz which are based around emotional and social aspects of learning and have been implemented within the school. Further opportunity has been provided for all staff to attend Bill Rogers and Rich Allen workshops which provided support in behaviour management and engagement strategies. Individuals and groups of teachers have also been involved in Redbank and Ian Luscombe workshops. Curriculum training has been provided through National Curriculum, ESES, literacy and numeracy continuum workshops and the EAfS program. 3

5 Participation in varied online courses has been accessed as required by staff. Eg: Autism, behaviour and language courses. In 2014 one focus of professional development was to work further to develop the Teacher Assessment Review Schedule (TARS) model within the school. Executive have developed, implemented, reflected upon and modified a detailed plan to implement the process around TARS. The school conducted a range of surveys to evaluate areas of Professional Development and Curriculum and Professional learning for staff. The focus surveys demonstrated that Executive and leaders gave a high rating to the school as making improvements in the area of TARS and in implementing processes to support staff to professionally learn and develop their teaching skills. These surveys also noted areas for improvement through increased methods of communication and mandatory reports from professional learning participants. Communication was also a feature of the parent focus surveys. Many parents didn t realise the training that teachers did or how it impacted on the learning of their children. They had thought that teachers had a lot of days off school! To address this, the school newsletter now includes a section that communicates where teachers are and what they are learning and how this will help their children. Beginning Teachers A number of teachers are in the beginnings of their careers at Bowen Public School. They are supported with additional Release from Face to Face (RFF) Teaching, mentors, modelled lessons and professional learning experiences. The EAfS program has particularly enhanced professional learning opportunities for beginning teachers. The provision of an Instructional Leader has been integral in ensuring that our staff are trained to the highest of standards and provide exceptional instruction for Bowen students. Financial summary This summary covers funds for operating costs and does not involve expenditure areas such as permanent salaries, building and major maintenance. Date of financial summary 30/11/2014 Income $ Balance brought forward Global funds Tied funds School & community sources Interest Trust receipts Total income Expenditure Teaching & learning Key learning areas Excursions Extracurricular dissections Library Training & development Tied funds Casual relief teachers Administration & office School-operated canteen 0.00 Utilities Maintenance Trust accounts Capital programs Total expenditure Balance carried forward The Training and Development allocation was incorporated within the tied funds. The school appreciates the contributions from P&C and other community sources. The school also contributed financially to the professional learning of executive teachers across the pre2 Learning Community. A full copy of the school s 2014 financial statement was tabled at the annual general meeting of the Parents and Citizens Association. Further details concerning the statement can be obtained by contacting the school. 4

6 School performance 2014 Academic achievements NAPLAN In the National Assessment Program, the results across the Years 3, 5, 7 and 9 literacy and numeracy assessments are reported on a scale from 1 to 10. The achievement scale represents increasing levels of skills and understandings demonstrated in these assessments. Year 3: from 1 (lowest) to 6 (highest for Year 3) Year 5: from 3 (lowest) to 8 (highest for Year 5) The My School website provides detailed information and data for national literacy and numeracy testing (NAPLAN). Click on the link enter the school name in the Find a school field and select GO to access the school data. Alternatively: tables indicating the performance of the 2014 Year 3 and Year 5 cohorts are presented below. NAPLAN Year 3 - Literacy Year 3 NAPLAN Reading Average score, 2014 Skill Distribution Number in s Percentage in s SSG % in s 2014 % in s 2014 Skill Distribution School SSG Year 3 NAPLAN Grammar and Punctuation School SSG Average score, Number in s Percentage in s SSG % in s 2014 % in s Year 3 NAPLAN Spelling Number in s Percentage in s NAPLAN Year 3 - Numeracy NAPLAN Year 5 - Literacy Average score, Skill Distribution SSG % in s 2014 % in s 2014 Year 3 NAPLAN Writing Skill Distribution Number in s Percentage in s School Average SSG % in s 2014 % in s 2014 School SSG School Average score, Year 3 NAPLAN Numeracy Skill Distribution Average score, 2014 Number in s Percentage in s SSG % in s 2014 % in s 2014 Year 5 NAPLAN Reading Average score, 2014 Skill Distribution Number in s Percentage in s SSG % in s 2014 % in s 2014 SSG School SSG School SSG

7 Year 5 NAPLAN Spelling School SSG Average score, Skill Distribution Number in s Percentage in s SSG % in s 2014 % in s 2014 Skill Distribution Number in s Percentage in s SSG % in s 2014 % in s 2014 NAPLAN Year 5 - Numeracy Year 5 NAPLAN Grammar and Punctuation School SSG Average score, Year 5 NAPLAN Writing Average score, 2014 Skill Distribution Number in s Percentage in s School Average SSG % in s 2014 % in s 2014 Year 5 NAPLAN Numeracy Average score, 2014 Skill Distribution Number in s Percentage in s SSG % in s 2014 % in s School SSG School SSG Other achievements Bowen students participated in a number of outstanding events throughout The Arts The Schools Spectacular was a highlight for our Choir and Aboriginal Dance groups who both travelled to Sydney to take part. Many months of rehearsing paid off in what was our first entrée into the Schools Spectacular. Students gained a great deal of learning through the experience, developing not only their artistic skills but also their social, emotional and life skills. Bowen students also performed in the Orange Eisteddfod where they achieved first place in Verse Speaking and first place in Dance competitions. Sport Bowen entered a number of PSSA Knockout competitions in 2014 which exposed students to a variety of sports that they generally have few opportunities to experience otherwise. These included Rugby 7s, Netball, Softball, Touch and Soccer. Our students represented the school proudly at district swimming, cross country and athletics carnivals. One of our students gained entry into the Orange District Athletics team and competed at the Western Area Athletics carnival. Students also participated in a number of sports clinics that visited the school. The clinics were designed to enhance both basic athletic ability and specific sporting skills. They included; AFL, Rugby, Rugby League and Netball. One of our year six girls was crowned Australian Champion in 2 Martial Arts disciplines. For her achievements, she was awarded a Western Area Sports Association President s medallion at our Presentation Day assembly. Other The Bowen team took out first prize in the pre2 Master Chef competition. The raspberry butter- 6

8 cake that they baked was presented with homemade fondant and fresh raspberries and took out the best decorated cake at the event. Our students also received great acclaim for their work in the pre2 Short Film Festival. Many moviegoers commented that even though the festival was not a competition, Bowen had one of the best entries. Years 5 and 6 also attended The Sydney Academy of Sport at Narrabeen as their major excursion for the year. They participated in a variety of athletic activities designed to promote teamwork and resilience. Significant programs and initiatives Bowen Public School ran a number of significant programs and initiatives in 2014 across a number of areas. Aboriginal education Bowen Public School has been working with the local Aboriginal Education Consultative Group (AECG) to build stronger relationships with community and families and improve learning outcomes for students. Our AEO is the current president of this group. A transition to school program was implemented through the CareWest preschool and programs such as MERGE and Better Pathways, were again accessed by students during the holidays. As always, students participated in NAIDOC Week celebrations through a variety of cultural activities and the NAIDOC Week march. Bowen Public School continued to implement varied literacy and numeracy programs and strategies to assist in closing the gap in learning outcomes between Indigenous and non- Indigenous students, including the implementation of the Norta Norta program. A number of SLSOs were employed to assist with literacy and social skills programs K-2 in the latter part of the year. A teacher was employed to develop (in conjunction with the AEO) and implement an Aboriginal Cultural Awareness program across the school. The program was delivered to each class by the teacher and the AEO on a weekly basis. It helped connect Aboriginal students with their heritage and introduce their classmates to Aboriginal culture and history. Much of our Aboriginal equity funding was directed towards the employment of extra SLSOs to assist our Aboriginal students achieve their learning outcomes. Enhanced learning experiences for our Aboriginal students required the acquisition of new technology, reading resources, literacy and numeracy programs. These were partly financed through Aboriginal equity funding. Multicultural education and anti-racism In 2014 approximately 4% of the student population had a multicultural background. Bowen Public School implemented varied strategies to cater for all multicultural learners. A school Anti-Racism Officer was a support for students and families if required, however there were no racism complaints during The school as a whole continued to study other cultures as part of the HSIE program in all stages, and tolerance of those who may be different to us in various ways is encouraged and actively taught. Student involvement in Harmony Day was one of the highlights of multicultural education programs. Socio-economic background In 2014 the school received equity funding as part of the RAM allocation. It was used to develop teacher professional learning, focusing on quality teaching, and aimed to develop the capacity of teachers and the implementation of effective programs to raise student outcomes. In 2014 equity funding allowed for the school s involvement in professional workshops. It also provided the opportunity for additional teaching staff and additional school administration hours to support planning and organisation across the school. This allowed for the implementation of school based professional learning and team 7

9 teaching/mentoring to occur to increase leadership, quality teaching and teaching and learning strategies. Linked classrooms and the skills developed through professional learning, have created an ideal context for teacher mentoring and team teaching. As teachers attended professional learning activities, or developed new skills and activities they were able to share these amongst their peers through demonstration or planned collaborative programming. They are comfortable planning and working together and sharing ideas and support. A strong sense of collegiality has been developed. Professional Learning is the focus of staff meetings with the majority of professional learning topics based around Literacy, Technology, Aboriginal Education and Numeracy. The topics related to the executive key improvement roles of Numeracy, Literacy, Engagement, Aboriginal Education and Attendance. English language proficiency A small number of students received English as a Second Language (ESL) funding. This funding was used to employ an ESL teacher for 1 day each week who provided targeted support to ESL students. Intensive literacy programs helped in accelerating the acquisition of English skills and knowledge for these students, smoothing their transition to both school and life in Australia. The ESL teacher also assisted classroom teachers to adjust their programs and lesson delivery to enhance access to, and increase the effectiveness of, classroom learning experiences. Learning and Support Bowen Public school is the base school for both the Orange Hearing and Vision teams. Whilst housed here, Bowen currently does not have students who require vision or hearing support from these faculties. Bowen Public School also has 3 support classes for students experiencing a range of learning difficulties that include autism, intellectual, behavioural and emotional problems. These classes provide specialised, intensive support to 26 students who have learning difficulties. Each of the classes employ a Student Learning Support Officer (SLSO) who assists in the administration of teaching programs, student welfare and in providing support for the classroom teacher, delivering personalised learning experiences for each student. A number of students who experience learning difficulties do not access the 3 support classes and are integrated into mainstream classes across the school. Generally, they attract small amounts of funding that are used to put supports in place that help improve the individual s learning outcomes and positive engagement in school life and learning. The supports often include some SLSO time to directly assist the student in the class or playground and/or access to specific programs targeted at the student s area of need. Personalised Learning Plans (PLPs) are developed in collaboration with each support student s parents. Goals are developed that reflect student needs and are designed to enhance participation and engagement in the curriculum. Often these plans will require the involvement of agencies outside the Department of Education, such as the Cerebral Palsy Alliance or Anglicare. Further assistance is often provided by departmental officers such as Learning and Engagement Officers or the Out of Home Care Teacher. Other significant programs and initiatives Early Action for Success (EAfS) 2014 was the second year that Bowen Public School has been involved in the Early Action for Success program. EAfS has been the mechanism by which we have been able to implement the Language, Learning and Literacy and Teaching Early Numeracy strategies. There has been a great deal of extremely high quality professional learning for teachers across the school but particularly within Stages 1 and 2. Results from the program have been extremely encouraging 8

10 with more than 80% of our students reaching their benchmarks at each ten week interval. The school recognises that there are issues around attendance for some students and that this has a profound effect on their ability to achieve outcomes in a timely manner. A range of strategies are in place at both classroom and whole school levels to encourage greater rates of attendance and provide greater access to the curriculum for all students. Bowen s Instructional Leader is recognised as an outstanding classroom practitioner and an excellent professional learning leader. The school is very fortunate to have access to the quality instruction provided which has fundamentally changed teaching practices within the school. There is now an intense focus on modelled, guided and independent working strategies and how to best implement them in the classroom. Teachers are also now better equipped to be able to identify, address and monitor individual learning needs for students in the class and across the Kindergarten to Year 2 stages. School planning and evaluation School evaluation processes NSW public schools conduct evaluations to support the effective implementation of the school plan. The processes used include: Teacher Survey Parent Survey Student Survey Data Collection and Analysis School planning : School priority 1 Literacy Outcomes from To implement, consolidate and embed literacy programs, appropriate to each stage level and for the teaching and learning cycle to be evident within programs. To develop assessment techniques, including class profiles which inform and guide the teaching and learning cycle and include professional learning opportunities. Evidence of achievement of outcomes in 2014: L3 has been embedded into standard teaching practice K-2. Teachers have been trained in the use of the Literacy Continuum in order to inform teaching and learning. Individual student profiles have been created to assist in tracking student progress, identify goals and to guide learning activities. Staff have been involved in learning about specific literacy strategies that have been implemented in their classrooms. Between thirty three percent and fifty five percent of Year 5 students achieved greater than the expected band growth across all areas of literacy in the 2014 NAPLAN test. The average growth of Bowen students across all literacy domains was between seventeen and thirty three points higher than the average growth of students across the state in Strategies to achieve these outcomes in 2014: The Instructional Leader has provided training in L3, modelled lessons and strategies and provided professional support to all staff. This is a continuing process that is expected to have ongoing effects across the school. Specific training for the use of the Literacy Continuum was undertaken and staff were given time to both explore the continuum and to practice using it with examples that aided in consistency of teacher judgement, before implementation. Programming formats were adjusted and modified to better reflect the implementation of literacy programs and the teaching and learning cycle. 9

11 School priority 2 Numeracy Outcomes from To implement, consolidate and embed numeracy programs appropriate to each stage level and for the teaching and learning cycle to be evident within programs. To develop assessment techniques, including class profiles which inform and guide the teaching and learning cycle and include professional learning opportunities. Evidence of achievement of outcomes in 2014: The envision Maths resource has been used consistently across the school to consolidate skills in each stage level. Teachers have received training in Teaching Early Numeracy strategies and in using the Numeracy Continuum as part of the EAfS program. One third of Year 5 students made greater than expected growth in the 2014 NAPLAN test. The average growth of Bowen students in Numeracy was approximately 34 points higher than the average growth of students across the state. Strategies to achieve these outcomes in 2014: Developed consistent methods for teaching numeracy across stages. Professional learning through the Instructional Leader model. Training in the analysis of data and its use in developing classroom programs. Professional learning surrounding the new curriculum and collaborative planning opportunities timetabled into fortnightly release. School priority 3 Engagement Outcomes from Student attendance patterns are in line with region and students are engaged in school programs. Programs and activities which focus on student engagement are developed and implemented. Student access to technology is increased and they demonstrate responsible IT practices. Evidence of achievement of outcomes in 2014: Attendance statistics at the end of 2014 indicate a rate of 91.65%, well above our 3 year target of 89%. Suspensions have been reduced to an average of less than 7 per term. A variety of engagement programs are available to students on a regular basis. Strategies to achieve these outcomes in 2014: Positive Behavior for Learning (PBL) language and practices have become standard across the school. Use of Student Welfare worker through the National Chaplaincy Program to support the engagement of students and families in social and emotional aspects of schooling. Identify targeted families needing support with student attendance and work with them to improve the attendance through personal contact, individual attendance plans and involvement of Home School Liaison Officer and the Aboriginal Community Liaison Officer. Extend existing preschool links and transition to Kindergarten programs by using school staff to provide information about Bowen Public School and the programs implemented at the school. 10

12 Maintain class reward system where each class sets its own target in relation to its needs with rewards presented at assemblies. Provide intensive learning, social and behavioural support for students through the implementation of resilience programs, mentoring programs and PBL. Parent/caregiver, student and teacher satisfaction In 2014, the school sought the opinions of parents, students and teachers about the school. In 2014, parents indicated that their children s classrooms are usually interesting places to learn. Parents believe that the school tries to bring out the best in each child and that incidences of bullying are mostly noticed and dealt with. They appreciated the reports and feedback that they receive and would recommend our school to others. The staff was overwhelmingly identified as the school s best asset by parents. This was followed by academic programs and community involvement. Technology is an area that staff, students and parents would like to see developed. Future Directions School Plan NSW DEC is implementing a new school planning process for The new plan will be published on the school s website from the beginning of Term Three strategic directions for overall school improvement have been developed through a process of staff, student and community consultation. The first direction is Twenty-First Century Learning which involves enhancing teaching and learning pedagogies and introducing a variety of technologies to better prepare our students for life after primary school. The second direction surrounds resilience, relationships and engagement. This will involve the implementation of a range of programs aimed at promoting inner-strength, confidence and the ability to interact effectively with peers, teachers and the community. The third strategic direction is focused on improving systems within the school by developing systems that will enable us to communicate more effectively both within the school and in the community. We will also organise teaching and learning sequences, assessment schedules and be able to support student learning and welfare. About this report In preparing this report, the self-evaluation committee has gathered information from evaluations conducted during the year and analysed other information about the school's practices and student learning outcomes. The self-evaluation committee and school planning committee have determined targets for the school's future development. Rob McPherson, Relieving Principal Danika Day, Assistant Principal Tracey Graves, Assistant Principal Meaghan Clyde, Relieving Assistant Principal Melissa Morris, Instructional Leader School contact information Bowen Puiblic School Park St, Orange, NSW Ph: Fax: bowen-p.school@det.nsw.edu.au Web: www. bowen-p.school@det.nsw.edu.au School Code: 4538 Parents can find more information about Annual School Reports, how to interpret information in the report and have the opportunity to provide feedback about the report at: asr/index.php 11