WALES HIGH SCHOOL ACADEMY TRUST LITERACY POLICY REVISION DATE APPROVED BY DATE OF APPROVAL February 2014 Governing Body 6 May 2014 All most recent policies are stored on the VLE and are available on the school website
LITERACY POLICY Rationale & Purpose This document summarises the approach to developing literacy across the school and serves as a reference point for all staff and other stakeholders. It should be regarded as a working document subject to ongoing development and refinement in the light of thorough monitoring and evaluation of the effectiveness of strategies. Improving students literacy levels is central to the core goal of raising attainment. This applies to all students, not just those who have difficulties with literacy. All staff in all areas must be aware of and embrace their role as teachers of literacy. The Literacy Strategy supports and connects to other key whole school initiatives and policies, in particular Feedback and Home Learning. Definitions For the purposes of our literacy strategy, literacy is defined as: The ability to read and use written information and to write appropriately for a range of purposes. It also involves the integration of speaking, listening and critical thinking with reading and writing and includes the knowledge which enables a speaker, reader or writer to recognise and use language appropriate to different social occasions. (Wray 2001) A literate student should: read and write with confidence, fluency and understanding; use the full range of reading cues (phonic, graphic, symbolic, contextual) to monitor their own reading and self-correct; understand the sound and spelling system and use this to read and spell accurately; have fluent and legible handwriting; have an interest in words and developing vocabulary; be able to understand and write in a number of different genres in fiction and poetry; be able to understand and write from a range of non-fiction texts; plan, draft, revised and edit their own writing; be interested in books, read with enjoyment and for pleasure, evaluating and justify their preferences develop powers of imagination, inventiveness and critical awareness through reading and writing Responsibilities Senior Leadership Team (SLT) All members of SLT will support the development of literacy through the line management structure in their work with Heads of Departments (HoDs) in Link meetings. They will ensure that the initiatives and strategies enhance the Whole School Literacy Strategy, particularly in relation to Feedback and Home Learning. 1
They will ensure that communications with colleagues and stakeholders are exemplary in their standards of literacy. Strategic Leader for Literacy The Assistant Head Teacher will provide strategic direction, ensuring that literacy initiatives are embedded in the School Improvement Plan. S/he will liaise with other members of the SLT (Senior Leadership Team) and other stakeholders to ensure that the literacy strategy supports and is supported by other whole school strategies. S/he will ensure the effective monitoring, evaluation and refinement of the strategy. S/he is responsible for improving and supporting literacy at the school through the provision of cross-curricular literacy projects, initiatives and interventions. Research and the collection of information from staff, students and parents, and researching and pursuing new initiatives and interventions are also intrinsic to the role. Literacy Resource Centre Manager It is the role of the Literacy Resource Centre Manager to develop and maintain a comprehensive stock of reading material, which constitutes the school library, maintain the library data-base and promote the use of the library. It is also within their role to facilitate the Accelerated Reading programme, providing resources for tutors and training where appropriate. The English Head of Department The English HoD is responsible for ensuring that the work of the English Faculty contributes to driving up literacy standards through the English curriculum and the effective implementation of the literacy from KS3 to KS5. S/he will ensure that schemes of work and teaching and learning resources provide the appropriate level of access and challenge for all students in relation to their literacy levels. S/he will monitor and evaluate the progress of students literacy levels, identifying areas of underachievement and co-ordinating appropriate intervention. S/he will offer specialist expertise in support of the Whole School Literacy Strategy. Special Educational Needs Coordinator (SENco) The SENco will monitor and evaluate the literacy progress of students identified as having Special Educational Needs (SEN). S/he will liaise with the Assistant Headteacher on specific intervention projects, one to one support and curriculum design. S/he will provide advice and support to all curriculum areas to ensure SEN students with particular difficulties in literacy have full access to the curriculum and receive the appropriate level of challenge. Challenging the More Able The Assistant Headteacher responsible for the More Able will provide specialist support and advice in relation to challenging the most able students to develop their literacy levels. 2
S/he will help to monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of the strategy in relation to More Able students. Heads of Department (HoD) All Heads of Department will ensure that schemes of work and teaching and learning materials provide the appropriate levels of access and challenge in relation to the literacy levels of the students. They will identify the ways in which their curriculum area supports the Whole School Literacy Strategy and include this in their department improvement plans (DIPs). They will monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of their faculties in implementing the Whole School Literacy Strategy, particularly in relation to consistent approaches to teaching functional literacy. Class Teachers All teachers will ensure that lesson plans and teaching and learning resources provide the appropriate levels of access and challenge in relation to the literacy levels of the students. They will implement the whole school strategies outlined in this document in support of literacy development for all students. They will monitor and evaluate their own effectiveness in supporting the Whole School Literacy Strategy and develop their practice accordingly. Form Tutors Form tutors will contribute to the whole school literacy development through work on basic skills and word games in active tutorials. Dedicated reading time will be delivered at least once a week. Tutors to check weekly that all students are carrying a book/digital text. Administrative & other support staff Will ensure that communications with colleagues and stakeholders are exemplary in their standards of literacy. 3
Whole School Strategies For Improving Literacy 1. Consistent Whole School Approaches to Functional Literacy Spelling and Key Words Teachers in all subjects should use a common approach for the teaching of spelling and the development of vocabulary. The emphasis is upon equipping students with strategies to make them independent and confident in learning spellings and new vocabulary. Dictionaries will be made available to support these approaches within departments and through the Learning Resource Centre (LRC). Schemes of Work and lesson plans should identify subject specific vocabulary and teachers will systematically teach and promote the use of these words. Displays will be used to support the development of subject specific vocabulary. The implementation of the Literacy specific Feedback Policy should support this approach. Spelling, Punctuation and Grammar (SPAG) Identify a maximum of 5 per A4 and 3 per A5 sheet. Spelling Identify misspelt specialist words, highlight and spell correctly above. Identify in note taking and extended work. Identification of misspelt homophone words, highlight and spell correctly above. Top 5: there/their/they're; hear/here; for/four; two/to/too; were/we're; your/you're. Allow the learner time to rewrite the word correctly, therefore, correcting their error and learning how to spell it correctly. Punctuation Identify by circling punctuation on extended writing tasks and exam style questions. Add in the appropriate punctuation. If the same common mistake is made throughout the work allow the learner time to rewrite a full sentence with corrections. Grammar Identify by underlining the grammatical mistake on extended writing tasks and exam style questions. Where appropriate write correctly above or give an example of a grammatically correct sentence at the end of the learners work. If the same common mistake is made throughout the work allow the learner time to rewrite the full sentence with corrections. Writing The use of writing frames as scaffolding for different genres is encouraged and facilitated by the dissemination of generic writing frames to all staff and the development of a variety of subject specific literacy place mats. Students should be encouraged to re-draft, self-correct and peer-assess written work. 4
All written tasks are to have a clear purpose, audience and form. Reading As of September 14 all students to carry a book or digital text with them at all times to encourage reading. Staff to facilitate this at appropriate points in the school day. Where students are asked to read in lessons, the purpose of the reading task must be made clear. A variety of fiction and non-fiction texts to be used to encourage imagination. Where students are asked to read to obtain information or for research in any curriculum area they should be taught the appropriate techniques on where and how to identify appropriate material, to combat copying. 2. Promotion and Profile Raising The Assistant Headteacher responsible for literacy will facilitate specific projects throughout the year involving the whole school and where appropriate the local community, including the involvement of external agencies. For example, the development of Golden Hour involving students in Y7 in various literacy projects. Literacy projects are designed to address issues, and can be aimed at individuals, groups of students and even whole year groups. Literacy projects are intended to have various impacts, including increasing the frequency a child reads for pleasure, increasing the awareness of literacy at home, improving on reading ages and levels of literacy, and enhancing a child s, or indeed a whole family s, experience of literacy. The Learning Resource Centre (LRC) is the school s centre for literacy. It is an area for teaching and learning, and independent study. It can be booked by staff and where appropriate the LRC Manager will offer support and guidance. This facility should be available to students during, before and after the school day. Reading, and use of the LRC facilities will be promoted by the whole staff body. 3. Monitoring Progress and Curricular Intervention Programmes Progress of all pupils in literacy is monitored by the English Faculty. All students will be given a base-line reading test in Year Seven and will be monitored termly by the LRC Manager. This data will be disseminated to all staff using Photo data sheets and used to ensure work is planned and pitched appropriately, to support and challenge. Students working below reading age of 9 and/or identified as having a Special Educational Need are provided with support by the Learning Support Team and undertake a differentiated curriculum and / or a range of intervention programmes. A focus group is developed for corrective reading in Year 7. Where underachievement is identified at any level, the English teacher is responsible for intervention under the guidance of the Head of English and if appropriate the Learning Support team will offer additional intervention where appropriate. 5
Monitoring, Review and Evaluation The process below will be closely monitored by SLT and evaluated as they occur to allow for improvements to be made as appropriate. Work Scrutiny undertaken by HODs and SLT Classroom observations by HODs and SLT. Feedback from staff on training events Feedback from parent voice and student voice Analysis of progress in English NC Levels at KS3 and GCSE grades at KS4 Termly Audit of SIP / DIPs 6