School development planning for curriculum and assessment

Majella O’Shea

School development planning and the curriculum

All students to experience………..…….quality education…….appropriate to their needs…….changing world…….enhancing student learning

(SDP Curriculum planning)

…….Education system of highest quality for learners …….…….Innovative and creative environment for all learners

(NCCA, Strategic plan 2006–2008)

The press for reform…

The student experience

– Failure

– Non-participation

– Non-engagement Evidence that the quality of teaching matters Evidence that it matters more for students with special

needs and with English as an additional language Public accountability for public services Knowledge society/ahead of the curve Inclusion

– The discourse of the problematic

And the press against

The stretch factor in Irish education The normative power of policy Tradition and nostalgia Complex educational structures, complex policy

context What learning is valued? “Dumbing down”

Curriculum development

Review

The public

Research and theory

Evaluations

Representative committees

The developers

Consultation

Agreed syllabuses/curriculum

Curr. Planning schools

Teaching & learning

Exp. Of the students

InfluencersResourcesProfessional developmentNeed for change – is there a crisis?Time for planningClassroom environmentAssessmentSkills/attitude of teacherPedagogyStudents

Barriers to real learning in the

classroom?

How can they be overcome?

The role of NCCA

The formal curriculum

– Advice, policy, syllabuses Guidelines

– Subject guidelines

– Special needs

– Inclusion

– Intercultural Further support

– Supporting teachers in planning for and creating the learning experience

AdvicePolicy

SyllabusesCurriculum

and assessment

Guidelines

Subject

Intercultural

Special needs

Supporting teachers in planning for and creating a rich learning

experience

Report card templates

Tools Sharing

ACTION website

Examples

Getting closer to schools

www.ncca.ie

What’s coming down the tracks?

Some guiding themes

Inclusion

Assessment for Learning

Key Skills

Pedagogy

Relationships

The classroom of diversities…

Greater ability range

Special needs

– general

– specific

English as an additional language

Differentiation

the most complex and technical aspect of the teaching craft

neglected in teacher preparation?

seen as static – getting the level/pitch right

Dynamic, demanding and sophisticated

Some differentiation challenges

The question of place The question of pace The question of range The question of choice The question of additional support

One of the biggest challenges… is to teach differentiation strategies……

To the students

Who may be used to learning in the middleWho may be used to ‘hiding’Who may be used to an easy paceWho may ‘passenger’Who may not have talked about learningWho may want the answers, not the questions

Futures…

achievement gaps concerns for teacher quality collapse of public education Disaffected student groupsOR… International praise for achievement standards Students with strong commitments to schooling High quality teaching force

100 year-old wisdom….

What the wisest and best parent wants for his own child, that must the community want for all its children. Any other ideal for our schools is narrow and unlovely; acted upon, it destroys our democracy.

John Dewey. 1899, p.5.

Inclusion

SEN – guidelines and possible new award at Level 2 on NFQ

Intercultural guidelines

Curriculum framework for students in detention centres

JCSP programme statement and review of profiling

NCCA Inclusion Project

Case Study Research Schools dealing with the ‘inclusion challenge’ To move beyond anecdote To capture what schools are doing

– Beyond normative policy to practice

– The ‘costs’…. To tender this autumn

Assessment for Learning

School-based work is complete Dissemination of strategies

– With support services

– ACTION Assessment in Primary Schools: Guidelines for

Teachers info@ncca

Senior Cycle work

Senior Cycle

– phase one syllabuses

– short course on enterprise

– transition units

– flexible programmes of study

Key Skills

After 30 years of teaching, they pushed me to innovate and to really look at what it was like to learn in my class….

Phase one curriculum components

Subjects to be reviewed

New subjects Short courses

Other developments

Mathematics

Applied Mathematics

Languages

Biology Chemistry Physics

Social and Political Education

Physical Education

Enterprise Education

Technology – Art and Music

Psychology

Social, Personal and Health Education

PE framework

Feedback from the Key Skills Network

Classes are more enjoyable for everyone Group work needs to be planned Students like well-planned group work Relationships in the classroom are better Longer class periods are needed Students are reluctant to change at first, but are

glad when they do.

Junior cycle

Priorities

Syllabus rebalancing

Inclusion

Assessment for learning

Implications of ESRI research findings on curriculum,

assessment, school organisation and planning

Implications of senior cycle developments

Current status of work Ten syllabuses originally

Art, Craft, Design English Environmental and Social Studies Geography History Home Economics Music

Business Studies* Gaeilge* Mathematics*

* Now part of a broader review and revision process

Rebalancing – next steps

Final drafts of rebalanced syllabuses developed

Progressed through NCCA structures late 2007

Issued to the Department of Education and Science

Information material for schools on the adjustments

NCCA website to provide updates

ESRI research

900 students in 12 schools Longitudinal study focused on students’ experience

of junior cycle First and second year reports published Third year report and summary to be published in

October 2007 Informing policy and practice in junior cycle

First Year findings

Some students experience ongoing transition difficulties

Curriculum discontinuity a feature

Students respond well to varied teaching and learning approaches

Importance of positive teacher-student interaction and informal school atmosphere

Suitability of curriculum for a significant minority of students is questioned

Second Year findings

Characteristic ‘dip’ in academic performance and behaviour

Students become more negative about school generally

Negative effects of streaming intensifies

Gender and social class differences become more marked

Emergence of a ‘disengaged group’

Teaching and learning becomes more focused on Junior Certificate

Third Year findings (preliminary)

Students say they learn best when

– positive classroom interaction

– teacher explains well

– interactive, varied teaching methodologies Focus on J Cert exams leads to more traditional form of

teaching

Negative effect of streaming more pronounced

– disadvantaged schools in study group all streamed!

Strong influence of gender and social class on achievement

School expectation also significantly determines achievement

Significant number of students taking grinds

Streaming and JC grades

10=A; 9=B; 8=C; 7=D averaged across all subjects taken

0

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

Mixed ability Higherstream

Middlestream

Lower stream

‘School’ effect

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Lang St BarrackSt

Dixon St Hay St DawesPoint

DawsonSt

Park St BelmoreSt

Wattle St Fig Lane

Working-class Mixed Middle-class

Mea

n

Number of Higher Level Subjects Taken by School(second lowest reading quintile)

Implications of senior cycle developments

stronger role for key skills in junior cycle curriculum

pressure to ‘scale back’ junior cert exams need to harmonise junior and leaving cert courses potential impact of a different school culture at

senior cycle on junior cycle increased demand for educational guidance

Developments in mathematics (1)

Increased emphasis on contexts and applications

Focus on higher-order mathematical skills

Proposal for phased development (both JC and LC)

– 5 syllabus ‘strands’ identified

– Initial involvement of approximately 24 schools

– All maths teachers in each participating school to adopt new

syllabus materials for each strand/phase

– Class resource materials and teacher guidelines provided

– Professional support for teachers re changed emphasis and

approaches in mathematics teaching and learning

– Developments supported by changes in relevant examination

questions

Developments in mathematics (2)

Bridging framework to link primary and post-primary

mathematics

Common mathematics course in first year

Need for collaboration between maths teachers

– consistency in approach used

– sharing of ideas and experiences

– school-based support as well as ‘inservice’ occasions

– issues around choice of course levels

– availability and use of ICT resources in maths

– allocation of teachers to classes/levels

Promotion of greater uptake of HL maths, especially in

Junior Certificate

Developments in mathematics (3)

Information on Project Maths to all schools – Nov 07

Invitation to schools to participate in initial

implementation phase(s)

Participating schools identified early in 2008

Preparation meetings for participating schools in

Spring 2008

Syllabus and resource materials for initial phase(s)

ready by May 2008

Implementation in participating schools from Sept.

2008

Roll-out to all schools beginning in Sept. 2009