Principal Teacher of Mathematics Mary Tuson Principal Teacher of Mathematics

Planning for Improvement

Beginning with the end in mind For the last 6 years we have spent a bit of time at a friends house in Annecy. We have gatecrashed their lakeside home for holidays at various times of the year. Each time I was on the lake I would look across at a mountain on the other side and say to my husband ‘I’M going to climb that this week!’ to which he would fall into fits of laughter since the biggest thing I have ever climbed is Pendle Hill in East Lancashire. However last October I got talking to a local who said La Toune was an easy climb and had amazing views across the alps at the top and a terrific view of Mont Blanc in the distance – this end view was the inspiration it took for me to do what I have always threatened. 5 hours later after battling ladders and ropes and chains – NEVER TRUST A LOCAL! I stood at the top and looked across the Alps to Mont Blanc and it was truly breathtaking. My point here is that the previous 5 years I didn’t know what sight would behold me and it wasn’t until I could visualise the end result that I started on the climb that was definitely beyond my capabilities.

‘Alice in Wonderland’ ‘Would you tell me please which way I ought to go from here?’ ‘That depends a good deal on where you want to get to.’ said the cat. ‘I don’t care where….’ said Alice ‘Then it doesn’t matter which way you go,’ said the cat I often think of improvement planning is about Deciding on your destination AND THEN creating a map to get you there

Vision, Mission, Purpose Mental creation precedes physical creation Develop a clear picture of where you want your department to be Use your plan Just like the climbing of LA Tourne – The mental creation came before the physical one – everything is created twice, the planning stage is the first creation. It is vital to have a clear idea of where you are as a department, what your strengths are and what your areas for improvements need to be.

SEE, DO, GET Visualise results Have a plan that documents what you want to do as a team It won’t happen because you wrote it down you have to make it happen- use your plan I have said in the blurb that this session might be more about asking yourself and your department the important questions than providing all the answers. Question like; Have you been through a process to find out where your points for improvement need to be? Have you a clear view of what you need to do? Do you have the full backing of your senior management to undertake these developments? Have you the resources to make these developments realistic and manageable? Are all colleagues involved in the developments with you clear about what you want to achieve, how you are going to achieve it and do they know the part that they play in achieving it? Have you a process for checking that you are on the right track and for monitoring and evaluating the progress you are making towards your stated goals.

The cycle of improvement How well are we doing and how do we compare with similar schools? What more should we aim to achieve this year and what must we do to make it happen? Taking action and checking it happens Improvement planning should begin with an audit designed to establish the strengths and weaknesses. Secure judgements about standards of pupils achievement, the current quality of teaching and the approriateness of the curriculum. Improvement targets are established against the audit and strategies developed to achieve the targets set. The improvement strategy is put into action and progress monitored. Judgements about standards are made to identify whether they have been raised.

Identifying Issues Diamond 9 activity identifying the key issues in your department This activity may help you to get a picture of your department at the moment. Arrange the 9 cards in a diamond shape, the top card is the one that is already fully established in your department the next 2 are also well established then come 3 in the middle which happen on good days or when ofsted are in ! The next happen less frequently and the last rarely or never happens. If a diamond doesn’t fit your department another shape will suffice or perhaps you feel better identifying them in 3 groups HAPPENING DEVELOPING DREAMING

Areas for improvement The bottom of the diamond 9 may be the areas that need most development This is a great activity to get the whole department involved in development planning. You can make your own cards that fit your own school but it gets people talking and it gets people involved.

Improvement Planning Looking at a CAIP SISRA online My school, my experience – Our plan

What level are you? Using the micro site to find how you can move to the next level and the key questions to ask The NCETM microsite has lots of ideas and development sessions that can be used off the shelf or adapted easily for your department. It has in depth study modules, case studies and a wealth of materials to help you in your role of subject leader. The next activity is lifted directly from there

Moving to the next level look through the list of example statements and decide which best fits your stage of development Find others who have the same level score as you Think carefully what level 1-4 best describes where you are – do this on your own. When you have decided move to the table with your number on it and discuss with the others on that table the questions to ask that will help to move you to the next level.

The key questions use the ‘moving to the next level’ questions to identify the steps which will help you and your colleagues to move to the next level Again on the microsite you will find stories of change how to move from level 4 to 3 or level 3 to 2 etc

You are not alone Get your team to help Ways to get them involved? But this in-depth self-evaluation is not enough if it does not feed a well organised and documented development plan which is shared by the whole team and involves them in its operation. Share one method you have used to get your department involved in improvement planning. It could be simply getting them to analyse their own class examination results and sharing with the rest of the team.

SMT on board How can you get the best out of your SMT? It is also key to have the senior management of your school on your side in understanding your plans and acting as a support, guide and critical friend to help you drive your developments forward. They also control the purse strings and they will support you financially if they feel they have been in from the start.

Pupil Voice They Know the score! ‘Pupils have the last word in the report: their views about learning mathematics, their understanding and enjoyment. During the survey visits, they confirmed the narrow nature of much of the teaching but they also showed how much difference a teacher’s enthusiasm can make.’ Ofsted – Understanding the score This is taken from the ofsted publication – Understanding the score Pupils wanted to do well in mathematics. They knew it was important, but were rarely excited by it, were generally not confident when faced with unusual or new problems and struggled to express their reasoning. Their recall of knowledge and techniques was stronger than their understanding. How good is your pupil voice? How well do you know their feelings?

Reflection task reflect on the features of effective practice and think about what key areas within Improvement Planning you want to develop now The reflection sheet is for you to fill in now, so that when you get back to school you have a starting point or something to discuss with your department, your pupils, your SMT.

Next steps look through the case studies and the excerpts from the Ofsted report Mathematics: understanding the score and decide whether there are any tasks or actions you might want to take that are prompted by these The Ofsted document understanding the score can be a useful starting point to use with the department on development and improvement planning. If you want to get the whole team engaged in the process you could ask different people to look at different parts and relate to where you are in your department it can be a crucial next step in getting the whole team to reflect on current and best practice. Download it, print it share it with the team, use it to start discussions, as reference……

Any Questions