Balaclava State School Executive Summary 1. Introduction 1.1 Background This report is a product of a review carried out at Balaclava State School from 16 to 18 March 2015. It provides an evaluation of the school’s performance against the nine domains of the National School Improvement Tool. It also recommends improvement strategies for the school to consider in consultation with its regional office and school community. The review and report were completed by a review team from the School Improvement Unit (SIU). For more information about the SIU and the new reviews for Queensland state schools please visit the Department of Education and Training (DET) website. 1.2 School context 2 Location: 418 Mulgrave Road, Westcourt, Cairns 4870 Education region: Far North Queensland The school opened in: 1954 Year levels: Prep to Year 6 Current school enrolment: 305 Indigenous enrolments: 62 per cent Students with disability enrolments: 2 per cent Index of Community SocioEducational Advantage (ICSEA) value: 784 Year principal appointed: January 2014 (acting) Number of teachers: 12 classroom teachers Nearby schools: Woree State School, Woree State High School, Parramatta State School, Cairns West State School Significant community partnerships: Local Businesses, Good Start, Mooroobool, Police Beat Unique school programs: Indigenous Focus 1.3 Review methodology The review was conducted by a team of three reviewers. The review consisted of:  a pre-review audit of the school’s performance data and other school information  consultation with the school’s assistant regional director  a school visit of three days  interviews with staff, students, parents and community representatives, including: o Principal and school administration team o Master Teacher, Head of Students Services, Head of Curriculum (HOC), Support Teachers Literacy and Numeracy (STLaN’s), Guidance Officer o Business Services Manager (BSM), administration officers, cleaners o Administration at Trinity Beach State High School o 14 classroom teachers and 14 teacher-aides o Members of the Parents and Citizens Association(P&C) executive o 22 parents o 10 school leaders o Director of Creche and Kindergarten (C&K) co-located on school grounds o students from across the school (six students from Year 5/6, five students from Year 3/4, six students from Year 2, four students from Prep/Year 1) 1.4 Review team Jacqui King Internal Reviewer, SIU (chair) Judith Dale Internal Reviewer, SIU Tony McGruther External Reviewer 3 2. Executive summary 2.1 Key findings  The school has an explicit improvement agenda. Balaclava State School has identified with a clear sense of urgency, the importance of attendance, literacy and numeracy as the priorities of the school. There are clearly published targets for each of these areas. They are well known by staff and students. The school has achieved early signs of success with regard to attendance due to a consistent focus and systematic execution.  The school Principal has strategically resourced and built a team to drive the school’s improvement agenda. School leaders have clearly defined roles regarding curriculum, behaviour and attendance which has resulted in early signs of improvement. The teaching team consists of many different levels of experience including several beginning teachers. There is a coaching and mentoring program to support the beginning teachers. Both the leadership team and the teaching staff are a relatively newly established professional community.  School leaders and planning documents describe clear expectations in regards to the teaching of reading and writing, however they are not as yet deeply understood or enacted consistently across the school. A concise reading program which details specific strategies for the teaching of reading has been developed along with year level curriculum plan and a Teaching and Learning Handbook. The Master Teacher has developed an Action Research Plan on the teaching of writing and is implementing this plan across the school.  The school has based their curriculum planning on Curriculum into the Classroom (C2C) with specific programs to support the identified priorities of reading and writing. The current school focus addresses the key priority areas of literacy and numeracy. Alignment with the Australian Curriculum (AC) and the focus on the cross curricular skills and attributes is not yet evident.  The school is driven by a shared belief that every student is capable of successful learning. A high priority is given to building and maintaining positive relationships. The school through School Wide Positive Behaviour Support (SWPBS) is working towards providing a safe, respectful learning environment. There is a proactive and effective response to managing attendance. There is inconsistent practice in the application of SWPBS Essential Skills. 4 2.2 Key improvement strategies  Establish whole school clarity around the vision of the school and the role that the explicit improvement agenda has in achieving that vision.  Ensure high behavioural expectations, supported by school processes, are consistent and evident in every classroom.  Develop an annual professional learning plan aligned to the school’s improvement agenda that includes all staff who lead or conduct learning activities with students.  Plan for formal opportunities for teachers to work within cohorts to moderate, collaborate and case manage students.  Continue to expand the program of coaching, modelling and mentoring customized to teacher’s individual needs.  Ensure a balanced approach to curriculum delivery is aligned to the Australian Curriculum and relevant to student needs and learning styles.  Ensure the Explicit Teaching model is consistently understood and applied in all classrooms through professional development and ongoing coaching, modelling and mentoring. 5