1. education
2. school

Carmondean Primary School
SCHOOL IMPROVEMENT PLAN
2014-2015
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Healthy
Achieving
Included
Active
Respected
Safe
Responsible
Nurtured
Learning
and
Teaching
Successful
Learner
Confident
Individual
Responsible
Citizen
Effective
Contributor
Vision
and
Leadership
Culture
and
Ethos
People
Partnership
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The West Lothian Context
West Lothian Council is committed to delivering the best possible outcomes for children and young people so that they have the best start in life and are ready
to succeed by following the principles of Curriculum for Excellence (CfE) and Getting it Right for Every Child (GIRFEC).
Within Curriculum for Excellence, every child and young person is entitled to experience a curriculum which is coherent from 3-18. Those planning the
curriculum have a responsibility to work in partnership with others to enable children and young people to move smoothly between key transition points,
building on prior learning and achievement in a manner appropriate to the learning needs of the individual. This should ensure that young people are well
placed to move into positive destinations and adult life.
The Corporate Plan sets the strategic direction and our priorities for West Lothian Council. There are eight priorities that we, and our community, believe can
make a lasting and sustainable impact on the local area and improve the lives of residents in West Lothian.
Priority 1: Delivering positive outcomes and early interventions for early years
Priority 2: Improving the employment position in West Lothian
Priority 3: Improving attainment and positive destinations for school children
Priority 4: Improving the quality of life for older people
Priority 5: Minimising poverty, the cycle of deprivation and promoting equality
Priority 6: Reducing crime and improving community safety
Priority 7: Delivering positive outcomes on health
Priority 8: Protecting the built and natural environment
The Corporate Plan informs Education Services Management Plan to ensure our work impacts positively on services for children and young people. Education
Services focuses particularly on priorities 1, 2 and 3.
Education Services Management Plan
Education Services works towards achieving the key strategic aims of the council, in partnership with schools. In particular, Education Services aims to
improve opportunities for children and young people by:
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Raising standards of attainment and achievement
Improving employability and positive destinations for all school leavers
Improving the learning environment
Promoting equality of access to education
Developing values and citizenship
Promoting learning for life and encouraging a creative, enterprising and ambitious outlook.
Working with a range of partners, the key purpose of our work is to continuously raise attainment and achievement for all children and young people in West
Lothian, ensuring that our young people succeed in securing a positive and sustained destination after school.
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Factors Influencing the Improvement Plan
School factors
 Continue to raise attainment in Reading, Writing and Maths
 Impact of numerous staff changes
 Increased Nursery hours provision
 Free school meals for all P1-3 Children policy (from January, 2015)
 Possibility of an HMI Inspection
 VSE Visit
 Standards and Quality Report
 Deans Cluster Improvement Plan
Local authority factors
 Single Outcome agreement
 Corporate Plan
 Integrated Children’s Services Plan (Life Stages)
 Education Services Management Plan
 Moving Forward Together
 Curriculum for Excellence Implementation Guidance
 Raising attainment, including for those at risk of missing out
 Increased entitlement to early years provision
National factors
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Single Outcome agreement
Getting it Right for Every child (GIRFEC)
Curriculum for Excellence
National Qualifications
Child Protection Issues / Guidance
National Legislation: Children and Young People (Scotland) Act 2014
GTCS revised standards and professional update
1+2 Languages Initiative
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Our School Values, Vision and Aims:
Vision Statement
We aim to work in partnership to create an inclusive and nurturing environment within which children become respectful and respected, resilient, motivated,
ambitious and compassionate, and who enjoy and accept challenge to acquire new skills, preparing them for each stage of their life in an ever changing
society. We will use the 4 Scottish values of Integrity, Compassion, Wisdom and Justice to underpin the values of Honesty, Loyalty and Tolerance.
School Aims:
1. Learning and Teaching
To embed teaching and learning within a curriculum which incorporates the design features of Curriculum for Excellence, namely:
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Challenge and enjoyment
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Breadth
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Progression
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Depth
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Personalisation and choice
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Coherence
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Relevance
To design Challenging activities within that curriculum which will develop the four capacities of CfE, and encourage perseverance, independence and
resilience and prepare children for life in the 21st Century and for lifelong learning.
To provide learning and teaching experiences of the highest quality, which are underpinned by educational research, sound pedagogy and best practice.
To provide challenge and support for all children to enable them to do their very best to meet their potential.
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2. Vision and Leadership
To have a vision for the school which is inspiring, ambitious, attainable, embedded in current educational thinking and to which all stakeholders are fully
committed.
To improve outcomes for learners through individual and shared reflection, accurate self-evaluation to inform progress.
To continually monitor the impact of our improvements, through the collection and analysis of a wide range of data, to shape the future direction of the school.
To promote and encourage leadership at all levels and to adopt a democratic and collegiate approach to school improvement.
To build and maintain positive relationships with pupils, staff, parents, the local community and all stakeholders.
3. Partnership
To build partnerships which genuinely involve parents and carers, and build relationships which are positive, supportive and impact children’s learning.
To seek the views of parents and partners in improving our school through direct (e.g., Parent Council / P.S.A.) and indirect (Questionnaires, parent/teacher
consultations, etc.) means.
To promote the school as the centre of the local community and to make links which will enhance learning and teaching.
To make links with learners in other countries through Global and European partnerships.
To work together effectively with partners and other agencies to support learners and remove barriers to learning
4. People
To utilise a motivated and highly trained teaching force whose knowledge and skills are current and innovative and who are fully committed to updating their
skills through professional learning
To continually improve the confidence, effectiveness and quality of all staff through a robust programme of professional review and development and quality
improvement.
To encourage an active and effective pupil voice by providing opportunities for learners to meet, discuss school issues and take responsibility.
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Culture and Ethos
To promote a culture of fairness and equality which allows children to develop tolerance, fairness, courtesy, care and compassion.
To build self-assurance and self-esteem through the recognition and celebration of attainment and achievement.
To build and follow a curriculum which actively promotes inclusion and respect for the environment and global citizenship.
To maintain a positive and nurturing culture where children can be confident they will be supported to reach their goals and to overcome any barriers they may
face.
To provide experiences which raise pupil awareness of the rights and principles of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child.
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Strategic Curriculum Plan (Three Years)
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Session
Desired Outcomes
Area for Development
Social Studies – improving and developing practice in line
with Curriculum for Excellence
2013-2014
Religious and Moral Education - improving and developing
practice in line with Curriculum for Excellence
2014-2015
2015-2016
Numeracy & Mathematics - To develop mental agility and
raise attainment  in Mathematics by updating staff
knowledge and  skills and incorporating the WL Mental
Maths  Framework into learning and teaching  approaches,
basing assessment and moderation on its 'Signposts of
Progression'.
Literacy & English - To develop the literacy skills of all
pupils and offer opportunities to develop breadth,
 challenge and application of Reading in discrete  and
interdisciplinary contexts by focusing on the  significant
aspects of learning and WL  Progression Pathways
Technologies - To review and refresh the Technologies
Curriculum and build staff confidence in using Technology
to impact learning and teaching
Languages - To begin implementing the L3 (Spanish) of the
1+2 Languages Initiative from Primary 5 upwards
To audit current practice and review the whole Social Studies programme.
To ensure that all experiences and outcomes give good coverage across each level to include depth, progression,
relevance and personalisation and choice.
To track skills development.
To involve pupils in choosing the context for their learning.
To audit current practice and review the whole RME programme in consultation with staff and pupils.
To restructure the RME programme.
To ensure the RME programme is progressive and covers all experiences and outcomes from Nursery to Primary
7 incorporating relevant and real life skills.
To ensure that approaches to teaching are creative, stimulating and meaningful.
To review current practice and compare to current advice on learning and teaching in Mathematics.
To raise attainment in Numeracy and Mathematics.
To adopt the recommendations of the WL Mental Maths Framework (Draft).
To identify a progression in Mental Maths skills.
To use the results of research to develop a robust pedagogy for teaching mental calculation.
To Increase skills and abilities in mental calculation across the school.
To adopt the WL Literacy Framework and embed it in practice.
To aid the early identification and remediation of phonic/phonological difficulties.
To embed literacy activities proven to increase literacy skills across the school.
To empower parents to help their children with literacy outside school.
To incorporate the Reading Routes resource into the literacy programme.
To review current practice and the existing Technologies programme.
To ensure good coverage of the experiences and outcomes and that there is progression and opportunities for
breadth, depth and interdisciplinary study.
To broaden the Technologies curriculum to include food and textiles, craft design, engineering and graphics.
To develop staff knowledge and understanding of using Technology to enhance teaching and learning.
To begin implementing the Government strategy of 1+2 Languages.
To increase children’s facility with language by introducing Spanish from Primary 5.
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Priority: Raising Attainment
2014 – 2015
Area for Development 1:
To develop mental agility and raise attainment  in Mathematics by updating staff knowledge and  skills and incorporating the WL Mental Maths  Framework into
learning and teaching  approaches, basing assessment and moderation on its 'Signposts of Progression'.
School’s current position:
The school has a coherent Mathematics Curriculum in place. Despite this, analysis of results from standardised testing of pupils reveals a disappointing picture
across the school. In particular, skills and abilities in mental agility and calculation fall slightly below the national average at all stages. There is a need to build
capacity in teaching mental calculation within Numeracy and Mathematics to ensure a coherent progression of skills and a robust pedagogy which will lead to
raised attainment.
Desired Outcomes
Implementation Process (Actions)
By whom
Time
Resources
Monitoring
Scale
1 x Network
afternoon/CPD
½ x In-Service Day
DHT – Collation and presentation of
data gathered.
All teaching
staff, led by
HT/DHT/PTs
CPD Workshop
HT/DHT – Analyse identified needs
and group staff accordingly.
Form working groups based on age/stage of
classes and similarity of identified needs to
research findings of SEAL, SSLN and WL
Numeracy Team and discuss how to implement
across the school (time allocation, methods, etc.).
SEAL trained
CT
All teaching
staff
SEAL Workshop
HT/DHT/PTs – Membership of
teams and collation of
research/discussion activities.
Recognition of the signposts
of progression across CfE
Levels which identify the
facts, strategies and
calculations necessary for
secure learning
Adapt WL Signposts of Progression document for
each stage to plan what needs to be covered, by
whom and by when.
Working
parties
½ x In-Service Day
1 x Network
afternoon/CPD
Line-managers at each stage –
examine content and progression
and feed back to staff.
Begin implementation of planned programme.
Class
Teachers
Desired Outcomes
Implementation Process (Actions)
By whom
Time
Scale
Resources
Monitoring
Incorporate planned
activities and progression
into learning and teaching
and collect data on their
impact
Assess current pupil skills and knowledge against
the proposed progression as a baseline.
Class
Teachers
Oct 2014March 2015
Mental Maths
Resources
HT/DHT/PTs –
Professional dialogue
monitoring planning
classroom observation
pupil learning conversations.
Identification of effective
current practice which has
proven to have an effective
impact on the learning and
teaching of mental
calculation
Review current practice, stage by stage, and
identify what is working well at present and what
needs to improve.
All teaching
staff
Update professional skills and knowledge of
teaching staff in the teaching of mental calculation
as indicated by a Needs Analysis and highlighted
in the West Lothian Mental Mathematics
Framework document.
Implement the planned programme according to
agreed methods (time allocation, resources, etc.)
Aug-Sep,
2014
Sep-Oct,
2014
HT/DHT/PTs – Professional
dialogue, monitoring planning.
Concrete Materials
Display Materials
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Review progress at each planning interval by
evaluating progress against the initial plan and
adjusting as necessary.
Empower parents/carers to
impact on their children’s
attainment in mental
calculation at home
Share the initiative with parents/carers and enlist
their support by holding a curriculum evening
focussing on mental calculation and the
methods/resources being used at each stage.
All teaching
staff
HT/DHT/PTs
Nov, 2014
Evening let for
school
DHT – Parent questionnaires.
Produce an effective policy
for mental calculation which
positively impacts on pupil
attainment
Review effectiveness of implementation in terms of
pupil progress from initial baseline assessment and
make adjustments accordingly:
a) Across stages
b) Across departments
c) Across the school
Working
parties
May, 2015
1 x In-Service Day
HT/DHT/PTs – Staff/Pupil/Parent
questionnaires.
Write a Mental Calculation policy and keep under
review.
DHT – Adaptive Testing analysis.
CTs
Depts.
All teaching
staff
Numeracy
Network
group
HT – Set review dates for policy.
Evaluation:
Evidence (How do we know?)
Has existing effective practice been identified throughout all stages of the school,
including Nursery?
Written responses and detailed comments collected.
Have key messages from SSLN, SEAL and the WL Mental Maths Framework been
identified and shared?
Collation with policies and guideline documents.
Have professional skills needed for the effective teaching of mental calculation been
updated effectively?
Responses to CPD opportunities. Class/Peer observations and
professional dialogue.
Has baseline assessment taken place and the results collated and used to inform
planning?
Data collection of pupils’ starting points; teachers’ forward/daily
planning and evaluations.
Have the methods to be used, the time allocation and the content of lessons been
standardised across departments?
Class/peer observations/ monitoring timetables.
Is the implementation being kept under constant review and adjustments being agreed
and recorded?
Written evaluations from forward plans; professional dialogue;
feedback sessions; staff forum; learning round.
Have the views of the children been sought and fed in to the planning and implementation
Questionnaires; learning conversations; learning logs; Pupil
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of the initiative?
Parliament.
Have parents been informed, their support enlisted and their views collected?
Evaluation forms; questionnaires; informal discussions.
Has an appropriate user friendly policy on Mental Calculation been written in collaboration
with staff?
Policy document produced.
Triangulated data collection and analysis.
Does assessment through teacher professional judgement, formative and summative
assessment and standardised testing indicate that attainment has been raised for almost
all pupils?
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Priority: Raising Attainment
2014 – 2015
Area for Development 2:
To develop the literacy skills of all pupils and offer opportunities to develop breadth,  challenge and application of Reading in discrete  and interdisciplinary
contexts by focusing on the  significant aspects of learning and WL Progression Pathways.
School’s current position:
Although attainment in Literacy is generally good at Carmondean PS, currently only some aspects of the WL Literacy Framework have been adopted. There is
a need to further develop opportunities for breadth, challenge and application in Literacy as a necessary step in raising attainment. As part of this process,
Deans Community High School Cluster has adopted the ‘Reading Routes’ resource to standardise the experience of the children who transfer there at the end
of Primary school. Carmondean PS has only recently begun to introduce this resource as part of our literacy strategy.
Desired Outcomes
Implementation Process (Actions)
By whom
Time
Resources
Monitoring
Scale
Staff familiarity with the
‘key literacy skills’ and the
‘essential ingredients for
improving literacy’ which
impact on pupil attainment
Class teachers develop
their knowledge and skills
to identify, plan for and
teach children showing
dyslexic behaviours
Engage in professional reading and dialogue
and come to a shared understanding of the
key skills and methods of improving literacy.
All staff
Oct-Dec,
2014
2 x CAT/CPD
sessions
Review current practice in working groups and
identify where changes are needed and to
target areas for improvement.
DHT – Collate written responses
and detailed comments from
working groups.
Familiarise staff with the Dyslexia Awareness
Toolkit : http://www.addressingdyslexia.org/
and their responsibilities for using it.
SfL Staff
Good practice visits to Mid Calder PS to
assess content, use and effectiveness of
‘Dyslexia Boxes’.
SfL Staff
Nov-Dec,
2014
1 x CAT/CPD
session
SfL Staff/DHT - Dyslexia
Awareness Toolkit models are
being used for referrals.
Cost of Dyslexia
Boxes
HT/DHT/PTs - Classroom/peer
observations where children
with literacy difficulties are a
focus.
HT/DHT/PTs - Reviews of
forward/daily planning and
attainment meetings.
1 x In-Service
Day
DHT - Written evaluations of
input and declarations of intent
in taking the content forward.
Re-align SfL referral process for literacy with
the policy and practice of the Dyslexia
Awareness toolkit.
Teaching staff have up to
date knowledge of
phonics teaching and
phonological awareness
Refresh teacher knowledge of phonics and
phonological awareness to identify and
address children’s difficulties in this area.
HT/DHT – Record content of
discussions.
All staff
SfL Staff,
DHT
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Nov-Dec,
2014
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Identify activities and resources which
promote phonological awareness and
incorporate into the literacy programme at all
stages.
SfL staff,
DHT
Copies of the
Phonologial
Awareness
Handbook for
each staff
member
(Photocopying
costs only)
Differentiate the pace and focus of initial and
continuing literacy teaching i.e. children
experiencing difficulty should work with a
limited set of sounds in blending/segmenting
to master these skills before moving on to
working with a larger range of sounds. Later
on, learning and teaching should be focused
on developing the skills children actually have
instead of completing tasks.
Nursery/
Infant staff
Activities which are
effective in improving
literacy are identified and
incorporated into learning
and teaching
Review current practice and compare to
recommended Literacy Framework activities,
e.g., Group Cloze Procedure, synthesizing
and summarising, etc. Incorporate useful
suggestions into literacy teaching practice.
1st and 2nd
Level
teaching
staff
Jan-Mar,
2015
1 x CAT/CPD
Session
SMT - Programme of activities
produced for circulation.
Parents are more aware
of how to help their
children develop
appropriate early and
developing literacy skills
Provide opportunities for parents to attend
workshops/presentations on literacy skill
development which highlight the key
foundation and developing skills identified in
the WL literacy framework.
Nursery
Staff
All
Teaching
Staff
Jan-Jun,
2015
Collegiate time as
appropriate to
planned activities
HT/DHT Questionnaires/comments/
requests from parents.
The Reading Routes
Resource is incorporated
into the literacy
programme to ensure
consistency across the
cluster and aid transition
Familiarise staff with the philosophy, scope
and content of the Reading Routes
Programme.
PTs, All
Staff
Jan-Apr,
2015
2 x CAT/CPD
Sessions
Plan and deliver a six-week course using the
resources and evaluate effectiveness.
All Staff
Discuss Barratt’s Taxonomy and Bloom’s
Taxonomy and their place in developing
literacy skills through improved questioning in
Level Groups.
HT/DHT
Continue to use the resource as a template for
All Staff
All teaching
staff
SMT - Activities appearing in
daily plans for literacy sessions.
SMT - Classroom
Observations/Professional
dialogue.
SfL Staff/SMT - I.E.P. Meeting
notes.
SMT - Monitoring Forward/Daily
plans.
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SMT – Monitoring forward plans
Classroom/peer observations.
Question fans
(Cost of colour
printing)
Apr-Jun,
SMT – Written record of
discussion/findings.
SMT – Professional dialogue
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planning further, similar literacy experiences.
2015
with staff.
The literacy needs of the
lowest attaining 20% of
pupils are better
addressed
Analyse and share attainment data for the
lowest performing 20% of children in literacy
and gauge improvements in attainment.
DHT
May-Jun,
2015
None
DHT – Collection and Analysis
of data for all pupils, but filter for
this group.
Reading Routes forms
part of future literacy
programme
Review impact of all activities and plan next
steps.
All Staff
Jun, 2015
1 x CAT/CPD
Session
SMT – Gather views of all
stakeholders through
discussion/questionnaires/evalu
ations.
Evaluation:
Are staff familiar with the key literacy skills and essential ingredients for improving literacy
attainment?
Evidence (How do we know?)
PRD / Classroom observation.
Are staff assuming their responsibilities for maximising opportunities for dyslexic pupils by
using the Dyslexia Awareness Toolkit?
Classroom Observations - Dyslexia boxes being used
appropriately in classes; assessment and referral follow DAT
guidelines and procedures.
Has teacher knowledge of phonics teaching and phonological awareness been refreshed?
PRD / Professional dialogue / peer observations / monitoring
forward/daily plans.
Has the guidance on effective literacy teaching been embedded in practice?
Professional dialogue / Classroom observations / pupil
discussions; monitoring pupil work.
Have parents/carers been informed about the key things they can do to help develop
literacy skills at home?
Plans/resources used in parents’ meetings/ presentations; Parent
Council minutes.
Has the Reading Routes resource been effectively deployed?
Monitoring pupil work/forward planning/evaluations; professional
dialogue.
Has the work done on this priority raised attainment, particularly for the poorest
performing 20%?
Collection and analysis of attainment data from Tracking &
Monitoring/Teacher Professional Judgement/Standardised
Testing.
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Additional Tasks 2014-15
Responsibilities
To develop profiling based on learning conversations by further
developing a progressive approach to setting and recording individual
Aileen Jamieson + all staff
learning goals and encouraging children to take increasing responsibility
for setting personally meaningful targets as they move through the school.
To develop staff knowledge and understanding of using Technology to
enhance teaching and learning and to broaden the Technologies DHT + All Staff
curriculum.
To provide further challenge for our able pupils, initially through
SMT + All Staff
differentiation, and then through targeted support.
To adapt procedure for monitoring of forward plans to reflect a more
SMT
holistic approach and measure their impact.
To develop more consistency on the delivery and moderation of the
Improvement Teams
curriculum across the school, for example, mental calculation in maths.
To improve partnership working by extending the Nursery home visitation
programme, identifying a ‘link person’ for communication with partners
Nursery Staff/ DHT/PTs
and to look at the curriculum to identify where and when business
partnerships would be beneficial.
To begin implementing the 1+2 Languages initiative by introducing a
progressive programme of French from Primary 1.
Helen Orr + All Staff
To continue our programme of Global Partnership and Global Citizenship
Laura Smith + All Staff
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and to begin a European Partnership in an Erasmus+ Project.
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