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Whether they are disrupting lessons, playing truant or simply prefer to daydream, young people who have disengaged from learning need immediate attention, or risk having their life chances severely curtailed. In her second article on the subject, Louise Kinnaird looks at some of the tried-and-tested ways schools can combat disengagement.

Engaging the disengagedS

tatistics show us that academic achievement and the likelihood of pupils completing or furthering their education are adversely affected if a child is disengaged from school education. The outcomes at the end of secondary school reveal the impact of the level of engagement a child has during the school years.

But it’s not just for the sake of grades that we should be concerned with a child’s disengagement from school; research has shown that pupils’ later economic success and long-term health and wellbeing is closely tied to school engagement and as such, deserves to be treated alongside academic achievement as an important schooling outcome. The 2013 figures from the Office for National Statistics reveal that there are 1.09 million 16- to 24-year-olds not in education, employment or training (NEETs) in the UK1. This concerning number might suggest that something needs to be done to address the reasons why children and young people leave education, before they leave.

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Disengagement – the factsAs we saw in my previous article, ‘The rules of engagement’, disengagement is rarely down to one issue, but a combination of risk factors or stressors that a child experiences. These can range from internal, emotional and mental factors to wider contextual factors such as experiences in school, relationships with teachers or peers and home life. High expectations and overwhelming feelings can also impact on a pupil’s disengagement, as can a lack of expectation or challenge.

Maybe pupils feel frustrated, inadequate and confused, and each negative piece of feedback they receive will compound the problem, giving them less motivation to do well, resulting in further disengagement. Low self-esteem is certainly a significant barrier for students who can feel immobilised by a fear of failure – they feel it is safer not to try at all than to risk embarrassment. Acts of arrogance and nonchalance often mask deep-rooted insecurities.

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Research by NatCen on education disengagement used statistical information from the Longitudinal Study of Young People in England to follow a nationally representative sample of young people in Year 92. The research identified that those pupils in the category ‘Disengaged from school not education’ represented 23 per cent and ‘Disengaged’ represented 12 per cent.

The same study also showed that ethnicity and social background were the most substantial factors related to young people’s disengagement from school. White males, whose fathers were in a routine or manual occupation and whose mothers’ level of education was low, were most likely to become ‘disengaged’, although other groups of children, such as those with SEN, are also more likely to become disengaged.

Identifying disengagement

Ofsted define disaffected students as those who display one or more of the following characteristics:

n They are regularly non-compliant, but not aggressive or threatening, and cause repeated low-level disruptions.

n They are regularly disruptive, challenging or both, often recurring fixed-term exclusions.

n They are absent for 20 per cent or more of the available school sessions in the year.

n They are quiet and withdrawn and uninterested in most lessons.3

As stated by Ofsted, a disengaged child will not necessarily be disruptive or draw attention to himself; some forms of school disengagement are less visible. Behaviour displayed by disengaged girls may involve truancy, self-harm, or withdrawal from participating in the class – all of which impacts negatively on her education.

Children with these ‘quieter’ symptoms of disengagement are less likely to be seen as a problem because they are not disruptive, but it is just as important they are identified because they are more likely to be missed. Teachers face a real challenge here – how do they know if pupils are switched on to learning, or simply going through the motions?

Another potential problem is that a teacher may be unaware that a child’s disengagement is a reflection of a bigger mental health problem. A lack of training in mental health difficulties means that pupil disengagement could be altogether missed or worse, exacerbated. Teachers may blame themselves for failing to engage all students, when the problem lies with the child’s context rather than a teacher’s ability to teach, which potentially makes the issue all the more complex.

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“Disengaged young people have identified some conditions which they felt would be more conducive to their engagement with learning including, clear instructions, interactive teaching methods, social learning and clear direction on how they can improve.”

What do young people think?

One recent study offers insights as to how young people experience their disengagement from school. Interviews were carried out with 65 disengaged young people aged between 14 and 19, including pupils who attended school but had given up trying, pupils who were in school but played truant and pupils who spent some time in alternative provision.4

The interviews found that young people did acknowledge responsibility, to some degree, for their estrangement from learning and school. Some reported not trying enough, being ‘moody’ or having difficulties with controlling their anger. The majority, however, blamed school and its demands, including lesson structure and relations with teachers and other adults in school. Three quarters of the students talked of being bored in the classroom. Disengaged young people have identified some conditions which they felt would be more conducive to their engagement with learning, including clear instructions, interactive teaching methods, social learning and clear direction on how they can improve.

Experts agree that engagement is not a fixed problem; it entails attitudes and behaviours that can be positively affected by teachers and parents, and shaped by school policy and practice. Exceptional schools can make up for grave disadvantages faced by young people to combat disengagement.

What can schools do?

In 2008, Ofsted carried out a survey of 29 secondary schools to identify good practice in re-engaging disaffected students.5 The report identified a number of characteristics of schools that were most successful in helping students to re-engage with learning:

1. The headteacher and senior staff gave a clear message that the school was responsible for meeting the needs of all students. They provided role models to staff in dealing with difficult and disaffected students. They showed that they valued these students and wanted them to stay in school. The involvement of senior staff with the more difficult students helped to convey to them and their families that the school was committed to them.

2. The schools were consistent in dealing with the students, communicating with their families and using rewards and sanctions. This promoted positive relationships and made it easier to manage the students’ behaviour. Policies and procedures were used most consistently when staff had been closely involved in developing them. This made teachers feel that senior staff valued their opinions and supported them. As a result, they were prepared to go the extra mile to help individual students; they, in turn, appreciated the extra support. Students and their families recognised this and related positively to staff who supported them.

3. Staff understood the dangers of labelling students and were prepared to give them a fresh start wherever possible. This had a positive impact on students’ attitudes and those of their parents and carers.

4. The staff were sufficiently self-confident to examine their own practice and to make adaptations to meet students’ needs. They understood the importance of compromise, but still maintained high expectations and standards.

5. Although the schools recognised that a student’s disengagement had the potential to influence others, they focused on the causes of disaffection rather than its effects. As a result, they were better able to meet the needs of individuals.

6. The schools used quantitative and qualitative data to keep track of students. They were extremely watchful of students’ academic progress and personal and social development. Interventions were well timed and very often

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successful. Where appropriate, the common assessment framework was used to identify students’ additional needs.

7. The schools gathered data through the views of students, parents and carers to identify what they did and did not value. Four of the schools used student-attitude questionnaires as diagnostic tools to determine the most appropriate forms of intervention.

8. Schools identified a close partnership with parents or carers as fundamental to re-engaging students and keeping them on track. They took the lead in working closely with relevant agencies, including educational psychologists, social services departments, the education welfare service, the local authority’s behaviour team and the staff from the Connexions service.

9. Adult mentors and coaches provided one-to-one support outside the classroom as well as in lessons. Students also received support from fellow students who acted as peer mentors or ‘buddies’.

10. All the schools in the survey adapted the curriculum to meet the specific needs of their students. At Key Stage 3, this most commonly involved the use of carefully chosen reading schemes, nurture groups, quality circle time and materials relating to the social and emotional aspects of learning.

Ofsted also identified three common factors that worked against the re-engagement of disaffected students:

n unwillingness on the part of parents to work with the school and, in some cases, collusion with the students against the school

n external influences and attractions that were more compelling for the students than school, such as gangs, criminal activity and drug-taking

n weaknesses in the provision made by the schools and other services for their students.

It is helpful for schools to understand these factors, as they can then take steps to avoid these scenarios.

Does it work?

The good practice carried out by these schools resulted in a number of indicators that demonstrated the effectiveness of their strategies to re-engage students. These included:

n improvements in students’ attitudes, attendance and achievement

n reductions in referrals, detentions and exclusions n improvements in the speed with which students

settled into school routines n students’ increased engagement in lessons

and a rise in the number of students receiving awards for their performance

n improved motivation of students at Key Stage 4 as a result of participating in courses delivered off site

n increases in the number of students progressing to higher levels of education after the age of 16 and increases in the number of school leavers in education, employment or training

n increases in the number of students contributing positively to the school

n increased attendance by parents and carers at out-of-school activities

n positive responses from students, parents and carers to questionnaires, attitude surveys and interviews, and positive informal feedback from parents

n positive feedback from teachers and other professionals

n reductions in the number of complaints from the community.

Ofsted acknowledges that re-engaging disaffected students is not an easy task and it had taken time for the schools surveyed to develop their expertise in this area. They said: ‘Many of the critical components in re-engaging disaffected students relied on factors such as the extent to which staff were prepared to go the extra mile for students, partnership working with parents and carers, flexibility in meeting students’ needs, and a readiness to compromise.’

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Improving leadership for re-engagement

In 2013, Ofsted published Unseen children: access and achievement 20 years on6. It recognised improving leadership as a means of improving pupil engagement. Good school leadership is recognised as a fundamental aspect of pupil engagement, indeed of any effective organisation, but Ofsted found much variation across the country as to the quality of leadership and management in schools. It did, however, identify some examples of good practice.

The importance of high quality teaching

The Ofsted review stated that there is much variability in the quality of education and outcomes across different local authorities and between schools serving the most and least deprived communities. High quality teaching is especially important for pupils’ re-engagement and can make a crucial difference to pupils’ learning and achievement.

Ofsted’s Annual Report for 2011/2012 highlights the features of the most and least successful teaching seen during inspections. The characteristics of outstanding teaching include:

n excellent leadership of behaviour and attitudes to learning

n lessons that challenge pupils according to their needs and abilities

n frequent and purposeful opportunities to learn independently

n teachers’ excellent subject knowledge and use of questioning

n highly effective feedback to pupils.7

A recent study of the GCSE examination results for 7,305 pupils in England found that being taught over a two-year course by a high quality teacher

adds 0.565 of a GCSE point per subject.8 The same student can score significantly different marks in different subjects as a result of different teacher quality.

Importantly, this study also found that family background in itself is not a barrier to achievement, although a review of international and UK research concluded that the effects of high quality teaching are especially significant for pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds: ‘Over a school year, these pupils can gain 1.5 years’ worth of learning with very effective teachers, compared

Case study: Leadership that meets the needs of pupilsAt one school, a well-qualified leader was appointed to reshape the intervention programme as part of the school’s drive to raise achievement and close gaps. Previous interventions had not been successful because they had been delivered by non-specialists and their timing, at the end of the school day, had failed to reach those pupils who needed the support most. The school leader made the decision to change the way support is delivered, focusing primarily on English and mathematics.

Pupils making slow progress now receive one-to-one tuition and mentoring by subject specialists during the school day. The head of department designs an individual learning plan for each pupil, clearly identifying the skills or knowledge the pupil needs to improve. The tutor then plans a series of intensive lessons that address these weaknesses. Mentors provide additional support for families where the pupil’s attitudes or behaviours have presented concerns. The effectiveness of the programme is rigorously checked by leaders, who monitor its impact on pupils’ academic performance.

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with 0.5 years with poorly performing teachers’.9 This would suggest that in some cases, namely for disadvantaged pupils, the difference between a good teacher and a bad teacher is a whole year’s learning.

Building positive relationships

It is recognised that establishing good relationships is the most important part of the process, and most research agrees that ensuring teachers and mentors are matched carefully with pupils helps

Case study: Working closely with parentsOfsted’s Unseen children – access and achievement 20 years on gives the example of one school in which, prior to their children entering the EYFS, a member of staff visits parents at home in order to understand the child’s home circumstances. Having identified weaknesses in communication and language as a general issue, the school helps parents support their children to develop these crucial skills with the school’s own approaches.

Both the school and parents report that the programme has improved children’s behaviour and attitudes to learning, which has enabled them to make better progress. The school actively encourages parents and carers to become involved in their children’s education. As a result, parents are now much better placed to help their children and achievement has risen throughout the school.

Case study: Giving pupils responsibilityOne report published in School Leadership Today, Aiming high with disengaged students, looks at using sport as a means to re-engage previously disengaged pupils at Ashton-on-Mersey School11. The report highlights a number of strategies that have worked, such as offering positions of responsibility to disengaged pupils, allowing the pupils influence on their curriculum and giving pupils something positive to channel their energy into.

Case study: Using the artsJosie Maitland, a drama teacher at Angmering School in West Sussex, reported in the Guardian how she created an intervention programme called Inspire, which consisted of art, photography, drama and music workshops tailored to the needs of a specific group of Year 8 and 9 boys and girls12. The project offers pupils creative skills such as lyric writing, graffiti stencil-making or photo editing, alongside helping them to develop key personal qualities such as trust, social relationships, organisation and self-motivation. Each unit culminates in an exhibition or event organised and run by the students, which has proven to be a powerful catalyst for change.

The results of the Inspire project have been very positive. In the first cohort, for example, 50 per cent of students had an attendance below 85 per cent, but at the end of the course, 80 per cent of the students had an attendance of above 90 per cent. By the end of the programme, seven out of eight pupils had significantly decreased their bad behaviour, with staff reports of ‘nicer students’ and ‘better attitudes’, and students ‘feeling more confident’ or ‘more focused’.

The programme has since delivered both a sports and a creative writing themed unit, and is fast becoming both cross-curricular and a collaborative way for staff to share best practice.

Josie Maitland says: ‘If the content of the lesson is pitched at the right level for the student, if they can grasp the concept and are interested by it, the head is engaged. Our next job is to coat the learning experience in emotion. By building a relationship of trust, mutual respect and security, we encourage the student to feel confident, valued, energised, and wanting and needing to learn in order to achieve a real and tangible goal. By instilling confidence, employing a playful, no fear of failure, laddered experience, where the student falls in love with the process of learning, and sees that getting it wrong is actually a vital part of getting it right.’

build relationships and provides consistency in re-engagement strategies.

There is also an importance in establishing good working relationships with partner organisations and parents. Ofsted have said that engaging closely with parents and raising their awareness of what can be achieved is an essential aspect of improving pupils’ engagement. Recent research by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation too emphasises the importance of parental involvement in children’s education as a causal influence on children’s school readiness and subsequent attainment.10

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References1. Office for National Statistics (2013). Statistical bulletin: Young

People Not in Education, Employment or Training (NEET), May

2013. [online] Available at: <www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/lms/young-

people-not-in-education--employment-or-training--neets-/may-

2013/statistical-bulletin.html> [Accessed 18/02/2015].

2. Ross, A. (2009). Disengagement from education among 14

to 16-year-olds. National Centre for Social Research. [online]

Available at: <www.natcen.ac.uk/our-research/research/

disengagement-from-education-among-14-to-16-year-olds>

[Accessed 18/02/2015].

3. Ofsted (2008). Good practice in re-engaging disaffected and

reluctant students in secondary schools. [online] Available

at: <dera.ioe.ac.uk/9213/1/Good%20practice%20in%20re-

engaging%20disaffected%20and%20reluctant%20students%20

in%20secondary%20schools.pdf> [Accessed 18/02/2015].

4. Lumby, J. (2013). Education isn’t working for us – Listening

to disengaged young people. [online] Available at: <www.

bera.ac.uk/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/Insights-5-Educ-Isnt-

Working-v1.pdf> [Accessed 18/02/2015].

5. Ofsted (2008). Op cit.

6. Ofsted (2013). Unseen children – access and achievement

20 years on. [online] Available at: <www.gov.uk/government/

publications/unseen-children-access-and-achievement-20-years-

on> [Accessed 19/02/2015]

7. Ofsted (2012). Ofsted Annual Report - 2011/12. [online] Available

at: <www.gov.uk/government/publications/the-annual-report-of-

her-majestys-chief-inspector-of-education-childrens-services-and-

skills-201112> [Accessed 19/02/2015].

8. Ofsted (2013). Op cit.

9. The Sutton Trust (2011). Improving the impact of teachers on

pupil achievement in the UK – interim findings. [online] Available

at: <www.suttontrust.com/researcharchive/improving-impact-

teachers-pupil-achievement-uk-interim-findings/> [Accessed

19/02/2015].

10. Gorard, S., Huat See, B. and Davies, P. (2012). The impact

of attitudes and aspirations on educational attainment and

participation. Joseph Rowntree Foundation. [online] Available at:

<www.jrf.org.uk/sites/files/jrf/education-young-people-parents-full.

pdf> [Accessed 19/02/2015].

11. Andrews, C. (2005). Aiming high with disengaged students.

Managing Schools Today (now School Leadership Today), vol.

14(5), pp.23-25.

12. Maitland, J. (2013) The Inspire project: using the arts to reach out

to disengaged students. The Guardian [online], July 11. Available

at: <www.theguardian.com/teacher-network/teacher-blog/2013/

jul/11/inspire-disengaged-students-teaching> [Accessed

19/02/2015].

Knowledge trails

1. Standingtogether–Mentoring is often trotted out as a catch-all solution

to re-engaging disadvantaged young people. But it will only work if

practice is founded on careful principles and best practice. Chris Parker

reports on a success story in Sutton.

library.teachingtimes.com/articles/standingtogether

2. Motivationthroughsport–Inspiring children and young people

to improve their behaviour, concentration and achievement is a key

challenge for schools, but one initiative in St. Helens is using physical

activities to get vulnerable students back on track.

library.teachingtimes.com/articles/behaviour-achievement-

improvement-outdoor-activities

3. ANEETsolutionforprimaryschools–By the time a young person

is NEET, it may be too late to help them. Annette Jones introduces an

exciting project aiming to tackle disengagement from education at its

roots by targeting children in primary school.

library.teachingtimes.com/articles/aneetsolutionforprimaryschools

No one-size-fits-all solution

Many disengaged pupils will have a range of complex problems and need a great deal of support. But whether the pupil is simply ‘dreamy’ or finds some aspects of school uninteresting, or whether his disengagement speaks of a more concerning aspect of home life, a specific SEN or a lack of confidence, schools are faced with the challenge of identifying and addressing each child’s individual circumstances and dealing with them appropriately, while at the same time offering a balance of boundaries and clear expectations, along with flexibility, showing interest in the student as a ‘whole person’ and differentiating the solution.

This might mean tailoring subjects so that pupils are engaged in learning opportunities involving real-world scenarios, and then helping to develop a belief in what these pupils can realistically accomplish. It might mean tapping into a disengaged pupil’s love of sport to teach maths, or ensuring that a pupil keen on IT has the opportunity to learn practical skills for the workplace, such as website or app development.

It’s a tough task for schools, but when it comes to re-engaging the disengaged, it’s important that we recognise there is simply no solution that will work for all. Schools need to ensure appropriate, timely and tailored interventions to have any impact on shaping the futures of these young people. The very best early years providers, schools and colleges can make an enormous difference to the life chances of children and young people, often providing crucial support where elsewhere it might be lacking.

Louise Kinnaird is a freelance writer, specialising in child development and psychology.