HEPS Annual Report 2012 · ∞ The first Twitter inspired TeachMeet held at HES attracting educators from across Adelaide ∞ George Couros, Canadian Educational Leader, presenting

Hackham East Schools R-7

Annual Report 2012

Annual Report 2012

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Context

School Name: Hackham East Schools School Number: 1492 and 1066

Principal: Bob Thiele Region: Southern Adelaide

This is the final Annual Report from Hackham East Junior Primary and Primary Schools. As of 2013, the 2 schools will amalgamate to form Hackham East Primary School. While the school has been operating as a single site for about 15 years, the amalgamation will result in a loss of approximately $350 000 recurrent funding. This will bring the school in line with other schools of a similar size and Index of Disadvantage, however it will be a significant adjustment to the learning programs that the school can offer. The loss of deputy principal position and SSO hours will be most keenly felt. A number of classes had learning programs significantly disrupted due to staff changes. The Year 5/6 class had numerous teachers when Mr Clements was required to take 15 weeks sick leave. The Year 6/7 Girls Class had two new teachers after Mrs Dealtry took accouchement at the end of term 2. The class was further disrupted with its teachers unfortunately absent through illness. While everything was done to minimize the impact of the disruption on the students, the learning programs were negatively impacted upon. 2012 ended with the departure of Deputy Principals Mrs Di Fairweather (retirement) and Ms Lindy Podzuweit (end of tenure), School Counsellor Mr Kingsley Heard who chose to return to the classroom, French Co-ordinator Ms Kris Sander, Ms Jo Morrison (retirement), Mrs Leigh Sheridan (permanent appointment Moana PS) and Ms Jo Stirna (extended Long Service Leave). The whole school community acknowledges and thanks these dedicated educators who have given so much to our students over the last decade. 2012 Highlights

• Vicky Climantianos, TfEL Specialist Teacher work with us throughout the year. • The Small Class’ addition to our school • The introduction of iPads into the school learning program • Clippers for Cancer • The opening of the Jamie Mugridge Memorial Garden • The School Choir’s performance at the Festival of Choirs at the Festival Theatre • The Kapa Haka’s performance as visiting artists at the Festival of Choirs at the Festival Theatre • Sports Week, Jump Rope For Heart and SAPSASA competitions • School Football, Soccer and Netball competition • French Choir performance to open the Kmart Wishing Tree for the 8th consecutive year • The first Twitter inspired TeachMeet held at HES attracting educators from across Adelaide • George Couros, Canadian Educational Leader, presenting at a regional workshop hosted by HES • School Concert Staff Professional Learning • Jolly Phonics Training for all JP staff • Day spent with Dylan Wiliam on Formative Assessment • Two days Australian Curriculum familiarization and planning

Parents trained to deliver the Multilit program The success of the Multilit and Minilit programs run by SSOs and parent volunteers Report from Governing Council The Governing Council started the year with 14 members, 7 of them new. It has been a number of years since there has been full membership. This made for an exciting prospect for the year as fresh faces provide fresh ideas.

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The whole council was offered Governance Training. This was well attended by Hackham East Council and we were joined by 3 Councillors from Wirreanda High School Council. This was a very useful training and has helped clarify the role of Governing Council and guided the functioning of Sub Committees. The council supported the 2 extra Student Free Days to allow Staff to attend The Australian Curriculum training. Council introduced the Operating Norms which outlines the expected behaviours of all Governing Council Meeting attendees, made changes to the Dress Code Policy, reviewed and made changes to The Head Lice Policy. A highlight of the year was when Jarrod Lamshed’s class demonstrated and explained an effective community circle to Council. Another was when Vicky attended a meeting to explain the Teaching for Effective Learning (Tfel) project, which involves observation of teachers and provides training toward the Effective Learning Framework. A working relationship has been established between the school and Hackham Foodland resulting in an ongoing offer by Foodland to supply the school with required items for the Canteen, Sports Teams and Fundraising through donations or discounts. Due to low volunteer numbers the Canteen has changed operating procedures by opening after 9am instead of 8:30am and closing at 2:30pm. There has also been several reviews and changes made to the menu, this included a price increase for most items. The Canteen has purchased two fridges and a chest freezer to replace the existing one. By doing so this has increase usable fridge/freeze storage and increased floor space. OSHC started the year with our new director Scott Cameron. The ratio of staff to children has changed to 15-1. As attendance numbers are below 15 per session for both before and after school care, the service remains as a Single Service Centre. Sadly Scott has put in his resignation and will be leaving us at the end of the year. As yet there have been no suitable applicants for the position. Kylie North will run the Vac Care Program. Hopefully a New Director will be appointed by the beginning of the 2013 school year. The Grounds Sub-Committee have once again maintained the school grounds; working with Kevin Bellis designing garden beds. The main improvement this year is the newly lawned area outside Castle Unit. This has been a great improvement to the look of the area and there have been numerous positive comments from parents, staff, students and visitors. Fundraising for this year has been achieved through the Craft Stalls; Easter, Mothers Day, Fathers Day and Christmas. There was also a very successful Entertainment Raffle. Carried over funds from previous years helped the canteen to purchase the Fridge/Freezers and will also help Scott Megsen to purchase new sports shirts for our school sports teams The Promotions Sub-Committee has continued to keep the Changeable sign up to date and made regular use of the schools Facebook page to keep parents informed of upcoming events and school achievements. The Promotions Sub-Committee will ensure appropriate and adequate signage is placed when renovations of the administration block is complete to direct parents and visitors. A review of the school website is ongoing. The sale of shirts, jumpers, hoodies and hats through the Dress Code Shop remain steady. The sale of shorts and pants is very slow. After the remaining stock is sold out shorts and pants will become order only items. A large number of discontinued items remain in stock. Maroon coloured beanies were introduced this year. They can be worn by students outside during the ‘No Hat No Play’ exemption period. This year there have been after school sport teams in Netball, Soccer and Football. These teams are run by parent volunteers. I would like to thank all Council Members and Volunteers for a successful and productive year. I am confident the 2013 Governing Council and Sub- Committees will be just as effective as the current ones. Penny Parker Governing Council Chairperson 2012

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Site Improvement Planning Priority 1 Literacy Targets for 2013: 100% of students below NMS receive intervention targeted to their specific needs through the Wave 1 and 2 program. 100% of students whose growth is in the bottom 25% will have additional support to meet their needs. (Wave 3) A 50% increase in the number of students who achieve in the higher skill bands in all areas of literacy. Recommendations for 2013

• to improve diagnostic testing and its analysis to find the gaps in children’s learning and use this information to direct teaching and learning

• to continue to work with the TfEL coach to improve teaching methodology and ensure all students are challenged and engaged

• to ensure that teachers are able to apply effective methodologies in the provision of a differentiated curriculum through mentoring, peer observations and specific Training and Development

• to ensure that teachers are equipped to implement the ACARA English Curriculum Joli Reading This has been an intervention program used successfully by classroom teachers over a number of years targeting students who perform below PM reading Level 8. The success of this program is due to the explicit teaching processes used in teaching strategies. It has been used successfully as an intervention program. It is recommended that this continue. Jolly Phonics All Reception to Year 3 teachers were trained in Jolly Phonics/Grammar in Term 1 2012. Teachers have used the program throughout 2012. The Jolly Phonics Program will be used for Spelling, Grammar and Reading programs in the Reception to Year 3 classes in 2013. Target Practice/Morning Routine Target Practice has continued to be used across our Reception/Year 1-3 classes. This methodology includes students each morning, systematically working through

• sight words (matrix) • word families (reading and spelling) • number facts

In 2013 the Morning Routine will follow a consistent approach across Reception to Year 3. This will include the learning of sight words and activities using the Jolly Phonics/Grammar Weekly Spelling Lists. Progress Folders Progress Folders continue to be used for Reception through to Year 3 students. These folders are a reflection of students’ learning throughout their schooling. A year by year record is kept of each student’s progress through the alphabet, Oxford Sight Word List, Jolly Phonics, reading levels/lexiles, word families, the Soundations spelling list and other formal testing ie SPAT-R. At the end of each year an example of writing and maths is put into the folder showing each student’s growth.

• It is recommended that this assessment process continues for 2013. Staff Training and Development Attendance at ACARA English Curriculum workshops As a result, teachers have a better understanding of the capabilities required of the ACARA Curriculum Framework Junior Primary Staff have attended Jolly Phonics T&D. Some Primary and Junior Primary staff attended Literacy for Learning workshops. Teachers who attended have a greater understanding of

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Workshops on Comprehension Strategies have been attended by staff across different year levels. As a result of this T&D the Reading Support Teacher has begun the work with classes on Comprehension strategies such as Prediction and Connecting to text. Recommendations for 2013: The Reading Support Teacher will continue to work across R-3 in developing effective comprehension strategies. That JP staff receive training in the use of Lexiles from the Teacher Librarian to compliment the differentiated

Early Years Literacy Plan

The 3 elements of our Early Years Literacy Plan which have been addressed throughout 2012 are:• Building and Strengthening Relationships in our Community • Effective Intervention Strategies for our Early Years Learners • Tools used to gather Useful Information on our Students

Building and Strengthening Relationships in our Community:

The Reading Support Teacher has trained parent volunteers in Multilit and 3 parents have consistently worked with students from term 2 onwards. It is recommended that in 2013 a larger number of parents are trained in both Multilit and Minilit programs. Also it is recommended that the Reading Support Teacher and Junior Primary teachers train parents in how to support their children’s literacy learning at home. This will involve informal short workshops demonstrating skills such as Pause, Prompt, Praise Method, blending of sounds etc.

Effective Intervention Strategies for our Early Years Learners:

The Reading Support Teacher attended training in Minilit and subsequently trained 2 SSO staff to implement the program to Year 1 and 2 students who were not reaching minimum benchmarks in Literacy based on reading level and SPAT-R results. Twenty two students worked in groups of four with a trained tutor for three or four 30 minute sessions per week. This program began in March and continued through to the end of November.

The graph below clearly shows that Reading Level Growth has occurred as a result of this Intervention Program.

Other factors which have impacted on reading growth at our site have clearly been attendance, specific learning needs ie CAP, Dyslexia, Speech Delay etc.

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It is recommended that this program continue for our Year 1 and 2 students who are not reaching minimum benchmarks in literacy in 2013. Tools used to gather Useful Information on our Students Throughout the year the following tools have been used in Reception to Year Three to determine students’ literacy needs and to inform teaching practice and learning programs. These include: Running records, Westwood Spelling, Waddington Reading and Spelling Test, SPAT-R, Oxford Word List, Soundations, Jolly Phonics Checklists and Progress Folders. We are currently analyzing the data collected in 2012 to enable us to find the most effective tools for teachers to use. It is recommended that we further investigate and inquire into assessment tools used in other sites in order to improve students’ literacy acquisition. WAVE INTERVENTION 1:1 and 1:2 Multi Lit instruction has proven to be an effective literacy intervention. As a result of this program students have shown significant growth in their reading level attainment and their word attack skills. Graph Mel WAVE 2 groups have continued throughout 2012 with a focus on Phonemic Skills specific to each group’s needs, based on students’ results in the Neal Phonemic Test. Growth has not been as significant with students in these WAVE 2 groups as it has with those students receiving more individualized support through Multi Lit.

During the course of the year our Reading Support Teacher trained 3 parent volunteers and other SSO staff in the Multi Lit Program so that a greater number of students who were not meeting Reading Benchmarks in years 3-7 could access this intervention. Recommendation for 2013 is that we use trained parent volunteers and SSO staff to implement Multi Lit which has proven to be a highly effective program for our students with Literacy needs. Other WAVE intervention strategies for 2013 will include:

• Teachers being trained or mentored to provide a differentiated literacy curriculum through PLCs, Peer Observation, Training and Development and Professional support.

• The use of the Reading Freedom Program

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Minilit Students' Reading Level Growth

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• Rip Rap Readers for reluctant readers in years 5-7• Ensuring that all teachers know how to analyse a Running Record and use this information to provide a

differentiated literacy program.

The school will employ a Literacy Coach in conjunction with Morphett Vale East School and Reynella Primary school for 2013 through the Literacy and Numeracy National Partnerships.

Reading Support Teacher Report Dialogue is a non-confrontational communication, where both partners are willing to learn from the other and therefore leads much farther into finding new grounds together (Scilla Elworthy) Dialogue is about expanding our capacity for attention, awareness and learning with and from each other (Glenna Gerard)

Background In 2011, I returned to work at Hackham East School as a part time teacher (0.4 FTE) after being on maternity leave for two years. I started as the Literacy Mentor (0.2 FTE) and Literacy Intervention coordinator (0.2 FTE) with a focus on WAVE intervention due to a large cohort of students not reaching benchmarks in reading and not achieving minimum standards in the NAPLAN tests. Together with leadership, I used the WAVE framework to

develop my roles and responsibilities. We looked at “The Big Six”(Deslea Konza’s model) with staff and identified that our focus needed to be in the areas of phonological awareness and letter/sound (phonic) knowledge followed by vocabulary. Teachers received T and D in Jolly Phonics to help support students in WAVE 1. I identified students “at risk” in phonics through using data analysis from running records as well as other forms of testing (ie. SPAT-R, Marie Clay’s Observation Survey, Neal Phonemic test). Students requiring WAVE 2 support were placed in groups with similar phonemic

needs. I designed programs for each group and worked closely with SSOs who implemented these programs. I trained in Multilit and Minilit and have, in turn, trained SSOs and parent volunteers to use these intervention programs with our students. This role for me has continued in 2012. In addition, Hackham East became a TfELschool this year so staff have been involved in extensive T and D in developing and reflecting their teaching practices to improve educational outcomes for all students. Activating dialogue in learning conversations has been a key feature in lesson observations and this has had significant impact on my role as a Reading Support Teacher. I have also undertaken T and D in comprehension by attending workshops presented by Christine Topher, Santina diMauro and David Hornsby as there was a need across the school to tackle this component of The Big Six. To share my learning with colleagues, I modeled different comprehension strategies in my TfEL observation lessons and in other lessons that were negotiated with the teacher. This is ongoing. Going Deeper – what have I learnt? Seeing myself as a learner rather than a teacher passing on information or sharing expertise has been a challenge for me since I started this role. At times, I have felt like “Mrs Fix-It” by being asked to explore strategies or find resources to solve a problem or support someone in their learning. This may have been due to people’s perception of my role (including my own) or the fact that I don’t have a teaching capacity. The TfEL training has started to change this perception though as all teaching staff, including leadership, have been involved in being observed teaching a lesson as well as observing others’ teaching. This has put us all on the same page so to speak. Focusing on TfEL Domain 3: Develop expert learners and two of its elements, 3.3 Explore the construction of knowledge and 3.4 Promote dialogue as a means of learning, has been a huge learning curve for me this year. As I was planning my lessons to be observed, I found myself constantly thinking and asking myself questions such as: Is this strategy I have planned to use going to give opportunities for students to: question and discuss new ideas; make links between ideas; challenge their existing conceptions; compare perspectives with other learners; etc. The dialogue I was having with myself was stimulating my thinking! The “rich” dialogue that evolved after lesson observations also caused thinking. For example, after a lesson on the comprehension strategy of connecting to text, the teacher observing provided me with valuable feedback on how to extend the students’ thinking and how to scaffold my questions to meet the different reading levels of the students in the class. From this experience, I was also given the opportunity to reflect on the effectiveness of the strategies I used and discuss how I may have responded differently to engage all students. Observing others has allowed me to develop my capacity in giving honest and descriptive feedback about their teaching practice and, through learning conversations, has helped me to reflect on what effective pedagogy is. This was highlighted when our observation group provided feedback to the teacher giving the lesson on ways to promote dialogue with students to help stimulate

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learning. I then adopted some of the strategies we talked about in my own observation lessons. For example, when I was teaching a R/1 lesson on prediction using a Dreaming story text, the students used the Think, Pair, Share model to clarify their thinking and verbalize their guesses. In a Middle Primary class, I used the Give One/Get One approach after students had recorded their character comparisons on a Venn Diagram to construct further knowledge and find links between theirs and others’ ideas. Teaming with Teachers, SSOs and Parents The importance of using dialogue to learn from each other has also helped build constructive working relationships with teachers, SSOs and parent volunteers. Analysing running records with a Year 2/3 teacher and discussing ways to help her students with cues for reading for meaning, planning a series of lessons on visualization in comprehension with a Reception teacher and collaboratively working with the Teacher Librarian in organizing activities for Indigenous Literacy Day and National Literacy and Numeracy Week across the school would be three examples of this working effectively.I have adopted learning conversations, both planned and impromptu, with SSOs and parent volunteers whom I have trained in Multilit, Minilit and other WAVE 2 phonemic based programs. This has provided them with time to

clarify their thinking, process new knowledge they have learned, question and discuss solutions to problems/issues. From using this approach, some of these helpers have shown initiative by coming up with their own ideas or strategies to trial with their students. For example, one SSO formulated a series of questions to promote comprehension and vocabulary in three Big Books for the Text Reading component of the Minilit program. A sense of empowerment has started to evolve as we have worked collaboratively to develop programs to meet students’ needs. I have also developed a professional working relationship with Jo Meredith, RST at Reynella South PS, in the second half of the year. Once again, we have had

conversations that have helped us to define our RST role, see things through another perspective, generate ideas and share effective teaching practice. Future Goals and direction I would like to continue with the TfEL observation model and using learning conversations in the areas of developing comprehension and vocabulary with staff as I have seen the effectiveness of this approach first hand. Our Literacy Committee has decided to adopt the PAT-R Comprehension tests across the school next year so I hope to support teachers with collecting and analyzing this data (as well as running record data) to help them direct their teaching of various comprehension strategies to meet the needs of students. As parents are the key partners in their child’s education, I would like to run parent workshops that explore ways to help with reading at home so they too can have the opportunity to build on their knowledge about reading as well as express their opinions and ideas through learning conversations.

Priority 2: Numeracy During the 2012 period, it has been found, using the NAPLAN data, that students’ fluency is stronger than their problem solving. In Year Three, 92.3% of students meeting the National Minimum Standard. However, approximately 61% of Students in Year 3 failed to meet the National Average.

This trend continued in Year Five with 73.7% of students meeting Nation Minimum Standard. Approximately 71% of students failed to meet the National Average, with 47% achieving sound growth and 22% achieving high growth in their results when compared to 2010.

In Year Seven, 93.2% of students meeting Nation Minimum Standard. Again, approximately 73% of students failed to meet the National Average, with 59% achieving sound growth and only 7% achieving high growth in their results when compared to 2010.

Teachers throughout the year worked through TfEL to improve their methodology and reflected on their teaching practices. They have also continued to work with Michele Russell and been mentored by Michael Koutsoukos in mathematical investigations and deeper questioning. To understand the requirements, the staff have broken down the Australian Curriculum framework and planned around the elaborations and key concepts.

Maths kits for each class have been created that include counters, dice and decks of cards, with simple number games included. Further, Ann Baker resources have been purchased for all Year Levels to aid with multiplication strategies and mental computation.

Recommendations for 2013

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• Aiding students and staff in developing a deep understanding of why we do maths and its relevance in our lives. This will further have a strong focus on the ability and resilience to solve challenging problems with appropriate support.

• Having more specific goals with NAPLAN Band aims. Teachers will be providing students with opportunities for higher order thinking for problem solving as well as solving challenging problems.

• Further undertake an Ann Baker Student Free Day and utilize and revisit Charles Lovitt’s ‘Maths 300’. • Learning will become ‘Problematised’ and staff will unpack what differentiation and challenging problem

solving looks like. Priority 3: Wellbeing A major wellbeing initiative that has been introduced into the Junior Primary classes has been the social/emotional program called Kimochis. Kimochis, which means “feeling” in Japanese - are plush, educational toys designed to help kids identify, understand and manage their feelings in a fun, comfortable way. Kimochis are designed to get children talking, promoting strong parent-child, teacher-child and child to child connections. Kimochis encourage kids to express themselves as they learn about appropriate feelings-driven behaviours and how to manage the feelings Kimochis teach, whether that be mad, sad, left out, brave, uncomfortable, jealous, frustrated, silly and beyond. Staff wellbeing was addressed through working with Louiza Hebhardt from ‘Equilibrium’ who gave the staff numerous strategies around staying mentally strong within the education profession. This year has seen Hackham East Schools FLO (Flexible Learning Options) enrol five students through the ICAN initiative. These students have had a history of disengagement and non-attendance. These five students were assigned a case worker from Bedford who provided support for these students and their families to improve their engagement and attendance at school. Programs implemented using the ICAN funding were Labs n’ Life which has given the students the opportunity to work with labrador pups to train them for companionship. The Rock and Water program was the other ICAN funded program that was initiated. This is a program that has a very strong focus on physical action and achievement. The program teaches students to use their power in a more effective way and shows them how to deal with different kinds of conflicts (rock-and-water attitude). The students learnt to stand stronger in many ways. In the playground and the classroom they learnt to identify their limitations and possibilities, learnt to communicate more effectively, learnt to feel, set and defend their own boundaries and to respect others' boundaries too. Rock and Water was run in single gender sessions for all students in the year 6/7 classes. BULLY AUDIT RESULTS

Staff training, the use of the Play Is The Way language and Restorative Justice principals have continued to have a positive impact on how students cope with bullying. Many teachers have successfully used Circle Time activities and developed other strategies to respond to reports of bullying. Results in 2012 show that bully audit reports are only used in very few classrooms. There has been a slight increase in the number of students with more than three strikes or more. Bullying however has been evident in some instances and has been dealt with as isolated incidents more than ongoing practice. This has been carried out through students bringing concerns to their class community circle where they will receive assistance from both their teacher but more importantly, their peers. Restorative practices have been implemented in dealing with ongoing bullying concerns. This practice enables the victims and students partaking in the bullying to both speak to each other in a controlled environment. Parents have also been involved in this process when required. Being able to realize how each student is feeling in each ongoing bullying behavior has had positive outcomes in restoring a polite and positive relationship. The emphasis has slightly changed on always trying to restore a friendship, now moving towards mutual respect for each other which is one of the school’s agreements.

2010 2011 2012 Term Events

reported More than 3x

Term Events reported

More than 3x

Term Events reported

More than 3x

1 N/A N/A 1 17 1 1 16 2

2 32 1 2 5 0 2 11 2 3 25 1 3 21 1 3 18 3 4 0 0 4 2 0 4 9 1

Total 57 2 Total 45 2 Total 54 8

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Behaviour Data

Action 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 Exclusion 1 2 1 1 1 2 1 1 External Suspension 10 10 35 18 17 25

(14 students) 23

(12 students) 17

(11 students) Internal Suspension 30 18 43 23 30 24

(18 students) 19

(13 students) 26

(11 students) The number of exclusions has remained the same compared to 2011. The number of external suspensions has decreased for the second year in a row with 11 students involved in 17 suspensions. Internal suspensions have increased slightly with 11 students being internally suspended in a total of 26 compared to 19 in 2011. This data reveals that strategies dealing with students exhibiting behaviours warranting suspension must continue to be developed with external suspensions decreasing but internal suspensions increasing. This will include all classes continuing to use consistent Community Circles to work through issues at a classroom level, consistent use of Play Is The Way methodologies, recognising students displaying the school agreements, teachers using restorative practices to help students resolve differences, take responsibility for their actions and to repair relationships. Our intention is to provide counselling, continue developing skills and acquiring resources to help students learn and teachers develop relationships and engage students in exciting learning opportunities at each student’s level. Christian Pastoral Support Worker We believe that support for families improves relationships in our community, the wellbeing and therefore the learning of each child. To achieve this the School Counsellor and the Christian Pastoral Support Worker offered assistance to students and families in need. Julia provides emergency support to families through her connections with agencies in the community, assists with home visits and provides a reliable source of support even on days that she is not working. Play Is The Way The Ultimate Community Role Model, begun this year is the next stage in our Play Is The Way implementation. The aim of the program is to get students to demonstrate and practise VALUES until they become deeply ingrained habits of action or VIRTUES. The school is adopting the values recommended by Wilson McCaskill which together are required for children to develop empathy. The Junior Primary focus on:

• Courage • Friendliness • Good Manners

and the Primary students build on these and add • Persistence/Resilience • Compassion • Tolerance

All these values help define Respect which we want all members of our school community to show to each other and to property. They are also values required for a child to develop empathy. The process we are undertaking makes students focus on what really makes someone a valuable member of class. Everyone is born with different skills and abilities. Some have innate sporting abilities, others are blessed with “good looks” or higher “IQ”. This process shifts the focus from a student's skills to values; what they can control and hence contribute to the community, as opposed to what they are born with. Students will not see the student who is doing well as just ‘smart’ but recognise that he/she persists or has courage and therefore achieves well. Students will develop a greater awareness of themselves; their virtuous strengths and other values they need to work on to develop them into habits or virtues. Every class is deeply exploring each value with both staff and students trying to “catch” children demonstrating these values. The program was launched in week 4 of Term 4 with an exhibition of photos taken by each class to capture the values in action. Parents and caregivers were invited to attend to view the photos and vote on the 6 which they believe best illustrate the values.

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Student Achievement

LOTE Report 2012 The unique French program which has received accolades from many quarters was developed by Madame Kris Sander and has been running for 9 years. Kris was the first and only Primary LOTE (Languages Other Than English) Co-ordinator in the state. Kris has done a magnificent job. Highlights have included French Days and the French Choir performances. The program is now developed to the point that teachers can effectively teach French with the use of online resources. I would like to acknowledge and thank Kris for her vision, creativity, organisation and drive to make the program so

successful. Unfortunately, Kris’ tenure has finished and she will be moving to another school. Below is Kris Sander’s report. Bob Thiele The LOTE (French) program at Hackham East Primary School is delivered under a unique model, in that classroom teachers teach and learn with their classes. The LOTE Coordinator oversees the program and supports teachers both with lessons and assessment as well as with occasional classroom instruction. This model has been in place since 2004. An assortment of programs has been utilized over the years including a gestures program (AIM) and two interactive online programs for Junior Primary (Little Pim) and Upper Primary (liveMocha). The Coordinator has forged links with the local feeder high school by exchanging visits with students and community links have been made through the French Choir which has performed at the K Mart Wishing Tree and at various nursing homes, and by regular inclusions in the school newsletter. The program which will be used in 2013 is an online interactive called Languagenut. As the Coordinator position has been abolished, two teachers will oversee the program in the future. Overall the French program has had a positive image and students accept it as part of their regular curriculum. Staff opinion is that teaching and learning with students is important and provides valuable understanding of their integrated progress. Kris Sander French Coordinator Single Sex Classes Reports One thing that sets Hackham East Schools apart from most others is the offering of both Mixed and Single Sex Class options at all year levels. The single sex programs were initiated after research from Ian Lillico and Michael Gurian demonstrate that boys and girls mature at different rates and learn in different ways. From he success of there programs, other schools in our region are also beginning single sex classes. David Giles, Dean of Education at Flinders University is undertaking research into our Single Sex Program. Below are reports from the single sex classes. Report Single Gender Year 2/3 girls class The 2/3 Girls Class has worked collaboratively with the 2/3 boys in a variety of ways throughout the year. Regular spelling, fitness, dance and French lessons have allowed the students to form close cross gender relationships in a social and academic environment. The introduction of Junior Primary single gender classes has shown to be successful both academically and socially.

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There has been a strong focus on technology, incorporating Edmodo, iPads and a class blog. The girls have enjoyed developing their computer skills in a ‘girls only’ learning environment and have embraced the new technologies taking risks and forming strategies to further their learning in this area. The single sex environment has also allowed the girls to excel at maths and science with a hands on approach in both subjects. The students have spent time working on friendships and how they interact with others. They have incorporated the school virtues and established a supportive and helpful class. Working together and allowing time to discuss their learning has allowed the girls to develop strong relationships with each other. The girls took part in French Choir and performed at the opening of the Kmart Wishing Tree and at several aged care homes. Single Gender Year 4/5 Classes The year 4 and 5 boys’ and girls’ class has worked collaboratively to explore and develop fitness, PITW, gender stereotypes and child rights. Ms Stirna has had regular conversations with Mr Koutsoukos, our school maths coordinator, to explore new maths trends that challenge, engage and promote deep understanding and application of concepts. Science and maths units of work, jointly planned with other Middle Primary teacher using ACARA, have been pretested and moderated during release time. Child Rights, a unit of history work designed by 2011 middle primary staff using ‘Backwards by Design’, has served as a springboard to the Child Protection Curriculum, an outstanding award winning film making by Mr Koutsoukos’ boys, and investigations in the global treatment of women and girls by Ms Stirna’s class. The creation of class blogs now means the year 4 and 5 boy’s and girls’ classes are now communicating globally. Further, through the use of Edmodo, the students are now able to converse and interact with each other outside of school, discuss homework and ask their teacher questions from home. Finally with the TfEL coordinator, Vicky Climatianos, we have reviewed our assessment, teaching and learning practises. Reviewing and improving teacher and student questioning techniques has been a major focus of discussion and professional development. The 6/7 Boys Class The year 6/7 boys class has had a positive year with all students showing good growth across curriculum areas. Through winnings from film competitions in previous years, the year 6/7 boys class become a 1:1 iPad classroom this year. This has made a huge difference with the class allowing all student to have the tools at hand to engage in creative learning in new ways. To allow for much greater collaborative learning opportunities, we have been trialling flexible learning spaces with much success. This year students, again, had success in the New Media awards winning an iPad for the school. The camp at Arbury Park was also a highlight. This year the class has had many opportunities to show HOW we learn. Students have presented two lectures to pre service teachers at UniSA talking about how boys learn differently to girls. They have also presented at the South Australian Teacher's Conference with the topic "Engaging Boys through ICTs". The boys have also become "Digital Leaders" in our school, regularly supporting teachers and classes with ICT based learning. This year the boys classes were a focus for an AITSL "Illustration of Practice" video production. We have also had a regular visitors to our classroom interested in learning more about how boys learn.

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NAPLAN

Refer to Sections in Site Learning Plan reports. Figure 1: Year 3 Proficiency Bands by Aspect

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Student Data

Attendance

Attendance has been closely monitored this year and DECD support agencies have been consulted and advised about many habitual non-attenders. Families were phoned when students were absent for three days in succession without an explanation. Without the assistance of a regular Student Attendance Coordinator employed within the Southern Adelaide Regional Team, making positive gains in attendance difficult.

Unexplained absences were at 37.4% which has decreased from last year. This year we have contacted homes after three consecutive days of unexplained absenteeism. This process will need to be monitored in 2013 to increase accountability amongst our school community around consistent attendance.

Some families and students have however responded to the school based support system and improved their attendance and lateness records. Some parents have provided the school with compliments for the help they received to break the cycle of non-attendance because they appreciate the benefits to their child.

Lateness and attendance will continue to be a priority at Hackham East primary school in 2013 and we hope the “Play is the Way” program will continue to encourage students to attend regularly and arrive at school at the appropriate time.

Table 9: Attendance by Year Level

Attendance by Year Level % Attendance

2010 2011 2012

Year 3 90.2 88.8 90.4

Year 4 87.5 90.2 87.2

Year 5 91.2 90.6 87.3

Year 6 88.0 92.4 88.4

Year 7 89.4 90.0 88.2

Primary Other 97.6

Total All Year Levels 89.2 90.4 88.2

Total ACARA 1 TO 10 89.2 90.4 88.2

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Client Opinion

Due to extremely low response rate, the parent client data sample is not large enough to show a statistically accurate comparison of parent satisfaction. (A minimum of 40 responses is required)

6 parent responses 8 parent responses

The following comments were submitted on the survey: JP Parent Comment - Quality of Teaching and Learning

• I have four children at this school in grades 2,3,5 and 7, I feel the are performing well and I'm alerted quickly to any short falls the remedial programs in my experience because I have experience are timely, thorough and highly successful I can and have recommended this school and those recommended are also satisfied and I don’t have troubles getting the kids to school they love it.

Primary Parent Comments - Quality of Teaching and Learning • Until this year I have been very impressed with the teaching at this school. The teacher my daughter has

this year is harsh, unapproachable and at times disrespectful to students and parents. She is one of few that I would not rate highly. Most of the teachers ARE enthusiastic and really want to help but I have encountered one that is not/doesn't.

• I am pleased with my child’s teacher, he informs me of his learning or problems and has supported my child through them.

Staff Satisfaction Junior Primary Staff – Teachers and SSOs Primary Staff – Teachers and SSOs

The results of this survey confirmed the issues which caused concern with staff during the year: 1. Communication that we had surfaced from other data gathering sources and surveys. The main issues was

that SSOs felt that teachers were not giving them enough guidance with the learning programs for their children and were not informing them of NIT changes, camps and excursions etc. The following systems have been put in place to ensure that communication between teachers and SSOs occurs effectively:

• Teachers are released by line managers to meet with SSOs to collaborate on planning student learning programs and assessment.

• Communication to SSOs re camp and excursion planning is included in planning checklists. • Staff meeting minutes are emailed to all SSOs and teachers • Weekly notes are emailed to all staff

REGION COMPARISON STATE COMPARISON

Comparison of Aggregated School Opinion to Region and State Values (top 25%, middle 50%, lower 25%)

DECS Parent, Student and Staff Opinion Survey -

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Scores have been calibrated across all surveys to give an average of 10 and standard deviation of 1. This means comparisons can be made between parent, staff and student surveys and typically 95% of the responses are between 8 and 12 in any survey. The black diamond represents current score, and the white dot your previous result (if your site participated last year). A graph is not printed if there were fewer than five responses.

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2. Work overload and the over crowded curriculum. The introduction of the Australian Curriculum, a major focus on TfEL, ongoing data collection and NAPLAN have contributed to workload pressures and raised stress levels, especially at busy times of the year (report writing, interviews, concerts…) To address these

• meetings during the week, apart from staff meeting have been kept to a minimum to allow time for teachers to meet in year level teams for planning and supporting each other

• Staff meetings have been designed to meet teachers’ learning needs with business being kept to a minimum. Staff meetings have begun with a humorous video or something similar

• During term 3, every second staff meeting was a TeachMeet – a time of professional sharing. These were very successful

Staff Comments - Quality of Teaching and Learning

• There isn't always consistent teaching • Better communication between staff would assist all staff who work with students at this school. Time for

preparation would be useful. • Teachers here are continually reassessing their methods of teaching and what will make learning

expectations clearer to the children. • We are always trying to improve the quality of teaching but we do have an over crowded curriculum, big

classes and massive variations in ability levels. We need to focus literacy and numeracy before anything else.

Staff Comments - Support of Learning

• There are times were not enough follow through with the behaviour procedures. Staff Comments - Relationships and Communication

• Lack of communication is a real issue. Staff Comments - Leadership and Decision Making

• Not all leadership are supportive. • The leadership at this school are very supportive and very caring about all staff and students.

Staff Comments - Other comments

• I feel that there are divisions occurring between teaching staff and SSOs. I do not feel that we have a united staff.

Student Opinion (Primary Students) State Comparison Regional Comparison

Student Comments - Quality of Teaching and Learning

• The teaching and learning are good and you learn a lot. The teachers understand you and what level you are at.

• My teachers know what I can do and how to help me.





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Annual Report 2012

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Student Comments - Support of Learning • I think that teachers that teach 4 and up should give home work so care givers can see what we

are doing. • There is lots to do at school during recess and lunch time.

Student Comments - Relationships and Communication

• There is someone at school that I can talk to if I have problems. • I think that the school needs to work on their safety. There are not enough teachers to see what is

happing around the school especially when school is finished. The only time a teacher is out is when crossing there should be at lest 3 teachers out on duty at the pick zone to make it a safer school.

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Accountability

National Partnerships

Our Teaching and Learning Journey Hackham East Primary School Vicky Climatianos TfEL

Specialist Teacher Teachers make a difference to

improving student-learning outcomes. � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � �

� � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � ��

Annual Report 2012Annual Report 2012Annual Report 2012

Smarter Schools – Communities making a difference - National

Partnerships

Teaching for Effective Learning – South Australian pedagogy

Research Project 2010 - 2012

Hackham East PS is 1 of 22 LOW SES schools selected to take part in the National Partnerships SA Teaching for Effective

Learning Research Project. As part of the project, each school has the support of a TfEL Specialist Teacher.

� � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � • � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � �

� � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � . A key aspect of my role is to engage teachers and leaders in the practice of intentional and strategic design, observation, self-reflection, and discussion about effective teaching methodologies to improve student-learning outcomes. The journey… I began by getting to know all staff and students. This involved being in classes, and having discussion about learning with the teacher and student. There was already a true learning culture across the school. This was evident in the way all teaching staff had a clear emphasis on teaching and learning with a focus on supporting, refining and improving all aspects of teaching and learning. It was also clear to me through both informal and formal discussions that staff were consistently reflective of their own practice in order to continue to refine and meet all students’ needs. In order to develop our understanding of the TfEL Framework, we began by identifying our individual strengths and areas for improvement of our teaching practice. The TfEL framework provided us with opportunities to extend, refine and build on our existing understandings of effective teaching and learning. We started with ‘opening classrooms’, to capture the gems in our learning environment with a direct focus to TfEL Element 2.2 build a community of learners. Teachers shared their methodologies and strategies they use to establish a learning culture in their classroom that inspires and encourages all students’ to learn. Each week, the staff meeting focus, as we called it, ‘Spotlight on TfEL Element’ focused on developing a deeper understanding on each element and to share some examples of effective practices. During Term 2 all 22 teaching staff across the school were observed as part of the Research component of the TfEL Project. My approach as a lead learner in the TfEL role is to ensure that teachers feel supported. I modeled the process through an appreciative lens and strength based approach. During the research observations, myself and two other DECD staff members observed individual teachers. The Observers recorded examples of effective practice with reference against the TfEL Framework. The teachers felt the process to be both positive as well as reaffirming aspects of their teaching practice. As a result of this positive process, the leaders took this opportunity for them to be observed by the teaching staff – to lead by example. It was through this process, that teachers gained a much deeper and clearer understanding of the TfEL framework, challenge their thinking on their teaching methodologies and openly reflecting on their practices. Staff began to trust that it was about everybody positioning themselves as learners and being willing to open up and share their practice. Both Leadership and Teachers at HES have valued and modeled themselves as lead learners.

Annual Report 2012

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Lead by example: Leading the Learning

At Hackham East PS

Peer Observations Teachers selected a colleague that was going to be observing them for over a series of lessons, with a focus on their chosen TfEL Element and with a focus on Formative Assessment over a series of lessons. Using a positive lens, the teacher is able to provide feedback to their colleague on the effectiveness of the element being evident. This then led teachers to have deeper conversations about effective teaching methodologies to supports students’ needs. Teachers commented that being observed as well as learning with and from others in the Professional Learning Communities was both confronting and powerful to enrich their learning.

Professional Learning Communities at Hackham East PS Another key aspect of my role is to work with leadership to establish Professional Learning Communities as part of staff meeting. Professional Learning Communities are about people coming together to take responsibility for questioning, interrogating and stretching their own knowledge, skills and understandings around a professional concept with the ultimate purpose being to enhance and enrich student learning.

Using a process of ‘hot dots’ the teaching staff identified the TfEL Element 4.3– Apply and assess learning in authentic contexts ~ Formative Assessment as an area to further develop within their practice. This has been the teaching and learning focus in the Professional Learning Communities this year at HES. We all agreed as a whole staff, that this particular Element as they saw it had significant potential to be the starting point for the development of a consistent approach to pedagogy. Leadership were also mindful of ensuring that the PLCs could integrate their learning focus with the current school priorities as opposed to seeing it as another thing to do on top of everything else. I began this process by developing clarity about the purpose of a Professional Learning Community. At each PLC session staff members share how their commitment to action is going (a strategy they are modeling and practicing in their classroom with a focus on Formative Assessment). The group members respond to the person who shared by asking them each a probing question about their commitment to action. This strategy encourages collegiate learning to occur, by challenging each other’s thinking and learning, questioning our practices in an open and safe environment.

Annual Report 2012

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Where to next in 2013…

RECOMMENDATIONS

• To continue Professional Learning Communities to provide opportunities for deeper, rigorous conversations and collegiate learning.

• Provide opportunities for Peer observations with a specific focus on improving teacher practice.

• SMART BORROWING TRIAL focus to continue in 2013 - evidence of practice

from non-effective to highly effective to improve student learning outcomes. �

� � � � � � � � � � � �

During the process of PLCs, the teachers continue to use effective strategies and processes to find out what students know, and design the learning to meet their needs.

Being responsive to the students’ needs is critical in all aspects of teaching and learning.

Our continual learning in PLCs with a focus on Formative Assessment, has also been guided by attending Professional Development on Assessment as well as watching video pieces by Dylan Wiliam where he talks about Formative Assessment and a range of strategies that support teachers to check for understanding.

Annual Report 2012

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Staff

Teacher Qualifications All teachers at this school are qualified and registered with the SA Teachers Registration Board.

Qualification Level Number of Qualifications

Bachelor Degrees or Diplomas 38

Post Graduate Qualifications 5 Please note: Staff that have more than 1 qualification will be counted more than once in the above qualification table. Therefore the total number of staff by qualification type may be more than the total number of teaching staff.

Workforce Composition including Indigenous staff

Workforce Composition Teaching Staff Non-Teaching Staff

Indigenous Non Indigenous Indigenous Non Indigenous

Full-time Equivalents 0 21 0 13.15

Persons 0 24 0 18

Financial Statement

Income by Funding Source

Funding Source Amount 1 Grants: State $3 413 866.00 2 Grants: Commonwealth $40 100.00 3 Parent Contributions $74 384.07 4 Other

Documents

HEPS Annual Report 2012 · ∞ The first Twitter inspired TeachMeet held at HES attracting educators from across Adelaide ∞ George Couros, Canadian Educational Leader, presenting