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An Roinn Oideachais agus Scileanna
Department of Education and Skills
Whole-School Evaluation
Management, Leadership and Learning
REPORT
Ainm na scoile /
School name Jesus & Mary Secondary School
Seoladh na scoile /
School address
Salerno Secondary School
Threadneedle Rd
Salthill
Uimhir rolla /
Roll number 63001G
Date of Evaluation: 15 March 2017
WHAT IS A WHOLE-SCHOOL EVALUATION – MANAGEMENT, LEADERSHIP AND LEARNING?
Whole-School Evaluations – Management, Leadership and Learning report on the quality of teaching
and learning and on the quality of management and leadership in a school. They affirm good practice
and make recommendations, where appropriate, to aid the further development of educational
provision in the school.
HOW TO READ THIS REPORT
During this inspection, the inspectors evaluated and reported under the following headings or areas
of enquiry:
1. Quality of school leadership and management
2. Quality of teaching and learning
3. Implementation of recommendations from previous evaluations
4. The school’s self-evaluation process and capacity for school improvement
Inspectors describe the quality of each of these areas using the Inspectorate’s quality continuum
which is shown on the final page of this report. The quality continuum provides examples of the
language used by inspectors when evaluating and describing the quality of the school’s provision in
each area. The board of management of the school was given an opportunity to comment in writing
on the findings and recommendations of the report, and the response of the board will be found in
the appendix of this report.
Whole-School Evaluation – Management, Leadership and Learning
INSPECTION ACTIVITIES DURING THIS INSPECTION
Dates of inspection 7 - 23 March 2017
Inspection activities undertaken
Meeting with board of management
Meetings with principal and deputy principal
Meetings with key staff
Review of relevant documents
Student focus-group interview
Meeting with parents
Analysis of parent, student and teacher questionnaires
Observation of teaching and learning
Examination of students’ work
Interaction with students
Feedback to senior management team, board of management and teachers
SCHOOL CONTEXT
Jesus and Mary Secondary School, Salerno is an all-girls’ post-primary school located in the Salthill
area of Galway city. The school is under the trusteeship of the Le Chéile Trust. At the time of the
evaluation the school had an enrolment of 673 students.
As well as the junior cycle programmes the school offers a very well-subscribed Transition Year (TY)
programme, the established Leaving Certificate and the Leaving Certificate Vocational Programme
(LCVP).
The school has a diversity of feeder primary schools and enrolment comprises students of seventeen
different nationalities. Two features of particular contextual significance are the growth in enrolment
from 481 students in 2005 to 673 students in 2016 and the building of a substantial sports hall, which
was ongoing at the time of the evaluation. Both of these have impacted heavily on the workload and
range of responsibilities of school management, especially the principal, deputy principal and board
of management.
At the core of the school is a clear focus on providing a caring and nurturing experience for all students
coupled with the attainment of high educational outcomes. Evidence of the living out of the school’s
ethos was abundantly evident during the evaluation. It was clear that, led by senior management,
there is an environment in keeping with the values of Le Chéile. These values which relate to creating
a family spirit of warmth and security and the guidance of teachers who attend individually and
progressively to students’ development underpin the school’s day-to-day work.
SUMMARY OF MAIN FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS:
FINDINGS
Leadership and management are of very high quality, with students and parents indicating willingness and potential to have greater levels of involvement.
There is an atmosphere of warmth, care, support and high achievement that reflects the school’s ethos and that permeates all facets of the school.
The quality of teaching was, in almost all instances, either good or very good with a significant number of instances where it was exemplary; differentiation, assessment for learning (AfL) and information and communications technology (ICT) have been identified by the school as areas for continued progress.
Students’ attainment is of a very high standard and in almost all lessons the students’ learning was of good or very good quality.
The implementation of recommendations from previous evaluations has been diligently progressed by the school with good success and there is scope to continue building on this success.
The school’s capacity for improvement and its engagement in school self-evaluation (SSE) are of very high quality and would be further supported by prioritising the resourcing of co-ordination and monitoring within the posts of responsibility structure.
At the time of the evaluation, the teachers of English were not fully implementing the school-based assessment aspects of the specification. The reason for this was reported to be industrial action.
RECOMMENDATIONS
Expanding the involvement of and communication with parents and students are areas that the school should develop further, in cooperation with parents and students.
To further enhance the work in implementing recommendations from evaluations and to support the ongoing development of schemes of work, subject departments should ensure that meetings include time to discuss pedagogical matters and that a whole-school shared approach is taken to the learning from previous evaluations.
Further development of the use of assessment for learning and of differentiation is recommended to support the very good quality teaching and learning that is taking place.
The board should oversee the development of a plan for the use of ICT that is centred on students’ use of technology to help their learning.
DETAILED FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
1. QUALITY OF SCHOOL MANAGEMENT AND LEADERSHIP
1.1. School ownership and management
School governance is of a very high standard. The members of the board of management are
committed and dedicated to the school. They combine a rich and diverse range of complementary
skills and experiences that benefit the operation of the board.
The board is fully aware of its statutory obligations and board members have received training to
support them in their roles. In addition, the board is very well supported by close links with the Le
Chéile Trust.
The minutes of board meetings provided evidence that the board has engaged extensively with the
development of a new sports hall. As contractual and budgetary matters concerning such a process
are not within the scope of the whole-school evaluation model they were not examined by the
inspection team. However, it was clear the management of the sports hall development has been
diligently overseen by the board in a proactive and progressive manner, and this is commendable.
The development of a school plan, containing the requisite policies, has been a key aspect of the
board’s successful work. While the focus at the time of the evaluation was primarily, and correctly, on
the building project, it is recommended that the board oversee the development of a plan for the use
of information and communications technology in teaching and learning. The planning process should
seek students’ views as well as those of teachers. The development of a plan would assist the board
in deciding how best to spend the funds provided by the Department of Education and Skills for ICT
use in teaching and learning. In addition, a priority for the board should be to examine the school
calendar and to confirm annually its alignment with the requirements of Circular M29/95 in relation
to the number of days teaching that should be available to all classes each year.
Questionnaires that were completed, as part of the evaluation, by parents of more than 160 students
in the school, revealed that parents are very happy about the school, its atmosphere, how welcome
they feel, how well the school is run, how good the discipline is and how safe their child is in the school.
These views accord with the observations of the evaluation team. In those questionnaires, parents
also expressed views that supported the idea of increasing their involvement in the operation of the
school and of developing further channels of communication between the school and the parent body.
Developing channels of communication is something on which the school has worked diligently to
date, with, for example, a new school app being designed and launched, and the school’s website
undergoing revamping during the evaluation. Some examples of the very good work which has been
done through the auspices of the parents’ council include the involvement of parents in the
development of school policies such as the special educational needs policy, promoting positive
mental health and suggesting improvements for the school. Continuing this work will support the
further involvement of parents in the operation of the school.
Students, in the questionnaires that they completed, expressed very positive views about the quality
of teaching in the school, about feeling safe and cared for, about getting on well with other students,
about being proud to be in the school and about getting opportunities to work with other students.
Themes that emerged that merit further analysis by the school related to students’ feeling of
involvement in the operation of the school, using ICT, and the feedback that students get on how to
improve their learning. Thus, expanding the involvement of and communication with parents and
students are areas that the school should develop further, in cooperation with parents and students.
1.2. Effectiveness of leadership for learning
In managing the organisation, the senior management team, comprising the principal and deputy
principal, lead the school in a very successful manner. The quality of their commitment to the school
is outstanding. The effectiveness of their complementary leadership and management skills is
exemplary and has led to a school that enjoys a profile for high levels of academic success as well as
an atmosphere of caring for students.
The leadership of staff has resulted in a culture where the levels of volunteerism, goodwill and mutual
support are exemplary. The configuration of the staffroom supports open and collaborative
interactions. The atmosphere among staff members is exceptionally positive.
Staff members, in the questionnaires that they completed as part of the evaluation, were
overwhelmingly positive about their experience of the school. The only area where they saw scope
for development was that of further improving the access to, and, correspondingly, the use of, ICT.
The quality of distributed leadership in the school is very good and exemplifies the approach taken by
the school to developing leadership capacity. There is very good quality information about the
structure of the posts of responsibility in this school. Post-holders complete an end-of-year review
report for the board of management. There are weekly meetings of year heads, care team members,
special educational needs team members and other personnel, including senior management. To
continue to support this culture of distributed leadership, as and when posts become available to the
school, the posts structure and roles should be reviewed to ensure that current needs such as SSE and
curriculum planning and administration for the Junior Cycle Framework are prioritised. These goals
are already identified in the school’s documentation and this shows the forward-looking nature of the
school management team.
In-school communication is of very high quality. The staff handbook is a very useful document and
provides very good information about organisational matters as well as information about dealing
with students with special educational needs. The weekly staff bulletin is a very good initiative which
supports ongoing high-quality communication with staff members. Minutes of staff meetings showed
that there is much discussion and consultation in the school. It is particularly positive that staff
meetings include consideration of pedagogical matters.
The positive atmosphere among staff is reflected in the atmosphere among students, with, it too,
being exceptionally positive. Most especially, students’ sense of connectedness to the school is
genuine and palpable. Throughout the evaluation it was noted that students’ behaviour was
exemplary. A hallmark of the depth and quality of the relationships that students and teachers enjoy
in this school was the way in which students supported their teachers and responded so positively
during classroom visits by the inspectors.
The level of care for students is very good, with both effective systems in place and staff members
who have a genuine interest in and care for students. Repeatedly, students referred to the connection
they felt with the school, a connection that was grounded in relationships with staff members, such
as the school chaplain, who plays a pivotal role in the emotional and social care of students, in
collaboration with post holders and other staff members. Indeed, the chaplaincy role is central to the
living out of this school’s ethos. The range of activities undertaken by the chaplain and the contribution
they make to ensuring that students feel safe and cared for are very significant strengths of the school.
Guidance provision in the school is very good, with a very well-developed guidance plan that had,
commendably, ample evidence of reflective practice. Feedback from the questionnaires indicated that
exploring students’ and parents’ expectations around support when choosing subjects, and their
expectations for supports when making choices for first year should be prioritised. The results of this
exploration will help to feed into the way the school supports students and their parents.
Transition Year is a significant feature of the school’s curricular offerings. Examination of the TY plan
and associated documents showed that they were of very high quality and they contained very
detailed notes for TY tutors. In addition, there was ample evidence that parents and students held
very positive opinions about the TY programme and about their experience of it. The idea of having a
few large pieces of project work that span different subjects would be worth considering as feedback
from students suggested that time for homework was sometimes in conflict with the time required
for project work.
Students with special educational needs (SEN) are very well supported in this school, with the co-
ordination of SEN being of very high quality. There is a highly committed core team with an extensive
number of other teachers involved. It would be worthwhile exploring benefits that may accrue from
consolidating the team, especially in the context of the greater flexibility and certainty that schools
have due to the revised model of allocation to support students with special learning needs, as set out
in Circular 14/2017. A range of suitable tests is used with first-year students to identify their needs.
Appropriate plans are then put in place to support students. The SEN plan includes future aims which
include extending the use of testing to include senior-cycle students, repeating testing with first year
students and extending testing with second-year students. This proactive and reflective approach is
commendable.
The student council is the main formal structure for student involvement in the school’s operation.
The roles undertaken by members of the council are fulfilled in a most diligent, committed and
effective manner. While first-year students do not currently have first-year representatives on the
council, the school’s senior management team expressed the view that ensuring the council included
all year groups was a matter they would progress in the next academic year and this is recommended.
Confirmation was provided that the board of management has formally adopted the Child Protection
Procedures for Primary and Post-Primary Schools without modification. The school was compliant with
the requirements of the Child Protection Procedures for Primary and Post-Primary Schools save for the
administrative requirement that the minutes of meetings of the board of management record the
number of child protection cases since the previous meeting, even where the number is nil. This
matter was fully addressed by the school during the evaluation.
The teachers of English, Business Studies, and Science have not attended the relevant training provided by Junior Cycle for Teachers for teachers of these subjects since 2014. The reason for this was reported to be industrial action. Teachers of these three new specifications have prepared schemes for them and, without the benefit of continuing professional development (CPD), are delivering them to the best of their ability. While the teachers of English had not undertaken a subject learning and review meeting, the reason for which was reported to be industrial action, they were correcting the students’ classroom assessment as part of the certificate examination. It is recommended that the teachers plan collaboratively for all aspects of the specifications for the benefit of students.
1.3. Management of facilities
The school facilities are very well-maintained, clean, and bright. They provide an attractive learning
environment. The management of the facilities is very good. However, one of the challenges posed by
the school’s growth in enrolment has been a corresponding need for seating at break times and for
lunch-related facilities. The school management has responded to this by providing outside seating
and by facilitating students as best as possible.
In relation to leading school development, the largest issue relating to facilities at the time of the
evaluation was the construction of a new sports hall. This will add greatly to the school’s sporting
facilities. The work which has been undertaken by the board and the school’s senior management, led
by the principal, is to be highly commended for its dedication and commitment.
Health and safety is kept under continual review by the school authorities. It is recommended that a
risk register be developed for each classroom and area within the school. It is best if this is done by
the staff member(s) who are most familiar with or use the area/room most frequently, provided to
school management, and shared with any staff who use the area/room. In addition, the health and
safety statement requires signatures of staff and the chair of the board of management to indicate
their awareness and acceptance of it. Advice on managing health and safety may be accessed in the
Health and Safety Authority’s publications Guidelines on Managing Safety and Health - Post-Primary
Schools (2010).
2. QUALITY OF LEARNING AND TEACHING
2.1. The quality of learning and teaching
Samples of subject department plans were viewed by the inspectors during the evaluation. The subject
plans were comprehensive and beneficially included general school information, detailed records of
teachers’ CPD, and analysis of students’ attainment in the certificate examinations. More benefit could
be gleaned from the information provided by this analysis to help set improvement targets for
students’ learning.
The schemes of work that were viewed included a range of approaches, from general lists of topics to
student-centred lists of learning outcomes. Good practice was noted where teachers’ reflections were
used to refine the schemes of work. Overall, there was some scope to further improve the quality of
the schemes of work by subject departments sharing and discussing teaching, learning and assessment
practices. This was supported by evidence from the minutes of subject department meetings. It was
noted that mostly organisational details were discussed and that greater scope to develop discussion
on matters related to teaching, learning and assessment would be beneficial. Thus, to support
teachers’ collective and collaborative practice, subject departments should ensure that meetings
include time to discuss pedagogical matters.
The quality of teaching ranged from very good to good with exemplary practice seen in a very
significant number of lessons. Suitably high expectations were set for students and teachers
encouraged their students to achieve to the best of their potential. There was very good use of
appropriate methodologies, with the best lessons ensuring an active approach to learning. Further
developing the use of assessment for learning and of differentiation is recommended as it will
continue to support very good quality teaching and learning.
In the lessons that were visited, literacy and numeracy support strategies were noted. The most
frequently noted strategies related to literacy. Using the outcomes of the whole-school evaluation
process provides an opportunity for the school to focus on further developing the use of literacy and
numeracy strategies.
All lessons were very well managed. The relationships between students and their teachers were of
very high quality. The students and their teachers worked cooperatively throughout the lessons
observed. Students’ efforts were encouraged and their answers were affirmed.
Students’ learning was, in all instances, of a good standard and, in many cases, was highly
commendable. Learning intentions were used well by teachers and they helped to frame the lessons
by making it clear what students needed to know or be able to do by the end of the lesson.
Students displayed positive attitudes during lessons. However, feedback from the questionnaires that
students completed indicated a number of areas related to their learning that would be worthwhile
exploring. In particular, it is recommended to further develop students’ learning by focusing on
assessment for learning and developing the use of formative feedback, orally and in writing.
3. IMPLEMENTATION OF RECOMMENDATIONS FROM PREVIOUS EVALUATIONS
3.1. Management
Recommendations on whole-school and management issues have been diligently progressed.
Evidence provided by the school showed very good progress has been made in relation to whole-
school management issues. Indeed, the school management has established a strong culture of using
the outcomes of inspection to aid ongoing school improvement.
3.2. Learning and teaching
In relation to leading learning and teaching, school management and staff members have engaged
very positively in implementing recommendations relating to teaching and learning. Progress related
to inspections of Business Studies, Irish, English, Mathematics, Science and Chemistry, Geography, and
Spanish was examined. The overall level of progress was very good with only a small number of
recommendations that were still being worked on.
A whole-school focus using the recommendations from previous evaluations would help to ensure
that all subject departments maximise the benefit from evaluations. One way in which this could be
achieved is to set an agenda item for staff meetings where the outcomes of an inspection in one
subject area are shared with the whole staff and as a result each subject department adopts or adapts
the recommendations to suit their own subject.
4. THE SCHOOL’S SELF-EVALUATION PROCESS AND CAPACITY FOR SCHOOL IMPROVEMENT The SSE process has been well established in the school. The school’s improvement plan, that was
developed as part of the SSE process contains well-considered objectives to support future school
development. In particular, the school aims to embed a culture of differentiated teaching. There is
also the intention to promote peer observation and, in relation to numeracy, to gain greater parental
involvement in teaching and learning. These are all worthwhile and beneficial objectives.
To help the school in realising these objectives it is recommended that the SSE process seek to increase
the involvement of parents and students and that staff and subject department meetings be used to
maximise engagement with SSE and to set challenging goals for future development. Strengthening
the management of the SSE process by prioritising the resourcing of its coordination and monitoring
should be considered by the school. This would help to ensure ongoing monitoring and reporting of
progress as well as support for teachers.
Based on the evidence gathered during this evaluation and on the progress that has been made by
the school and its staff on implementing the recommendations of previous inspections there is clearly
very substantial professional capability and excellent leadership in this school that will support and
enable ongoing school improvement and development.
Appendix
SCHOOL RESPONSE TO THE REPORT
Submitted by the Board of Management
Part A Observations on the content of the inspection report
The Board of Management of Salerno Secondary School welcomes the affirming WSE-MLL Report
arising from this inspection and particularly identifies:
● At the core of the school is a clear focus on providing a caring and nurturing experience for
all students coupled with the attainment of high educational outcomes.
● Evidence of the living out of the school’s ethos was abundantly evident during the
evaluation. It was clear that, led by senior management, there is an environment in keeping
with the values of Le Chéile. These values which relate to creating a family spirit of warmth
and security and the guidance of teachers who attend individually and progressively to
students’ development underpin the school’s day-to-day work.
Part B Follow-up actions planned or undertaken since the completion of the inspection activity to
implement the findings and recommendations of the inspection
The Board acknowledges the recommendations made by the inspectors and are committed to acting
on them and to the ongoing development of Salerno.
Work has already begun in a number of areas:
● The Student Council now has representatives from all year groups.
● A regular newsletter for parents, to further expand communication with parents, will be
circulated.
● Subject Departments are looking to include, as part of their agenda for regular meetings,
time to discuss pedagogical matters. Further sharing of strategies will be addressed at whole
school level.
● The Board is committed to further worthwhile engagement in school self-evaluation (SSE)
and will address the resourcing of co-ordination when the new post structure is announced
by the DES.
● The upgrade of ICT is an ongoing part of the school’s development plan
Published November 2017 / Foilsithe Samhain 2017
THE INSPECTORATE’S QUALITY CONTINUUM
Inspectors describe the quality of provision in the school using the Inspectorate’s quality continuum
which is shown below. The quality continuum provides examples of the language used by inspectors
when evaluating and describing the quality the school’s provision of each area.
Level Description Example of descriptive terms
Very Good
Very good applies where the quality of the areas evaluated is of a very high standard. The very few areas for improvement that exist do not significantly impact on the overall quality of provision. For some schools in this category the quality of what is evaluated is outstanding and provides an example for other schools of exceptionally high standards of provision.
Very good; of a very high quality; very effective practice; highly commendable; very successful; few areas for improvement; notable; of a very high standard. Excellent; outstanding; exceptionally high standard, with very significant strengths; exemplary
Good
Good applies where the strengths in the areas evaluated clearly outweigh the areas in need of improvement. The areas requiring improvement impact on the quality of pupils’ learning. The school needs to build on its strengths and take action to address the areas identified as requiring improvement in order to achieve a very good standard.
Good; good quality; valuable; effective practice; competent; useful; commendable; good standard; some areas for improvement
Satisfactory
Satisfactory applies where the quality of provision is adequate. The strengths in what is being evaluated just outweigh the shortcomings. While the shortcomings do not have a significant negative impact they constrain the quality of the learning experiences and should be addressed in order to achieve a better standard.
Satisfactory; adequate; appropriate provision although some possibilities for improvement exist; acceptable level of quality; improvement needed in some areas
Fair
Fair applies where, although there are some strengths in the areas evaluated, deficiencies or shortcomings that outweigh those strengths also exist. The school will have to address certain deficiencies without delay in order to ensure that provision is satisfactory or better.
Fair; evident weaknesses that are impacting on pupils’ learning; less than satisfactory; experiencing difficulty; must improve in specified areas; action required to improve
Weak
Weak applies where there are serious deficiencies in the areas evaluated. Immediate and coordinated whole-school action is required to address the areas of concern. In some cases, the intervention of other agencies may be required to support improvements.
Weak; unsatisfactory; insufficient; ineffective; poor; requiring significant change, development or improvement; experiencing significant difficulties;