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2003 Literacy
Plan
“Literacy is the flexible
and sustainable mastery of a repertoire of practices with the texts of
traditional and new communications technologies via spoken language, print and
multimedia.” Literate
Futures
Students need to be able to modify their language to
varying conditions, to maintain achievement over time and to develop mastery
with literacy. Accordingly, students must learn to deal critically with a range
of texts, and to cope with a wide range of spoken, written and electronic texts
on a daily basis.
Literacy is core business in every classroom and across
every Key Learning Area.
The First Steps and Stepping Out Programs encompass a whole
school approach to literacy. The Programs are research-based frameworks with
effective classroom strategies. The Programs assert that
·
Language learning takes place when students actively engage
in meaningful and authentic contexts
·
Systematic observation and recording are linked to the
teaching of literacy by means of the Developmental Continua
·
Many factors enhance learning, namely:
§
Problem Solving – challenging students encourages
learning
§
Embeddedness – connections are made within a context
§
Working Memory – a number of elements can be coped with
at one time
§
Integration – discussions lead to clarification
§
Time – needed to consolidate and integrate learning
·
All learners benefit from the 3R’s, namely:
§
Reflecting – time is needed to reflect on insights
§
Representing – expressing in a concrete form
§
Reporting – refines and extends learning
Consistent
approaches to pedagogy and assessment are achieved through –
·
Effective long-term planning and staff training
·
Ongoing in-service throughout the school
·
Roles of Literacy Mentors and Curriculum Coordinator
·
A shared language for discussing literacy
Enhancing professional development, consolidating existing
resources and focussing on literacy development of students develop a
forward-looking vision of the repertoire of skills and practices students need.
Students are prepared for change in an information society
by working within meaningful contexts that are collaboratively planned,
assessed, and reflected upon by teachers. Mastery requires not only basic oral
and written skills, but also the ability to expand these skills to suit varied
tasks and new contexts. Our concern needs to broaden from print base skills to
multiliteracy skills, the mastery of which includes interpretation and critical
analysis of online and onscreen texts.
It is essential to develop the integration of information
technologies with literacy learning and teaching. This can occur through
extended collaborative planning and teacher in-service, development of a
mentoring program, and ensuring access and skilling for all students.
Our literacy practices respond to differences and diversity
within the school by
·
Provision of clear intervention strategies
·
Alignment of assessment to student development
·
Provision of professional development in pedagogies
·
Development of a mentor program within staff body
·
Planned development of online courses and use of technology
to extend the boundaries of students’ learning
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Literacy is one of the five
focus areas in the school and is a school priority. The Literacy Focus team
provides the leadership for literacy within the school. This ensures that
literacy is embedded in the whole school curriculum and planning framework. A
range of specific school developed programs in reading, writing, handwriting,
grammar and punctuation and editing supports the whole school approach to
literacy. The First Steps resources in reading, writing, spelling and oral
language, THRASS and the Stepping Out Program, enhance these programs.
The school has made a
commitment to the Western Australian First Steps resource package and has
trained accredited tutors to provide a Learning and Development framework for
ensuring a consistent, cross curricular, developmental approach to the teaching
of literacy. This aligned with the Productive Pedagogies that focus on
Intellectual Quality, Connectedness, Recognition of Difference and a Supportive
Classroom Environment.
Staff
Learning and Development opportunities are supported by the school’s Mentor
program. This provides the opportunity for the sharing of professional ideas,
modelling of strategies, teacher exchange and ongoing support. During 2002,
Chancellor SS has initiated a District Project to enhance the training of
Mentors at our school site. The focus of the project is to ensure that all staff
have the opportunity to become trained Mentors. The Mentor approach provides a
process for effective, ongoing professional dialogue. This dialogue allows for
structured teacher reflection on their practices. The whole school writing
moderation process using protocols further promotes professional dialogue. This
provides the opportunity to share student work on a year level and cross-school
basis and to develop whole school strategies for improvement and development.
An important
component of Literacy strategy is the promotion of productive partnerships. This
includes the opportunity for Action Research through links with tertiary
institutions and the provision of Learning and Development opportunities for
parents and the community. This includes our Parent Education program –
developing Literacy Partnerships and specific training opportunities such as
Support-a-Reader/Writer programs; through TAFE links students studying
Certificate 4 in Teacher Aide Studies are supported through the school.
The
celebration of School Literacy Achievements provides a vehicle for recognising
the importance of Literacy and the Multiliteracies within education.
Chancellor has been the recipient of a Showcasing Excellence Award for
its innovative curriculum design and a National Literacy Award for its
achievements in Literacy. Within the school community, we celebrate literacy
achievements through our Units of Excellence culminating activities. Annually,
the school holds a major whole school-culminating event that focuses on student
learning achievements. During National Literacy and Numeracy Week there are
school displays and a focus on whole school classroom based activities and
sharing.
Our
aim is to continue to develop and enhance our whole school approach to literacy
learning through maintaining and expanding an embedded and complementary
approach to Learning and Development.
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Our school is committed to
continuous improvement. Through benchmarking and the collection of data the
school literacy strategy is reviewed and refined.
The
Literacy Focus Team provides the strategic support to our whole school approach.
Our literacy standards and targets are developed using school based and systemic
data –
·
Year 2 Net
·
Year 3,5,7 Tests
·
Kidmap data
·
Year level based moderation
·
Student portfolios
·
End of semester summative report data
·
Year level benchmarking processes and exemplars
Our school is focussing on
the development of an enhanced notion of literacy incorporating the
multiliteracies and a futures perspective. The challenge is to ensure that we
incorporate this into our data collection.
Our targets are to –
·
Maintain school literacy standards in systemic testing at
or above State and Like School Means
·
Ensure 85% of students are achieving Developing (D) or
Competent (C) on year level literacy reports
·
Benchmarks are established for cross curricular Key
Assessment Tasks
·
Extend the implementation of Thrass through Yr 4 and 5
during 2003/4 to ensure improved spelling/reading outcomes
·
Ensure that all staff is confident in the implementation of
First Steps/Stepping Out Strategies and the Four Resource Model in their
classrooms.
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Assessment
is the purposeful, systematic and ongoing collection of evidence and its use in
making judgments about students’ demonstrations of learning outcomes. (An
Outcomes Approach to Assessment and Reporting, p5)
Assessment
is a key component of the Planning and Teaching cycle and is used to inform and
evaluate school curriculum programs. Through a process of moderation and
benchmarking the whole school approach to literacy is monitored and reviewed.
Intensive
whole school monitoring of student outcomes provides teachers and administrators
with information to track an individual learner’s literacy achievement. This
is done by -
·
Year level
assessment plans which highlight formal and informal assessment procedures to be
used across the year level
·
Collecting
and moderating writing samples incorporating core genre embedded in the Units of
Excellence and linked to a range of learning outcomes. Protocols are used to
support this process.
·
Mapping
of students on the developmental continuum in years 1-7 for writing recorded on
Kidmap
·
Mapping
of students years 1 – 3 on developmental continuum for reading, writing and
number
·
Analysis
of Year 2 Net data
·
Levelled
reading program – years 1 – 3 – running records – Terms 2 and 4
·
Analysis
of Year 3,5 and 7 test data
·
Use
of student portfolios to provide evidence of student development over time
These data sources
provide an overview whole school literacy trends. These trends allow the school
administration and the Literacy Focus Team to plan for learning and development,
intervention and extension programs at the school level.
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As
a school we recognise the importance of creating strong community partnerships
to enhance and improve literacy learning in the school.
We
are committed to –
·
Maintaining
ongoing partnerships with the tertiary sector to review and refine our literacy
practices within the broader framework of productive pedagogies and mentoring
(this is currently occurring with QUT)
·
Developing
and expanding our partnerships with other schools as part of the cross school
mentoring project
·
Ongoing
links with the First Steps and Stepping Out Programs (Western Australia) for
professional support for our whole school approach to literacy learning
·
Developing
and expanding our current partnerships with parents and the community through
Parent Education programs, Parent Involvement Program (PIP), training of school
based literacy tutors, home reading program, involving parents and the community
in class and whole school based culminating activities.
·
Partnerships
with community groups including our local retirement villages, other schools
within our area eg Siena College and its Community Service program.
·
Working
with other Agencies within our community eg Police and the Adopt-a-Cop program,
Fire Education, Life Education, Family, Youth and Community Affairs. These
partnerships are essential in maintaining the welfare of our students.
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The
school focus in 2002 is productive pedagogies and developing a process that
allows teachers to reflect upon and improve their pedagogical practices. This
focus is based on the development of a Mentoring model and is ongoing. This is
also supported by an ongoing model of learning and development.
Our
whole school approach is reflected in our Curriculum Framework. This framework
incorporates knowledge, skills and processes drawn from the Key Learning Areas.
The focus is on active investigation of our world. This is represented through
five curriculum organisers (worlds) which scaffold the progression of learning
form Preschool to year 7.
The
‘Worlds’ act as vertical chains upon which sequenced series of ‘Units of
Excellence’ are hooked. Each ‘Unit of excellence’ adds to the development
of the conceptual understandings of that ‘World’ as it unfolds from
Preschool to Year 7. Each year level has four Units to implement. These units
are reviewed and refined to ensure there is a match between curriculum and
pedagogical practices and the individual learning styles and needs of the
learner.
Chancellor’s
curriculum represents a sequence of planned and balanced learning experiences
designed to meet the current and future needs of our students. The framework is
underpinned by the cross curricular priorities of Literacy, Numeracy, Thinking,
Technology and Relationships.
Each
Unit of Excellence provides a real life or life like context in which learners
behave, feel, think and communicate in ways appropriate to the situation. The
Units are investigation based and students are actively engaged in authentic
language use. Learners are continually integrating the purpose, audience for,
mode and medium of communication.
The
school also provides the opportunities for extension and enrichment programs to
ensure that the needs of all students are met.
The
school has a commitment to enhancing pedagogical practices through our planning
processes. These processes allow teachers to work in teams with the Curriculum
Coordinator. This then provides the framework for an aligned whole school
approach to Learning and Development.
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At
Chancellor State School literacy intervention is an important component of the
teaching process. Intervention is
planned and mapped on a whole school basis. Whole school intervention is
coordinated by the School Special Needs Committee which meets on a weekly basis.
Intervention is embedded within the curriculum and involves a collaborative team
approach between the class teacher, administration, learning support team,
guidance officer, speech language pathologist, advisory visiting teachers, key
teacher, teacher aides, parents and students.
Student
literacy progress is tracked and monitored across the school using the continua
(KIDMAP), systemic data, school based assessment and the IEP (Individual
Education Plan) and the ISP (Individual Support Plan) process. The Appraisement
and Ascertainment procedures provide the framework for identifying and
responding to students with specific special needs. Students who are identified
as ‘at risk’ are referred to the Special Needs Committee. These referrals
can be made by teachers, parents or by students themselves.
Teachers
take ownership of the intervention process so that it is embedded within the
classroom program. There are whole
school proactive intervention programs that support the classroom programs.
These include ANSUA, perceptual motor programs, oracy, social skills, home
reading, technology links, THRASS,
buddy and extension programs. Our Support-A-Reader/Writer, small group and
individual intervention programs supplement these. Students also have the opportunity to engage in a range of co
curricular Lunch Action programs that support enrichment and extension.
Parent Education programs support parents in working with their children
and in providing a complementary program at home.
In
2003 our school will be coded for a Special Education Class which will increase
the level of access for students with ascertained needs to specialised support.
This coding will not affect the inclusive team approach that the school has
adopted to provision of a whole school approach to intervention.
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