Report for Parents of Children's Performance in Optional tests and Y6 SATs - May 2006

Introduction
This report is for parents’ information. It is a summary of a detailed report presented to governors and staff in September 2006. The first section deals with performance in years 3-5. The children are tested using government tests that are recommended for each year group. Tests give teachers a national curriculum level. This is compared to levels achieved in previous years’ tests. The difference allows us to measure the progress made by each child.

Section 1 - Progress in years 3 - 5

Children’s progress is measured in Writing, Reading and Maths. Next year we will be able to report also on progress in Science. The tables below show the percentage of children in years 3-5 who made progress in the three areas.

Year 3

Percentage of children in year group who improved by one or more sub-levels.
Writing 79
Reading 85
Numeracy 74

Year 4

Percentage of children in year group who improved by one or more sub-levels.
Writing 91
Reading 86
Numeracy 74

Year 5

Percentage of children in year group who improved by one or more sub-levels.
Writing 92
Reading 90
Numeracy 72

What does the data tell us?

Looking at years 3-5 shows that performance in numeracy lags behind that in Reading and Writing. It shows that consistently three quarters of children made progress. This was the target set for each class.

Performance in Maths is consistently below that in Reading and Writing. This has led to a review of how we use strategies for less able children in Maths. Springboard is a national program which supports children whose performance is slightly below average. This is run in each class and maths group. Children are identified using tracking data which the school uses for each pupil. Wave 3 is a new government initiative which is aimed at children well below average who have significant gaps in their knowledge. This is currently being trialled in years 3 and 4. Children were again chosen by using data of their current performance.

Section 2 – Analysis of year 6 SATs

Overall performance

This graph compares information for 2005 and 2006. Level 5 performance data has been added.

The table shows the percentage of children in year 6 who made progress in Reading, writing and numeracy.

Percentage of children in year group who improved by one or more sub-levels.
Writing 71
Reading 95
Numeracy 95
71
95
95

What does this tell us?

Performance in numeracy improved by 1 percent overall with level 5s up by 4 percent. Science was the same at 97 percent with level fives down by 2 percent. English level fours were down by 14 percent and level fives by 19 percent. The drop in level 5 was expected and the level 5 target of 34 percent was achieved as were the level 4 and 5 targets in numeracy.

Reading scores stayed in line with 2005. However, writing scores fell back to their pre-2005 position. The table above shows writing performance is significantly below that of numeracy and reading. This is still above national and local levels. The improvement of writing across the school is a key area in the school’s improvement plan in 2006-7 and for schools locally and nationally.

Teachers are having extra training and children are being trained to write, focusing on elements of writing in different types (letters, reports, stories for example). They are being shown how to assess their own writing and that of others. This will lead to children suggesting how they can improve their own writing.

Conclusion

The data in this report has been used as part of the school’s self-review process. The issues of numeracy in years 3-5 and writing across the school are currently being addressed. If you would like to comment on this report please use our blog facility. If you would like any help with this report please contact Mr. Robertson or Mrs. Drake.

We welcome your comments.