VIEW FROM THE CLASSROOM
View from the classroom
N
ew evidence from the Social Mobility Commission Report has highlighted the
continuing relationship between pupils from low income families and lower attainment, especially amongst boys. In this month’s View from the classroom, we hear from Jon Clarke, Shadow Head Teacher at Walsall Academy, who tells us how his school is confronting and challenging the inevitability of low achievement.
Tell us about your school The catchment area of Walsall Academy is in many ways typical of the changing face of inner- city life in the 21st century. Traditionally a working class area of mainly white, British families, it is now very much a multi-cultural area. What has stayed much the same is that Walsall continues to be an area of mass deprivation with all the attendant issues that this involves. Since I joined the school thirteen years ago, I have seen many changes, not least that we have gone from
an Ofsted ‘failing school’ to one that is rated ‘good with mostly outstanding features’. While we’re not resting on our laurels, we have come a long way and we are the only school in Walsall with positive progress 8 score for disadvantaged pupils. Our school operates a broad practice
curriculum. We have longer days than other schools and longer lesson slots than the usual 1 or 2 hours. We consider these longer periods to be excellent preparation for students entering the workplace as they allow for deeper and more innovative learning. We believe this way of organising school fosters active and independent learning and ties in with the employability skills of critical thinking and problem solving.
What key points did you take from the Commission’s report? The Social Mobility Commission Report 2017 illuminates the extent to which pupils from low- income families fall behind academically in the years after leaving primary school. It shows, through extensive review of relevant research and a number of case studies, that “the gap between low income pupils’ attainment at the end of primary school and the end of secondary school has widened; since 2012 low income pupils have been making less progress year on year compared to their more affluent peers.”* I suspect this may come as no surprise to my
teaching peers, but the report looks at the many reasons why this continues to be a cause for concern and makes recommendations to deal with it. Moreover, for me it rings a number of bells, because the report points out that boys are more likely to be affected by the ‘progress gap’ than girls and this is something that we have been aware of and are seeking to address in our school. Most teachers are aware that nationally boys perform as well as girls at Key Stage 2, but tend to dip by Key Stage 4, so it’s an issue with which many schools are grappling. The main thrust of the report is that even
children who are clearly bright and capable, and who outperform their peers at primary school are likely to fall behind in the years leading up to GCSEs if they are from low-income backgrounds. Even when it seems that education is performing a transformation for low-income pupils, much of this early promise is wiped out at secondary school. This widening gap affects low-income
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children in general, but boys more than girls and white boys more than any other group. Boys from ethnic backgrounds often actually do better than white boys and there is a positive effect on attainment for those pupils who live in London. Nonetheless, it is unarguable that our education system is failing large numbers of children who already have to cope with more disadvantages than their peers.
What are some of the factors behind the progress gap? A wide variety of factors appear to account for the lower secondary school attainment of low- income pupils. Broadly, they can be categorised as school-related, home-related and child-related. These factors are complex and include the extent to which parents are engaged with their children’s education, strategies undertaken by schools and the particular needs of individual pupils, such as SEN or looked-after children. The report argues that school culture is an incredibly important factor in helping or hindering pupils as low-income pupils are most likely to do better in secondary schools that focus very carefully on their progress, in terms of setting and sharing high expectations for their pupils. The use of data can be invaluable too in tracking progress, while being able to recruit highly skilled teachers who have a strong belief in the potential capability of low-income pupils is seen by the report as crucial. This is especially the case given the large proportion of low-income pupils identified with SEN, who need specialist support. However, the report is quick to point to the resource pressures schools are up against, and acknowledges that there is no easy solution, though it makes a number of policy recommendations. So, what is possible at school level?
How can practitioners address these challenges? I have been teaching in urban and inner city schools for over 23 years. I was involved in the Assessment for Learning strand of the National Strategy in the UK in early 2000s, and then became a Senior Manager in the first Academy in the UK developing the use of innovative curriculum design and open plan learning. My role now as Shadow Head Teacher at Walsall Academy allows me to have a strategic role in the development of pedagogies and practices,
April 2017
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