School plan 2018-2020Old Bar Public School 2799

Printed on: 13 April, 2018Page 1 of 6 Old Bar Public School 2799 (2018-2020)

School background 2018–2020

School vision statement School context School planning process

To deliver transformational educational programswhich promote and foster the holistic development andwellbeing of students, staff and community. 

 'An Ocean of Learning' is the perfect descriptor for aschool so closely associated with the sea.  At Old BarPublic School we have maintained the 'village' atmospherethat defines our school and community despite rapidgrowth and increasing student numbers.

In 2018, we have 21 mainstream classes and 1Multicategorical facility catering for a student population of530 including 11% identifying as indigenous.

A major upgrade of our school facilities is to commence in2018. This will provide additional, state–of–the–art learningspaces for 7 classes. In preparation, we are trialling flexible workspaces that will encourage staff and studentsto explore new ways of teaching and learning.

At Old Bar School we value  inclusivity, acceptanceof diversity and respectful, courteous behaviour. Our safe,supportive environment encourages responsivepartnerships with parents, carers and community.

At Old Bar Public School we believe that students are atthe centre of all decision making and that a strongfoundation in literacy and numeracy contributes to students'ability to learn, adapt and become responsible citizens.

Teaching and support staff maintain high expectations forall students. Our core values of Safety, Respect andEngagement are modelled and embedded in the dynamiclearning environment we have created. The involvement ofparents, carers and local community organisations providea valuable support network for our students. We are proudof producing students who excel in academic, sporting andcultural arenas.

As an identified 'Bump–It–Up' school, we have been able toforge strong links with similar schools and establisheffective learning networks. A measure against CESEtargets indicate an increase of students achieving in the topbands of NAPLAN from 19.4% (2015–2016) to 24.28%(2016–2017) indicating steady progress towards the2018–2019 target of 30%.

At Old Bar School opinions, ideas and critical feedback arevalued.

In planning for the educational needs of our schoolcommunity for the next 3 years, intensive, meaningfulcollaboration has taken place with all stakeholders.

Through the 'Tell Them From Me' surveys, students,parents and staff have indicated their ongoing commitmentto quality education delivered in a dynamic, meaningfulenvironment.

Staff has responded positively to the changing demands ofteaching and readily embrace new  techniques andstrategies aligned to current pedagogical thinking.

Collaborative leadership, personal creativity, innovationand professional learning are linked to school priorities andperformance goals. Quality teaching programs that includeauthentic, future focused learning experiences aresupportive of the cognitive, academic, social, physical andemotional wellbeing of our students. Our classrooms arehappy, productive workplaces.

Following external validation in 2017, we have been able touse the critical feedback to identify strengths and areas tobe developed. This is reflected in our assessment of schoolimprovement priorities against the School ExcellenceFramework. (SEF)

We continue to gather and analyse data for whole schoolplanning. This, combined with  strong collegial support,teacher reflection and feedback provides us with a clearfocus on future directions.

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School strategic directions 2018–2020

STRATEGICDIRECTION 1

Teaching for the Future

STRATEGICDIRECTION 2

Learning for the Future

STRATEGICDIRECTION 3

Wellbeing for the Future

Purpose:

To identify, understand and implement high qualityteaching practices using evidence–based strategies.

To systematically identify student achievement andprogress in order to evaluate and reflect on teachingeffectiveness and inform future directions.

Purpose:

To create an aspirational school culture where studentssucceed and thrive in a challenging, changing world.

To support teachers in understanding and implementingevidence–based, future focused teaching and learningpractices.

Purpose:

To develop an environment where students, their familiesand teachers understand and implement the behaviours,attitudes and expectations that enhance wellbeing and leadto improved student outcomes.

To develop students' capability to build meaningfulrelationships, recognise and respect diversity andcontribute to the wellbeing of the school community.

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Strategic Direction 1: Teaching for the Future

Purpose

To identify, understand and implement highquality teaching practices usingevidence–based strategies.

To systematically identify studentachievement and progress in order toevaluate and reflect on teachingeffectiveness and inform future directions.

Improvement Measures

The school will show substantial growthfrom Delivering to Sustaining and Growingagainst the SEF criteria in the TeachingDomain:  Effective classroom practice andData skills and use.

To increase the percentage of studentsachieving in the top 2  NAPLAN bands inyear 3 and year 5, to 30% for both readingand numeracy as per Bump–It–Up targetfor Old Bar School.

Strategic professional learning, alignedto school priorities, is reflected in teachers'Performance and Development Plans andindicate growth against the SchoolExcellence Framework in the Teachingdomain.

People

Leaders

Effective instructional leadership facilitatescontinuous improvement of teaching andlearning.

Staff

Engage in sequenced, strategicprofessional learning to enhancecapabilities in the areas of data analysis,explicit teaching and learning goals.

Actively engage in and contribute tointernal and external professional networksto broaden knowledge and improvelearning.

Students

Effectively develop their knowledge,understanding and skills in a wide range ofsituations, including real–worldapplications.  

Parents/Carers

Maintain respectful, collaborativerelationships with staff to gain insight intoschool priorities and evidence–basedapproaches to teaching and learning.

Processes

Classroom Practice:

Teachers are skilled at explicit teachingtechniques including the use of effectivequestioning and timely feedback tostudents.

Students are actively involved in assessingtheir own learning needs related to welldefined success criteria.

Data:

Teachers participate in professionallearning to effectively use  LearningProgressions as a tool to monitor and trackstudent progress and to inform teacherpractice.

Explicit assessment and systematiccollection and analysis of student data K–6drives teaching and learning.

Evaluation Plan

Old Bar School will collect evidence ofquality teaching practice including effectiveuse of data to evaluate staff and studentlearning. Data sources will include:

* System and internal student achievementdata

* Classroom observations

* Teacher reflection 

* Professional Learning records

Registration and evaluation ofmilestones will indicate key improvementsand determine 'next steps'.  

Practices and Products

Practices

Classroom Practice:

Teachers systematically plan lessons toinclude accommodations and adjustmentsto suit student needs as they arise.

Teachers provide students with timelyfeedback related to defined success criteriaand acknowledge student learning. 

Data:

Teachers collaborate in stage teams tomake consistent judgements about studentwork samples, share effective teachingpractices, monitor student learning anddesign explicit teaching programs tosupport and challenge students.

Teachers use data effectively to evaluatestudent understanding of lesson content.

Products

Whole school teaching and learningprograms show evidence of differentiationinformed by consistent assessment to trackstudent achievement and meaningful peercollaboration/ feedback on explicit teachingelements.

Improved student outcomes in literacy andnumeracy are a direct result of committedteachers identifying, understanding andimplementing explicit, evidence–basedteaching strategies.

The development of a whole schoolassessment framework  promotesconsistent judgement of student progressand achievement.

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Strategic Direction 2: Learning for the Future

Purpose

To create an aspirational school culturewhere students succeed and thrive in achallenging, changing world.

To support teachers in understanding andimplementing evidence–based, futurefocused teaching and learning practices.

Improvement Measures

To increase the number of teachers (from2018 baseline) incorporating effective useof technology in new, flexible learningspaces to promote the elements ofauthentic learning and transformativepedagogy.

To deliver teaching and learning programsthat describe expected student progressionin knowledge, understanding and skill andthe assessments that measure them. (SEF:Learning: Curriculum, Sustaining andGrowing)

To link all teacher professional learning toschool priorities and the AustralianProfessional Standards with a proportion ofteachers working towards attaining higherlevels of accomplishment. 

People

Leaders

Model authentic learning experiences,identify and provide relevant professionallearning opportunities and make availablefuture–focused resources allowing teachersto effectively deliver curriculum content.

Staff

Plan and design authentic learningexperiences to meet the learning needs ofall students enabling them to set andachieve their own learning goals.

Students

Students are active learners, confident indemonstrating self–directed learning skills,to achieve set learning goals according tosuccess criteria.

Parents/Carers

Support students and teachers in buildingproductive relationships and promoting ourschool vision to the wider community.

Processes

Authentic learning

Teachers engage in ongoing professionallearning to maintain currency of practiceinvolving effective use of technology tosupport future focused pedagogies.

Students create tangible, useful productsbased on real life tasks or simulated tasksthat provide them with opportunities toconnect directly with the real world.

Success Criteria

Teachers engage in professional discourseand collaborate to improve teaching andlearning across stage groups. This involvesincorporating learning intentions andstudent success criteria evidenced inteaching programs, classroom displays andpeer observations.

Evaluation Plan

Old Bar School will systematically collectevidence of quality teaching practiceincluding effective use of data to evaluatestaff and student learning. Data sources willinclude:

* Student work samples indicatingproficient, stage appropriate use oftechnology

* Classroom observations focused oncreative use of learning spaces, technologyand visual cues

* Teacher reflection and professionallearning records

* Registration and evaluation of milestones

Practices and Products

Practices

Authentic learning

Teachers support the authentic learningmodel by incorporating elements ofopen–ended enquiry, real world discourse,meaningful project work and sociallearning.

Teachers effectively integrate technologyinto their daily lessons and experiment withflexible learning spaces to enhancelearning and service delivery. 

Success Criteria

Teachers ensure that learning intentions– what students should know, understandand be able to do – will be articulatedclearly to students at the beginning of alesson or a series of lessons.  The successcriteria are defined and used to determinewhether, and how well, learners have metthe learning intentions. 

Products

An integrated approach to quality teaching,curriculum planning and delivery andassessment promotes learning excellenceand responsiveness in meeting the needsof all students.

(Evidence of) Authentic enquiry begins withthe learner's interest and experience tofacilitate knowledge construction.

(Evidence of) Well defined success criteria,created by the teacher, clearly describewhat the students need to know andunderstand as a result of the teaching andlearning.

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Strategic Direction 3: Wellbeing for the Future

Purpose

To develop an environment wherestudents, their families and teachersunderstand and implement the behaviours,attitudes and expectations that enhancewellbeing and lead to improved studentoutcomes.

To develop students' capability to buildmeaningful relationships, recognise andrespect diversity and contribute to thewellbeing of the school community.

Improvement Measures

All teachers have a deep knowledge andunderstanding of the Department ofEducation 'Wellbeing Framework forSchools'.  Improvements in social capitalare mapped to indicate growth in studentengagement and wellbeing. (using 2018data as a baseline)

There is an increase in studentresilience and a reduction in the number ofnegative incidents recorded in EBS4.

People

Leaders

Leaders establish systemic processes toidentify and address the wellbeing needs ofstudents. This includes effective liaison withthe school counsellor and externalagencies.

Staff

Teaching and non–teaching staff developcapacity to target intervention programs toincrease student and communityawareness, engagement and belonging.

Students

Students demonstrate an understanding ofconnectedness and belonging througheffective strategies to increase personaland community wellbeing.

Parents/Carers

Parents collaborate with school staff todevelop individual student plans andwellbeing programs to support studentengagement and achievement.

Processes

Connection

Students, staff and parents engage ineffective, timely interactions to consideraspects contributing to wellbeing andprovide opportunities for all to connect,succeed and thrive in the wider schoolenvironment.

Wellbeing

A whole–school, comprehensive strategy isdeveloped to create an environment withclearly defined behavioural expectations.Students learn to become active learnersexercising self–regulation to maximisepersonal growth and developunderstandings, skills and character.

Evaluation Plan

Old Bar School will continue to collectevidence of student engagement againstthe Wellbeing element in the SchoolExcellence Framework. Data sources willinclude:

* Tell Them From Me Surveys

* Incident reports

* School Excellence Framework

* Quality Teaching Framework – codingscale for Connectedness

* Record of community involvement

Registration and evaluation of milestoneswill indicate key improvements anddetermine 'next steps'.  

Practices and Products

Practices

Connection

Teachers implement a wellbeing program,K–6, to  provide a 'common language' andpromote positive mental health.

Staff and students practise positiverelationships characterised by constructiveinteractions and meaningful feedback.

Wellbeing

School leaders use survey data (student,parent, teacher), focus group feedback andplayground/classroom observations tofocus on attributes and strengths to supportchildren to grow and learn from challengesand complexities.

Products

Old Bar School has a comprehensive andintegrated strategy to support the cognitive,emotional, physical, social and spiritualwellbeing of all students in a context ofquality teaching and learning. (WellbeingFramework for Schools)

Students at Old Bar School will display asense of connection, inclusion, respect forindividuality, resilience and empowerment.They will contribute to their school and thewider community with confidence to shapea positive future.

Students will contribute to their ownwellbeing, the wellbeing of their peers andthe collective wellbeing of their school andwider community.

Printed on: 13 April, 2018Page 6 of 6 Old Bar Public School 2799 (2018-2020)