Continuing Professional Development in Basic Skills

The CPD Diploma in basic skills teaching in schools: a Neath teacher’s experience

A Basic Skills Agency (BSA) survey, conducted in 2004, revealed that amongst Welsh adults (aged 16-65) 25% had literacy skills and 53% had numeracy skills below Level 1. This adds to research on the circle of disadvantage which can occur when learners fall behind at school, and fail to become securely literate and numerate by the time they leave.

The key aim of the Welsh Assembly Government’s Basic Skills Strategy for Wales ‘Words Talk – Numbers Count’ is to improve the literacy and numeracy skills of people within Wales. The CPD Diploma in basic skills teaching in schools supports this goal and seeks to ensure that needs are tackled at an early stage.

The CPD Diploma was developed by the Agency in partnership with two higher education institutes and six LEAs in Wales. It aims to help teachers develop strategies that will benefit pupils who have significant problems with literacy or numeracy, or both. These are pupils who are just outside any special educational needs classification. Their lack of confidence and poor achievement may cause them to become disruptive, or increasingly passive, and feel more excluded from the learning experiences of their peers. Teachers need the skills to engage these young people positively in learning.

So what is the experience of teachers faced with this situation? And what can the Diploma offer them, their school – and their pupils?

Jan Jewell is Assistant Headteacher at Dwr-y-Felin Comprehensive School in Neath Port Talbot LEA, and she has just completed the Diploma. She was one of the teachers in the first cohort, or as she puts it, ‘a guinea pig’! It took two years to complete all six modules, but on 13 July, Jan received her Diploma at a graduation ceremony.

When she embarked on the Diploma, Jan was a Head of Department at the school. She was encouraged by the Curriculum Deputy to take part in the trial run of the Diploma, as the school was concerned about pupils with poor literacy skills, and could see the value of concentrating efforts on them. As in many places, there was good provision for both special needs, and ‘Gifted and Talented’ pupils, but nothing for those in the middle who were not achieving. This was an area that needed work if the school was to succeed in gaining the Quality Mark.

Jan found the doing the Diploma a positive experience: ‘It was so enlightening, and it has changed my whole attitude to the way I deliver things – in an inclusive way, that helps all pupils.’

The biggest impact came from visits to primary classes, to see in practice some of the strategies that were being learned and that are often lost on transition to secondary school. Jan is a historian, and her focus on the course was to see how she could ensure that history lessons were meaningful for pupils with lower literacy levels. The impact of doing the Diploma has stretched across the History Department and across the County, as Jan was asked to talk to all secondary history teachers about the techniques she has acquired. Commenting on her experience, Jan says: ‘I’d encourage any secondary teacher, of any subject, to do the Diploma – it really fills a gap.’

Jan’s fellow-students on the Diploma also liked the model: in that it is school-based and relevant to current school issues. They liked being able to share and compare practice in different schools, and test out approaches. One reported: ‘I now take much more time writing questions, considering the language I use, and the length of questions.’

Teachers have also reported that pupils are more willing to take part in lessons and in planning work for themselves. One said: ‘I have changed the focus of my teaching because I have realised that the pupils are not accessing the information they need from their textbooks.’

Background information

The CPD Diploma was developed by the BSA in partnership with the North East Wales Institute of Higher Education and Swansea Institute of Higher Education. LEAs which provided supported and were involved include: Denbighshire, Flintshire, Neath Port Talbot, Swansea, Vale of Glamorgan and Wrexham. Teachers from these six LEAs took part in the first delivery of the training modules.

The modules are designed to engage the teachers in enquiry-based action learning, with a strong emphasis on applying ideas and theory in their day-to-day work in classrooms. Trainers model effective teaching strategies as they train, and encourage frank peer discussion to develop teachers as reflective practitioners. There is a strong emphasis on evaluation of impact on the learners, especially the target pupils. The commitment and support of at least one member of the school senior management team is needed to ensure the teachers’ learning is recognised and the findings are shared.

Contacts

Maggie Pearce, Regional Director, Wales Strategy, the Basic Skills Agency
Jan Jewell, Assistant Headteacher, Dwr-y-Felin School, Neath Port Talbot