blog

How do I know how well my child is doing at school?...

Thu, 23 Feb 2012 11:15:32 +0000

...a very good question that is so often badly answered. Or is it? Perhaps the question itself is ambiguous or at least has many different answers to it. I remember when I first taught at Eversfield some twenty odd years ago, and every term internal exams were taken in each subject. After percentages were awarded children were ranked, in order from first to last, so you could see how ‘well’ your child was doing...or not doing. How good was that? Well actually not at all. The exams were devised by each teacher, mainly based on memorising facts, the mark scheme was very simple and not all skills were measured. The results of the test taken on one day most definitely favoured some pupils above others and then comparison was made only against class mates. What so often happened was that the children placed at the lower end of the list formed a completely unrealistic self-opinion of failure and low ability, when compared with children from other schools they were actually high fliers! Quite often too, those who had good memories for facts did not have as strong analytical skills as some of the other pupils, but this was not used in reported exam results. Parent’s evenings were also based around exam performance as well of course behaviour and social interaction.

It was the way things were done and despite the inaccuracies some parents were satisfied, some were not. Some children actually got berated for not coming top of the class!

Now we have better methods that are more accurate and encompassing than single, one off exam performances made up by teachers during an evening’s prep. Standard Assessment Tests devised by the government were a beginning. They followed the expectations of the National Curriculum and sought to test children at the end of each key stage of their learning. Questions were carefully designed to test knowledge and skills in Maths, Reading, Writing and Science and new tests were developed each year. QCA developed these further so that there were similar test papers that could be used by schools at the end of each year group in the primary sector and not just at the end of each key stage. However, these were still one-off tests that relied on exam technique and performance on one day and like any exam have limited scope to test all skills and knowledge in an hour!

Here at Eversfield we still subject our children to exam style tests based on National Curriculum levels of attainment. Most of them will have to take such tests for entrance exams to independent senior schools or grammar schools in F6. Like all exams it is easier to ‘pass’ them through specific preparation which we do thoroughly as we get towards them. However, our SATs results are not submitted to be used statistically as, like more than 75% of independent prep schools, we believe that they are not good statistical comparators and should not be used in isolation as tools to judge pupil performance. So we now use a good deal of continual assessment to gather more accurate information on performance.

Continual assessment is a method of collecting information on pupils as they perform in the classroom at tasks, discussions, written work and other activities. Each lesson has a clear focus which identifies skills and knowledge that we want the children to learn and at the end judgements are made as to how well they have improved and at what level they are performing. We have indicators to help our judgements and record attainment during several lessons until we are sure that each child is secure in their knowledge. Teachers in core subjects will meet throughout the year to compare and moderate their judgements to ensure they are all accurate. This builds a skills and knowledge profile for each child and allows teachers to set targets to help each child progress. Individual, one-off tests are added to this process and expected levels of performance are determined. We are now devising systems so that we can share this information with the children which allows them to know what they need to do next in order to improve.

So how well is your child performing in school? There will be national curriculum levels for maths, reading and writing added to school reports based on all the assessments made throughout the year and targets sent home at Christmas, that the children themselves will review at Easter. Technology will soon be playing its part as we will be opening a Parent portal from the web-site where parents will be able to have secure access to data on their child’s progress and performance.

At parents evenings we hope to share some of the targets and skills we think your children should be working towards and discuss how they are improving their performance academically. We shall also discuss all the other important areas of a developing child, artistic, sporting and musical performance, playing skills, how they deal with problems, their strategies for coping, mixing and befriending and all other social skills that can be discussed.

How well is your child doing? If you are still not sure......just ask, but don’t expect an answer based upon the inaccuracies and limitations of a one-off test, we care more than that. - RY

Lent Term

Tue, 03 Jan 2012 17:08:59 +0000

Welcome back to a new year and the beginning of the Lent term. I hope that you all had a good Christmas and that you haven't broken your new year's resolution yet! This term starts with Form 6 pupils taking their entrance exams to various independent senior schools. I would like to wish the parents of those children good luck; the children do not need luck as their results are really down to how well they have revised and worked throughout the year. Which school they will be offered places at will also be determined by which academic institute will suit them best, to nurture them through their teenage years and help them on the road to GCSE's, IB's, A levels and higher education, if that is their direction.

As parents however, we worry and no amount of pacifying will prevent that concern. We want our children to succeed in the world and be prepared for good careers and a wealthy, healthy lifestyle. But we must not forget that everyone is not the same and might not take identical routes to success. Some children are very academic, some musical, some sporting or artistic, others have special characteristics. All of them will have a good, purposeful life if they make the right choices (for them) and have ambition, drive and support. We must help them by providing the guidance and help that they need, motivating and reassuring them to work their hardest and be pleased with whatever results that may bring. I know that they will all do their best in the entrance exams and will perform to their highest possible levels of attainment. -RY

Cotton Wool

Mon, 21 Nov 2011 13:03:47 +0000

Yes we all love our children and of course we want only the best for them. One of the sacrifices we have made is to spend thousands of hard earned pounds on their education, sending them to a school where they will get the best care, academic teaching and social and physical development in an environment of motivation and high expectations. In fact our concern for 'the best' for our children started well before schooling. But can we care too much? Can our ever increasing demands for excellence and well being surpass what is good and healthy?

There has been a noticeable change across the nation in parental attitude towards children that has grown over the last decade. No longer are children allowed to make mistakes, be involved in accidents, fail or not succeed in any way nor take risks, be disappointed or feel proud to congratulate winners that aren’t them. It’s a condition of children that is a direct result of the attitudes of their parents. I am worried that we are rearing a generation of children who will never be satisfied and will be greatly envious of others. A generation of children who will never feel achievement because somebody else will do it better than them and who will feel that life is unfair and that nobody believes in them. The practice of ‘wrapping our children up in cotton wool’ as the saying goes, is a process that stifles growth and life experiences that are essential to develop sturdy, resilient and confident members of society. There are huge swathes of parents who want their children to be the best, number one and supreme, whilst trying to protect them from any discomfort such as falling out with friends, harsh words, rough play, being chastised for poor behaviour, not being picked for the football team, being last in the queue, not liking the dinner provided, being told to change their habits or cut their hair….and so on.

How are our children to develop techniques to cope out in the real world? How will they grow into tough, confident individuals being able to take on those around them and plough successful furrows in business and life unless they are exposed to difficulties and problems and taught how to cope with them? Part of school life is dealing with social difficulties and disappointments. Although it is right and proper to prevent and address bullying, inappropriate behaviour and any child feeling unhappy, there are many times when it is equally correct to help a child deal with a situation rather than ‘solve’ it for them.

An essential part of coming to school is the education of sociability, learning to cope with life and all the problems and difficulties it throws at us. Learning to make friends, break friends and work with people we don’t necessarily enjoy being with. It is about learning to be second as well as first, losing and facing disappointment, watching others achieve higher than you and accepting that you are not always going to be the centre of attention. The more we can get all parents to see the value of ‘failure’ the more we will teach our children to face reality and build skills to allow them to learn from mistakes and experience. In turn, they will develop more resilience, become stronger and ultimately more successful and happy in life. - RY.

October

Tue, 11 Oct 2011 10:30:00 +0000

Where have all the blogs gone? Unfortunately I have not been near the website often enough so far this term. I hope I can make amends. The children our working hard and the routines are now back in place. The Autumn Term is always a great term for progress, with our children concentrating on forming good work habits and accelerating their learning. Thank-you for all the questionnaire replies. I have gleaned much from them. We will be issuing a summary for all parents to see. I hope you will have noticed some changes and additions to the school that have actually addressed some of the issues brought up.

As parents we always want to know how well our children are doing at school, both socially and academically. How do we know? When their books come home for prep, we have a look through at the standards of presentation and the comments from teacher's marking. We ask them 'what have you learnt today?'....not always receiving a coherent answer in return! We look at any National Curriculum levels and try to make sense of what they mean and we often can't help but try to compare them against other children in their year group or class. There is no substitute for talking to their teachers and this term we have a set of parent consultations to do just that. Although time is limited, due to the number of parents that have to be seen, it is an invaluable source of knowledge concerning your child's attainment, achievement, motivation and happiness. We have recognised this and so have increased the number of parents evenings this year rather than present a reduced written report at Christmas / Easter.

We have also improved our assessment methods so that we can get a more accurate and ongoing picture of the skills and attainment of pupils. Hopefully by this time next year you shall be able to access information about your children's performance via our website and parent portal. It will of course be secure and only visible to you.

We always want to know more about our children and their development and here at Eversfield we hope that we give you plenty of detail and information and that you are able to ask for more when needed. What extra information or methods of communicating would you like to see more of? - RY

Welcome to a New Term

Tue, 06 Sep 2011 22:33:54 +0000

Welcome to a new academic year. the weather has changed so suddenly and the summer holidays have come to an end. I hope you have all had some good times together as families and been kept busy. The best part of the summer months is the long hours of daylight.

We have been very busy during the close, making improvements to the school buildings. You will be pleased to know that we have upgraded the security by adding CCTV cameras and increasing the thumb print access points. Included in these is the Manor Road gate which will be permanently closed during the day, accessible only through thumbprint of selected and timed people. That will allow certain parents, especially Nursery parents to pick up their children without the need to keep the gates open. At busy drop off and pick up times at the beginning and end of day the gate will be left open as usual.

We have upgraded the computer system throughout school and added an interactive whiteboard to the music room. Flooring has been replaced in certain areas and the Upper School teaching block has been decorated along with lighting replacements. Anyone coming to the front offices will also see replacement doors and beautiful new school signs at the front, designed and provided by Mrs Tisdale a former parent. We have much to thank her for. The Denney toilets are also in the process of complete refurbishment. There are many other improvements that can be seen throughout the school.

I look forward to seeing you all during the week. - RY

Thank-you

Sat, 30 Jul 2011 13:07:49 +0000

The Thanksgiving service at the end of term was, as always, a very emotional day for leavers, parents, staff and me. It was a time when all the school can celebrate the achievements of all of the children, especially Form 6 boys and girls and what great achievements they have made. It was also a sad day for many as Form 6 children had their last tea back at the school and we all said our farewells. The next time we will see them will be when they return next Summer to compete for the Old Pupils' v Form 6 rounders match.

I must thank all parents and children who gave me gifts of thanks for the end of term. I certainly made a few clinking noises on my home! I have also received chocolates, ties, cuff-links and beautiful pens, so thank you very much indeed, they were received with great appreciation.

I suppose you may believe the school is now quiet. Well its actually a hive of activity. Plenty of decorating, renovating and new projects in process. In fact it looks all in a bit of a mess, but no doubt will be looking good upon return in September. All Active Sports are also very active during the months of July and August. As for me, I'm seeing many cricket grounds around the country as part of my job as parent!

I hope you are all having a good summer holiday and are managing to get away from it all somewhere for at least a short period of time, to recharge your batteries. - RY.

July!

Tue, 28 Jun 2011 13:03:33 +0000

What a marvellous Open Day we had. The weather favoured us and the sun shone down for most of the afternoon. The children really enjoyed being able to show you many of the activities and much of the work that they have been preparing throughout the year. I particularly enjoyed the swing band and the children singing. However, I'm sure the musical dustbins, bottles and brooms left a lasting memory. Many thanks to members of the ESA who spent many hours preparing for the fun and the activities staff too. A special thanks to the organising sub-committee and to our Head Boy, Sam who stepped in to cover pianist duties (I am glad to say that Miss Griggs is now well on the way to recovery).

So what's next? Well both Upper School and Lower School sports have been completed successfully and we are now beginning some of our transition activities. Parents' meetings are being held to introduce you to the routines and expectations in the next year group and our Form six are experiencing days out at their senior schools. The Upper School production will soon be upon us (I hope you have got your tickets!) followed by Swimming Sports and finally Thanksgiving Service.

It is a busy time for children, parents and staff so please do not hesitate to call us if you are unsure of any event or procedures. Take special notice of the Summer Planner that was sent at the beginning of half-term as everything should be covered in that publication.

Finally, please do take the time to complete the school questionnaire. You should have received one via e-mail but if not, please go to the password protected Parents' Page. - RY

Open Day

Fri, 17 Jun 2011 10:50:05 +0000

Today it was meant to be raining, but the sun is beginning to peep from behind the clouds. Normally this would make me happy but it does not. I would rather it rained heavily this afternoon not tomorrow!

Tomorrow is our annual Open Day and I hope as many families will come together to see much of the excellent work that the children have been achieving this year. It is a time to celebrate and acknowledge all of their efforts and to show off the school and your child to relatives and friends whom you bring along.

Traditionally this has always been a 'School day' and it is an expectation that ALL children from Reception to F6 attend. (However, there are always some genuine clashes that we understand when approached.) It is a lovely day where each child will have some work displayed either around the classrooms or on desks and an opportunity to browse. There will be demonstrations including swimming, karate and tap dance, chess challenges, art competitions and other activities including the well loved 'Family Challenge'. Proceedings will begin with the Lower School singing concert followed by a presentation to this year's charity 'Over the Wall' of monies raised by the children. You will be staggered by their success this year! Strawberries and cream will be served shortly afterwards and accompanied by the school swing band. Further musical entertainment shall continue during the day. Later in the afternoon the ESA have set up many activities for the children to let off some steam, including bouncy slides, games and of course food and drink.

Over the last few years we have had themed days and encouraged children to dress up accordingly. This year we are reverting to our more traditional approach and have directed that ll pupils will wear their school uniform. There will be no changing facilities at school and no opportunity for the children to swap clothes for the fun afternoon. Clothes lost everywhere wouldn't be a pretty sight and could be costly. However, if blazers need to be shed, then children can use their pegs as usual, and ties may be rolled up and put in pockets later.

If the weather is against us and the rains fall heavily we will have to compromise. Lower School singing will be in the gym which will not accommodate everyone. Therefore, it is probably fair if we restrict the audience to Lower School parents and allow everyone else to continue looking around the school. It will not be ideal, but the best of a bad situation. Perhaps we should all pray for fine weather and not sing in the shower when we get up in the morning. I'm sure we will all have a wonderful day. - RY

Charity Day

Fri, 10 Jun 2011 17:21:35 +0000

What a wonderful day Thursday was. Charity Day was like no other. This year the School Council arranged the whole of the activities including a cake sale, badges, all pupils in the school completing either a biathlon or triathlon, followed by a talent show for evening entertainment. I was mightily impressed with their ideas and how they organised themselves to take charge of each event. All the members that were involved deserve very special thanks and congratulations. Likewise the staff joined in admirably especially Mr Genders who enjoyed playing in the bouncy castle! A thank you also to the ESA parents who helped marshal the event on the field but refused a go at the hurdles. Eversfiedl's Got Talent evening saw some exceptionally good acts from very confident performers. It was much better than Simon Cowell's version. It was not only entertaining but great to see so much talent. This year the children have raised in excess of £8000, with more to come in before Saturday next. - RY

Web-site

Sun, 22 May 2011 23:45:21 +0000

Welcome to our new web-site. I hope you like it. New layouts, whether supermarkets, buildings or web-sites take a little while to get used to. There are some different approaches used in this web-site and I have no doubt that we will discover some problems or dislikes along the way. Please do reply with a comment to express your views or if you find any incorrect entries.

There are some links that are not yet live and are waiting for a lot of work from us before they are. For example the VLE links (virtual learning environment) will allow pupils to access learning material online and teachers will have access to mark and assess the work completed. We also hope that in the not too distant future parents will be able to access data personal to their child, including attendance, assessment and timetable information. All of this takes time and money to build. It is an exciting time for IT in the school and will improve communications and information available. I look forward to its development. - RY.

Never believe the gossip!

Thu, 05 May 2011 09:00:00 +0000

I’ve never really been enamoured with Shakespeare. As a child I could never understand the language that was used. I may as well have been reading or listening to Greek. When I was at school one of our literary studies was Julius Caesar. I did not fare well with my interpretations and analysis. So when I recently found myself in conversation with a friend who was extolling the virtues of the newly refurbished Stratford Theatre I wasn’t really convinced. My interpretation of a good play was not the same as theirs, but then my experiences had not been similar either. Another friend who was with us at the time relayed a story which was not so favourable. He had been in a seat where he could not get a clear view, had people coughing and sneezing all over him, thought that the acting was sub-standard and was totally bored.

What a good job I had the first conversation. If I had listened only to the second opinion I would have felt assured that my childhood reactions to Shakespeare were apt. Luckily for me, my daughter had just finished her modules on Othello and Macbeth, which prompted me to look at the web-site for the theatre. Low-and-behold Macbeth was playing at Easter. How else could I get a true reflection of Shakespeare and the Stratford Theatre without being persuaded one way or the other by gossip?

It proved to me that if you want to know the truth about anything you hear, go and find it out yourself, first hand.

The language was still a mystery to me, but having read the ’story’ in plain English prior to watching the performance, I was astounded at the magnificence of the acting. The passion and expression that each and every actor and actress relayed on a simple stage was more dramatic and moving than any Hollywood blockbuster could provide. The stage was mid-theatre and very effective. Most of all being so close to the action pulled you into each and every scene.

I left with knowledge. No longer did I have to rely on the views of others, I had found out for myself. The real atmosphere and experience allowed me to have a truly informed opinion. I enjoyed every minute and the theatre is lovely. I look forward to my next visit and maybe I have kindled an admiration for Shakespeare.

In life we are always bombarded by the gossip and interpretation of events from people around us. Some of the time we even ask for it. However, we cannot rely on the opinion of others and all too often we can pass on their obscure or discoloured views and in doing so distort them further. We run the risk of spreading inaccurate information or fueling other people’s gripes. We could even be slandering or undeservedly damaging a reputation without realising. Spreading rumours is dangerous and can cause other people upset or harm. Never believe the gossip. Find out for yourself. – RY

Summer Term

Tue, 03 May 2011 17:35:11 +0000

Welcome back for a stop-start summer term. I travelled with my family to London on Maundy Thursday just to spend some time in London to see the preparations for the Royal Wedding. Personally I think its quite exciting and look forward to the weekend. However, all the staggered return after Easter leaves us with a crowded summer term. I hope the weather remains in our favour as the outdoor activities that the children enjoy so much flourish.

Unfortunately over Easter we had an incident with our two mini-buses. There are lots of very interesting stories that I have heard, none of them too close to the truth. The incident happened in the dark of night and nobody saw anything, apart from me. The mini-buses caught fire and needed the assistance of the fire brigade to quell their enthusiasm. We are now looking at the possibility of replacements and installing some surveillance cameras for evening time.

The school continues to attract many new pupils throughout the year and our popularity is still strong. Inevitably we have some children who leave us at the end of every year. Not just Form 6 who move on to their senior school but also families that relocate due to their work or family circumstances. We are always sorry to see them go but it does open opportunities for others who wish to join our happy school. If you do know of friends or relatives who would be interested in our school please encourage them to enquire as there may be spaces in the year group they require. -RY

Results

Mon, 07 Mar 2011 14:35:42 +0000

I am so proud of our F6 pupils this year as they have managed to outshine even last year’s achievements. Not only have they recorded 23 scholarship offers between ten children, including Academic, Music, Choral, Sports and Art awards, but all of them have been offered places at excellent independent and grammar schools of their choice. I am delighted to have been passed comments from Headteachers of several senior schools expressing their praise and enthusiasm for the nature of our children. They have been impressed with their manner, confidence and sparkling personalities all of which encompass the values and aims for our children at Eversfield.

It is comforting for me to know that our efforts in maintaining a balanced and broad curriculum and offering as wide a field of opportunities has reaped reward. Can I publicly express my gratitude to the teaching staff for all their hard work in impartinhg their knowledge, empowering pupils with skills and for their encouragement and care with which they have supported every pupil throughout their time at school.

I wish I had come to school at Eversfield as a pupil. – RY.