Claire worked closely with six teachers to develop effective writing pedagogies, putting into practice the key strategies within the Support for Writing materials.
The role of the leading teacher within ECaW
The main role as an LT in ECaW is to support teacher knowledge in writing. Demonstrating effective practice, through modelling and discussion, in assessment, planning and teaching is a crucial element of the role. Working with Year 3/4 colleagues on a regular basis helps to build the confidence and experience of not only those colleagues but also those of the LT. My knowledge and understanding of the Primary Framework, APP and the effective use of guided writing has increased rapidly. This has also resulted in development across the whole school as I have been able to take back valuable information which has fed into CPD.
My main actions and activities
At the beginning of the year the initial meetings with each school were the priority. Getting to know the classteachers was crucial to start the ECaW journey together. Early classroom visits were extremely useful to gauge next steps with each teacher individually.
Building the professional relationship with the class teacher was as fundamental as reviewing and discussing current planning, teaching and assessment procedures.
Planning, arranging and delivering cluster meetings remained a main responsibility every term. I found the support materials provided for this a useful starting point when planning the meetings.
Attending review meetings and CPD events was useful in many ways. I was able to clarify to myself that I was ‘doing the right thing’. We were able to share our own experiences, receive updates and pass on valuable resources.
Impact on pupil attainment in my own school
All three tiers of the ECaW programme have made a positive impact in my own school, not just in the classes taking part but also across the school. The Support for Writing materials have been included in both planning and staff meetings in all year groups. Using the increased confidence of the class teachers involved in ECaW was beneficial. They were able to speak from experience about the use of these resources and show how they had worked in practice. This was a powerful way for class teachers to embed the ECaW strategies in other year groups. In Year 3, 79 per cent of children in the class made at least one sublevel progress in writing during the spring term and in Year 4, the figure was 75 per cent.
Impact on pupil attainment in my supported schools
There has been a noticeable development in all teachers’ practice, particularly in producing clearly defined planning. The use of Assessing Pupil Progress materials has been highly beneficial to the ECaW schools. Three of the Year 3/4 teachers in my cluster joined me in delivering a staff meeting on the use of APP and pupil writing targets. This clearly demonstrates their increased confidence and expertise and the collaborative relationships the three schools developed over the year.
Impact on my own professional development
My role as LT within ECaW has provided me with many opportunities. I have been able to work alongside colleagues in my own school in more detail regarding writing. Working as an LT has provided me with the chance to work in other schools with colleagues and report to members of senior leadership teams and headteachers. I have learnt to deal with circumstances which others find challenging by guiding and helping them to find solutions.
My role as literacy subject leader in my own school has also developed during this time. I have gained a wider range of skills and knowledge that I have been able to take back. I’ve used these skills to develop and expand on our current literacy development plans.
It has been an incredibly rewarding year and I look forward to continuing my role in ECaW next year.
The class teacher’s role within ECaW
With the LT I have been focusing on assessing writing and identifying the learning needs of the children. The LT introduced me to the pupil writing targets and these have been very useful in focusing the guided writing groups and identifying appropriate targets for the Individual Tuition Plans (ITPs).
My confidence in teaching literacy has increased substantially through this programme. I feel that planning is now more focused around children’s needs and their next steps. My guided writing sessions, in particular, are more effective as a result of the ECaW programme.
ECaW and the input from the LT have had a great impact on my own expertise, classroom practice and the children’s attainment in writing. I am more confident in planning and teaching and all the children are now more enthusiastic writers. It has also had a knock-on effect on other subjects, as I’m finding my confidence in assessing and planning writing has also led to further confidence and understanding across all subject areas.
Developing guided writing
Developing my teaching of guided writing has been a core part of the ECaW programme. I have always taught guided writing, but in the past it has simply been an extension of the whole-class lesson. Through ECaW I have developed a more focused approach towards guided writing sessions. With the LT, I have referred to examples in the pedagogy papers and the classroom examples in the Steps In Learning. These have given me ideas for teaching strategies within guided writing and supported my planning. I have also used the pupil writing targets to identify the appropriate focus for a series of guided writing sessions.
Impact of the Every Child a Writer Programme
My knowledge of writing levels, APP standards files and the Support for Writing materials has led to a greater awareness of level descriptions and what constitutes a level 2 or 3 writer. This has led to more effective planning and targeted intervention. I am now able to adapt my planning to meet the needs of children across all ability groups in my class.
The level of pupil writing in my class has improved greatly. Out of the 28 children in my class, 16 children have improved by two sublevels or more during the spring term. All children have improved by at least one sublevel. The overall percentage of children achieving a high level 2+ has gone from 18 per cent to 25 per cent across the spring term. I am expecting continued improvement across the summer term.
Because of the confidence and expertise I have gained through ECaW, I am able to lead the development of APP and writing across the school with my subject leader. I have shared the Support for Writing materials with colleagues and supported them to develop their planning – particularly in guided writing
Jo worked closely with six teachers to develop effective writing pedagogies, putting into practice the key strategies within the Support for Writing materials.
Initial thoughts and Experiences
On hearing about the ECaW programme, my immediate impression was that this was an exciting and positive step towards raising standards in writing. I recognised that children and colleagues within my own school would benefit from the opportunities that the programme provides. This enthusiasm was then transferred to the other schools in which I also had a supporting role.
My main actions and activities
At the first meeting, class tracking was analysed to review the progress of the whole class. We identified a group of underperforming children who were not making expected progress and would not achieve a high level 2 at the end of the year.
Gaps in AF3 (Organise and present whole texts effectively, sequencing and structuring information, ideas and events) and AF4 (Construct paragraphs and use cohesion within and between paragraphs) were common within the group. This linked to strand 10 of the Primary Literacy Framework: Text structure and organisation. From here we chose and set an appropriate pupil writing target – Demonstrate clear sections in different forms of writing.
Next the class teacher and I worked together to plan a three-week block of lessons around Unit 4 – Authors and letters, Using the teaching sequence and the Support for Writing materials from the Primary Framework.
On my next visit, we taught the guided writing sessions together. Overall, the session was successful in addressing the gaps in the children’s learning and the children made the expected progress.
After the joint teaching session, the class teacher and I met to review pupil progress and discuss the next steps in learning. It was agreed that the children would benefit by applying the skills learned within the guided writing session in other contexts and then move on to paragraphing.
Impact on Pupil Attainment in ECaW Classes in my own School
The overall impact of the ECaW programme has been very positive and successful in raising writing standards. Most children have made accelerated progress and are now on track to attain the level expected for their age. Of children in Year 3, 50 per cent have made one or more sublevels of progress in the spring term alone and in Year 4 this number is 73 per cent. Additional progress is anticipated and expected in the summer term. Teachers are more confident in assessing their children’s attainment; gaps in children’s learning are now successfully being addressed and planning is more specific to children’s needs. Additionally, children who have received one-to-one tuition are able to transfer and apply skills taught in tuition sessions to whole-class literacy sessions and across the curriculum.
Professional Development
Being involved within the ECaW program has impacted hugely on my CPD. It has improved my subject knowledge and developed my awareness of effective writing pedagogies. I have more confidence in assessing children’s writing. I have also developed my leadership skills such as working with peers in a supportive, coaching role.
