Professor David Hopkins Chief Adviser on School Standards, DfES

1. Large Scale Reform in England –Towards a High Excellence, High Equity Education SystemRM Education in the Future ConferenceRenaissance Manchester Hotel, 2nd March 2005 Professor David HopkinsChief Adviser on School Standards, DfES

2. Brief History of Standards in Primary Schools 11 plus dominated Standards and Professional control "Formal" accountability "Informal" NLNS 2003 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010

3. Policies to Drive School Improvement Intervention in inverse proportion to success Ambitious Standards High Challenge High Support Devolved responsibility Accountability Access to best practice and quality professional development Good data and clear targets

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7. Distribution of Reading Achievement in 9-10 year olds in 2001 575 550 525 500 475 450 425 400 375 350 325 300 Italy Israel Belize Latvia Turkey France Kuwait Cyprus Greece Iceland Norway Sweden Hungary England Bulgaria Slovenia Germany Morocco Scotland Romania Lithuania Colombia Argentina Singapore Netherlands New Zealand United States Czech Republic Hong Kong SAR Slovak Republic Moldova, Rep of International Avg. Macedonia, Rep of Iran, Islamic Rep of Russian Federation Canada (Ontario,Quebec) Source: PIRLS 2001 International Report: IEA’s Study of Reading Literacy Achievement in Primary Schools

8. GCSE: Percentage of Pupils Achieving 5+A*-C Grades 54 52.9 51.6 52 50 49.2 50 47.9 48 Percentage 46.3 46 45.1 44 42 40 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 Year

9. Reducing Turnaround Times for Failing Schools

10. PISA 2001: Mean Score in Student Performance on the Combined Reading Literacy Scale Finland Canada New Zealand Australia Ireland Korea United Kingdom Japan Sweden Iceland Belgium Austria Norway France United States Denmark Switzerland Spain Czech Republic Italy Germany Hungary Poland Greece Portugal Luxembourg Mexico 300 320 340 360 380 400 420 440 460 480 500 520 540 560 Source: OECD, Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA)

11. National Performance at Key Stage 3 between 1995 - 2004 English Maths Science 90% 85% 85% 80% 80% 75% 73% 71% 70% 70% Percentage Achieving Level 5+ 68% 68% 67% 67% 67% 66% 66% 66% 65% 65% 65% 65% 64% 64% 62% 60% 60% 60% 59% 59% 57% 57% 57% 57% 57% 56% 56% 55% 55% 55% 50% 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 Prov.

12. The Attainment of FSM and Non-FSM Pupils Living in Rich, Moderate and Poor Areas and in Low and High FSM Schools 100% 90% 80% 77% Non-FSM Pupils in Wealthy 70% Achievers Area 60% Percentage Achieving 5+ A*-C 57% 50% Non-FSM Pupils in Moderate 50% Means Area 40% 39% 30% FSM Pupils in Hard Pressed Area 27% 20% 23% 10% 0% Low Deprivation Schools High Deprivation Schools (<= 5% FSM) (>35% FSM) Secondary School FSM band ‘Affluent’ Pupils ‘Deprived’ Pupils

13. Underperforming Schools - data for KS3-KS4 100% Underperforming Schools All Other Schools are those in the lowest 90% quartile value-added for Underperforming EITHER Capped Points Score OR 5 A*- C 80% Below 30% 5 A-C 70% 60% Actual 5A*C 50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0% 0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100% Estimated 5A*C (from Pupil KS3 Data, Gender and School FSM)

14. OFSTED OVERVIEW OF SECONDARY SCHOOLS

15. Towards a High Excellence, High Equity Education System 560 High excellence Low equity High excellence High equity Finland 540 U.K. Canada Korea Japan 520 U.S. Belgium 500 Switzerland Spain Germany Mean performance in reading literacy 480 Poland 460 Low excellence Low equity Low excellence High equity 440 420 60 80 100 120 140 • 200 – Variance (variance OECD as a whole = 100) Source: OECD (2001) Knowledge and Skills for Life

16. High Excellence, High Equity Achieving the High Excellence, High Equity System National Prescription Schools Leading Reform a b c Personalised Learning

17. In the drive for high equity and high excellence we need more emphasis on: • A focus on System Leadership • Personalisation of Teaching and Learning • The school as a personalised learning organisation • A New Relationship with Schools • Within School Variation • Networking and Collaboration

18. System Leadership If our goal is both ‘high equity and excellence’ then policy and practice has to focus on system improvement. This means that a school head or principal has to be almost as concerned about the success of other schools as he or she is about his or her own school. Sustained improvement of schools is not possible unless the whole system is moving forward.

19. What we know about effective school leadership • Leaders make a difference • No one way to lead • Leadership is differentiated (context matters) • Successful leaders are optimistic, positive, passionate • And person-centred • Leadership not headship • Leaders have a sense of direction and purpose • Leaders have high aspirations for the school • Leaders focus relentlessly on children’s achievements and progress

20. ‘Leadership for Learning’ - 10 propositions School leadership: must be purposeful, inclusive and values driven must embrace the distinctive and inclusive context of the school must promote an active view of learning must be instructionally focussed is a function that needs to be distributed throughout the school community must build capacity by developing the school as a learning community must be futures oriented and strategically driven must be developed through experiential and innovative methodologies must be served by a support and policy context that is coherent, systemic and implementation driven must be supported by ‘Agencies’ that lead the discourse around leadership for learning.

21. Adding Value to the Learning Journey I get to learn lots of interesting and different subjects I know what my learning objectives are and feel in control of my learning I can get a level 4 in English and Maths before I go to secondary school I know what good work looks like and can help myself to learn I know if I need extra help or to be challenged to do better I will get the right support My parents are involved with the school and I feel I belong here I can work well with and learn from many others as well as my teacher I know how I am being assessed and what I need to do to improve my work I can get the job that I want I enjoy using ICT and know how it can help my learning All these …. whatever my background, whatever my abilities, wherever I start from

22. The Five Components of Personalised Learning Assessment for Learning Inner Core Effective Teaching and Learning Curriculum Enrichment and Choice Personalising the School Experience Organising the School for Personalised Learning Beyond the Classroom “We need to engage parents and pupils in a partnership with professional teachers and support staff to deliver tailor made services – to embrace individual choice within as well as between schools and to make it meaningful through public sector reform that gives citizens voice and professional flexibility” (David Miliband, 18 May 2004)

23. POWERFUL LEARNING EXPERIENCES CURRICULUM ASSESSMENT FOR LEARNING TEACHING

24. The School as a Personalised Learning Organisation PMDU claim that a school effective at Personalised Learning focuses on: • Focus on leadership and management of teaching and learning • CPD including peer observation and coaching • Making full use of the Primary / KS3 Strategies • Focusing improvement activity on evidence of performance • Making use of workforce reforms and new technologies • Networks and collaboration to support school improvement

25. Enhancing Professional Development through Workforce Reform Workforce Reform is essentially about creating the conditions to deliver personalised learning: • Teachers freed to focus on teaching and learning (released from tasks that don’t require their expertise) • More professional support staff both in and outside the classroom (HLTAs, pastoral and business managers, cover supervisors) and the flexibility to deploy them • Teacher promotion based on classroom practice through ‘teaching and learning reviews’ • Cutting edge ICT to revolutionise curriculum delivery and streamline “back office” systems • Getting the culture right, willingness to re-examine existing models and working practices

26. KEY STAGE 3 STRATEGYLeadership and whole school improvement Assessment for learning Teaching &Learning Curriculum entitlement, choice, pathways Personalising the school experience Project 5 Whole school Cross-curricular Project 16 AfL All strands Project 6 Pedagogy & practice Project 15 2 year KS3 curriculum Project 12 Behaviour & attendance Project 13 Low Attainers pilot Consultants direct to priority schools (30%) Training & materials for all schools Consultancy, training & materials direct to all schools Consultancy and training materials direct to schools Self-study modules forall schools RD direct to pilot schools RDs and LEAs direct to pilot schools

27. New Relationship with Schools David Miliband, ex-Minister for Schools, in his North of England Speech, on 9th January 2004 said: “If we want to make personalised learning the defining feature of our education system then we need to develop a new, more focussed and purposeful relationship between the Department, LEAs and schools. • Strip out clutter and duplication • Align national and local priorities • Release greater local initiative and energy”

28. New Relationship with Schools • Accountability • Starts from school self-evaluation • Sharper, lighter inspection • Annual profile • Planning for improvement • 3 year funding • Bottom up targets • Single conversation on school’s future • Less chasing grants, bids • School Improvement Partners • Data and information • On-line ordering • Data collected once, used many times • Aligned data for school improvement

29. New Relationship with Schools Single Conversation • new School Standards Grant, combining most grants, from April 2006 • bottom-up targets • multi-year, academic year budgets from April 2006 • enables improvement planning and budgetary planning for the medium term Inputs Focus Outputs • school’s SEF • school’s development • plan • Exceptions report on • student attainment and • equity gaps • value for money • comparisons • Data on pupil attendance • Other data how well is the school performing? what are the key factors? what are the key priorities? how is school going to get there? head’s performance management • report to heads, GB,LEA • self assessment • priority and targets • action and support • agreed package of support inc engagement with other schools • recommendation on specialist schools resignation • advice to GB on HT appraisal

30. Analysis of variation of GCSE scores in 2004 Variation between LEAs (3%) Variation between schools within LEA (17%) Variation within schools (80%)

31. Why does this matter? • This degree of within school variation is a high figure by international standards – substantially greater than countries like Taiwan or Hong Kong • It is a major barrier to transforming standards • It makes collaboration between schools relatively superficial

32. The School as a Professional Learning Community • Build in time for collective inquiry • Collective inquiry creates the structural conditions for school improvement • Studying classroom practice increases the focus on student learning • Use the research on teaching and learning to improve school improvement efforts • By working in small groups the whole school staff can become a nurturing unit • Staff Development as inquiry provides synergy and enhanced student effects

33. School Improvement Teaching and Learning Personalised Learning System Wide Reform

34. Core Principles – System Wide Reform • Be based on clear values – a commitment to the success of every learner • Develop a system that is coherent for learners at every level • Build front-line capacity by developing power and resources to the local level • Establish an intelligent accountability framework • Strengthen diversity, collaboration and innovation • Develop local and regional capacity for professional support and challenge

35. Networks and Innovation Networks support educational innovation by: • Providing a focal point for the dissemination of good practice and the agents of knowledge creation, transfer and utilisation. • Keeping the focus on the core purposes of schooling in particular creating and sustaining a discourse on teaching and learning. • Enhancing the skill of teachers. • Building capacity for continuous improvement at the local level. • Ensuring that systems of pressure and support are integrated, not segmented. • Acting as a link between the centralised and decentralised policy initiatives.

36. Michael Fullan on Leadership ‘Leadership is to this decade what standards was to the nineteen nineties.’