Excellence Awards

25th April 2014 - Catch Up® Excellence Awards: Ysgol Hendre Special School - BRONZE award winner (Catch Up® Literacy)

Organisation: Ysgol Hendre Special School
Intervention: Catch Up® Literacy
Submitted by: Katherine Moyes

Background
Ysgol Hendre Residential Comprehensive Special School is part of a federation of three schools identified for pupils who have moderate learning difficulties. The criterion of admission is an IQ generally lower than 75. There are 108 pupils at present, presenting difficulties such as ASD, ADHD, emotional and behavioural difficulties in addition to more comprehensive literacy and numeracy difficulties. Generally, pupils are working at a level below NC Level 3. Teaching staff ratio is usually 1:10, with a classroom teaching assistant supporting teaching and learning.

At Key Stage 3, pupils are taught core subjects through a topic-based cross-curricular approach, together with discrete literacy and numeracy lessons daily, using the Rapid Reading Programme. Pupils are baseline tested on entry to Year 7 and twice a year thereafter using both NFER and Salford Reading tests.

Catch Up® Literacy, as a structured one-to-one literacy intervention, was chosen as the best means to support learners who were still presenting difficulties following whole school intervention.

Implementation
As of September 2012, an initial Catch Up® Literacy assessment and teaching intervention was offered and delivered to 10 suitable, targeted learners from Key Stages 3 and 4. Most learners were selected from those pupils who find it difficult to learn in group situations and some learners who were still presenting reading difficulties, or making limited progress, following previous whole school literacy intervention of a Rapid Reading programme.

Catch Up® Literacy has been successfully integrated throughout the school, as a focused Literacy infusion and a funded School Effectiveness and Deprivation Grant initiative. It has been allocated 40% timetabled individual teaching sessions with two trained Catch Up® Literacy staff; a teacher and an experienced HLTA. This includes a key person to deliver all aspects of the intervention.

The SEG funding has provided appropriate Catch Up® teaching provision and resources.

The effectiveness of the intervention has been supported and monitored by the Senior Management team, Governors, and Senco. There has been effective liaison with class teachers, who were also involved with the initial selection of individual learners. Parents and carers have been familiarised with the intervention through relevant Parent Link resources, parents’ evenings and regular information sharing communication.

The review and evaluation of the first year of Catch Up® Literacy intervention was used to determine the planning, delivery and management of a continuing programme of literacy intervention. Therefore, a further 10 learners have been considered and selected for the Catch Up® Literacy intervention, in consultation with the Literacy Coordinator and class teachers, and have been included in the programme this year. Assessment this month has shown they are already making successful progress already.

Case Study 1 - Catch Up® Literacy
Child A is 14 years old. He has previously had a Sp.L.D. assessment, however, it was decided his learning difficulties are inclusive of his overall moderate learning difficulties. He shows considerable additional social and emotional problems. He is generally a reluctant frustrated learner in a class situation.

Encouraging Child A to participate was difficult at first and he continued to still make the occasional refusal to attend sessions throughout the academic year. Overall, he responded well, showing improved confidence in his ability to attempt and achieve more challenging tasks. He has shown a significant improvement in his ability to transfer literacy skills gained across all subject areas.

A final assessment showed a ratio gain of 2.00, which exceeds the expectations of learners with Moderate Learning difficulties. His Statement of Education annual review reflected this literacy development.

At parents’ evening and in the review interview, both Child A and his parents requested a continuation of the intervention.

Aims
To nurture positive attitudes to learning in every pupil so that they may develop intellectually, emotionally, socially and physically.