| West Dunbartonshire Council
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| Strategy |
- Focusing on creating a literacy environment, establishing
focused learning and teaching, actively promoting parental support and involvement and
improving educational achievement through:
- the appointment of a headteacher and 10 teachers
- a programme of planned intervention for children in pre-5,
P1 and P2
- staff development training, including supply cover and
associated costs
- assessment techniques
- monitoring and long term evaluation of the cumulative
effects
- parental involvement and support.
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| Ensuring the appropriate skills
and resources are available to enable children to gain the essential skills in listening,
reading and writing. Supporting staff through direct co-operative teaching, provision of
resources and staff development. |
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| Scope |
- Funding has made it possible for all pre-5 establishments
(21) and primary schools (35) to receive support in improving levels of achievement in
early literacy - 3700 children. The time allocation to each establishment is based on
social deprivation.
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| A staff development training
programme is ongoing for all staff. |
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| Achievements and emerging lessons
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| The authority is encouraged by
the widespread enthusiasm for the early intervention programme and the unanimous agreement
that raising standards in literacy must be a central priority for all involved in
education. All staff in West Dunbartonshire are vital to the success of the project. Their
commitment, ownership and declaration are major factors to achieving success. |
| Training of pre-5 staff and the
early intervention team in the Hanen Programme by speech and language therapists has been
extremely successful. This programme provides staff with the knowledge and support needed
to help children communicate and promote children’s social skills and early literacy.
Training in the Hanen programme will be ongoing. |
| Assessment techniques, staff
development and the deployment of the early intervention teachers to assist staff has
raised awareness of the need to: |
- increase the children’s experience and knowledge of
books, letters, rhyme and phonology
- provide a balanced approach to the teaching of reading
- target specific skills and provide a focused literacy
curriculum
- identity at the earliest opportunity, children likely to
have difficulties
- monitor individual progress and intervene where necessary
- deploy staff effectively
- raise expectations and standards of achievement.
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| Local Views |
| "I have seen a big
improvement in the achievement of the children with reading difficulties through the early
intervention programme and the combined work of school staff and early intervention
staff". Ann O’Hare, P1 Class teacher, St Kessog’s Primary School
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| "Early intervention is
an exciting initiative which has immediately raised all staff’s awareness of the need
to identify early children who have problems with literacy skills. Planned intervention
can then be put into place by both school staff and early intervention staff to raise
literacy standards". Marion Buchanan, Headteacher, Dalreoch Primary School
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| "The early intervention
programme has all staff motivated and committed to ensuring our children have the
necessary literacy skills. We are working towards a common goal - to raise levels of
achievement". Patricia Mellan, Assistant Headteacher, St Peter’s Primary
School and Nursery Class |
