An Roinn Oideachais agus Eolaíochta

 

Department of Education and Science

 

 

Subject Inspection of Science and Biology

REPORT

 

 

Presentation De La Salle College

Bagenalstown, County Carlow

Roll number: 61150N

 

 

Date of inspection: 27 November 2006

Date of issue of report: 21 June 2007

 

 

 

Subject inspection report

Subject provision and whole school support

Planning and preparation

Teaching and learning

Assessment

Summary of main findings and recommendations

 

 

 

 

 

Report on the Quality of Learning and Teaching in Science and Biology

 

 

Subject inspection report

 

This report has been written following a subject inspection in Presentation De La Salle College, conducted as part of a whole school evaluation. It presents the findings of an evaluation of the quality of teaching and learning in Science and Biology and makes recommendations for the further development of the teaching of this subject in the school. The evaluation was conducted over one day during which the inspector visited classrooms and observed teaching and learning. The inspector interacted with students and teachers, examined students’ work, and had discussions with the teachers. The inspector reviewed school planning documentation and teachers’ written preparation. Following the evaluation visit, the inspector provided oral feedback on the outcomes of the evaluation to the principal and subject teachers.

 

Subject provision and whole school support

 

Whole school support for the provision of Science in Presentation De La Salle College is strong. A wide range of Science subjects is available on the curriculum including; Science as a core subject for Junior Certificate, three Science modules in Transition Year (TY) and Leaving Certificate Biology, Physics and Chemistry. Biology is the most popular senior Science subject. In general, two classes of Biology, one class of Physics and one class of Chemistry are timetabled every year.  Both school management and the science department are commended for being able to sustain three senior science subjects with viable numbers on the curriculum.

 

Most students in this school avail of the TY programme during which they are given the opportunity to study each of the three scientific disciplines on a rotational basis, so that one term is dedicated to Biology. This allows students the valuable opportunity of sampling the subjects in senior cycle before making choices for Leaving Certificate.

 

The timetabling arrangements and time allocated for the subjects are very good. All class groups are scheduled for laboratory access for one double period per week and many other lessons are also held in a laboratory. There is a maximum of twenty-four students in Science and Biology classes. Good practice is also evident in the retention of the same teacher with class groups as they progress through junior and senior cycle.

 

A previous Subject Inspection in Science and Biology took place in 2003. One of the recommendations of that report was that the school would endeavour to increase the uptake of Biology at senior cycle and this has been successfully achieved and is commended. A strategic plan has been drawn up by the school’s science department for dealing with the recommendations made in that report. Many of the strategies devised are well advanced. This is to be commended.

 

There are three science laboratories in the school and these are well-maintained with good facilities. Two of the laboratories have direct access to the central preparation/storage area while the other laboratory, which is situated in a prefabricated unit, is connected via a short walkway. The preparation area is very well-organised and a valuable ‘resource box’ system has been developed by the science department allowing quick and easy access to material for practical work from each laboratory. Over the years, there has been ongoing development of laboratory equipment and facilities and both management and teachers are to be commended for this work.

 

Good attention is paid to matters of health and safety. Proper safety equipment is present in each laboratory. There is a separate locked chemical store adjacent to the preparation room and chemicals are segregated and stored according to best practice and health and safety guidelines. Laboratory rules for students are visibly displayed. The health and safety statement is reviewed annually during which the science teachers take an active role. The installation of emergency isolation switches should be completed as soon as possible in the outer laboratory. It is recommended that an application should be made under the Department’s Summer Works Scheme to install a modern pressurised gas supply system.

 

Close attention is paid to Continuous Professional Development (CPD) and this is supported by management. Most teachers in the school have attended inservice training in the revised Science and Biology syllabuses. However, not all teachers have received prior inservice in the revised Science syllabus and it is recommended, therefore, that the school would make contact with the Junior Science Support Service (JSSS) in this regard.

Planning and preparation

 

The planning process for the sciences is proactive with an active facilitator appointed on a rotating basis and effective system of communicating outcomes to management. There is a long established culture of subject department planning in this school; structured subject department meetings have taken place for the past ten years. Two department meetings are held each year. An agenda is set and a report is compiled on the outcome of all meetings. The facilitator then makes an appointment with the principal to discuss the report. In this way important matters are dealt with and followed through so that developmental work can take place for the enhancement of the sciences in the school. Items dealt with include: health and safety; syllabus implementation; resource acquisition; the enhancement of laboratory facilities and establishing common approaches to teaching and learning through yearly plans and assessments. There are also regular, informal contacts and co-operative work practices between the teachers of Science and Biology and ongoing sharing of newly acquired teaching resources.

 

Subject plans have been developed for each year in junior Science, TY Biology and senior Biology. The plans include a schedule of topics, prescribed practical work, a list of available resources and suggested teaching methodologies. The schedules are well structured and balanced and there is strong evidence of good progression with these in each class visited. Planning for ecology encompasses use of the school grassland areas for habitat study.

 

Planning in the sciences also includes explicit details of strategies currently employed in the school for mixed ability teaching and some advice from educational psychologists on teaching students with particular special educational needs (SEN). This is commended. Given the broad nature of the student cohort in the school, it is recommended that the science department would continually focus on these important areas during their meetings and that there would be an annual review and evaluation of the effectiveness and implementation of these strategies. Topic-specific resources could be developed for students with SEN, such as key-word handouts.

 

Planning for the sourcing and management of laboratory equipment is also to be commended. Management provides financial support for the provision of necessary materials on a needs basis. The school received an enhanced grant from the Department of Education and Science for the purchase of materials for the full implementation of the prescribed investigations in the revised junior Science syllabus. This grant has been fully utilised in purchasing class-sets of necessary apparatus for each of the prescribed student investigations. Ample resources for the completion of student practical work are readily available in the laboratory.

 

Planning for resources to support teaching and learning is given constant attention. The resources available include an overhead projector and white board in each laboratory and a portable television and video. There are many charts on the walls of the laboratories. However, many of these are faded or outdated and should be removed and more modern charts should be acquired. It is also suggested that some student work be displayed on the walls. Overhead transparencies, charts, text books, models and video, therefore, are the main resources used to illustrate scientific processes. There is scope for broadening the range through the introduction of worksheets and Information and Communication Technology (ICT) presentations. ICT facilities, however, are not part of the available resources for either Biology or Science. There is one data projector available in the school but it is difficult to source, and access to the computer room can be problematic. Consequently teachers do not use ICT presentations as part of everyday teaching and learning. Teachers, however, do recognise the importance and relevance of information technology and issue the students with a list of useful educational websites for research at home. It is recommended, therefore, that both Science and Biology teachers would prioritise the acquisition of modern ICT resources, including a computer and data projector. A wealth of useful visual and learning material is already available electronically, in particular the resources available on the websites of the support services for both Biology (www.bsstralee.ie) and Science (www.juniorscience.ie). Broadband internet services are available in the school as an additional support for lesson preparation.

 

Planning for Biology in TY includes a flavour of some Leaving Certificate topics and provision for some real-life applications of science in the Irish industrial context. However the range of learning opportunities planned could be extended as it currently relies heavily on two methods; whole-class teaching and discussion. Suggested alternative learning tools include: role-play; opportunities for students to develop research techniques through the preparation of projects and oral presentations; and arrangements for field trips and outings to national science events. It is also recommended that provision for assessment strategies would be included in the plan.

 

There was clear evidence of considered and effective planning for lessons. There was careful prior organisation of resources including materials for practical work. In some cases, lesson plans were used and the aims objectives were shared with the students at the start of the lessons.

 

Teaching and learning

 

Strong enthusiasm for the subject matter was expressed during lessons and a constructive learning environment was generated in all classes.  There were some excellent examples where praise and affirmation were constantly given and these were used effectively to encourage and reward participation, particularly by the boys in the class. Students were evidently secure in asking questions and in contributing to their lessons. The majority of students were very well-behaved but some students demonstrated challenging behaviour at times. However, this did not affect the progress of the lessons as excellent classroom management skills were demonstrated. The learning environment in classes was structured. Students were addressed individually by name and were constantly challenged throughout their lessons, teachers moved among the class group making good eye-contact and clear instruction was given at all times. Consequently, all lessons observed were interactive and productive.

 

It was observed that high expectations of work ethic are set for the students, particularly in the way that ‘learning’ is the most frequent form of homework assigned and students must learn the material covered during the lesson for the next class. Students of Science and Biology have a good attitude towards learning. They recognise their responsibility for their own learning and this is highly commended. Student copies show that much work has been completed and they have comprehensive notes with diagrams on each topic.

 

In general, the teaching and learning methodologies employed involved varying the activity often during the lesson so as to maintain student interest and there were many excellent examples where this was used effectively. In a limited number of cases, however, the same teaching method predominated for much of the lesson and this should be avoided.

 

Class groups are mixed-ability in nature and there is a wide range of abilities present in each class. There is strong commitment from teachers to maintaining this status quo and they work well with students in this setting. Teachers demonstrated strong awareness of individual student needs and capabilities. Teachers follow a common course with all class groups. During the final year of the course students are given the option of taking higher or ordinary level and are given advice on what is considered to be the best choice for them.

 

There was some good practice in the differentiation of teaching methods observed, so that students of all ability levels were engaged in learning. The most common of these practices was the use of questioning strategies that ensured the less able students had the opportunity to make a contribution and that the more able students were challenged with higher order questions. Repetition, reinforcement and recapping were constantly used and this undoubtedly benefited the less able student. All students demonstrated good learning and memory in their responses to questioning. Lesson development was good and the pace of learning was appropriate. There were some excellent examples where the students were challenged to think about their existing knowledge and experiences of a particular topic and this was then built on in the subsequent development of the concept. Lessons were conducted in stages and good time was allowed for summarising and for students to consolidate their learning. Time was also allowed for student note-taking during the lesson. Teachers used the opportunity provided by group or individual student work to monitor individual progress. In these ways strategies for mixed-ability teaching were successfully adopted.

 

Other strategies for mixed-ability teaching are listed in the planning documents but were not observed during the inspection. These include; paired learning, handouts, and a ‘five-minute reflective paper’ which encourages students to think about what they have learned and to realise what areas they need to improve (this is a technique adopted this year as an outcome of whole staff CPD). There is scope also for the use of worksheets and further emphasis on the use of key words to support those students with literacy difficulties.

 

Practical work, including ecology field work, forms a strong feature of learning in Science and Biology in this school. Records of all previous investigations are comprehensively presented and are supported by clear results and conclusions. However, there was some evidence that the work in the students laboratory notebooks was not their own and that they were written as dictated by the teacher. This should be avoided in future and a process whereby students are encouraged to write up laboratory records on their own, and are subsequently given constructive feedback on that work so that their report writing skills develop, should be facilitated with all classes.

 

For the most part the changes in emphasis and approach advocated by the revised syllabuses in Science and Biology were reflected in planning and in the methodologies used during lessons. However, there were also some examples where the approach taken in junior Science did not reflect the underlying principles of the revised syllabus; these examples were more prescriptive. While the activities were well-conducted, the students should be facilitated in observing phenomena and conducting simple practical tests that would stimulate thought or discussion. In addition, an investigative approach should have been taken to the practical activity. This would involve the student in following a logical pattern of questioning and decision-making that enables evidence to be gathered in a manner that is not pre-determined in either procedure or outcome. It is recommended that the science department would engage with the JSSS for school-based inservice. The investigative approach should be considered carefully when planning for all lessons in junior Science.

 

Assessment

 

Formative assessment methods, mainly questioning and the application of homework, are used to determine student understanding of the topic and this is commended. Homework in Science and Biology is regularly assigned and this may take the form of written work or learning material for the next lesson. Written homework is mainly given from the students’ text book and past examination papers are used infrequently. Homework is monitored daily, usually through a plenary session at the beginning of the lesson when students are given verbal feedback on their homework. Students also receive end-of-topic assessments and these are marked and graded according to a marking scheme but are not annotated. Given the wide range of abilities in each class group, it is recommended that the practice of giving written feedback to students on their written work and assessments would be more consistently applied as this would enable them to further develop and strengthen their own learning. There is also scope for expansion in the range of assessment instruments used to monitor student progress and this would benefit the range of learning styles in any class group. A broader range of assessment modes should be developed and this should be done in collaboration with all teachers of the subject during planning meetings.

 

Formal school-based assessments are scheduled at Christmas and summer. Parents receive reports twice per year on their child’s progress. Common assessments, based on the yearly plan, are administered to all class groups within a given year at summer. This is good practice as it ensures consistency and comparable standards across class groups. Record-keeping is very good. Teachers maintain records of attendance, behaviour and achievement in assessments.

 

Summary of main findings and recommendations

 

The following are the main strengths identified in the evaluation:

 

 

As a means of building on these strengths and to address areas for development, the following key recommendations are made:

 

 

Post-evaluation meetings were held with the teachers of Science and Biology and with the principal at the conclusion of the evaluation when the draft findings and recommendations of the evaluation were presented and discussed.