An Roinn Oideachais agus Eolaíochta
Department of Education and Science
Subject Inspection
of
Social, Personal and Health Education (SPHE)
REPORT
Breifne College
Cootehill Road, Cavan
Roll number: 70380I
Date of inspection: 23 January 2008
Subject provision and whole school support
Summary of main findings and recommendations
Report on the Quality of Learning and Teaching in Social, Personal and Health Education (SPHE)
Subject inspection report
This report has been written following a subject inspection in Breifne College, conducted as part of a whole-school evaluation. It presents the findings of an evaluation of the quality of teaching and learning in Social, Personal and Health Education (SPHE) and makes recommendations for the further development of the teaching of this subject in the school. The evaluation was conducted over two days during which the inspector visited classrooms and observed teaching and learning. The inspector interacted with students and the teachers, examined students’ work, and had discussions with the teachers. The inspector reviewed school planning documentation and the teachers’ written preparation. Following the evaluation visit, the inspector provided oral feedback on the outcomes of the evaluation to the deputy principal and the subject teachers.
Subject provision and whole school support
There is good provision for Social, Personal and Health Education (SPHE) in the junior cycle in Breifne College. All junior cycle students are timetabled for the subject in line with the requirements of Circular Letter M11/03. The school reports that SPHE is an integral part of the pastoral care system. In the current school year, a core team of seven teachers delivers the subject to junior cycle students. Whilst a number of the teachers are experienced in the delivery of the subject, it is commendable that new members are encouraged to join the team, thus building capacity. During the evaluation, it was evident that very few of the teachers have had the opportunity to retain their class group from first year to the end of third year. While acknowledging the challenges of timetabling and given that there may always be some movement of teachers to and from the subject, it is recommended that every effort be made to ensure that teachers remain with the same class group through the full three-year cycle. This is important in terms of continuity for students. In senior cycle, Relationships and Sexuality Education (RSE) is currently taught as part of Religious Education.
Co-ordination of the subject is rotated on a voluntary basis and this is good practice in terms of sharing the workload and in providing all members of the team with the opportunity to assume a leadership role in the development of the subject. A minimum two-year term-of-office would allow sufficient time to develop in the role. The current co-ordinator, who was appointed at the beginning of this school year, acknowledged the support and guidance received from the former co-ordinator. It is very clear that the SPHE subject department is co-ordinated in a very committed, proactive and enthusiastic manner. It is most commendable that a list of aims to be achieved as part of the co-ordination duties in the current school year has been identified by the co-ordinator and these aims have been documented. The co-ordination of RSE is also part of the SPHE co-ordinator’s brief.
The teachers report that management is supportive of continuing professional development (CPD) and teachers are facilitated to attend the range of in-service offered by the SPHE Support Service.
A number of the teachers have completed the two-day Introductory Training, RSE training and a number of other focused training events provided by the Support Service. It is noted that the date and type of training received by each team member is documented in the subject department folder. This very good record-keeping provides evidence of a developmental approach to the expansion of teachers’ skills. In order to support teachers in the development of the experiential and participative methodologies that are essential for the successful implementation of SPHE, it is recommended that the ongoing monitoring and review of teachers’ CPD needs should be incorporated into subject development planning.
The SPHE notice board in the mall area of the school is a recent development. It is a useful means of displaying subject-specific material for the benefit of all students. It is very positive to note that good links have between established between SPHE and Guidance and between SPHE and a number of subjects such as Science, Home Economics and Physical Education. It is suggested that the potential benefits of the links between SPHE and Home Economics should be further explored. Commendably, a range of activities, some of which involve outside agencies, that supports the work of SPHE in the classroom is clearly documented. It is also noted that a number of teachers are involved in initiatives such as the Cool School Programme and the task group for the development of a healthy eating policy.
Planning and preparation
Management facilitates meetings of the SPHE team at least once per term. It is good practice that meetings are minuted and copies of the minutes were available during the evaluation. Due to the fact that the SPHE teachers are timetabled for at least one other subject, management reports on the challenges involved in providing dedicated time for planning for the SPHE team. While it is important that some meetings of the full team take place, consideration should also be given to arranging for teachers of SPHE to convene in their year groups on occasions throughout the year to facilitate ongoing planning and review. The use of non-teaching time should be useful in this regard.
The SPHE department has made very good progress in subject planning. A subject department plan has been developed using the templates provided by the School Development Planning Initiative. It is good to note that the plan has been tailored for SPHE in Breifne College. It includes details on the organisation, planning and delivery of the subject in the school.
A very significant and successful part of the planning process has been the development of the school’s SPHE programme for junior cycle. The programme which is based on the Junior Cycle SPHE Curriculum Framework is developmental and coherent and provides a very clear outline of the work to be completed in each of the three years of junior cycle. For each term, the programme documents the modules to be covered and commendably, each module is further divided into well-chosen topics. Learning outcomes, as well as suggested methodologies and resources, are also incorporated. Opportunities have been included to revisit modules as required.
As a further measure to support the team, the co-ordinator has developed a subject handbook for the teachers. This document includes general information on the organisation of SPHE in the school as well as useful contacts, resources and the school’s SPHE programme as outlined in the previous paragraph. It also includes copies of planning templates that teachers could use for planning on a termly and a week-by-week basis.
Individual teachers also presented some good planning documents as well as records of work completed to date with individual class groups. Each teacher is encouraged to tailor the school’s SPHE programme to meet the needs of his or her own class group. In this regard, teachers should not deviate significantly from the agreed list of topics for each year group. This is particularly important given that most classes have a different SPHE teacher in each of the three years.
It was reported during the evaluation that the co-ordinator is monitoring the SPHE programme with a view to reviewing it in the near future. It is recommended that the whole team should be involved in the review. This process could be informed by ongoing reflection on the part of teachers. The recording of teachers’ reflective comments at the end of lessons or modules should be considered. It is recommended that the views of parents and students should also be sought in the review of the school’s SPHE programme.
RSE is delivered to junior cycle students as one of the ten modules in SPHE and the content is clearly documented. It is recommended that the senior cycle RSE programme should be further developed in a similar style to the junior cycle RSE programme by agreeing and documenting the learning outcomes for each topic. The senior cycle programme should build on the work in junior cycle to ensure that there is a coherent and developmental approach to the planning and implementation of RSE from first year through to fifth year. The school’s RSE policy was reviewed and updated in April 2007. At the next stage of review, it is suggested that the support materials and the policy template for RSE that are available on the website of the Department of Education and Science (www.education.ie) might be useful in the process.
The expansion of the current bank of resources is a priority for the SPHE team in the current year. All of the resources available to date are stored systematically in a press in the learning support office, so that all members of the team can access them. Many of the teachers have also filed a variety of resources, for example, worksheets, case studies and handouts that are particular to individual topics. It is good to note that the sharing of resources has begun as part of subject planning and this is commended.
An exciting development is the fact that the electronic versions of the subject plan and the SPHE programme are stored in the SPHE folder on the school’s e-portal site. A number of sub-folders also store a range of other materials, resources and some examples of lessons for SPHE. During the evaluation, the inspector had the opportunity to view this facility which should prove useful and is easily accessible for all of the SPHE team.
Teaching and learning
Short-term planning for all lessons was generally good. Careful attention to short-term planning resulted in lessons that had a clear purpose, were well structured and delivered at an appropriate pace. All teachers alerted students to the topic of the lesson at the outset and in almost all cases, they set the scene by recapping on the previous week’s work. Similarly, lessons concluded by summarising the key points and by referring to the subsequent lesson. This good practice of setting the learning in context is particularly important in SPHE where lessons are delivered in one period per week. In keeping with the good practice outlined in the school’s written SPHE programme, it is recommended that teachers should always share the expected learning outcomes of the lesson with the students. This practice provides students with a focus for their learning.
Teachers used a variety of strategies in the lessons to support teaching and learning. In addition to teacher instruction, the whiteboard, textbook, charts and handouts, brainstorming, individual work, pair work, group work and discussion were used in lessons. Methodologies and teaching strategies were most successful when students were provided with opportunities to actively engage with the lessons. There was an excellent example of the active engagement of all students during a lesson on body image. This lesson demonstrated very good practice with regard to the choice, variety and the effective use of the methodologies. The lesson provided students with opportunities to acquire knowledge and understanding, balanced with time to explore, reflect on and discuss attitudes, behaviours and feelings. The facilitative style of the teacher resulted in the effective processing of feedback from the group discussions.
Another lesson on the theme of healthy eating began with a warm up. As students worked initially in pairs and then in groups of four it was clear that there was a developmental approach to the content of the lesson. As the teacher moved around the groups, the use of probing and challenging questions as well as the facilitative style of the teacher in processing the group work resulted in a good level of engagement with the learning process.
In a small number of cases, there was an over-emphasis on teacher input and the traditional style of teaching, where students remained passive for most of the lesson except when answering a question. There is scope for further development of the experiential learning methodologies that are recommended for SPHE. It is important to ensure that the process of learning is as important as the content. It is therefore recommended that the exploration and effective use of experiential and active learning methodologies be prioritised in the next phase of subject development planning for SPHE. In planning lessons, and particularly when choosing methodologies, it is good to be mindful of the overall aims of SPHE as outlined on page four of the Junior Cycle SPHE Curriculum Framework. These include the promotion of self-esteem and self-confidence, and the provision of opportunities for reflection and discussion. These aims should permeate all SPHE lessons. Teachers should consider the use of an appropriate icebreaker to energise students at the beginning of lessons. The layout of the furniture in the classroom is also an important consideration.
Further information and advice on methodologies for SPHE is available in the Guidelines for Teachers (pages 21-28) and from the SPHE Support Service. Consideration should be given to providing opportunities at SPHE planning meetings for teachers, who have particular competence in the experiential learning methodologies, to share experience and good practice with colleagues about the effective use of such methodologies in the classroom.
In all of the classes visited, there was a respectful, supportive and affirming atmosphere. This was characterised by a good rapport between students and their teachers. Classroom management was very good. Roll calls were taken and students were reminded of the ground rules which had been developed in order to establish and maintain a supportive learning atmosphere.
Assessment
Some opportunities were provided for assessment during lessons. These mainly took the form of oral questioning to check understanding and to allow students express opinions. Commendably, a few of the lessons observed provided students with good opportunities to reflect on the content of the lessons in terms of how they might apply what they had learned to their own lives.
In all of the SPHE classes a system has been developed for students to file and store personal materials from the lessons. This is good practice in terms of ensuring that students have a record of their work and achievement. It also provides for the safe storage of students’ work that might be of a personal nature. It is suggested that students should use the one folder for the duration of the three-year cycle and collate the materials over that period. This folder could then act as a useful resource for the assessment process throughout the junior cycle.
It is recommended that the subject department further explores the area of assessment in SPHE and that planning for the assessment of students’ progress be incorporated with planning for teaching and learning. In particular, the principles of assessment for learning and the areas of student reflection and self-assessment should be further developed. There is potential for students to use the materials in their SPHE folder as the basis for the development of a portfolio. Further information and advice on assessment in SPHE is available in the Guidelines for Teachers (pages 59-68) and from the SPHE Support Service. In addition teachers might also access the information on assessment for learning from the website of the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment (NCCA) at www.ncca.ie
Summary of main findings and recommendations
The following are the main strengths identified in the evaluation:
· There is good provision for SPHE in the junior cycle in Breifne College. The subject department is co-ordinated in a very committed, proactive and enthusiastic manner.
· Teachers are facilitated to attend the range of in-service offered by the SPHE Support Service.
· Good links have between established between SPHE and Guidance and between SPHE and a number of subjects such as Science, Home Economics and Physical Education.
· The SPHE department has made very good progress in subject planning. A very significant and successful part of the planning process has been the development of the school’s SPHE programme for junior
cycle.
· The electronic versions of the subject plan and the SPHE programme as well as a variety of other resources are stored in the SPHE folder on the school’s e-portal site.
· In the lessons observed, methodologies and teaching strategies were most successful when students were provided with opportunities to actively engage with the lessons.
· There was a respectful, supportive and affirming atmosphere present in the classrooms visited.
· A few lessons provided students with good opportunities to reflect on how they might apply the content of lessons to their own lives.
· Some opportunities were provided for assessment during lessons. A system has been developed for students to file and store personal materials from the lessons.
As a means of building on these strengths and to address areas for development, the following key recommendations are made:
· Every effort should be made to ensure that teachers remain with the same class group through the full three-year cycle.
· The senior cycle RSE programme should be further developed in a similar style to the junior cycle programme, by agreeing and documenting the learning outcomes for each topic.
· The views of students and parents should be sought in the review of the SPHE and RSE programmes.
· The expected learning outcomes of the lesson should always be shared with the students.
· The exploration and effective use of experiential learning methodologies should be prioritised in the next phase of subject development planning for SPHE.
· The subject department should further develop the area of assessment in SPHE. In particular, the principles of assessment for learning should be explored.
Post-evaluation meetings were held with the teachers of SPHE and with the deputy principal at the conclusion of the evaluation when the draft findings and recommendations of the evaluation were presented and discussed.