An Roinn Oideachais agus Eolaíochta
Department of Education and Science
Subject Inspection of Science and Physics
REPORT
Glenamaddy Community School
Glenamaddy, County Galway
Roll number: 91514U
Date of inspection: 16 May 2006
Date of issue of report: 26 October 2006
This Subject Inspection report
Subject Provision and Whole School Support
Summary of Main Findings and Recommendations
Report on the Quality of Learning and Teaching in Science and Physics
This Subject Inspection report
This report has been written following a subject inspection in Glenamaddy Community School. It presents the findings of an evaluation of the quality of teaching and learning in Science and Physics 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. The board of management was given an opportunity to comment in writing on the findings and recommendations of the report, and the response of the board will be found in the appendix of this report.
Subject Provision and Whole School Support
Glenamaddy Community School, open since 2002, operates on two campuses with students being brought by bus between them. Science is a core subject on the school’s junior-cycle curriculum and classes are of mixed ability. Students choose their optional subjects for junior cycle on entry to the school. As part of the support for students in making these choices, parents meet the teachers before entry of their children to the school and an information booklet is provided by the school.
The range of Science subjects offered by the school is exceptionally broad considering its size. The school offers Biology, Physics, Chemistry, and Agricultural Science for senior cycle. Biology is the subject taken by most students with Agricultural Science also popular and Physics the least frequently-chosen subject with boys only taking it in sixth year at present. The school also has a Transition Year (TY) which includes a Science module and there are plans to include Science in the school’s Leaving Certificate Applied (LCA). The curriculum for the TY module includes components of Physics, Chemistry and Biology, and there is an emphasis on investigative activities and small group work. It is recommended that the Physics element of the TY Science module should be strengthened so as to provide TY students with an experience of Physics which might help them in gaining a better idea of the nature and applications of Physics before they make their subject choices. It may be necessary to increase the time allotted to the module to accommodate this change.
There are six teachers of Science in the school and a senior member of the team acts as department head. The time allocated to the teaching of Science at junior-cycle level and senior-cycle level is in line with syllabus recommendations with double class periods timetabled for each class. Transition year Science has two class periods each week.
While the school has two laboratories, one of these is in the former vocational school and it is used exclusively for Agricultural Science. Because of this all other Science classes share the laboratory in the former secondary school which is the principal school building. The school is awaiting the go-ahead for construction of a new school building which will include three laboratories. Sharing of one Science laboratory by so many Science classes demands close collaboration and co-operation among the Science teaching staff. Evidence of this teamwork was observed on the day of the inspection. Even with the existing level of co-operation the provision of adequate student practical work in the Sciences is a very difficult task. The laboratory is well maintained, has a preparation room, and there are displays of relevant material on the laboratory walls.
There are two computer rooms in the school, one of which is in the main school building and this is used mostly by the school’s PLC and LCA students. Access to it by Science classes is quite restricted. Science teachers reported that, along with management, they are currently examining the possibility of purchasing an interactive whiteboard for the laboratory. Now that the school is broadband-enabled the Science teachers are encouraged to begin to use ICT in teaching and learning in the school. The Science staff has access to overhead projectors, broadband, and a portable data projector. While there is no budget for the purchase of Science equipment and chemicals, funds are available on request, and co-ordination of the Science laboratory and stock-taking is a special duties post in the school. The Science department adheres to a strict ordering procedure and has a commendable procedure for keeping stock up to date through the use of a conveniently-located order book in the laboratory which teachers can use to note equipment or materials which need to be replaced. While the school is building up its stock of equipment and is severely constrained by the shortage of laboratory facilities, it is important that staff continue to strive to maximise the use of the current facilities for student experimental work.
It is board of management policy to promote continuing professional development for staff. The school makes funds available to teachers to become members of their professional associations and teachers regularly undertake continuing professional development. The school’s health and safety statement was reviewed two years ago and Science teachers were fully involved.
The teaching of Science is supported by a wide range of co-curricular and cross-curricular activities in the school. Students are brought on a range of Science-related outings such as trips to Galway-Mayo Institute of Technology and they participate in Science activities such as the Young Scientist Exhibition in Dublin on an annual basis. Projects displayed at the Young Scientist Exhibition in 2004, 2005, and 2006 were viewed. Students are also encouraged to participate in the Young Science Writers competition and have won various categories over the years. These efforts to actively promote Science in a co-curricular and cross-curricular way are recognised and highly commended.
There is an exceptional spirit of commitment by the Science staff to students in the school and also among the teaching team. In turn, students’ respect for the teachers was demonstrated by their behaviour and the rapport evident between teachers and students.
Planning and Preparation
School development planning in Glenamaddy Community School has developed to include the curricular areas and the Science department has drawn up a policy document in relation to Science. The policy document includes statements on the rationale and aims of Science in the school and refers to a common programme in first year. It also commits the Science teachers to encouraging as many students as are capable of it to take Higher Level Science. Teaching and learning of Science in Glenamaddy Community School is also supported by the school’s policies on homework and on learning support.
The Science teachers meet on a regular basis and have records of their meetings. As well as policies the departmental planning folder also includes syllabus documents, the Transition Year module, the laboratory timetable, the safety statement and a colour-coded inventory of chemicals. A common teaching resources folder was viewed. The programme for TY was planned together and Science staff also share assessment materials. The common Science programme in first year will be extended to second year from next year. The Science teachers are commended on the commitment that they have shown to planning together.
Teacher’s planning folders were examined and where best practice was in evidence documentation was thorough, feedback was provided to students, and in one case students were requested to evaluate the course as it was delivered. Records are kept of students’ assessment outcomes and attendance. All classes inspected were well prepared and the teaching materials and resources required were readily to hand.
Teaching and Learning
The topics being covered by the classes inspected were: light, composition of air, metals and non-metals, and the circulatory system. The classes were located in the laboratory or general classroom.
A variety of methodologies was in use in the classes observed, including teacher demonstrations, presentation and explanations by teachers, use of whiteboard, overhead projector, student worksheets, and a textbook. Questioning of students was a methodology used in all classes observed. Where questioning was most effective a variety of question types was used, questions were directed at individual students, and the teacher waited for the student’s answer. All classes were conducted in a relaxed manner and students participated effectively in the lessons.
All classes were well managed, with excellent student discipline, and rapport between students and teacher varied from good to excellent. All classes were conducted at a pace which was appropriate to the students and to the material being covered. The use of worksheets in two of the classes contributed to student involvement and where students were required to complete the worksheets together there was evidence of collaboration. However it was observed that in most of the classes observed the extent of the contributions from the teachers exceeded that required of students.
While there was evidence of appropriate involvement of students in practical work in Science and in Physics, none was observed on the day. The Science teachers in the school are collaborating well, as indicated earlier in this report, in maximising the use that can be made of the laboratory, as borne out by the records of student-based practical work seen in students’ practical notebooks. They are commended for this. The new school building, with its three new laboratories, will enable student experimental work to be readily accommodated. Science teachers are encouraged to commence planning together so as ensure that they make the fullest and most effective possible use of them.
Assessment and Achievement
Formal assessment in the school centres around the Christmas, end-of-year and mock examinations each year following which parents receive reports from the school on their children’s progress. This assessment is supplemented by ongoing informal assessment and feedback to students in Science classes and, in junior cycle, teachers collaborate in developing materials for assessment of topics in Science. Science staff is commended on this collaboration. Parent-teacher meetings for each class take place on an annual basis.
The school has a homework policy and also offers a homework club to some students with the support of County Galway Rural Development. This initiative is reflective of the concern shown at a whole-school level to maximise the achievement of students and which is reflected also the policy of the Science teachers on feedback to students on their homework. Evidence of this policy was seen during the inspection.
Students of Science in the school generally have notebooks for note taking in class, records of their practical work, and a third notebook or copy for homework. Where excellent practice was observed these were checked regularly and were well ordered. It is recommended that the role of these notebooks and records be clarified and that there would be a consistent policy followed by Science teachers in relation to their content, use made of them by students, and checking of them by teachers. The incorporation of credit for student practical work in formal school examinations should also be considered.
The decision as to the level at which students sit the Junior Certificate examination in Science is taken by students in consultation with their teachers. Teachers should continue to encourage students to take their Junior Certificate examination in Science at the highest possible level. This encouragement should also be supported with a greater emphasis on student activity and student-centred learning in all classes. As well as addressing the imbalance in the number of students choosing Physics at senior cycle through reviewing TY Science, teachers of Science should also review and if necessary increase the emphasis which they place on Physics in teaching Science at junior cycle level.
Summary of Main Findings and Recommendations
The following are the main strengths and areas for development identified in the evaluation:
- A strength of Science teaching in the school is the extent and quality of co-operation among the Science teachers in developing the TY programme, the first-year programme, and in sharing the laboratory to maximise the use that can be made of it for student-based learning.
- The strong emphasis on co-curricular activities in Science is of considerable benefit to students.
- The low number of students taking Physics as a senior-cycle subject level is a matter of some concern.
- While the extent of student activity in the classes observed varied, in general classes were teacher centred.
- The school’s board of management has a commendable policy on continuing professional development for staff.
As a means of building on these strengths and to address areas for development, the following key recommendations are made:
- The Science department in the school should further develop its work as a team in the area of planning, including planning for a greater emphasis on student activity in class, a greater incorporation of ICT into teaching and learning, the incorporation of credit for student practical work in formal school examinations, and developing policy and practice in relation to the role of students’ notebooks in Science classes in the school.
- The Science component of the Transition Year programme should be reviewed so as to provide a greater emphasis on the physical sciences with the aim of encouraging more students to choose Physics and Chemistry at senior cycle level.
A post-evaluation meeting was held with the teachers of Science and of Physics and the principal at the conclusion of the evaluation when the draft findings and recommendations of the evaluation were presented and discussed.
Appendix
School Response to the Report
Submitted by the Board of Management
Area 1: Observations on the content of the inspection report
The Board of Management wishes to thank the Department of Education and Science for the professional and fair manner in which the inspection was conducted. The Board welcomes the recognition in the report of the exceptional spirit of commitment by the Science staff to students in the school and also among the teaching team. The Board notes that classes were well managed and well prepared, with excellent student discipline, and good rapport between students and teacher. The Board also notes that the Science teachers are commended in the report on the commitment they have shown to planning together.
Area 2: Follow-up actions planned or undertaken since the completion of the inspection activity to implement the findings and recommendations of the inspection
- The Board notes that the Science department continues to develop cooperation in relation to a common programme at Junior level, including the incorporation of credit for student practical work in formal school examinations.
- In order to encourage a greater uptake of Physics at Senior level, the Senior Physics teacher will teach the Physics module in Transition Year and will also work with the other Science teachers in delivering the Physics content of the Junior Certificate curriculum.
- The Board will continue to support the incorporation of ICT into teaching and learning and plans are in place to achieve this.
- The Board will continue to support the Science department in its co-curricular and cross-curricular activities.