An Roinn Oideachais agus Eolaíochta
Department of Education and Science
Subject Inspection of Guidance
REPORT
Saint Mary’s Secondary School
Newport, County Tipperary
Roll number: 65400H
Date of inspection: 23 April 2007
Date of issue of report: 17 January 2008
Subject provision and whole school support
Summary of main findings and recommendations
Report on the Quality of Provision in Guidance
Subject inspection report
This report has been written following a subject inspection in St Mary’s Secondary School. It presents the findings of an evaluation of the quality of provision in Guidance and makes recommendations for the further development of Guidance in the school. The evaluation was conducted over one day during which the inspector visited classrooms, viewed guidance facilities, interacted with students, held discussions with teachers and reviewed school planning documentation. Following the evaluation visit, the inspector provided oral feedback on the outcomes of the evaluation to the principal and guidance counsellor. 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
St Mary’s is a secondary school under lay principalship in the trust of the Mercy Congregation. CEIST (Catholic Education, an Irish Schools’ Trust) will assume trusteeship once the legal and administrative processes leading to its establishment have been completed. The school is co-educational, with an enrolment of 362 students, 190 of whom are female and 172 are male. The school is situated on extensive grounds, part of which were used recently for a large extension to the buildings. The extension has blended successfully with the older building and is a light filled, spacious and tasteful addition to the school. Eleven or twelve, mainly rural, primary schools are the feeders of new students to St Mary’s. Some primary schools at the edge of the catchment area are also in, or close to, the catchment of recently established Limerick secondary schools. St Mary’s has experienced a degree of loss in consequence, and in addition to the general downward trend of the rural population of secondary-school-going age.
The school has an allocation of thirteen hours for Guidance. The allocation will remain at thirteen hours for the school year 2007-2008 on the basis of the enrolment in September 2006. The school also uses a further seven hours and thirty-five minutes out of the general allocation for guidance purposes and is highly commended for this. The hours are being used effectively in a wide variety of planned guidance activities at all levels. Classes are timetabled for one period of Guidance per week in third year, Transition Year, fifth year and sixth year. First years are timetabled for one period of Guidance per month under Personal Development. Such inputs into junior cycle classes are commended. The timetabling of the first year class concurrently with Religious Education allows for a team-teaching approach to these sessions. It is recommended that this opportunity for teachers to engage in joint initiatives in teaching might be explored where the timetable permits.
The school employs one full-time guidance counsellor whose time in school involves the use of the allocated hours but also of personal time in addition to those hours. Similarly, the guidance counsellor attends parent-teacher meetings, information sessions and other events outside of school hours. The school is a close-knit community in which informal communication is continuous and is guided by the effective leadership of the principal. This level of communication extends to the local community and is exemplified by the regular visits of and good rapport between local clergy and the school. A whole-school approach to Guidance and to student support is clearly in evidence. There is a consciousness of the interlinking nature of the school’s provision in this regard. A high level of co-operation exists between those involved in Guidance, management, Religious Education (RE) and chaplaincy, Social, Personal and Health Education (SPHE), and in provision for special educational needs. Year heads have multiple responsibilities, particularly in the management and care of students. Good communication through the student support or pastoral team ensures that issues are dealt with quickly and at the appropriate level of expertise. The pastoral team includes the principal, deputy principal, year heads, guidance counsellor and special education co-ordinator. It is recommended that, to further enhance communication with middle and senior management and for efficiency, the guidance counsellor attends meetings of the middle-management team. Considering the overlapping functions and personnel of both teams the pastoral team and middle-management team could perhaps be merged. It is clear from documentation seen and from contact with personnel that current links are strong and ongoing.
A good balance has been achieved in guidance inputs at all stages of student development. The guidance counsellor is involved in most processes from induction of students to tracking the destinations of students who have left school. Similarly, the balance between individual, small group and class work is very good and equitable.
Facilities for Guidance are excellent. The guidance suite comprises rooms in the new building which are wholly suited to the teaching, counselling and administrative functions of the guidance counsellor. The guidance office and counselling room is well equipped with information and communication technologies (ICT) including broadband access, printer, telephone and appropriate storage. A further enhancement of ICT access is the availability of the Facility administrative database in the guidance office through the school’s ICT network. A careers library is readily available to students and display boards throughout the building are well used for guidance purposes.
The timetable for Guidance is efficient and balanced and is devised following consultation between the guidance counsellor and the principal.
Evaluation of the guidance provision is carried out regularly and at a number of levels. Senior students are asked to evaluate the programme using a reflective diary. Suggestions made by students are used to improve the programme and are implemented as soon as practicable. At staff level, during occasional in-service training, roles are reviewed and the core value of student support is highlighted. Such inputs at all levels are commended.
Referral systems within the school and to external agencies are very good. Referrals to the guidance counsellor are by self referral by students and through the formal and informal systems of student support already mentioned. Referrals to outside agencies are generally managed by the principal in collaboration with the guidance counsellor and special education co-ordinator. It is reported by the principal and staff that these referrals are satisfactory and that a range of referral services, including the National Educational Psychological Service (NEPS), are used as the need arises.
The guidance counsellor is a member of the crisis response team. The roles of team members have been defined through experience of critical incidents and following a seminar organised recently by the Health Service Executive attended by the guidance counsellor and special education co-ordinator. The procedures for dealing with such incidents are being formalised and the process is indicative of the school’s commitment to good record keeping. The SPHE and RE co-ordinators also work closely with the guidance counsellor in planning for and arranging speakers for all year groups on topics such as road safety, substance use and the Samaritans.
Planning and preparation
The personal plan and programme of the guidance counsellor are very good. A draft whole-school guidance plan has been published and shows a strong awareness of the integral nature of Guidance in the support of students and of guidance planning in the overall school development plan. It is particularly noteworthy that the links with significant others in student support, such as the RE and special needs departments, are well referenced and clear. It is recommended that the Draft Guidance Framework published by the NCCA in January 2007 be taken into account in the preparation of future drafts of the plan. The Framework proposes a collaborative approach to Guidance and includes relevant inputs from a range of subject departments and personnel, particularly from SPHE and RE. Collaboration between those departments is already a strength of the guidance process in the school and is a further indication that the view of Guidance espoused is in keeping with best practice.
Meetings between staff and management are, generally, informal but some formality is observed in, for example, planning meetings and meetings of middle management. Some minimal level of formality is desirable and may be seen in the planning documents of the guidance department, which are excellent. It is recommended that this level of formality be applied to meetings such as those arranged between the guidance team and the special education team. The simple meeting-record template published by the School Development Planning Initiative (SDPI) is useful for this purpose.
A comprehensive programme of Guidance for all year groups is in place. The programme covers the major transitions from primary school to secondary school, from junior cycle to senior cycle and from secondary school to further training and work. The programme is developmental and collaborative and involves senior management, members of the SPHE, special education and RE teams and many other teachers as appropriate. First year classes are of mixed ability. Student preferences are given precedence insofar as possible in the choice of subjects and programmes. TY is optional, for example, and the scheme of subject choice for the Leaving Certificate examination is based on student preferences at the end of third year or TY. The guidance counsellor is the Leaving Certificate Vocational Programme (LCVP) co-ordinator and is timetabled with the class for one period per week. An information evening for parents is arranged annually to outline the choices available.
A noteworthy aspect of the interesting TY programme is the link which has been established with schools in Northern Ireland. The programme of activities includes visits in both directions and email communications with the partner schools throughout the year.
ICT is used extensively throughout the school and is used in guidance lessons as appropriate. Computers with broadband access are readily available to students in the ICT room and in the guidance office by arrangement with the guidance counsellor.
Ongoing contact between the guidance counsellor and members of senior and middle management ensures that issues related to curriculum planning are dealt with quickly and effectively.
The school, as an integral part of the local community, is welcoming of parent inputs. A parent council is active and is in close contact with the principal. Much of the direction and support of parents is given informally through social and telephone contacts. The guidance counsellor operates an open system of communication. Parents may make telephone contact or arrange appointments as the need arises. Formal information sessions for parents are arranged as already noted and the guidance counsellor attends all parent-teacher meetings. Guidance also features prominently in the school’s promotional video. It is school policy that the collaboration of parents is sought rapidly on the emergence of any issues with students.
Very strong links have been established between the school and the wider business community. Work experience is facilitated by employers and is reported by staff to be operating well. Links with locally based multinational companies have also benefited the school, particularly in the area of science. Staff members of one company, for example, visit first year classes over a ten week period and present information about the company, its products, the relevance of school subjects to its work and the vocational prospects in its general area of operations. The link also entails a visit by students to the company plant.
The facilitation by the school of the continuing professional development of the guidance counsellor is commended. The guidance counsellor is an active member of the Mid-West Branch of the Institute of Guidance Counsellors and participates in sessions of counselling supervision organised by the Institute.
Teaching and learning
The theme of the lesson observed was the financing of further and higher education through grants and scholarships. A group of sixth year students attended the lesson in the school’s computer room.
The lesson was well planned and managed. Materials were to hand, the computer system was in order and students were familiar with its operation. A roll call was taken at the outset. This was followed by a relaxation exercise. The exercise appeared to have a calming effect on students which lasted for the duration of the lesson. A verbal presentation was made which was interspersed with questions. The questions were appropriate to the material and to the level of student interest and ability. Students responded well to the use of the computer system and to broadband access. Various web pages were visited, including Qualifax and that of the local authorities responsible for grants and scholarships.
Students responded very well to directions and were attentive and engaged throughout the lesson.
The room layout facilitated movement between students and such movement was achieved calmly and without fuss. Students sought clarification and further direction during the lesson and this was given in a reassuring and encouraging manner. It is suggested that the formation of small groups of two or three students in a short exercise might be productive of further ideas and questions for discussion especially in the context of a group of students as compliant and attentive as this group.
Information given during the lesson was accurate and current and was enhanced by the commendable use of the internet. The lesson ended with words of encouragement, a summary of the material and an exhortation that students use the guidance resources of the school if in need of further support.
Assessment
A system of continuous assessment, with monthly class tests, is in place for first year classes. Progress is also monitored using the results of the AH2 test of reasoning administered by the guidance counsellor and of literacy and numeracy tests administered by the special education co-ordinator. These tests are administered to all incoming first year students and are also used as diagnostic instruments in the identification of students with difficulties in the areas of literacy and numeracy. It is suggested that consideration might be given to the use of a more recent test of general ability such as the Drumcondra Reasoning Test which has been designed for the Irish school-going population. The collaboration of the guidance and special education departments in testing and monitoring is commended.
The Differential Aptitude Tests are administered during third year. Test scores are reported to students during one-to-one interviews which are conducted as part of the third-year programme. The scores are used to inform student decisions regarding choices of programme, subject and subject level. It is noteworthy that parental involvement in the decision-making process is encouraged in a letter sent to all parents of third years and at parent information sessions organised by the school
Interest inventories such as the Rothwell-Miller Interest Blank and that associated with the online version of Qualifax are used during lessons in the senior cycle.
The initial destinations of students who have left school are tracked by the guidance counsellor.
The guidance-planning documentation has already been commended in this report. All other guidance documentation can be similarly commended. Student profiles, records of meetings with students and the subsequent actions taken have been maintained meticulously
Summary of main findings and recommendations
The following are the main strengths identified in the evaluation:
- Guidance provision at St Mary’s Secondary School is very good.
- Good communication at the school is based on a set of good relationships among staff.
- Collaborative practice across departments and among those involved in the support of students is the norm.
- Documentation of plans, programmes and of administrative detail is of a very high standard.
- The school is well maintained, bright and spacious.
- The leadership of management in bringing the school to its present levels of excellence in accordance with its mission as a Catholic secondary school is recognised.
As a means of building on these strengths the following key recommendations are made:
- It is recommended that the opportunity for teachers to engage in joint initiatives in teaching might be explored where the timetable permits.
- In keeping with existing good practice, it is recommended that a minimal level of formality be applied to meetings between, for example, the guidance team and the special education team.
- It is recommended that, to further enhance communication with middle and senior management, and for efficiency, the guidance counsellor attends meetings of the middle-management team or that, considering the overlapping functions and personnel of both teams the pastoral team and middle-management team be merged.
- It is recommended that the Draft Guidance Framework published by the NCCA in January 2007 be taken into account in the preparation of future drafts of the whole-school guidance plan.
Post-evaluation meetings were held with the guidance counsellor and with 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 of the school welcomes the report in its entirety. It is comprehensive and fair in all aspects
The inspection has been a positive and worthwhile experience for all involved.
Area 2: Follow-up actions planned or undertaken since the completion of the inspection activity to implement the findings and recommendations of the inspection
We welcome the recommendations and have already implemented some of them. Weekly recorded meetings now take place between the career guidance teacher and the learning support teacher. Also in the future, the Drumcondra Reasoning Test will be used as the means of measuring the general ability of incoming first year students.