Meetings:

PTA –  21st Feb, 2017 at 6.30 in the staffroom.

Parent Council – 27th Feb, 2017 at 6.00 in the staffroom.  There will be an afternoon meeting to discuss Cashless Lunches on 21st Feb – 1.30 pm.  House Captains will also attend this.

 

We have a very active Facebook page –

https://www.facebook.com/groups/FerryhillParentForum

Parents can communicate with both the Parent Council and PTA on this page as well as with each other.

 

You can view the Parent Council Constitution here.

You can view the P.T.A Constitution here

You can view the Homework Club Annual Report here

Parent Council Ferryhill School

Curriculum for Excellence

Background

Curriculum for Excellence came about after the National Debate which looked at what was wanted from our education system. Progression and breadth were  strengths in 5-14 but people wanted more creativity, pupil choice, relevance and depth of learning. Pupils needed to be taught skills for life and prepared for their future.

A UNICEF study had shown that our young people did not see their peers as helpful or supporting. We needed to teach children how cooperate with each other more. Collaborative working, problem solving together is a huge part of education, business and life. These ‘soft skills’ have been given a great focus in CfE. Pupil’s need to see relevance in what they do and be able to transfer and apply skills.

ICT, outdoor learning and financial education were also to be given higher priority.

One of the main pillars of the new curriculum is Health and Well Being as it has been recognised that physical, social and emotional health are key to the success of any individual or nation.

The national picture

A recent report tracking the implementation of CfE has highlighted that schools have particular strengths across Scotland in developing partnerships with other agencies and business.

Some areas for development were identified as : curriculum (particularly ensuring well paced progression in learning), attainment, self evaluation and P7 to S1 transition.

Assessment was found to be variable. Schools are not yet all using CfE Experiences and Outcomes for planning in all curricular areas though this is improving. Teachers are not yet confident in evidencing progression due to the vague and broad nature of the E’s and O’s.

Aberdeen City

There are some key issues being addressed by all schools in Aberdeen at the moment.

• Assessment and tracking- SMT in all schools have had training in using E1 to track pupil progress. Pupils will be tracked against the E’s and O’s using the levels and whether within those levels they are Developing, Consolidating or Secure. This will be valuable but requires a lot of work in schools on moderation and benchmarking. A greater emphasis is being put on PIPS data, some schools are using reading/ spelling tests to supplement this but these can be very expensive. INCAS are a very in depth diagnostic assessment tool which is being piloted in some schools at the moment and may be rolled out in the city.
• Literacy attainment- attainment in reading and writing across the city is a concern and the city have made the bold move of purchasing the North Lanarkshire Active Literacy resource for all schools. It will be launched with training over 2012/2013. This resource focuses on pedagogy and has been recommended by leading educators. This type of authority wide strategy is seen in many of the most successful authorities.

Ferryhill SchoolEnterprise (including performances) and business links have been a huge part of the curriculum here for years. This clearly includes collaborative skill, financial education and helps increase confidence. It also provides good links with parents.

SMT in Ferryhill have been researching Personal Learning Planning. They have looked at examples in other schools to try and come up with a system which is effective, valuable and manageable.

Ferryhill has piloted the Sue Ellis writing journals aimed to encourage ‘low risk’ writing, improve motivation to write and get children writing beyond school.