Leading professional learning across cluster schools to develop the bilingualism of pupils. - Estyn

Leading professional learning across cluster schools to develop the bilingualism of pupils.

Effective Practice
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St David’s R.C. Jnr. & Inf. School

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Information about the school

St. David’s R.C. Primary School is an English-medium 3 -11 school in Cwmbran in Torfaen local authority. The school has a wide catchment area and serves families from the full socio-economic range. There are currently 217 pupils on roll, this includes 22 part time nursery children. The school is organised into 7 full time classes, 6 single age and one mixed age class.  

Nearly all pupils come from homes where English is the first language. Around 25% of pupils are eligible for free school meals. Around 5% of pupils have English as an additional language. The percentage of pupils with special educational needs is around 17%. The 3 year average rate of attendance is 95.5%. 

Context and background to the effective or innovative practice

The school has developed an approach to professional learning with a strong focus on the teaching and learning of Welsh language skills. In 2019 the Welsh lead successfully undertook a sabbatical programme to improve her knowledge and confidence to speak the Welsh language through the Cymraeg Mewn Blwyddyn programme. Upon completion of the programme the practitioner joined a night school programme over a two-year period, which consolidated existing skills and further expanded her capacity as a Welsh speaker. This provided a secure platform to enable her to upskill staff and pupils within the school and across the cluster in her role as Welsh Strategic Lead. 

Description of nature of strategy or activity

Developing bilingualism at St David’s  

  • An audit of staff skills identified a need for training to build the capacity of the team. Time was allocated on a weekly basis in professional learning meetings to introduce and revise language patterns in focused sessions. In addition, the ‘Brawddeg y Pythefnos’ was introduced for the staff, to extend their language patterns. This phrase ranged from commands to sentence patterns which can be applied across the curriculum and in all aspects of daily school life. QR codes displayed in classrooms and around the school were also a visible reference to support staff.  

  • In 2022, the Welsh lead embraced the opportunity for a further professional learning opportunity through the Welsh Government sabbatical programme. For two days a week the practitioner works in a local Welsh medium school to further develop her oracy skills and observe the range of pedagogies used to embed language patterns. 

  • These skills and pedagogies are then put into practice back at St. David’s. The Welsh lead introduces bilingual sentence patterns and phrases which are linked to the school topics and applied in all areas of learning. This approach has been key to further enhancing the bilingual learning, with language patterns being seamlessly applied across all areas of learning by staff and learners.   

What impact has this work had on provision and learners’ standards?

  • The capacity of staff to confidently use and apply their knowledge of Welsh language patterns and commands across the curriculum and in authentic, purposeful tasks has improved significantly. The bilingual nature of lessons is a strength across the school.   

  • Learners often use a combination of English and Welsh phrases in their work across the curriculum. Most pupils develop strong Welsh language skills and are confident and proud to be Welsh. 

  • The ‘Criw Cymraeg’ whole heartedly embrace their leadership roles and are central to highlighting and celebrating the use of spoken Welsh throughout the school. Pupils plan and deliver events for the school community such as ‘Caffi Cymraeg’ allowing them to utilise and showcase their Welsh language skills in authentic contexts. In addition, Welsh is promoted positively on the yard by using a portable music station for staff and pupils to enjoy a wide range of Welsh songs. The ‘Criw Cymraeg’ was successfully awarded the ‘Gwobr Arian’ in June 2022. 

How have you shared your good practice?

  • In 2020 the lead took on the role of Welsh Sabbatical Champion, sharing best practice with colleagues from across the region. In 2021 good practice was disseminated specifically to our Cluster schools through the role of Cluster lead.  

  • The Welsh lead met with colleagues at their schools to gain a detailed understanding of their current provision, strengths and areas that they identified needing development.  

  • This informed an action plan for bespoke support for teaching assistants tailored to the needs and requests for each school. The content of the training sessions ranged from the use of basic and incidental Welsh to Welsh in the outdoors and across the curriculum.  

  • The training was delivered using a range of pedagogies to upskill practitioners. A range of songs, rhymes and ‘total physical response’ (TPR) effectively supported the development of new phrases and sentence patterns. Each practitioner received a bank of materials and visuals to refer to in their own settings.   

  • Colleague feedback indicates that the bespoke training has improved their understanding of, and their confidence in using the Welsh language. It has also impacted positively in their settings by motivating other members of their team to use the bank of resources.  

  • The Welsh Lead continues to work with cluster Welsh leads to provide training materials to support professional learning within their schools.