Lyndale Secondary College

1. Lyndale Secondary College Using data to inform sustainable literacy and numeracy practices in a multicultural secondary school setting.

2. Our investigation

3. The School Context • Lyndale Secondary College is in North Dandenong. • The student population is approximately 1200. • 48% of students speak a language other than English at home • Lyndale has a SFO of 0.6602 • High proportion of EMA (40%). • Around 30% of students were born overseas • Over 57 different countries are represented. • Dramatic increase in the number of refugees over the last five years, particularly from central and south Africa and Afghanistan.

4. The Challenges • Generational poverty. • Few pathways. • Complex language backgrounds. • Orally literate. • Reading comprehension and written literacy - struggle • ESL and Refugee Learners – interrupted or no schooling. • Creating and using flexible learning spaces and pedagogy. • Increasing the use of data to inform teaching practice.

5. College Practices • We have appointed Leading Teachers to address our Literacy and Numeracy concerns. • Additional staff for ESL, Language Support, Maths Recovery, Literacy and Numeracy Support. • Year 7 Literacy program run in Integrated Studies. • Year 7 Maths program (‘Boot Camp’). • Streaming ESL students since 2007 so they are taught by specialist ESL teachers in Integrated Studies and English. • PAT testing data available for all students. • PAT testing data used to inform Year 7 Literacy and Numeracy support programs. • Flexible Learning space – converting the gym into a flexible learning space. (to view gym please click here. To view the current Learning Centre please click here).

6. Team Objectives • Increasing staff awareness of literacy and numeracy data to inform teaching and learning practices. • Developing support for the ESL program. • Developing teacher capacity to deliver literacy beyond the Year 7 literacy program.

7. Why use data in the classroom? “Despite the evidence, and the fact that almost every other profession conducts most of its training in real -life settings (doctors and nurses in hospitals…lawyers in courtrooms, consultants with clients) very little teacher training takes place in the teacher’s own classrooms, the place in which it would be precise and relevant enough to be the most effective.” “How the worlds’ best-performing school systems come out on top”, McKinsey & Company, September, 2007

8. Why use data in the classroom? • the quality of an education system cannot exceed the quality of its teachers, • achieving universally high outcomes is only possible by putting in place mechanisms to ensure that schools deliver high-quality instruction to every child. • Using data can assist and complement what we already do. • Using data can help confirm what we already know. • Using data allows us to measure and track future directions.

9. What data is not… • It is NOT an assessment tool - helps inform judgments and teaching practice within the classroom, it should never be used to determine students’ marks. • It is NOT an indicator of intelligence. • It is NOT absolute.

10. What kinds of data? • PAT testing – Numeracy • PAT testing – Literacy along with other specialised diagnostic testing • NAPLAN – Literacy and Numeracy • On-Demand testing – for both Maths and English. Can be linear or adaptive.

11. Using DataWayne O’Brien/Preeti Maharaj • Using NAPLAN/PAT testing literacy and numeracy data together. • Creating class profiles based on two snapshots of literacy and numeracy data. This provides a more accurate overview of where a student is at because: - the student may not have had a good day when a particular test was conducted, and - helps highlight inconsistencies or - reinforces trends.

12. Using DataWayne O’Brien/Preeti Maharaj • NAPLAN and PAT results were integrated into a database that allowed us to create profiles of classes and individual students in order to be able to track them through their time at the College. • For a quick and easy identification of student profiles, the data was colour coded. • We determined that the literacy and numeracy data needed to appear in the one spreadsheet. We provided the spreadsheet. To view the integrated spreadsheets of literacy and numeracy data click here.

13. Investigating PedagogyKathy Bannan • After visiting several schools that are utilising there flexible learning space, it has become apparent that schools are team teaching and using their learning centres in several different ways. • For more information regarding school visits and recommendations for team teaching please clickhere. Carwartha P-12, Cheltenham Secondary College Bentleigh Secondary College Mordialloc Secondary College Elsternwick Primary School Silverton Primary School St. Michaels Grammar School

14. Investigating PedagogyKathy Bannan Recommendations for team teaching to occur at Lyndale Secondary College: • Start team teaching and see it as another way of engaging students and providing them with a meaning full curriculum. • Perhaps reorganise timetables and provide time for team planning. • Support staff to take risks as this is quite a different approach to conventional teaching. • Broad integrated learning experiences. • Team Teaching/Culture change. • Learner directed experiences. • Flexible learning groups. • Strong productive and respectful relationships.

15. Investigating PedagogyKathy Bannan • Individual learning and group learning, • Pedagogy to engage learners, • Work stations, • Whole class/group (like and mixed ability)/individual activities, • Celebration of learning-students to present their knowledge • Providing students with another way of learning – flexible learning environments

16. Investigating best practice in ESL Raffaela Dell’Aquila • Teacher surveys - the results clearly indicated that the Maths/Science teachers were experiencing the greatest difficulty supporting ESL students. “How can ESL kids be put into mainstream science classes when the language is so dense and complex that they are bound to fail?” (anonymous teacher) To view a sample of the results please click here. To view the questionnaire and the full results of the survey please visit our wikispace • School Visits Noble Park Language Centre, Debney Park Secondary College, Westall Secondary, Silverton Primary School, LMERC.

17. Investigating best practice in ESL Raffaela Dell’Aquila Outcomes: • ESL diagnostic testing – we could not find any, so we are going to rely on Percentile ranking to determine whether a student has improved rather than Stanine ranking in the PAT tests. • Qualified ESL teachers - have expressed their interest in becoming ESL support staff for Maths/Science subjects and the College is currently investigating whether this can be made possible for 2010. • Schools - greater contact with local primary/secondary and language schools and sharing of resources. • Resources - Staff members teaching Year 7 and 8 will be given a copy of a CD containing ESL support materials for Maths and Science teachers.

18. Bigger Picture • Social justice – value adding is not enough, we have to move students up to state and national benchmarks. • Feeder primary schools to learn about best practice and share ideas. • Links to accessing suitable programs for students/wellbeing/student management. • Sharing of resources/ESL

19. Future Directions • Increasing numeracy support in Year 8 and 9 • Developing closer links and maintain ongoing discussions with our biggest feeder schools. • Developing literacy and numeracy practices that are cost effective and sustainable. • Continue to access external funding through grants and professional development opportunities.

20. Additional Information Detailed information on our TPL and our ongoing work can be found on our Wiki page: http://sustainableliteracyandnumeracypractices.wikispaces.com/ We may be contacted at: Gladstone Road, North Dandenong 9795 2366

21. Pedagogy Learning Centre 2007-2008 From this... Click here for the previous slide

22. Learning Centre 2009 To this... Click here for the previous slide

23. Click here to go back to presentation.