In recent times, Scottish schools have made significant progress overall in improving the quality of the personal support they provide for pupils. In primary schools, class teachers play a key role in making sure that their pupils receive individual personal support. In special schools, teams of staff work together to focus on the personal and social development of pupils. In secondary schools, an approach built around specialist guidance teachers was created some 30 years ago and, since then, has been a distinctive and important means of support for generations of pupils.
Developments in personal support in primary and special schools has been promoted in various ways, including through the 5-14 guidelines for personal and social development and various circulars and guidance relating to pupils' care and welfare. In 2000 HM Inspectorate published a review of provision at the primary stage titled Educating the Whole Child (HMI 2000).
Over the last three decades, the approach to personal support in the secondary sector has been taken forward systematically through the guidance system. Guidance has been underpinned by specific documents laying out its aims in More Than Feelings of Concern (SCCC 1986) and re-endorsed in Effective Learning and Teaching in Scottish Secondary Schools: Guidance (HMI 1996) and in Making the Difference (GTC 1998). While developed from practice in secondary schools, these aims provide a helpful basis on which to view the functions of personal support at all stages, in order to develop new forms of support to meet better the needs of pupils in Scottish schools in the 21st century.
Current developments in national policy and legislation provide a changing context for schools. This context includes the School Improvement Framework introduced in the Standard in Scotland's Schools etc. Act 2001, a cornerstone of which is the requirement to ensure that every child or young person reaches his or her fullest potential. Primary, secondary and special schools are also working to implement the National Priorities for Education with their strong emphasis on the all round development of each and every pupil including their social inclusion, achievement and fostering their understanding of their rights and responsibilities as citizens. The report of the Ministerial Task Group in School Discipline, entitled Better Behaviour - Better Learning (SEED 2001), recommended a review of support for pupils provision in both primary and secondary schools with a view to promoting more integrated and effective working practice. Furthermore, the major national re-structuring of the teaching profession set out in A Teaching Profession for the 21st Century has initiated a major re-appraisal across the country of how the roles and responsibilities of staff at all levels within schools should be organised, including aspects relating to the provision of personal support for pupils. The resulting agreement has given schools and education authorities much increased scope to develop new ways of organising the management and delivery of provision, whilst also offering enhanced opportunities to ensure that effective professional development drives continuing improvements in quality.
This report is based on evidence from HM Inspectorate's programmes of inspections of Scottish primary, secondary and special schools during the period 2000-2003. The indicators of quality used are those laid out in How good is our school?1 and the four levels of performance.2 The report identifies some strengths in the current systems and some areas for improvement. It also describes some examples of newly-emerging good practice designed to meet pupils' personal needs more effectively in the constantly evolving context of Scottish education.
The report is organised according to six key aspects of making provision for personal support.
At the end of each section, some issues are highlighted which HMIE believe need to be addressed in the context of the Guidance Review Group's discussions. The report finally considers some key areas where our evidence suggests that further improvements are required.
This report focuses on the personal support provided for all pupils in a school. It does not focus on the needs of any particular group of pupils, although references are made to an inclusive approach throughout. The report should be read in conjunction with the range of recent reports and development materials relating to inclusion, special provision, race equality and challenging behaviour. The reader is directed towards Count us in for an overview of recent legislation and guidance related to social inclusion.
1 How good is our school? Self-evaluation using
quality indicators HM Inspectors of Schools 1996 and 2002 edition.
2 Very good - major strengths; good - strengths outweigh weaknesses;
fair - some important weaknesses; and unsatisfactory - major weaknesses.
HM Inspectors use almost all to mean that over 90% are achieving a level,
most to mean 75% to 90% and a majority to mean 50% to 74%.
Education authority policies and guidelines
Education authorities were increasingly providing policies and guidelines to support:
Inspections showed that schools in all sectors were working to implement these policies and guidelines, although progress in each area varied according to the priorities of the school and education authority.
Organising pastoral support for pupils
Schools varied in their organisation of staff to provide pastoral support for pupils, generally in response to the context of the school and local circumstances. In effective practice across all sectors, every pupil was able to identify a key teacher whom they could approach for assistance in pastoral matters. Arrangements in primary and special schools tended to be more informal than those in secondary schools, although not necessarily less effective. There were indications, however, that increasing complexity in the organisation of staff and pupils within primary and special schools was also leading to the development of more formal arrangements in those sectors.
Primary and special school teachers generally regarded pastoral care as a core part of their duties as classroom teachers. Class teachers were the key members of staff who knew each pupil as an individual and promoted good relationships and positive behaviour. Sometimes these teachers shared responsibility with colleagues, for example a visiting specialist teacher or a job-share colleague. The close daily interaction between teacher and pupils allowed this class teacher to gain intimate knowledge of pupils as individuals, identify strengths to be built upon and target support for individuals and groups. In most schools, class teachers related closely to promoted staff who could intervene and provide more intensive support when required. While the class teacher was normally the main point of contact with parents and carers, on occasions promoted staff would either support them or work with parents and carers directly.
In secondary schools, where pupils were taught by a number of teachers, staff with specific guidance remits played a major role in providing overall pastoral care, drawing on their close knowledge of particular pupils' circumstances. They made great efforts to cater for particular pupils' personal needs, often placing considerable demands on their time. In addition to responding to the needs of pupils with particular difficulties, guidance staff generally made considerable efforts to get to know all pupils, for whom they had a guidance responsibility, as well as possible. However, some were not always successful in achieving this.
There was considerable variation in the level and quality of the contribution made by register and class teachers to pupils' pastoral welfare. The principle that pastoral care was a core part of all teachers' duties was not well established in secondary schools. While schools had arrangements for every pupil to have a register or form teacher whom they normally met on a daily basis for a short period of time, these teachers' roles in supporting pupils' welfare varied considerably.
Increasingly, key staff members were identifying and reporting on very positive features of pupils' personal development and ensured that such achievements were recognised and celebrated. Pupils, too, had opportunities to discuss issues affecting their personal development in class and group discussions. Some pupils reported to HM Inspectors that they had been able to resolve personal problems through such discussions without recourse to individual interviews with key teachers.
Supporting more vulnerable pupils
Across the sectors, all teachers had a responsibility to identify pupils they considered to be vulnerable or 'at risk' and to take steps to refer pupils for further support from promoted or other key members of staff. Inspectors found that most schools were aware of the need to have in place appropriate systems for supporting pupils experiencing problems within their own families or neighbourhood, associated with poverty, ill-health, violence, unemployment, racism, divorce or bereavement. Key teaching and guidance staff often gave advice to their colleagues on how to respond to pupils' needs in these respects.
Headteachers and promoted staff could generally call on additional support through, for example, the school medical officer, social work services or the authority's psychological service. Where it worked well, such support could be very effective. In some instances, schools also had access to a range of other services such as home-link workers or youth workers. It was common, however, for headteachers to report that waiting lists for support services were lengthy and assistance was not available when required. This had the result that the external support for an individual child or young person was too late to make a positive difference when it did become available. Sometimes the pressure of demand on limited support services meant that their engagement, when it did occur, lacked sufficient depth as their services became very thinly spread.
The establishment of the New Community Schools (NCS) approach and its roll-out across the country in the form of the Integrated Community Schools initiative provides the potential to develop more effective multi-agency working and stronger community involvement. HMI have seen examples of very good practice, but few schools are yet engaged consistently in the deeper level of multi-agency working which the initiative aimed to promote. The recent inter-agency report It's Everyone's Job to Make Sure I'm Alright prompts all agencies and professionals working with children to continue to review and develop practice to better meet the needs of those who are most at risk. Experience in the NCS initiative was showing that development of a fully effective integrated support system is not an easy task.
There were some examples of personnel other than teachers acting as key staff responsible for the overall support of individuals of groups of vulnerable children within schools. They worked in close cooperation with guidance staff, but were able to give a degree of intensive support which guidance staff were not in a position to give. Class teachers in primary and special schools and guidance staff are at the forefront in breaking down barriers in the way of effective joint working. They will need sufficient support and staff development to develop further joint integrated working.
It was clear that staff sometimes found it difficult to judge the best time to intervene to support an individual pupil and the right time at which to refer for specialist help. This could also result in problems being picked up too late. Effective practice required well-designed referral and assessment systems, with clearly-staged processes to access different levels of intervention from specialist professionals, supported by clear referral criteria that were regularly discussed and reviewed amongst all concerned.
Education authority policies and guidelines on child protection required schools to have a senior member of staff, often the headteacher, acting as child protection coordinator. Teachers were informed about their school's approach to child protection through materials in staff handbooks. Most reported that they should refer to a named promoted member of staff any suspicions that a pupil may have been a victim of child abuse. During the period of the inspections, some education authorities had mounted initiatives on child protection and had updated their policies and guidance and provided programmes of staff development, sometimes in partnership with health professionals, social work staff and the police. Many education authorities had given additional support to pupils and staff to try to reduce stress arising from a traumatic experience, such as the death of a pupil or teacher.
Promoting effective links with parents
Class teachers in primary and special schools often had close and productive relationships with parents and carers, sometimes maintained through the exchange of diaries in which important aspects of a pupil's personal and social development were noted. Parents and carers often reported that they found such communication valuable whilst teachers found the parents' or carers' contributions helpful in, for example, explaining a child's mood and level of responsiveness. In secondary schools, guidance staff typically made an important contribution to the quality of the school's relationships with parents and carers. In best practice, guidance staff kept parents and carers well informed about key aspects of their children's lives in school, including prompt communications in respect of care and welfare issues.
In some instances, HM Inspectors found that relationships between home and school had broken down. In such cases, prompt action by staff from other services, such as social services or the psychological service could help to mend fences but, in some, poor relationships remained, leaving the pupil in a difficult situation.
Staff with pastoral care responsibilities typically had a significant role in working with pupils and their families to address persistent issues of discipline and behaviour, or poor levels of attendance.
Most schools set out their approaches to promoting good discipline and attendance for parents and carers, usually in a handbook. In some schools, staff sought to provide advice and support to parents and carers in aspects of managing pupils' behaviour. In a few cases, they worked on this aspect with a home-link worker. Such partnership between home and school could have a very positive impact on a pupil's behaviour in school and sometimes even at home, as well as on his or her academic progress. Some special schools for pupils with social, emotional and behavioural difficulties, worked with social workers and community workers to establish good quality relationships with parents and carers in order to support pupils. In many instances, schools found it very difficult to establish positive relationships with parents and carers of pupils with behavioural difficulties. This was often exacerbated when school staff did not have ready access to the support of other professionals.
Features of high quality pastoral support for pupils
HM Inspectors identified the following features to be present in high quality pastoral support for pupils.
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The changing context within schools in relation to pastoral support
As aspects of A Teaching Profession for the 21st Century agreement come into operation, schools are developing new frameworks for providing pastoral care and support for pupils. In primary and special schools, the reduction in teachers' hours and contact with pupils will lead to an expansion in the number of teachers and other support staff relating to a class. Effective joint planning and sharing of information about pupils must be at the heart of new arrangements. Annex B of A Teaching Profession for the 21st Century agreement restates the enhanced role of secondary teachers in providing general pastoral support in their daily contacts with pupils. Schools will need to discuss and agree the duties of all staff in relation to pupils' personal and pastoral support and ensure that appropriate staff have time and training to carry out their duties. It will be important to establish clearly the main classteacher's role in providing first line support to pupils and how this relates to other members of staff who have enhanced roles for personal and pastoral support.
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To improve pastoral support for pupils there is a need to:
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The importance of education for personal and social development (PSD)
In all schools inspected, HM Inspectors found that staff gave high priority to PSD as part of their responsibility in promoting the all-round development of a child or young person. They also recognised the importance of positive PSD as a foundation for all other learning. The evidence from inspection supported the views of staff that an ethos of achievement was dependent on effective approaches to PSD. Where pupils lacked self-esteem and had difficulties in relating to others, their attainment and achievements were adversely affected. All schools promoted pupils' PSD through their values and ethos, as well as through formal and informal programmes, often targeted on specific aspects such as health, equality and citizenship.
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In very good practice, schools encouraged pupils to develop:
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The national guidelines for Personal and Social Development 5-14 set down a rationale for PSD in all schools to the end of S2. The emphasis is on promoting the pupils' self-awareness, self-esteem, relationships with others, independence and social responsibilities. HM Inspectors found that the best programmes in schools blended the three recommended approaches:
Programmes endorsing all three approaches were flexible enough to respond to events in the school, the local and wider community and the lives of individual pupils.
In almost all primary schools, HM Inspectors found that the personal and social development of pupils had more strengths than weaknesses overall, and often it had major strengths. Most primary schools gave PSD appropriate emphasis in the curriculum. Many ensured that time was given to Circle Time when pupils were encouraged to address sensitive issues and find solutions through class discussions, and/or to Golden Time when pupils were able to choose their own activities as a reward for working and behaving well. Pupils often reported on these experiences with enthusiasm and were clear about their purpose. A number of schools had followed the advice in the revised guideline for The Structure and Balance of the Curriculum 5-14 which encouraged schools to plan PSD, in part, as a distinct curricular programme, often linked to health education and religious and moral education. In schools which had not followed such advice, HM Inspectors often found that aspects of PSD programmes were repeated and were not progressively developed. A few schools placed too much emphasis on promoting PSD through the school ethos alone. There was a need for many primary schools to review and update programmes of study in PSD, including a clearer definition of what teachers wanted their pupils to learn and experience at each stage.
In most special schools, the quality of pupils' personal and social development was generally good or very good, although it fell below this level in around a fifth of schools inspected. There were particular strengths in helping pupils to achieve personal skills in caring for themselves, in relating to others in the school and in the community, and in essential life skills such as cookery and handling money. In the most effective programmes, pupils at the secondary stage worked towards the achievement of National Qualifications (NQs) in PSD.
In almost all secondary schools, guidance staff took responsibility for organising and managing distinct curricular programmes, typically referred to as personal and social education (PSE) programmes, as part of the school's structured approach to education for PSD. While, in some schools, pupils at the same stage were taught PSE by their own guidance teacher, in many schools subject teachers also contributed to teaching PSE. A few schools were very successful in ensuring that key teachers taught PSE to all pupils for whom they had a pastoral responsibility. In almost all of the schools, PSE was allocated between 40 and 80 minutes per week from S1 to S4. The time given to PSE in S5/S6 was much more variable. In some there was a timetabled period each week, while in others, pupils were offered a planned series of activities and events over the session.
Secondary PSE courses were mostly designed by individual schools and comprised a series of units of work typically covering aspects of career education, health, values, relationships and a range of life skills. In best practice, pupils had the opportunity to influence the content of the programmes, particularly in S5/S6. PSE courses were also used to support pupils in preparing for option choices at key stages. Increasingly, schools were involving pupils in reviewing their own progress in PSE and setting targets for improvement. Schools used the nationally produced Progress File materials to assist pupils in undertaking self-evaluation. Only a few schools offered opportunities for pupils to achieve NQs in personal, social and vocational awareness at levels ranging from Access to Advanced Higher levels. In one notable example, pupils working towards PSE qualifications at Higher and Advanced Higher demonstrated a very high level of skill in personal planning for life and the capacity to work with others in running successful community activities.
In very good PSE courses, schools provided a broad range of well-planned topics with clear learning outcomes and helpful advice to teachers on how to deliver the programmes effectively. Many secondary schools had undertaken reviews of their PSE programme. This was leading to weaknesses being addressed and overall improvements being made.
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Common weaknesses in programmes of PSE included:
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One of the reasons for weaknesses in PSE was the extremely limited availability of coherent staff training programmes to support high quality delivery of courses in secondary schools. Staff in primary schools had some opportunities for staff development but PSE competed with other aspects of the curriculum and courses were largely confined to only one aspect of the programme.
In the best practice in primary, secondary and special schools, headteachers and their staff ensured that parents and carers were made aware of the programme of study in PSE and reminded parents and carers at the start of the session about what their child would be studying. In some schools, parents and carers received little information about the content of PSE programmes. However, an increasing number of schools was ensuring that each year, as required by legislation and national guidance, all parents and carers were informed about any potentially sensitive issues which might be covered, including personal relationships, aspects of personal safety and drugs education. Parents and carers were given opportunities to discuss the programme content with relevant staff and to review the resources being used to support learning and teaching.
Whole-school approaches to education for personal and social development
Many schools had a rich range of activities aimed at promoting the ethos of the school and pupils' personal development built in to the school's wider community life. These included arrangements for promoting pupils' sense of responsibility through "official" roles as monitors, befrienders, buddies, prefects and captains. Pupils who had experienced such roles frequently spoke with pride about their experiences in helping others and exercised a remarkable sense of personal responsibility. Effective schools also placed a strong emphasis on pupils cooperating and working with others in all aspects of school life, and taking active responsibility for supporting others whenever help was needed. In all sectors, pupils and parents and carers valued the opportunities given by the school for pupils to experience residential trips within Scotland, and the UK or abroad. Best practice helped pupils to experience community living away from familiar surroundings and the immediate support of their families. They were assisted to become more independent in looking after themselves, extend their horizons, develop new and positive relationships, gain self-confidence and trust in others, and enjoy more informal relationships with staff. Many schools ensured that all pupils who wished to participate could do so, often finding funding from sources other than from parents and carers. Staff demonstrated commendable commitment in the time and effort they gave to planning and running these events successfully.
Most schools had policies to support personal safety across the school. Following national guidance, schools had given serious attention to anti-bullying initiatives and the promotion of positive behaviour. Other aspects of personal safety were covered through a particular focus in the curriculum. For example, it was common to find that police liaison officers visited primary schools to talk with pupils about how to respond to strangers. They also provided training in road safety. In addition, commercial schemes were used in both primary and secondary schools to teach pupils about a range of issues related to personal safety including personal relationships, sexual health and substance misuse. Often these programmes benefited from the contributions of health professionals and the police. In most schools, attention was being focused on improving standards in health education and health promotion. Pupils demonstrated strengths in understanding key aspects of healthy living, but did not always follow through, for example, in demonstrating healthy eating in the dining room or engaging in regular physical activity.
While there were some encouraging examples of well-planned approaches to education for citizenship, in many cases schools were making only limited progress in addressing this area systematically. For example, there were significant gaps in provision for ensuring that pupils were made aware of their rights as well as their responsibilities in line with the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child and Human Rights legislation. Schools were often not clear about the place of education for citizenship in the curriculum. In primary schools, it was often regarded as being restricted to a slot in the environmental studies programme and in some secondary schools it was inappropriately restricted to social subjects courses. Schools needed to give more attention to how to address this National Priority. The Children and Young People's Charter, recently launched by Scottish Ministers, should provide one stimulus for improvement.
Links with other schools, agencies, employers and the community
High quality links with other schools, agencies, employers and the community had a positive impact on a school's support for pupils' personal and social development where these were present. Overall, HM Inspectors found that the quality of these links varied, although it was usually the case that, looking across the wide range of links which schools sought to establish, strengths outweighed weaknesses in almost all of the primary and secondary schools inspected.
Positive features of effective links included:
The need for further national guidance on education for personal and social development
While HM Inspectors found some very good, even outstanding, practice in education for PSD in some Scottish schools, few mainstream schools had well-planned, comprehensive programmes which took full account of pupils' prior learning and ensured challenge for them. Part of the underlying difficulty for all schools was that national guidelines provide only general advice on the kind of learning outcomes that should be expected at each level of the school. More specific outcomes have been provided in other curricular areas to help schools and authorities devise programmes of work. In the absence of such guidance schools have often been working alone to develop courses, and to rationalise and integrate a growing agenda of specific aspects to be included in education for PSD, many of which overlapped with other areas of the curriculum. These include many important aspects related to the National Priorities, including the promotion of equal opportunities and associated legislation, learning for life and citizenship. Staff also wish to include important aspects of PSD, such as the promotion of emotional education, handling stress, conflict resolution and anger management. The national review of the curriculum will offer a timely opportunity to give serious consideration to the nature of education for PSD and how best to align it to, and rationalise it with, citizenship and other curricular areas, such as health education and religious and moral education.
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To improve provision for education for personal and social development there is a need to:
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HM Inspectors found that schools had made considerable progress in developing systems aimed at providing appropriate curricular and vocational support to pupils. Most schools had suitable systems in place to help pupils to identify their needs in terms of the curriculum and to realise their aspirations for the next stage of education. However, in the rapidly developing field of curricular innovation, encouraged by greater flexibility and the widening range of opportunities for employment and lifelong learning, schools are being faced with many challenges to ensure that the overall quality of curricular and vocational support is maintained and improved to keep pace with requirements of pupils.
Support for the curriculum and learning in primary schools
HM Inspectors found that in most primary schools, including primary special schools and special classes, the concept of curricular support was largely related to supporting pupils' learning within the curriculum. Pupils rarely had to make a choice of subjects to study, rather they exercised choice in relation to selecting topics or deciding how to approach particular areas of learning. There were increasing numbers of positive examples of primary teachers helping pupils to understand and improve upon their personal styles of learning. As primary and special schools open up opportunities for pupils to engage in a range of options in the curriculum, headteachers will need to consider how to ensure that pupils and their parents and carers have adequate advice and support in making decisions. Also careers education is increasingly regarded as a concept relevant to the work of primary schools with implications for programmes of study and learning and teaching.
Support for transitions
Support for pupils as they made major transitions from one sector to another was increasingly being recognised as an area in which there was a need for improved arrangements, so that pupils would experience the change as a smooth and progressive experience rather than as an abrupt and discontinuous one. Induction procedures were in place in most schools to allow pre-school children and their parents to visit the primary school before starting and for primary and nursery staff to liaise. A significant number of education authorities had introduced a transition record for nursery staff to complete in the pre-school year in order to give P1 teachers the basis for building on each pupil's prior knowledge, skills and understanding at the point of transition. In best practice, primary teachers made effective use of the assessment information in transition records to ensure a smooth transition from pre-school settings into P1. Some authorities continued the record until the end of the first year in primary, linking the pre-school curriculum with the primary 5-14 curriculum. However, there were concerns that, in some instances, the intended progression in learning did not take place because teachers did not use the records to inform the planning and teaching process. Differences in teaching methods and organisation between the nursery and primary experience also affected the smooth transition. Overall, practice was very variable.
Teachers with support for pupils' responsibilities in secondary schools typically played an important role in liaising with their feeder primary schools about pupil transition. This normally involved visiting the primary schools to gather and collate information on individual pupils' personal and academic progress and subsequently making it available in a form that was accessible to the teachers relating to these pupils as they moved into S1. It was also becoming increasingly common to find examples of primary and secondary teachers working together on curricular projects to improve the coherence and progression in pupils' learning between P7 and S1. Such projects played an important part in supporting pupils' learning as they made the transition from primary to secondary school. However, these arrangements were patchy and variable among schools including schools belonging to the same cluster. Many pupils reported to HM Inspectors on the discontinuities in support for their learning between primary and secondary school.
Curricular and vocational guidance in secondary schools
Across most of the secondary schools inspected, including special provision, curricular advice and guidance for both pupils and parents and carers was generally well organised and structured. Pupils were well prepared by guidance staff for subject choice at the end of S2, S4 and S5 through, for example, appropriate input to their personal and social education (PSE) course. They also received advice from subject teachers, other staff in the school and Careers Scotland staff. At the time for choosing course options, guidance staff were usually involved in interviewing pupils to discuss their choices. Parents and carers were sometimes involved in these interviews, but more often, met staff at evening meetings at which Careers Scotland staff were also often present. Almost all schools had ensured that pupils and parents and carers were informed about the new National Qualifications (NQs) in terms of entry requirements, progress through courses and assessment procedures. However, schools had yet to ensure that pupils and their parents and carers were well informed about core skills. In a few schools, staff did not give sufficiently good advice to pupils to help them make decisions about full and suitably challenging programmes of study in S5/S6, based on their performance in Standard Grade examinations. Some pupils attempted courses which were too demanding, while others too readily dropped subjects which required intensive effort.
In almost all secondary schools, the vocational advice to pupils was well organised within a careers education programme. Effective schools began a structured careers programme from the earliest stages, usually as part of the pupils' PSE programmes in S1 or S2. Pupils had the opportunity to consider future employment through self-assessment, following up interests and identifying personal strengths. Improving arrangements were in place to inform pupils about the opportunities available to them in further and higher education, training and employment. They had access to information related to curricular and vocational guidance through information and communications technology (ICT). In effective practice, sometimes involving partnership working among teachers, school librarians and Careers Scotland staff, pupils had been trained in the use of specific programmes such as Kudos, PlanIT and Progress. They also used ICT to complete admission forms for university entrance electronically. While most schools made effective use of ICT, some were weak in this area.
In secondary schools, it was becoming increasingly evident that the greater use of flexibility within and around curricular guidelines was placing a higher premium on ensuring good quality, personalised curricular and vocational advice for pupils. As a greater range of options became available at the S3/S4 stages, for example, there was a need to ensure that pupils made well-informed choices that were in their best long-term interests. This was particularly true of alternative programmes for alienated or disaffected pupils and for groups of pupils who might be opting to follow new vocationally-oriented provision at an earlier stage that might previously have been possible. Used well, flexibility could help increase the motivation and learning and achievements of pupils, but effective advice was a vital ingredient in ensuring that pupils did not make inappropriate choices that might close off options prematurely or result in them being under-challenged or losing out on the development of core areas of learning.
Education for work and enterprise/enterprise in education, including career education and guidance in primary, secondary and special schools
In primary schools, there were some very good examples of staff preparing pupils for the world of work, encouraging enterprising behaviour and an entrepreneurial culture for present and later life, and providing early, relevant forms of career education to make pupils and parents and carers aware of opportunities in the future. However, as yet, these examples were isolated cases and relied heavily on the particular interest of a school or individual teachers within it. Although there was evidence of rapid growth in levels and quality of activity, it was still fairly unusual to find substantial coverage of careers education in primary schools.
In secondary schools, most guidance staff contributed well to pupils' education for work and enterprise, mainly within the PSE programme. Where the wider aspects of education for work and enterprise/enterprise education was the responsibility of staff other than guidance staff, there were also some examples of good links. In many schools, work experience programmes allowed pupils to gain, within the NQ framework, a core skills certification for working with others, but, in other respects, the level of certification available for work experience was unattractive to schools and pupils. In some mainstream and special schools inspected, pupils were enthusiastic about enterprise projects, often supported by banks and other businesses. These projects had encouraged, often to a high level, teamwork, problem solving, interpersonal skills and relevant applications of literacy, numeracy and ICT skills, as well as giving the pupils valuable insights into running a business.
At the time of writing this report, Careers Scotland, a single unified organisation bringing together the former Careers Service Companies, Education Business Partnerships and Adult Guidance Networks, was at a relatively early stage in establishing strategic partnership frameworks for the delivery of education for work and enterprise in education and career guidance for primary, secondary and special schools. As part of the process, Careers Scotland staff were beginning to draw up partnership agreements with schools to develop more effective support to suit the individual school's needs. Overall, they worked well with schools through their involvement in delivering careers information within the PSE programme and through opportunities for pupils to meet with members of staff on an individual basis. The careers library in almost all schools contained an appropriate range of up-to-date materials and pupils were well trained in its use and had regular access to it. A positive feature in many secondary schools was the effective role of the school librarian in supporting pupils in accessing the resources related to careers. There was little evidence in schools, however, of Careers Education Scotland - A National Framework (Learning and Teaching Scotland 2001) being used to audit the existing careers programme and to plan for improvement.
Special schools gave high priority to helping pupils and their parents and carers prepare for life after school. There were some examples of very high quality preparation of secondary pupils through a range of NQ units related to the development of work experience and essential skills. Secondary schools for pupils with moderate learning difficulties and those with severe learning difficulties often had links with further education colleges to which some pupils transferred on leaving school.
Independent living and financial management
In primary schools, many pupils had a very limited understanding of issues related to money management. Some schools set aside time to help pupils to work within a budget and deal with banking matters. Often such experiences were an integral part of the small business enterprise activity and pupils were very enthusiastic about the experiences. Many secondary schools were developing their PSE programmes in S5/S6 to include appropriate experience in a range of independent living and financial management skills that pupils would require on leaving school. Special schools gave high priority to dealing with financial management which would allow pupils to understand essential elements of time and the management of money.
Overall, schools have a great deal of good experience on which to build curricular and vocational support for their pupils. However, greater curriculum flexibility and the rapidly changing economic and social context of Scotland within the global economy mean that schools, with support from their education authorities, must ensure the highest possible quality of support and guidance for pupils and parents and carers. There was scope for improving schools' programmes of study to enable pupils to appreciate their place against the wider economic situation in the world. The further development of entrepreneurial dynamism and money management should be a goal for all schools, as reflected in the National Priorities for Education.
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To improve support for curricular and vocational choice there is a need to:
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Monitoring behaviour and attitudes
Almost all schools had well-established procedures through which a key teacher monitored aspects of pupils' behaviour and attitudes which might have an impact on their overall achievement. Key teachers, including guidance staff, were generally well informed about pupils' attendance, punctuality and behaviour, and took action when there were concerns. They were often closely involved in monitoring homework. In addition, schools had structured referral procedures in place to ensure that any teacher or classroom assistant could alert key teachers or promoted staff about concerns relating to individual pupils. Increasingly, schools were also encouraging staff to report to key teachers about the achievements of individuals, as well as about any concerns, as part of a whole-school system of promoting behaviour through celebrating success.
Monitoring and evaluating pupils' progress and achievements in education for personal and social development
Pupil Progress Records and reports to parents and carers generally contained some account of pupils' PSD in relation to their behaviour and some achievements. Parents and carers have reported to HMI that they value entries on school reports in relation to the personal development of their children. In many reports, HM Inspectors found that the comments made tended to be at a very general level and were not helpful to pupils in determining next steps in learning. There were very few examples of schools monitoring and providing specific feedback on pupils' achievement and progress in relation to programmes of PSD. Even in special schools, not all had included PSD targets in pupils' Individualised Educational Programmes (IEPs), despite national guidance. Failure to monitor, evaluate and record pupils' achievements in PSD meant that staff did not know what pupils had studied and what knowledge, skills and understanding they had achieved.
Providing support for pupils through monitoring and evaluating academic progress
Class teachers in mainstream primary schools and special schools were well placed to monitor the progress and achievements of individual pupils and to provide them with feedback to assist them in making further progress. Increasingly, teachers were working with pupils, and sometimes parents and carers, to identify individuals' strengths and targets for learning. In the best practice, these targets motivated pupils to work hard and gain personal satisfaction from achieving them. In some instances, the way in which targets were developed was too complex and did not help pupils to focus on important aspects of their learning. In many instances, targets were expressed in terms so general as to mean very little to many pupils, for example to 'behave better' or 'try harder'. They were able to monitor their own progress much more effectively if targets were more precise and set in context.
Pupils in special schools generally had IEPs which included targets. These IEPs were subject to annual review involving teachers, other professionals and, sometimes, the pupil. A common weakness amongst IEPs was an excessively narrow focus on particular aspects of the curriculum, which resulted in important strengths and development needs being missed in, for example, the expressive arts. Many targets were too general. Also, the content of the IEPs were not always shared with pupils and, therefore, did not support their involvement in their own learning.
In the most effective secondary schools, guidance staff played an important role in supporting and monitoring the academic progress of individual pupils as part of a whole-school approach to raising standards. They worked closely with members of the senior management team and subject teachers within a coordinated whole-school approach. They were involved in monitoring progress and setting challenging but achievable targets for improving pupils' attainment. In the best practice, pupils were encouraged to record and review their own achievements and were closely involved in setting their own targets, including those in PSD. Guidance staff discussed progress and reviewed targets with individual pupils at least once a year. Such meetings were more frequent where pupils were having difficulties. In most secondary schools, tracking and target setting to support pupils' learning and progress were most advanced at the S5/S6 stages, where, in response to the introduction of the NQs, guidance staff held more than one interview each year with pupils to consider their progress. They often encouraged pupils to keep their own progress log of unit assessments in the NQs they were studying. Monitoring of academic progress and providing feedback to pupils were least well developed at the S1/S2 stages. As the secondary curriculum becomes more flexible in response to pupils' needs, oversight of their progress will become even more important. A few schools, responsible for pupils who attended for part of their course at a further education college, ensured that pupils' progress on the college course was carefully monitored. Others did not, with the result that pupils' poor attendance and lack of progress could go unnoticed.
Communication with parents and carers
Schools generally had well-established systems for reporting to parents and carers on their children's progress based on annual or sometimes twice-yearly meetings at which they could meet with key teachers to discuss their child. While the focus at these meetings was often the child's academic progress, parents and carers often also discussed with class teachers or guidance staff any concerns about their child's personal and social development. In addition, where pupils had additional support needs, parents and carers were invited annually or more frequently to meetings to review their child's Record of Needs or IEP which usually included elements of personal and social development. The extent to which parents and carers attended these formally arranged meetings varied. Primary and special schools reported higher rates of attendance at parents' and carers' evenings than secondary schools. Some parents and carers have reported to HM Inspectors that they found these formal meetings intimidating or could not attend because of family commitments. A few schools were beginning to use family support workers to link with parents and carers and support them at formal meetings.
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To improve monitoring and evaluation of pupils' achievements, progress and development there is a need to:
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Ethos
Effective provision of personal support, including very good PSD programmes, will not be fully effective unless the ethos of the school is positive and inclusive. In most primary, secondary and special schools, the ethos of the school was judged to be good or very good.
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Positive features of ethos which promote the all-round development of, and support for, pupils included the following:
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The physical environment
Primary, secondary and special schools varied in the extent to which the physical environment was well adapted to meet the personal needs of pupils. In the best practice in all sectors, staff ensured that the accommodation was enhanced to provide a bright, welcoming and stimulating environment giving the impression to pupils and parents and carers that they were valued.
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The aspects of the school's physical environment which enhanced personal support for pupils included:
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Staffing for personal support for pupils
Annex B of A Teaching Profession for the 21st Century highlights the role of all teachers in providing first-line support to the pupils they teach.
The daily contact between class teachers and pupils in primary and most special schools ensures, in most instances, that pupils can relate and seek assistance from a well-known adult. However, there were instances where relationships broke down and the school needed to provide another member of staff in whom the pupil had confidence. In most primary and special schools, promoted staff devoted a significant proportion of their time to providing personal support to individuals or groups of pupils and their families.
In schools across all sectors, teachers, including guidance staff, found that many pupils with social, emotional and behavioural difficulties required intensive personal support. This could lead to frustration for staff who felt they did not have sufficient time to attend to the needs of individuals while at the same time providing wider support for all pupils for whom they were responsible. HM Inspectors found that schools were beginning to address this issue by developing support structures designed to meet the needs of all. For example, in Integrated Community Schools, teachers worked with staff from other support agencies to provide targeted support for individuals or groups of pupils with significant problems. The key member of the school staff did not, in best practice, relinquish responsibility but worked as part of a support team. In some schools, guidance and support staff reported benefits where clerical staff had been given time to carry out a range of administrative duties related to pupils with significant difficulties, thus freeing the teachers to work directly with the pupils.
The effectiveness and deployment of staff to meet the personal support needs of pupils was at least good overall in almost all of the secondary schools inspected. In best practice, guidance staff had developed effective teamwork and met regularly to discuss and review their work, resulting in a consistent approach to pupils. In such schools, guidance staff ensured regular contact with pupils for whom they were responsible through, for example, daily visits to register/form classes, direct contact in lessons of PSD, formal interviews and informal contacts in extra-curricular activities and in the normal life of the school. Such contacts reinforced pupils' awareness that key members of staff were concerned about them as individuals.
Across primary, secondary and special schools, one area of major weakness was a lack of staff development for teachers and classroom assistants who were carrying out personal support roles. For example, arrangements for the staff development and review of guidance staff in secondary schools were good or very good in only around half of cases. In the remaining half there were important weaknesses. In only some schools had staff taken part in review meetings about the guidance roles as part of their authority's scheme for professional review and development. Primary school and special school staff were enthusiastic about training in specific approaches, such as Circle Time and Nurture Classes. A significant number of guidance staff in secondary schools had taken advantages of conferences run by the Scottish Guidance Association. Many teachers appointed to guidance posts had, with the support of their school and education authority, achieved qualifications in guidance through courses run by the teacher education institutions in Scotland. Overall, however, the range of training undertaken by guidance staff and others involved in supporting pupils was very variable across the country. There were limited opportunities for staff development in relation to promoting and supporting pupils' personal and social development. Staff development associated with the implementation of NQs had provided some support to guidance staff, particularly in relation to vocational education.
The standards to be achieved by all new teachers successfully completing initial teacher education and, subsequently, probation include several expected features illustrating professional practice which relate to the personal support of pupils.
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Teachers at the end of initial teacher education are expected, for example, to:
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These expected features of professional practice are to be developed through the year of probation. They form a sound basis for further professional development of staff in providing support for pupils. It is vital that programmes of support for probationers and of continuing professional development (CPD) are effective in developing these illustrations of professional practice.
Resources
Schools had access to a wide range of resources for education for PSD. Many primary and special schools drew on resources for environmental studies to support teaching of aspects related to PSD. The quality and effectiveness of the resources varied among primary and special schools. Some topics in PSD had very good commercial support materials while there were very few for others. In special schools, the illustrations in support materials were not always suited to the age of pupils.
Provision of resources for undertaking guidance functions in secondary schools was very good in some schools and good in almost all of the rest. In the best situations, guidance staff regularly reviewed and kept resources for PSD and careers up to date. In some secondary schools, librarians played an important part in assisting guidance staff stock and maintain careers literature and other resources in the library. In some schools there was variation in access to modern equipment in ICT and ready access to pupil information stored electronically by the school. Where poor access existed, it restricted the effectiveness and efficiency of the contribution that guidance staff could make to monitoring pupils and giving them feedback. One of the challenges facing schools is to ensure that resources for PSD are stimulating and up-to-date.
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To improve the quality of the environment for personal support in schools there is a need to:
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The quality of leadership and management was central to effective provision for pupils' personal support needs. It is summed up in Count us in in the following way.
Across all of the schools visited, dynamic leadership and effective management of change were key ingredients of a successful drive towards greater educational and social inclusion. The effective headteachers had a clear vision of educational inclusion that was well communicated, and shared by staff. This vision was evident in how the head and other staff went about their day-to-day work and in the way they related to pupils, parents and carers and other staff. It was based upon the values of the school and incorporated concern for the wider dimensions of achievement and support for all pupils.
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In schools providing high quality personal support for pupils, headteachers and promoted staff were successful in achieving the following:
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In primary and special schools, headteachers themselves, often with support from promoted staff, were directly responsible for developing and supporting systems and activities to promote the PSD of pupils. In effective practice, they had a very sound knowledge of each pupil as an individual and were in a position to discuss the personal needs of pupils with them and with their parents and carers.
In almost all secondary schools, the delegated responsibility for guidance rested with a member of the senior management team. The effectiveness of leadership for guidance was very good in over half of the schools and strengths outweighed weaknesses in most of the rest. In a few instances there were important weaknesses. In the best practice, a member of the senior management team had responsibility for the overall support for pupils, including support for pupils with additional support needs, and was pivotal in setting clear strategic direction for guidance, support for learning and behaviour support. She/he promoted a supportive ethos and effective teamwork, ensured provision was evaluated, and facilitated joint working across the school and with visiting professionals. In a number of schools, however, there was a need for more integrated management of support for pupils provision, including a more integrated approach to ensuring effective collaboration with professionals from other agencies.
During the period covered by this report, secondary schools generally allocated responsibility for the planning and delivery of most aspects of personal support to a group of specialist guidance staff who held promoted posts either as principal teachers or assistant principals. Their effectiveness in carrying out their remits was judged to be very good in around half of the schools inspected and good overall in almost all of the rest. Their remits were clearly defined and regularly reviewed across all of the functions of guidance including education for PSD.
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In effective secondary schools, staff involved in guidance:
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In many secondary schools, there were weaknesses in the way in which staff evaluated the quality of the personal support they provided. While staff had a general awareness of the strengths and weaknesses of the provision they made, they were not sufficiently systematic in their monitoring and evaluation procedures, particularly in relation to the quality of learning and teaching in education for PSD. There were some indications that a culture of self-evaluation was strengthening over the period covered by the inspections. More direct involvement of senior promoted staff in reviewing, monitoring and supporting the work of guidance was beginning to have an impact on improving the overall management of guidance. More rigorous and systematic use of national quality indicators, published in How good is our school? and Taking a closer look at guidance were assisting staff to establish more relevant priorities for improvement. However, much progress remained to be made. Planning for improvement also had some important weaknesses. Only a majority of secondary schools had well-structured guidance development plans. Despite this, most schools could point to some examples of progress being made in implementing new priorities.
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To improve the leadership and management of personal support there is a need to:
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The dimensions of personal support and some key strengths
Education authorities are planning to ensure that by 2007, all Scottish schools will become Integrated Community Schools with an emphasis on meeting the needs of each individual pupil in a rounded, holistic way. This will place an even greater focus on providing effective personal support for every individual pupil. If this aspiration is to be met it will be vital that the strengths of the current provision identified in this report are built upon and the weaknesses are addressed effectively so that provision is further improved.
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Practice over recent years has demonstrated three main dimensions of support for pupils:
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The term pastoral care is being interpreted in a number of ways by schools and authorities across the country. While some authorities have defined in operational terms what is meant by pastoral care, others have not. It would be timely to review nationally what is covered by this term and it may be appropriate to consider replacing it by a term such as personal care to reflect the increasing attention given to individual pupils. It would be helpful to provide a definitive, shared definition which could be applied across the sectors.
HM Inspectors found some very good practice across the three dimensions of personal support for pupils, outlined in the box above.
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The strengths in personal care for pupils in the schools inspected included:
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Key areas for improvement and development
At the end of each main chapter, this report has identified a number of specific aspects of the delivery, organisation and management of personal support for pupils in which improvement is required in order to meet better the needs of pupils in the current changing educational context.
Taking an overview across the six aspects addressed in these chapters, a number of key messages emerge that should be taken into account in developing the national agenda for improving personal support in Scottish schools.
Staff roles and responsibilities
To achieve more coordinated and improved support for all pupils, schools will need to continue to redefine the roles of all teachers in supporting pupils and provide appropriate remits for teachers with a particular responsibility for personal support.
Staff in schools will not be able to meet the personal support needs of all of their pupils without the support of members of a range of support agencies, including psychological services, social work services, the National Health Service and voluntary bodies. Education authorities and promoted staff in schools need to ensure that staff and pupils have access to specialist support. Interdisciplinary work will be improved where staff are clear about their respective roles and ensure that each member plays their part in providing timeous support to pupils and their families.
Managing transitions
Schools need to continue to develop their strategies for ensuring appropriate support and advice for all pupils and, in particular, the most vulnerable pupils at key transition stages between schools, within school and between school and further and higher education or employment. Good practice on supporting continuity in pupils' curricular experiences between sectors should be shared and embedded across clusters and learning communities.
Education for personal and social development
Planned programmes of education for PSD should be improved to ensure that they encompass the National Priorities for Education, and provide progressive and coherent experiences for pupils, assisting them to acquire informed attitudes and skills essential for full participation in society. Given the plethora of different programmes covering health education, citizenship, thinking skills, study skills, education for work and enterprise/enterprise in education, career education, sustainable development, anti-bullying and anti-drugs, there is a need for advice and support for schools at a national level. Such programmes need to be kept up-to-date and relevant for pupils in a fast changing society. In addition to teaching the programmes and helping pupils to learn, schools also need advice on consulting with and reporting to parents and carers. Schools need to ensure that programmes serve better the needs of the most vulnerable pupils and relate learning in education for personal and social development to the wider curriculum.
Monitoring progress and achievement
Many schools have recognised the importance of monitoring closely pupils' progress and achievement. However, the responsibilities of teachers for monitoring and providing feedback are often blurred. Schools should ensure that staff with a key responsibility for the personal development of individual pupils and groups of pupils have full access to information on their progress and achievement in order that they can play their role in providing feedback to individuals. In secondary schools, more attention needs to be given to tracking and monitoring the progress of pupils in S1/S2 and of all pupils' achievement of core skills. Schools should continue to develop the use of ICT for handling information about and communication in relation to individual pupils, and ensure that staff and pupils have appropriate and ready access to ICT facilities.
Staff development
Having decided on the approaches to be taken to improving personal support for pupils, education authorities and schools must ensure that all in the school undertake appropriate staff development at levels required to support their particular roles. Where staff are to work with professions from outside the school, arrangements should be made for joint staff development. Newly qualified teachers should continue to develop competence in all aspects of providing personal support to pupils and playing their part in teaching PSD programmes.
Leadership
Leaders at all levels in the school need to be clear about their responsibilities in leading and managing quality support for pupils. In primary and most special schools, such leadership is likely to lie with the headteacher and senior promoted staff. Good practice in secondary schools indicates that delegating the strategic leadership of support for pupils, including personal support, support for learning and behaviour support to one member of the senior management team encourages a more integrated approach to supporting pupils within the school. Effective leaders require a coherent approach to monitoring and evaluating the quality of provision in order to ensure that it is having positive effects on pupils' experiences and promoting their personal development.
In conclusion
Most pupils responding to the HMI questionnaires issued when their school is inspected report that among the staff there is a key teacher who knows them well as an individual and provides support. Interviews with pupils on inspections have reinforced this view. Often pupils give moving testimonials to the personal support they have received from individual members of staff. Such staff are making a difference in the lives of many children and young people. With the roll-out of the Integrated Community Schools approach and the opportunities afforded by the teachers' agreement, Scottish schools are in a very good position to consider innovative ways of continuing to deliver, develop and improve personal care and support for all pupils.
This will only happen, however, if schools work effectively in partnership with parents and carers and support agencies, and take full account of pupils' needs and views. Much of the development can be achieved within education authorities and schools through debate and reflection leading to reviews and revisions of systems and programmes, supported by staff development and the resources of the community. Some aspects require national guidance and support, including models of good practice to assist schools in taking forward support for pupils. The key aim must be to ensure that all Scottish pupils feel fully supported to derive the greatest benefits from their education, enjoy and participate fully in their schools and are well prepared for life as adults.