School Overview
The
fundamental goal of Abbotsford Primary School is to ensure that all students
have the opportunity to develop to their full potential, in a caring,
supportive environment in which respect for the rights of everyone is
encouraged. School policies, priorities
and programs are developed taking this into account. The educational, physical and emotional
development of each student is a priority and the school provides a challenging
environment, which aims to encourage students to become considerate,
responsible and self-reliant.
The Abbotsford Primary School
community values:
§ respect of self, others and property;
§ the provision of a safe and secure
environment;
§ professionalism in the academic, social and
management aspects of the school;
§ the provision of equal opportunity for all
members of the school community;
§ the development of our students’ self-esteem
so that they strive to achieve their potential with confidence;
§ the extension of each students individual
potential by encouraging, recognising and rewarding effort and achievement; and
§ the provision of a cooperative and friendly
environment where students share the responsibility for their own learning,
behaviour and health.
Our
school is a small inner city school located in the City of Yarra and mainly
services families from the areas of Richmond, Abbotsford and Collingwood with a
smaller number of students travelling from other areas to attend the school’s
Chinese Bilingual Program. Abbotsford
Primary School was first established in 1877.
The
suburb has undergone many changes over the last 128 years and provided
residence to many different cultures.
The school community includes busy Victoria Street and its Asian
commercial activity. At present our students are predominantly from Vietnamese
and Chinese backgrounds with many of the students living in nearby high-rise
public housing. The school has a very high Student Learning Needs Index (SLN),
with 87% of the students coming from Non English Speaking Backgrounds (NESB)
where the only English spoken is at school.
Over 72% of the school families are in receipt of government assistance
through the Education Maintenance Allowance (EMA). This places the school in
Like Schools Group (LSG) 9
As a
large number of the students are from non-English speaking families, a number
of regular volunteers at the school assist with English speaking and reading
programs. To develop the home school
partnership parents are actively encouraged to be involved in their children’s
learning and the life of the school through cultural and student
activities. Interpreters are used at
both formal and informal meetings between teachers and parents, to exchange information,
explain and develop school policies and programs, and to report on student
progress. All our correspondence is sent
out in English, Chinese and Vietnamese. We also hold regular parent English
classes to assist the parents with their knowledge of English so as to enable
them to provide help with their children’s education, especially at home.
The
staff are committed to the maintenance of an inclusive learning environment
which engages students in the process of becoming active, independent and skilled
learners who are involved in and enjoy school life. The school aims to achieve successful
outcomes, both academic and personal, for all students regardless of gender,
ethnicity, socio economic background or other special needs.
All
students are catered for in multi-age classes utilising an integrated
curriculum approach. School specialist
programs offer support and enrichment.
These include Perceptual Motor Program (PMP), Life Education, yearly
swimming programs, inter-school sport, Music; keyboard tuition, Visual Arts,
Science and Technology, Physical Education, Personal Development and
resilience, Learning Technologies and Library.
Excursions and incursions are designed to give students maximum exposure
to a wide variety of experiences within a limited budget that accommodates the
predominantly low socio economic backgrounds of our school population. Access
to the local community links are utilised e.g. Collingwood Children’s farm;
local Library; Moon lantern festival.
In
striving for continuous improvement, Abbotsford Primary School is committed to
maximising the educational opportunities for all students, with staff
professional development playing a vital role in achieving this
Our strategic plan targets for
2006 were to ensure
That in
Student Learning we would:
§
Continue to maintain / increase the students' success rate against VELS
at the expected level in Number so that: 70% in Year Prep; 75% in Year 2 and
85% in Year 4 are at or above the expected level.
§
In AIM Year 5 Reading and Number, achieve outcomes above the LSG mean
That in Student Engagement and Wellbeing
we would:
§
Further improve student absences to be in the lowest 25% of state benchmarks.
§
To increase the Year 5 & 6 results on the Student Survey
connectedness to school from the 2005 mean of 3.6 in Yr 5 and 2.9 in Yr 6 to
3.8 in both years in 2006.
That in Student Pathways and Transitions
we would:
§ Form a
Middle Years Cluster Transition group by the end of 2006.
DEMOGRAPHICS
There has been a progressive decrease in
enrolments over the last three years. (6.7% between 2004 and 2006)
In 2006 Abbotsford Primary School had 74 students
and indications are that the enrolment will continue to slowly decrease due to
the demographics of the area.
In 2006 62% of the enrolments were boys and
38% girls
From a high point of 146 students in 1994
our enrolment has decreased by 49% in the last thirteen years.
In 2006 we had a Prep enrolment of 12, slightly
lower than the 16 Prep students in 2005.
Parent Satisfaction
In a statewide survey
parents are asked to what extent they agree with the statement "Overall, I am satisfied with the
education of my child" on a scale where 1 is strongly disagree and 7
is strongly agree. The mean score is reported.
The Parent Opinion Survey changed in 2006 and is not comparable to the pre-2006
survey. Pre-2006 data is therefore not shown.
Forty four families were invited to complete
the survey and the response rate of 70% is slightly below the state average of
75%.
The average score for parent satisfaction
with the school is 6.13, well above the statewide median score of 5.87. The school's
result is judged as ‘excellent’ and places us above 80% of schools across the
state.
Teacher Satisfaction
In a statewide survey teachers are asked report
on their opinion of the school's morale on
a scale from 1to 5 where 5 is the best possible score. 63% of staff invited to
complete the survey responded. The mean score for teacher satisfaction (morale)
is 3.4.
Teacher absence
The average number of
days absent per teacher was 7.54 days, slightly higher than the statewide
average of 6.73 days
Teacher Retention
Of the 18 teaching service staff at Abbotsford
Primary School at June 2005 (including those on leave without pay), 18 or 100%
were still at the school at June 2006. This figure across all Government
schools was 89%.
Teacher Qualifications&Participation in
professional learning
All teachers in Victorian Government
Schools are registered with the Victorian Institute of Teaching. The
requirements for registration with the Victorian Institute of Teaching can be found
at: http://www.vit.vic.edu.au.
All teaching staff have
participated in Professional Learning programs throughout the year. The school's
expenditure of more than $5,200 on this area indicates the high value placed on
providing teachers with the best available strategies and programs to ensure
improved student learning outcomes.
Principal's Report
During 2006, the school has recorded
another positive year with student learning outcomes continuing to rise and all
Department of Education and Training (DE&T) requirements and timelines
being met.
Throughout the year, Staff have continued
to develop and broaden their knowledge
through Professional Development (PD) activities. Staff attended many other PD
sessions which enhanced their knowledge and was shared amongst the staff. A
major focus during the year was the planning of curriculum in relation to the
Victorian Essential Learning Standards (VELS). This planning and assessment
using the progression points enabled us to clearly report to parents, their
child’s progress at school using the new Reporting format.
Again this year the students at the school
have attained excellent results across all recorded areas of the curriculum. We
have continued to achieve a high standard of benchmark levels in both Literacy
and Numeracy, especially when compared to the like school group cohorts. Staff
throughout the school have developed and reviewed their class programs to
ensure that students are attaining success in their studies.
The Arts program has again taken a pivotal
role in student’s learning as well as community events at the school. Allan
Cumming took on the roles of Art and Library teacher. Angela Di Maria
provided private keyboard lesson to students at the school. The Arts program
culminated in the Bi-Annual School Art Show held at the school. During Semester
1 we were also fortunate to have a performing artist, provided to the school
through “The Song Room”, which culminated in a musical night at the Abbotsford
Convent. This was a highlight for those who attended the night as well as the
children who performed.
I would like to thank the parents who have attended our parent group meetings
and provided constructive feedback on the school’s progress. They also assisted
in the preparation of a lunch for the whole school during our Carnival Day. I
trust that this involvement in the educational activities at the school will
continue to grow over the years.
I would like to thank Helen Salmond, our
Business Manager, who started in
Semester 2 this year, for all the Administrative assistance given to me as well
as efficiently running the Admin area and finances of the school. A special
thanks goes to the School Council members who have assisted and given me
guidance throughout the year. I look forward to a continuing positive and
fruitful partnership with them, as we are all working for the benefit of the
students and the general school community. The enthusiasm of our staff is
evident in the results produced by the students as seen by the data enclosed,
as well as the smiling faces of the students we see on a daily basis.
On the following page I have included a
brief summary of our achievements throughout the year.
Abbotsford Primary School
is a strong and viable educational entity in the local community and one which
we will all continue to strengthen. Congratulations to everyone on their achievements.
School Council President's Report
During 2006, Abbotsford Primary School showed how well it is
connected with the local community, with participation in the Moon Lantern
Parade, visits to the Collingwood Children’s Farm and swimming at the Richmond
Pool. Our international connections also remained strong with a visit by twenty
principals from China to
explore the excellent BiLingual program and continuation of our sister school
relationship with students from Hanzhong in China. The school has been
fortunate in being able to take up exciting opportunities as they have arisen,
including participation in the Song Room concert at Abbotsford Convent, a
Variety Club camp at Wilson’s
Promontory and participation in Artplay activities. Many facilities within the
school have been upgraded, ensuring children have a stimulating and enriched
environment in which to thrive. The dedicated staff, have shown their
commitment to giving students varied experiences and the students themselves
have shown how delightful it can be to share knowledge and information. I look
forward to the next year providing opportunities to undertake new projects like
establishment of the community garden and building on the diverse range of
programs and activities offered at the school.
Virginia Dods
HIGHLIGHTS and ACHIEVEMENTS
for 2006
Some great social
and academic achievements were made by the staff and students, when the school
participated in a wide variety of activities both in the school and out and
about in the community. Highlights of
the year included:
Curriculum Activities
- Literacy Week, whole school
activities.
- Swimming Programs-February and
December.
- Interschool Sport for grade 4/5/6.
- Information Technology upgrades of
computers, printers and software.
- AIM testing for grade 3 & 5
students
- Literacy Week – Tony Bones performance
- Music Tuition Keyboard lessons with
Angela
- Continuation and extension of “Letterland”
at the school in the Prep-2 area.
- Continuation of Homework Club at the
school – 3.45 – 4.45pm with Red Cross volunteers
- Variety Club Camp for students in
grades 4-6 at Wilson’s
Promontory
- Grade visits to Collingwood Children’s
Farm
- Breakfast Club – extended to 2 days a
week with the Red Cross
- Yr 6 – Year 7 transition afternoon at
Lynall Hall – worked with Zita (SPO)
- Life Education Van – all students at
the school attend the program
- Joint Network Curriculum Day – all
staff attended in the Network
- Visiting Artist – ‘Children Cut-outs
for front fence’ Bonnie
- Activities throughout the year with
“Artplay” in the City with Gr 5/6 students
- Full school participation in Premier’s
Reading Challenge & Award presentation
- Introduction of New Report Card format
throughout the whole school.
- Reading for Life program with ANZ and
RioTinto workers
- Staff PD on Assessment Maps and
Progression points for Assessment procedures.
- Visit by 20 Principals from China to
look at and find out more about the BiLingual program
- “Song Room” artist in residence
culminating with grade performances at the Abbotsford Convent
- Numeracy Night for all parents and
school community
Community Events
- Making of lanterns and participation
in the Moon Lantern Parade
- Kinder to Prep Expo at the Collingwood Town Hall
- Carnival Day – held at the school –
parent group prepared lunch for the whole school
- Parent meeting groups – continued with
En as the leader – 2 per term
- Continue sister school relationship
with the students from Hanzhong China
- Parent Classroom Helpers learning
English program started with Marg O’Farrell.
- Parent Information sessions at the
start of the year for all grades
- Art Show at the school
- Mini concert and end of year raffle
- Continuation of Welfare Office
position at the school.
- School “Commonwealth Games” Fun day at
the school.
School Improvements
- Continuation of Carlton Crew monthly
to maintain the school yard and surroundings.
- Extension and maintenance of the OSHC
program as well the Quality Assurance review.
- New fencing around the school car
park. New front gate in Lithgow
St entrance
- New sailcloth over the play equipment
area
STAFF 2007
Principal Ken
Coughlan
School Administration Helen Salmond
Gr Prep/1 Dina
Kambardis
Bi-Lingual Class My
Hoa Lam / Daniel Clynes
Daniel
Clynes
Grade 2/3/4 Ngoc
Nguyen
Grade 5/6 Pam
Dudgeon
Specialists Marg
O’Farrell: .6 - ESL / Early Years
Co-ordinator
Allan
Cumming (Library/ Art)
Multi-Cultural Aides En Thi Diep, 0.5
Lim
Lim Lay, 0.2
Disability and Impairment Aides Lucy
Davies 0.5
Lynne McLeod 0.5
IT Support Lap
Nguyen
Education Psychologist Keith
Bailey
Speech Therapist Kezia
Stokes
School
Council Composition
Parent Representatives DE&T Representatives
Tim Woodruff Allan
Cumming
Lyndal Austin Daniel
Clynes
Lil Scott Ken
Coughlan
Virginia Dods
Michelle Aung-Thin
Student Progress & Achievements
Student progress & Achievement in
English & Mathematics - Early Years Text Reading & VELS
We set
the following targets for 2006 in Student learning:
§
Continue to maintain / increase the students' success rate against VELS
at the expected level in Number so that: 70% in Year Prep; 75% in Year 2 and
85% in Year 4 are at or above the expected level.
§
In AIM Year 5 Reading and Number, achieve outcomes above the LSG mean
In Text Reading, the targets we set for
2006 have been met or exceeded with results in
Prep, Year 1 and Year 2 all being
well above the achievements of Like Schools (LSG)
The targets set for 2006 have been reached and exceeded. The target
of having 70% of Prep at or above the expected level has been achieved with 100%
at or above the expected level, similarly, in Year 2 the target of 75% has been achieved with 86%
at or above the expected level and at Year 4 ( target 85%), 89% are at or above
the expected level.
Teacher assessments of students against the
Victorian Essential Learning Standards (VELS) indicate that an average of 98%of
students in Prep, 94% of students in Year 2, 85% of students in Year 4 and 93%
of students in Year 6 are achieving at or above expected levels. We will
continue to review programs and strategies to further improve student
achievements against the VELS
Benchmarks for the state and Like School
Group (LSG) are yet to be published.
Student progress & ACHIEVEMENT - AIM
Due to the need to
maintain privacy, no results are published for year levels where 10 or less students
have sat the AIM tests. As we had 10 or
less in Year 3 in 2005 and Year 5 in 2004 (reading), no comparisons to the
expected levels or national benchmarks are available
Student achievement in Reading and Number
is measured in the statewide Achievement Improvement Monitor (AIM) testing
program at Years 3 & 5. The graphs below show that, despite a reduction in
the percentage at or above expected levels from 2004; for Year 3, an average of
53% of students are achieving at or above the expected standard and at Year 5
there has been an improvement in the reading results and a slight reduction in Maths
results, 73% of students are at or above the expected standard.
Our target of
having Year 5 (Reading
and Number), achieve outcomes above the LSG mean has been realised. The score
of 3.4 for reading is 0.5 a VELS level above the mean of the LSG (2.9). Similarly,
the mean score of 3.7 for Mathematics is 0.6 VELS levels above the mean score
of the LSG.
The results are
very pleasing and indicate that the programs and strategies used by the
teachers are beginning to produce the desired outcomes. We are disappointed
that the percentage of students at or above the expected level in year 3
(reading) has decreased in 2006 compared to previous years and we will continue
to review programs and strategies to further improve student achievements
against the AIM.
The average percentage of Year 3
& 5 students who, according to their AIM results, would have been
considered as performing at the expected level (a "C" grading) or
higher ("A" or "B") is 63%.
From 2006 student results on the
AIM test will be compared against the National Benchmarks.
The graphs below indicate the percentage
of Year 3 & 5 students who, according to their AIM results, were at or
above the National Benchmarks.
When the school’s results are
compared against the national benchmarks, we see that, on average, 97% our Year
3 students are achieving at or above the national benchmarks for Reading,
Writing and Maths.
When the
school’s results are compared against the national benchmarks, we see that, on
average, 97% our Year 5 students are achieving at or above the national
benchmarks for Reading, Writing and Maths.
Student Pathways and Transitions
Our transition program for students
entering Prep year is conducted in cooperation with all of the local pre schools
and kindergartens. We hold parent information nights in addition to the
orientation sessions for prospective Prep students
The transition from Year 6 to Secondary
schools is catered for through attendance at sporting events, Step Up Days, and the formal transition
program offered by the district secondary schools.
Our
participation in the Yarra Network
Working groups in the “Clever Network Module” is further assisting the
development of effective transition programs for our students.
Student Engagement and Wellbeing
Student Engagement
and Wellbeing- Student Absence
For 2006 we had set a target for student engagement &
wellbeing to:
§
Further improve student absences to be in the lowest 25% of state
benchmarks.
§
To increase the Year 5 & 6 results on the Student Survey
connectedness to school from the 2005 mean of 3.6 in Yr 5 and 2.9 in Yr 6 to
3.8 in both years in 2006.
The school has
employed a number of measures to improve student engagement and well being,
including increasing parent awareness of the value of regular attendance at school
for their children through newsletter articles, meetings and communication with
parents concerning absences. The school
has also developed and implemented programs that focus on developing students’
social skills. We have introduced students to conflict resolution strategies
and delivered a values program. Programs
and curriculum are regularly evaluated and improved to improve engagement. We have
continued classroom implementation and review of Student & personal
wellbeing programs i.e. Bounce Back; Friendly Kids Friendly Classrooms; Healthy
Relationships and Values Education; Breakfast Club and Homework Club
Despite our best efforts
the target set for 2006 has not been reached and the average number of days
absent per student has increased in the past year from 8.0 days per student in
2005 to 10.8 days per student in 2006.
The average of 10.8 days per student is well below the state wide
average of 13.0 days absence per student. .
When examining the
average absence rates it is noticeable that absence rates have slightly across
all year levels. The increase in absence rates is partially a result of families
being absent on extended family holidays during the year and this impacts
significantly on our absence data.
In 2006 the total
number of students giving Extended Family Holiday (EFH) as reason for
absence = 15 (20% of the school population)
Average number of
absences due to Extended Family Holiday per student = 4.6 days
Average number of students giving EFH as
reason for absence at each year level
|
Year Level
|
EFH absence days per
student
|
Other absence days
per student
|
Total Absence days
per student
|
|
P
|
11.2.
|
5.9
|
17.1
|
|
1
|
1.8
|
6.3
|
8.1
|
|
2
|
2.1
|
3.6
|
5.7
|
|
3
|
3.3
|
11.4
|
14.7
|
|
4
|
4.5
|
9.2
|
13.7
|
|
5
|
2.4
|
5.1
|
7.5
|
|
6
|
6.7
|
1.1
|
7.8
|
The overall absence
rate of 10.8 days per student means that, on average, each student is absent
for at least 1 day per month.
If the extended
family holidays figures are removed, the average absence rate would be 6.08
days per student, or an average of less
than 1 day of absence every 6 weeks.
Student Engagement
and Wellbeing- Student Connectedness to School
Year 5 -6 students across the
state were asked to what extent they agreed with each of five statements
(I feel good about being a student at this school, I like school this
year, I am happy to be at this school, I feel I belong at this school, I look
forward to going to school) on a scale where 1=strongly disagree and 5=strongly agree. The mean
score is reported. The survey changed in 2006 and is not comparable to the pre
2006 data
The target we had set for 2006 was to
improve the mean score on the student connectedness to school area of the
survey so that for Year 5 the score would improve from 3.6 to at least 3.8 and
for year 6 from 2.9 to at least 3.8 This has been achieved with a mean score of
4.63 for Year 5 and 4.56 for Year 6
The mean score of 4.59 reported in the
Student Opinion Survey indicates our students are more connected to school than
those in 93% of state schools. The results also indicate that girls in both
year 5 & year 6 feel more connected to school than do boys. This in line
with results across the state where girls feel more connected to school than do
boys. The survey also indicates that student relationship and student well
being are areas which score as being “effective - excellent”.
Our commitment to improving student
learning remains a key focus for our school. Teachers continue to address
issues such as student relationships, safety and well being.
Future Directions
The key improvement strategies for 2007 include:
Student Learning
§
Implementation of progressive achievement
tests in Maths throughout the school.
§
Continue to maintain / increase the students' success rate against the
VELS at the established level in Number to at least: 70% in Year Prep; 75% in
Year 2 and 85% in Year 4
§
Year Prep students to show a 60% improvement in number awareness from
the 2 Numeracy interviews conducted throughout the year.
§
In AIM Year 5 Reading and Number, maintain a mean score above that of the
LSG
§
Implementation& Review of PAT Maths assessment tool throughout Years
2 -6 in February & November 2007 Analyse comparative data for 2006 (initial
testing) and 2007..
Student engagement and wellbeing:
§
Positive student survey results
§
To further improve student absences to be in
the lowest 25% of state benchmarks by the end of 2007
§
To maintain the Year 5 & 6 results on the
Student Survey connectedness to school from the 2006 mean of 4.5 in both years
in 2007.
Student pathways and transitions:
§
Maintenance & review of Yarra Network
Working groups in the “Clever Network Module”
§
Review of all Network groups throughout 2007
under leadership of a newly appointed Cluster Convenor
Financial Performance
Abbotsford Primary School
School Community
