5th-9th June 2017

Sorry for missing a few weeks. It is a busy time and the blog slipped to the side of the desk. So here is a brief snapshot of the last few weeks.

22-26 May: Our promoted staff all had briefings on school performance data. It made us think fairly deeply about how we continue to help pupils do even better in terms of qualifications and wider achievement.  On Wednesday we under a sunny sky we held our forest walk at durris. It was well attended and a really positive day. This was also the week when we have S3 on work experience. 180 pupils were placed with local companies (thanks to all who helped) for the week. We have had fantastic feedback from employers.

29 May-2 June: The start of a new timetable and the end of the exams. Pupils all have stepped up a year and started their new classes. This is a major piece of work and a significant part of any year. I held assemblies for all pupils and highlighted key messages which went into a letter home (copied here):

Junior Letter 29.05.17

Senior Letter 31.05.17

5th-9th June: We hsd our final meeting with our ASG (primary and secondary head teachers) this week. It was a chance to reflect on the work we have done this session and begin to make plans for the future. I also met with our newly elected class reps and they have been set an ambitious goal to get views from all pupils on how to improve their school. We held our prize giving and i have to thank Skye for planning and hosting the event and Peter Johnston for his keynote address. What he said about ‘thesis, antithesis and synthesis’ was particularly apt in the present time. I closed the week reading around 90 prefect applications. These showed the vast depth of quality youngsters in the school. 25 of those forms expressed an interest in the Head Prefect roles and a panel have identified 15 we will interview next week.

As we head towards summer I am happy to report there is a great deal going on and the school is in good shape.

 

1st – 5th May 2017: School improvement

Around this time of year we need to reflect on our progress this session and begin to set our priorities for next school session.  It is really important that staff undertake some evaluation of their work but also vital that we hear the views of pupils, parents and others involved in our work.  In this blog I will say a few things about how we hope to gather views this session.

Parents:  Over recent years at this time of year I have sent out a paper survey to a cross section of parents.  I usually get around 100 back and work through these to produce graphs showing parent feedback.  This year, thanks to the parent council we will be able to do the survey electronically and this will make it easier for parents to complete and for me to produce graphs and comments.  I will also be able to seek feedback on a wider variety of things (see below) and in so doing help raise the profile of some major pieces of work we are undertaking.

Pupils:  Much of what has been said for parents also applies to pupils.  However, I am also going to ask pupils to meet in focus groups to help identify specific things can do improve – to make poor things good and make the good things great.  We have some ideas of what we are wanting to improve but meaningful and lasting change can only happen in a school if the pupils see the need for change and are involved closely in the change process.

Staff (teaching and non teaching):  Again the mixture of surveys and focus groups will help to evaluate the progress this session and identify the areas for improvement for next session.  Over the session we have also involved all staff in a process of validated self evaluation.  In short this is where staff make a self evaluation of how they think they are doing and someone else confirms or questions their assessment.  It should not be a cosy process – staff should be critical of their own practice and their colleagues should be help them to raise the standards of their work.  Later in May all promoted staff will also have a session looking at the performance data from last session so we are better able to learn from the SQA results which come out in August.

The particular areas I shall be surveying pupils and parents on are as follows:

  • Albyn pupils and parents – progress with the current school improvement plan
  • Carden pupils and parents – priorities for the next school improvement plan
  • Holburn pupils and parents – draft proposals for ‘closing the gap’ and the Pupil Equity Fund
  • Victoria parents and pupils – updating the vision, values and behaviours statement
  • Waverly parents and pupils – annual school questionnaire

Surveys should be completed next week and following this I shall be looking for groups of staff, pupils, parents and community partners to meet to draw out the main themes and to make proposals on how/when any particular actions should be addressed.

I want it to be your school as much as it is mine.  Please take the opportunity to give feedback – although I cannot promise to give everyone what they want all of the time I will;

  • listen to what people are saying
  • involve staff, pupils and parents in shaping how we take forward the main actions from the surveys
  • communicate the feedback (‘you said’) and the actions (‘we will …’) to all staff, pupils, parents and the wider community

It is a significant undertaking but one which I hope will not only involve you in shaping the school but also lead to even higher levels of commitment, participation, support, involvement and ultimately achievement for all associated in our learning community.

 

 

21st-25th August: Welcome back and well done

My first task is to welcome everyone back to session 2017/18 and to wish those seniors who have moved on from all the best in the future.

Our new S1 intake have settled in very well and this is in no small part down to the work we did all last session to help them become familiar with the school. We had 7 half day curriculum visits and a 3 day induction week so the building and routines were very familiar to those who attended one of our 4 associated primary schools. It was a lot of work to set up and I hope it will ensure we get off to a good start in terms of settling in and a fast start in terms of the work. If we are to get these S1s to outperform the seniors who have just left we need them to set a high pace and high standards from day and through their time at Harlaw Academy. We want them to enjoy school but as in any aspect of life enjoyment is linked to feelings of success.

I have attached a set of slides used at the assemblies I held for all pupils on the first day back. They are intended to tell pupils the story of their school; what their badge means, the origins of their school, our agreed vision/values/behaviours, their rights and hopes for their future. I would encourage parents and families to chat about this at home because if we can get staff, pupils, families and the wider community all working together for the best of the young people we will increase the chances of success.

August 2017 assemblies

I was very impressed to see almost all pupils turning up to school on time and in uniform. We will keep working with those who are late or not properly turned out for school not only because it is linked to the story of the assemblies but also because these are ways we try to keep our young people safe. All staff and visitors who are in the building should have an ID badge and all pupils should have their school uniform. We have a variety of suppliers and the basic information is contained on the attached leaflet. There is also an optional PE top available from Thistle Sports. It costs a fraction of a football top, is durable and really smart.

S1 – S3 Dress code for Harlaw

I appreciate there are some families who may find uniform expensive and for that reason we have a range of suppliers and have changed to a colour that offers more options. We are also keen to support families who may be entitled to support through either clothing grants or free school meals. I attach the forms again here for you to consider. I know some families do not like to make a claim and if this is the case please try to think of it from the point of view of helping your son/daughter. In addition to any entitlement the family might receive the school also gets around £1,200 for each pupil who is entitled to Free School Meals. If you are entitled please claim it because it helps draw down other funds which I can use to help them do better in their studies.

EMA INFORMATION LEAFLET – 1718 -parentsClothing Grant formFree School Meals leaflet

If you need help with these leaflets or forms please ask us to help with them – again please do not be shy it is our jobs to help you and we are certainly helping several others eg where their first language is not English.

In closing this blog I want to concentrate on the ‘well done’ aspect. Well done to those who completed National 3 and National 4 courses. These are internally assessed and do not require pupils to sit an exam – so we knew before summer who had passed. At National 5, Higher and Advanced Higher levels most courses require pupils to sit exams then wait until early August to hear their results. In the case of Harlaw Academy just over 1230 exams were sat in and summary terms this is how our pupils got on:

– 90% led to an award in that course (grades A-D)
– around 85% led to a pass (grades A-C)
– almost 30% led to an A pass

The new courses demand a great deal from staff and pupils as they often require successful completion of both internal unit assessments and the final external exam. To have the levels of success described above is something we should all be proud of and something we need to acknowledge/celebrate. I highlighted these numbers at our staff meeting on the Monday at the Assemblies on the Tuesday and again with Parents and local Councillors on the Thursday and now here in this first blog of the session. Schools aspire to do many things; look after young people, help them to develop as social beings, encourage them to take part in new opportunities and learn new skills etc. But one of our main jobs it to prepare youngsters for National Qualifications and give them the skills/knowledge/confidence to sit and pass them. I am delighted at the 1230 times pupils sat at an exam desk and gave the paper their best shot – for some it did not work out but they have tried and they can choose to try again or move on to something else. But for around 85% it led to a successful outcome and in 305 of the cases it led to an A pass. That is certainly something we should all be very be proud of.

SQA Exam Results 2017

Parents and pupils are advised of the following arrangements at Harlaw for any queries they may have following the SQA results day on the 8th August.

Laura Murray the SQA Co-ordinator will be in the school on Results day, pupils can come into school between 10am and 3pm to deal with any urgent queries.  You can also contact Ms Murray using the school e-mail address harlawacademy@aberdeencity.gov.uk

The school office will be open during the week Monday 14th – Friday 18th August from 9am to 1pm and pupils/parents can call in on the normal school number 01224 589251.

The SQA provide a Post Results Service after exam results are sent out.  These services support candidates whose school is concerned their grade may not be correct and the decision on whether to submit a Post-results Services request lies with the Head Teacher.

The link below will take you to the SQA webpage for more information on the SQA Post Results Service.

http://www.sqa.org.uk/sqa/79048.html

Parents or pupils who are concerned their grade may be wrong are advised to contact the school as soon as possible using the methods outlined above.

Please note that the closing date for Priority Marking Reviews is 18th August 2017.  Priority Marking Reviews are for pupils whose place at College or University is dependent on a re-grade.  Pupils in this position must make contact with Ms Murray by Wednesday 16th August at the latest.

All requests for non-priority marking reviews will be dealt with once the school re-opens on Tuesday 22nd August.

Sports Day 2017

I am pleased to confirm that our sports afternoon will take place on Friday 23 June 2017, 1.15 – 3.15 pm at the Aberdeen Grammar School playing fields. Parents are welcome to attend.

Lunchtime will start at 11.45 am with the pupils registering with their P5 teacher at 12.45 pm where they will be walked to the field. Pupils are able to dress in their house colours for the day. If pupils wish to do this then we have asked for a donation of £1, alternatively pupils may wear school uniform. All money collected will go to charity.

All pupils must attend the event, behave well throughout the event and support the competitors.

Athletes will report to the front of the school at 12.15 pm where they will be transported to the fields by bus.

All pupils will be dismissed from the playing fields on completion of the event.

Should the weather be bad we will use Groupcall to send a message to parents.

The event is a great way for us to come together as a school and finish the session off with a great event. It is also an exciting element of our developing house system.

I’m sure it will be a success and wish to see it develop as a key part of our annual calendar.

15th – 19th May: Transitions/Expectations

I finished my last blog by mentioning a personal challenge to join my son and daughter on the Baker Hughes 10K.  We had set two modest targets; to complete the 10K and to raise more than £500 for Alzheimer Scotland.  I am delighted to say that we exceeded our expectations on both fronts.  Not only did we complete the 10K but we also all finished within an hour (in my case with only a few seconds to spare) but we also have raised over £1800 for the charity.  I appreciate all the support we received on the day of the race and through the just giving page:  https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/Rachel-Innes1

Over this week as well as continuing with the SQA exams we have been putting a lot of time into two significant transitions.  The first is the one people tend to focus on the most P7-S1.  The second is one which is perhaps even more significant S3-S4.

P7-S1:  We have had visits to out Technology and our Expressive Arts faculties this week.  This means all of our P7s have visited most of the curricular areas this year.  No year group in the history of Harlaw Academy will have had the number or quality of visits by this stage.  We hope it helps the youngsters (and their families) to feel confident about the move and to make a fast start to work here at Harlaw.  I want to keep improving pupil participation, achievement and attainment at the school and the extensive programme of visits are part of achieving this expectation.

S3-S4:  I have written to each S3 pupil/family to try to convey the significance of this transition from the junior to the senior school.  We spend a massive amount of time trying to get it right.  It includes all of the work around; assessment/reporting, course choice, timetable change, work experience and course induction.  All of this combines around some simple ideas – that the pupils are entering the senior school, that they need to show maturity and that they need to see school as a place of work and the gateway to their future.  Too many continue to think their teachers or their parents will do it for them.  In truth if they do not start to do it for themselves then we are not preparing them for the world beyond school.  My basic mantra is that they need to produce “best work, first time, on time, every time”.  Before starting the senior school our pupils spend a week on work experience and this will hopefully help them focus on who they want to be and what they need to do to get there.

I hope our new S1 and new S4 step up to the increased expectations.