Saint Ronan’s aims to provide a range of educational opportunities suited to the interests, aptitudes and needs of the children in its care. The provision for those children with special educational needs was judged by the School Inspectorate (ISI inspection, 2013) to be ‘excellent’.
All teachers in the Prep School set suitable learning challenges for the children and respond to children’s diverse learning needs. Some children have barriers to learning which means they have special needs and require particular action by the school. Teachers take account of these requirements and make provision, where necessary, but sometimes these children may also need individual learning support lessons with one of our specialist Learning Support Teachers.
Any child who is identified as ‘struggling’ to make progress in the classroom, or whose assessment profile warrants further analysis, is referred to the Learning Support Department and an ‘in-school’ assessment is carried out by our SENDCO. From here it is identified whether the child would benefit from extra learning support (in the form of one-to-one lessons) and whether an external referral is necessary to diagnose any specific learning or behavioural difficulty. This is organised by the school SENDCO, who liaises with all members of staff, providing essential information prior to the assessment. All learning support teachers hold a specific ‘DYSLEXIA’ qualification. The cost of additional tuition is carried by the parents.
Any child receiving individual tuition will have an Individual Pupil Profile (IPP) written by their learning support teacher and their English/Maths teacher and made available to all subject teachers. The subject teachers will then take into account its classroom recommendations.
As well as one-to-one support, pupils with educational needs may be supported in the classroom by a TA in Year 3.
Children with an Educational Psychologist’s recommendation may be permitted extra time in their internal and external examinations (typically 25%). Some children may require a reader or a writer (an amanuensis). Such help would be provided by the Learning Support Department and any peripatetic staffing costs incurred will be charged to the parent in the same way as private lessons.
Critical to the development of all children at Saint Ronan’s is the celebration and extension of areas of strength and talent. All children show personal areas of strength and skill and can therefore feel successful and valued at every stage of their school life. The atmosphere of security and encouragement, coupled with careful and structured long-term support, ensures that children develop to their full potential in areas they find more challenging.
The Prep School Learning Support Department is based in OXO, Cabbage Patch, The Grub Store and Krakatoa. LT’s classroom is The Incubator.
The team consists of:
Mrs Lucy Taggart (SENDCO) – B.A. Hons., PGCE, SEN Diploma
Mrs Carolyn Freeman – BEd, University of Cambridge, Dyslexia Institute Maths Programme
Mrs Jane Ryland – BA Hons, PGCE, SEN Diploma
Mrs Mary Woolgar – MA, University of St. Andrews, SEN Diploma
Mrs Kathy Wright – BEd (Hons), SEN Diploma
Mrs Jo Miller – BA (Hons), PGCE, SEN Diploma
Mrs Marie Bottle – BA (Hons), SEN Diploma
On the one hand, more Senior Schools are introducing the 11+ and are pre-testing. On the other, some Prep Schools are abandoning CE with a great flurry of marketing-focused hyperbole and replacing it with ‘little tested’ alternatives at unedifying breakneck speed. It is, however, my view (and that of many of my fellow Heads) that CE is far from dead. It is, instead, evolving and facilitating more innovation in teaching and learning. The gravitas of the external validation provided by CE puts our children in a very favourable position as they enter their senior schools.
The skills embedded by the rigour of CE – disciplined study, an understanding of how to revise, overcoming the stress of exam-taking, the ability to prioritize time and manage large amounts of learning – help the children enormously as they face GCSEs. In English and Humanities, CE papers allow the children to develop and hone their skills in analysis, synthesis and essay writing. The acquisition of these skills in the idyll of a nurturing Prep School makes a tangible difference. This theory is supported by our academic tracking, which illustrates that our children progress rapidly in Years 7 and 8.
Pre-tests are largely computer tests that are closely linked to IQ. Success in Common Entrance recognizes, in addition, hard work and effort. Hard working children see tangible and positive cause and effect as they take their CE successes on to their senior school. It instils a growth mindset and there is an enormous sense of pride and achievement when the children open their CE envelopes. It is a real highlight of the StR year!
CE has never been wholly ‘Common’. Every school has different grade boundaries and is free to use the suggested mark scheme as they chose. Neither is it for ‘Entrance’, where Pre-Testing now dominates. It has, instead, metamorphosed into a ‘Common Exit’ exam and this commonality is key to its strength. Prep Schools, like Saint Ronan’s, who feed a range of senior schools, should see themselves as part of a bigger picture in teaching a common syllabus of knowledge and skills. After all, that, for all their protestation, is exactly what the Senior Schools do via the commonality of GCSE and A level! Performance in these examinations will dictate universities, careers and futures.
CE currently offers us a syllabus and it is our job to deliver that in as innovative, creative, collaborative and ‘media-savy’ way as possible. We are no longer simply ‘teaching to the test’. In my mind, CE is just a valuable part of our much wider curriculum. Non-examined subjects such as Music, Art, Computer Science, Forest School, DT or PE allow for greater experimentation, risk and creativity. The co-curricular provision, encompassing everything from Dance and Drama to Beekeeping and a great variety of sport (both field and individual), offers a myriad of opportunities to capture the interests of the children. There is also time in the day for free, unstructured play to feed the imagination and forge closer friendships.
I will, of course, continue with my team to monitor all the arguments about Common Entrance and will seek to maximize every opportunity for creativity and innovation. However, I don’t think we should consider ‘throwing the baby out with the bathwater’ quite yet!
WTV
Most senior schools offer a range of scholarships. For example awards are available for academic excellence, Sport, Art, DT, Computer Science, Music or Drama. Each school applies its own system – with its own idiosyncrasies! – and the assessment procedure can widely differ from one school to another.
It is important to define in advance the best course of action for each potential scholar and a close partnership between the parents and the school is necessary. We will make recommendations to parents in Year 7 based on our experience of the standards expected.
The number of papers to be taken (as well as their nature) can also considerably vary, although some schools now use the Common Academic Scholarship format from the ISEB. Virtually all schools will test the candidates in English, Maths, Science and French, and some set a General Paper, as well as offering a number of options. In addition, an interview at the senior school is generally part of the selection process.
We will make recommendations to parents based on our experience of the standards expected. As ever, there is lots of help available be it from the Heads of Department for co-curricular awards or from the Headmaster who talks the lead with the academic scholarship candidates.
Whichever the type of scholarship sought, it is your responsibility, as parents, to register your child for a scholarship to their chosen senior school.
Cranbrook is one of the very few State Schools still offering an entrance exam at age 13. It is obviously selective and its stated objective is “to admit children likely to flourish on a broad range of subjects, taught in a style appropriate to the top 25% of the ability range, capable of at least 6 grades at GCSE and intending to go on to AS and A2 work”.
Those who wish to take the tests for Cranbrook should first check (as early as in Year 6) that the children concerned are of a suitable ability, by contacting William Trelawny-Vernon or James Green.
The admission policy for Cranbrook only involves a Verbal Reasoning paper, a piece of English free writing and a maths paper. For entry to Cranbrook from 2020 onwards, the tests will follow a different format. There will be a Cognitive Assessment Test (referred to as a ‘CAT’ test). This is an online test (produced by Granada Learning) which tests developed ability in four cognitive domains: verbal, quantitative, non-verbal and spatial. Scores are adjusted for age so that each candidate has a ‘standardised score’. Cranbrook School will be responsible for setting the pass threshold every year.
The children are prepared for the entrance test by extra tuition and practice sessions. Cranbrook ‘mocks’ are organised prior to the entrance test for day candidates. James Green oversees the children’s preparation and is available to answer your questions.
The key dates for the year ahead are:
Dates to be confirmed