Securing outstanding leadership in history

1. Securing outstanding leadership in history Michael Maddison HMI National Lead for History, England SHP 25th Annual Conference 6 July 2013

2. Outline Securing outstanding leadership in history • summarise the national scene: strengths and weaknesses of teaching and learning in history in schools • analyse the components and characteristics of highly effective leadership, including • highly effective teaching and learning in history • highly effective curriculum in history • highly effective leadership and management in history • illustrate best practice with examples from some of the good practice case studies in history and other subject inspection work.

3. National scene: Ofsted’s evidence Overview: a mixed picture – a successful subject in school but under pressure and some significant aspects in need of improvement

4. Primary headlines • Primary strengths: • pupils have better knowledge and make better progress where history is discrete • teaching is generally good but variable • Primary weaknesses: • pupils’ knowledge is episodic • pupils’ chronological understanding is variable and their ability to make links across the knowledge they have gained is weak

5. Secondary headlines – successes • History is successfulin most of the secondary schools visited because it is • well taught by very well-qualified and highly competent teachers • well led. • The National Curriculum at Key Stage 3 (11-14) has led to much high-quality teaching and learningin history. • Attainment is high in the secondary schools visited and has continued to rise, particularly at GCSE and A level • Entries at GCSE and A level are also rising

6. GCSE Entries 1997-2012 Figures from 2005 onwards are for end of KS4. Figures prior to this are for pupils aged 15

7. GCSE History Entries 1997-2012 Figures from 2005 onwards are for end of KS4. Figures prior to this are for pupils aged 15 *2011 rev includes accredited iGCSE history courses

8. A level and AS level History Entries 1997-2012 • 59,670 students were entered for AS-level in 2012

9. Secondary concerns – Key Stage 3 • increasing non-specialist teaching – 28% no relevant degree • variabilty in teaching time for history – average: 60-90mins a week • whole-school curriculum changes in KS3 – e.g. two year KS3; cross curricular teaching; competencies rather than subjects • misuse of levels of attainment • poor planning for progression in the developments of students’ knowledge, understanding and subject-specific thinking • the failure of some subject leaders to provide a rationale for the curriculum they had put in place • Result • in some schools history has become marginalised • standards are too variable and progress is not fast enough

10. Secondary Concerns – Key Stages 4 and 5 • Some students continue to be restricted in their subject options at GCSE • Lower ability students are not served well at KS4 – does the current reform of GCSE offer an opportunity? • Assessment at GCSE: formulaic teaching leading to formulaic responses. • The growth of the one-year GCSE • Most students who take history beyond KS3 study modern world topics at GCSE and at A level

11. Securing outstanding leadership in history

12. Securing outstanding leadership in history • History in the Primary and Secondary Years: An HMI View (1985) • History from 5-16 – Curriculum Matters 11 (1988) • Good teaching, effective departments (2000/01) • As a subject leader, do I … • As heads of department, working with subject teachers, do we … • As headteacher and senior management, do we …

13. Securing outstanding leadership in history • Ofsted, 2010; revised January 2013

14. Overview:the constituents of highly effective teaching • Subject expertise • knowledge • dynamic subject • Learning • rooted in rigorous historical enquiry • Historical thinking and understanding • Assessment • enabling teachers to refine their practice and pupils to build securely on prior learning

15. Highly effective historical thinking and understanding • The best learning in history took place when teaching developed pupils’ historical knowledge and historical thinkingthrough well-focused enquiries • Historical thinking = ability to investigate, consider, reflect and review the events of the past. • Teaching makes pupils alive to changing views of the past and helps them to understand • how and why interpretations and representations change over time • why history matters and • why the particular topics they are taught are worth knowing about.

16. Context: a group of pupils in Years 2 and 3 were studying the diary of Samuel Pepys. Discussion: when asked how they would deal with another diary which told them something different, their response was unequivocal. ‘That’s ok’, said a Year 3 pupil, ‘because we would be able to check what Samuel Pepys had written’. Another pupil added, ‘We would have another point of view. You know someone who perhaps lived in another part of London and so lived life differently’. Case Study: Developing historical thinking - Fox Primary School

17. Overview:The constituents of a highly effective curriculum • Acquisition of knowledge and development of chronological understanding • Understanding of key historical concepts • Development of historical thinking through enquiries • Clarity of rationale and thinking • Assessment which reveals whether aims are being achieved • An increasing level of expectation and challenge to ensure progression in historical knowledge, thinking and understanding • Distinctive and reflects pupils’ needs, interests and aspirations • Wide range of enrichment activities

18. How do we know it is highly effective? Clarity of rationale and thinking • Whyare we teaching, whatwe are teaching, how we are teaching it, when we are teaching it? • What do we want pupils to know, do and understand at the end that they didn’t know, couldn’t do and didn't understand at the beginning?

19. Overview:Characteristics of highly effective leadership The effectiveness and high profile of history in the school is based on: • visionary leadership and highly efficient management • commitment and enthusiasm of all history teachers • excellent understanding of current developments in the subject • a sustained record of innovation and success in inspiring pupils and improving their achievement • constant focus on inspiring confidence in and commitment to history in pupils and colleagues • critical self-evaluation - well informed by • exciting practice in history • the effective analysis of performance

20. Gender: achievement of boys and girls

21. Deprivation: achievement by free school meals

22. SEN: achievement

23. Ethnic groups: achievement

24. Characteristics of highly effective leadership • robust quality assurance leading to prompt, decisive action to tackle relative weaknesses in teaching and learning in history • excellent collaboration among teachers underpinned by joint planning and the effective sharing of good practice in history • subject-specific professional development needs of all staff are very effectively and comprehensively assessed and met • ambitious aims • based on a clear rationale for the subject and its place in the education of pupils • well communicated to staff and pupils, and matched with skilled deployment of resources, including staffing • subject makes an excellent contribution to whole-school priorities, including consistent application of literacy and numeracy policies

25. Prompts for improving history Key question: What can the inspectorate do for you?

26. Ofsted’s history subject web pages Keep up-to-date with Ofsted's work in history Visit the dedicated history web pages on the Ofsted website at http://www.ofsted.gov.uk/inspection-reports/our-expert-knowledge/history-0 Take a look at this: Ofsted’s supplementary subject specific guidance for inspectors on making judgements on subject inspections

27. Ofsted’s history subject web pages Good practice case studies • Published from March 2011 History professional development materials to support subject-specific school CPD • Published January 2012

28. Case Studies • Meaningful history for all– inclusion central to teaching and learning (Lampton School Academy, London) • Putting the local community at the heart of the KS3 history curriculum (Copleston High School, Suffolk) • Ensuring rigorous historical thinking (Cottenham Village College, Cambridgeshire) • Making the most of local history (Cape Cornwall School, Cornwall) • Outstanding teaching and learning in history in 100 minutes (Farlingaye High School, Suffolk) • Outstanding history in a two year KS3 (Harris Academy Crystal Palace, London) • Making history motivating, memorable and meaningful by inspiring teachers through an effective area partnership (Hampshire Secondary History Network) • Developing outstanding historical thinking in primary schools (Fox Primary School, London)

29. When teaching history remember to … • Plan only when you have answered the question: What do you want your pupils to know, do and understand historically at the end of the history topic/unit that they didn’t know, couldn’t do and didn’t understand when they started? • Teach through historical enquiries – provide the means not the outcome • Develop pupils’ historical questioning rather than providing the answers • Create time for historical debate, discussion and reflection prior to writing • Focus on analytical and discursive writing in history as well as descriptive and narrative writing • Embed the language of history– use historical terminology regularly • Use differentiationby outcome and by task when assessing in history • Include a history commentwhen marking a history piece of work • Emphasise historical thinking whether history is discrete or integrated • Use historical enrichment regularly to support learning

30. National Lead: michael.maddison@ofsted.gov.uk