St' Helens First Networked Learning Community

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St. Helens First Networked Learning
Community Leading from the middle By Alison
Davin Lead Learner The District C.E. Primary
School
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St. Helens First Networked Learning
Community The District CE Primary School Eaves
Primary School Garswood Primary School Newton Le
Willows Primary School Robins Lane Community
School St. Bartholomews RC Primary School St.
John Vianney Catholic Primary School St. Thomas
of Canterbury Catholic Primary School
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Raising Achievement
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• The Learning focus of the NLC is Raising
  Achievement
• We are committed to a view of children and
  adults as active, holistic, lifelong learners
• Raising Achievement has been chosen as our
  learning focus as it allows for enquiry-based
  learning taking place across all our schools and
  to impact on all pupils and staff
• It allows for the greatest diversity in
  research and in collaboration, thereby maximising
  the potential for learning from each other
• Cluster arrangements do exist for St. Helens
  schools, but these tend to be for Inset,
  administration or information and not for
  collaboration on learning and teaching
• Traditionally, schools have felt isolated from
  each other because of the competitiveness
  engendered by league tables and published targets

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• This academic year, we have begun to work
  collaboratively to identify barriers to
  achievement and to frame strategies to overcome
  them
• We are working together, to develop a common
  understanding of learning
• Also, to develop appropriate teaching which
  acknowledges preferred learning styles
• This growth in the knowledge and understanding
  of learning has been sustained as the Lead
  Learners have lead and managed the changes
• The intention of our NLC is to break new ground
  by developing a workable model for collaborative
  action, based on networking and focused on
  raising levels of achievement
• Our NLC has the potential to revolutionise the
  way St. Helens schools view and value
  collaborative action

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Thinking Together
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As part of the original documentation for the
NLC, the eight head teachers described the
current situation, with regard to pupil learning
and outcomes as Pupils learning tends to be
prescribed. Teaching at present does not take
full account of childrens pathways of
thinking However, it was intended that Our
shared perception is that a greater
understanding of how metacognition impacts on
teaching and learning would enhance pupil
achievement We have already made vast levels of
progress to meet this intention
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To launch our NLC, we invited all teaching staff
to an official launch INSET day. It was the first
opportunity I had had in nine years of teaching
in St. Helens, to meet other colleagues from the
LEA, apart from INSET. The focus for the day,
from a learning and teaching perspective was to
introduce some of the principles behind
Accelerated Learning. Some of the schools in the
NLC had no experience prior to this INSET of
Accelerated Learning. There have been
developments in Accelerated Learning initiatives
in all schools since that date.
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As stated previously, our NLC has a number of key
objectives. We have included Accelerated Learning
as an initial focus for research. It is by no
means the sole change in learning and teaching
styles which we committed to developing.
Collaboration is the valued tool of our NLC. It
is collaboration which will enable us to Raise
Achievement In both Learning and Teaching.
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Learning Together
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This is my ninth year as a teacher at The
District CE Primary School I have had many
excellent teachers who have been colleagues and
whom I have truly admired I have attended many
INSET days provided by the LEA which have
impacted on my teaching I have undergone my own
skills audit and know that I am a good teacher I
enjoy teaching and am good at teaching I know
the best ways in which to plan, to write reports,
to celebrate children's work, to approach
parents, to make children feel valuableall the
skills of a good teacher This year, I have
learned more about learning than I have in my
whole career
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• This is the first year I have really considered
  HOW children learn
• At the beginning of this school year, I asked
  every child in the school to tell me why they
  came to school today
• Many said because I wanted to see my friends
• Some said because my mum said I had to
• Only a few said to learn
• Asked yesterday by Ofsted, MOST of the children
  in my care mentioned Brain Gym, Music in lessons,
  Circle time, Using the ICT suite and having
  lessons outdoors (enrichment)
• Prior to my involvement in the NLC, I had spent
  a year researching current developments in
  education. Through my appointment as Gifted and
  Talented co-ordinator. The changes I have made in
  my teaching this year have been largely due to my
  research suddenly becoming extremely useful to
  manage the class I have this year

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The future?
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• The St. Helens First Network objectives have had
  an impact on learning and teaching in each of the
  eight schools
• There have been huge developments in the
  knowledge and understanding behind effective
  collaboration between the schools involved in the
  network
• There has been a huge development in the sense
  of pulling together and steering each other
• The Lead Learners have been trained in effective
  research methods by Rob Foster and are due to
  produce a research-based document, on the effects
  of Brain Gym on learning and teaching
• The St. Helens First Network intended to
  revolutionise the way St. Helens schools view
  and value collaborative action

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Some of the schools involved in the network have
faced testing times financially this year.
However, they all value the commitments they
have made to the network and due to the success
in our first year, have decided to continue our
collaborative approach. We know this is the best
way forward.