Literacy

At St John Bosco Arts College we are committed to ensuring that pupils are supported in developing fluency and comprehension in reading the range of texts they will encounter in the classroom and beyond. Some pupils will require specific and intensive support in reading, either via systematic synthetic phonics or reading comprehension strategies. Other readers will benefit from a consistency of approach from their teachers which allows them to access new content and all will benefit from strategies which increase independence. Furthermore, we aim to develop a love of reading in all our pupils.

Intent of The Reading Plan:

1. High quality interventions for all readers.
2. Whole school approaches to reading.
3. Purposely increasing reading.
4. Developing a love of reading for all.

We believe that the driving force to unlocking the full curriculum is reading. At St John Bosco Arts College reading will be prioritised to allow pupils to access the full curriculum offer. Through reading, in particular, children have a chance to develop culturally, emotionally, intellectually, socially and spiritually. We recognise that literacy skills are general and subject specific. Staff professional development emphasises supporting teachers of every subject to teach students how to read, write and communicate effectively. There will be a finer focus on ‘disciplinary literacy’ as an approach to improving literacy across the curriculum. Furthermore, it is understood that secondary teachers should have a deeper understanding of the teaching of reading through the primary years, including the teaching of phonics.

Students should be entitled to experience a range of high-quality texts throughout their time at secondary school.

We recognise that literacy skills are general and subject specific. Staff professional development emphasises supporting teachers of every subject to teach students how to read, write and communicate effectively. There will be a finer focus on ‘disciplinary literacy’ as an approach to improving literacy across the curriculum. Furthermore, it is understood that secondary teachers should have a deeper understanding of the teaching of reading through the primary years, including the teaching of phonics. While the college has always understood that reading is crucial, it is even more important in the current climate as we are establishing our recovery curriculum. Having robust systems for collecting data around reading, conducting forensic analysis, implementing targeted interventions and reviewing the impact of these.

Training for school staff (and learners and parents) will emphasise the importance of ‘The Big Four’ and address general literacy skills such as technical accuracy. The college will continue in its practice of auditing existing literacy practices and staff confidence and competence. There will be a more rigorous follow up of targeted training in response to need. Implementation is most likely to be impactful when there is an emphasis on disciplinary literacy which makes clear that every teacher communicates their subject through academic language, and that reading, writing, speaking and listening are at the heart of knowing and doing Science, Art, History, and every other subject in secondary school. Collaborative time will be given to staff in departments to ensure training related to literacy.

Disciplinary Literacy across the college is developed with two strands:

• Whole school approaches to developing reading

• Development of subject specific and bespoke literacy strategies

Whole school approaches to reading are established as part of the literacy policy across the college. The key strategies stated below are expected of all staff when teaching:

• Pre-teach vocabulary

• Teacher reads aloud to the pupils

• Encourage and implement ambitious and appropriately challenging texts.