Note 1 - The Willows State School - Education Queensland

Our school at a glanceA wide range of programs and practices at The Willows State School support:· students requiring extension· students from defence families· students from Indigenous families· students with disabilities· students with learning difficulties· students with English as a Second Language· students at educational riskClass sizes – Proportion of school classes achieving class size targets in 2011PhaseAverageClass SizePrep – Year 3 23.7Year 4 – Year 10 26.2Year 11 – Year 12All Classes 24.8School Disciplinary AbsencesDisciplinary AbsencesCount of IncidentsShort Suspensions - 1 to 5 days 118Long Suspensions - 6 to 20 days 0Exclusions 0Cancellations of Enrolment 0

Our school at a glanceCurriculum offeringsOur distinctive curriculum offeringsThe school delivers a diverse curriculum designed to meet the academic, social, cultural, emotionaland creative needs of the child. Within this curriculum there is a very clear focus on literacy,numeracy and technology with the individual development of knowledge, skills and attitudes of thechild being the focus in a student-centred learning environment.Teachers cater for the individual needs of students through clustering them in particular ways.Students demonstrate their learning through multiple pathways.Core values underpin our curriculum offerings. These are explicitly delivered through ourKidsMatter, Social and Emotional Learning, Drug Education and Asia Education programs as wellas through the daily expectations established through “The Willows Way”.Environmental sustainability is a clear focus for our school. A range of school and classroomactivities have been implemented to lessen our environmental footprint.Extra curricula activitiesThe Willows State School offers a comprehensive curriculum program from Prep to Year 7consistent with Education Queensland policies and focussed on learning for life. The schoolsupports students in reaching their full potential across a variety of academic, social, physical andcultural areas. Extracurricular activities and support programs facilitated by the school include:Junior and Senior Choral ProgramStudents from year 2 to 7 are able to apply for a place in the choral program. Students in thisprogram perform on assemblies and at school functions and compete at Eisteddfods.Please take time to listen to some of the examples of our students recordings.Flooding Rains Last Kiss Power in MeSing a Song of NonsenseThe Old Carrion CrowInstrumental Music ProgramLessons are provided by visiting music teachers and opportunities are provided for students toparticipate in String Ensembles and Junior and Senior Bands.The Brisbane School of Distance Education (BSDE) extension program in literacy and numeracyThe BSDE provides an opportunity to extend identified students in extension literacy ornumeracy activities.

Our school at a glanceThe Willows Writers ProgramThe Willows Writers Program provides an extension opportunity for identified Year 6 and 7students with strong writing skills and a passion for writing.School LeadershipEach year the school community elects School Captains and Vice Captains, House Captains andVice Captains from Year 7 and Student Council Representatives from every class in years 4 to 7.The School Environmental Team (SET)The SET is responsible for implementing the School Environmental Management Plan (SEMP).The SEMP aims to reduce energy and water consumption, reduce waste production and improvebiodiversity in the school. Students from years 4 to 7 can participate in SET activities.Chess ClubThe Chess club matches experienced players in a draw against each other and to participate ininterschool competitions. There is also an opportunity for beginners to receive instruction in how toplay.Social and Emotional Learning programsThe Willows implements the KidsMatter, You Can Do It, Bounce Back and Better Buddiesprograms to support student social and emotional development.Peer SupportBAT and TAG (Boys and Technology and Technology and Girls). BAT and TAG teams work in theclassroom of younger students providing tuition in ICT‟s. Groups of older students provide PeerMentoring.Interschool Sporting ProgramEach year TWSS offers the opportunity to participate in the interschool competition in a variety ofsports.Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders Aspirational ProgramEach year we are very successful in the ATSIAP Junior competition for indigenous students. Ourstudents have the opportunity to compete against their cultural peers.

Our school at a glanceHow Information and Communication Technologies are used to assist learningThe Willows State School has fibre-optic cabling to every building. A new computer lab has beenbuilt as part of the Building Education Revolution (BER) funding to extend and improve our libraryand resource facilities. The lab enables two classes to work there at once or can be opened tofacilitate one very large group. Interactive teaching and learning has been significantly enhancedwith every class in the school having access to an interactive whiteboard (IWB) thanks to thegenerosity of the P&C and funding from BER as well as the school ICTs budget. Our conferenceroom, Knowledge Centre and LOTE classroom have also been included in the rollout of the IWBs.Other digital equipment supports the teaching and learning process in this digital age, includingdigital cameras, digital video cameras and Point To View hardware. These all contribute to thesuccessful presentation of the Australian Curriculum. With C2Cs forming the basis from whichteachers can access excellent resources to present the Curriculum, OneSchool has become anintegral aspect of planning, assessment, monitoring and reporting for staff. EdStudios are highlyvalued tools to support learning and used daily. Learning Pathways are also valued and all theseare found stored and available via the safe portal of the Learning Place.Each lower school class has its own teacher moderated e-mail account and all teaching staff arecontactable via e-mail. Older students have their own internet user account and password.The school operates on MS Office 2003. Children may complete work on their home computer ifthey choose and are encouraged to share their expertise with other school community members. Inupper school classes, students will complete homework via virtual classrooms.A number of older students belong to the Boys and Technology (BAT) group and the Technologyand Girls (TAG) group. These students work with other students across the school in a tutoringcapacity and are involved in a variety of competitions and other activities related to technology.During 2011, 24 students were invited to participate in the Kids Teaching Kids Project supported byteachers with expertise from the Learning Place. Students worked in pairs to develop videos toteach an element of English, Maths or Technology to students. Their videos are uploaded to theLearning Place with highly positive feedback received from staff and students alike with all involvedreporting the value of this kind of initiative for more capable learners.Social climateAt The Willows we believe that education is a shared responsibility. Appropriate behaviours, bothlearning and social, are encouraged and reinforced through „The Willows Way‟. Our ResponsibleBehaviour Plan for students supports the school and home working together so that, in the socialcontext of this school, the child becomes a responsible, active citizen.The school endeavours to manage student behaviour through the curriculum we deliver. A widerange of recognition and reward systems are used to reinforce positive behaviour choices. TheBullying No Way program supports the management and response to issues of bullying when theyarise.

Our school at a glanceStaff work hard to ensure positive relationships with students. 75% of staff indicated satisfactionwith access to Professional Development and staff morale was at 92%.The school has a Chaplain who provides pastoral care. Our KidsMatter program also focuses onthe teaching of social and emotional learning to students.85% parents indicated satisfaction that their child is safe at school and 90% of students aresatisfied that they are getting a good education.74% of parents indicated satisfaction that their child is getting a good education at school.Parent, student and teacher satisfaction with the schoolThe Willows SS have staff who are satisfied and happy to be at the school, indicating a high levelof morale. They indicate a strong level of satisfaction with the access they have to professionaldevelopment that relates to school and systemic priorities. Parents and caregivers also indicate ahigh level of satisfaction with their child‟s school and that they are getting a good education. Almost89% students are satisfied with what they are learning, feel they are learning well at this schooland with the interest the teacher takes in their learning as well as the help they receive from theteacher to improve their schoolwork.Performance measure Result 2011Percentage of parents/caregivers satisfied that their child is getting agood education at school74%Percentage of students satisfied that they are getting a goodeducation at school90%Percentage of parents/caregivers satisfied with their child‟s school 85%Percentage of school workforce satisfied with access to professionaldevelopment opportunities that relate to school and systemic initiatives75%Percentage of staff members satisfied with morale in the school 86%DW – Data withheld

Our school at a glanceInvolving parents in their child’s educationThe Willows has a positive reputation within the wider community. Parents are welcomed into theschool and communication from teachers to families is regular, appropriate and via a variety ofmediums.Class teachers conduct parent information sessions at the beginning of each year, oral reporting isconducted twice per year, teachers phone or email parents as required and parents are invited tostudents‟ demonstrations of learning upon completion of units of work. Information sessions andtraining are also offered to parents during the year.The school has an active and highly effective Parents and Citizens Association who provideoversight for both the Tuckshop and the Out of Hours School Care programs that are wellsupported by the school community. Parent volunteers are encouraged to work in classrooms.Staff offers a variety of programs to parents to support their child‟s learning including Support-A-Reader, 123 Magic, Basic ICTs and KidsMatter.We are also fortunate in having a strong partnership through both the Adopt-A-Cowboy and Adopt-A-Cop initiatives.INVOLVEMENT IN THE SCHOOL COMMUNITYThe school aims to promote positive parent participation in:- school and classroom activities;- decision-making processes;- school programs;- community activities;- school and student success.Opportunities for involvement include:- classroom support;- Parents' and Citizens' Association;- tuckshop (even if you wish only to help once a month);- school reviews and evaluations;

Our school at a glance- voluntary teacher aide;- support-a-reader program;- coaching school sporting teams; and- school banking.Reducing the school’s environmental footprintData is sourced from school's annual utilities return and is reliant on the accuracy of these returns.Savings of Water KL and subsequently Water $, has been achieved due to the installation of thesecond bore and watering of the oval and grounds via the upgraded sprinkler system from the 2bores. This continues to be our most successful aspect of reduction of our environmental footprint.While the school has some solar panels installed, problems with the software for the inverterrequire changing to enable us to track energy usage. It is envisaged that the upgrade will beundertaken in the not too distant future. Data from what we have though indicates that our solarpanels over the past 12 months have generated 2905.8kWh and have saved 2586kgs CO2. Ourefforts to educate our school community to save power by turning off air-conditioners whenever noone is in the room, opening windows instead of using power, turning off computers and lights whenno one is in class, continue to be a major focus for the school.Environment footprint indicators, 2010-2011ElectricityKwHWaterKL2011 469,360 9,3322010 446,953 12,104% change 10 - 11 5% -23%

Our staff profileStaff composition, including Indigenous staffWorkforce Composition Teaching Staff Non-teaching Staff Indigenous StaffHeadcounts 71 30

Our staff profilehttp://www.myschool.edu.au/.To access our income details, click on the My School link above. You will then be taken to the MySchool website with the following „Find a school’ text box.Where it says ‘Search by school name’, type in the name of the school you wish to view, andselect ’. Read and follow the instructions on the next screen; you will be asked to acceptthe Terms of Use and Privacy Policy before being given access to the school‟s My School entryweb page.School financial information is available by selecting ‘School finances’ in the menu box in the topleft corner of the school‟s entry web page. If you are unable to access the internet, please contactthe school for a paper copy of income by funding source

Performance of our studentsKey student outcomesStudent attendance - 2011The overall attendance rate for the students at this school (shown as a percentage) in 2011 was92%.The overall attendance rate for all Queensland state Primary schools over the same period was92%.Student attendance rate for each year levelYear1Year2Year3Year4Year5Year6Year7Year8Year9Year10Year11Year1291% 93% 93% 92% 92% 92% 91%Student Attendance DistributionThe proportions of students by attendance range.

Performance of our studentsDescription of how non-attendance is managed by the schoolNon-attendance is managed in state schools in line with the DET policies, SMS-PR-029:Managing Student Absences and SMS-PR-036: Roll Marking in State Schools, which outlineprocesses for managing and recording student attendance and absenteeism.Student absences are monitored through a weekly process where unexplained absence reportdetails are generated by Oneschool and then screened through teachers and sent to Sectionleaders for further follow up with parents (letters and/or phone calls/interviews). The 2011 AnnualImplementation Plan notes that the school‟s attendance target is 95% and the school follows theRegional Attendance Strategy. Leaders maintain contact with the family and classroom teacher totrack the return to school. Our School Chaplain is involved in support processes where possible.In cases of long term unexplained absence Compulsory Schooling letters are sent to parents toensure all students are attending school as per the legislation. Teachers mark electronic rolls(Oneschool) twice per day once in the morning and again in the afternoon.Contact details of any absence enquiries are recorded as a contact on One School. The WillowsState School prides itself on high levels of student attendance achieved through a supportiveschool environment and proactive student management strategies.National Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) results – our reading, writing,spelling, grammar and punctuation, and numeracy results for the Years 3, 5, 7 and 9.Our reading, writing, spelling, grammar and punctuation, and numeracy results for the Years 3, 5,7 and 9 are available via the My School website at http://www.myschool.edu.au/.To access our NAPLAN results, click on the My School link above. You will then be taken to theMy School website with the following „Find a school’ text box.Where it says ‘Search by school name’, type in the name of the school whose NAPLAN resultsyou wish to view, and select ’.Read and follow the instructions on the next screen; you will be asked to accept the Terms of Useand Privacy Policy before being able to access NAPLAN data.If you are unable to access the internet, please contact the school for a paper copy of our school‟sNAPLAN results.

Performance of our studentsAchievement – Closing the GapA recent initiative at The Willows SS is the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Student-StaffMentor Program. Thirty-two teachers have identified a student or students with whom they havecommitted to develop a relationship outside the classroom setting. They speak with their identifiedstudent or students to encourage sharing, encourage interaction, offer support and negotiate withclassroom teachers when issues arise how best they may be able to assist. While the Programhas not been established long enough to be able to confidently claim improvements in learning orattendance, reports from staff and some students have been positive.With regard to the gap between the performance of Year 3 Indigenous and Non-IndigenousStudents, comparing NAPLAN results from 2010 and 2011 there have been marked increases inthe results in Reading, Writing and Numeracy. Issues around school absences may be acontributing factor to some of these results.With regard to closing the gap in attendance between Indigenous and Non-Indigenous studentcomparing 2010 and 2011 figures it can be reported that a slight decrease in the gap has occurredfrom a difference in 2010 of 85.3 Indigenous student attendance rate to 93.1 Non-Indigenous todifference in 2011 for Indigenous students of 86.8 and Non-Indigenous students of 92.4.