The Unfolding Story Behind What Really Happened

A few months ago, I was in a large primary school, when I discovered something that I can't stop thinking about. It was assessment week, and all of the children were completing summative assessments in reading and maths.

I asked if I could observe a group of 6 children who were reading below their age related expectations, The children were 8 and 9 year olds, and pretty much all displayed negative behaviours in the classroom and around the school.

The children were taken in a small group in to a room to complete their reading assessments. As with reading papers, there is limited support that the facilitator can give. The facilitator read the instructions to the children, showed them where to write their names etc and then asked them to open their papers and begin the assessment.

The children opened their papers and then stopped.

We asked them why had they all stopped?

Their answer, "We don't know what to do. Can you tell us what to write?"

Upon further investigation, it seemed that these children- the most vulnerable in the school, who needed extra support and confidence boosting in reading, had been told what to write in assessments. They had not been given any teaching about how to access the papers, and also had not been assessed correctly previously, as shown by how the children could not read the words. Since passing their Y1 Phonics Screening Checks, these children had been floundering, un-noticed.

I then looked at the behaviour records for these children. Some had been suspended previously, some were showing disruptive behaviour in class. These children could not read.

They could not access anything during the school day.

These are the children that should come first. They should be the priority.

My questions are- how can these children slip through the net?

What happened from when they passed their Y1 Phonics Screening Check to not being able to read?

When will the culture truly shift, that the children who are reading well, will do well. the children who can't read well- won't do well. When will we see authentic change?

Are you willing to work with us to make the change?