Children need to know what they are capable of, inspectors say

Education inspectors are praising schools which ensure that children aged six are "made aware" of the test levels they are achieving and how to "meet the criteria" for a higher level.

England's inspectorate, Ofsted, has produced guidance so teachers can "discover the secrets behind the successful implementation of the government's national literacy and numeracy strategies".

After an initial rise in children's achievements following the introduction of the strategies, schools' test results have reached a plateau.

Government targets for last year were missed but it is sticking to even higher targets for next year.

These are that 85% of 11 year olds will reach the level expected for their age.

Staff involvement

In its report, Ofsted gives examples of good and bad practice in schools and says head teachers are the key to improvement.

We needed to move from 'this is all we can expect from these children' to the development of a 'can do' culture Head teacher quoted by Ofsted

They need to "make a convincing case for the need for change", committing the school to "continuous improvement" through the "systematic monitoring and evaluation of teaching and learning".

All the staff have to be involved in this process.

Head teachers should have a detailed knowledge of the strategies, even if they do not teach lessons themselves.

And they should call on outside support when necessary.

Expectations

A crucial starting point is recognising when things are going badly.

It quotes one - unnamed - head teacher as saying: "The first area of challenge was teachers' expectations.

"We needed to move from 'this is all we can expect from these children' to the development of a 'can do' culture."

Ofsted says all the effective schools were very aware of the importance of detailed and accurate information about what pupils could do.

In one primary school: "From Year 2 onwards, the pupils are made aware of levels for assessment purposes: for example, how a story assessed as meeting the criteria for level 2C could be improved to meet the criteria for level 2B."

Pupils in England sit national curriculum tests at the end of Year 2, when they are six or seven.

Higher targets

In another school, 11-year-old pupils in their final year had lists of the level 4 and level 5 criteria for various aspects of English.

Level 4 is the standard they are expected to achieve but schools now have to set themselves targets for getting children up to the next level.

"Discussion with pupils from these year groups showed that they were fully aware of their targets, as were their parents," says Ofsted.

"A Year 6 pupil observed, 'I know what I have to do to get level 5'."

The report concludes: "Bringing about improvement often requires a change in the professional culture of the school.

"Where low standards and weaknesses in teaching are long-standing, it is easy for the schools to assume that improvement is not possible and that attempts are destined to fail.

"These case studies illustrate that high-quality leadership, allied to the two national strategies, holds the key to higher standards in English and mathematics."