Page 25 - The East Sussex Way

Case Study 3: Teaching to Reading Ages

• Hailsham Community College Þ rst opened its doors

in 1878. It is an all-through pre-school to sixth form
college with 1505 pupils on roll.
• The number of pupils in receipt of the pupil premium
grant is higher than the national average.
• 15% of pupils have an identiÞ ed learning need.

The context

Poor reading levels were a concern in the College catchment area.
Leaders wanted to provide staff with information and strategies so
that the curriculum could be differentiated to meet pupils’ reading
needs.

Action taken

An ‘Access Reading Test’ (Hodder Education) is now undertaken by
all pupils at the beginning of the academic year and at the end to
monitor progress. Year 7 pupils are assessed three times a year, as no
reading age data is currently provided by feeder schools. Resulting
data is shared with all teachers and reading ages are added to
electronic seating plans, an effective way to show teachers the wide
range of reading ages within each class. Reading age results are
also shared with parents.

The data identiÞ es which pupils may need support and intervention.
Staff received training on how pupils with different reading ages
require different levels of explanation when using texts in lessons.
Staff were asked to explore the texts being used in their lessons and
identify whether they could be adapted to meet the needs of pupils
with reading ages below the expected level. If changes were not
appropriate, scaffolding would be expected, as well as pre-teaching
of key words.

It is also essential that all teachers model reading, and re-reading
and regularly stop to check understanding. Staff are given the
opportunity to observe this in practice.

Impact

Communicating results has raised awareness of the importance
of reading amongst pupils and parents. Pupils are aware of their
reading ages and feel positive about developing their skills. Parents
are encouraged to be involved with reading as well as accessing the
Bedrock Vocabulary tool at home. 20