CEIAG for Headteachers, Governors and SLT
Why Headteachers shouldn't see the EEF Pupil Premium Toolkit as an excuse to ignore CEIAG
Sunday 20th October 2013
A few weeks ago I went to a Teacher Development Trust Good CPD Guide Conference. As part of that conference I was introduced to the Education Endowment Foundation's Pupil Premium Toolkit. http://educationendowmentfoundation.org.uk/toolkit/approaches/ It lists various forms of 'intervention' in terms of effectiveness and value for money. Thus it is is heralded as 'must have tool' for Headteachers when deciding how to spend their Pupil Premium funding.
In this data driven educational environment in which we live I can envisage many an SLT poring over this document and using it as a reason to again ignore Careers Education, CEIAG, Employability Skills.. call them what you want but for Heaven's sake please consider my comments before you ignore them once more. I'll explain, let us consider the following SLT meeting at Quickletsgetitdone Academy, an 11-19 school serving one of the poorer areas of the country.
HT; OK we need to decide how we're spending our Pupil Premium money next year. I've made a copy of the EEF Toolkit for you all. Lets go through them one by one...
Ability grouping, after school programmes & arts participation are all discussed
HT: OK next one, Aspiration interventions. Not worth doing anything there, next behaviour interventions...
However, over at Letsthinkaboutthisproperly Academy, another 11-19 school serving one of the poorer areas of the country. The following happens.
SLT line managing CEIAG: Hold on, its not as simple as that.
HT: What do you mean? It says it here, moderate cost but very poor return, it's not worth looking at.
SLT line managing CEIAG: Look what it says; very limited evidence, I think we need to look at that more.
HT: Have you got anything further?
SLT line managing CEIAG: Well look down to the bottom, what you need to know. Look it basically says it's all a bit woolly but look where it says most young people have high aspirations. Well think about our kids, are they REALISTIC aspirations?
Look at Lauren in 10C, she wants to be a lawyer but her predicted grades are Cs & Ds. Or Deepak, he's predicted Cs but is capable of A* in most subjects but wants to be a plasterer like his dad so isn't bothering to do anything more than the minimum.
Are those realistic? If Lauren thinks she can be a lawyer without working hard she's not going to work hard is she? She'll just keep coasting and why should Deepak work hard if he doesn't need As?
HT: Hmm yes but it says it here, it's poor value for money...
LT line managing CEIAG: Well apart from the contradicting reports such as http://www.esrc.ac.uk/news-and-events/features-casestudies/features/18557/raising-low-aspirations-is-vital-to-reducing-poverty.aspx The reports which do say that pupils have high aspirations say that poorer pupils don't have the resources to call upon to realise them. http://www.kcl.ac.uk/newsevents/news/newsrecords/2013/09-September/Poverty-of-aspiration-largely-a-myth.aspx look at this
HT: Hmm lots of progress, good value for money but what's that got to do with CEIAG?
SLT line managing CEIAG: Look at what it says in the what you need to know section, think about the statement of entitlement in CEIAG, what do they do?
HT: I don't know, I leave that to you...
SLT line managing CEIAG: Well everything in there is covered in the CEIAG entitlements, action planning, evaluation, identification of strengths and areas for improvement...
HT: Yes but if we already to that...
SLT line managing CEIAG: We don't do it as well as we could... Staff don't see the point, our poor CEIAG coordinator doesn't get much time or support... If we put more time and effort into planning and evaluating our CEIAG it will not only give us evidence for our Pupil Premium but it will also help our destination data, you know they're planning that as part of the follow up to the school accountability consultation don't you? Page 7 of the report?
HT: Errr
SLT line managing CEIAG: Of course there's always mentoring of course, we can utilise all the school's business contacts to improve mentoring. Look at the data from the EEF for that. I know it says only a small impact but if we're doing all this then it could be part of the whole package...
HT: Hmmm OK, I tell you what, get our CEIAG coordinator to put together some suggestions & costings.
SLT line managing CEIAG: (Smiling) Ok will do
Please Note
I'm in no way denigrating the EEF Toolkit in any way. I'm just envisaging a possible problem, caused by the way CEIAG is perceived and valued by HTs in general which, in turn, the EEF Toolkit could inadvertently feed into. I'm just hoping to clarify a very specialised area of education.
