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An Ofsted report launched today, looking at best practice in English teaching in schools, says that teaching held in check by an inappropriate or dull curriculum will not inspire pupils or generate high standards.

Each one of 12 outstanding schools inspected for the survey was found to provide an innovative or creative curriculum for English explicitly and successfully designed around the particular needs of their pupils. Excellent team work, collaboration and sharing of best practice generated a consistency of approach especially in the crucial area of the quality of teaching.

All the schools featured in the report, ‘Excellence in English. What we can learn from 12 outstanding schools’, face challenging conditions but all have enabled pupils to make very good progress in English.

Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector, Christine Gilbert, said:

“This report presents 12 case studies detailing outstanding practice in schools that are making a real difference. These 12 schools have many excellent features in their teaching, curriculum, leadership and management that have a positive impact on their pupils’ achievement in English. Each case study takes one aspect of outstanding and innovative practice in each school and describes it in detail. We hope this approach will enable schools that are not yet outstanding to learn from the case studies of most relevance and interest to them.

“There are many routes to excellence. No two schools are the same and there is no simple formula that will make a school outstanding in its English provision. But the schools featured in this report are showing the way, often in difficult circumstances and their pupils make outstanding progress and achieve high standards - I hope they will inspire others.”

High quality English teaching combined with an innovative curriculum enabled the schools in the report to create good writers and turn average readers into keen ones. They showed that creating the right curriculum involves teachers and staff encouraging pupils to read, express themselves and become independent learners.

All the schools understood the varied needs of their different groups of pupils in English and ensured that lessons were planned to meet this range of ability, often helping students improve from below average starting points.

Teachers listened to what pupils said about English, what they enjoyed doing and how they learnt best. They then involved pupils in constructing the curriculum, with the emphasis on providing challenge and rigour, for example in their choice of texts.

Where provision was outstanding, boys did as well as girls - in contrast to the national picture. The case studies in the report give an insight into the schools’ success with boys and one of them takes this as its central theme.

Good-quality oral work was seen to engage pupils, including boys and those who might otherwise take little interest, and enhanced learning in the different areas of English. The schools visited planned carefully for the development of speaking and listening in class, making good use of drama and group activities.

The schools all took reading for pleasure seriously. Teachers read and talked with enthusiasm, recommending books and planning opportunities for pupils to read independently outside the curriculum. Their success was seen in good test results and in children’s enthusiasm for reading beyond the classroom.

The report argues that all schools have something to learn from the 12 outstanding schools featured in the report although they will need to evaluate their own provision carefully before making changes. Examples in the report include:

Castle View Primary School, Halton. Here every single pupil made at least the level of progress expected of them between the first two key stages. Boys made even better progress than girls. At the heart of the school’s success is a ‘writing workshop’ where teachers and pupils work together using a step-by-step approach to constructing pieces of writing. The school persuades all pupils that they can be good writers.

George Eliot Primary School, Westminster. Because many pupils speak a first language other than English at home, the school adapted an approach focusing on using images and visual texts to stimulate work in English. The school has developed its own approach to group reading tailored to the needs of its pupils.

St Thomas of Canterbury Primary School, Salford, has been especially successful in improving reading attainment. 20 minutes of daily phonics from the outset, a balance of shared, guided and regular independent reading, sharing of a class novel, targets for all, hearing reading regularly, home/school reading and a positive reading environment in school contribute to success. The school emphasises the importance of developing the oral skills of its youngest pupils through structured role play.

At Round Oak Special School, Warwickshire, the curriculum is planned in very great detail to ensure it meets the diverse needs and capabilities of its very different pupils. The students are given the same range of cultural and learning experiences as their mainstream peers, but carefully tailored to match their needs and level.

At St Pauls Academy, Greenwich, boys perform better than expected. Strong relationships are at the heart of success, supported by innovative teaching and a range of stimulating enrichment activities. Boys respond well to lessons including poetry, speaking openly about their feelings. One outstanding teacher used his own metaphor, ‘My love is like an old trainer…’ to bring Shakespeare sonnets to life. It worked!

Notes for Editors

1. The report applies to England. It will be available on the Ofsted website at www.ofsted.gov.uk/publications/100229

2.The 12 outstanding schools listed in the report are:

3. The Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills (Ofsted) regulates and inspects to achieve excellence in the care of children and young people, and in education and skills for learners of all ages. It regulates and inspects childcare and children's social care, and inspects the Children and Family Court Advisory Support Service (Cafcass), schools, colleges, initial teacher training, work-based learning and skills training, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It assesses council children’s services, and inspects services for looked after children, safeguarding and child protection.