Review of Key Stage 2 Strategies and Outcomes
14 July 2009
Is your school or local authority seeking to improve attainment at key stage 2? Are you in a school or an area with high pupil mobility and high proportions of pupils with English as an Additional Language (EAL)? A new NFER report, commissioned by Slough Borough Council in November 2008, based on an independent review of key stage 2 performance in the borough’s schools, provides a useful overview of the barriers to achievement and practical strategies for improvement in this type of school context.
This focus for the review was chosen because, to some extent, key stage 2 outcomes appeared to have reached a ‘plateau’ over the previous four to five years, whereas performance in key stages 3 and 4 had clearly improved. This had occurred despite a number of interventions and support strategies being implemented in Slough’s primary schools. The report shows that Slough’s primary schools are addressing the needs of key stage 2 pupils very well indeed, but also makes a number of recommendations for further consideration: and although this was a local study, he findings of the report are of national relevance.