Jargon Buster
Academy Status - Academies receive their funding directly form the government, not from the local council. They are run by an Academy Trust which employs the staff.
Attainment - What pupils accomplish.
Citizenship - covers three inter-related areas: social and moral responsibility, community involvement and political literacy.
Curriculum - The National Curriculum sets out the stages and core subjects your child will be taught during his/her time at school. The National Curriculum sets out the subjects taught, the knowledge, skills and understanding required in each subject and standards or attainment targets in each subject.
DfE - Department for Education: the government department responsible for education.
Differentiation - The way in which the school's curriculum and teaching methods are adapted to meet the needs of children
Disadvantaged pupils - A pupil is considered to be disadvantaged if (s)he falls into one of the following three categories: (1) Eligible for Free Schools Meals (FSM) in the last six years, (2) Looked after continuously for 1 day or more, (3) Adopted from care
DSL - Designated Safeguarding Lead. Each school has a senior staff member who takes the lead role in issues relating to safeguarding, child protection and pupils’ general wellbeing. The DSLs at East Wickham are Mrs Manzi, Mrs Moore and Mrs Whiley.
EAL: English as an additional language. The performance of EAL pupils needs to be tracked closely, especially in the early stages of learning English, as these children face an additional educational challenge.
EHC- A document that sets out a child's strengths in areas of development, detailing the additional provision that the school will provide. This can be for academic provision or medical requirements.
Equal Opportunities - Chance for everyone to participate in school life/curriculum.
Exclusion - Exclusion means that your child may not attend lessons or go on to the school premises for a set period of time, or permanently in the case of permanent exclusion.
EYFS: Early Years Foundation Stage starting from birth up until the child is at the end of the Reception year.
FSM: free school meals
GDPR: The General Data Protection Regulation is a legal framework that sets guidelines for the collection and processing of personal information of individuals. Schools, like businesses and other organisations, must abide by the GDPR.
HLTA - Higher Level Teaching Assistant. This refers to a teaching assistant who has received some additional training and is able to take on a greater level of responsibility.
I.C.T. - Information and Communication Technology ~ refers to the whole area of computers.
Inclusion - A process by which schools, local education authorities and others develop their cultures, policies and practices to include pupils.
INSET - In-Service Education and Training. INSET days are set aside to allow teachers to update their skills and knowledge in order to raise pupil achievement.
Key Stage - Your child's progress through school is measured in Key Stages. Key Stage 1 covers pupils from 5-7, Key Stage 2 from 7-11
(KS1) Key Stage 1 tests cover reading, spelling, punctuation, grammar, maths, arithmetic and reasoning. The tests are taken in the month of May in Year 2.
(KS2) Key Stage 2 tests cover English reading;,English grammar, punctuation and spelling, maths, arithmetic and reasoning. The tests are taken in the second week of May of Year 6.
L.A. - Local Authority. A body responsible for providing education for pupils of school age in its area. It also has responsibility for early years, the youth service and adult education.
MFL - Modern Foreign Languages. It is now compulsory for all pupils in Key Stage 2 to study a modern foreign language, such as Spanish.
Non-teaching or Support staff - Members of school staff employed by the governors to provide services in school other than teaching, such as cleaners, administrators.
NOR: number on roll
OFSTED (Office For Standards in Education) - The body which inspects state-funded schools. OFSTED inspectors produce education reports to help improve schools
P.E. - Physical Education
PPA - Where teachers are given time out for Planning, Preparation and Assessment Strategies – Good Practice
Progress - Continuous proven improvement
Reception – ages 4 and 5
SAT - Standard Assessment Tests taken in Years 2 and 6. (The official name for SATs is National Curriculum tests but you’ll rarely hear it used).
S.E.N.- Special Educational Needs. Learning difficulties, talents or other needs, for which a child requires additional provision.
S.E.N.C.O. - Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator. The member of SLT in a school who is responsible for co-ordinating the additional provision for children with special educational needs.
Statement - An educational statement is a legally binding document that prescribes clearly the nature of a child’s learning difficulties and the objectives that need to be met in order to ensure that the child concerned makes strong progress. Pupils with an educational statement receive some additional support from a learning support assistant. The amount of support the child receives is in proportion to their level of need. All pupils with a statement have a special Annual Review of the progress hey have made. Parents, teachers and other professionals that have worked with the child attend that meeting.
TA - Teaching Assistant. A qualified adult who assists the class teacher.
Targets - The individual goals set for a child.
TKAT - The Kemnal Academy Trust
Year Groups
Reception - The first year of statutory education is called Reception.
Year 1 – ages 5 and 6
Year 2 – ages 6 and 7 (KS1 SATs)
Year 3 – ages 7 and 8
Year 4 – ages 8 and 9
Year 5 – ages 9 and 10
Year 6 – ages 10 and 11 (KS2 SATs)