Annual School Report
Kilmacrennan N.S Annual School Report 2023-24
Introduction and Overview of the School.
During the 2023-24 school year, there was a total staff of 16 teachers and 10 SNA’s in Scoil Cholmcille, Kilmacrennan. The teaching staff comprised of an administrative principal, nine class teachers, two ASD teachers and four SET teachers (one shared with a local school).
We have a further allocation of EAL and LS hours on a temporary basis.
There were 239 pupils on our school roll in September 2023.
School Activities
There was a strong emphasis on participation in a diverse range of activities over the course of the school year. Among the activities/events/competitions that our pupils participated in were
- We received an Amber Flag award
- We have a Digital School of Excellence National Award
- We received a Green Flag award (Sixth flag, Litter & Global Awareness)
- We achieved Active Flag status
- Weekly Class Assemblies were held
- We hosted School Concerts at Christmas and during Seachtain na Gaeilge
- Kilmacrennan’s Got Talent is an annual highlight towards year-end
- We participated in Feis Loreto Leitir Ceanainn (music, song, dance and poetry) and the Guth Ghoill poetry event
- Ghlacamar páirt i scéim Scríobh Leabhair Gaeilge i mbliana
- We operated a School Gardening Club but the new school extension will necessitate the relocation of our School Garden over the summer months
- We placed a strong emphasis on weekly training with the School Athletic club
- Pupils were offered Music tuition and a School Music group performed at several events, including appearing on Highland Radio’s Ruáille Buaille show.
- Science Day was a highlight
- We had an active Student Council in place
- Art competitions are enjoyable and we enjoyed entering numerous school quizzes
- We participated in the County Donegal Debating League
- Swimming lessons were facilitated
- All pupils partook in a gymnastic programme
- We participated in-school activities during Internet Safety Week, Anti-Bullying Week and Friendship programmes
- We took part in Cumann na mBunscol & FAIS soccer competitions
- School Cooking events were held
- While participation is the key motivation, individual and team success is also cherished. Among the notable achievements in school competitions was success in quizzes, including Ulster Cumann na mBunscol; Feis Leitir Ceanainn, Poetry competitions, Green Flag awards, Cross Country champions, Debating successes, individual pupil success in art competitions etc.
Home-School-Community links
We cherish and actively sought to enhance Home-School-Community links. Kilmacrennan N.S. has an active Parents Association, offering support and direction.
School Community links over the past school year included our Annual 5k event, a Tractor Run, a Family Movie Night, a Silver Circle Draw, Grandparents’ Day/ St. Bridget Cross making/ Valentine Bake day/ table quiz etc.
As part of our fifth Green Flag award, we held an International Cultural Day, showing food, music etc of the nationalities of our pupils
Our school community assist greatly with tea and refreshments on First Communion/ Confirmation and 5K events. We also enjoyed our involvement with the Young at Heart group.
Our School Music groups performed at religious events in the community.
We also held a ‘Greet and Meet’ day for the new Junior Infant incoming class. New Enrolment packs were provided to all incoming pupils.
Board of Management News
A new Board of Management was formed during the school year.
The BO.M. wishes to acknowledge the commitment of staff, the support of parents and guardians and the enthusiastic co-operation of the pupils who support the work together to promote the ethos of our school. The BOM met five times over the past year and provided an agreed report to the school body via our website.
The BOM has met its obligations in respect of Child Protection and Anti-Bullying Procedures.
The B.O.M. has reviewed Standardised Test Results and Pupil Attendance returns during the course of the year.
The school accounts have been audited in line with DES guidelines.
The BOM liaised with the DES throughout the school year and work on a two classroom ASD main school building extension is ongoing. We are hopeful that this work will be completed for the beginning of the 2024/ 25 school year.
The school will operate the Summer Provision Scheme for our ASD Solas classes this summer.
The BOM successfully appealed and received a further NCSE LS allocation
With our school having 239 pupils on our roll on September 30th last, we anticipate the appointment of a tenth mainstream teacher this summer.
The school introduced the Free School Book Scheme.
A Hot Meals progamme/ School Dinners was introduced for all pupils.
School Self-Evaluation/School Improvement Plan
The school engaged wholeheartedly in departmental led initiatives during the school year, most notably School Self-Evaluation (SSE) and updating Anti-Bullying procedures.
As part of this process of evaluation, we continue to identify many of our school strengths and areas for improvement. With regard to SSE, we are proceeding with our Literacy and Numeracy initiatives. The staff ascertained what we feel is working well and identified our strengths as
- annual testing of our pupils compares favourably with national averages in both English and Mathematics.
- the school has a print rich environment in relation to Literacy and Numeracy.
- pupils and teachers are positive when engaging in their approach and attitudes towards initiatives
- the school engages in a range of In-School activities that support good literacy practice, including DEAR, Reading for other classes, Shared Reading (with parental involvement), Paired reading, INTO Handwriting activities, a co-ordinated approach to handwriting etc.
- Croke Park hours were used to allow staff discussions on topics such as Wellbeing, School Digital Strategy, Numeracy etc.
- With regard to a School Improvement Plan, focusing initially upon Literacy, we identified Oral Language as an area that we would like to target. Teachers provide for discrete oral language times on their timetables and engage in a range of initiatives to promote good Oral Language targets.
- Following discussions regarding Oral Language at previous staff planning days/ Staff Meetings, we have over the years introduced a range of specific in-school initiatives in this regard, including 8 week Assembly Blocks where pupils from different year strands perform weekly (music, drama, poetry, improvisation, dance etc)/We have introduced class debates/power point presentations etc in Senior Classes.
- We introduced a School Self-Evaluation notice board to our staffroom. This allows all staff to clearly see termly and yearly targets etc
Legislative and Regulatory Obligations.
The school is compliant with legislative and regulatory obligations, as identified in ‘School Self-Evaluation- Guidelines for Primary Schools, 2012’. These aare
- Time in school as per Circular 11/95/ Arrangements for parent/ teacher and staff meetings as per Circular 14/04/ Implementation of Croke Park agreement regarding additional time requirement as per circular 08/2011/ Standardisation of school year as per circular/ Valid enrolment of pupils as per/ Section 9(1), 15 (2) and 23 education act 1988/ Sections 20 and 21 Education (Welfare) Act 2000/ Rules 55, 64, 108 and 123 rules for national schools/ Staffing schedule for current school year and Retention of pupils as per most recent circulars, including, but not exclusively, Development of school plan as per Section 21, Education Act 1998/ Appointments to posts of responsibility as per circular / Exemption from Irish circular/ Implementation of child protection procedures /Implementation of complaints procedure as appropriate/ Complaints procedures, Education Act/ Primary Boards of Management Information Manual / Refusal to enrol/ Section 29 Education Act 1998/ Garda Vetting circular requirements
Early Intervention/ Testing of Pupils
Our school undertakes testing of pupils at various stages of their schooling. Infants are generally screened through the BPVT Test and MIST. A new version of the Drumcondra tests was introduced nationally this year and our school has introduced this for pupils from First to Sixth Class. We also conduct testing of pupils in Gaeilge in Second, Fourth and Sixth classes.
Strategies are in place for pupils who require help at this stage. We also undertake annual testing of pupils of in English, Irish and Mathematics and IQ tests. We compare pupils performance in the standardised English and Mathematics tests with their measured ability and make provisions for those who are under-performing. The results of tests conducted on pupils in second, fourth and sixth classes are submitted annually to the DES. School staff monitor and track individual and class-testing results, and can compare them to national trends.
Resources
We updated and purchased two new interactive smartboards/ Special Education resources etc.
We used part of our Digital Grant to purchase a laptop charging portal, laptops etc
We purchased a range of LS materials
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Kilmacrennan N.S Annual School Report 2022-23
Introduction and Overview of the School.
During the 2022-23 school year, there was a total staff of 16 teachers and 10 SNA’s in Scoil Cholmcille, Kilmacrennan. The teaching staff comprised of an administrative principal, 8 class teachers, two ASD teachers and four SET teacher (one shared with a local school). We have a further allocation of EAL and LS hours on a temporary basis.
Our pupil enrolment has risen considerably over the past year and there were 241 pupils on our school roll in June 2023.
School Activities
There was a strong emphasis on participation in a diverse range of activities over the course of the school year. Among the activities/events/competitions that our pupils participated in were
- We received an Amber Flag award (for the first time)
- We have a Digital School of Excellence National Award
- We have a Green Flag award (Fifth flag)
- We have achieved Active Flag status
- Weekly Class Assemblies are held
- We host School Concerts at Christmas and during Seachtain na Gaeilge
- Kilmacrennan’s Got Talent is an annual highlight towards year-end
- We participate in Feis Loreto Leitir Ceanainn (music, song, dance and poetry) and the Guth Ghoill poetry event
- Ghlacamar páirt i scéim Scríobh Leabhair Gaeilge i mbliana
- We operate a School Gardening Club
- We place a strong emphasis on weekly training with the School Athletic club
- Pupils are offered Music tuition and School Music group
- Science Day is a highlight
- School tours are a must
- A Student Council is in place
- Art competitions are enjoyable and Quizzes are challenging
- We participate in the County Donegal Debating League annually
- Swimming lessons are held annually.
- All pupils partook in a gymnastic programme
- We participate in-school activities during Internet Safety Week, Anti-Bullying Week and Friendship programmes
- We take part in Cumann na mBunscol & FAIS soccer competitions
- School Cooking lessons are tasty
- While participation is the key motivation, individual and team success is also cherished. Among the notable achievements in school competitions was success in quizzes, including Ulster Cumann na mBunscol; Feis Leitir Ceanainn, Poetry competitions, Green Flag awards, Cross Country champions, Debating successes, individual pupil success in art competitions etc.
Home-School-Community links
We cherish and actively seek to enhance Home-School-Community links. Kilmacrennan N.S. has an active Parents Association, offering support and direction. School Community links over the past school year included our Annual 5k event, Young at Heart, Grandparents’ Day/ St. Bridget Cross making/ Valentine Bake day/ table quiz etc.
Our School Music groups have performed at religious events in the community. Our school community assist greatly with tea and refreshments on First Communion/ Confirmation and 5K events. We also enjoyed our involvement with the Young at Heart group.
We also held a ‘Greet and Meet’ day for the new Junior Infant incoming class. New Enrolment packs were provided to all incoming pupils.
Board of Management News
The BO.M. wishes to acknowledge the commitment of staff, the support of parents and guardians and the enthusiastic co-operation of the pupils who support the work together to promote the ethos of our school. The BOM met five times over the past year and provides an agreed report to the school body via our website.
The BOM has met its obligations in respect of Child Protection and Anti-Bullying Procedures.
The B.O.M. has reviewed Standardised Test Results and Pupil Attendance returns during the course of the year.
The school accounts have been audited in line with DES guidelines.
The BOM liaised with the DES throughout the school year and a contract has been signed with a view to begin work on a two classroom ASD main school building extension in June 2023.
The school will operate the Summer provision Scheme for our ASD Solas classes this summer,
School Self-Evaluation/School Improvement Plan
The school engaged wholeheartedly in departmental led initiatives during the school year, most notably School Self-Evaluation (SSE) and updating Anti-Bullying procedures.
As part of this process of evaluation, we continue to identify many of our school strengths and areas for improvement. With regard to SSE, we are proceeding with our Literacy and Numeracy initiatives. The staff ascertained what we feel is working well and identified our strengths as
- annual testing of our pupils compares favourably with national averages in both English and Mathematics.
- the school has a print rich environment in relation to Literacy and Numeracy.
- pupils and teachers are positive when engaging in their approach and attitudes towards initiatives
- the school engages in a range of In-School activities that support good literacy practice, including DEAR, Reading for other classes, Shared Reading (with parental involvement), Paired reading, INTO Handwriting activities, a co-ordinated approach to handwriting etc.
- With regard to a School Improvement Plan, focusing initially upon Literacy, we identified Oral Language as an area that we would like to target. Teachers provide for discrete oral language times on their timetables and engage in a range of initiatives to promote good Oral Language targets. Following discussions regarding Oral Language at previous staff planning days/ Staff Meetings, we have over the years introduced a range of specific in-school initiatives in this regard, including 8 week Assembly Blocks where pupils from different year strands perform weekly (music, drama, poetry, improvisation, dance etc)/We have introduced class debates/power point presentations etc in Senior Classes.
- Legislative and Regulatory Obligations.
The school is compliant with legislative and regulatory obligations, as identified in ‘School Self-Evaluation- Guidelines for Primary Schools, 2012’. These aare
- Time in school as per Circular 11/95/ Arrangements for parent/ teacher and staff meetings as per Circular 14/04/ Implementation of Croke Park agreement regarding additional time requirement as per circular 08/2011/ Standardisation of school year as per circular/ Valid enrolment of pupils as per/ Section 9(1), 15 (2) and 23 education act 1988/ Sections 20 and 21 Education (Welfare) Act 2000/ Rules 55, 64, 108 and 123 rules for national schools/ Staffing schedule for current school year and Retention of pupils as per most recent circulars, including, but not exclusively, Development of school plan as per Section 21, Education Act 1998/ Appointments to posts of responsibility as per circular / Exemption from Irish circular/ Implementation of child protection procedures /Implementation of complaints procedure as appropriate/ Complaints procedures, Education Act/ Primary Boards of Management Information Manual / Refusal to enrol/ Section 29 Education Act 1998/ Garda Vetting circular requirements
Early Intervention/ Testing of Pupils
Our school undertakes testing of pupils at various stages of their schooling. Infants are generally screened through the BPVT Test and MIST. A new version of the Drumcondra tests was introduced nationally this year and our school has introduced this for pupils from First to Sixth Class. We also conduct testing of pupils in Gaeilge in Second, Fourth and Sixth classes.
Strategies are in place for pupils who require help at this stage. We also undertake annual testing of pupils of in English, Irish and Mathematics and IQ tests. We compare pupils performance in the standardised English and Mathematics tests with their measured ability and make provisions for those who are under-performing. The results of tests conducted on pupils in second, fourth and sixth classes are submitted annually to the DES. School staff monitor and track individual and class-testing results, and can compare them to national trends.
Resources
We updated and purchased two new interactive smartboards/ Special Education resources etc.
We are preparing to implement the Free School Book Scheme.
