What this case study is about: 

The performance project aimed to develop students' creativity and participation in the arts and raise achievement. Due to the short timescale of the project (Jan-Mar 2002) a play was chosen as a focus.  Macbeth was selected, as this was also the English SATs Shakespeare text and appropriate to the Y9 target group. 

The project came about through a successful bid for funding from the University of the First Age’s Neighbourhood Renewal Fund and was supported by additional funding from the new opportunities Fund through ‘artSites’. 

Description of the Centre 

Perry Beeches is an 11-16 mixed comprehensive school situated in the north of Birmingham.  There are 875 students currently on roll.  The school is unique in that its campus houses a Nursery, Infant, Junior and Secondary School.  Priestly Smith, a school for visually handicapped students was recently relocated to the site in September 2003. 

The school’s rebuilding programme under the Private Public Partnership initiative, due to two arson attacks, is now complete and the campus boasts modern state of the art buildings with the latest facilities and equipment to support the excellent teaching and learning opportunities provided for its students. 

The school’s results have taken a leap over the past few years.  Between 1999-2002 results were 17%, 16% and 15%.  2002 saw a 100% increase in our GCSE results from 15% to 30%.  Results for 2003 were 41%.  The rise in attainment correlates with the development of our extensive Study Support Programme as well as other raising achievement projects and developments such as the re-build and the new staffing structure. 

Socio Economic Circumstances: 

Up to 72% of our students are bussed in from other areas.  The school serves some inner city, socially deprived neighbourhoods, including Handsworth, Aston, and Kingstanding.  Unemployment for these areas are Handsworth 16.6%, Aston 20.7% and Kingstanding 8.2%.  Approximately 50% of our students come from ethnic minority backgrounds.  28% are entitled to free school meals, 28% have English as an additional language and 28% have SENs. 

Study Support Programme 

Study Support is set at the heart of school improvement.  It is one of the Head’s priorities and the study support line manager is a member of the Senior Management Team. 

Activities take place before school, after school, at weekends and during the school holidays.  Activities take place across the school site and the students have opportunities to use a range of state of the art accommodation, resources and facilities. 

Our partnerships and links with initiatives, organisations and individuals both within and outside the school enable us to provide a wide range of activities based on tutors’ expertise and learners’ needs. 

Possibly the single most important factor in the success of our programme is the contribution of all staff and partnerships have made to the school’s achievement agenda. 

‘artSites’ Birmingham: 

Perry Beeches is one of five ‘artSites’ across the city.  ‘artSites’ are situated in areas of Birmingham where it has been established that there is little or no other professional arts provision.  ‘artSites’ is a network of venues on the outskirts of Birmingham that are run by teams of staff and volunteers. 

‘artSites’ work in partnership with artists and creative companies in the region and beyond to create specifically tailored packages of activity and provide local people with opportunities to see affordable performances and exhibitions on their doorstep.  ‘artSites’ also runs after-school clubs, adult education courses and arts projects for people of all ages and experience.  

University of the First Age 

Perry Beeches Campus is also a UFA partner site.  The UFA started in 1996 in Birmingham and is now a nationally networked organisation, partly grant-funded through the DfES and Birmingham City Council, with currently 35 LEAs as partners.  The UFA believes in the potential of all to succeed and is committed to developing out of school hours learning programmes for young people, within the home, school and the community that challenge, enable, extend and encourage learning and raise young people’s achievement. 

Brief description of the activity: 

The dip in achievement at KS3 is well documented nationally.  The Performance Project – A Modern Day Version of Macbeth – targeted 27 largely 4/5 borderline students who were at risk of under achieving in their  KS3 SATs.    Their risk of underachievement stemmed from their lack of self-esteem and confidence, lack of understanding of Shakespeare (particularly the language) and the mismatch between most students’ preferred learning style (kinaesthetic) and the teaching style employed by their teacher (visual/auditory).

The project aimed to develop students’ creativity and participation in the arts, raise self-esteem, motivation and confidence and raise achievement.  In order to achieve the objectives students worked alongside a Lead Artist who largely used kinaesthetic teaching styles.  The head of English and the Literacy Co-ordinator were able to provide extra curriculum time to support students with the text/rehearsals. 

Groups of students also worked with a set and costume designer, choreographer, theatre lighting and sound technician, study support co-ordinator and ‘artSites’ education and training officer, to develop set and costume design, dance routines, technical support, publicity, marketing and front of house skills.  

The project took place at Perry Beeches School after school, at week-ends, during the half term holiday and was supported by additional curriculum sessions.  During half term rehearsals took place at Broadway School ‘artSite’.  In addition to this students visited Millennium Point in Birmingham.  There they took part in brain-based activities, visited the Think Tank and watched a film in the amazing 3D Imax Cinema. 

The students performed their modern day version of Macbeth in front of an audience of over 100 people on 14 March 2002. 

How has the activity had measurable impact and brought about real, visible change? 

The students chosen for the Performance Project were, on the whole, predicted to achieve level 4/5 in their English SATs tests.  As a result of the project the achievement of the group was as follows: 

·        Predicted point score 27.08, actual point score 37.08, value added +10 points.

·        Predicted level score 4.8, actual level score 5.68, value added + 0.88 level

·        17 students (63%) achieved higher than expected

·        6 students (22%) achieved the level expected

·        4 students (15%) achieved lower than expected

It is quite clear that when comparing the achievements of students who took part in the Performance Project with students’ achievements across that year group, value added was significantly higher in all areas for those involved in the Performance Project, including three level 8 scores that had never been achieved before at Perry Beeches.

At the beginning of the project many of the students were not from the same friendship groups. By the end of the project student’s reported that they had made new friends, they also felt more confident and had a better understanding of the text.

The head of English expected that the Performance Project 2002 was going to be a daunting experience because Drama was the area of teaching he felt most uncomfortable with.    The rewards for him were, however, immeasurable – “I have found out more than I had ever realised about my potential as a teacher”.  His teaching approach has changed as a result of the project and he now uses drama techniques to enhance his teaching with all year groups.

The outcomes of the Performance Project have inevitably had a massive impact on the role of expressive arts and more specifically drama, within the curriculum.  More and more teachers see drama as a valuable tool to raise the achievements of targeted groups of students.  Future drama projects have taken place both within and outside the normal curriculum including Cruel Times (a play about the Victorians) and a production of Grease, which is currently underway.

How does the activity open up access to wider opportunities?

Many students have gone on to become involved in other drama and music activities both in and outside the school.  All students involved in the project said that it was their involvement in the Performance Project that had given them the confidence to go on to undertake other study support activities.  Their increased confidence self-esteem  and motivation has also led them to take on active peer supporting roles across the campus, including arts mentors, peer supporters, librarians, peer tutors and school prefects (most of the students who were involved in the project hold senior prefect positions).

Arts Mentors

Students who took part in the Performance Project inspired the Perry beeches Arts Mentor Scheme.  Arts mentors are students who train and work as a team to support the arts activities within the school, community and ‘artSites’. 

To become an arts mentor pupils have to:

·        Show an interest in arts activities or supporting roles by a proven track record.

·        Give commitment to training and meeting together.

·        Give commitment to support at least two activities in a term.

‘artSite’ Youth Board Members:

At least two arts mentors are chosen to represent the group as Perry Beeches representatives at ‘artSite’ Youth Board meetings.  Their roles will include:

·        Leadership of the Arts Mentors, calling meetings and overseeing the team.

·        Attending Youth Board meetings at the ‘mac’, Cannon Hill Park every half term in order to feedback the views of the arts mentors and to work with other &Youth Board members to develop ‘artSites’.

Training Options for the Arts Mentors

Because of its success ‘artSites’ has secured funding to cascade the Arts Mentor Scheme across all of the ‘artSites’ and is used as a model of good practice across small EAZs.

What lessons have we learned that can inform the learning agenda across other schools?

·        Auditing students preferred way of receiving data for specific activities and focussing on students preferred learning styles and promoting kinaesthetic learning can have an impact on all learners.

·        Supporting National Curriculum targets in English through the use of the expressive arts and identify opportunities across the curriculum where targeted projects can be developed to support targeted groups of students with specific learning needs.

·        Making students part of the learning team within school secures them as stakeholders in education and promotes the notion of lifelong learning

·        Enhancing students’ self-esteem and motivation can have impact on achievement/attainment.

·        Projects aimed at raising achievement need to be high profile and properly resourced.

·        Partnerships with parents, and in particular regular and clear communications with parents is crucial to the success of any project in school, particularly projects which involve the commitment of time outside school hours

·        Partnerships with groups outside the LEA are crucial in gaining funding and the expertise necessary for a successful project.

Study support provides us with excellent opportunities to take risks and make a profound impact on the achievement and attainment of young people.  This project was nominated and achieved Birmingham Schools Award – Best Practice in Closing the Achievement Gap in September 2003.

For more information on this case study contact:

Perry Beeches School, Beeches Road, Birmingham B42 2PY

Quality in Study Support, CELSI, Salomons, Southborough, Tunbridge Wells, TN3 0TG   Tel: 01892 507657