Maximising Volunteer input at Navunisea District School

Fiji Hub Achievement Report June 2015

The GVI Education Enrichment Program at Navunisea District School (NDS) has now been established for two years and it continues to evolve in order to meet the needs of the pupils and teachers. The relationship between GVI and NDS is growing ever stronger, however the project is at a crucial stage and with reforms being implemented by the Ministry of Education it is important to demonstrate how the support provided by GVI will contribute to long-term development at the school. This will further strengthen the partnership and enable GVI and NDS to work together to shape the future of the school.

There are a total of eight year groups and a Kindergarten at NDS. Traditionally volunteers have been attached exclusively to one of these classes during their time on project. GVI volunteers provide one-on-one support for pupils struggling with literacy and numeracy, as well as carrying out individual reading sessions and support in the delivery of P.E, Art and Music lessons (PEMAC). The number of GVI volunteers on the project fluctuates between four and eight

throughout the term and their duration on project varies from two weeks to six months. As a result classes may be subject to a high turnover of volunteers and in some cases periods without volunteer support. It is therefore critical that the systems are in place to provide consistent support for both teachers and pupils at the school. This term GVI have taken key steps towards enhancing the support provided at NDS. The GVI team have critically evaluated the role of the volunteers in the school and implemented a re-structured approach to the support provided. This includes the creation of new timetables that re-evaluate the daily time management of the volunteers. Under the new system volunteers will primarily be placed in Classes 1 to 6. Based on current volunteer enrolment this can be maintained throughout the school year. Within these classes volunteers will continue to deliver one-on-one literacy support, numeracy support in-class, reading support, and

PEMAC teaching. In addition to this, volunteers from Classes 1 and 2 will be paired to support Class 7, those in Classes 3 and 4 to support Class 8, while those in Classes 5 and 6 will also assist with Kindergarten.

To enhance and differentiate our literacy support, volunteers will also lead literacy groups for each class and writing workshops for the upper school. By diversifying the literacy support provided the aim is to develop phonics, literacy and composition work, which have been identified as critical areas for improvement across the school. Literacy programmes have been developed, drawing on key areas of the Fijian syllabus and volunteers will be able to focus on the development of writing skills in the upper school where they are most needed.

The new timetables will make best use of volunteer time and ensure maximum contact with pupils through one-on-one support, group work and whole class teaching. Enhanced structure and systems for recording progress will ensure that the time volunteers spend with pupils can be even more productive and beneficial. The new volunteer timetable also includes specific time for planning and creating teaching resources. These can then be shared with teachers and added to the GVI resource library.

Overall, these changes will improve the consistency of support provided at NDS, helping to ensure that teaching and learning flows smoothly from one volunteer to the next. In sharing this new approach with the teachers GVI have further clarified the role of the volunteers in the classroom and reinforced a long-term commitment to the development and success of the school. The schemes of work and resources can be shared with teachers in order to enhance teaching and learning across the school. On-going opportunities for feedback have been provided and as a result the program continually evolves to maximise the impact at NDS.

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