PSQM (Primary Science Quality Mark) accreditation – the standard for outstanding Primary schooling in Science
PSQM – The Primary Science Quality Mark, is awarded to schools who deliver an exceptional Science curriculum, with all its knock-on impacts on, and for, its children. The Gilt Award is made to schools who are able to demonstrate how already very established and highly effective Science leadership has a sustained impact on Science teaching and learning across a school. The Award is presented by the PSQM in association with the UK’s University of Hertfordshire and the Primary Science Teaching Trust.
To secure the highest award schools have to demonstrate an extraordinarily rich curriculum in Science and the integration and celebration of Science across every aspect of school life. This includes everything from the professional development in Science of all teachers at the school, accurate ways of assessing how well children are engaging in Science (and enjoying it!), to showcasing student achievements in Science at every opportunity. A key way you can measure its success is to see how linkages are made with Science in every aspect of the curriculum including the Arts – and see how Science moves beyond books into the broader cultural, sporting and social life of children. Parents should be able to see the impact through the eloquence of children speaking about Science and their being animated and excited discussing its themes.
Schools that achieve PSQM are ranked “amazing.”
About Victory Heights Primary School
Victory Heights Primary School is a British, English National Curriculum founded primary school in Dubai recognised for the richness of its curriculum and focus on engaging and exciting children to inspire in them a lifelong love of learning. Children are inquisitive and intuitive learners. Living things, materials, plants and electricity are just some of the key areas of the Science curriculum introduced to children from a young age. When knowledge is secured in lessons, children between Years 2 and 6 apply their knowledge through weekly STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) lessons which explore “real life” examples of how Science shapes our world. The school’s Cultural Garden enables children to explore their learning, and broader issues of sustainability, outside through the planting and nurturing of their own crops. The school plans for both a major Science Day each year and competitions for children to discover their own links in STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, the Arts and Mathematics).
Science is very deeply embedded within the curriculum:
The 5 Pillars of the Science curriculum at Victory Heights Primary School and the foundations for its achieving the highest Gilt Award and accreditation for PSQM Science.
In October 2022 Victory Heights Primary School was accredited with the Gilt Award PSQM for its outstanding delivery of Science for children.
What parents need to look for to recognise a school that is outstanding for Science
It’s almost impossible to cover the sheer breadth of delivery that goes into making an outstanding school for Science. It starts in what should be an obvious place: Science must be recognised as a discipline that is at least as important as others. But making this real demands a lot. For a start, to be credible, the whole school should be involved in building the vision of its importance and impact. And the impact of children’s work in Science should be materially celebrated, and felt, everywhere in school and outside it.
Anna Harris, Year 3 Green Teacher, Victory Heights Primary School, told SchoolsCompared:
“Science is so visible across our whole school.
From experiments, to displays, there’s a real buzz around VHPS about Science – and I think it’s wonderful!
Science is quite magical at Victory heights for children and staff alike.”
Consultations should take place with students and teachers to regularly understand how Science can be given profile and made more inspirational. At Victory Heights, this saw feedback from children that asked for greater risks to be allowed in experiments to bring the world to life (within reason – note the inevitable call from children for more explosions!) and more ways of subject specialists working together to see how Science relates to other areas of the curriculum.
Children’s voices matter. Here we see a section of responses from children about their views on Science which are built into the planning of the Science curriculum at Victory Heights Primary School.
Danielle Duffy, Year 6 Read Teacher, Year Leader and Head of English at Victory Heights Primary School, explained:
“The Science Vision meeting at VHPS really showed the longer term plans for what is coming in Science at school; what is happening now and our shared ambitions for the future. What we learned is that the principles we set out as to how Science should be recognised and celebrated in school for our children is perfectly aligned with where we think Science as a key subject area will and must develop in education. Importantly, the children’s responses, their excitement and commitment, is exactly how we hoped, and imagined, that it would be.”
The engagement with parents on the importance of Science to children is key too:
” We ensured that our whole community were aware of our vision for Science and the targets we set for for this academic year. To achieve this we engaged our families in a special Victory Heights Parent Webinar and, for example, during Science Week, parents were able to access our Assemblies live to share their vision and how they align to our collective VHPS values, aspirations and what we all hold important for children.”
The whole school vision and principles for Science must be evident everywhere from classrooms to the way schools project themselves outwardly. The commitment to, and investment in, raising Science expectations and the experiences of children in Science must be centre stage.
“It is clear that Science is incredibly embedded at VHPS and the vision is well established and supported by all
stakeholders”BSO Report on Victory Heights Primary School (rated Outstanding), May 2022
New vocabulary is added to the working wall and other key areas which children are attracted to, to support the consistent and inspiring development of Science in lessons.
Development of a Whole School Science Action Plan, one focused uniquely on Science and its role as a distinct subject and its linkages across the curriculum, should be present and available to parents. Below we see an excerpt from the Plan at Victory Heights Primary School.
A section of the Science Action Plan at Victory Heights Primary School shared with SchoolsCompared.com
Examples should be available showing how areas of Science develop over each year as children revisit areas of the curriculum and their knowledge grows:
An example of how the Science curriculum develops each year at Victory Heights, revisiting in different ways themes and subject areas introduced to children. Here the development of plants is linked to outdoor, hands-on experimental activities in the school’s Cultural Garden where children are growing radishes, chilli peppers, tomatoes… and more!
One of the best examples we saw of how the school engages children was to set them the challenge of how to soundproof the Head’s office (children are extremely animated at Victory Heights!)
String telephones at VHPS bringing STEM to life to solve real world problems – how to sound proof the Principal’s office from the hubbub and joy of children learning!
The result was mountains of string and paper cups being used to understand sound waves in a lesson using string telephones and a focus on celebrating the importance of engineers in shaping our world and solving problems. It’s a key theme as we still have far too few young women going into engineering and inspiring girls at a young age is vital in addressing this glaring inequality of opportunity. Today the disparity in attainment between boys and girls in Science at Victory Heights Primary School is minimal – and in many cases it is now girls that are leading in the exploratory aspects of problem solving. It’s a phenomenal achievement – and an important one. It is both boys and girls that benefit in a culture that explores learning through innovation, problem solving and a deep appreciation of the natural world – together with its linkages.
Real world results
So what do schools look like for children that are outstanding for Science? One of the aspects of Victory Heights Primary School we find so inspiring is the way that data is monitored and evaluations made. If you look at the table below used by teachers you will see a very clever twist. Where in other schools an Acceptable level of attainment is allowed for, the only acceptable level of attainment in Science at Victory heights is….. Outstanding.
An attainment sheet in Science for children at Victory Heights Primary School. The only Acceptable level of attainment is an Outstanding one such is the focus on inspiring children’s innate curiosity and love of Science and problem solving. This is the first time we have seen such an integrated level of ambition for, and belief in, children by teachers and school leadership in a UAE primary.
Why STEAM matters as a lens through which to understand Science
The key driver at Victory heights primary School is the recognition that through STEAM, and its integration of Science within every aspect of the curriculum, including the Arts, Science becomes real, and alive, for children. It becomes exciting. Its knock on impacts too is higher performing students across all curriculum areas. By building around a very strong focus on Science you create a virtuous circle of opportunity for children.
Below you can see an example of how the school cleverly links Science into the English Literature and Mathematics curriculum:
Another really interesting example we explored with the school was its linking up of children with the Head of Energy at Al Futtaim as part of the school submitting plans for solar panels and energy reading equipment at the school. Pupils sat in on the meeting with the owner and “played a key role” in the decision to have panels fitted at the school – and to be able to use systems themselves to monitor usage. This sort of empowerment of young children, as part of a whole school empowerment of Science, is extremely creditable and rare.
It is worth remembering that this is a Primary School taking on issues and ways of learning you can struggle to find in good secondary’s.
Science matters. Children matter. The two are indelibly linked. The PSQM Award captures this – and we think it is something that parents should now be asking schools for.
Schools simply don’t come better than this…
Further information
Victory Heights Primary School is a multi-award winning school at the region’s Top Schools Awards including its highest award for School leadership and its award for Best Primary School in the UAE 2021-22. More on this here, and here.
Read our review of Victory Heights Primary School here.
Visit the official Victory Heights Primary School web site here.
© SchoolsCompared.com. A WhichMedia Group publication. 2022. All rights reserved.
Leave a Response