PDST WELLREAD NATIONAL AWARD

Accreditation Process

 

 

The process involves the following steps:

 

  • Inform the whole school community about the intention to engage with the Wellread initiative

  • Register with Margaret Mary Grant, Laois Education Centre (wellread@pdst.ie).

  • and form a Wellread Steering Committee

  • Review Process

  • Plan, Implement and Monitor Whole School Initiatives

  • Submit Portfolio for Accreditation

  • Wellread Plaque and Certificate Awarded

  • Maintaining the Award

  

 

1. Whole School Community Awareness

 

Following on from attendance at an information session, it is imperative that the whole school community is made aware of the school’s intention to register. It is envisaged that the Wellread National Award will explicitly foster and nurture a culture of reading for pleasure in your school. This will involve all of the stakeholders, notably students, teachers and parents.

 

 

2. Register and form a Wellread Steering Committee

 

Schools that wish to be considered for the Wellread National Award should register their interest with Margaret Mary Grant (Laois Education Centre)by emailing Margaret Mary (wellread@pdst.ie). The establishment of a core group to be representative of students, teachers and parents is an essential first step. The main purpose of this steering committee will be to drive the implementation process of the Wellread initiatives in their school. Ideally, the Steering Committee should include representatives from the student body, teaching staff and parents.

 

 

3. Review Process

 

The Steering Committee should engage in a whole school collaborative process of reviewing current best practice in relation to the promotion of reading in their school (see resources from the Autumn Workshop in Resources for Schools section). This could involve identifying initiatives that the school has already implemented in promoting reading and identifying initiatives that they plan to implement going forward. The School Self Evaluation six step process could be a useful model to employ at this step. Schools are required to engage with at least three initiatives for each area in the promotion of reading for pleasure; at least three initiatives to promote reading for pleasure among students, at least three initiatives to promote reading for pleasure among school staff, at least three initiatives to promote reading for pleasure among parents and at least three initiatives to promote reading for pleasure among the wider community.

 

 

4. Plan, Implement and Monitor Whole School Initiatives

 

The Steering Committee should engage in a process of action planning whole school initiatives that promote and raise awareness of reading and what they are trying to achieve in relation to reading in their school (see resources from the Autumn Workshop in Resources for Schools section). The steering committee will agree on a plan of how they will implement and monitor at least three initiatives to promote reading for pleasure across each of the three groups.

 

 

5. Submit Portfolio for Accreditation   

 

To be considered for award, schools must submit their portfolio by in May for award the following Autumn. (See FAQs section for more information in relation to what the portfolio should look like!)

 

Portfolios should only be submitted at the point in time when all the planned initiatives for a given year(s) have been put in place/completed. We realise that this is a process that will take place over a number of years but that progress documented in one year may be sufficient to go forward for accreditation. This would be evidenced in a period of sustained promotion and development of reading for pleasure across the entire school and involving the whole school community.

 

The accreditation team will meet in June to consider the portfolios submitted by schools. Laois Education Centre will telephone/email the school to inform them of the Accreditation Team’s decision.

 

Schools that are not approved on the grounds that further progress is required will receive feedback outlining the areas to be addressed.

 

 

6. Wellread Plaque and Certificate Awarded

 

Schools that are being awarded the PDST Wellread National Award will be notified by Laois Education Centre and the Wellread Plaque and Certificate will be presented to the school at a National PDST Wellread Awards Ceremony.

 

 

7. Maintaining the Award

 

The PDST Wellread National Award can be maintained by undertaking the portfolio process every three years. Successful Wellread schools may choose to engage with the “Readers For Life” initiative, where they will complete a portfolio process again to demonstrate how they have maintained a culture of reading for pleasure among parents, students, school staff and the wider community.