Key Stage Three Information Evening. Mrs C Whitfield: Assistant - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Key Stage Three Information Evening.

Mrs C Whitfield: Assistant Headteacher Mr C Prankerd: Assistant Headteacher

• Dr. P Sleat: Head of Mathematics

Mrs A Egerton: Assistant Head of English

• English Language – a requirement for better reading skills and good

written English

• English Literature – encouragement for students to read, write and

think critically; it will assess students on challenging and substantial whole texts and on shorter unseen texts

• Mathematics - provides greater coverage of areas such as ratio,

proportion and rates of change; it will require all students to master the basics, and will be more challenging for those aiming to achieve top grades

• Science - cover new content, including the human genome, life cycle

analysis and space physics, and they will be more mathematically challenging

Mr C Prankerd: Assistant Headteacher

GCSE Reform

On behalf of the DfE Ofqual have made the following changes to the content of GCSE’s:

• History - requires students to study more historical periods; it will

cover 3 eras - medieval, early modern and modern - and will concentrate more on British history

• Geography - requires pupils to use maths and statistics, and will

concentrate more on UK geography; it will also require students to carry out at least 2 pieces of fieldwork

• Languages - more demanding and most exam questions in modern

languages will be asked in the respective foreign language

GCSE Reform

On behalf of the DfE Ofqual have made the following changes to the content of GCSE’s:

• New grading scale 1 to 9.
• All assessment at the end of the

course.

• All exams, except where they

cannot provide valid assessment of the skills required.

• No tiering, except where untiered

papers do not allow all students to demonstrate their knowledge and skills, or will not stretch the most able.

GCSE Reform

For the assessment aspects of the new GCSEs, Ofqual has introduced:

New Grade Basic Comparison 9

Top half of A*

8

Bottom of A* & Some of A

7

The rest of A

6

Most of B

5

Some of B & Top half of C

4

Bottom of C & some of D

3

Rest of D

2

E grade

1

F grade & some of G

The progression through the change to GCSE will look as follows:

Timeline of Changes

Current Year 9 (Examinations 2017) Current Year 8 (Examinations 2018)

English & Mathematics

New GCSE Specifications (1 – 9 Grading) New GCSE Specifications (1 – 9 Grading)

All other GCSE’s

Old GCSE Specifications (G – A* Grading) New GCSE Specifications (1 – 9 Grading)

• Dr. P Sleat: Head of Mathematics

Why change?

“GCSE qualifications are being reformed to ensure they are rigorous and robust and give students access to high quality qualifications that match the expectations in the highest performing

• jurisdictions. “

What are the changes?

What are the changes?

What are the changes?

What are the changes?

What are the changes?

a2 = b2 + c2 – 2bcCosA

What are the changes?

How have we prepared?

• We have always introduced GCSE topics from Year 7

– more topics will be introduced earlier for the able students

• Our KS3 and KS4 schemes of work have been re-written

– to reflect the different weightings of topics and introduction of new topics – to include more problem solving – to emphasise mastery of number

• Sample assessment material is still be produced by the

exam boards and reviewed by the maths department

– We still need to review and select which exam board to use

• We are in regular contact with HCC maths advisory service

and other heads of maths in the area

English Language:

– Paper 1: Explorations in Creative Reading and Writing

• 50%
• 1hour and 45 minutes

– Paper 2: Writers’ Viewpoints and Perspectives

• 50%
• 1hour and 45 minutes

Examinations: Mrs A Egerton: 2 i/c English Department

English Literature:

– Paper 1: Shakespeare and the 19th Century novel

• 40%
• 1hour and 45 minutes

– Paper 2: Modern Texts and Poetry

• 60%
• 2hours and 15 minutes

Examinations

Year 9 – exposure and awareness of the range and quantity of texts pupils need to study:

• Whole text – Shakespeare, modern prose

and 19th Century novel

• Lots of poems
• Extracts from modern prose
• Range of non-fiction texts

Over the next three years…

Year 9 – this is what they will do:

• Echo the structure of Years 10 & 11;
• Experience and enjoy a wider range of

reading;

• Gain opportunities to write in the real world;
• Explore and develop ideas and opinions

about fiction and non-fiction;

• Develop a written and spoken voice that can

be adapted for different purposes and audiences.

Year 9 – outcomes for the pupils:

• A greater love of reading;
• Greater confidence in their writing;
• Enthusiasm for Literary Heritage;
• Ability to question and evaluate different

viewpoints and layers of meaning;

• Prepare them for Year 10 and 11 and

beyond;

• Confidence in passing their exams!

Years 10 and 11

• New texts
• Development of understanding and

responding to texts

• Enrichment of writing fiction and non-

fiction pieces

• Consolidate skills needed for the exams
• Understand the timings and format of the

exams

What you can do...

• Encourage your children to read a

range of fiction and non-fiction texts;

• Talk to them about their reading;
• Show good practice by reading as well!

Year 9 RE

• Option 1
• Continue with the full RE GCSE to be

sat in May 2016.

• Option 2
• Take the Short Course RE GCSE option

to be sat in May 2016. Mrs C Whitfield: Assistant Headteacher.

Year 8 Options

• Why choose options during Year 8?
• Options chosen this term.
• Option subjects are chosen for Years 9-11.
• Options Booklet.
• Parents and Options Evenings in March.

“ Starting GCSEs in Year 9 has given me the chance to use all my time on the subjects I really enjoy and want to do. I am able to spend more time on just a few subjects rather than having to study subjects this year which I know I didn’t want to do a GCSE in.” Pupil in Year 9

“ I like knowing that we have plenty of time to cover everything before Year 11. We get to discuss our work and focus on the detail. We have lots of time to practise and I feel really good about how I am progressing. We have already started looking at how to revise for our exams and I feel confident about them” Pupil in Year 10

The National Picture

• Time of change
• Reformed GCSEs in most subjects
• Increased Rigour and Demand
• Assessment - At end of Year 11
• Need for pupils to study a range of subjects
• A changing picture

Compulsory Subjects

Leading to qualifications:

• GCSE English
• GGCE English Literature
• GCSE Mathematics
• GCSE Science (2 or 3 GCSEs)

Non-qualification:

• Core PE
• Core RE
• Citizenship/PSHE/Careers

Option Choices

Four further choices from set option blocks One of these four subjects must be:

• Geography
• History
• French
• Spanish

Important Dates

• Options Booklet available to pupils (hard

copy and online): 13th February 2015

• Year 8 Options Information Evening:

12th March 2015

• Year 8 Parents’ Evening: 19th March 2015
• Deadline for Option Forms: 23rd March 2015

Thank you for your time this evening