lIn Year 7 we teach English through the key skills of speaking, listening, reading and writing. We group students according to their prior attainment in each of these key skills so that we can target our teaching at the right level. We assess students every half term and move students between groups depending on these assessments: this is how we sustain progression.
We teach English in Years 8 to 11 in flexible mixed ability groups. Again, school-based prior attainment data is used to ensure that students are put in groups where they can achieve the most progress. In years 9 and 11 we regroup the classes before examinations, again so that we can target the specific learning needs of the students.
Right from Year 7, the English curriculum has a strong element of literature, be it poetry, novels or Shakespeare. By the end of Year 11 students are able to sit two GCSEs, one based on literature and the other English language – although, just to confuse matters, this also has an element of literature.
GCSE results keep improving, and around half our students achieve A* to C grades – particularly pleasing considering that three-quarters of our students do not have English as their first language.
We organise a lunch time Key Stage 3 creative writing club. To help prepare for end-of-Key Stage 3 tests and GCSEs, we run regular theatre and cinema trips, focused on the set books and plays. Before both of these exams there are regular booster and revision classes.
