1419 CURRICULUM DESIGN:

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• 14-19 CURRICULUM DESIGN
• A Vertical Approach

One school example

Serlby Park
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CONTEXT

• Characteristics
• Ex-pit village
• Traditional low educational expectations
• Limited employment opportunities
• High SD Indicators
• Rurally isolated/wide travel to learn area (a
  feature of Bassetlaw as a whole for 14-19
  collaborative initiatives)
• Curriculum Change rationale-post-14
• Results seemed to have come up against a barrier
• Students were saying we werent giving them
  sufficient choice - previous KS4 offer was very
  limited (9 GCSE subject choices, sometimes
  repeated across 4 option blocks)
• Diploma and YA were looking strong-14-19
  developments necessitated a fresh look
• The school is only large enough for year groups
  of 130 max- broadening choice, either voluntarily
  or not, is more expensive
• Area was judged to be in need of more applied
  offer
• Broadening choice was judged to cause medium term
  staffing imbalance

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SOME ASPECTS OF CHANGES

• Vertical option blocks Years 9-11
• Rolling one year qualifications in double
  previous time allocation
• Early qualifications Entry level to Level 3
• June start for timetable
• Common area-wide option times/timetables
• Common area-wide protocols to facilitate 14-19
  developments

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Structure 2008/2009
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(No Transcript)
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Why redesign ?Timetabling

• Research points to real advantages and is
  supported by results (so far)!
• Plenaries assume greater significance
• Structured G and T provision-L3 in year 10?
• Timetable can roll forward with a real purpose
• The wider choice is the foundation of
  personalising learning
• Why 16?
• Broadening the curriculum is more possible-
  cost-efficiencies
• Year 11 is a coursework/revision log jam
  spreads the load
• Part-timers are easier to recruit
• Individual subjects face much more competition
  under present system- more students into option
  choices will ease these problems..staffing
  imbalance is not as extreme
• Travel logistics are eased
• Collaboration is on a surer foundation-common
  logistics
• The wider variety of experience cuts pressures on
  school to provide everything-external
  providers, other schools, work .

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Why redesign?Learner considerations

• Personalising learning through wider curriculum
  choice differing likes, skills, T and L styles,
  locations
• Learning needs reinforcement ideally within 24
  hours-Buzan et.al
• We do not catch them at their most enthusiastic
  ??
• There is no extrinsic reward for GCSE work until
  after they have left school (in many cases)
• Option clash/lack of choice grievance in student
  evaluation
• GCSE choices locks in a student for two years,
  regardless of whether the course is the suitable
  one
• Student has more possible movement between
  subject choices 14
• Gives wider exposure to different student
  cohorts-more opportunity for role model
  development
• Lower attainers spend 2 years in GCSE and our own
  experiences show that they get the same grade (or
  better) after 1 year (76 of cases)

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Option Block A

• PE GCSE Levels 1 and 2 Edexcel
  YA Food Level 2
• French Levels 1 and 2 Edexcel
  Maths AS Level 3
• Food Tech. Levels 1 and 2 Edexcel
  Pathways Level 1
• Cake Decorating Levels 1 and 2 ABC
  Individual Arrangements
• Res. Materials Levels 1 and 2 Edexcel
• Spanish Levels 1 and 2
  Edexcel
• Building Trades Level 1 City/G
• Construction Dip Levels 1 and 2 Edexcel
• Hair and Beauty Levels 1 and 2 City/G
• (Cert./BTEC) Edexcel
  
• Horsecare Level 1 BHS
• Childcare Levels 1 and 2 AQA
• Art Levels 1 and 2 AQA
• Music Levels 1 and 2 AQA
• Drama Levels 1 and 2 AQA
• History Levels 1 and 2 AQA
• Geography Levels 1 and 2 Edexcel
• Business Levels 1 and 2 AQA 2 years
• YA Construction Level 2

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• Process
• Options Choices process begins one year earlier,
  in Year 8
• It is repeated each year (2 choices)
• Students choose 1 from each block each year
  (unless it is a two year course)
• If course is full, they are first priority next
  year
• Languages are given first priority in Year 9
• Logistics
• 6 option qualifications-ongoing choice of what
  to study and at what level (8 best GCSE
  equivalents used for capped APS)
• Level 3 is now much more viable (earlier, if
  required)
• Cores almost unaffected (for now!)-helps new
  performance tables
• Helps to greatly extend choice, both logistically
  (little timetable disruption) and cost-wise (much
  larger cohort)

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Areas for concern Points raised by staff

• MFL study break -Early AS level/more
  languages/
• 
  conversation classes/ video-conferencing
• X Break in option subject study -52 of students
  in FE start
• subjects they have never studied
• -Many HE courses are completely
  new
• ? YEAR 9- too early intellectually
• ? Level 3-out of sync
• ? Diploma-too young to travel
• ? PE-too weedy

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Obstacles under system

• the secondary blockings system remains a
  structural (and psychological) barrier to change
• individualising the learning experience is
  expensive
• Broadening the options choice could be a threat
  to traditional subjects and certainly could
  lead to staffing imbalances
• subject dominance/ fear continues to play a major
  role in limiting changes to the timetable
• Developments will stall

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Results Year 9 Results Year 10
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Curriculum for 2008-9 Timetable plan for KS3 KS4
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Evaluating redesign

• Pupil survey
• 100 of Year 9 consider it a positive move
• 54 of Year 10 consider it a positive move
• 95 of Year 10 would have opted for the change if
  the opportunity had been given to them last year
• Staff survey
• 95 of affected staff rated the move positive,
  or very positive in informal survey March 09

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Timeline for redesign

• Presentation to staff October INSET day
• Written proposal to all staff November requesting
  feedback
• Repeat written proposal to all staff January
  requesting feedback
• Evaluation forms to departments January-all
  returned bar 1
• Full governors meeting January-proposal adopted
• Student assembly January (Year 8)
• Parent Information letter/booklet January (Year
  9)
• Discussion relevant TLR1s/TLR2s February/March
• Research and timetable questions February/March
• Parent Information Evening/Student options day
  March (Year 9)
• Parental information letter/booklet March (Year
  8)
• Parent Information Evening Year 8 April (Year 8)

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Contact
s.geraghty_at_serlbypark.notts.sch.uk 01302
742535 kate.attard_at_ssatrust.org.uk curriculumdesig
n_at_ssatrust.org.uk