LITTLE HEATH SCHOOLAn HPSS RAPP school

Raising Achievement Partnership Programme

KS4 Induction Evening

for Y10 Parents

Tuesday 13 October

2009

Aims of the evening• To inform you about the structure of the

new GCSE courses that your son or daughter is taking

• To explain the new style of coursework, the controlled assessment

• To give you information regarding modular examinations

• To outline some key dates and deadlines

Curriculum and Qualifications• Nationally the majority of 16 year olds are expected to

achieve at least 5A*-C grades including English & Mathematics

• Students at Little Heath take many more GCSEs (exact number varies)

• In Year 10 all assessment for 1 Science GCSE is completed and the short-course GCSE in Citizenship is taken and awarded

• In Year 11 all students who do not take ICT as an option choice will take an ICT qualification in place of Citizenship

Assessment Controlled Assessments

• Controlled assessments represent a huge change

• They replace coursework in all subjects except English

• Controlled assessments must be completed in school under ‘controlled’ conditions (for example, amount of time, restrictions on permitted help from teachers)

Assessment Y10 Controlled Assessments

Continuous Art; ICT; BTEC PEOctober EnglishNovember Science Data AnalysisDecember English; Science Data AnalysisJanuary Science Case StudyFebruary Food, Resistant Materials, Graphics; Science Case StudyMarch English; Food, Resistant Materials, Graphics; Science Case StudyApril History; Geography; PhysicsMay History; Geography; PhysicsJune English; Geography; PhysicsJuly GCSE PE; Geography; PhysicsFrench and German have Speaking & Writing assessments in the fortnight either side of each half-term holiday.

English = traditional coursework assignments

Some subjects only have controlled assessments in Y11; there are no controlled assessments or coursework in Mathematics

Assessment Modular Examinations

• In the recent past all GCSEs were linear• This meant all exams were taken at the end of Year 11• In recent years subjects like Maths and Science have

become modular• In the new specifications all subjects (except English

and Drama) have modular exams*• Your sons / daughters will have REAL exams that count

towards their grades throughout their courses

* Music not using modular exams during Y10 and 11 – all assessment towards end of the course

Assessment Y10 Modular ExaminationsExam Season Subjects Results

November 2009 Maths Jan 2010January 2010 RE Science March 2010

Biology ChemistryMarch 2010 Maths April 2010May / June 2010 Business Citizenship Science August 2010

Food Graphics REResistant MaterialsMaths Physics

The school reserves the right to charge for re-sit and entries.

Failure to attend for an examination will be charged unless the absence is covered by a medical certificate.

Assessment Y11 Modular Examinations

Exam Season Subjects

November 2010Maths Resits

January 2011 History Science ?Y10 Re-sitsBiology Chemistry Physics

March 2011 Maths May / June 2011 All English exams

All other remaining examsFinal re-sit opportunities

The school reserves the right to charge for re-sit and entries.

Failure to attend for an examination will be charged unless the absence is covered by a medical certificate.

Absence

• Absence from school during Key Stage 4 has always impacted badly on a student’s GCSE results

• Clearly NO holidays should be planned within school term dates throughout Years 10 and 11

ATTENDANCE COUNTS

Research suggests that 17 days missed from school equates to a GCSE grade!

Introductory Review Grades• These are being awarded by teachers from

12 – 16 October

• The Introductory Report comes home on Friday 6 November

• The grades will give you a chance to see how your son / daughter has settled in to his / her GCSE & BTEC courses, and whether teachers think (s)he is either exceeding expectations or under-achieving.

Academic Review Day• This year Academic Review Day is on

Friday 4 December• This will be the ideal opportunity to discuss

the Introductory Report with your son / daughter’s form tutor(Of course never wait until then if you have significant concerns; contact the tutor or Miss Collins or our KS4 Secretary, Mrs. Morris at school)

Y10 Mock Exams• These take place between 1 March and 12 March

in most subjects• They will give the students a chance to practice the

skills required for success in papers taken in the summer of 2010 or in Year 11

• At the start of May you will receive a summary data sheet containing mock results and predicted grades

• A full report including teacher comments comes home on Thursday 10 June

• The Parents’ Evening this year will be held on Thursday 24 June

Contact DetailsHead of Year T Collinstcollins@westberks.org

Assistant Headteacher and KS4 Leader K Buttonkbutton@westberks.org

Key Stage 4 Secretary A Morrisamorris2@westberks.org

Deputy Headteacher (Y10 link) G Dowlinggdowling@westberks.org