English
A guide for parents' whcih is designed to help parents and carers understand how students progress in English at each National Curriculum level and includes lots of ideas to help parents support their children at home,
Please click on the booklet below called 'Understanding progress in English'.
Understanding progress in English
Year 7
September 2008 sees the introduction of the new Secondary Curriculum and the renewing of the Secondary Frameworks, including the Framework for English.
Aims:
English is vital for communicating with others in school and in the wider world, and is fundamental to learning in all curriculum subjects. In studying English, students should:
- develop skills in speaking, listening, reading and writing that they will need to participate in society and employment;
- learn to express themselves creatively and imaginatively;
- learn to communicate with others confidently and effectively;
- develop an understanding of how language "works";
- learn to become enthusiastic and critical readers of stories, poetry and drama as well as non-fiction and media texts.
Key concepts
There are four key concepts that underpin the study of English: competence, creativity, cultural understanding and critical understanding:
1. Competence
Competence in reading, writing and speaking and listening enables students to be successful within and beyond the classroom.
2. Creativity
Creativity is sometimes demonstrated when students make unexpected connection, use stricking and original phrases and images, and produce writing that surprises and engages the reader.
3. Cultural understanding
Students read and compare texts from other cultures and traditions and so engage with new ways in which culture develops.
4. Critical understanding
Students develop critical understanding by examining the uses of language and the various forms of media and communication.
Key processes
- Speaking and listening
- Reading
- Reading for meaning
- Appreciation of the author's craft
- Writing
- Composition
- Technical accuracy
Range and content:
There are sixty units of work, each occupying a half-term approximately. Particular units will focus on particular skills and concepts but together, and cumulatively over Year 7 and all the secondary school years, they will address all the key skills and concepts as described above. The units will encourage each student to make progress and become a more skilful user of the language as they move towards GCSE.
Grouping arrangements:
Early in the year a "fast track" group will be identified on the basis of available evidence from KS2 and from initial testing at the college. The other students will be placed in three parallel, mixed ability groups. Movement between the FT group and the mixed ability groups may result from end of unit assessments but is dependent upon consultation with other curriculum areas, notably Mathematics.
Homework:
One homework per day is set. This may vary in nature. Sometimes it will be written but at other times it may involve, for example, research, preparing for an oral presentation, or reading a section of a given text. Sometimes an extended, project-style homework may be set and a period of four weeks or longer might be allowed to complete this.
All students are encouraged to read for their own pleasure and this forms, in effect, an ongoing second homework.
Assessment:
Each unit of work will include an assessment piece which is awarded a National Curriculum level. This will be followed by an A, B or C to indicate whether the piece is towards the top, middle or bottom of the level.
In the Summer Term, most pupils take a Progress Test, designed by the DfES, in both Reading and Writing. The test is designed for pupils working at National Curriculum Level 4 and above. Pupils judged to be still working towards National Curriculum Level 4 are given an appropriate alternative paper.
Additional Information:
The importance of Standard English is stressful and students are urged to develop their command of it.
The students are also taught to recognise the importance of the process of planning, drafting, editing and proof-reading if quality writing is to be produced.
Year 8
The new Framework for English will be introduced on a "rolling" basis, i.e. the Year 8 curriculum will be renewed as from September 2009. However, the key skills will, as ever, be central and the key concepts will still have a key place in the six units.
Aims:
To further develop each student's ability to:
- Communicate confidently and skilfully as readers, writers, speakers and listeners
- Appreciate and respond sensitively to a wide range and variety of reading material and other media texts
Content:
As in Year 7, it involves six units of work. Prose, poetry, drama and other media all feature and there is continued development of writing for a range of audiences and purposes, i.e.:
- To imagine, explore and entertain
- To inform, explain and describe
- To persuade, argue and advise
- To analyse, review and comment
Grouping Arrangements:
As in Year 7, a "fast track" group will be identified on the basis of available data. The other students will be placed in three parallel, mixed ability groups. Movement between the FT group and the mixed ability groups may result from end of unit assessments but is dependent upon consultation with other curriculum areas, notably Mathematics.
Homework:
At least one homework per week is set. This may vary in nature. Sometimes it will be written but at other times it may involve, for example, research, preparing for an oral presentation, or reading a section of given text.
All pupils are encouraged to read for their own pleasure and interest in their own time.
Assessment:
As in Year 7, each unit of work ends in an assessment piece which is awarded a National Curriculum level. This will be followed by an A,B or C to indicate whether the piece is towards the top, middle or bottom of the level.
In the Summer Term, most pupils take a Progress Test, designed by the DfES, in both Reading and Writing. The test is designed for pupils working at National Curriculum Level 4 and above. Pupils judged to be still working towards National Curriculum Level 4 are given an appropriate alternative paper.
Additional Information:
The importance of Standard English is stressed and students are urged to develop their command of it.
The students are also taught to recognise the importance of the process of planning, drafting, editing and proof-reading if quality writing is to be produced.
Year 9
The new Framework for English will be introduced on a "rolling" basis, i.e. the Year 9 curriculum will be renewed as from September 2010. However, the key skills will, as ever, be central and the key concepts will still have a key place in the six units.
Aims:
To further develop each student's ability to:
- Communicate confidently and skilfully as readers, writers, speakers and listeners
- Appreciate and respond sensitively to a wide range and variety of reading material and other media texts
Content:
As in Years 7 and 8, this involves six units of work. Prose, poetry, drama and other media all feature and there is continued development of writing for a range of audiences and purposes, i.e.:
- To imagine, explore and entertain
- To inform, explain and describe
- To persuade, argue and advise
- To analyse, review and comment
Grouping Arrangements:
As in Years 7 and 8, a "fast track" group will be identified on the basis of available data. The other students will be placed in three parallel, mixed ability groups. Movement between the FT group and the mixed ability groups may result from end of unit assessments but is dependent upon consultation with other curriculum areas, notably Mathematics.
Homework:
At least one homework per week is set. This may vary in nature. Sometimes it will be written but at other times it may involve, for example, research, preparing for an oral presentation, or reading a section of given text.
All pupils are encouraged to read for their own pleasure and interest in their own time.
Assessment:
As in Years 7and 8, each unit of work ends in an assessment piece which is awarded a National Curriculum level. This will be followed by an A,B or C to indicate whether the piece is towards the top, middle or bottom of the level.
Students take their KS3 SATs in the Summer Term and this forms the major assessment of students' abilities for the year and for the key stage. A "mock" SAT is organised in the Spring Term.
Additional Information:
The importance of Standard English is stressed and students are urged to develop their command of it.
The students are also taught to recognise the importance of the process of planning, drafting, editing and proof-reading if quality writing is to be produced.
Years 10 & 11
The GCSE English and English Literature courses at Melbourn Village College aim to enable students to become more fluent, articulate and confident communicators in both written and spoken English. Over the two year course, students will complete a range of assessment tasks, including five pieces of written coursework. These focus on drama, prose, media, non-fiction and the students' own creative writing. Students will also complete a minimum of three Speaking and Listening tasks, both individually and in groups.
A range of written and audio-visual texts is studied, covering a broad spectrum of both modern and pre-1914 authors. The texts include:
- ‘Of Mice and Men' by John Steinbeck.
- ‘Romeo and Juliet' by William Shakespeare.
- ‘An Inspector Calls' by J.B.Priestley or ‘Blood Brothers' by Willy Russell.
- ‘The Withered Arm' Thomas Hardy
- A range of poetry from different cultures and traditions.
- A range of poetry written before 1914.
In addition to studying literary texts, students will also develop an understanding of the construction and language of different non-fiction text types. For example, they will become skilled at identifying the effects of particular language and presentational devices in media texts such as newspaper articles, WebPages and advertisements. In all of their writing, students will be encouraged to use Standard English, employ a wide range of vocabulary, and use accurate grammar, spelling and punctuation.
Exam Board: WJEC Specification A.
