schools
and work seen during the inspection confirms that pupils in the
current Year 11 are now working at standards well above average.
Pupils achieve very well in Years 10 and 11 because of the use
of assessment, and challenging expectations. A large group of
more able students are entered for GCSE in Year 10 and in 2004
nearly all of them achieved a B or C grade before they started
Year 11. The best pupils are then able to concentrate on achieving
the highest grades in Year 11, and this has helped the department
improve the number of A and A* grades at GCSE. The high standards
seen in examinations are reflected by the work seen in class,
and pupils’ books.
57. Teaching and learning are very good
overall. They are good in Years 7 to 9 with very good practice
in Years 10 and 11. Pupils behave to a very high standard in
the vast majority of lessons, and have a mature attitude to their
work. This contributes greatly to their success. The school has
introduced interactive whiteboards as a teaching tool and these
are used very effectively to enhance whole class explanations.
In the best lessons there is a celebratory approach to pupils’ achievements, and praise is used to build
pupils’ confidence. Teaching styles are varied according
to the level of pupils’ understanding. In lower ability sets,
good planning ensures that all learning needs are met. In higher
ability sets, there is a high level of challenge to ensure pupils
achieve the highest grades.
58. Assessment is a strong feature of
the school’s approach
to teaching mathematics. The department’s approach helps
pupils understand what level they are capable of achieving, and
they respond to the challenge. All pupils are rigorously tracked
using half termly tests in every year group. This information is
fed back to pupils so that they know what they need to do to improve.
Pupils have a very good understanding of the level they are working
at and what they need to aim for at the end of Year 9 and Year
11, There are very well organised revision programmes for Year
11, and extra curricular activities for pupils with special educational
needs in Year 7 and 8. This creates a positive attitude towards
the subject and supports their achievement in lessons. Pupils with
special educational needs, gifted and talented pupils and pupils
from ethnic minorities make the same progress as other pupils.
59. The department is very well led and managed. The head of
department supports all staff well to create an expectation of
high achievement for all pupils. Teachers share responsibility
for the achievement of all pupils and have a very good range of
skills which are used well. There is an effective informal monitoring
policy in place, which the department uses to share good practice.
60. Pupils use some ICT in mathematics through graphical calculators
and interactive whiteboards. Accommodation difficulties have restricted
the further development of lOT but there are plans to address this
by introducing laptop computers.
61. Even though standards in mathematics
have remained high, there has still been good improvement in
results at a higher rate than schools nationally over the last
5 years. The high standards seen in examinations are reflected
by the work seen in class and pupils’ books. Issues about
the quality of graphical work have been addressed, and there
has been some introduction of investigative work into the curriculum
to improve the range of work in using and applying mathematics.
Statistics
62. Students who achieve a C grade
at GCSE in Year 10 follow a statistics course in Yea~ 11. This
provides a satisfactory broadening of the curriculum for those
pupils who struggle to understand the higher level learning objectives
necessary for the highest grades. The school entered pupils for
GCSE statistics in 2004. The achievement of pupils at A*~C grades
is very good compared with results nationally. This is particularly
impressive considering the pupils are not chosen from the highest
achievers in the school, and the course is completed in two
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