English
Mrs. A. Millea (Head of English)
Mrs. J. Lascelles
Mrs. D. Watkins
Ms.H. Doherty
Mrs. C. Miller (Teaching Assistant)
Mrs. S. Gillham (Librarian and Careers library)
Welcome to the English department
English lies at the centre of our pupils’ learning experience. It underpins most areas of the curriculum and lies at the heart of the educational process – the process that is officially measured by assessments but which consists of so much more. English accommodates a range of needs – social and personal – and provides many opportunities to enrich the lives of pupils. It enables pupils to develop as learners, curious to explore themselves and the world, and to develop as valued and valuable members of society.
English teaching in Archbishop Sancroft is about enthusing and encouraging pupils to read widely, to discuss, to explore, to question, to think and to write. Classrooms are busy, lively places where pupils participate in discussion, debate, drama, and a wide variety of reading and writing activities.
The department seeks to encourage pupils to be as active and involved as possible in their own learning and it is to that we dedicate ourselves
KS3
How many English lessons will I have?
All students in years 7-9 receive six/seven hours of English teaching over a fortnight. Students are grouped in four mixed ability classes. In all years, students may be withdrawn from classes to work individually or in small groups, if they have been identified as needing extra support.
What exactly will I be studying?
All students follow a course developed from the National Curriculum and the National Framework for English for KS3. There are three main attainment targets:
- Speaking and listening
- Reading
- Writing
Students explore a wide range of texts, including contemporary and classical texts. Poetry, novels, plays, short stories and a whole variety of non-fiction texts are enjoyed by students at KS3.
In addition, students are given the opportunity to write and speak for many different purposes and audiences. The writing purpose triplets for KS3 are:
- argue / persuade / advice
- analyse / review / comment
- inform / explain / describe
- imagine / explore / entertain
Will I be expected to read independently?
Research has shown conclusively that students who regularly read for pleasure achieve more highly in formal examinations. This is why we do all we can to encourage our students to read independently. Therefore, one lesson a fortnight is designated a reading lesson in the LRC (Library Resource Centre). This is a structured lesson in which students focus on reading strategies and how to become more effective and critical independent readers (see the link in the left hand navigation list directly below 'ENGLISH' for a list of suitable KS3 authors).
How will I be assessed?
In years 7-9, students complete assessed tasks per half term (reading and/or writing and speaking and listening). Each student will be awarded a National Curriculum level and sublevel (e.g. 6a) for each of the pieces of work that they complete. These levels are then tracked and monitored to enable us to identify students who need intervention or extra support.
KS4
English Language/English Literature/Media Studies
As a core subject, GCSE English is compulsory for all of our students, developing further the essential skills of reading, writing, speaking and listening required for whatever path they choose to take in the future.
We recognise that not everybody wants to take an academic literary route and consequently have designed two pathways for students in Year 10 and 11. The first pathway is designed for students who wish to follow an academic route into sixth form and, possibly, university later on; the second pathway is for students who are more ‘hands-on’ and like to work with different media.
First pathway
This is for students who are intending to achieve the E-Bacc qualification and students likely to go into Higher education. This course will prepare students for two GCSEs: English Language and English Literature. They will be taught together over Years 10 & 11, and there will be a mixture of Controlled assessment work for both GCSEs. At the end of Year 11 there will be external exams for both the English Language and English Literature GCSEs.
Second pathway
This is for students who are less likely to want to follow an academic route into Higher education and want to achieve a good all round standard of English through a more hands-on approach. This course will be split into two years and students will gain two GCSEs by the end of Year 11: Year 10 will study for the Media Studies GCSE completing 3 pieces of Controlled Assessment work and taking one exam in the Summer term of Year 10. Year 11 will study for the English GCSE (which is a mixture of English Language and English Literature GCSEs), completing Controlled Assessments throughout the year and taking the final exam in the Summer term of Year 11.
