Year 9 Parents’ Information Evening for Key Stage 4 Thursday 20 th June, 6.00-7.00 p.m.

1. Year 9 Parents’ Information Evening for Key Stage 4 • Thursday 20 th June, 6.00-7.00 p.m.

2. Aims of the Evening To feedback to students on their Option choices Give parents and students a clear idea of what is needed to start and move through the GCSE years successfully.

3. English Language and English Literature (English) GCSE 2013-14

4. Overview • We follow AQA Specifications • 2 Separate GCSE qualifications • Assessed by Controlled Assessment, Teacher Assessment and Examinations • Examinations will take place at the end of Year 11 • Higher and Foundation Tier entry available based upon student ability not set. It is decided by students’ teachers.

5. English Language GCSE • Paper 1 (Understanding and Producing Non fiction Texts): 40% • Controlled Assessment: 40% • Speaking and Listening: 20%

6. Controlled Assessment tasks • (a) Extended Reading: A response to a play or a novel : 15% of GCSE (3-4 hours) • (b) Creative Writing (2 Tasks): 15% of GCSE (3-4 hours) • Spoken language Study: 10% of GCSE (2-3 hours) AQA change the tasks each year and publish them in the Summer term

7. Speaking and Listening • 20% of GCSE • 3 Separate Tasks: (a) Presenting (b) Discussing and Listening (c) Role playing. • Teacher assessed (1 overall mark)

8. GCSE English Language Examination • 2 Hours 15 Minutes • 2 Sections: Reading and Writing • Reading: Responses to non-fiction texts (e.g. newspaper articles/ adverts/ brochures) • Writing: 2 tasks • Write to inform, explain, describe • Write to argue or persuade

9. English Literature GCSE • Controlled Assessment: 25% • 2 Examinations 75%

10. English GCSE • Single GCSE qualification for students that find joint GCSEs challenging. • Unit 1: 2 hr 15 min Examination (Reading and Writing Tasks) 40% of GCSE • Unit 2: Speaking and Listening (3 Tasks) 20%of GCSE • Unit 3: Controlled Assessment (5 Tasks) 40% of GCSE

11. What can you do to support? • Ensure that students re-read and revised all key texts. They should focus on themes, characters and language analysis. • Look at examples of non-fiction texts and ask students to respond in terms of language or layout (newspapers/ magazines/ print adverts/ websites) • Encourage students to undertake timed essays in addition to those completed in class/ for homework • Ensure students know the dates of the exams (and the content) and arrive fully prepared having eaten and slept!

12. For more information www.aqa.org.uk/qualifications/gcse/english. • For sample questions and mark schemes • Students are advised to purchase revision guides for the Unit One exam. We cannot get a discount on these so you are advised to purchase direct from the supplier.

13. http://www.amazon.co.uk/GCSE-English-Language-Student-Book/dp/0435118129/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1355400826&sr=8-4http://www.amazon.co.uk/GCSE-English-Language-Student-Book/dp/0435118129/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1355400826&sr=8-4

14. http://www.amazon.co.uk/GCSE-English-Language-Student-Book/dp/0435118145#_http://www.amazon.co.uk/GCSE-English-Language-Student-Book/dp/0435118145#_

15. At Home • Unlike subjects like the sciences and History, there are few facts to be learned. Rather, GCSE English is almost entirely focussed on acquiring skills – principally reading and writing.

16. Practise Reading • Remember that encouraging your child to read doesn’t mean you should only push fiction. Everyone likes a story, but many kids, especially boys, don’t really engage with novel-length fiction in their teenage years. Factual material is just as effective when it comes to promoting basic skills, so look out for books about sport, science and technology and so on. Newspapers are obviously good, and don’t knock your kids when they lounge around reading magazines – it’s all to the good. Remember, too, that your child will be expected to deal with factual material as part of GCSE English.

17. Practise Writing • We know that persuasive skills will be tested, so it’s worth practicing them. Your English teacher will be happy to mark your attempts! • Set your own questions: e.g. Persuade me that homework is not necessary!

18. Quick Fixes (they do exist!) • The best quick fixes are in the areas of spelling and punctuation. These are important areas in themselves in GCSE English exams, but the way an exam candidate spells and punctuates affects the examiner’s view of him or her. If an examiner sees a GCSE English paper or piece of coursework that is properly and consistently spelt and punctuated, that examiner will unconsciously assume that it’s from a strong candidate. Why? Because A and A* candidates tend to be good at that sort of thing, C and D candidates less so – it’s just a case of what the examiner is used to seeing.

19. Look at their books… • Your best bet if GCSE is looming is to go through your child’s schoolwork and try to identify the top dozen or twenty misspellings. Some are common to nearly all weak spellers: ‘thier’ instead of ‘their’, ‘aswell’ instead of ‘as well’. Make a list and get your child to learn them off by heart – it shouldn’t take long, and it will help claw back some marks that might otherwise have been lost. • Your children should be bringing their books home once a week.

20. Punctuation is easier, because there are rules to be learned, and lots of resources around to help. Many children (and adults!) have problems with punctuation simply because they have never been formally taught how to use it properly – which is ridiculous when you think about it, because most punctuation is so easy. I always tell my students that just knowing how to use apostrophes properly is worth half a grade at GCSE English – and when they are writing it really can make a difference!

21. There’s some good material on punctuation – and a range of other topics – at the BBC Skillswise website.

22. Targets. If a student achieves a level 5 at the end of KS3, they should target a grade C at GCSE or a Pass at Btec. If a student achieves a level 7 at KS3, they should target a grade A/A* at GCSE or a Distinction/D* at BTec. Teachers will identify students’ targets using estimates. It is important that students know their targets and aim high.

23. The 2 different styles of course- GCSE and Applied Learning. • Modular exams have been abolished. • All GCSE exams are now linear, where students take exams at the end of the course. • There are no exams for Applied Learning courses. Assessments occur during the course in the form of portfolios. Applied Learning courses include Performing Arts, Business Studies and Young Apprentice.

24. Coursework in Applied Learning courses. • Good organisation is essential for success in Applied Learning courses. • Coursework marks must be at least in line with the target grade. • Students must accept the support offered by teachers and make close reference to coursework criteria. • STUDENTS MUST HIT COURSEWORK DEADLINES!!!!

25. Controlled Assessments in GCSE courses. • Controlled assessments are half way between an exam and coursework. • You could say that controlled assessments are like coursework but done in exam conditions, in lessons and students are not allowed to take them home to work on. • They make up huge percentages of the total marks for the course, e.g. For English, 60% of marks go to the controlled assessment.

26. Do all GCSE courses involve controlled assessments? • No! • Some GCSEs have no controlled assessment, e.g Maths, RS. • Some GCSEs have a 75/25 split, (75% exam, 25% CA,) e.g. Geography and History. • Some GCSEs have a 40/60 split, (40% exam, 60% CA,) e.g English/Eng. Lang.

27. 3 different levels of control • High level. You will be given the resources that you can use. No internet access is allowed. Teachers save all students work on memory sticks from lesson to lesson. • Medium level (most common.) Lessons have just the same atmosphere as exam conditions. Students can put their hand up and wait for the teacher to come over to talk quietly. • Low level. Students can work on tasks independently, inside and outside of lessons. Internet can be used for research.

28. Re-sits • English and Maths can be retaken in the November of Year 12. • If an exam in a core subject is taken at the end of Yr 10, the exam can be taken again at the end of Yr 11. • Other than this, all re-sits have been abolished.

29. Assessments during KS4 • Assessments will be on going during Yr 10 and 11. • During KS3, Academic Performance Checks (APCs) have gone home 3 times a year. • During KS4, APCs happen 5 times a year. • During Yr 11, APCs for English and Maths will be monthly.

30. Intervention during Key Stage 4 • Intervention is the extra support put in place to help students who are underachieving. • Intervention sessions occur after school for an hour, (Tues-English, Wed-Maths, Thurs-Science.) All students are welcome. However, those students who are on the intervention list are required to attend. • We have a large number of intervention strategies to support students, including academic mentoring, Away Days for core subjects, holiday revision sessions, revision breakfasts, mini academic review days and walking/talking practice papers.

31. Getting started on the Wye Valley Virtual Learning Environment • learning.wyevalley.bucks.sch.uk • If www is put before this, it will NOT work. • Every student will need to know their specific user name and password. These will be the same as your Bucks gfl usernames and passwords from your last school. • You can change your password, but if you do and then forget what it is, we can’t help you. If you change it, REMEMBER IT.

32. Using the VLE • The Wye Valley VLE is an on going project. Additional resources will be gradually uploaded as time goes on. • Includes past papers and mark schemes, revision activities and direct links to revision websites. • Sometimes you need to ‘left click’ on the yellow bar at the top of the screen to download files. • When using the VLE, only ever use a single ‘click.’ Don’t double click!

33. Homework • All homework will be set in accordance with the homework timetable. • All homework will be uploaded onto Google Calendar. • All students are expected to use their planners to the full. • Students should have their planners out on the desk throughout every lesson. • Teachers will give students time and support to write down the necessary details.

34. The New Secondary Curriculum Department of Mathematics

35. What do students want? Active lessons where they get involved Useful feedback and more praising Challenge and not too much repetition More choice, more practical skills, more relevance and coherence

36. Aims Successful learners, who enjoy learning, make progress and achieve. Confident individuals. Responsible citizens.

37. What’s changed? Examination papers assess learners’ ability to: Overall weighting AO1 recall and use their knowledge of the prescribed content 45 – 55% AO2 select and apply mathematical methods in a range of contexts 25 – 35% AO3 interpret and analyze problems and generate strategies to solve them 15 – 25%

38. Functional Skills • The functional elements of mathematics are embedded in this specification. Accordingly, some questions in each paper will assess the functional elements of the subject, as follows: • Higher tier 20 – 30% • Foundation tier 30 – 40%

39. The functional elements focus on the following key processes • Representing is about understanding ‘real-world’ problems and selecting the mathematics to solve them. • Analysing involves applying a range of mathematics within realistic contexts. • Interpreting requires communicating and justifying solutions and linking solutions back to the original context of the problem

40. Grading • Foundation tier grades C – G available • Higher tier grades A* – D available (E allowed) Paper 1 • Written paper (no calculator) 40% of the assessment • Foundation tier 1 hour 30 mins 100 marks • Higher tier 1 hour 45 mins 100 marks Paper 2 • Written paper (calculator allowed) 60% of the assessment • Foundation tier 1 hour 30 mins 100 marks • Higher tier 1hour 45 mins 100 marks

41. Monthly assessment and tracking will be used to monitor progress throughout the whole GCSE

42. GCSE Examination at the end of year 10 will be considered for some students where appropriate. Students may than follow a GCSE Statistics Course

43. Twenty First Century Science Suite GCSE Science GCSE Additional Science GCSE Biology GCSE Chemistry GCSE Physics

44. 3 Possible Pathways • Triple Science – 3 GCSEs – can get a different grade for each e.g. AAB, ABC etc – 9 exams and 3 controlled assessment tasks – taken over 2 ½ years – 10 lessons a fortnight in year 10 and 11 • Double Science – 2 GCSEs – 1 core science and 1 additional science – 6 exams and 2 controlled assessment tasks -taken over 2 ½ years – 10 lessons a fortnight in year 10 and 11 • Single Science – 1 GCSE -1 core science GCSE – 3 exams and 1 controlled assessment task -taken over 2 ½ years – 6 lessons a fortnight in year 10 and 11.

45. How will students be selected for triple science ? • Due to the nature of the course and the amount of content that has to be covered, triple science is only offered to students working at KS3 Level 7+ • This year students will gain an additional 4 lessons per fortnight – 14 lessons in total.

46. Triple Science

47. Double Science

48. This year we have also introduced Entry Level Science. • This is an additional qualification that single science students will gain. • This is a foundation course for GCSE science, the aim of which is to improve grades at GCSE science level. • By the end of year 11 students will gain a GCSE science and Entry level science certificate Single Science

49. Re-sits Resits are no longer available for any of the GCSE sciences. Students will only have one opportunity to sit the exam paper.

50. The Terminal Rule • All exam papers will be taken at the end of Year 11 • Although the exam papers will probably still be separated into modules, students will only be able to sit the papers at the end of the course.