Pilots and Trials

Key Stage 3 Regional Pilot

St Colm's High School, Dunmurry

The following information is a transcript of an interview conducted with the pilot school at the end of the first year of the pilot.

 

The planning process started in January 2006; this has been collaborative planning amongst the curriculum team itself as well as at a departmental level. A through subjects approach to the implementation of the revised curriculum was adopted and the team decided they would focus on the area of 'learning experiences' taken from the big picture.

The interviewees were in agreement that the role of Head of Department has been crucial to their planning process, as they are the main communication vehicle between staff and the curriculum team.

The first stage of planning involved an audit of all departments examining how each identified with the 14 learning experiences from the big picture. This involved a checklist that each department used to self assess their own programme of work inline with each of the learning experiences.

This information was examined and feedback was given to the staff in August 2006 during a staff training day. After the training in March, the team decided it was essential that each department examine its own curriculum in line with the statements of requirement. Each department received the three curriculum objectives and teachers collaboratively mapped out how their programme of work met the criteria. Teachers also examined for any possible areas that needed to be addressed.

Each department returned the curriculum audit to the team and these were mapped out for all learning areas to identify any possible overlaps or gaps for the three years of Key Stage 3. All departments were currently working together to amend the schemes of work to include the Assessment for Learning and Thinking Skills and Personal Capabilities. A glossary of terms had been distributed to all departments as an aid to explain the areas of Thinking Skills and Personal Capabilities.

These schemes of work were returned to the curriculum team and examined for consistency across all departments. In the future, the school will evaluate the progress of the pilot with peer review as well as examining pupils' schoolwork and notebooks.

Delivery of Learning for Life & Work will be discretely delivered within the timetable in a modular format. Personal Development and Home Economics will be delivered all year.

The interviewees indicated that opportunities for 'buddying' of departments will be welcomed where possible. Also a possible trialling of thematic approach may be conducted in the first term where the timetable will be collapsed for two days.