Our teaching philosophy:

• There is no one way to teach good and outstanding lessons, as long as students are engaged, challenged and know how to improve.
• Good teachers live our character values in the classroom, put students first and are passionate about their subject and that every student in the class succeeds.
• Happy children learn best.
• Staff are teachers of children rather than subjects.
• All teaching should develop in students the requisite knowledge, skills, attributes and behaviours for them to achieve well across any discipline
• There are no shortcuts and hard work is the key ingredient in success

We are proud of our long association with the Prince's Teaching Institute, an organisation dedicated to promoting coherence and challenge within the curriculum; extending and enthusing students through subject based activities that are beyond the curriculum; supporting teachers to develop, explore and share their own specialist subject knowledge; and forging subject-based links between schools.

Prince's Teaching Institute

English, mathematics, science, history, geography, music, art and MFL are all members of the Prince's Teaching Institute,  a subject-based peer network for subject leaders keen to engage their love of teaching, develop a strong department and improve results. Detailed below are each subject's current focus:

• History - To embed GCSE skills into the KS3 curriculum and to broaden the History taught to be diverse and inclusive.
• English - Promote the fundamental importance and relevancy of independent reading, in order to encourage the development and expansion of vocabulary, culture capital and an understanding of textual conventions.
• Maths - Evaluating the effectiveness of the online programmes used this year to support students' learning. Continuing to promote the use of tablets and ICT devices in Maths lessons to maximise progress and attainment.
• Science - Introduction of required practical activities into Key Stage 3 Science to develop students' investigative skills and to help prepare students for required practical assessment in their GCSE examinations.
• Geography - To improve the use of statistical methods in geography across KS3, KS4 and KS5 by synchronising schemes of work with maths and science and producing supporting resources to help statistics have more of a focus in geography.
• Music - ‘Investigating how improving practice facilities, opportunities and education can create better musicians.’
• Art - Exploring different methods for stretch and challenge within schemes of work, promoting problem solving and experimentation with ideas.
• MFL: Improving challenge through use is Extensive Processing Instruction, entering students into national competitions, improving subject knowledge through delivery of whole school CPD and improving cross-curricular links.