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Curriculum for Excellence at Lockerbie Academy
You might have heard in the news and papers about Curriculum for
Excellence (CfE) and wonder what it is all about. This letter
aims to give you information about CfE and how it will affect
your child. At Lockerbie Academy we are keen to explain the changes
in education, share what we are doing in school and what benefits
CfE will have on your child. We also hope that it will help you
to be involved in the whole process.
What is
Curriculum for Excellence (CfE)?
CfE aims to provide pupils with learning/teaching
that is more relevant to the changing world. In order to achieve
this, the programme itself consists of a number of separate but
related elements.
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1. |
a different approach
to teaching which is more interactive between the pupils and
teacher, and less about teachers simply providing information; |
| 2. |
a slimming down and updating
of what is taught to focus on what is relevant to the world
today and what youngsters need to know; |
| 3. |
more cross-subject teaching
ie using a project to combine different elements from different
subjects. So, for example, taking a theme such as Scotland
and drawing from work completed in many subjects which focus
on Scotland, such as Scottish diets, language, Geography,
Innovators, 2014 Commonwealth Games; |
| 4. |
a new focus on literacy, numeracy
and health and well being by all teachers in all areas of
the curriculum to help ensure that youngsters become competent
in these skills; |
| 5. |
a modernised examination system
in the upper secondary (S4 onwards) which takes account of
both the new style of teaching and learning and the new content;
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| 6. |
a recognition that not all
learning happens in the classroom and youngsters will be credited
for other activities that they do whether these are playing
sport/music or taking part in activities like the Scouts. |
It is also anticipated that the new, interactive approach
to teaching and more relevant curriculum content will motivate
pupils to learn better and help raise attainment.
CfE aims to develop all young people into:
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Successful Learners |
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Confident Individuals |
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Effective
Contributors and |
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Responsible Citizens |
These are called the four capacities
and have been adopted as the aims of Lockerbie Academy.
The Exam System
In future Lockerbie Academy will be organised into two,
three-year blocks; S1 to S3 - a general course and S4 -
S6 the senior phase when qualifications will be taken.
S1-S3 will continue to have a strong focus on interactive
teaching, literacy and numeracy, cross-curricular working
and the child's learning outside the classroom. In S4 to
S6 many of these same elements will continue, but as youngsters
move forward to qualifications, they will be taught more
subject-based material.
The new qualifications - National 4 replacing General and
Intermediate 1 and National 5 replacing Credit and Intermediate
2 - will be sat for the first time in 2014. Until then,
students will continue to sit the existing qualifications.
The National 4 &
5 qualifications will be taught in a common course covering
both levels, but with different assessments for each the
level.
The National 4 course
will be assessed internally and will be ungraded. The National
5 course will have an external assessment that will be graded.
The new National 4 & 5
courses will be offered in specific subjects, not cross-curricular
topics.
Access, Higher and Advanced
Higher will still remain in the system although the courses
will be redesigned. There will be no advantage or disadvantage
in sitting the old or new qualifications.
Below is a table from www.scqf.org.uk
showing comparison of the old and new qualifications:
| SCQF
Level |
SQA
National Units,
Courses and Group Awards |
New
CfE Courses |
Higher
Education |
Scottish
Vocational
Qualifications |
| 12 |
|
|
Doctorates |
|
| 11 |
|
|
Masters |
SVQ
5 |
| 10 |
|
|
Honours
Degree
Graduate Diploma/Certificate* |
|
| 9 |
|
|
Ordinary
Degree
Graduate Diploma/Certificate* |
|
| 8 |
|
|
Higher
National Diploma
Diploma in Higher Education |
SVQ
4 |
| 7 |
Advanced
Higher |
|
Higher
National Certificate
Certificate in Higher Education |
|
| 6 |
Higher |
|
|
SVQ
3 |
| 5 |
Intermediate
2
Credit Standard Grade |
*National
5 |
|
SVQ
2 |
| 4 |
Intermediate
1
General Standard Grade |
*National
4 |
|
SVQ
1 |
| 3 |
Access
3
Foundation Standard Grade |
|
|
|
| 2 |
Access
2 |
|
|
|
| 1 |
Access
1 |
|
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|
| *These
qualifications are differentiated by volume of outcomes
and may be offered at either level. |
So what are we doing
differently?
You might already find that your child is doing more project
work, research and taking a more active part in lessons.
Your child might be asked to give presentations of their
work to others in the class. These are part of the ideas
that will help your child to improve in the four capacities
or aims of the school. All members of staff have been involved
in looking at what needs to be taught and are making up
new courses or adapting existing ones to ensure the courses
cover what is required. Many of the lessons from these are
being trialled at the moment, with great success. We have
already found that the pupils are more engaged in some of
their topics and enjoy being asked to take on more responsibility.
A group of staff in school
has been involved in looking over the current timetable
and identifying areas where members of faculties can produce
courses covering more than one subject area. During 2010/2011
the pupils in S1 will take a core course, as in previous
years, with 2 additional enhanced courses. These are a problem
solving course which is an interdisciplinary course involving
the Maths and Science faculties, and a Drama period where
they will work on curriculum for excellence.
Due to the school move we have decided to delay the innovative
changes to our option choices until the August 2011. So
the timetable changes will affect pupils who are in P7 in
the session 2010/11. During the session 2011/2012 we will
fully implement the timetable changes in line with CfE to
give pupils a total experience of all core subjects and
include space for cross curricular working. This will involve
all S1 pupils completing a set of core subjects with additional
periods of cross curricular enhanced projects. There will
also be a week where pupils spend time in classes developing
the whole school theme of Scotland, looking at this topic
from the perspective of different subjects. A summary of
this is given below.
Subject |
No
of
Periods |
Subject |
No
of
Periods |
English |
4 |
Modern
Languages |
2 |
Maths |
3 |
RE |
1 |
Home
Economics |
1 |
PE |
2 |
Social
Subjects:
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3 |
Science |
3 |
|
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|
|
|
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Technology: |
3 |
Additional
Enhancement Periods |
|
|
|
|
Maths/Science |
1 |
Expressive
Arts: |
3 |
Problem
Solving |
1 |
|
Language
Enhancement
|
|
|
|
|
Media Connections |
1 |
| PSE |
1 |
e-portfolios/S.W.A.L.K |
1 |
It is envisaged that at the end of 2012 pupils will have
a choice in what subjects they might study at the end of
S1 but further details of this have yet to be decided.
So how can parents
be involved?
Please talk to your child about what they are learning and
doing at school as this will help them revise and remember
what they were studying. Also please get in touch with Mrs
J Hargreaves at office682@ea.dumgal.sch.uk
if you have any questions about CfE or how it will affect
your child.
If you want any more information you can log on to some
of the websites listed below.
www.scqf.org.uk
http://www.ltscotland.org.uk/curriculumforexcellence/
www.lockerbie-academy.co.uk
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/8367091.stm
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