Curriculum Intent and Overview

Activate Learning Education Trust intent:

To transform lives through learning.

School intent:

Our aim is to encourage students to be the best that they can be: academically, socially and as citizens. Our curriculum is designed to spark students’ interests in a range of subject areas and to equip them for the breadth of opportunities they encounter as they progress through education and then into the world of work.

The Bicester School recognises that learning takes place in the wider culture of a school. We believe that if we foster and model curiosity, openness, honesty, respect, resilience and acceptance of responsibility, we can become a community of learning ready to embrace the opportunities of a broad, traditional curriculum.

How will we do this?

• Our students follow a three-year key stage 3 to ensure they have a broad, balanced and enriching curriculum for as long as possible. Students begin to specialise at key stage 4 by selecting GCSE courses and further specialise at key stage 5.
• We follow a full EBACC curriculum at key stage 3, with the majority of students carrying on at key stage 4 so they can access a wide range of pathways post 16 and post 18. Our Key Stage 4 pathways work is carefully considered with student’s individual needs taken into account when selecting the most appropriate pathway for them to follow.
• We take an evidence-based approach to Teaching and Learning, incorporating a range of pedagogical principles to inform lesson planning and delivery. 5 key pillars have been identified and embedded in our teaching practice: behaviour for learning; literacy skills; interleaving to review prior knowledge; modelling best practice, plenaries and questioning to check and develop understanding; silent concentration to encourage deep and independent thinking. This is known as our BLIMPS approach, which you can read more about here
• Our school is mindful that students need to be prepared for the world of work. Our CEIAG programme is under-pinned across curricular subjects, in PSHE and bespoke offerings to students including one-to-one interviews and mentoring. We have strong links to businesses in the local community and work with them through both work experience and other planned activities.
• We recognise that valuable learning takes place beyond the curriculum and encourage extra-curricular activities and educational trips that build aspiration, confidence, tolerance, teamwork, cultural awareness, knowledge capital and a sense of community and belonging.
• We recognise that Literacy and Numeracy are key to success in every subject. At KS3 we seek to address any deficits in reading and writing skills through SEN screening, targeted SEN help, Accelerated Reader, Reader Recovery lessons and Reader Plus.
• Citizenship, aspiration, tolerance, diversity, environmental awareness, local community issues and British values are fundamental to the success of our Bicester community and country. PSHE, school assemblies, Geography, History, RW, Science and extra-curricular opportunities all play a pivotal role in developing our values and commitment locally, to our country and world. Moral values, tolerance, kindness and human dignity and worth are fundamental to our school and reinforced through our curriculum and our ethos.
• Pockets of our catchment in Bicester are socially and economically deprived, and amongst the most disadvantaged in the county. Nevertheless, we challenge all of our students to pursue as demanding a range of subjects as possible so that they are properly challenged and greater opportunities will be open to them in the future. We do, however, also seek to ensure that the curriculum is accessible for all our students. Providing a range of pathways that cater for students differing starting points is necessary for this to be achieved.

Curriculum overview

Key Stage 3 (Years 7, 8 and 9)

Students follow a three-year Key Stage 3. Our Pathways process begins in the Spring term of Year 9 when students make their choices for GCSE.

Allocation of hours (per fortnight)

Students follow a fortnightly, 50-hour timetable.

Key Stage 4 (Year 10 and Year 11)

Overview

Students follow a two-year Key Stage 4, which starts in year 10.

We offer both GCSE and vocational courses. For GCSE courses, all exams are taken at the end of Year 11. The vocational courses we offer allow some flexibility for when the exam unit is completed over the two-year course.

We offer four pathways at Key Stage 4. We launch these through our Year 9 Pathways events with full details shared with students and parents.

1. Full EBACC with separate Science (Biology, Chemistry & Physics)
2. Full EBACC with Combined Science
3. History/Geography but no language
4. Core Skills/Additional Literacy and Numeracy

Allocation of hours (per fortnight)

Students follow a fortnightly, 50-hour timetable.

In addition to the core subjects listed, the following subjects make up our curriculum offer:

How to find out more information out the curriculum.

Our subject pages have detailed information about courses students will follow at each key stage. Please use these in the first instance, and if you still have questions, please contact the relevant Head of Department.

The Bicester School Sixth Form Intent Statement

Our intent is to provide a coherent curriculum that meets the ambition and aspiration of all our students, delivered within a supportive and collaborative community.

We will give our students the opportunity to develop the skills and knowledge they need to become independent, confident, and responsible members of both British and global society.

We want our students to think for themselves but not by themselves, and will embed equality, tolerance, and mutual respect in all we do.

At The Bicester School Sixth Form, student wellbeing and academic outcomes are not competing priorities. We aim to equip our students with a deep understanding of the physical, mental, emotional, and social aspects of wellbeing that will enable them to deal with challenge in life and provide the foundation for personal growth.

For more information about Sixth Form, please click here.