‘STEP to Success’ Securing Success in GCSE Examinations

Sam Bark

Assistant Head - Raising Attainment.hnt

The Castle School Thornbury An Exceptional School at the heart the community,

where students have the skills, confidence and curiosity

to make the world a better place

‘STEP to Success’ - Securing success in GCSE examinations

1. What is ‘STEPS to Success’, what role can you play?

1. Effective revision strategies

1. English and maths - revision and support specifics

1. ‘Face time’ - Talk to Heads of faculty one to one / information gathering

PPE1 (Mocs) Evaluation

Identify Insecure knowledge

What is the point of mock exams?

The Castle School Thornbury An Exceptional School at the heart the community,

where students have the skills, confidence and curiosity

to make the world a better place

‘STEP to Success’ – our response to PPE1 (mock exams)

Specific Tasks to Elicit Progress:

● Use of exam data to identify common themes / misconceptions within

subject areas.

● 6 week programme of activity following PPE1 - each week a new topic or theme for the main GCSE subjects.

● Production of subject STEP resources linked to the 6 topic/theme

identified - knowledge or skills (available Google Classroom and printed if needed)

The Castle School Thornbury An Exceptional School at the heart the community,

where students have the skills, confidence and curiosity

to make the world a better place

Learn, memorise, understand, reproduce resource (20-30 mins)

Know It...

Creation of a resource (20-30 mins)

Prepare It...

Completion of exam questions + Evaluation (20-30 mins)

Apply It...

● STEP resource used for 3 key activities

How do students use STEP resources

The Castle School Thornbury An Exceptional School at the heart the community,

where students have the skills, confidence and curiosity

to make the world a better place

Subject Support and Intervention Sessions

• Each subject will have a different focus each week

– Knowledge and/or Skills + Practice questions

• Each week optional support/intervention sessions will be linked to the focus.

Students may be specifically invited

Voluntary attendance

The Castle School Thornbury An Exceptional School at the heart the community,

where students have the skills, confidence and curiosity

to make the world a better place

Tutor Time - 3 key activities • Prepare it (flow diagrams, mind maps, flash cards etc)

• Know it (remake, review, test)

• Apply it (exam questions, evaluation)

Home learning/independent study • Prepare it (flow diagrams, mind maps, flash cards etc)

• Know it (remake, review, test)

• Apply it (exam questions, evaluation)

Life Skills • Planning for the following week

• Prepare it (flow diagrams, mind maps, flash cards etc)

• Know it (remake, review, test)

• Apply it (exam questions, evaluation)

When do they engage with these tasks?

The Castle School Thornbury An Exceptional School at the heart the community,

where students have the skills, confidence and curiosity

to make the world a better place

It's all about them and their needs!

They choose what, when and how

They prioritise their needs

They secure success

The Castle School Thornbury An Exceptional School at the heart the community,

where students have the skills, confidence and curiosity

to make the world a better place

STEP to success book will contain:

Subject 6 week programmes

Links to revision sites Specific revision strategies Places to find support if you need help Weekly activity planner

The Castle School Thornbury An Exceptional School at the heart the community,

where students have the skills, confidence and curiosity

to make the world a better place

Life Skills – Revision skills and getting your plan sorted

They can do it! How can you help as a parent?

● Review weekly revision plans ● Assist in quizzing - ‘Know it’ ● Quiet space free from distractions ● Check on progress, encouragement incentivise ● Fed, watered and rested.

Key dates: ● PPE2/mock2: 24th Feb - 5th Mar ● GCSE :11May - 19th of June

Effective revision strategies

What works and what does not!

Working Memory to Long-term Memory

• This is where we spend most of our learning time. It is where we deal with new information and begin to solve problems using information.

• It is limited BUT information that is used from long term memory can be used for free!

• Memory leaks after hours/days unless it has been properly placed into long term memory.

• Cognitive psychology has a huge evidence based approach to help us understand what strategies work and which do not work.

The vast majority of students use highly ineffective revision strategies!

The learning illusion

Retrieval practise

Spaced practise

Dual Coding

37

GCSE Mathematics

Luke Kavanagh: Head of KS4 Mathematics

• Three equally weighted papers

• Paper 1 is a non-calculator assessment

• A calculator is allowed for paper 2 and paper 3

• Each paper is 1 hour and 30 minutes long

• Each paper has 80 marks

The Papers

Topics Assessed

For all lessons and examinations:

• Black pens

• Pencils

• Eraser

• Ruler

• Compass

• Protractor

• Scientific calculator

(advise CASIO)

Equipment

Revision

Click the red section and it will open up any lessons your child is under 70% on for them to redo.

Use their donut to improve their weak areas: Your child can click the red section to find the quizzes they need to improve (quizzes under 70%) and redo them until they are amber (quizzes over 70%) or green (quizzes at 100%).

Fix up 5: HegartyMaths remembers every mistake your child has ever made and generates a quiz with 5 questions from different parts of maths that they are weak on so they can re-do them with the video and Fix Up!

MemRi: HegartyMaths remembers quiz your child scored highly in the past, and generates a quiz with questions to keep those topics from being forgotten.

Mock Exam Analysis

• Revision guides and workbooks (available from Student Services at £3)

• Links on school website.

Corbett Maths - Worksheets and practice exam papers. Videos and worked solutions.

Maths Genie - Past papers, predicted papers, solutions and markschemes.

Other Revision Resources

Further Maths

A Level Maths

Mathematical Studies

GCSE Mathematics

English

English Literature Component 1 13th May 2020

2 hour exam

A) Romeo and Juliet or Macbeth • Extract and essay question

B) Poetry Anthology • Analysis of a single poem and comparison essay

English Literature Component 2 21st May 2020

2 hour 30 exam

A) An Inspector Calls or Lord of the Flies • Extract based essay

B) Jekyll and Hyde or A Christmas Carol • Extract based essay

C) Unseen Poetry • Analysis of a single poem and comparison essay

Literature Revision Tips • Magazines for most texts can be purchased from the Student Centre- £1 each

• GCP Workbooks/Revision guides for all texts can be purchased from the CGP Website or Amazon. We sell the Poetry Anthology Guide for £3 in school.

• Lots of other good revision guides are available online and in book shops (Hodder, York Notes etc.)

• Online resources include Spark Notes, Lit Charts and BBC Bitesize.

✔ Reread/listen to or watch an adaptation of the text often.

✔ Learn 4 key moments from the text for each character or theme.

✔ Learn quotations through revision card, repetition and testing.

Seneca Learning

English Language Component 1 2nd June 2020

1 hour 45 exam

A) Reading and responding to a prose text • Answering 5 questions

B) Narrative Writing • Writing a short story

English Language Component 2 5th June 2020

2 hour exam

A) Reading and comparing non-fiction texts • Answering 6 questions

B) Transactional Writing • Writing 2 non-fiction texts e.g. a letter and a speech

Language Revision Tips • GCP Workbooks can be purchased from the student centre for £3.

• CGP Revision guides can be purchased from the CGP Website or Amazon.

• Lots of other good revision guides are available online and in book shops (Oxford etc.)

• Online resources include BBC Bitesize.

✔ Read as widely as possible - fiction and non-fiction.

✔ Discuss the news/current affairs.

✔ Complete practice questions and past papers (Google Classroom).