In the English Curriculum the following Qualifications are available:

Entry Level Certificate – Entry Level 1, Entry Level 2 and Entry Level 3 English (Edexcel)
English Functional Skills – Level 1 and Level 2 (Edexcel)
English GCSE English Language Lift 2.0 (Edexcel)
GCSE English Literature (Edexcel)

At James Brindley, our students arrive with diverse needs and sometimes varied educational backgrounds. To understand each student better, we conduct comprehensive assessments to get a complete view of their requirements, which include both academic needs and essential soft skills. This information helps us communicate effectively with other stakeholders and ensures that students can access the curriculum with any necessary adjustments.

Students at James Brindley participate in both “cold writes” and “hot writes” to support their learning progress.

A cold write is a test that helps us see how well a student understands or applies a particular skill. It gives teachers an initial insight into where a student might need more guidance or practice.

On the other hand, a hot write allows a student to showcase the results of their learning. This test evaluates how well the student can apply the same or similar skills previously tested in the cold write.

Throughout the term, students can expect their work to be reviewed and receive detailed feedback, which includes highlighting their strengths (WWW – What Went Well) and identifying areas for improvement (NS – Next Steps). This feedback process occurs twice every half-term.

The English Department work hard to enable pupils to have a variety of pathways available to them on their post-16 journey. To do this, the ‘stepping stones to success’ pathways provide pupils with the opportunity to access a range of courses and careers. To facilitate individuals wishing to undertake access or foundation courses and apprenticeships, pupils are provided with the ability to take a functional approach to their learning. For pupils wishing to take a more traditional, academic route, there is a strong foundation through a demanding and fulfilling discipline. Moreover, pupils are provided with the tools to enhance their personal development and this seeks to support them throughout their lives. By working with the Careers Department, we are developing pupils’ abilities to make explicit links between the learning taking place at James Brindley and the wider world of work.

Teachers seek to bring the subject to life by teaching through a range of fiction and non-fiction texts that will engage, enthuse and inspire our pupils. This passion for literature develops our young people’s language skills by encouraging them to ask questions about characters and themes whilst also promoting their creativity through writing and speaking and listening activities. External stakeholders, such as The Open Rep, come into teaching centres to enhance the opportunities for pupils to participate in speaking and listening/drama-based activities to express themselves

English across James Brindley Academy is designed to enable pupils to build on their learning through a spiral curriculum; importantly, it is flexibly designed to enable pupils to make progress. An initial reading age assessment is a pivotal tool that allows pupils to receive comprehensive support or challenge, where it is required. This enables pupils with a reading age of below ten years old to receive timely and appropriate intervention. In engaging and supporting a pupil’s ability to read, write and communicate, we want to encourage them to develop their confidence, their skills and their achievements. In addition, through their lessons, teachers in the English department identify gaps in knowledge and address any misconceptions in pupils’ knowledge and understanding. Where necessary, there are a range of strategies that aim to take a personalised approach to supporting each pupil individually. This includes:

· One-to-one intervention, either in lesson or with an intervention lead.

· Additional personalised strategies added to pupils’ support plans and EHCPs.

· TA support in lessons.

· Communication with parents/carers in relation to learning concerns and suggestions to support their child’s learning.

· Homework/extended learning opportunities.

· At KS4, revision sessions in school to support pupils and study booklets to supplement their independent learning.

· Extra-curricular opportunities, such as creative writing/poetry workshops or trips to the theatre to see a text being performed.

The English Department work hard to enable pupils to have a variety of pathways available to them on their post-16 journey. To do this, the ‘stepping stones to success’ pathways provide pupils with the opportunity to access a range of courses and careers. To facilitate individuals wishing to undertake access or foundation courses and apprenticeships, pupils are provided with the ability to take a functional approach to their learning. For pupils wishing to take a more traditional, academic route, there is a strong foundation through a demanding and fulfilling discipline.

Moreover, pupils are provided with the tools to enhance their personal development and this seeks to support them throughout their lives. By working with the Careers Department, we are developing pupils’ abilities to make explicit links between the learning taking place at James Brindley and the wider world of work.

Here are some of the careers linked to English, across a varied scope of experience levels and salaries:

• English Teacher:
  • Starting salaries for newly qualified teachers (NQTs) typically range from £25,714 to £32,157 per year. With experience and additional responsibilities, salaries can rise to between £32,157 and £50,935 per year (or higher for leadership roles).
• Journalist/Features Writer:
  • Entry-level journalists may earn around £18,000 to £25,000 annually. Experienced journalists and feature writers could earn between £25,000 to £45,000 or more, particularly in senior or specialised roles.
• Solicitor:
  • Trainee solicitors can expect salaries around £22,000 to £45,000 per year, while qualified solicitors may earn from £35,000 to £100,000 or more depending on experience, specialisation, and location.
• Paralegal:
  • Paralegals typically earn between £18,000 to £35,000 annually. Salaries may vary based on experience, sector, and location.
• Copywriter:
  • Entry-level copywriters might earn around £20,000 to £25,000 per year. Experienced and senior copywriters can earn between £25,000 to £50,000 or more, depending on expertise and the employing organisation.
• PR Officer:
  • PR officers may earn from £20,000 to £30,000 as entry-level salaries. Experienced PR officers or managers could earn between £30,000 to £60,000 or more, especially in senior roles or larger companies.
• Recruitment Consultant:
  • Starting salaries for recruitment consultants may range from £20,000 to £30,000 annually. Experienced consultants could earn between £25,000 to £40,000 or more, with potential for higher earnings based on commissions.
• HR Officer:
  • Entry-level HR officers might earn around £20,000 to £30,000 per year. Experienced HR officers or managers may earn between £30,000 to £50,000 or more, depending on company size and location.
• Gallery Curator:
  • Salaries for gallery curators can vary widely. Entry-level positions might start around £18,000 to £25,000. Experienced curators can earn between £25,000 to £40,000 or higher, especially in prestigious institutions or larger galleries.

Please note that these ranges can vary based on factors such as location, experience, qualifications, and the specific employer.

Intent

The English department at James Brindley Academy (JBA) delivers a nurturing, comprehensive and inclusive study of English Literature and Language. Our knowledge-rich curriculum delivers clear learning concepts dedicated to high aspirations beyond pupil experiences and setting them on a path to professional, personal and academic success. A broad and balanced curriculum is designed at Key Stage Three (KS3) and Key Stage Four (KS4); it is adaptive to the needs of all our diverse young people, embedding Thrive and supporting pupils to understand how to engage with their world and keep safe. Programmes of study are inclusive and designed to embed crucial transition points to address gaps in learning over all key stages to achieve a range of qualifications i.e. GCSE and Functional Skills. By utilising reading, writing and oracy/communication skills across multi-modal forms, we are dedicated to ensuring that our pupils see themselves and their world in what they study. Our teaching is dynamic to ensure the inclusion of all.

Implementation

Core subject knowledge is integral to high aspirations and our inclusive curriculum reflects this. We believe in providing high challenge in a nurturing low stakes’ environment. We are determined in identifying and addressing misconceptions, finding gaps in learning. To do this, our lessons are designed to be adaptive to the transient nature of our pupils.

Pupils are assessed throughout their learning journeys, which begins when undertaking diagnostic activities, such as the GL Assessment to provide a reading age, and baselines that allow us to determine the challenge and support each pupil requires. Then, teachers will provide a comprehensive curriculum, including half-termly assessments, through regular check in and check outs.

Each lesson harnesses opportunities to understand the foundation of, and foster an appreciation of, the subject and to apply key skills in a Thrive environment. A broad range of texts are used, with a focus on completing whole texts, which highlights the relationship between texts to pupils; there are, also, clear links to complementary examples, such as module booklet texts that support the core learning. Access to technology (audiobooks, videos and online resources, such as Educake) ensures a blended, responsive curriculum model. We work in partnership with dedicated intervention colleagues within JBA and across professional networks, such as PiXL, to create and implement bespoke reading and writing programmes and to deliver innovative ways to improve oracy skills.

Professional development includes standardisation and moderation to improve marking and exam preparation strategies. Curriculum meetings use professional teaching and learning shares to support good practice.

Impact

We believe success is achieved by pupils advancing holistically during their time at JBA. This is measured academically, through the progress made from diagnostics to summative assessments and qualifications, and in creating enlightened and emboldened individuals that nurtures their key interpersonal skills to demonstrate and advocate for their rights and responsibilities as citizens within their communities.

Pupils build automaticity in their core skills of reading and writing, developing their ability to appreciate the writer’s craft. Furthermore, the fluency in the application of this knowledge is desired and acquired. Overall, pupils gain an appreciation of language and how this is representative of who they are. The ongoing cycle of the curriculum ensures feedback from pupils and, also, subject practitioners to problem solve and refine our delivery to ensure English at JBA is purposeful and maintains meaningful impact.

KS1

· Name the letters of the alphabet.

· Use capital letters, full stops, question marks and exclamation marks.

· Begin to learn about prefixes and suffixes, such as un- and -ing.

· Tell stories orally and write short sentences.

· Use multiple tenses

· Use apostrophes to show where letters are missing and to mark possession.

· Begin to write for different purposes, such as short stories or poems.

KS2

· Begin to use conjunctions, adverbs and prepositions to express time, place and cause.

· Begin to use paragraphs, heading and subheadings.

· Looking at more complex word forms, spelling homophones accurately.

· Begin to create characters, settings and plots for stories.

· Use complex sentences

· Increase the range of punctuation used.

· Begin to extend their vocabulary.

· Proof-reading their own work.

· Linking ideas across paragraphs.

KS3

· Retrieve information from the text to show understanding

· Be able to summarise key points

· Begin to understand the form, layout and structure of texts

· Looking at a range of texts to understand the differences in style and purpose

· Begin to understand the range of techniques that writers employ

· Begin to analyse the range of methods writers use to engage the audience

· Begin to apply some of the techniques to my own writing

· Develop my use of sentence structure, vocabulary and punctuation

· Demonstrate ‘active listening’ skills · Be able to respond to direct feedback and questions

KS4

· Identify and interpret implicit and explicit information from texts

· Select and synthesise information from different texts

· Explain, comment on and analyse how writers use language and structure to achieve effects and influence readers

· Use relevant subject terminology to support my views

· Compare writers’ ideas and perspectives

· Evaluate texts critically, supporting with appropriate textual references

· Communicate clearly, effectively and imaginatively

· Adapt style, tone and register for different forms, purposes and audiences

· Organise information and ideas, using structural and grammatical features to support coherence

· Use a range of vocabulary and sentence structures for clarity, purpose and effect

· Accurately use spelling, punctuation and grammar