Homework
Homework is set and marked
each week and can include practical write ups, independent research, producing models/posters, problem solving activities, project work and exam style questions.

Testing and Assessment
Each module is assessed by an end of unit test and additional excercises are assessed through specially designed assessing pupil progress (APP) tasks. Student progress is closely monitored by sophisticated IT systems which allow a student’s progress to be tracked. Underachieving students are provided with additional academic support through our innovative peer-mentoring
scheme.

Text books
All students are provided with their own textbook.

How Parents Can Help
Parents are encouraged to monitor their children’s homework diary and can also keep an eye on their daughter’s progress on the various National Curriculum objectives via the learning progress sheets, which are issued at the start of each new topic.
Parents can also encourage their children to develop a wider interest by discussing Biological subjects, which appear in the news.

KS3 Curriculum Students are taught in group sizes of 24 and receive 1 hour of teaching per week. Schemes of work are in place for all topics, which reflect the focus, and themes set out in the National Curriculum. Years 7 & 8 are divided into modules which cover life processes and Biological systems such as Cell Biology, Reproduction, Digestion, Respiration and Photosynthesis. In Year 9 students begin the first year of a three year GCSE programme which introduces aspects of How Science Works and places greater emphasis on thinking and application skills.
The year 9 curriculum covers aspects of Disease and Immunity with the focus on the reasons behind the rise of super bugs like MRSA and C. difficile and considers the impact on future healthcare and methods of control. Students learn about the Nervous System and the role of hormones in control and
co-ordination of the body.
The year culminates by considering how animals and plants compete for resources and the importance of adaptation in survival. Finally, the impact of climate change on the number and distribution of species is investigated.
An important element of the course is to show how theory is applied in every day activities. There is an important emphasis on practical work, which seeks to develop scientific enquiry skills, teamwork and communication skills.