Curriculum Intent
Our curriculum is designed to inspire and challenge all learners and prepare them for the future. The English Martyrs Catholic School and Sixth Form College has a broad and balanced curriculum that builds on young people’s experiences and prior learning. We encourage students to develop a passion for learning that they will carry with them beyond compulsory education. We aim to develop young people to become successful learners, confident individuals and responsible citizens who will achieve their God-given potential and be good stewards of the life that they have been given and the world in which they live.
Specifically, our curriculum has been developed to help young people to:
- achieve high standards and achieve their potential – in the classroom and beyond it.
- become independent learners.
- possess and be able to use high quality functional skills, including literacy, numeracy and computing skills.
- develop transferable skills for the world beyond.
- access and be successful in securing the EBacc suite of GCSE qualifications (≥ 90% by 2022).
- develop an enthusiasm, passion and commitment to learning new knowledge and skills throughout their lifetime.
- value their learning outside of the curriculum, making links between those experiences and the taught curriculum.
- develop virtues and characteristics which will help them lead fulfilled lives, including respect and responsibility, honesty and self-belief, confidence and resilience, justice and compassion.
The English Martyrs Catholic School and Sixth Form College curriculum will:
- be broad, balanced, relevant and tailored to meet the needs of individuals.
- develop knowledge and skills that build upon prior learning.
- lead to qualifications that hold currency for employers and for entry to higher education.
- fulfil statutory requirements and respond to the needs of the students, as well as the local and national context.
- provide equal access for all students to a full range of learning experiences beyond statutory guidelines.
- prepare students to make informed and appropriate choices at the end of KS3, KS4, KS5 and beyond.
- help students develop lively, enquiring minds, an ability to question and argue rationally and an ability to apply themselves to tasks and physical skills.
- help students to use language and number effectively.
- help students develop key British values, such as democracy, the rule of law, individual liberty, and mutual respect and tolerance for those of different faiths and beliefs.
- help students to develop the knowledge and skills they need to understand, challenge and engage with democratic society, recognising and respecting and valuing differences in people.
Trust Virtues
Underpinning and integrated into our curriculum are the Trust Virtues. We want to develop these virtues in our young people through the learning experiences they have in and outside of the classroom.
The community of the Bishop Hogarth Catholic Education Trust are constantly striving to have:
Respect for others and themselves, recognising that we are all created in the image of God and Self-Belief in their character and their ability to achieve their goals and aspirations.
Compassion towards others, especially the vulnerable, promoting justice in their school community, local community and beyond.
Confidence in their own abilities, knowing that their talents are gifts from God and Resilience to persevere when things become difficult.
Honesty in regards to the world around them and themselves and to take Responsibility for the times we may fall short of the mark.
Curriculum Delivery
Two year – Key Stage Five Curriculum Model
10-day cycle, 50 x 1-hour lessons.
- Students are encouraged to progress onto a study programme that suits their personal needs and aspirations.
- Students are given a free choice of 3 or 4 A Levels/BTECs depending on their entry profile.
- Students with 5+ GCSE grade 7-9 can study 4 subjects
- Most A-level subjects have entry requirements such as Maths and Sciences requiring a grade 6 minimum at GCSE
- This is guided through the application and interview process.
- Year 12 and 13 - 8 teaching periods per subject plus independent study sessions (adapted on an individual basis as required e.g. some Year 13 students attend additional Year 12 lessons for support/revision)
- PPD (Personal and Professional Development) 2 periods a cycle
- Students can apply to study the EPQ in addition to their level 3 qualifications
We have an intake of students from Hartlepool FE college who study Elite Engineering.