Exams

Assessment

Secondary

An A-Z guide of how to prepare students for GCSE exams

This programme takes an alphabetical journey through the key issues affecting teachers preparing students for GCSE Coursework and Controlled Assessment and demonstrates ways of dealing with them. Eleven teachers share their personal strategies for managing coursework deadlines, giving feedback, and knowing when and how to intervene. They also talk about marking and plagiarism and techniques that they would never try again. This programme is part of a series where experienced teachers share their tried and tested techniques for supporting pupils through exam preparation and coursework.

Coursework

How Matthew Arnold School has doubled its GCSE English pass rates

In 2007, Matthew Arnold School in Surrey took top spot as the most improved secondary school in the country, most noticeably for the performance of its English department. The department more than doubled its GCSE pass rate in two years, from 28 per cent in English literature in 2005 to 61 per cent in 2007, and from 31 per cent in English language to 64 per cent within the same time. Head of English Sherry Zand arrived from the independent sector two years ago and has since implemented early entry for the best students, overseen a change to a more modern syllabus, built a good relationship with the students and encouraged more consistent teaching across the department.

English - Implementing a New Syllabus

How GCSE results dramatically improved at Sir John Lawes School

There has been a remarkable turnaround in GCSE results at Sir John Lawes School in Harpenden over the last five years. Eighty-seven per cent of their students now achieve A*-C for GCSE English, and headteacher Claire Robins acknowledges the hard work of her predecessors and current staff for the significantly improved results. The improvements came from innovative teaching, using IT effectively and making good use of library staff to support extra curricular activities relevant to reading and writing. See the inventive approach of this school in action and hear from the pupils about how the approach has engaged them in their learning.

English - Innovative Teaching and Using ICT

Explore why cheating has increased in primary and secondary

Explore the reasons behind the growth of cheating in schools, the pressures felt by teachers and pupils, and what can be done to address the problem, in this whole-school video on assessment and exams. For as long as there have been exams, competitions and any type of testing, there has been the possibility of cheating within schools. However, some bodies report a large increase in candidate malpractice over the past few years - and it's not only pupils who've been caught cheating, but also teachers, as we find out in this video for primary and secondary headteachers and teaching staff.

Exam Cheating

Some tips for teaching GCSE techniques

This video takes an alphabetical journey through the key issues affecting KS4 teachers, including day-to-day dealings with students and preparing them for their GCSE exams. A group of teachers share their strategies for teaching pupils on the grade C to D borderline. By helping them overcome problems with timing in exams, and using techniques for memorizing. They also talk about their favourite revision strategies, the importance of trust, and what they?d never try again. This is part of a series where experienced teachers share their tried and tested techniques for supporting pupils through exam preparation and coursework.

Exam Preparation

Ofqual's exam expert gives tips to help teachers handle exam time

Ofqual's exam expert George Turnbull shares some time-saving tips and expert advice with teachers on how to help students handle GCSE exams, before, during and after the big day. Turnbull gives the low-down on managing the process and students through this testing time; from coping with invigilation rules to handy tips for student revision. Teachers also reflect on some of the comical stories that accompany exam times. This is part of a series in which Ofqual's exam doctor George Turnbull advises and speaks to teachers about how best to handle tests and exams.

Exam Time Tips - GCSEs

Students and staff swap schools to see their different approaches

Exploring whether exam standards are being dragged down by the rising popularity of vocational and creative subjects, students and staff from two contrasting schools swap places in this video for teachers on assessment. The claim that exams in academic subjects are getting easier and that modern, softer subjects are less demanding, is tested by the BRIT School for Performing Arts and Technology, in Croydon, and Wilmington Grammar School for Girls. The students and staff swap schools for a day to explore whether there's a difference in difficulty between the two approaches, and whether the popularity of applied and creative subjects led to 'dumbing down'. Sharing their views on the subject are Richard Pike from the Royal Society of Chemistry, Dennis Opposs from Ofqual, Ralph Levinson from the Institute of Education and Julie Henry of the Sunday Telegraph.

Exams - Dumbing Down or Wising Up?

Setting up work placements for the new Leisure and Tourism GCSE

This programme takes a look at the success of the newly introduced leisure and tourism vocational GCSE. Following pupils, teachers and employers through a unit of the Customer Service module on the new curriculum, the reality of how the course operates and the positive effects on pupils is revealed. Rob Roebuck, deputy head at Laisterdyke Enterprise College in Bradford was responsible for introducing the new subject into his school. He decided to replace the long-running geography syllabus due to the appeal of the vocational element of the Leisure and Tourism GCSE. Throughout the programme pupils talk of their enthusiasm about the real life element of the course, and this is highlighted with the school's close partnership with the city's Midland Hotel. Midland Hotel manager, Gary Peacock gives pupils a first-hand insight into management of the hotel, both in classroom presentations and hotel placements.

Experiencing Work - The Class

The benefits of work placements for vocational GCSE teachers

One of the difficulties currently facing teachers delivering the vocational GCSEs is how to get pupils out of the classroom and into work placements. This programme follows Ruth Whitehead, head of science at Hanson School in Bradford who's found ways to overcome this difficulty and other hurdles in delivering a successful and enjoyable applied science course. In an attempt to overcome health and safety issues that affect pupils when they are out on placements, Ruth joins up with the nationwide charity Open Industry. This charity creates the opportunity for her to go into a local factory herself and pick up information and knowledge to give back to pupils in the classroom. Other course issues Ruth attempts to tackle involve the workload originating from the vocational courses coursework. Ruth's department designs materials to overcome the intense marking pressures that this puts on staff and ensures that pupils' work is monitored throughout the course.

Experiencing Work - The Teacher

Attracting girls to traditionally male-dominated GCSE courses

This programme investigates how a specialist engineering college in Doncaster is managing to recruit girls for traditionally male-dominated courses. Ridgewood School adopts a number of strategies to engage the imagination of female students. Themed assemblies and drama are used to emphasise the role of women in engineering and science. In addition, the school invites high profile women from male-dominated industries to speak to students and strives to maintain a good gender balance of staff when recruiting teachers. Significantly, the school explains how all of these things have been achieved without alienating boys from the subjects. Their strategies appear to be working well; Ridgewood's GCSE attainment levels are well above average, with a broadly equal gender split on targeted courses.

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