AS HISTORY
DEPARTMENTAL
EXPECTATIONS
What we expect from an AS student:
Ø Punctuality to lessons. Records will be kept and causes for concern given for lateness
Ø Attendance at lessons. Records of attendance will be kept and any absences notified to Form Tutor for checking. In the case of repeated or sustained absence, you will be informed of designated time that you will need to allocate to “catching-up” on any missed work. You will be expected to record what you have done and how far you have caught up on the work.
Ø Submission of work. We expect that work will be submitted by the deadline. Extensions will ONLY be granted on the following conditions : medical reasons, extenuating circumstances, or where an extension has been negotiated with the teacher due to authorised activities or difficulty with the assignment. However, in the latter cases, it is the duty of the student to inform the teacher and to negotiate an extension well before the deadline. Failure to hand in work will result in the following action:
(a) First missed deadline -- Cause for concern issued and student sees HoD to be informed of new set deadline for completion of work.
(b) Second and subsequent missed deadlines or failure to meet new set deadline -- matter referred to Head of Sixth Form and School sanctions applied.
Ø Quality of submitted work. We give a reasonable amount of time to enable students to complete any work and we give assistance with the task. As a result, we expect the work to be completed to the highest standard of which a student is capable, and do not expect a rushed or partially completed assignment to be submitted. If a student does submit such a piece of work, the following action will be applied:
(a) Every student in Year 12 will be expected to designate a study period for History (as explained below). This will be used to re-do any unsatisfactory work; if the work cannot be completed within that time, the student will be informed of other times when she will be expected to work in the Library. This will be monitored and recorded.
(b) Any subsequent assignment that is inadequate will result in school sanctions being applied.
Ø Students will be expected to take responsibility for their own learning. Staff will provide guidance and assistance, but each girl will be personally responsible for ensuring that she completes any set reading, that she comes to lessons prepared with all the necessary equipment and having completed any pre-lesson task, that she meets all deadlines and works to her maximum potential on all set tasks, that she adopts a studious approach to lessons and that she acts on any feedback given on her work.
Ø Students will be expected to set their own targets for improving their performance (these should be discussed with staff, who will recommend a list of suggested targets appropriate to each student)
What students have a right to expect from the Department
Ø That staff will be punctual to lessons
Ø That staff will come to the lessons prepared to teach the topic
Ø That staff will outline the learning objectives of the lesson so that students can assess how far they have achieved these and whether or not, by the end of the lesson, they can do the tasks or that they understand the key areas of the topic.
Ø That staff will give all the advice, guidance and assistance necessary to help students progress and achieve their potential
Ø That staff will provide resources or advice about where students can access resources
Ø That staff will mark key pieces of work and return it to students with helpful advice designed to enhance the development of historical skills within a reasonable time frame. The work will be marked according to set criteria and the student will be provided with a copy of this. Not all work will be marked by staff as a variety of assessment methods will be used, as described in the assessment section below.
Ø That staff will help to ensure that students have appropriate notes on all the areas covered
Ø That staff provide details about the syllabus, areas to be covered, how the subject is assessed, details about the examinations and the format of the papers, examination advice, key skills and student targets.
Ø Staff will explain, and provide information about, the descriptors used for grading work so that students have a clear understanding of why they obtained a particular grade and the steps that need to be taken to improve on that grade.
Ø That staff monitor student performance regularly and consistently and adopts strategies to assist any student with specific problems, as well as setting meaningful targets for improvement against which students can evaluate their own progress.
Ø That staff will implement strategies that allow students to assess their own and the work of others to gain a greater awareness of the assessment criteria and process.
Ø Provide extension tasks for those students who show a particular ability for the subject and who need to be stretched intellectually through additional focused activities.
Ø That staff offer positive support for students to enable them to become more confident in their own abilities and to take greater responsibility for their own learning and to show greater independence. This is vital in History as students must have the confidence to argue their case forcefully.
Ø To provide a range of activities to develop key historical skills, including independent research, critical analysis of historical interpretations, the ability to develop effective essays and the ability to handle source material.
Ø To provide self-assessment materials at the end of a topic or unit that will allow students to assess the extent of their knowledge and understanding and to identify methods or ideas that will allow them to overcome any identifiable problems.
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Every student will be given the opportunity to feel valued in the
lesson through the opportunity to participate in lessons in a secure and safe
environment.
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Where a student requires additional help outside of the lesson or
for re-sits, this will be provided where possible, but cannot be guaranteed.