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In the inspection, thirteen subjects and courses were inspected and are reported on in detail. Work in other subjects and courses was sampled and contributed to the overall picture of teaching and learning in the school. The table below shows entry and performance information for courses completed in 2000.
Note: 2000 was the last year in which AS-level was taken at Theale Green by those who were following the A-level course but who needed to take a less-challenging examination.
SUBJECTS AND COURSES GROUPED IN CURRICULUM AREAS MATHEMATICS AND SCIENCES 105. In this curriculum area, the school provides courses to AS/A-level in mathematics, biology, chemistry and physics. In some years, a very small number of students also take Further Mathematics. The AS/A-level courses in mathematics, biology, and physics were inspected in detail. 106. Standards of achievement in chemistry have improved sharply in recent years and results were well above the national average in 2000, when all candidates passed, half of them at grades A and B. Overall, the quality of provision is satisfactory: results have been well below the national average but have improved to well above it this year. Teaching is satisfactory, and the standard of current work is average.
107. The inspection covered the A-level courses in mathematics offered by the school. A re-sit GCSE course for those students who did not reach grade C in Year 11 is provided by the department, but is offered after school hours on the school site; this was not inspected, and neither were the sessions when mathematics teachers are available for consultation with Year 13 students who require extra mathematical skills to help with their other A-level subjects. Standards and achievement 108. Mathematics is a popular subject at AS/A-level; the number of students entered for the examination over the last four years has always been over twenty, and the largest number, 28 students, was entered in 2001. Predominantly, these have been male students. The proportion of students passing the examination, the average points achieved (a measure of the performance of all students) and the proportion achieving the highest grades, have all been well below the national average until this year. However, students’ results in mathematics are generally in line with their performance in their other subjects. The results in 2001 showed a very significant increase in performance: the proportion of students achieving top grades was close to the national average and the average points score was above the national average. 109. In 2001, all Year 12 students were entered for the new AS-level examination. Pass rates and points per student compare well with provisional national figures and are encouraging. AS-level result has proved a useful tool for determining the students capable of continuing on to the A-level course in Year 13. 110. Attainment in Year 12 varies significantly between the two sets of students. A good lesson to the top set allowed a few students to offer extended answers to demonstrate their high levels of knowledge. Students’ knowledge of the trigonometrical ratios of special angles in surd form is satisfactory. They can find the equivalent angles to those suggested in the first quadrant, and learn much new work, which is introduced sequentially. The lower set is revising the extended parts of the GCSE course, in a bridging course. Students are very keen to learn, and concentrate extremely well throughout the lesson. Their knowledge of basic mathematics is sketchy in some cases, and factorisation skills are weak. 111. The evidence from work seen in lessons and in students’ folders shows satisfactory achievement and progression throughout the sixth form. In students’ files, there is evidence that they tackle work of increasing difficulty successfully. Students take pride in their files of written work; different sections of the syllabus are very well organised. The setting out of examples varies; in some students’ work, there is a lack of clarity as to when one example finishes and another starts. Good work on correlation, including product moment and Spearman’s rank coefficient, is seen in the files of further mathematics candidates, which is followed by very detailed work on complex numbers. 112. Students enjoy their mathematics lessons, and good, purposeful relationships are built with teachers. Students work hard, take care with their work and support each other with mathematical problems. Quality of education 113. Teaching is satisfactory. Strengths of the teaching observed are the teachers’ knowledge and understanding of mathematics and of the requirements of the courses. Teachers present their lessons with confidence; they show a good command of the subject, and are able to deal confidently with students’ questions. They help students in a caring manner, building a strong, working rapport with them. Teachers plan carefully, and lessons have clear objectives. Lesson plans show how new work is built on what students should already know; for example, a lesson to verify the properties of rectangular distributions built on the properties of continuous random variables. 114. Teachers’ expectations of students are satisfactory. Students are expected to listen carefully and to concentrate for long periods of time. However, they are not given opportunities to provide enough extended answers in class. Teaching methods are strongly teacher directed. Teachers should break lessons into more manageable parts by checking regularly on how much students have understood of the new work presented. Students are supported sympathetically, encouraging them to commit themselves to learning mathematics. As a result, learning is satisfactory overall, and good when the teacher checks understanding and promotes discussion. 115. The marking of students’ work is not completed regularly enough and does not contain sufficient detail to help students understand how they can improve. Longer-term assessment has recently improved by the introduction of a larger number of tests and a standard pass mark for each test. Failure to reach the pass mark implies that students must attend extra lunchtime classes and re-sit a similar test. Greater rigour has thus been introduced to help raise the standard of students’ work. Leadership and management 116. Leadership and management of mathematics are satisfactory. The teachers are enthusiastic and work very well together, showing a good team ethos. Ideas and resources are shared among members of the department. Preparation of mock examination papers is also shared. Some analysis of examination results has taken place, but should be extended to include value added calculations. Staffing is now very strong; the school has used very sensible policies to recruit teachers in this shortage subject. Resources for learning are good, except that greater use should be made of ICT to assist and enhance students’ experience and learning of mathematics. Overall, the quality of provision in biology is good. A-level results are around the national average and AS results above them. Teaching is good and the subject is popular. Strengths Areas for improvement Standards and achievement 117. A-level results have fluctuated around the national average over the last four years, with a generally rising trend. Results were very good in 2000, well above the national average in both the pass rate and the proportion of the highest grades. Results in 2001 are likely to be about the national average when comparative data are available. Male and female students have performed equally well. Very few students have failed to complete the course, which is a compliment to the department for maintaining students’ interests. 118. Results in the new AS-level course are encouraging: the proportion of students who gained a pass grade in 2001 was above the provisional national average, as was the proportion obtaining the highest grades. Students achieved the grades predicted from their GCSE results. 119. The number of students choosing to study biology is high and increasing, and there are currently two groups in each of Years 12 and 13. The proportion of students opting to continue with biology in Year 13 is high, showing that the department motivates its students to enjoy the subject. 120. The standard of work of current students is average. Although teaching, learning and attitudes to the subject are all good, some students on the Year 13 A-level course found the work very difficult because of their lack of chemical knowledge. 121. Students in Year 12 have only just started their course but are achieving in line with expectations and have made a sound start. They are able to recognise the difference between animal and plant cells. In one lesson about cell membrane and diffusion the teacher correctly used a directed approach, which enabled students to have a complete set of notes from which to revise. Students’ notes are variable in quality, which is an area for improvement in the context of teaching that has many strong features. Quality of education 122. Teaching is good, and students learn well as a result. The principal strengths of the teaching are teachers’ very good biological knowledge and understanding, good planning, and a wide range of methods and resources used to aid learning. Lessons are demanding and high expectations are set. 123. Good lesson planning, linked to imaginative teaching methods, helps maintain students’ interest. In a Year 13 lesson, instead of having a conventional test of their homework learning, students had to give a presentation to show their understanding of meiosis. The teacher thus gave the students the opportunity to improve their communication and problem-solving skills, as well as ensuring that they had understood the work thoroughly. 124. Teachers provide students with sufficient opportunities to develop the key skills of communication, numeracy and ICT, but with insufficient opportunities to use the data-logging equipment to help analyse the results of experiments. 125. Students show high levels of interest and respond well to the variety of teaching styles they experience. When working in small groups, students co-operate well and show maturity as learners in the way they listen to the points of view of others. Leadership and management 126. The good provision for biology stems from good leadership and management. The team of teachers prepared themselves well for the new courses in 2000, including attending training as well as team meetings. The ease with which teachers and students have adapted to these new courses is evidence of this good preparation. 127. Teachers assess students’ work well but do not yet have an accurate view of: Detailed analyses like these are particularly necessary given the wide range of ability of the students taking the course. 128. Usually two teachers share the teaching of a group. Five biology teachers teach in the sixth form; they meet regularly to decide the teaching programme and to share ideas. A very positive aspect of the subject is that inexperienced teachers have been given the opportunity to teach in the sixth form very early in their teaching careers. These teachers are well supported and have risen well to the challenge: they are all making good contributions to the work of the department. 129. Since the last inspection the department has made several improvements. The number of students opting for biology continues to increase; students now learn well when acquiring knowledge and understanding, and assessment is now much better linked to planning.
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