J u n e /J u ly 20 1 6
Welcome to the June/July edition of 6News, the exclusive staff magazine.
Principal’s message Dear staff, As we approach the end of this academic year, it would be remiss of me not to thank you for all for your hard work, support and commitment to the college and our students this year. We have achieved so much working together and have such a lot to celebrate from our new pastoral mentor model and ShOW observation process, to our college improvement days and re-energised CPD programme. Who can forget the buzz of the marketplace and the great practice that was shared between us during that event? In the words of one staff member “it was epic!” We must also celebrate our many great achievements of the last year from gaining the best ever results for the college to securing our three external awards - Investors in People Gold, Democracy Award and STEM Assured status (and, of course, much more in between). But for me, the highlight of the year is the way in which you have all come together to help, support, recognise and celebrate each other’s achievements – what a fabulous group of people you are. I hope you have a very happy and memorable summer. With very best wishes, Jill Gray Principal
Autum term - Important dates Friday 19th August – Upper Sixth enrolment Monday 22nd August – Upper Sixth enrolment Thursday 25th August – Lower Sixth enrolment Friday 26th August – Lower Sixth enrolment Tuesday 6th September – Lower Sixth only Wednesday 7th September – Lower Sixth only Thursday 8th September – Upper Sixth return
Did you know? The first Olympic Games in the modern era were the 1896 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the I Olympiad in Athens, Greece. The Games featured the Panathinaiko Stadium, the first giant stadium of the modern world that housed the largest crowd to ever watch a sporting event.
Congratulations Congratulations and best wishes to Katie Grace, was Edgar, and her husband Paul, who were married over May half term in Ibiza.
August CPD You said..
Sometimes too many sessions on some days in August 2015 Some days were too full so time in department was limited CPD sessions weren’t always differentiated between support and curriculum staff Some sessions not relevant to experienced staff Some sessions didn’t always have an end product
We did..
Revised the August 2016 CPD schedule so sessions are more spread out Department time has been increased and allocated throughout the August schedule ‘Who should attend’ guidance introduced Mandatory training frequency reviewed
Handouts at all sessions encouraged where appropriate and shared on Drive and on the HR website New starters often miss department Inductions for new starters have been time at the beginning of the year as they reviewed meaning only essential sessions have inductions to complete will be undertaken in August with the remaining sessions completed in September
Summer Insert title leavers This summer, we say goodbye to a number of staff who are moving on to pastures new. Connor Docherty - LRC & Careers Andrew Yelland - EMFL Emma Curphey - ALM Justine Williams - PAMM Rachel Wolstenholme - BSIT Louise Patel - Maths
Alice Reece - Science Catherine Vance - Science Rachel Bashforth - Science Jill Seed - Science Kerry Jones - Student Services Annette Wilson - Exams Lucy Doyle - ALS
Thank you for your hard work and commitment during your time at Blackpool Sixth and we wish you all the best in the future.
Happy Retirement! Mary Walmsley who has been a valued and dedicated member of our catering team, will be retiring this summer after working here at Blackpool Sixth for over twenty years! Mary has seen many changes working within the college, including working for four different catering companies. Due to the expansion of the college, the catering team has grown in numbers and Mary’s experience has been an asset to all of her colleagues. We would like to wish Mary a very happy retirement and to say a big thank you for all her hard work and commitment over the years. Knowing Mary as we do, she will spend her retirement on the golf course and enjoying her nanny duties. Best wishes and happy golfing Mary!
Did you know? The “dog days of summer” refer to the weeks between July 3 and August 11 and are named after the Dog Star (Sirius) in the Canis Major constellation. The ancient Greeks blamed Sirius for the hot temperatures, drought, discomfort, and sickness that occurred during the summer.
The Excellence Programme In September, we will be re-launching our Gifted and Talented offer at Blackpool Sixth as ‘The Excellence Programme’. Our G&T students already receive excellent support during their time with us, and we hope that our plans for the next academic year will help to develop our provision even further. As we face increasing competition from local colleges, it is vital that we have a clear brand for our provision in order to be seen as the college of choice for the most able school leavers. Students with a GCSE entry points score of 7.0 and above will be enrolled onto the programme from September 2016. Some key components of the programme will be:
→ Targeted sessions to develop essential study skills with subject teachers as well as support staff
→ Trips to and talks from Russell Group universities, including: applications workshops and access to the Cambridge HE+ programme
→ Guest lectures and further reading
→ New lunchtime lecture series and suggested online short courses (see below) → Tailored support with applications to competitive universities → A chance to complete an Extended Project Qualification (EPQ) The aim of the programme is to help the college to achieve two of its most ambitious targets:
→ Improving value added profile for most able students
→ Increasing the rate of application and entry to Russell Group universities Curriculum staff may already be aware that each department now has a G&T representative. These reps will be working with me on some of our exciting new initiatives, the first of which is our lunch time lecture series.
Can you help? We will soon be looking for staff to contribute to our lunchtime lecture series, by signing up to deliver a one-off lecture on any topic of their choice. Whether you’re an expert on the social context of guerrilla knitting, or something more conventional, we want to hear from you. The lectures will be 30 minutes long and are purely intended to improve the cultural awareness of our students. We’ll be able to give more information once everything is finalised, but for now, why not have a think about what you might be able to deliver? No topic is too obscure… Article by Michael Waterhouse.
A big thank you Elsie Evelyn Goodinson, and her parents Ash and Laura, would like to thank everybody at Blackpool Sixth for the flowers and kind words surrounding her birth.
Special Birthdays The following members of staff recently celebrated, or are due to celebrate a special birthday soon: Lorraine Linnett Charlotte Herd Pam Bamford Happy Birthday to you all!
Insert title babies! Business There’s something in the air in the Business and IT office!(We think its catching from Visual Arts) Emma Robinson (left) due first shortly, followed by Carly Scott (right) 10 days later and Sam Brown (middle) in November. Congratulations and we wish them all the best of luck.
Did you know? In southern England, over 37,000 people gather at Stonehenge to see the summer solstice. Druids and pagans are among those who celebrate the longest day of the year at this notable place.
Customer Service Excellence Award Blackpool Sixth has been accredited with the Customer Service Excellence (CSE) Award since May 2009. The award is a government-backed industry standard that assesses against 57 different criteria whether our services are efficient, effective, excellent, equitable and empowering, with the users always at the heart of our service provision. Achievement of the standard gives Blackpool Sixth formal recognition and a badge of quality, aiding promotion of the college overall as it can be used in promotional literature to attract and re-assure potential customers about the quality of the service they will receive. We are assessed annually, most recently in March 2016. As a college we always aim to offer excellent customer service, but working towards the CSE standard requires us to look closely at our services, processes
and culture, and to make improvements to them where necessary.
Gathering evidence and preparing for our assessment is an opportunity for staff from across the college to work together and share good practice. The assessment process For our full accreditation 2 years ago, we provided over 100 examples of evidence for this desktop review. For the recent assessment (also known as a surveillance visit) we provided just short of 10 documents, as this assessment is purely to check if the college is still meeting the criteria. The assessor evaluates the documentary evidence that we provide in advance and then conducts an on-site visit where he meets with staff, students and customers to discuss their experiences of our services. The assessor also conducts walks around college to make observations of our services provided during a normal college day. During the full assessment 2 years ago we received full-compliance in all 57 areas and 4 compliance-plus marks which highlights areas of good practice that we are particularly strong at. At the end of each assessment we receive a detailed report, which details feedback on each assessment. The outcome of the last CSE assessment in March resulted in us still meeting the criteria of the CSE standard. The assessor continued to be impressed with what he saw when speaking with staff, students, visitors and the college in general. Some of the feedback that came back from the assessor’s report was:
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It is a supportive environment. The staff are passionate about what they do
All in all very positive feedback on the back of another successful CSE assessment for Blackpool Sixth. Next year we will be doing the full assessment again and the preparation and evidence gathering for that has already begun! Article by Vicky Jackson.
Insert title learners with Dyslexia Teaching Following on from our Dyslexia Kitemark success, an opportunity arose for me to study further to achieve a specialist teaching qualification in Dyslexia. The course (Teaching Learners with Dyslexia) is run by Literacy Matters in conjunction with Glyndwr University. The first module involved assessing a student informally to identify literacy weaknesses. For this, I worked in a primary school with a year six pupil. I enjoyed building links again with a local primary school and they have invited me back to assess a second pupil for them, which I am planning to do on my summer break. The informal assessments covered areas that are problematic for students with literacy difficulties and included: Auditory memory Visual memory Letters and sounds knowledge Reading Spelling Speed and structure of writing No doubt you are now thinking of students in your classes and wondering! The second module involved implementing a twenty week teaching programme, based on the needs identified through the above assessments. My twenty week programme was split into two ten week programmes, one with my original year six pupil and one with a lower sixth student at college. This gave me the opportunity to not only compare where common difficulties lay (spelling being a big one here) but also how to meet the challenge of working with a seventeen year old who may already have developed strategies themself to manage their weaknesses. The theory of ‘if my writing is formed so badly, the teacher won’t realise how poor my spelling is’ being a common one, in my experience, amongst students with dyslexia. It is also important to recognise that you are dealing with a seventeen year old who, although lacking in basic skills needs to be respected as a young adult who most likely has a level of intelligence far exceeding their literacy skills. Getting the balance between the two is the greatest challenge (and for me the most enjoyable aspect of working with students with dyslexia). The main emphasis for the teaching programme is that it is: Structured Sequential Cumulative Multisensory When considering how to relate this programme to college, I feel the basics are easily transferable and can be beneficial for all students, whether dyslexic or not. Firstly, through quality first teaching and secondly, if required, through an intervention where specific areas for individual development are addressed. I viewed my ten week teaching programme at college as an example of an intervention.
So, here are some ideas of how quality first teaching can work for the dyslexic student (you are probably using some of these already):
→ Start each lesson reinforcing what has been learnt in the previous session, as over-learning helps information to be retained in the student’s memory.
→ Build on existing knowledge with a new
teaching point in a logical, sequential way, so that points can be linked and built upon.
→ Teach in a multi sensory way, choosing a
variety of activities that can be accessed visually, aurally and kinesthetically to give the student an effective all round experience.
→ Allow the student access to powerpoints to read through again and more importantly
before the lesson, to be able to process the information more successfully. Be aware that a dyslexic’s reading speed may be half of that of a student without dyslexia. Being asked to read through an article with out any warning could cause much anxiety.
→ Allow the student to work on a laptop, computer or an iPad if this is their normal way of working and, in an A level subject, an exam arrangement for them.
→ Promote the use of templates, mnemonics and acronyms to help students learn how to
structure work, remember terminology and important facts they need to include in their written work.
→ Some dyslexic students will dread peer assessment, being embarrassed by their poor
writing and spelling. Let the student choose themselves a study buddy that they are comfortable with, when proofreading and marking work.
→ Be aware that your student will probably require more time to complete written work. → End your lesson by re-visiting the teaching point introduced, to help reinforce the learning. The most important point is to know your student.
Did you know? One in 10 of the population in the UK are estimated to have dyslexia. This is more than 6.3 million.
As a dyslexic student they may have additional requirements such as a coloured overlay, or handouts on a particular colour, or a dictaphone. Phones and iPads are also useful for taking pictures of important information from the board. No two students are the same.
Insert title learners with Dyslexia Teaching If a student is struggling within class, in spite of reasonable adjustments having been made (as above), then an intervention can be used to address specific skill weaknesses. Following an initial informal assessment to gain an understanding of where there may be gaps, the following are some areas that could be addressed if applicable:
→ Alphabetical knowledge, being confident with letter sounds and names helps with spelling. → Memory exercises to help develop auditory and visual memory skills to support study skills such as note taking/dictation.
→ Reading comprehension exercises, where a student will be shown techniques of retrieving relevant information and applying it to a question/assignment set.
→ Spelling techniques, to develop confidence in this area. → Inference activities to help develop the skill of looking at the underlying meaning of a passage. → Proofreading skills where students become able to identify where they have missed punctuation and incorrect spellings.
All of the above points can be delivered again using a multi sensory, cumulative and sequential approach. The most important aspect of an intervention programme is to consider the student’s individual needs. Start by working on what they can do rather than what they can’t! On successful completion of this course, I will be able to progress to the next stage where I will qualify for Associate Member of the British Dyslexia Association (AMBDA) status, enabling me to carry out formal assessments to diagnose Dyslexia. This will entitle students wishing to go on to university to apply for Disabled Students’ Allowances (DSA) funding to help with specialist equipment and other means of support. DSA will only be considered for students with a formal post 16 diagnosis. To be able to have this qualification will benefit our students hugely and has been a personal goal of mine for some time. Wish me luck!
Article by Jeanette Smith.
Did you know? Popsicles, a popular summer treat, were accidentally invented by an 11-year-old boy in San Francisco in 1905. He left a glass of soda sitting outside and by the next morning the soda had frozen. He began selling them at an amusement park in New Jersey. In the U.S., cherry is the number 1 flavour.
BTEC Quality Management Review Each year Pearson undertakes a review of centres running their BTEC courses to ensure quality assurance standards are in place and being adhered to. The Blackpool Sixth Quality Management Review (QMR) (previously known as Quality Review & Development (QR&D) took place in April with the support of BTEC staff and students from across college. On the day we received fantastic feedback with the assessor stating that she “was incredibly impressed with what we do at the college and was going to be providing a report in which there were to be no recommendations for improvement” – something she had never done before. We have now received the report and would like to share with you just some of the many highlights within it:
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The college is outstanding in all aspects of its provision. Managers and teachers are wholly committed to the college’s objective of improving students’ achievements. There is a very strong focus on developing the full potential of every individual, and enabling students to achieve at every level. The culture of high expectations, combined with highly effective teaching and excellent support, enables students to achieve very well.
Learners appreciate the high level of support from staff, which stimulates learning and enables them to interact with their peers with confidence. The range of courses is very extensive, offering excellent progression routes.
An extensive range of well-attended enrichment opportunities include sport, the arts, and a wide variety of overseas visits. The college works well with local and regional stakeholders. Learners are prepared very well for the next step in their future careers. Great emphasis is placed on developing wider employability skills through work experience or paid, part-time work.
This is testament to the hard work put in by so many different staff within college including teachers, heads of department, curriculum leaders, enrichment staff, support services such as the library, student services, ALS, exams and many, many more.
Article by Tina Cooper.
Insert titleHospice Trinity Blackpool Sixth recently sponsored Trinity Hospice. As a thank you, Trinity sent us their recipe book celebrating 30 years of care within the community. Here is one of those recipes. Yoghurt, Poppy Seed and Forest Fruit Loaf Ingredients 175g plain flour 175g caster sugar 3 medium eggs 150ml natural yoghurt 75g ground almonds 2tsp baking powder 75ml olive oil ½ tsp lemon flavouring 25g poppy seeds 150g raspberries and blackberries Method 1. Grease and line a loaf tin and preheat the oven to 180 degrees. 2. Mix the flour, sugar, baking powder and almonds. 3. Beat the yoghurt, oil, eggs and flavouring. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry mix. 4. Whisk until smooth and then stir in the seeds and fruit. 5. Pour into the loaf tin and bake for 45 mins. When cool, decorate with melted chocolate.
The Nepal Team The Nepal Team are pleased to announce that due to their significant amount of time fundraising this year they have managed to raise over ÂŁ2000 which will now be contributed to the school which they will be visiting in July. The money will pay for sponsorship of two students at the school for their entire education. The Nepal Team are very excited to meet the students that Blackpool Sixth will be sponsoring. Expect an overview of the trip when they return!