11 January 2012

 To parents of Year 9

Many thanks for attending last night’s Year 9 options evening.  I spoke to a number of you afterwards and there seemed to be some very good discussions going on between families and staff.

I was very keen to limit the length of time I spoke for, so that the more important part of the evening could proceed.  However, when reflecting on what I did say, it occurred to me that I could have given more information on the English Baccalaureate (‘E-Bacc’), a measure introduced by the Education Secretary last January to encourage take-up of more traditional GCSEs. 

To qualify for an English Baccalaureate the candidate needs to gain C or higher in English Language, maths, two sciences, a language and humanities (although as I mentioned last night, Mr Gove only counts geography or history in this latter category).  There is no central award for those children who achieve the English Baccalaureate and feedback from colleges and universities indicates that they are not placing any more significance on this measure than they did on the separate GCSEs.  It appears solely to be a measure used by the Department for Education to compare schools.

Almost anyone following our guidelines will end up selecting those subjects, but I am keen that our children give proper consideration to subjects like religious studies and the more creative, sporting and artistic options, hence I did not wish to make too much of it in my talk last night.  However, if you have any queries or concerns about this, please do not hesitate to contact me.

While I am writing, a couple of people spoke to me last night about the possibility of introducing food technology at the College for GCSE.  Previously we have not had sufficient demand to do this, but if there were other people in current Year 9 who are interested I would certainly be prepared to look at the feasibility of it.  Obviously time is a factor so anyone in this position should please let me know, via my PA Mrs Morris, by the end of school on Tuesday 17 January. 

Lastly, can I remind you that the final deadline for options forms to be returned to Mr Harrison is 3 February, following Year 9 Parents’ evening.

Yours sincerely

 J S Stearns

Headmaster