Pen y Dre High School | Merthyr Tydfil

PYD Learning Journey

Curriculum Summary

Pupils in Year 7 & 8 are learning through our new PYD Learning Journey which is inline with Curriculum for Wales. Currently Year 9 are following the National Curriculum and Years 10 & 11 follow Key Stage 4.

PYD Learning Journey - Vision

At Pen y Dre High School we are committed to providing a high quality education for all through excellent teaching and learning, and an enjoyable, stimulating and relevant curriculum.

Our curriculum will ensure pupils make the most of their potential, securing the knowledge, skills and personal qualities they will need for future success. We want pupils to encounter authentic and purposeful learning experiences, and develop a curiosity about the world around them. Our motto of ‘Aspire Achieve Believe’ permeates all aspects of our work and we are determined that our pupils experience and enjoy a curriculum that:

Aspire

• Sets high challenge and expectation

• Develops an inquiring mind with an appetite for life-long learning

• Develops ambitious, capable and independent pupils who are encouraged to think for themselves

• Encourages them to become the very best versions of themselves

Achieve

• Provides academic rigour, complemented by creative, imaginative, sporting and cultural enrichment

• Ensures pupils achieve their academic and wider potential in order to be well equipped for future life

• Enables learners to become enterprising and creative contributors, ready to play a full part in life and work

Provides opportunity for all pupils to become ethically informed citizens of our local community, Wales and further afield

Believe

• Promotes resilience, self-belief and a ‘can do’ attitude

• Ensures that physical, mental and emotional well-being is at its heart

• Enables pupils to become happy, healthy and confident individuals, ready and prepared to lead fulfilling lives as valued members of society

• Gives all pupils a voice and celebrates success in all its forms

In addition, our curriculum will:

• Promote and sustain excellent relationships with pupils, families, staff, governors and the wider community

• Be fully inclusive, respect diversity and recognise the potential of every pupil

• Nurture a sense of Cynefin (place) in order to celebrate the uniqueness of our school community and promote a love and respect for our local area, its history, culture and environment

The Four Purposes

The four purposes are the aspiration for all learners in Wales. Our curriculum is designed so that all our learners will be supported to develop as:

ambitious, capable learners who:

set themselves high standards and seek and enjoy challenge
are building up a body of knowledge and have the skills to connect and apply that knowledge in different contexts
are questioning and enjoy solving problems
can communicate effectively in different forms and settings, using both Welsh and English
can explain the ideas and concepts they are learning about
can use number effectively in different contexts
understand how to interpret data and apply mathematical concepts
use digital technologies creatively to communicate, find and analyse information
undertake research and evaluate critically what they find and are ready to learn throughout their lives

enterprising, creative contributors who:

connect and apply their knowledge and skills to create ideas and products
think creatively to reframe and solve problems
identify and grasp opportunities
take measured risks
lead and play different roles in teams effectively and responsibly
express ideas and emotions through different media
give of their energy and skills so that other people will benefit and are ready to play a full part in life and work

ethical, informed citizens who:

find, evaluate and use evidence in forming views
engage with contemporary issues based upon their knowledge and values
understand and exercise their human and democratic responsibilities and rights
understand and consider the impact of their actions when making choices and acting
are knowledgeable about their culture, community, society and the world, now and in the past
respect the needs and rights of others, as a member of a diverse society
show their commitment to the sustainability of the planet and are ready to be citizens of Wales and the world

healthy, confident individuals who:

have secure values and are establishing their spiritual and ethical beliefs
are building their mental and emotional well-being by developing confidence, resilience and empathy
apply knowledge about the impact of diet and exercise on physical and mental health in their daily lives
know how to find the information and support to keep safe and well
take part in physical activity
take measured decisions about lifestyle and manage risk
have the confidence to participate in performance
form positive relationships based upon trust and mutual respect
face and overcome challenge
have the skills and knowledge to manage everyday life as independently as they can

and are ready to lead fulfilling lives as valued members of society.

The four purposes are the starting point for all decisions around curriculum design our curriculum is planned in a way that supports our learners to make progress toward them.

Integral Skills

The four purposes are also underpinned by integral skills which will be developed through a wide range of teaching and learning within our curriculum.

Creativity and innovation

Our curriculum will be designed in a way that develops our learners’ creativity and innovation by providing the space for and the opportunities that support them to:

be curious and inquisitive, and to generate ideas;
link and connect disparate experiences, knowledge and skills, and see, explore and justify alternative solutions;
be able to identify opportunities and communicate their strategies.

This will support our learners to create different types of value.

Critical thinking and problem-solving

Our curriculum will be designed in a way that develops our learners’ critical thinking and problem solving by providing the space for and opportunities that support them to:

ask meaningful questions, and to evaluate information, evidence and situations;
analyse and justify possible solutions, recognising potential issues and problems;
become objective in their decision-making, identifying and developing arguments;
be able to propose solutions which generate different types of value.

Personal effectiveness

Our curriculum will be designed in a way that develops our learners’ personal effectiveness by providing the space for and opportunities that support them to:

develop emotional intelligence and awareness helping them to become confident and independent;
lead debate and discussions, helping them to become aware of the social, cultural, ethical and legal implications of their arguments;
evaluate their learning and mistakes, helping them to identify areas for development;
become responsible and reliable;
be able to identify and recognise different types of value and then use that value.

Planning and organising

Our curriculum will be designed in a way that develops our learners’ planning and organising by providing the space for and opportunities that support them to:

set goals, make decisions and monitor interim results (where developmentally appropriate);
reflect and adapt, as well as manage time, people and resources.
check for accuracy and be able create different types of value.
develop an appreciation of sustainable development and the challenges facing humanity
develop awareness of emerging technological advances
confidently meet the demands of working in uncertain situations, as changing local, national and global contexts result in new challenges and opportunities for success
generate creative ideas and to critically evaluate alternatives
build their resilience and develop strategies which will help them manage their well-being – they should be encountering experiences where they can respond positively in the face of challenge, uncertainty or failure
learn to work effectively with others, valuing the different contributions they and others make – they should also begin to recognise the limitations of their own work and those of others as they build an understanding of how different people play different roles within a team.

Design Principles

Our curriculum has been designed by our staff for our pupils. Our curriculum design has been informed by:

- Current educational research and curriculum theory ensuring that our curriculum is a progression model. Through curriculum design, pupils have opportunities to deepen and develop their knowledge, skills and learning experiences progressively over time and make the four purposes a reality for all learners.

- Cognitive Science has been used to inform our approach to curriculum design and close links exist between pedagogy and curriculum. We look to ensure that there are natural learning opportunities for pupils to deepen their learning. This includes exploring pedagogic strategies to support learning including avoiding cognitive overload for pupils, opportunities for chunking learning and developing retrieval practices.

- Ensuring our curriculum is designed as a spiral curriculum where key skills, subject concepts, knowledge and disciplinary skills are presented repeatedly though the curriculum, but deepen with layers of complexity, or in different applications.

Areas of Learning Experience (Areas)

Our school curriculum is designed in a way that ensures learning and teaching that encompasses all six Areas of Learning and Experiences (Areas)

Language, Literacy & Communication AOLE

- English

- Literacy

- Welsh

- Spanish

Maths & Numeracy AOLE

- Mathematics

- Numeracy

Health & Wellbeing AOLE

- PHSE / Phases