About the English Department
Welcome to the English Department, a large and successful department. We are based on the Green Close site with full-time members of staff based in their own classrooms, except for the teaching of A-level English which is taught in specialist rooms in the Post 16 block.
Facilities are good, with each room being well equiped with computer and audio visual technology.
We also have two full-time Teaching Assistants who support classes and individual students and run the Literacy Progress Units in Year 7 before school and in some English lessons. Year 7 are taught in mixed ability tutor groups, with some SEN extraction and two Latin groups; the rest of the year groups are taught in broad bands with the majority of students in parallel top band classes. Each year we review our setting policy and make slight changes according to the needs of the particular year group.
Such a large department offers plenty of opportunities for teachers and students. We are involved with the PGCE courses at Exeter and Lancaster universities, many of our teachers acting as subject tutors. Last year we took students to the theatre in Plymouth and in Cardiff and we have brought a theatre company in to college the last two years with a touring production of Macbeth for the whole of Year 9. Last year we published our students’ creative writing in a magazine and ran poetry and script-writing groups in Activities Week. We also have visits from authors and plan events for World Book Day with our two librarians. In previous years we have entered students for public speaking contests, attended conferences with students and run a Scrabble Club.
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