English
The English curriculum at Meadows is comprehensive but tailored to individual needs. We offer student's the opportunity to study classic and contemporary poetry and prose and we supplement this with our links with authors, other departments and schools.
Meadows has an excellent library with a wide variety of fiction and non-fiction texts. The brand-new purpose built library was opened by the author Dan Freedman in September 2010.
English curriculum
Some pupils have personalised learning programmes which target their individual literacy and language needs on a one to one basis, by a literacy specialist team. Others receive additional tutoring to help raise levels of achievement at GCSE level.
All pupils are entered for external accreditation so that on leaving Meadows they have an English qualification. The department offers the AQA GCSE in English language, the English Entry Level Certificate and individual Unit Awards which target specific areas of English language study.
Classic and contemporary poetry and prose
At Meadows, English offers the opportunity for pupils to aspire to the highest levels of achievement in their literacy and language skills.
A rich programme of literature study and activities ensures that all pupils have access to classic works in poetry and prose as well as contemporary writing. This includes the study of at least two Shakespeare plays throughout key stages three and four as well as a comprehensive study of the Great War Poets incorporating a moving and enlightening day trip to the Battlefields and war graves around Ypres, in Belgium.
Links with authors, other departments and schools
The department runs Book Week and Readathon and invites authors in to run workshops with all pupils.
English has close curriculum links with other departments. Most notably, units of work in Key stage 4 incorporate Humanities and ICT work, which help candidates to extend their GCSE portfolio of writing. Project work with the Art Department (‘My Found Diary’) and the recording of Work Experience placements and visits to a variety of places both home and abroad, contribute to pupils’ functional skills development in English.
Our links with a Kenyan school
There is an enthusiastic and growing English curriculum link with our partnership school, Molo 220 in the Rift Valley, Kenya. This has enabled pupils from both schools to share their original poetry and prose writing ('Reflections') and recently 15 pupils have had their poetry selected and published in a national anthology of school pupils’ poetry.
The next innovative partnership curriculum project that links Food Technology, English, Art and ICT in both schools (‘Chakula Bora-The Works') will culminate in a comprehensive and anecdotal recipe book which will reflect the diverse cultures and experiences of the two schools and their communities, through original writing and oral history.
Library
Meadows has a delightful library and reading room.
Pupils are able to ask for the latest books they want and the librarian is always willing to buy them if funds allow. There are colourful, well-illustrated reading schemes with interesting narratives. It is well stocked with both fiction and non-fiction.
The non-fiction texts include books on sports, craft, real life stories describing the modern world and other books useful for research projects. The fiction section includes some of the latest popular texts and a range of genres including historical horror, thrillers, scientific fantasies, street life, local and international teenage culture. The books are available to borrow and the range goes from texts suitable for those who have reading difficulties to modern classics supporting pupils taking GCSE English.
The school is extremely effective in helping pupils to overcome their low self-esteem and other negative feelings and to re-engage with education - Ofsted Education Report 2008.
