Year 12 Virtual Parents' Evening

Dear Parent/Carer

We wish to invite you to the Year 12 Parents’ Evening (virtual) on Monday 14^th February. You will be emailed with details about how to attend closer to the time. Students have recently taken internal examinations and their performance in these and general progress will be discussed. We expect students to attend with their parents. It is important that students, parents and school are working in partnership to make appropriate progress and achieve the best grades possible in examinations.

We intend to issue reports based on student progress so far, including the recent internal exams, to students on 31^st January. Students will receive paper copies and electronic copies will be viewable on the SIMS Parent App.

The reporting system for Sixth Form is based on grading of criteria relevant to sixth form study and in preparation for Higher Education and employment. The reasons are:

• student strengths and areas where they need to improve will be more clearly identified
• it will link into the Sixth Form target setting system – explicitly identifying what students need to focus on to maximise their potential

A report for each subject studied will be completed. Each criterion is graded A – D, based on the descriptors below. Additionally, each subject report shows a recent assessment grade (basis identified / described briefly).

n/a	Criterion not relevant
A	Almost always strong / good
B	Usually strong / good
C	Can fluctuate – not sufficient to progress
D	Not good enough / not coping – needs to do something to improve

After review of exam performance, and discussion and consideration of each subject report, students should identify appropriate targets. These should be written in the space provided in their Sixth Form organisers, or on an ACTION PLAN for each subject. The ability to self-monitor is a skill students should develop throughout Sixth Form in preparation for Higher Education and employment.

The report effort grades are used to identify any students who need to have a review / intervention meeting with one of us to discuss appropriate further action.

We need to make clear some aspects of our planning strategy for Year 13. As students move from Year 12 to Year 13 it is usual for them to reduce from studying four subjects to studying three. At this point we rewrite the option blocks and this enables us to run classes across the whole school. Our plan for exam entry in the summer is that Year 12 will enter for the external AS in any subject they may be dropping. In subjects they (and we) are confident that they will take to full A level, they will take an internal exam in June. Internal and external exams and assessments will be used to inform course choices in Year 13 and predicted grades for university applications early next academic year. Decisions about external exam entry need to be considered carefully, including the advice of subject teachers. Students will shortly be asked to complete an online form requesting which AS exams they wish to be entered for this summer, and their course choices for Year 13.

From 24^th January students have fortnightly Preparation for Higher Education (PHE) sessions added to their timetables. This programme helps students research, inform and prepare for their future choices in terms of HE, employment and living independently.

Many Higher Education institutions take into consideration the student’s background when making decisions regarding the offer of places on courses and increasingly for bursaries. Additionally, this information is necessary to secure places on some university outreach activities starting in the spring term. This information has also helped us to allocate bursaries and enables us to give students the best possible chances when applying for university. There is a Background Information questionnaire attached to the physical letter handed to students - please return this to the Sixth Form Office by 28^th January.

Our aim, as always, is to improve the quality of the learning experience at Durham Johnston and students’ achievement. If you have any queries regarding any of these matters, do not hesitate to contact us at school. Additionally, please visit our website regularly, it contains relevant up to date information, including curriculum detail regarding what is being studied in each subject, and Mr O’Sullivan’s weekly update.

We look forward to seeing you on 14^th February.

Yours sincerely

Mrs A C Lennon                     Mr J Wilbraham
Head of Sixth Form                Deputy Head of Sixth Form