Home Learning
We ensure our students get the most from their education. In order to achieve this, home learning plays a vital role.
We know that high quality home learning opportunities provide a number of positive outcomes for our students, including:
- Encouraging students to develop independent learning and study skills
- Enabling students to spend more time on tasks than would be possible in lessons and therefore to produce work in greater detail
- Providing an opportunity for students to practise and consolidate what they have learned in lessons
- Preparing students for future lessons, assessments, examinations and the world beyond school
The school utilises Google Classroom to set all home learning tasks. Students access Google Classroom throughout their time in school and are familiar with the platform.
Parents and carers are able to receive Guardian Summaries via email on either a daily or weekly basis. The email summaries include:
- Missing work— work that’s late at the time the email was sent
- Upcoming work — work that’s due today and tomorrow (for daily emails) or work that’s due in the upcoming week (for weekly emails)
- Class activity — announcements, assignments, and questions recently posted by teachers
It is important to recognise that parents and carers will not be able to access or login to Google Classroom. The Guardian Summaries simply come as an automated email, but contain all of the information needed to support your child at home.
There is no blanket policy on home learning which applies to all the year groups and subjects in the school. Instead, faculties have established systems in setting home learning in their own specialist areas which enable students to make the best possible progress. These practices have been developed in consultation with students. Heads of faculty can provide more detailed information about their own home learning policies.
However, there are some patterns which you can expect to see. Firstly, home learning will be set frequently. In many subjects it is likely to be set on a weekly basis, although this will vary due to the fact that students have more lessons per week in some subjects than others. Secondly, the quantity of home learning will increase as students progress through the school. In Year 7 it is likely to be around one hour per night on average. Home learning will also become increasingly challenging as students get older.
In the Sixth Form, the amount of work students will undertake independently outside class time will be considerable. Students need to take responsibility for this themselves. A rough rule of thumb would be to do at least one hour of revision, research or preparation independently for each hour of taught time, so a student taking 3 A Levels for 5 hours per week would need to do at least 15 hours of independent study.
We have a policy not to set home learning across holiday periods for Key Stage 3 students and only the minimum needed for coursework or exam preparation for Years 10-13 over the holidays. We recognise that family time is precious and we want our students to rest and enjoy creative, cultural and sporting activities during the holidays.
With all this in mind we have a shared responsibility when it comes to home learning:
Teachers will…
- Only set home learning when it is appropriate and purposeful.
- Be clear about the purpose of the home learning task and how it will support student learning.
- Ensure that home learning activities are accessible to all students.
- Provide appropriate feedback according to the faculty’s marking policy.
- Praise and reward students for excellent efforts when it comes to the completion of home learning activities.
- Provide appropriate and incremental sanctions in line with the Rewards and Consequences system to students who fail to complete home learning adequately or who fail to hand it in on time.
Parents are encouraged to…
- Assist their child with planning and organising their home learning
- Provide their child, where possible, with a suitable learning environment in which to complete their home learning, without distractions
- Discuss home learning tasks and teacher feedback with their child to encourage conversations about learning
Students should…
- Use Google Classroom to check the home learning which has been set each day and to ensure they understand what they are required to do
- Allow adequate time to complete their home learning to a standard that reflects their understanding and best efforts
- Stick to the timing guidance from their teacher and if they exceed this, to write down the amount of time it took
- Where possible, find a quiet environment to complete their home learning
- Take initiative for their own learning exploring and developing their understanding beyond the tasks set
