Sixth Form Agreement

In the Sixth Form we try to avoid issuing any form of formal detention as we like to guide students to become independent learners with more freedom. But there comes a time when sanctions are needed to enforce our Sixth Form ethos and academic cultural expectations. All students sign a Sixth Form agreement when they join year 12 and therefore are clear on our standards and requirements. Please see here for the Sixth Form Penalty Hour (SFPH)

 

Sixth Form Anti-social behaviour and respect contract

On very rare occasions does this need to be used in the Sixth Form. If used, this is a result of ongoing anti-social behaviour and/or lack of respect (inside or outside of timetables lessons), or involvement/presence in an antisocial behaviour incident and/or lack of respect incident (inside or outside of lessons). This is a personalised contract to ensure the student has clear sanctions moving forward if the behaviour continues – the aim is for the sixth form student to avoid entry onto the main school behaviour system at the point of agreeing to this contract – a chance for the sixth form student to change their behaviours linked to anti-social incidents and lack of respect. Please click here for an outline of the sixth form anti-social behaviour and respect contract.

 

Organisation and Resources

The Sixth Form assists all students in becoming organised with the correct lesson resources. Organisation is of vital importance for all students as part of their Sixth Form studies as the structure and delivery can be very different from GCSE.  To assist students please access the following documents:

1. Equipment and resources for organisation
2. Sixth Form organisation check document – this will be used in courses every half term to ensure students work is structured and organised. This document can be personalised to particular courses as you can see.

The Sixth Form like to assist with weekly planning and issue a weekly planner for students to use on a Monday morning for their organisation and planning session with the tutor and also to use throughout the week.  Please click here to view a version of the Sixth Form planner.

 

Academic Referrals

A focus for sixth form teachers is regular communication with students and parents over concerns with regards to academic progress and concerns inside and outside of the classroom. Sixth formers are young adults and we encourage and assist them in becoming more independent but we also need to appreciate this transition is not an easy one. Sixth Form teachers therefore need to keep parents/carers fully informed much earlier on. We value parental assistance and where parents/carers work well to support the school to help improve their sons/daughters progress, it can make a big difference. Therefore the Sixth Form team have made it clear to all sixth form teachers that they need to be following the following each academic year:

1. Set enough private study/independent/prep time work outside of the classroom for students to complete. Student must be using their blank/study/prep time periods in school to complete this along with some extra hours at home.

2. Ensure this work is checked and monitored on a regular basis and used in lessons with peers and/or marked to give extra feedback.

3. If a student is not completing this outside of lesson work and/or there are progress concerns, the teacher must inform the student and parent immediately.

Point 3 above is where the academic referral system is to be used. An academic referral letter will be issued on email to the student and parent/carer. The letter will make it clear what the concern/issue is along with a focus on what the student needs to do to improve. We would encourage parents/carers to make contact with the teacher from whom the referral has been made. This conversation can make the issue much clearer in order for parents to assist us in supporting and challenging their son/daughter for improved progress.

The academic referral system is a simple and efficient method of communication between the teacher and the parent/carer. Please see the below for example reasons for why academic referrals may be issued.

 

Reasons for being issued an academic referral

•  No homework submitted
• Poor quality homework/assignments
• Underachievement in assessed work
• Poor organisation that is affecting progress
• Lack of evidence of independent prep time work being completed
• Poor attendance – unexplained absence from 2 consecutive lessons
• Lack of classroom motivation to succeed
• Any other reasons as long as its linked to academic progress