Director of English - Mrs L Brown
Teachers of English - Miss H Wallace (2nd in Faculty), Miss S Deakin, Mrs A Ward, Miss O Brimsted, Mr U Asif, Mrs E Parker and Mr R Armishaw
The English Team are roomed in close proximity to one another in the Dickens/Shakespeare block of the school building. This allows the staff to work very effectively as a team.
At Key Stage 4, all students study the new AQA 9-1 GCSE English and English Literature courses.
The Key Stage 3 curriculum allows students to develop their reading, writing, and speaking and listening skills by undertaking a series of thematic and skills-based units throughout each year. Each unit will cover a combination of fiction, non-fiction and poetry based texts. The units build on one another, so that by the end of Year 9, students have secured the skills and foundational knowledge required to be successful in their GCSE courses.
All students are expected to complete 30 minutes of reading a day as part of the Academy Homework Policy. Alongside this homework tasks in English will encourage wider reading, with students reflecting upon what they have read through literacy, comprehension or revision based tasks. We have a whole Academy literacy policy in place, which requires all staff to actively teach for literacy across the curriculum.
Mathematics Faculty
Director of Maths – Miss N Warren
Teachers of Maths – Mrs K Malik (2nd in faculty), Miss S Hewart, Mr K Taylor, Mrs Freeman, Mr J Fisher, Ms S Taylor-Hayward and Miss E Eyley
It is essential that we support our students by developing their mathematical and numerical skills to allow them to achieve their potential in their GCSE examinations. Achieving a good GCSE grade in maths opens many doors to future career choices, and increasingly more and more employers are raising their entrance requirements to include a grade 5 or above in GCSE Maths.
In recent years, the maths faculty has developed a more problem-solving approach to learning the subject as many students find it difficult to transfer simple ideas to different contexts. There is also now a renewed emphasis on basic numeracy and mental maths.
In addition to the work done in maths lessons, weekly activities are undertaken in tutor time to support the development of numeracy skills. This is often in the form of puzzles and quizzes and students can work individually or collaboratively in engaging and enjoyable activities but at the same time developing their numerical skills.
To support their studies, we ask that parents provide their child with some basic equipment so that our students can access all maths topics. This includes:
- A scientific calculator
- A set of compasses
- A 30cm ruler
- A protractor
Science Faculty
Director of Science – Mr B Pearce-Brindley
Second in Science - Mrs A Rowland
Teachers of Science – Mr B Trinham, Miss C Isaac, Miss A Qamar, Mr R Lane, Mr C Egan, Miss S Chapman and Mrs H Butler
Science Technician - Mr D Reddington
The Science department is based in six laboratories and the team is comprised of fully qualified biologists, chemists and physicists to ensure we can meet the needs of our students.
At KS4, students study all 3 scientific disciplines with those seeking further education and careers in science the opportunity to study triple science, which supports a deeper understanding in the 3 disciplines.
At KS3, students have the opportunity to take part in a STEM Club working towards their CREST awards. Last year, students in Year 7 and 8 completed their Bronze awards with a number of students building on their successes to work towards their Silver awards.
World Studies Faculty
Director of World Studies - Mr P Phelan
Teacher of Geography - Mr R Stone, Mr S Bayliss
Teacher of History - Miss L Senior, Mr Baxter, Miss L Smith
MFL Teacher - Mrs P Saddington, Mr O Chento, Mrs S Jones
MFL Subject Leader - Miss S Mays
RE and PSHE Subject Leader - Mrs L Senior
PSHE/RE Teacher - Miss B Elson
The World Studies department brings together the EBACC subjects of Modern Foreign Languages, History, Geography and RE.
In MFL, we currently offer two European languages, French and Spanish which are taught by three specialist Modern Foreign Language teachers. Our aim is to equip students with the skills and confidence they will need to communicate effectively in another language.
In Humanities, students study both Geography and History up to Year 9 and have the option of specialising in one at GCSE or continuing with both. Lessons cover a range of topics at KS3 in Geography, from the impact of urbanisation, deforestation, climate zones and other topical issues. This is done using a variety of countries to develop Geographical knowledge and skills. in History, there is a chronological path looking at themes such as ‘Conflict and control’ and ‘Protest and Reform’. This begins with the impact of the ‘Normanisation’ of England after the Battle of Hastings, through to the understanding of medieval society, ‘conflict in the control’ in the 17th century and onto the impact of Industrialisation on Britain. This is completed with a look at conflicts of the 20th century with WWI and WW2 and beyond.
The Principal aim of RE at Granville Academy is to enable students to participate in an on-going search for wisdom, through exploring questions raised by human experience and the answers offered by the religions and beliefs of the different groups. Understanding the different Faiths that make up a diverse modern Britain allows for a more holistic world view for our students. Some key topics are addressed through the various religions including, Christianity, Islam, Buddhism and Sikhism. Students will also look at more philosophical and ethical topics such as ‘Good and Evil’ and ‘Inspirational people’.
All students are encouraged to attend one of our many educational visits to enhance their learning. World Studies is developing new opportunities to build understanding of the wider world and different cultures, some trips are planned to WWI Battlefields and memorial sites in History, Geography has local visits to study urban and rural development and test a variety of Geography skills. MFL have a trip to France whilst RE are developing visits to local cultural and religious sites of interest. All these are planned to encourage students to engage in their topics outside of the classroom and bring to life some of the areas of study.
Technology Faculty
Director of Technology - Mr S Edwards
Assistant Director of Technology - Mrs S Wright
Design Technology Teacher - Ms S Broadhurst, Mrs S Tunstall, Mr P Walker, Miss E Darlington
ICT Teachers - Mr C Wilson and Mr P Marshall
Business Studies Teacher – Mrs G Lowe
DT Senior Technician – Mr A Dineley
DT Technician – Mrs C Satchwell
Design Technology
At Key stage 3, all students participate in Resistant Materials, Graphics, Food and Textiles, developing a range of different skills. In studying all aspects of Design & Technology, students can combine practical and technological skills with creative thinking, to design and make products and systems that meet human needs. They learn to use current technologies and consider the impact of future technological developments. They also learn to think creatively and intervene to improve the quality of life, solving problems as individuals and members of a team. Through Design &Technology, students develop confidence in using practical skills and become discriminating users of products. They apply their creative thinking and learn to innovate.
CAD/CAM technology allows students to experience the way in which design is undertaken in industry. This has definitely enhanced the quality of the products which they create. The faculty uses a variety of software ranging from Techsoft 2D Design to OnShape. Students can output their work via 3D Printing or CNC machines.
At KS4, students have the opportunity to further develop their skills with the GCSE Design Technology course, which encompasses the skills and theory Resistant Materials and Graphics. The course has a coursework component that accounts for 50% and an end of year examination.
The GCSE Fashion and textile design course offers the opportunity to develop skills over a broad range of textile and fashion techniques and applications, such as printing, weaving, knitting, mixed media, digital applications, surface design, embroidery and installation.
GCSE Food and Nutrition offers the students the opportunity to further develop their skills and understanding with practical and theoretical inputs. Students will complete two assessments in Year 11, one being science based and a practical based assessment as well as an end of year examination.
Computing and Business
The computing curriculum offers the students a wider experience and understanding of both computer programming and computer applications. As a faculty, we aim to continually improve the challenging curriculum to ensure it meets the needs of all students and provides an interesting and exciting experience.
Through Years 7 and 8, students develop their skills in a range of ICT applications before experiencing more focused sessions in Business Studies, and Computer Science in Year 9. This will enable them to make informed choices for their GCSE options.
At key stage 4, we offer GCSE Business Studies, GCSE Computer Science and Creative iMedia.
Computer Science is engaging and practical, encouraging creativity and problem solving. It encourages students to develop their understanding and application of the core concepts in computer science. Students also analyse problems in computational terms and devise creative solutions by designing, writing, testing and evaluating programs.
Business Studies equips students with the skills and confidence to explore how different business situations affect decision-making. They develop their understanding of concepts, objectives and terminology, and the impact of contemporary issues on business operations.
The Cambridge National in Creative iMedia equips students with the wide range of knowledge and skills needed to work in the creative digital media sector. They start at pre-production and develop their skills through practical assignments as they create final multimedia products. Students complete 2 coursework modules and a written examination.
PE and Creative Arts Faculty
Director of PE and Creative Arts - Miss J Price
Teachers of PE - Mr J Goddard, Miss Gibson and Mr L McIIveen
Teacher of Drama - Miss C Clifton
Teachers of Art - Miss T Shearer and Mrs E Morland
Teacher of Music - Mr D Jackson
Teacher of Health and Social Care – Mrs K Brickley
PE
At Granville Academy, Physical Education (PE) is an essential part of a child’s holistic education and we have a duty to help them be ‘world ready’. We believe that through an engaging curriculum that is broad and balanced our students will cultivate a passion for lifelong learning and enjoyment of PE.
At Granville Academy, we believe PE is more than just being 'good' at sport; It creates opportunities for students to develop their physical, social and leadership skills. Students should possess [physical, communication, leadership and social skills. These are built from a foundation of core knowledge of skills and tactics. Students develop these across key stages 3 and 4. These skills will support them in their next stage of learning or employment and for a lifelong participation in sport/physical activity.
The PE department at Granville Academy seeks to provide a full, varied and interesting Physical Education curriculum, which challenges, engages and excites staff and students alike. Our broad and balanced curriculum and plethora of extra-curricular and leadership opportunities are provided to the students at Granville Academy.
Health and Social Care
Over 3 million people currently work within our Health and Social Care sector in the UK (Kingsfund.org.uk) and with over 100,000 vacancies at any given time and an constantly ageing population, the demand for individuals to fulfil roles within this vital sector will only intensify.
The Health and Social care curriculum at Granville Academy has been designed to enable students to learn a variety of different skills that will inform their future training and work within the health and social care sector such as decision making, observation, problem solving, evaluation, interpersonal skills and professional behaviours.
When students embark on their Health and Social Care studies, their prior knowledge has already been established in other national curriculum subjects, such as Science, Physical Education and Religious Studies which therefore means students can use existing knowledge and apply this to the many skills and concepts we cover in Health and Social Care. The course is designed to encourage students to think critically about the aspects of the Health and Social Care environment, ranging from how we develop as human beings from birth to the range of support services that are out there to help individuals in their time of need
Studying Health and Social Care at Granville Academy also allows students to have the opportunity to develop the skills and understanding required to access further education, training, jobs and careers within the Health and Social Care industry. Routes into the sector are further embedded through trips to Derby University, workshops with Medical Mavericks and visits from local specialists who work within the industry.
Creative Arts
We are passionate about the Arts at Granville, and as such, they form a central part of our broad and balanced curriculum. We aim to instil a love of performance, whilst inspiring self confidence, discipline and respect of the Creative Arts. We believe that studying Arts subjects enriches student’s lives and provides opportunities for them to develop essential skills, such as creativity, empathy, self-confidence, as well as encouraging them to think about and connect more deeply with the world around them.
The Curriculum Area consists of three departments: Art, Drama and Music. The Creative Arts Faculty is staffed by specialist teachers in Music, Art and Drama. We have a Drama Studio, green room, bespoke music room, art room and school stage on which we host musical and theatrical productions.
The Art curriculum is designed and structured to incrementally deepen students' understanding and strengthen their confidence in the subject through repetition of the core techniques and skills linked to the formal elements, which become a toolkit for them to use when they work on more creative, expressive and personal projects. Students also have the opportunity to attend Art club and Art workshops. Quality of students' work is also celebrated in classrooms and displays around the academy.
The Drama curriculum is designed with a new focus each term, covering a broad range of skills and knowledge. Students research, discuss and use drama techniques to explore characters and situations from different time periods and in various styles and genres. They devise and present scripted and improvised dramas in response to a range of stimuli, demonstrating their ability to investigate ideas, situations and events and an understanding of how theatre can communicate in innovative, challenging ways.
Schemes of work make links to other subjects, such as history, music, PSHE and English and the curriculum is updated regularly to ensure it is engaging and relevant. Furthermore, students have the opportunity to perform in the school show and at KS4, attend a trip to a live theatre production.
The aims of the Music curriculum are to enable students to explore, comprehend and appreciate music from a variety of times and places. Students will learn how to understand how composers and performers work is created and recorded, build on skills, experiment with sounds and ideas and build their knowledge of genres and techniques. Confidence, team collaboration and social skills are developed through the creative process, skills that are hard to measure but are of tremendous value for individuals and society as a whole.
Learning music from a young age has been shown to develop discipline, social skills, the capacity to empathise and develop self-esteem. The Music room thrives with young people every break and lunch time. Students are able to join singing groups, the brass band, the guitar club and perform in the school production. The peripatetic music service also supports a wide range of music lessons that students can take part in.