Case Study – Gosden House School

Evaluating effectiveness of one aspect of SDP 2022-23: KS4 offer

Outline and Intent

Revision of the KS4 curriculum and vocational offer was an area of focus in the 22-23 SDP. 3 targets were identified:

  • Develop assessment methods for students above Entry level 3.
  • Focus on Gatsby Benchmark 8: Personal Guidance, looking at preparing for interviews and updating Personal Pathways documents.
  • Introduce ASDAN, ensuring Quality Assurance.

Using the Inclusion Framework we used Aspect 3.4 to evaluate the impact of the KS4 improvement plan and to help inform the next steps in the improvement journey.

Implementation and Engagement

The process of collective analysis is as important to us as outcomes, so we met to discuss and agree how we would find out whether and to what extent our recent improvement activity is preparing our learners for the next stage of their education, with a 3 year view. We considered the following questions:

  • Is our curriculum intent aiming to equip learners with the skills, knowledge and qualifications they need to go on to destinations which meet their aspirations and career intentions?
  • What changes have we made to improve the offer?
  • What difference has it made?
  • How do we know?
  • What don’t we know?
  • How can we find it out?

This resulted in a detailed and somewhat expansive analysis of our KS4 offer and where we are in our journey. At this point it became apparent that we needed to go back and look closely at Aspect 3.4, and apply it to the three improvement areas in the SDP. This was an important learning point, to keep us on track in our evaluation.

Who Was Involved?

The Head, Deputy, KS4 Co-ordinator and Aspirations Advisor did this piece of work, with stakeholder input to provide the evidence required to answer the questions.

Impact and Outcomes: Impact

  • Excellent exam results – ASDAN successful and relevant for E1-3.
  • Higher level quals – Edexcel E1-L2 offers broader range of accreditation.
  • Increased numbers into college and supported pathways to employment (e.g. Future Choices) – indicates preparedness for Post-16 and also better personalisation of career pathways.
  • Very successful work experience reflects improved vocational offer and personalised career guidance.
  • Increased student engagement in Annual Reviews and career planning – higher engagement from disadvantaged cohort in events, WEx.

Impact and Outcomes: Actions

  • Sharpen systematic tracking of graduates for 3 years.
  • Aspirations Advisor gain L3 qualification in Career guidance to further improve personalised pathways, including post-Gosden.
  • • Track students to monitor the career pathways they pursue post-Gosden – are we hitting the mark? Do we need to adapt the vocational offer?
  • Work with WEx employers to build profile of a “good employee” – also to scaffold WEx support.
  • Repeat this process in Summer term and sharpen the focus – using 3.4 to evaluate impact of improvement activity. Reflexive analysis of use of Inclusion Framework in cycle of SDP cycle.