Year 7

My year 7 is taught in his form room with teachers moving for most subjects. Maths has been set from very early on, and English since half term, so they switch between year 7 form rooms for that. They move to specialist rooms for art, music and DT subjects, and occasionally use a science lab for practicals.

My Year 7 DS is in sets for Maths, English, Physics, Chemistry, Biology and Latin. They move around the school for specialist teaching but stay in their form room for the others.

DC's school have never had sets in Year 7, except for maths, so it's not a big change to keep them in tutor groups throughout. I don't have a Year 7, so can't answer for how they are managing in maths now!!

DC's Y7 class stays in their tutor group and specialist teachers come to them, except for Spanish and Latin where they are in mixed bubbles (4 languages to pick 2 from so can't keep them in tutor groups).

Normally they are set for most subjects - this hasn't happened this year due to Covid, however all the children sit banding tests as part of the application process, and the school organised a summer school in July where they sat English and Maths tests as part of the activities.

From what I can work out, they seem to have broadly set the tutor groups by ability based on banding test, summer school tests and primary reports.

It's a huge school (390 intake) so reasonably easy for them to do that.

We have been told that there has been no setting at all at this stage, but having accidentally wandered into the zoom parents talk for the wrong class by mistake, and not realising until the end of the session that mine wasn't till an hour later, all I can say is there was a massive difference in the kind of questions being asked and the expectation levels for students and teachers. Makes me very hmmm about the idea that there has been no setting - especially given how much data they have to hand!

Our Y7s are not set and all being taught mixed ability this year. We usually set for maths almost straight away so it is a big change for us maths teachers. I am pitching most of my teaching to the middle ability and then when it comes to the students completing questions I differentiate and have three different levels of questions. By now I know my class quite well so changed the seating plan at half term to reflect who might need more support and sat them in a place I could get to them without getting too close, so the end of a row for example. It's no where near as good as when we set them, and I hope we go back to setting asap, but I'm doing my best.

My y7 stays in the room and only moves for cooking, science, piano lessons and PE. Specialist teachers move around to them. In terms of setting, it would be unusual to set in the first term of y7 anyway ime, and teaching the range of abilities of a y7 class isn't very different to teaching a y6 class. I believe they would usually be set after Christmas, although I'm not sure this year.

Y7s at DS school are moving round the whole school as normal, in their learning groups, with a designated area outside for breaks. No sets yet although they have done CATs. They have seating plans but I'm not sure why... the whole of Y7 is a bubble and was sent home last term when there was one case.

I've not been to a school where Y7s are set in English to be honest (I'm a specialist dyslexia teacher).

Work in a secondary. And all kids are going to lessons in the classrooms they should be and being taught by specialist teachers.

Judging by what other schools are doing. Some are doing as we are. Others are keeping the kids in the same classroom and the teachers are moving around.

My Y7 DD is moving around her designated block for lessons. Specialist lessons are held out of block, in the appropriate classroom. I think they may have been set for maths...but not sure. They've done CATs recently.

My year 7 DS is moving round to proper classrooms and specialist teachers. They've done their baseline assessments and are in sets as normal. No discernible difference to a normal year.
Big school 3000 kids and only 1 case to date.

The school I teach in has year 7 groups in one classroom (their tutor group) and teachers move round the school. The only exceptions are drama and art and PE where students go to those classrooms. They haven't been set yet. My school has had 29 cases that we know of plus 8 teachers so still quite cautious. School population of around 900.

I suppose it depends on the building and the resources

What do teachers on here think about no sets and differentiation?

A lot of schools only set for maths, particularly in Y7. It’s not just a covid thing.

I wouldn’t be happy with no sets for maths though (I’m a maths teacher).

No sets - but then no SATs to set them on, and although school say they will all have CAT assessment, DS swears he hasnt done it.
Maths is ridiculously easy, but the rest is fine AFAIK.
I dont know when sets would be sorted typically tho.

I guess it will depend to an extent on the type of school. In a selective school the lack of sets is probably a bit less of an issue because the overall ability range will be narrower. In an all ability school I can see it would be more difficult. Do any schools organise pastoral groups around academic ability? I've no idea. Or are some schools currently bubbling based on the teaching class rather than the pastoral form structure? In any case, I think I'd be more worried about the lack of specialist teaching than the lack of sets. If a maths teacher is teaching Y7 French or history on an ongoing basis then that could be a real issue - all the children are really getting is a cover lesson with work set, surely?

Year 7 are being taught in tutor groups (which was true for most lessons even before this year) but move around the school to different classrooms and are taught by specialist teachers.

My Y7 and Y9 have both been in their tutor rooms with teachers coming to them. Each year group in the school has a zone made up of several classrooms, priority for access to full range of rooms given to 6th form and Y11 for good reason.

All have seating plans.

Since half term Y9 have started setting so now moving around their zone for some subjects. Y8 will follow and lastly Y7.

My year 7 child is moving round the school as would have done pre-covid, therefore all lessons are with specialist teachers in the appropriate room. They wipe down desks, chairs before the leave the room and sanitise hands before entering. No sharing of equipment. They wear masks whilst moving round the school

Year 7... Staying in same tutor group for everything... Teachers are coming to their classroom except for some classes... Science, music, food tech etc where they go to different classroom.

My year 7 mainly stay in her classroom and specialist teachers are moving around.

My Y7 is based mainly in his form room, with the maths, english, french, history teachers coming to them.
Where a specialist room is required, they go there - art, science, PE etc.

My yr 7 dd stays in the same room (and seating plan). Subject teachers come to her. (She has done no science practicals.) 6th form ds moves around the school. This half-term his school have introduced a policy of sitting in alphabetical order to simplify taking kids out when it comes to pulling them out of school. Think that's quite sensible. (He was off for the last 2 weeks of last half-term to self-isolate thanks to someone else.)
My school has a staggered timetable where all kids move around the school for each subject. We may go to alphabetical seating plans too.

Mine are moving around to each lesson any are in sets for English, maths and Science.