What do you think of this school?

[Aroundtheworldin80moves]

Trying to decide whether to apply for the local Free School.

• 50 children per year in two classes. Form groups stay together.
• Topic based not subject based learning (with topics covering everything from Science to languages to art)
• all study the same set GCSEs (Maths, English, language, Sciences, History, Art) with some scope for extra subjects.
• no uniform
• lots of practical experience.

Some things appeal, others don't.
20 minute bus journey, then 25 minute walk. Have yet to check the cycling route

This is opposed to the local school, 5 minute walk, 7 form entry, traditional uniform, massive range of academic and vocational subjects, range of extra curricular...

Unfortunately we can't visit as Open Evenings this week and she has a positive Covid test.

No. Lack of GCSE choices, too small for decent extra-curricular options or good setting in upper years. Not a short journey.

I'd only choose it if all other options within the same travel time were awful.

I would not touch the free school with a barge pole. I think students should be given some choice to study subjects that interest them at GCSE as they are more likely to do well in those subjects. Also hate the idea of lumping science and humanities together because, again, some kids excel at one but not the other. Do they set by ability? This is key for me when choosing a school.

There's a lot I don't like there but the commute alone is pretty savage

God no. Let your kid have some choice in the subjects and extracurriculars they do!

Who is behind the Free School? How long has it been going?

A 25 minute walk when it’s pouring with rain wouldn’t be fun.

I wouldn't stifle my kid by sending them to somewhere with so little choice.

But the topic-based learning sounds particularly shit.

Not a chance. I would really worry about staffing - is everyone on v light part time contracts? Or does the English teacher also teach French and history?

50 children per year in two classes. Form groups stay together.

I would worry about such a small pool of children, 50 is a low number and your child might find it difficult to make friends.

Topic based not subject based learning (with topics covering everything from Science to languages to art)

This sounds interesting, but i'd have to find out how it actually works. There's plenty of scope to learn via topics but how do they ensure that the children understand different concepts, and what steps are in place to make sure those who struggle with specific subjects don't fall through the cracks?

all study the same set GCSEs (Maths, English, language, Sciences, History, Art) with some scope for extra subjects.

How do they differentiate for the different abilities? I would worry the children aren't getting enough support or being encouraged to achieve their potential.

no uniform

That wouldn't bother me

lots of practical experience.

What sort of practical experience?

Lack of choice of subjects would bother me somewhat but lack of setting wouldn’t. My ds attends a (specialist) school where there’s no setting because there’s only 25 max in the year group and they achieve high gcse results across the board, every single year without fail. Ask to visit at another time if you can’t make the open evening.

The school sounded ideal for DD until I dug into what they did for years 10&11. The two twin schools receive hundreds of applications for the 50 places and everyone seems to think its wonderful...

But overall it looks like the local school may be the preferred option.

No way.

I'm a teacher and have recently done some quite extensive research into the impact of topic vs subject teaching.

I would advocate for subject-based every time and at secondary level the pupils must have an increasing degree of autonomy and choice over their subjects!

The schools are run by the XP Trust. (There are two of them locally).

Practical experience is industry visits, specialists coming in etc from what the website says.

If you pick a more local school your child can meet with his friends. My DSS came to live with us 2 days before starting secondary poor thing and he had to get 2 buses to get to school it caused great stress when he wanted to go out there to meet his friends worrying if he would manage to get the last bus home ect

They only do 6 GCSE? All of them? Even the brightest?😨

@ArseInTheCoOpWindow

They only do 6 GCSE? All of them? Even the brightest?😨

2 x English and 2 x science - so 8 core subjects

I think it depends on ability if your child. One if my kids would have thrived in a school like this. Doesn't like larger groups, not very traditionally academic. Do you know if they have higher SEN intake? I would look into this depending on your child's needs. If your child is academically gifted I wouldn't recommend something like this for to lack of choice, lack of competition, lack of sets. If she is not, I think it would be great and a much but interesting way to learn, and worth the journey. I wish something like this had been available to my ds1.

I don't understand form groups staying together. 25 is too low a number in my opinion for forming friendship groups and being able to work with similar ability peers at secondary level. If all 50 students were able to mix, and they were set for English and maths I'd consider it.

@ArseInTheCoOpWindow

They only do 6 GCSE? All of them? Even the brightest?😨

I would guess they do English Lit and Lang, Maths, double award science, a language, history and art, so 8 in total.

The secondary I went to was quite innovative. We had an excellent HT. We had topic based learning in Y7-8: social studies, English, history in one. This got broken out later. There was no setting for Maths till y11 and no setting for English ever. It was a school of 6 classes intake (180). It actually worked very well and we did some topics in the first 2 years of secondary which I've never forgotten. I think it did inspire a thirst for learning and much more rounded learning, so I'm actually quite into topic teaching after that experience. It's probably not great for getting high grades in the kind of GCSEs they do these days, which is a whole other topic of discussion.

The only positive I can see is no uniform.
All the other things mean I wouldn't have touched it with a barge pole.

Teaching by topics doesn't really feed into taking separate gcse exams.

Not being able to personalise the curriculum at all is a big negative to me.
My Dc were really glad and excited to choose options of some subjects they really enjoyed, and to give up others they didn't in year 9.

Two form entry is tiny. 7 form entry might seem big and overwhelming when you are used to a small primary, but having sent my Dc to a large local comp, I can see the benefits of bigger.

Ds did 14. DD is doing 10. Neither are off the scale bright.

14 is too many, but able ones should be offered more than 8

Reasons we are considering it...
DD is clever... but not in a academic way. Very good at practical tasks, learning by doing etc. She most likely has dyslexia. She has managed to overcome her selective mutism, but is still introverted and likes quiet. She hates crowds and gets anxious in them (sadly the last 18 months has been a set back in this area)

The topic based learning alone would put me off.
It’s okay for primary, but not secondary.
How do you shoehorn the periodic table, the Holocaust and Shakespeare into a topic?

Having said that, I think this would suit children who are not academically inclined, but well behaved.
The problem for children like that is, in a normal secondary, they get stuck in bottom sets with the least well behaved children. It’s not a nice experience.
No setting would be good for children like that.