3rd March 2017 STANDING OUT THE MAGAZINE FOR MOUNTS BAY ACADEMY Cover: WOW Learning - Maths 26th January 2018 PRINCIPALS REPORT It’s all about you... We were delighted to welcome colleagues from Queen Elizabeth’s School in Devon today who were here to look at our teaching and learning approaches and student support systems. They were extremely complimentary about the Academy and especially our staff and students saying: To: All the students and staff at Mounts Bay Academy; You are an inspiration! It was fantastic to see you all working together and enjoying your teaching and learning. Thank you. Paula Smith, Deputy Headteacher, Queen Elizabeth's School, Crediton, Devon. Team Mounts Bay! A very uplifting and interesting day in your fantastic school. Thank you. Rupert Poole, Headteacher, Queen Elizabeth's School, Crediton, Devon. The final performance tables for Secondary Schools were published yesterday and they need to be read with some caution as the whole system for reporting results has changed by the Government this year. The GCSEs were completely rewritten for 2017 so that the content is harder and the grades include not just a grade A (now renamed as a 7) but also a grade A* (now a grade 8) and a new grade A** (now a grade 9). So higher attaining students need to learn content that used to be taught at the AS level to get the very highest grades. Only a handful of students nationally will get a grade 9. At MBA in 2017 we had 9 Grade 9s in total. A huge congratulations to all those students. This year the only subjects that have moved to this new grading system are English Language, English Literature and Mathematics so it is a hybrid year that mixes letters, A,B, C etc and numbers, grade 1 to 9. Most subjects in 2018 will be graded using the numbers not the letters. At MBA we made the decision to help the students in this unusual year to get the best grades possible to get onto their college courses and so we gave students the opportunity to take the A*-G English and Maths GCSEs at the end of Year 10 and the 1 to 9 GCSEs at the end of Year 11. This allowed students to have two chances of success. It did mean that only the 1 to 9 grades would be reported in the league tables but for this year we felt we wanted to put the students’ chances of success before the published league tables. The result is our Maths and English GCSE percentage score for 2017 looks lower than normal but in fact if we add in the Year 10 result then the percentage grades go up 10% for Maths and English to 43.8. See the table on the next page. The other important change is that the grades are now worth different amounts compared to last year with the top grades being worth more than the lower grades. Last year the grades were worth a point for each grade. So a grade G was worth one point and an F was worth two and an E was worth three etc. Now the lower grades are only worth 0.5 whilst the top grades are worth 1.5. This means it is incorrect to compare last year’s results with this years results because we are not comparing like with like. The Progress 8 figure is designed to help parents understand how much progress has occurred since the Key Stage 2 tests were taken by the students in this Year group. The score ranges from 1 to -1 with a 0 representing no progress. Half the schools in the country will get a minus score and the other half will get a positive because the Government puts all schools in to a rank order. This year MBA gained a positive score of 0.09 which is pleasing in a year when there have been so many changes. They are officially “good” in Ofsted terms. We know that our score next year will be much higher because the mock exams already put the students in the “outstanding” category for Progress 8 and Attainment 8. The tables below shows our actual results for this year compared to the county and national averages. Good Pass in E/M EBACC AT GRADE Standard Pass in E/ ENTERED FOR ATTAINMENT 8 PROGRESS 8 5 A*-C 3 A*/A CAPPED 8 APS 9-5 (A*-C) 5/C OR ABOVE M 9-4 (A*-C) EBACC MBA 43.8 24.2 48 +0.17 60.1 72.5 28.1 340.73 74.2 552.18 County 37.7 15.7 45.4 -0.03 60 N/A 20 N/A 30.6 N/A National 39.1 19.5 44.2 -0.03 63.3 65 24 308.6 34.9 366.6 (2015) (2016) (2015) (2015) Above National Average Above County Average Good Pass in E/M EBACC AT GRADE Standard Pass in E/ Good Pass in E/M EBACC AT GRADE ENTERED FOR Standard Pass in E/ ENTERED FOR ATTAINMENT 8 PROGRESS 8 5 A*-C 3 A*/A ATTAINMENTCAPPED 8 8 PROGRESS 8 APS 5 A*-C 3 A*/A CAPPED 8 APS 9-5 (A*-C) 5/C OR ABOVE M 9-4 (A*-C) 9-5 (A*-C) 5/C OR ABOVE EBACC M 9-4 (A*-C) EBACC Good Pass in E/M EBACC AT GRADE Standard Pass in E/ ENTERED FOR ATTAINMENT 8 PROGRESS 8 5 A*-C 3 A*/A CAPPED 8 APS MBA 9-5 (A*-C) 43.85/C OR ABOVE 24.2 48 M 9-4 (A*-C)+0.17 MBA60.1 72.543.8 EBACC24.228.1 340.7348 +0.1774.2 552.1860.1 72.5 28.1 340.73 74.2 552.18 @ MOUNTSBAY MBA 43.8 24.2 48 +0.17 60.1 72.5 28.1 340.73 74.2 552.18 County 37.7 15.7 45.4 -0.03 County60 N/A37.7 15.720 N/A45.4 -0.0330.6 N/A60 N/A 20 N/A 30.6 N/A SUCCESS Good Pass in E/M EBACC AT GRADE Standard Pass in E/ ENTERED FOR ATTAINMENT 8 PROGRESS 8 5 A*-C 3 A*/A CAPPED 8 APS County 37.7 15.7 45.4 -0.03 60 N/A 20 9-5 (A*-C) N/A5/C OR ABOVE 30.6 N/AM 9-4 (A*-C) EBACC MBA 43.8 24.2 48 +0.17 60.1 72.5 28.1 340.73 74.2 552.18 National 39.1 19.5 44.2 -0.03 National63.3 39.165 19.524 308.644.2 -0.0334.9 366.663.3 65 24 308.6 34.9 366.6 National 39.1 19.5 44.2 -0.03 63.3 65 24 308.6 34.9 366.6 County 37.7 (2015)15.7 45.4(2016)-0.03 60(2015)N/A 20 N/A 30.6(2015) N/A (2015) (2016) (2015) (2015) (2015) (2016) (2015) (2015) National 39.1 19.5 44.2 -0.03 63.3 65 24 308.6 34.9 366.6 Above National AverageAbove NationalAbove County Average Average (2015)Above (2016) County(2015) Average(2015) Above National Average Above County Average Above County Average GCSE RESULTS 2017 @ MOUNTSBAY @ MOUNTSBAY SUCCESSAbove National Average NATIONAL AND COUNTY COMPARISON @ MOUNTSBAY @ MOUNTSBAY SUCCESS LEARNING Adventurously - LEARNING Ambitiously - LEARNING Passionately - LEARNING Boldly - LEARNING Inquisitively - LEARNING Ethically National County SUCCESS MBA @ MOUNTSBAY SUCCESS SUCCESS LEARNING Above County Average County Above Above National Average National Above Good Pass in E/M Good Pass 9-5 (A*-C) 43.8 37.7 39.1 Adventurously EBACC AT GRADE AT EBACC 5/C OR ABOVE 5/C 24.2 19.5 15.7 - LEARNING ATTAINMENT 8 ATTAINMENT 45.4 44.2 48 Ambitiously PROGRESS 8 PROGRESS -0.03 -0.03 +0.17 - LEARNING Standard Pass in E/ Pass Standard M 9-4 (A*-C) 63.3 60.1 Passionately 60 - LEARNING (2015) 72.5 N/A 5 A*-C GCSE RESULTS 2017 GCSE RESULTS 65 NATIONAL AND COUNTY COMPARISON AND COUNTY NATIONAL Boldly (2016) 28.1 3 A*/A 20 24 - LEARNING 340.73 308.6 CAPPED 8 (2015) N/A Inquisitively ENTERED FOR ENTERED FOR - LEARNING 30.6 34.9 74.2 EBACC 552.18 366.6 Ethically (2015) N/A APS DABE VINCI YOUR PROGRAMME BEST Time-lapse News Report Josie was awarded a Da Vinci for a piece of homework (her homework menu specified a news report, the deadline for which has not even been reached yet!) that far exceeded all expectations for the task that was set. Specifically, Josie produced a wonderful time- lapse video report that was altogether different from anything that has been submitted for this task previously. In doing so, Josie not only demonstrated supreme commitment to the task and the imagination to develop her ideas in an entirely different medium, but has also provided her peers with a wonderful source of inspiration. In producing a piece of work of this standard, Josie has revealed a passion for English and a level of self-motivation that warrants recognition. To produce a time-lapse video of this standard clearly required considerable planning and effort, as well as a high degree of accuracy and a determination to produce something quite special. Report by: Mr Helliwell EXCELLENCE REWARD BE INSPIRED WOW Wednesday It was 'Wow Wednesday' here at MBA this week, and student learning was enhanced with memorable encounters and experiences! In Science on one side of the corridor Mr Troup was demonstrating the mechanics of a dynamo with his bike, in full cycle gear, and Mr Hoyle dressed all in black to represent being a carbon atom on the other side of the corridor.