Curriculum

Our curriculum is ambitious, inclusive and knowledge rich which will enable students to become well-rounded citizens who are prepared for life.

Academic Rigour

Academic Rigour is our interaction between critical thinking, active learning and meaningful content. We achieve this at Q3 Academy Tipton by providing appropriate challenge for all students based on healthy struggle in learning which supports all students to think harder and achieve more independently. This gives us 7 clearly defined aspects for focus:

1. Critical Thinking: Students’ ability to reason and make decisions which support the learning process
2. Active Learning: Students are involved at every stage of their learning and fully participate in lessons
3. Meaningful Content: Students learn what is necessary and appropriate for their age/stage in order to ensure they progress successfully into their next stage.
4. Appropriate Challenge: Students make progress from their starting points, completing work which suitably builds on their knowledge, skills and understanding.
5. Healthy Struggle: Students are taken out of their comfort zone in order to make excellent progress from their starting points. This is appropriately scaffolded and supported when necessary,
6. Think Harder: Students are challenged to learn and reason beyond the minimum expectations, or think about things differently, to ensure that they move away from comfort zones in learning.
7. Achieve More Independently: Students demonstrate their learning through Assessment and independent Deliberate Practice which is appropriate for the curriculum delivered and allows the teacher to identify and address misconceptions quickly.

Academic Rigour is at the heart of our curriculum intent; every department has sought to define how academic rigour is planned and delivered within their own subject area. By taking a consistent approach to curriculum design we can ensure that students will get the most out of their lessons and achieve more independently.

ACADEMIC GROWTH

Academic Growth is the natural progression from Academic Rigour, where we want to continue to build on the developments in 2024-25 by encouraging and celebrating(1) greater accountability(2) and participation(3) from students whilst upskilling teachers within their own subject specialisms to be able to appropriately challenge(4) students and check  understanding(5) in order to adapt(6) learning.  

This gives us 6 key aspects for development: 

1. Celebrating: Academic growth means recognising and honouring students’ progress, effort, and learning achievements to inspire continued success and ambition. 
2. Accountability: Students take ownership of their actions, learning habits, and goals by being reflective and able to self-regulate. 
3. Participation: Students actively engage with learning activities, setting goals, reflecting on progress, and contributing to a kind and supportive learning environment that contributes to our inclusive school community. 
4. Challenge Learning: Set high expectations with appropriate stretch tasks that deepen thinking and resilience for all students. 
5. Check understanding: Use varied strategies to gauge student comprehension and assess progress, leading to appropriate adaptation. 
6. Adapt Learning: A student-centred approach where instructions and resources are adjusted. Scaffold learning through timely feedback and create a space where students feel safe and respected to take risks. 

For detailed information about our Curriculum at Q3 Academy Tipton please refer to our Curriculum Intent Policy.  For more general information regarding Key Stage 3 please refer to the National Curriculum.