Personal Development
Personal Development aims to promote the spiritual, moral, social and cultural development of pupils at school; and prepares our pupils for the opportunities, responsibilities and experiences of adult life.
The Personal Development curriculum incorporates:
- Citizenship education
- Personal, Social, Health and Economic education (PSHEE)
- Careers and Employability education
- Relationships and Sex education
- Religious education (at KS4)
Personal Development is concerned with personal value systems, attitudes and behaviour. The curriculum provides the information and skills to encourage students to take responsibility for their own actions, develop self-awareness and build a positive self-image in order to effectively cope with the demands of modern life. It aims to promote personal, social and moral responsibility and to develop the ability to use information to make clear and skilled choices in regard to decision-making, communication and relationships. Personal Development supports the development of the knowledge, skills and understanding students need to lead confident, healthy, independent lives and to become informed, active, and responsible citizens.
Personal Development is delivered throughout Key Stage 3 (Years 7, 8) and Key Stage 4 (Years 9, 10 and 11). All students in Key Stage 3 and Key Stage 4 have two one hour lessons per fortnight. The Sixth Form (Years 12 and 13) Enrichment Programme incorporates issues within Personal Development.
What do we study in Personal Development lessons in 2019-20?
A summary of the units of study for Personal Development can be found below.
The Personal Development team and the wider school community are further developing our curriculum as we approach the introduction of statutory Relationships and Sex Education and Health Education from September 2020.
Key Stage 3
Year 7:
- The Misbourne Way – Introduction to The Misbourne
- Diet, Exercise and Healthy Choices
- Parliament and Democracy
- Careers and Employability
- Relationships and Friendships
- Public Speaking – Developing Oracy
Year 8:
- Politics and Participation
- Mental Health and Wellbeing
- Rights and Responsibilities
- Careers and Employability
- Relationships
- Public Speaking – Developing Oracy
Key Stage 4
Year 9:
- Conflict and Controversy
- Mental Health and Wellbeing
- Managing Money
- Drugs Education
- Relationships and Sex Education
Year 10:
- Law and Order
- Mental Health and Wellbeing including in the work place
- Religion in the 21st Century
- Financial Literacy and Planning
- Relationships and Sex Education
- Careers and Study Skills
Year 11:
- Careers and Employability
- Media Literacy
- Study Skills
Developing Oracy
‘Oracy has been undervalued and overlooked within state schools for too long, denying the majority of children and young people opportunities consistently afforded to an advantaged few. It’s time for change’
Voice 21
www.voice21.org
In Personal Development students do not sit an external examination in Year 11; this gives us an opportunity to focus on the development of skills necessary for success in adult life.
In 2018-19 we launched an oracy programme designed to develop students’ ability to communicate effectively using spoken language. This approach incorporates Voice 21’s Four Strands of Oracy and ensures that students have the opportunity to receive specific training of how to speak effectively in front of an audience and to receive feedback on the quality of their oracy, clearly identifying areas for development.
Opportunities for developing oracy are incorporated into all schemes of work across Key Stages 3 and 4 and Key Stage 2 students benefit from a discrete scheme of work where they develop their public speaking ability with a focus on social issues (citizenship themes). Preparation for this will take place in class and for homework. All public speaking takes place in lesson time with teacher and peer feedback provided.