CLIL SCIENCE AND MATHS: Balcarras School

Friday February the 24th

Today we have visited Balcarras School.:

- Welcome at 8 :45 by Neil Baxter, Deputy Headteacher. While drinking coffee, he has given us our Programme for the day, and some details of the School .

- 9 :00 am: two students accompanied us for a tour of the school and then we returned to the reception. We could take some photos to the building and classrooms.

- 9.55-10.50 am: teachers of Maths were collected by the staff to take lessons of Maths KS3-KS5, 18- year -old students. No more than 15 per class. Mechanics lesson, about "particles".

At 10.55 Coffee in staffroom

At 11.10-12.10 We had another lesson , but this time the subsidiary subject was Physics. Students were studying Stars (Asronomy).

At 12.10 -1.10 We had a meeting with Burke, Headteacher. We discusssed about English Education system and how Balcarras operates: House system

Each child who joins Balcarras is placed in a House. The four Houses are Foley, Graveney, Ottewell and Selvey. Nowadays there are 250 children in each one, except in the last one, with 400 students, that they are in the 6^th form. Children with older brothers and/or sisters already at Balcarras normally join the same House. Year 7 tutor groups are taught together with the exception of mathematics and are gradually introduced to Balcarras.

Although each house has its own “personality” certain principles apply to all. It is hoped that each House provides pupils with an education of the highest quality so that they leave Balcarras with the qualifications, skills and personal qualities they need to lead a successful life.

Balcarras: “From strength to strength”

Students in this School are from 11 to 18 years old. It is a coeducational and comprehensive centre. It is known as an Academy School: 11-14 Key Stage 3; 14-16: GCSE; 16-18: A-level. Staff: 81 teachers and 24 teaching assistants.