Passion - Universality - Skills for Life

At Callington, our English teachers love their subject. We believe that English Literature holds lessons for us all, no matter when it was written, or who reads it - and we encourage our students to discover what literature means to them through their reading and writing.

English will help students develop a rich vocabulary and understanding of the world around them, equipping them with knowledge, skills and understanding for life.

By the end of their education in English at Callington Community College, all students of English will:

• Experience some of the best of what English Literature has to offer across a range of forms, genres and time periods.
• Understand how spoken and written language can be used to entertain, persuade and inform a reader, and be able to manipulate their own writing to suit the needs of their audience and purpose.
• Have the chance to explore their views on literature and language in a safe and explorative environment, where having an informed opinion is valued, and the ability to listen to others in order to build or challenge ideas is encouraged.

In order to fully appreciate English and develop a deep schema, topics in English have been intelligently sequenced by the following rationale:

• That a deep knowledge and understanding of great works of literature goes hand in hand with the ability to develop our own reading and writing skills.
• That the three pillars of reading, writing and rhetoric, and their place in shaping both our society, and civilisation as a whole, needs to be built from the basics up, and revisited regularly from different angles.

The English curriculum at Callington Community College has been influenced by:

• Scarborough’s Reading Rope - that the ‘mechanics’ of reading are still practiced alongside higher level reading skills of inference, analysis, and synthesis.
• The Freyer model for explicitly teaching vocabulary that allows students to understand key concepts and talk intelligently about challenging concepts.
• The Mathew effect - our curriculum is designed to ensure all students access the very best literature, but that the tools needed to access it are built from the bottom up across KS3 and KS4.
• Michael Young’s theory of ‘Powerful Knowledge’ - by placing the study of texts alongside the writer’s intentions from Year 7 upwards, students are able to see the importance of literature to society, and become equipped with the vocabulary to discuss the world around them.

Our English curriculum addresses disadvantage through:

• Allowing all students at all levels or backgrounds to experience the same challenging texts and skills.
• Offering the study of texts at extract and whole text level.
• Sequencing the curriculum so that skills are revisited and built upon each year, ensuring no students are left behind.
• Building cultural capital through high-quality texts, adaptations and theatrical performances.

We believe that English contributes to the personal development of all of our students through:

• An increased awareness of the world around them, and the history behind it through the study of texts and contexts from 1598 to the present day.
• The value placed on discussion, active listening and accountable talk - their opinions matter.
• The opportunity to develop their reading and writing skills in a range of forms and contexts, allowing them to meet the challenges of higher education and the world of work. 

Opportunities to build an understanding of Social, Moral and Ethical issues are developed alongside links to the wider world, including careers, through:

• The thematic focus on the human condition (year 7) Power and conflict (Year 9) and morality (Year 10) that allows them to make links between the study ot important texts and the social, moral and ethical issues that they debate.
• Teachers who passionately believe in the importance of reading, writing and talking to explore our feelings, ideas and opinions about the world we live in.
• Opportunities to write in a variety of different styles, preparing students for communicating in the wider world.