Curriculum
At Unity City Academy we aim to deliver a curriculum that meets the Academy vision:
Every student, every staff member, has a determination to succeed, a love of learning, pride in their school and
strength of character.
The academy believes that all students, irrespective of their starting point, are entitled to a broad and ambitious curriculum, considering local context and building upon each prior stage of learning. To that end, we offer an innovative and knowledge-rich curriculum, which enables any student to fulfil their potential and develop skills and knowledge, which will serve them well in later life.
We operate a 3:2 curriculum model with three years assigned for the delivery of our Year 7, 8 and 9 programmes of study. These programmes of study have been carefully crafted to ensure that they meet the requirements set out by the National Curriculum, together with the Base curriculum agreed by all AET schools across the trust. We aim to develop knowledge and skills whilst broadening the curriculum in all year groups.
At the end of Year 9, students study a number of core subjects, together with a number of option subjects across Years 10 and 11. Our flexible two year curriculum delivered in Years 10 and 11 allows us to create personalised guided pathways for our students.
For a curriculum / topic overview, please see below:
To view all our department's curriculum in more detail, please click here.
Assessment
KS3 and KS4 are assessed at various points across the academic year. Students are assessed using an academy wide assessment model to ensure accurate standardisation of student assessments. Assessed grades and progress are fed back to both students and parents via student reports. Curriculum plans and lesson content is then reviewed following the assessment of students and their current progress.
KS3 Curriculum
We currently run a three-year Key Stage 3. This curriculum aims to maximise student progress within KS3 curriculum whilst allowing them to have experiences in a wide range of disciplines. Subjects covered include:
English
Mathematics
Science
History
Geography
Computing (ICT)
MFL
Art
Design & Technology
Performing Arts (Drama, Dance and Music)
PE
RE
PSHE
KS4 Curriculum
In Years 10 and 11 students have a core curriculum, together with a number of optional subjects. This curriculum is undersigned to allow a personalised pathway based upon their interest and future career choices.Subjects covered include:
Core
English Language and Literature
Mathematics
Science
RE
PSHE
PE
Optional Subjects
History
Geography
Triple Science
MFL
Fine Art
Textiles
Engineering
Construction
Photography
3D Design
Hospitality and Catering
Performing Arts (Drama)
Performing Arts (Dance)
Sport
Health and Social Care
Business Enterprise
Creative Imedia (ICT)
Our curriculum intent is developed with our 3 Missions:
Everyone achieves academic excellence
Everyone develops remarkable character
Everyone is proud to be part of our diverse community
We also incorporate 9 key values that we hope to instil in our community that support the curriculum.
Curiosity
Resilience
Courage
Gratitude
Self-Belief
Empathy
Enthusiasm
Integrity
Self-Control
Teaching is conducted through an EASE system within the Academy that supports learning through differentiation, AfL and supporting strategies.
We have a top-down approach to our Intent within the Academy where all curriculum areas start with developing their own version of the Academy Intent, relevant to their department. Following this it is imperative that they create a ‘Learning Journey’ for all learners within their areas, which allows critical thinking towards the sequencing and content delivered.
This in turn develops our Long Term Plans that allow us to focus on knowledge, key topic areas and skills. Finally, this is then used to produce more in-depth schemes of work for all staff to use within their context.
To support students with their learning we use a Google Schools Platform, which enables learning to be placed in Google Classrooms for all lessons and accessed from anywhere, ensuring students never miss out on learning.
Certain standardised practices used within the Academy during lessons include:
Retrieval Practice
Retrieval practice or tasks are completed at the very beginning of each lesson. This is based on compelling research on the importance of regular retrieval practice to ensure that knowledge is stored in long-term memory and remains accessible there. This type of task is a quick and usually independent activity that should take three to five minutes to complete and should require a written response. This allows for rigour and engagement and allows teachers to hold students to account for what they have produced in the time provided.
EASE
The EASE Model is a process in which learners progress from new learning to deep understanding.
We define deep understanding as:
Pupil’s long term retention.
Pupil’s ability to apply learning in a variety of contexts including the unfamiliar
It is about pupils knowing what they know; learning.