Curriculum
The curriculum is at the heart of what a school does. At Castle Donington College, we aim to give each pupil a balanced ‘entitlement’ covering the full range of mathematical, linguistic, technical, scientific and artistic areas. Our curriculum is broad, balanced and inclusive and our pupils find it exciting and challenging; one which stimulates, motives and ignites curiosity.
The curriculum at Castle Donington College is designed to enable all individual pupils to achieve their full potential, regardless of their academic ability. What we teach has been carefully considered and designed to ensure all pupils are well-prepared for life in modern Britain and able to access and progress to aspirational Post 16 opportunities, whether that is at Sixth Form, a further education institution, an apprenticeship placement or employment.
People learn in different ways so we use a variety of teaching styles to provide the right kind of learning to suit individual pupils. These methods include a mix of whole class teaching, group work, intensive support and intervention and homework. We encourage our pupils to take responsibility for their own learning and gain the confidence to become independent, self-motivated learners and to ensure they can revise effectively for their public examinations.
In Years 7, 8 and 9 (Key Stage 3) pupils are taught in mixed ability groups for most subjects except for Maths, Year 9 Science and Year 9 Languages where they are grouped by ability. Our lessons are 1 hour long and the curriculum time allocation is shown in the table below. . Our lessons are 1 hour long.
At Key Stage 4, (Years 10 and 11) pupils follow a Core curriculum of English, Maths, Science, PE Religious Education and PSHE. In addition, they chose to study four option subjects.
Beyond the normal school day, we offer a range of activities, including educational visits both in this country and abroad, sports, music, drama, community involvement, charity events - as well as many clubs. We have also built into our curriculum and extracurricular activities, enterprise related opportunities that consist of personal, intellectual and physical development challenges.
We believe that parents play a vital role in their children’s education. Our curriculum maps are published so that parents can see what is going to be taught and can support their child’s learning.
If you require further information about the curriculum the College is following please do not hesitate to contact us by telephone on 01332 810528 or via email at postroom@cdcollege.uk for the attention of Mr Barratt.
Please note that during the Covid Pandemic some of the sequencing and rotation of topics has changed.