Personalisation and Choice in S3
Dalkeith High School 9th February
2017
The purpose of S3
• S3 is the culmination of the Broad General
Education that all our young people people
experience through Curriculum for Excellence
• By the end of S3, all young people produce a
profile in which evidence is gathered of their
skills, interests and achievements to date
• It’s the stage in their learning journey at which
they begin to make decisions about the areas
and subjects they’d like to focus on
Learning, teaching and assessment in
S3
• Young people will be covering the Experiences
and Outcomes within Curriculum for Excellence
at the Level which best meets their needs
• The focus is on building the skills and capacities
they will need to make a successful transition into
their Senior Phase programme
• Learners’ experiences continue to be varied
across a rich variety of subjects
• Teachers employ a range of different assessment
methods to support young people in
demonstrating the progress they are making
What do we mean by personalisation
and choice?
• Every young person has an entitlement to access
all of the CfE curricular areas
• Schools have a statutory requirement to deliver
experiences and outcomes that promote literacy,
numeracy, and health and wellbeing across these
curricular areas
• Learners in S1 and S2 have experienced many
different subject specialisms within curricular
areas. They can now use this knowledge to help
them make decisions about where their interests
and abilities are best demonstrated
How does this link with qualifications?
• Learners in the Senior Phase (S4-6) undertake
qualifications which are certificated by SQA or other
awarding bodies
• The subjects young people choose to focus on in S3 are
likely to be linked to these. However, they might also:
• Move into a subject that’s similar but a better fit e.g.
from Biology to Environmental Science
• Leave a subject in S4 but pick it up in S5/6
• Start something completely different!
• S3 is not about subject choice for examinations- it’s
about young people doing more of what they enjoy
and what they’re good at
Curricular areas
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Expressive Arts
Languages and Literacy
Health and Wellbeing
Mathematics and Numeracy
Religious and Moral Education
Sciences
Social Studies
Technologies
The S3 Learning Pathways Option
Sheet
Core subjects
• In keeping with entitlements for all, all S3
pupils will continue their studies in:
• English and a Modern Languages (Literacy)
• Maths (Numeracy)
• PSE, PE and Home Economics (Health and
Wellbeing)
• RME
Curricular columns
• In columns 1,6,7 and 8 young people make two choices by
ticking the relevant boxes
• In recognition of the varying interests of our young people,
we offer some flexibility in terms of the subjects we’ve put
into each curricular column e.g. Expressive Arts
• We must ensure that there is breadth in the education of
young people in the BGE
• Enrichment Opportunities (more on these in a moment)
timetabled at the same time as the subjects in each column
appear here for information
• The ‘Plus’ column supports a variety of specialist interests
e.g. taking a second modern language, or doing more PE
than the core provision provides
Support with making choices
• Remember: learners are signing up for the subjects they
are going to focus on in S3, not for what they are going to
do with the rest of their lives
• The S3 Learning Pathways booklet provides clear
summaries of each course
• Our Parents’/Carers’ Evenings provide a chance to have
face to face conversation with subjects specialists, and we
welcome young people there too
• There will also be dedicated time in PSE to support
everyone in making decisions and to make sure processes
are clear
• Teachers generally love nothing more than talking about
their subject- so ask them about it!
Enrichment Opportunities
• This term refers to a variety of courses which are delivered
by teachers in school and through partnership working
• These are included in our curriculum in recognition of the
fact that many learners thrive in environments beyond the
traditional classroom
• Young people can note their interests in any of these
courses through discussion with their Guidance teacher,
who supports them through the coursing process
• Places on these courses are limited and further
opportunities with similar aims to these are offered
throughout the Senior Phase
Some things to encourage your young
person to remember
• This a choice for now. It’s not a choice for ever.
• Not many people end up doing what they
thought they would do when they were 13
• Think about why you are choosing to continue
with a subject- or not. Are you making your
choice for the right reasons? Is it your choice? Or
your friend’s choice? Is it because of the teacher?
• For courses to run, they must be viable. Always
give thought to what your ‘Plan B’ might be.
• You don’t need to do this on your own- but the
final decision has to be yours
Next steps
• Take a look at the Option Sheet and think
about what the top priorities are
• Read the descriptions of the courses in the S3
Learning Pathways booklet and speak to
teachers directly where possible
• Look carefully at the S2 Tracking Report
coming out at the end of the month
• Use the time in PSE to talk through thoughts