Key Stage 3 (Years 7 to 9)
At Key Stage 3, students at Berlin British School study Art, Biology, Chemistry, English, Geography, German, History, Information Technology, Mathematics, Music, Physics, and Physical Education. This year we have introduced a new subject to Year 7, namely Drama. Option subjects are associated with IGCSE and IB. However, at this stage one choice does have to be made – between studying French and Spanish. Drama and a foreign language take the list of subjects taught in Year 7 up to fourteen.
What are the principles underlying the teaching of such a large number of disciplines at Key Stage 3? One response to this question is to say that Berlin British School offers an education modelled on the British system but with an awareness of the school´s internationalism embedded in the approach of its teachers.
Since the 1980s the majority of British schools have followed the National Curriculum for England, Wales and Northern Ireland, the purpose of which is to create a measure of standardisation across the schooling system. Private schools are not obliged to follow this programme. In order to give our students an education characteristic of British schools, our teachers do follow the National Curriculum to a considerable extent. However, we also have the freedom to adapt the curriculum in order to suit our status as a British school in Germany. This is perhaps especially true of Key Stage 3, with its absence of external examinations.
Thus a child studying in Year 7, 8 or 9 will receive a distinctively British education, yet one that takes into account his or her circumstances as a resident of Germany. Subjects such as History and Geography, for example, focus a great deal on studies from the British Isles, as one would expect, yet teachers are also able to develop schemes of work based on more local material, reflecting the school´s relationship with Berlin.
We are also able to tailor our teaching, especially in Year 9, to preparing students for Key Stage 4 which does involve external assessment in the form of IGCSE examinations at the end of Year 11. Again, we have the freedom to begin to study IGCSE material in Year 9 – a common practice in our Mathematics and English departments and vital preparation for the students as they make the transition from one key stage to another.
We should not lose sight of a further, arguably no less crucial transition from Key Stage 2 to Key Stage 3 (that is, from Year 6 to 7). Taught almost entirely by one teacher in Year 6, a student entering Year 7 suddenly finds himself or herself in the novel position – both intriguing and, yes, a little troubling too – of having as many as fourteen teachers to deal with, each with their own way of doing things and of course their demands for homework on different days of the week.
One of the first changes to be encountered in Year 7 is a new system of grading, both for homework and also reports. The marks used by teachers range from “A” to “E,” the former being the highest and the latter the lowest. In addition, effort grades, this time expressed numerically (from 1 to 5), also give an indication of how hard the child is working. Sometimes children and their parents are disturbed when work is given a “C.” In fact this is a perfectly respectable grade to receive, particularly at the start of the school year, indicating that the student is making the expected progress. “B” points to very good work and “A” to outstanding achievement.
To sum up, Key Stage 3 does involve many challenges; it is crucial preparation for the even more rigorous phases of education to follow. Yet this is also a time when students discover a great deal of themselves and of the world – in an atmosphere, at Berlin British School, which is positive, enjoyable and challenging.
