British Education System a Scheme of Work

British Education System

A scheme of work

A scheme of work is a guideline, which defines the content and structure of a particular point course (Frankum 2006). A scheme of work helps in mapping out clearly the usage of resources, class activities and assessment strategies. Through this, a teacher is able to meet the learning aims as well as objectives of a certain course (Scheme works 2012). A scheme of work is primarily an interpretation of the syllabus of a specification (Errington 2011). It guides teachers throughout the course, monitoring progress against the initial plan. It always includes specific times and dates (Frankum 2006). In most cases, teachers share schemes of work with students so that to enable them have an overview of their course outline (Errington 2011). The main components a scheme of work includes content, objectives or outcomes, methods of delivery, assessment strategies, resources and other remarks (Frankum 2006).

The content part of a scheme of work includes the topic and subtopic that the teacher will cover within a specified period of time (Frankum 2006). The teachers should plan the content to ensure he or she covers everything needed in a particular course. Objectives or outcome part includes highlights of what the teacher expects after teaching a particular topic or subtopic (Errington 2011). Objectives assist teachers in evaluating their students for the purpose identifying whether the students have understood a certain topic or not. If the teacher does not meet the objectives in the schemes of works, he should revisit the topic and try to identify the problem (Errington 2011).

Methods of delivery involve the various ways that the teacher uses in order to deliver the content successfully (Frankum 2006). These methods vary depending on the content. Hence, each topic has a method that suits it when it comes to delivery. Some of the most common delivery methods include presentations, teacher talk, practical, group work and discussions. All these aid in making sure that the teacher meets his or her objectives and aims (Errington 2011).

The part of assessment strategy in the scheme of work includes the various ways of assessing students to gauge their understanding. In most cases, it comes as a standard examination. However, it also comes as tests, quizzes and homework (Errington 2011). Through assessment, the teacher is able to know whether he or she covered a certain topic well or not (Scheme works 2012). The assessment strategies also assist teachers in giving them highlights for future preparation.

The resources part indicates the resources that the teacher will use for the purpose of successful content delivery (Errington 2011). It is through the scheme of work that the teacher is able to allocate available resources in a way that will yield maximum utility for the teacher as well as the students. Some of the resources that included in the scheme of work are books, equipment and even time. The teacher designs the scheme of work in a way that he or she allocates the available resources to each topic (Frankum 2006).

The last part of the scheme of work includes other remarks. The teacher writes this section after covering a particular topic (Frankum 2006). It includes emerging issues that arise during the entire teaching period of a certain topic or subtopic.

Context for the Course

I am designing a scheme of work for a course for young students. These are secondary school students in the age bracket of between 16 and 19. The purpose of this course is to support students in passing their General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) exam. This exam is an academic qualification awarded in various subjects (Roderick & Rushbrook 2002). Usually, students have the freedom to do one or more GCSE exam before and even after they sit for the others. This implies students as well as other people may apply for GCSE exam internally or externally through an institution (Roderick & Rushbrook 2002).

For the purpose of my students, I have designed a scheme of work for Mathematics. The course will take 10 weeks. With regards to this, I have customized all the topics to fit in the scheme of work. The scheme of work will enable me cover all the topic with the specified time, while meeting the objectives of each topic and subtopic.

The scheme of work that I have designed for the learners is appropriate for them. This is because I have considered many things before designing it. First, it is a fact that the target group is young students between the age 16 and 19. Being at this age implies that they need more recreational time and practical than theory (Austin 2008). Financial constraints are not setback to the students as most of the students at this age bracket are dependent of their parent. Due to this course for my students is full time and hence the scheme of work that I have designed is compatible with that.

Theoretical Basis for the Scheme

The mathematic course that I have designed the scheme of work for mainly deals with the learners acquiring the necessary knowledge as well as skills which are vital to their success. This applies to both written paper as well as controlled assessment. With regards to this, I have designed the scheme of work carefully to ensure that the learners get the knowledge which is the foundation of this Mathematic course.

I have designed a scheme of work to use the model of deliver, which uses single lessons in order to deliver the essential skills and knowledge. Single lesson will help the student to break classroom monotony while preparing them for the written paper. The written papers will work as a milestone for the GCSE exam as the student will become familiar with more questions, which are likely to appear in the main exam. Due to this, I have designed the scheme in such a way that 40% of the assessment involves written examination. In addition, after considering several factors, the learning of the Mathematics course will take place through a wide range of activities including practical tasks, discussions, quizzes and games among other activities. I have included all these in the scheme of work.

Developing the Scheme of Work Using Knowledge of Curriculum Frameworks

It requires being knowledgeable in order to design a scheme of work that will guide the teacher as well as the students successfully until the completion of a particular course (Frankum 2006). Concerning this, I have used my knowledge in the course to design the scheme of work, which I am sure that it will enable the students get excellent results in their GCSE exam after completing the short course. Through my experience in teaching the course, it is a fact that I have become more knowledgeable in the course content. In addition, I know the requirement of every topic and subtopic in terms of time and resources allocation.

I have taken into consideration all that I expect at the end of the mathematic course. This is because of using my knowledge as well as previous experiences to determine what the student requires them to pass well in their GCSE exam. Through knowing what each topic entails as well as possible questions, which are testable in the main exams, it is a fact that the scheme will help the student to realize their achievement.

Qualifications Framework and Contribution of the Course to Learner's Progression

Passing GCSE in usually opens many opportunities for learners to progress with their education (Roderick & Rushbrook 2002). GCSE examination acts as a bridge from secondary school to higher institution of learning. Besides that, passing the GCSE exam always opens a lot of opportunities for student even long after they are through with secondary education. Some of these benefits include scholarships, rewards and recognition. Passing the GCSE exams implies that the student is through with one level of education, and he or she is ready to go to the next level (Roderick & Rushbrook 2002).

The short mathematics course that am taking students forms a basis for them to pass their final exam. The course is part of their studies and hence it significantly assists in the learner's progression. Through well understanding of course implies that the student will automatically pass the GCSE exam. This again implies that the learner is ready to progress to the next level of education, having fully satisfied that national board of examination (Roderick & Rushbrook 2002).

Mathematics course generally opens a good opportunity for learners to pursue other prestigious courses in the next level of education (Watson 2006). Some of these courses include engineering, accounting, statistics, actuarial science and computer science (Watson 2006). Concerning this, following the scheme of work that I have designed carefully will enable learners to achieve this objective

The Role of Resources and ICT within the Short Course

Mathematic course uses various sources, which assist in proper understanding of mathematics concept. (Frankum 2006) Some of these resources include time, text books and equipments. Time as a resource is of considerable significance and hence time management during teaching is crucial (Frankum 2006). Time management plays an essential role in ensuring that there is proper allocation of time in all the topics in the course outline. With regards to this, design of my scheme of work is that it makes sure that there is enough time to handle every topic successfully. In addition, proper allocation of time when designing a scheme of work helps in estimating the total amount of time required to complete a particular course.

Textbooks are an essential part of learning any course. Textbooks assist the teacher as well as students in getting necessary materials concerning their course. On the side of the teachers, the textbook assists the teachers to get more information in various topics that are in the course outline. In addition, textbooks assist teachers in designing schemes of work (Crisan 2005). This is because the teachers follow the textbooks to identify the requirements of each topic subtopic. Teacher's guide for textbooks usually accompanies the main text books. They help in guiding the teacher throughout the course on what the course entails and its requirements (Frankum 2006). On the side of the students, text books acts as a study kit for them. They include all what is necessary for them to pass well in their course. In addition, textbooks usually have revision questions at the end of every topic and subtopic. Through attempting those questions, the learners familiarize themselves with questions that are likely to appear in their final exam. With respect to this, I have included various textbooks in the scheme of work that I have designed. This is primarily for referencing purpose in case of any problem during my delivery.

ICT as an academic resource play a very significant role in preparing the learners in order to pass well in their final exam (Johnston & Pimm 2005). Use of ICT in solving a mathematical problem is now a common practice in many courses. This is because the use of ICT makes learning easy and more entertaining. ICT provide a wide range of online materials, which supplements textbooks as well as teacher's talk (Johnston & Pimm 2005). With ease of access of online services, it is now easy for the student to access free online materials which can contribute immensely in their academic performance.

There are three ways in of ICT usage in a mathematic course. These are using ICT as a data analysis tool, problem solving tool and using it for integrating mathematics with a certain context (Johnston & Pimm 2005). Current research indicates that the introduction of technology in the education arena is making it possible for the learning process. This is because embracing ICT saves time and gives the learners to powerful and new ways of exploring concepts at greater depths. The power of computers results to significant changes in the instruction in mathematics (Boaler 2000). For instance, the ability to construct and run complex mathematical concepts, as well as easy exploration of questions through parametric variation is opening up new avenues for the subject. In addition, current research indicates that teaching calculus with the help of computers is a dramatic change. This is because the computer technology is revolutionizing calculus activities including data and graphical analysis.

It is also evidence that weak students are highly likely to succeed with the help of ICT. This is because they come to realize that mathematics as a subject is not only for their able classmates, rather it is for everyone interested in understand it (Johnston & Pimm 2005). Although there is a lot of writings about the potential that ICT have in changing the way teachers teach mathematics in school, it is evidence that there are fewer writings about how the embracement of ICT changes the perception of the students about the subject or the course at large (Johnston & Pimm 2005).

It is evidence that embracing the use of ICT in teaching mathematics is of great significant to both teachers and the students (Frankum 2006). This is because it makes learning easy to understand. In addition, it saves the effort of the teacher when it comes to demonstrating complex concepts (Johnston & Pimm 2005). Concerning this, I have taken the use of ICT into consideration during the designing of the scheme of work. With this into consideration, the short course will become easy to deliver in an effective manner.