Personal Development
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At Macmillan Academy we seek to develop the 'whole' child by providing a broad education that goes beyond the confines of the traditional classroom. We believe in an inclusive education that supports students from a wide range of backgrounds as we want all young people to develop key characteristics as they progress and mature into impressive young adults.
Bearing this in mind, we will provide a range of opportunities for all young people that attend Macmillan Academy which will fall under the following headings.
- Principled curriculum
- Extended curriculum
- Career opportunities
- Physical health
- Mental health
- Personal, social and health curriculum
- Social, moral, spiritual and cultural opportunities
- Informed citizenship
Students at Macmillan Academy get an excellent experience of ‘personal development’ as we provide a range of unique experiences that help our provision to stand out. Students watch a weekly news broadcast that develops their wider cultural awareness. The academy runs a bespoke course in Key Stage 3 (Global Perspectives) which has been designed to broaden the cultural capital of our students. We have a very strong outdoor learning programme with all students in Year 9 following a Duke of Edinburgh programme that leads to high levels of take up on the main award at Key Stage 4 and 5. This is in addition to everything that we do on a daily basis to provide the best education possible for the young people that attend our academy.
Praise Culture
Our praise culture revolves around recognition and reward. Student effort as well as achievement is showcased in a variety of ways, from each tutor base to our academy wide ‘Recognition Wall’. Students can receive immediate reward through collectable post-cards and aspire to receive bronze, silver and gold pin badges that signify their successes across a longer period. Termly reward visits celebrate achievements relating to receiving positive behaviour points or being nominated for the prestigious award of student of the lesson. While members of our Club-Zero, who have a perfect student record across an entire academic year are rightfully celebrated at the end of the summer term! Finally, our year group assembly programme is tailored to highlight the achievements of individual and collective groups of students on a weekly basis. At the end of each half term a particular focus is given to the efforts and achievements over recent weeks.
Enrichments
We have an extensive enrichment programme at the academy and all students are encouraged to participate in weekly after school enrichments.
These cover a wide range of sports and performing arts and include activities ranging from debating to eco-squad and ‘messy science’. In addition we have an impressive portfolio of educational visits; these vary from year to year but recently have included Ullswater, Stratford-upon-Avon and Sheffield as well as longer visits overseas to New York, the Loire Valley and Austria.
Student Leadership
At the academy we encourage students to take responsibility for themselves and others. We are exceptionally lucky that students are keen to be involved in a range of leadership opportunities whereby they act as excellent role models to their peers. For examples of student leadership opportunities please have a look at the booklet below (coming soon!).
MCR Pathways
Macmillan Academy has partnered with MCR Pathways to be able to provide even more support for our students.
MCR Pathways is a school-based mentoring programme that connects young people who need additional encouragement and support, with a caring, adult mentor. Volunteer mentors are recruited, trained and supported to meet their mentees weekly, in school, for a minimum of a year under the Young Talent Programme.
Mentoring is at the core of the MCR Pathways Programme. Mentors are matched with a young person who they meet for an hour a week to listen and provide encouragement. Mentors help their young person engage with their education and build the self-belief they need to leave school to a positive destination. An independent survey by ScotCen found that 81.6% of mentored school leavers progressed to positive destinations (full-time employment, further education, or higher education) compared to 56.3% of care-experienced non-mentored young people.
In addition to mentoring, the Young Talent programme is run by the school’s Pathways Coordinator who helps young people by running mentoring, group work, and Talent Tasters.
Mentoring
Young people in the YT programme can be matched with their own mentor from Year 9 onwards. Pupils meet with their mentor once a week, for a school period and receive guidance, encouragement and support. Mentoring is focused on helping young people to build confidence, self-esteem and goals for the future.
Group Work
Year 7 and 8 young people work with their Pathways Coordinator and participate in weekly group work sessions. These are focused on building confidence and life skills, and also improving Literacy and Numeracy levels. This allows the Coordinator to also get to know the young people and chat to them about having a mentor when they reach Year 9.
Talent Tasters
Talent Tasters are a chance for young people to try out work, further and higher education and cultural experiences through manageable, bite-sized sessions. They are designed to engage and inspire pupils with hands-on learning opportunities. Talent Tasters are organised Year 9-13 young people. They provide more opportunities for young people to find their talents and focus on the pathways to achieve their ambition.
We are actively looking for volunteer mentors. If you are interested in becoming a mentor please register for more information at www.mcrpathways.org
For more information please see our Personal Development Booklet