Customer Story: Holte School

What do you like most about the new Key Stage 3 content from GCSEPod?

At Holte School, we have explicitly used GCSEPod for students in Key Stage 3 as a teaching, assessment and revision tool. More importantly, we appreciate that it encompasses high-quality, tailored and bespoke content for students in Years 7-9, focusing on key skills and topics.

We really like the pioneering and innovative format of the Key Stage 3 lessons. This new content is engaging and relevant, facilitating pupils’ progress. Each lesson fundamentally starts with a Learning Objective (LO), vocabulary retrieval, video and assessment. This structured approach ensures that learning is more personalised, compelling and contextual. Additionally, assignments tailored for Key Stage 3 and transition groups enhance the effectiveness of the resource.

How have you incorporated the new Key Stage 3 content into your school?

At Holte School, we have successfully incorporated the new Key Stage 3 content, notably in History lessons. Subsequently, this has led to increased pupil participation and progress. We have used the pod links on Microsoft Teams to access the content. Additionally, we have assigned homework specifically designed for Key Stage 3. We recognise that attainment at Key Stage 3 has a direct impact on results in all subjects at GCSE. Therefore, we want pupils to utilise GCSEPod earlier and encourage spaced learning.

What do your students like most about it?

The majority of students love the high quality and engaging GCSEPod videos. Additionally, the high-ability students enjoy the challenging new content. Our whole school focus is on stretching highly able pupils. Moreover, pupils benefit from the quizzes, which help consolidate their learning and encourage critical thinking. This aligns with our Teaching & Learning (T&L) framework, which emphasises the promotion of critical thinking skills.

What do your teachers find most useful about it?

Our teachers find the content and design of the pod videos very useful for dual coding and retrieval practice. They particularly like that GCSEPod significantly reduces their workload, as it’s easy to use and implement. Assignments are self-marked, enabling teachers to assess pupils’ progress more quickly over time.

The Check and Challenge tool is extremely useful in lessons, especially for high ability pupils.

What area has it helped improve most in your setting?

A key area which has improved is the use of IT to enhance teaching and learning. Pupils can engage in learning a variety of subjects outside the classroom. In essence, the more pupils engage in activities outside the classroom, the better their grades will be. Importantly, GCSEPod can be used for flipped learning, allowing pupils to understand the content before our lessons.

In one sentence, how would you describe the new Key Stage 3 content to other teachers?

I would describe the new Key Stage 3 content as very engaging, enthralling and a brilliant revision resource for Key Stage 3 pupils.

Importantly, it is a great assessment tool because it now incorporates Key Stage 3 ready-made assignments to gauge pupils’ learning and identify gaps in their knowledge.

Do you have any top tips/best practice ideas for other schools using the Key Stage 3 content?

A top tip for schools is to recognise and reward the top users of GCSEPod during assembly. This can help raise the profile of GCSEPod within the school community. Schools could make announcements during assemblies to acknowledge students' achievements in GCSEPod usage. Personally, I have made announcements regarding GCSEPod usage and distributed accolades school-wide.

How you launched it to Key Stage 3 students, was it any different to a Key Stage 4 launch?

The teachers and leaders were briefed on the Key Stage 3 content and received regular updates. All relevant staff members were informed about the Key Stage 3 subjects, content and relevant training opportunities, with training offered as needed. The launch approach differed from that of Key Stage 4, which included assemblies focused on GCSEPod. As Key Stage 3 is still relatively new, we are primarily utilising it for core subjects.

Tell us how you use it in school, for homework or in the classroom?

At Holte School, we use GCSEPod to explain complex topics in a range of subjects. For homework, we incorporate links on Teams. Additionally, we provide booklets, knowledge organisers and encourage pupils to use flashcards.

What does the reporting functionality mean to you and how do you use the data it provides?

The reporting functionality means that we can assess our pupils’ usage and departmental usage. Additionally, it provides explicit data on completed assignments, progress, and helps identify intervention groups.

What ability students is it supporting most?

GCSEPod supports pupils of all abilities across the entire school. However, we aim to utilise the Check and Challenge feature more extensively to stretch and challenge our high-achieving pupils. This initiative will positively impact our Progress 8 scores.

Is your Key Stage 3 champion the same person as your Key Stage 4 champion?

The Key Stage 3 champion system differs from that of Key Stage 4. While we have monthly competitions for Key Stage 4, we are planning to introduce a new format for Key Stage 3 that emphasises mastery and maximises opportunities for learning outside the classroom. This approach aligns with our Teaching and Learning (T&L) framework, which also prioritises maximising learning.

Would you recommend GCSEPod to other schools and if so, why?

I would definitely recommend GCSEPod to other schools because it can significantly enhance pupils’ learning outside the classroom and improve their long-term memory which is crucial for success in life.