More Able Learners

Most Able Learners Programme

Most Able students (formerly known as 'Gifted and Talented') have been defined as those students who have one or more abilities developed to a level significantly ahead of their year group (or with the potential to develop these abilities). At Barking Abbey, we support the most able learners to ensure students have high expectations within lessons, strong academic outcomes, and opportunities for enrichment over the course of their time at Barking Abbey School.

The most able learners programme will consists of four main areas:

1. Identification of students

Our more able students will be identified at KS3, KS4 and KS5 through regular internal assessments, analysis of data from these assessments, as well as subject area nominations.

In addition to using data provided by primary schools at KS2, the identification of most able students will be ongoing over time using:

• Assessment results – such as standard tests, CATs and examination performance externally and internally
• Subject area nominations – based on relevant assessment profiles using multiple types of quality assessment including teacher assessment

2. In class support

Opportunities to provide additional support to challenge the more able students are embedded within the curriculum and offered in all lessons across all key stages. Each Head of Department works with the Director of Aspiration to ensure that teachers know who their most able students are, and that sufficient challenge and rigour are embedded within the curriculum to cater to student needs.

3. Intervention/focus groups

The progress of the most able students is tracked each term. Support is then put in place to ensure that the most able students are making good progress. Where specific needs or trends are identified, interventions and/or focused targets for students will be recommended. The Director of Aspiration works with Head of Department to ensure that student needs are met.

At KS5, the most able students are placed on a careers pathway programme relevant to their area of study. The key pathways are: 

• Medicine
• Law
• STEM
• Computing/IT
• Business and Finance
• Vocational
• Sports academy

The purpose of the sixth form pathways is to expose our students to key career, higher education and industry specific opportunities, giving them a rich experience and continuing to provide students with excellent destinations beyond life at Barking Abbey School.

4. Enrichment opportunities

Barking Abbey School has an extensive set of enrichment opportunities for students, and all students identified as most able learners are given the opportunity to attend an enrichment club that is of interest to them, or which will benefit their aspirations and/or targets.