A Levels will challenge students in several ways and a significant factor for success will be to develop the right approach to their use of time outside lessons; at home and during study periods. There will be a period of transition whilst they adapt to this and we will support each student in their development of these skills, but ultimately they need to take on board the advice given and act upon it.

Successful studying in Years 12 and 13 is not just dependent on the development of skills but also attitudes and approaches that will enable students to overcome the inevitable challenges. To support this we will be following the A level Mindset, the VESPA model. Students will learn about this approach during form time and strategies will be further developed by their subject teachers. VESPA is a model based on five core principles:

V – Vision – developing a vision for what you want to achieve
E – Effort – the number of proactive independent hours of study you are willing to do
S – Systems – the level to which you organise your learning resources
P- Practice – the level to which you commit to practising and developing your skills
A – Attitude – the way you respond constructively to setbacks

Following each school data collection, students will have an individual VIVA meeting with each of their subject teachers. This meeting will be based on the VESPA principles.

A viva (or Voce Viva) is a chance for student and teacher to evaluate and analyse their work together through the ‘living voice’. In the viva meeting students will demonstrate their ability to participate in academic discussion with their teachers.