Pupils with SEND have one of the poorest experiences of key stage 3 in secondary school, because of GCSE preparation dominating lessons.
Years 7-9 was also when pressure of achieving at GCSE began to be felt by pupils, who struggled to see the relevance of what they were learning or how it might relate to life beyond exams or a future career.
A report, Education’s Overlook Middle Child: Reclaiming Key Stage 3, found that the first three years of secondary school in England are little more than a ‘dumping ground’ for early GCSE preparation.
More than half of teachers said this was a leading influence on the curriculum for 11–14-year-olds.
It is also the time when attendance in school begins to tail off, with the proportion of pupils who are persistently absent rising from 14% in Year 7 to 21% in Year 8 and 24% in Year 9.
“Girls, pupils with SEND and those from disadvantaged backgrounds reported a consistently poorer experience of key stage 3”, the report, commissioned by the International Baccalaureate and carried out by PF Global, found.
Lack of confidence
Among pupils with SEND, 46% said they felt less confident than before they started secondary school, compared with 22% of pupils without SEND. Pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds were more likely to be bored in lessons, enjoy school less than when they started and dread attending.
Meanwhile, some pupils admitted they were already putting less effort into subjects they did not intend to take at GCSE, with plans for future exams shaping which lessons were worth their time.
Teachers reported wanting to make lessons more practical and relevant but struggled to find the time and resources, and said key stage 3 received less leadership time and attention that the exam years.
Becks Boomer Clark, Co-Chair of the KS3 Alliance and Chief Executive of Lift Schools, said: “Key Stage 3 must be prioritised in the decisions school leaders make every day.
“Who teaches Years 7 to 9, how quickly pupils get help when they struggle, and whether they feel known and that they belong all shape their experience of secondary school and their confidence in what comes next.”
She added that “an excellent key stage 3 experience” had to become an “entitlement for every pupil”.
