We are World Class!

Dixons Kings Academy was recently named amongst the latest group of schools to have successfully completed the World Class Schools Quality Mark (WCSQM) and been awarded the status of World Class. Students and staff from Kings attended WCSQM Awards Ceremony, held at The Governors’ Hall, St Thomas’ Hospital, on 6th December 2018.

Assessment for this award requires schools to demonstrate that their students are capable of compiling comprehensive evidence in support of their application. This meant exceeding a challenging threshold in their Key Stage 2 or 4 performance before being invited to apply. Our student team were then required to develop a compelling case for accreditation through detailed auditing of the school's capabilities, video submissions in support of their application, and participating in an assessment centre event, at which their performances are measured against a challenging framework. The team did an outstanding job.

"We are delighted to have achieved such a fantastic award that directly recognises the talent and diligence of our students. The whole process is designed to assess the skills of the students with minimal input from teachers, this makes being successful even more special." Neil Miley, Principal

Now in its fifth year of accreditation, WCSQM has awarded the mark to a further 15 non-selective state secondary schools from around the country. All of the new schools have demonstrated that their students are truly World Class through their successful participation in the rigorous assessment process.

The award’s uniqueness lies in the fact that the students are assessed with regard to whether they themselves are World Class, rather than the school itself. WCSQM believes that if a school is truly World Class, then its students should be able to demonstrate this in whatever context they find themselves. The award is supported by a range of prestigious businesses, further and higher education providers, and parent organisations that are interested in which schools nationally are the best at developing young people to succeed in a rapidly evolving world.

This year, the final stage of the accreditation process, the assessment centre event, took place at The Riverbank Academy in Coventry, a World Class accrediting special school, and a member of the Sidney Stringer Multi Academy Trust. As part of the assessment, the 72
potential World Class students were required to work in teams to develop the Riverbank Academy school grounds to promote accessibility, independence and a love of learning for their students.

“It was tremendous to see how positively students from Year 5 right through to Year 13 worked together to achieve their goal. We were incredibly impressed with the high standard of work produced by the students on the day - you can absolutely see why they were nominated by their school as being World Class.” Miranda Perry, Director of WCSQM

Find out more about WCSQM on their website: www.worldclass-schools.org