Health & Social Care

Welcome

The course is designed to provide students with a specialist work-related qualification in health and social care that is recognised by employers and universities. This course allows students to develop a wide-ranging theoretical education whilst also gaining valuable work experience in this demanding field. Furthermore, an essential part of the course looks at the growth and development of individuals and factors that can affect that. We will also be exploring how individuals with additional needs are supported within a health and social care setting.

Health and Social care learners benefit from opportunities for deep learning where they are able to make connections among units and select areas of interest for detailed study. BTEC Nationals provide a vocational context in which learners can develop the knowledge and skills required for particular degree courses, including:

Reading technical texts
Effective writing
Analytical skills
Preparation for assessment methods used in degrees

Health and social care can lead to both employment in the health and social care sector or higher education on a course such as Occupational Therapy, Sociology, Social Science, Mental Health Nursing, Paediatric Nursing and Early Years Teaching with PGCE.

Key Staff

Mrs Jackson - Head of Department
Miss King - Social Science Teacher
Mrs Pedder - Social Science Teacher
Miss Thompson - Social Science Teacher

Curriculum Intent

Students of Health & Social Care understand professional practice as well as the importance of empathy and compassion for everyone who accesses health services (which is all of us at some point in our lifetime).

Key Stage 4

BTEC Tech Award Level 1 and Level 2

The Tech Award gives learners the opportunity to develop sector-specific knowledge and skills in a practical learning environment. The internal assessment focuses on the development of core knowledge and understanding of human growth and development, how people deal with major life events and health and social care services. It encourages the development and application of skills such as practical demonstration of care values, together with the ability to reflect on own performance.

There is one external assessment, Component 3, it provides the main synoptic assessment for the qualification. Component 3 builds directly on Components 1 and 2, and enables learning to be brought together and related to a real-life situation.

Study of the qualification as part of Key Stage 4 learning will help learners to make more informed choices for further learning, either generally or in this sector. The choices that learners can make post-16 will depend on their overall level of attainment and their performance in the qualification.

Summary Curriculum Plans

Key Stage 5

BTEC Level 3

What is Health and Social Care? As a subject discipline, Health and Social Care (H&SC) combines elements of Public Health, Sociology, Biology, Nutrition, Law and Ethics.

The topics covered in the courses are wide-ranging and interesting including Safeguarding, Research Methods, Communication in Care and Education and Human Lifespan and Development. Within your lessons, you will take part in discussions, role-plays, presentations and independent research. You will also be required to supply a range of written evidence to demonstrate that you have met the necessary criteria. These will include reports, presentations and extended writing. Your teacher will guide you through this process to ensure you get the right support to reach your potential target grade.

BTEC Extended Certificate

This qualification is equivalent to one A-level and has four units that have a combination of coursework and external assessments.

BTEC Diploma

This qualification is equivalent to two A-levels and has eight units that have a combination of coursework and external assessments.

Summary Curriculum Plan

Homework Intent

The purpose of homework in Health & Social care is to expand on the knowledge gained in the classroom and apply it to assignments. This enables students to go from Pass to Merit and Distinction outcomes. The criteria is linked to specific key terms, which they learn in class and embed in internally marked assessments. For external assessments, research into specific areas of health and social care is set as private study which enables them to understand how services function to support all patients no matter what their background is.

Inclusion

It is our intent that pupils with special educational needs/disabilities (SEND) follow the same curriculum, learn alongside their peers and achieve similar outcomes.

In addition, they may benefit from additional opportunities in the lessons and in the co-curricular activities that are arranged especially for them.

SEND Implementation and Impact Pupil Premium Intent

Literacy

Reading Aims:

To ensure students are equipped to understand command words in questions.
To ensure students are equipped with a range of independent reading strategies to aid subject comprehension, exam technique and accessing the subject beyond the curriculum.
To ensure students are equipped with a range of independent reading strategies when applying source material (Sociology / Criminology / Health and Social Care).
To support students in understanding complex vocabulary that they encounter in their reading.
To encourage students to read for pleasure outside of the lessons (reading lists and classroom displays).
To encourage students to engage with topical subject related subject material.

Writing Aims:

To ensure students are equipped with strategies to construct their answers to meet the demands of the exam but also show flair and creativity.
To ensure students are equipped with a range of independent strategies to enable them to plan their answers carefully.
To equip students with strategies to reflect on their writing.
To enable students to manage the demands of writing in timed conditions.

Literacy Strategies