The Welsh Baccalaureate
Students will study the Baccalaureate at an intermediate level or foundation level dependent on their ability.
What is the Welsh Baccalaureate?
There are a number of elements encompassed within the Intermediate Baccalaureate:
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The subjects you will study (GCSE / BTEC)
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Key Skills
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Work Related Education
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Community Participation
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Individual Investigation
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Personal and Social Education
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Wales, Europe and the World
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Mentoring and Tutorials
Essential Key Skills
Students will work towards key skills qualifications at levels 1 or 2. They must complete the three essential key skills, Communication, Information Technology and Application of Number as well as one of the wider key skills.
Work Related Education
In order to complete the course, the student must have evidence in the form of a diary of 30 hours of working with an employer. This can take the form of a week of work experience in Year 10.
Community Participation
During the course students need to complete 30 hours of community work e.g. giving assistance in the school’s recycling scheme, helping with the CO-OP school enterprise or helping out at a local sports club.
Individual Investigation
Students will undertake an Individual Investigation arising from an aspect of the Core that particularly interests them. This means that the investigation can arise from any part of Wales, Europe and the World (WEW), Personal and Social Education (PSE) or Work-related Education (WRE). Carrying out the investigation will help develop the skills of collecting information, analysing that information and presenting it in an attractive way. Students can present the conclusion of their investigation in a written or oral presentation.
Personal and Social Education
There are five elements in this component.
The first four are:
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Positive Relationships
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Good Health, including sexual health
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The rights and responsibilities of being an active citizen
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Understanding development issues and education for sustainable development
There are three key issues in each element and students must address one of these three. This means that teachers and students have some choice within the elements so a programme can be tailored to meet the student's needs and avoid repeating issues covered previously.
Students will be required to engage in an activity in the local community for at least 30 hours, this is the fifth element in PSE.
Wales, Europe and the World
Students need to show an awareness of issues affecting Wales, Europe and the World. Studying a language module is part of this aspect. There will be an opportunity for students to participate in one of the following:
Mentoring and Tutorials
Students will attend regular mentoring sessions with their personal tutor in order to discuss their progress and issues pertaining to the Baccalaureate.
The Wider Key Skills
In Year 10 students work towards the Working With Others Level 2 qualification by working as a team in a “Dragon’s Den” activity. They will need to create a product, market it and present their ideas to the “dragons”. The Improving Own Performance and Problem Solving skills will also be developed during the course.
Work Experience
Students in year 10 complete a week’s work experience during February.
Students choosing to study the Welsh Baccalaureate must also study the BTEC Applied Science course.