We have been an accredited Thinking School with the University of Exeter in the past and are currently working towards regaining this prestigious status.

Our vision is to empower our students to become the innovators, drivers of change and leaders that will go on to create a more equitable and sustainable society. As such, we believe that we need to provide students with skills that transcend beyond the classroom, teaching them to become self-efficient and independent learners, equipped with strategies and the self-awareness to be effective problem solvers. Our approach is rooted in educational research and focuses on Metacognition and the Science of Learning – teaching students how to learn and how to become aware of their thinking processes.

This approach is strongly supported by research from the Education Endowment Foundation, which highlights the importance of metacognition and self-regulated learning as key drivers of student progress.

  • The Science of Learning

    Our teaching and learning is grounded in the Science of Learning, which we share with our students. Our approach is focused on the following key concepts:

    • Neuroplasticity is the brain’s ability to change and adapt throughout life in response to experience, learning, injury, or environmental changes.
    • Building Neural Pathways: Every time a student revisits information, they strengthen the neural pathways in their brain. The more often and more actively this happens, the stronger and more accessible the memory becomes—making it easier to build on in future learning.
    • The Forgetting Curve, first identified by Hermann Ebbinghaus. It shows that we naturally forget information over time unless we revisit it. This is why we build in regular review and retrieval practice to help knowledge stick.
    • We also draw on research about Working Memory and Long-term Memory. Managing cognitive load and supporting students to transfer knowledge into long-term memory are key to effective teaching and learning. Our brains can only hold a small amount of information in short-term memory. For knowledge to stick, it must actively be moved into long-term memory—which requires meaningful repetition over time and review. By structuring lessons carefully and revisiting learning over time, we help students retain knowledge and build schema which helps them link new information to previously learnt material.

    We introduce our students to the Science of Learning, and teach them key concepts, so that they can monitor and regulate their learning themselves and understand why a particular approach might work best for them personally.

  • The Metacognitive Cycle

    A metacognitive learner is a learner who actively plans, monitors and evaluates their learning. This is called the metacognitive cycle. It is important for students to follow this cycle to enable them to use prior knowledge and build strategies based on previously completed tasks.

    Making Thinking Visible

    A key part of our approach is “making thinking visible.” This means helping students clearly see, understand and articulate their own thought processes.

    In addition to subject specific thinking tools, we use the 8 Thinking Frames developed by Thinking Matters to support this. Each frame provides a structure for a specific type of thinking and is named accordingly:

    Research into metacognition, including guidance from the Education Endowment Foundation, shows that when students are taught to plan, monitor, and evaluate their thinking, their learning improves significantly. Making thinking visible is a practical way to embed these strategies in everyday lessons.

  • Developing Habits of Mind

    The Habits of Mind are a framework created by Art Costa and Bena Kallick. They describe how effective learners behave when they encounter problems where the answer is not immediately obvious and will support students to approach learning, challenges, and everyday situations thoughtfully and effectively. These 16 habits are widely recognised in educational research as essential dispositions for lifelong learning and will help students develop the skills they need to succeed not only academically, but also socially and emotionally:

    • Persisting
    • Managing impulsivity
    • Listening with understanding and empathy
    • Thinking flexibly
    • Thinking about thinking (metacognition)
    • Striving for accuracy
    • Questioning and posing problems
    • Applying past knowledge to new situations
    • Thinking and communicating with clarity and precision
    • Gathering data through all senses
    • Creating, imagining and innovating
    • Responding with wonderment and awe
    • Taking responsible risks
    • Finding humour
    • Thinking interdependently
    • Remaining open to continuous learning

    These habits are closely aligned with research highlighted by the Education Endowment Foundation, particularly around self-regulation, motivation, and resilience.

    The Habits of Mind are embedded within our school values and students will receive reward points if they display these attitudes particularly well:

  • Our Vision

    Becoming a Thinking School is about creating a culture where thinking is valued, visible, and actively developed every day.

    We look forward to continuing to grow a community of thoughtful, capable learners who are prepared not just for exams, but for life.