What is the intent of child development at RHA?
The intent is to equip students with the knowledge they need, not only to pass our courses at RHA, but to help them progress to college, sixth form, university and eventually the career of their choice.
We intend for students to be happy and enthusiastic when studying child development, to give them the desire to take an interest in the subject outside of school. They will be resilient learners who will always be encouraged to aim high and not give up.

Why is this our intent?
This is our intent because we genuinely value each and every student and believe they can go on to achieve great things, despite currently living and studying in a deprived area of the country. We believe our students can be the ones to change what may be a history of underachieving and lack of ambition in their society. Many of our students lack confidence, but it is our intent to make each and every student believe in themselves so that they can go on to achieve great things.

How does child development deliver the intent?
Child development delivers this intent by initially selecting the most suitable KS4 qualification for our students. The course is then set up in such a way that students will not only be challenged, but will gain a true passion for the subject so that they take an interest in it in their own time. They will ultimately continue learning without necessarily realising it. They will take it upon themselves to read about the subject or watch related documentaries - some of which we may have suggested, many of which the students will find for themselves and come to tell us about.
We make sure that our passion for, not only our subject, but also for our chosen careers as teachers, comes through to our students. All of my students know that I genuinely love being a teacher and this highlights to them the importance of aiming for a career that they will enjoy.
As a team, we regularly check the relevance of our teaching by making sure we use the most up-to-date information and cases in our lessons. For example, students will learn about the cases of Daniel Pelka and Lydia Bishop. As sad as these cases may be, students will learn the importance of recognising signs of neglect and how to keep children safe and healthy. This enables them to develop strength and resilience as well as the ability to explain the correct procedure for looking after children.
We regularly assess our students to ensure they are building on their knowledge and progressing in a way that enables them to achieve their potential. We also spend time talking to each and every student on a 1:1 basis to ensure that they are happy and there are no barriers to their learning. If we do identify any barriers, we work as a team, with the student, to remove them.