Yarm’s Geography Department join elite global group with Quality Mark

Yarm School is one of only 11 schools globally to have been awarded the Secondary Geography Quality Mark (SGQM) with Centre of Excellence status in Fieldwork from the Geographical Association.

The Geography Quality Mark is a prestigious award which recognises and promotes quality and progress in geography leadership, curriculum development, and learning and teaching in schools. Yarm is also the only school in the North East to achieve the highest level of this award.

There are three routes for applying as a Centre of Excellence and Yarm’s Geography Department focussed on the quality of fieldwork experiences in school, which this year included exploring liveability in Yarm, sand dune succession in Seaton Carew and regeneration in Stockton along with various investigations in Whitby, Durham, Cod Beck, Newcastle, York and the Holderness coast. The Geography Society has also offered enrichment visits to Italy and Iceland during the Easter and October half term holidays.

Kirsten Baines, head of Geography at Yarm School said: “We are delighted to be awarded Centre of Excellence recognising the hard work of the Department and Geography pupils. The application process is rigorous, and we all worked together to reflect on the teaching and learning opportunities through fieldwork and how we can strive to continuously improve our offering to enhance pupils’ learning experiences.”

The moderation team from the Geographical Association commented: “The excellent results achieved at GCSE and A Level are a testament to the department’s dedication and effectiveness. Moreover, your curriculum is packed full of innovative, challenging, and topical geography, taking your students on an exploration of the earth that is filled with wonder and fascination. Your philosophy and vision are clear and your drive to improve the quality of geography teaching is constantly being realised.”

“We were most impressed by your ambitious approach to high-quality fieldwork and the ways in which you have integrated fieldwork into your curriculum. You offer a wide range of diverse fieldwork opportunities, both on and off site. Your outstanding fieldwork considers all stages of the enquiry process, provides a ‘real-world’ opportunity for your students to develop and extend their geographical thinking and adds value to their classroom experiences. It obviously makes a significant contribution to your students’ intellectual development, and it also contributes to effective learning, including aspects such as responding, valuing, and organising.”

Dr Huw Williams, Headmaster at Yarm School, said: “We are extremely proud of the Geography Department for achieving this prestigious award. This recognition highlights the department’s commitment to fieldwork to enhance learning and provide a dynamic and engaging geography curriculum, offering our pupils outstanding opportunities and experiences.”