Frequently Asked Questions

My son, daughter or ward is unable to attend College. What do I do?

If you want to report your son, daughter or ward's absence, please telephone the number for the faculty given in the Parent and Carer Agreement or look for the relevant faculty telephone number here. If your son or daughter is in receipt of EMA, ask to speak to Student Finance (01634 383165). It is important any absence is reported as soon as possible.

Please remember the College wants all learners to attend all of the time and for no less than 90% of their lessons.


I want to contact the College – how should I do that?

If you have a query, please telephone the main switchboard. A call handler will answer your question if they can, or pass you on to a relevant staff office. You are also welcome to email the College, and an email address for the area in which your student is studying is given in the Parent and Carer agreement. However, it is worth pointing out that although email is an “instant” medium, it may actually take longer to answer an email than a telephone call to reception so it should not be used for urgent matters. On some days teachers teach every lesson and will clearly not have time to go to their emails, let alone write a substantial reply to a query, so please be patient if you do email.

We are trying to obtain the email address of every parent/carer that has one as set out in the Parent and Carer Agreement. Where we do not have a contact point then we will from time to time send home invitations to parents' evenings, and other information via students. We strongly encourage you to always come along to parents' evenings as they are very good occasions to meet and discuss how we can work together to help students. We will also post the dates of our next parents evening on this part of our website.


The College seems to promote that students should be “independent learners”. What does that mean? I’m not sure my son or daughter can work independently!

An independent learner is a student who:

• Understands they are responsible for their own learning
• Is 'self-starting' and always well-prepared for class and brings paper, pens, protective clothing, uniform or equipment needed
• Has an active involvement in the subject both in and beyond the classroom
• Contributes to class discussions and is engaged with the course material.

Many of our students do need guidance and persuasion on the importance of taking ownership of their own learning. We will encourage them to see their experience at MidKent College as preparation for university, work and life generally. Some students have been taught in very controlled environments and are very dependent on teachers. However, at university and work they will need to be completely self-motivated. MidKent College therefore provides a transitional environment where we will try to guide and inspire students to take control of their own learning. But you can be assured that if they find this difficult we will be pushing them hard and letting you know if the work is not getting done.


What does my son or daughter have to do to qualify to return for a second year, after the summer?

To return to the second year a student must successfully complete their first year. If they have completed a course but wish to start another then they would need to have passed the course at the next lower level and any entry tests or other requirements for the next level to progress. AS-level students must have gained at least two AS-levels (at grade E or above) that can be continued into the second year.
 
We will write to the parents of all students who are expressing concerns that they might not achieve the qualifications.  If students fail then they will not be invited onto the next level of a programme and may not be re-enrolled by the College on the same qualification for the following year. For our part we also put on revision sessions and help and encourage all students who appear to be in danger of not returning. We will also help in August and September with progression guidance for any student who has unfortunately not passed their previous qualification.


How are students graded or assessed? ‎

This depends on the type of qualification they are taking. The College offers two main types of qualifications: Academic (e.g. AS and A2-levels) and Vocational (e.g. BTEC National Diploma in Performing Arts). Academic programmes are generally a mix of marked coursework and examination whereas vocational subjects involve the assessment of work standards to meet nationally agreed competency levels.

All students will be given grades for all their courses in October and February, and these grades will be available to you at parents' evenings. There is a system of grading students which sets:
 
a) The Attainment/Risk Grade: summarising where the student is at that particular point in time.
b) The Flight Plan and/or the Target Grade.
 
a) Attainment/Risk Grade

This is the grade which in the judgement of the teacher represents the level of attainment or progress made towards the achievement of the qualification of the student. The grade will be based on actual performance in all areas of the course, including:

• Performance in homework
• Examined coursework
• Practical work
• Internal examination/test marks
• External examination marks.

The attainment grade is not a simple average of all the assessments, but it is a careful judgment about the most significant pieces of work.

b)  Flight Plan/Target Grade

This grade is calculated from the student’s overall equivalent GCSE average grade, which gives a reasonably reliable statistical prediction of the most likely final outcome (based on national figures).
 
So, if a student has a higher attainment grade than target grade it shows that they are doing better than might be expected. If they have a lower attainment grade than the flight plan then they are doing worse than might have been expected and the reason for this should be discussed with them. If the flight plan grade is the same as the attainment grade then the student is performing as well as national average statistics would suggest – but that should not stop the student trying to do better!

These two targets will be set for all full-time students and be reviewed by the College with each student three times a year during their tutorials.

Student progress will be posted in their Personal Learning Plan in the last week of November and in the last week of March prior to the parents' evenings. The dates of these evenings will be shown on the Parental Portal. We feel the best way to approach these evenings is for the parent/s and the student to be present with the teacher.


How can I access detailed online information about my son, daughter or ward?

Only by asking them yourself. Parents often ask if they can have access to the online databases which show their son's, daughter’s or ward's attendance, and/or the marks they are getting for their work. We do not make that available directly to parents for two main reasons. Firstly, the Data Protection Act does not allow digital information collected about an individual to be given to others. Although there have been no test cases, we believe, in common with most educational institutions in the sector, that parents do not have the right to look at their over-16’s electronic data without their child’s permission. So if you can get your child’s permission you can of course look at their attendance etc from home as easily as they can. You will need to log onto the College’s website and the student will need to sign in and then if you are a parent or carer they will need to click a box giving you permission and you will be given a log-in and a password.  Incidentally parents DO have a right to know how their children are getting on at College and whether they are attending, and of course if you telephone the College or write to us we would be happy to tell you this information. We ask that you understand there is a difference between a right to know about their progress and having online access to their real-time data. We must point out that if a student subsequently decides they do not want to share this information they can change their password and not share that with you.

The progress of each student is maintained in their Personal Learning Plan. This plan includes attendance percentage to date, as assessment of the student's likelihood of successfully achieving their qualification in the form of a risk rating of Red = help needed, Amber = causing concern but action taken, and Green = on or ahead of target. 

Secondly we feel as an institution we are a halfway house between school and university or the world of work. When your children go to university or go to work you will obviously not be given any access to their attendance and progress details. They need to learn to be self-motivating in order to succeed at university or at work. If we feel they are not working hard enough or not attending, and if they don’t respond to our concerns, we will contact you to invite you into the College to discuss how we can jointly support the student and ensure they are successful. If occasionally you become worried they do not seem to be working hard enough or they tell you they do not have to be in College, you can always telephone us and we will be happy to give you our opinion of the truth of the matter.


Why does my son or daughter have to take Functional Skills?

Functional Skills are aimed at addressing the English, Maths and IT needs of students who were unsuccessful in gaining them at GCSE level at school. They form part of the National Curriculum and are required where students do not hold a GCSE qualification in them. As you can probably understand, some students do not like them and we work hard to help them gain their Functional Skills qualification, but we may need your help to make sure they attend. We timetable sessions carefully so students are at College and where possible we make sure the session is not at either end of the day. Tests for Functional Skills take place regularly and we will ensure that your son, daughter or ward undertakes the test for each one as soon as we think they are ready. 


Is learning support, or study support, only for students with identified needs? ‎

The Curriculum Access Support Team (CAST) will assess all students when they join us for any learning needs they may have and where appropriate they will provide in-class support and in some cases one-to-one support. All students are able to gain support from the Learning Resource Centres as well as online through the College’s website. If a student is under 19 they will be assigned a personal tutor who will meet them throughout their time at College and will review if there are any barriers.


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