Welcome to Harris Science Academy East London

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Welcome from the Principal and Executive Principal

Harris Science Academy East London is on a journey to rapidly becoming the highest performing school in Newham and one of the top schools in the UK. Every child is on a journey make a positive change in their community. As Executive Principal with a wealth of experience within the Federation, I am proud to be working with our community here at HSAEL. I know the team are truly committed to working with parents and students to build an excellent Academy, where all will achieve.

Dan MacPherson - Principal, Lisa Kattenhorn - Executive Principal

12 February 2025Scripted Expositions- X marks the spotLearning is like finding yourself abandoned in the middle of the ocean on a desert island. Somewhere on the island, covered in rocky terrain, with unpredictable weather and vicious wildlife, X marks the spot. Some students arrive on the island fully equipped. Fire starters, water bottle, first aid kit, compass. These tools, that students acquired by total chance, allow them to make it the spot quickly, often leaving them with enough time to explore the mountains, the lofty cliffs, even enjoy the view of the setting sun. Other students are not so fortunate and find themselves dropped onto the island wholly unprepared. Time is of the essence. The most direct route to the spot must be taken. The teacher must find the path. Finding this direct route has been our focus at HSAEL this half term. The first ten minutes of every HSAEL lesson is devoted to reading, knowledge acquisition and comprehension on the lessons subject. Ten minutes are then spent checking for understanding reviewing core knowledge required for today’s lesson. The exposition is the next ten and it is crucial. This is the path to the X. If the teacher hasn’t found the path, the students get lost. An exemplary exposition is teacher led. An exemplary exposition has visual to focus the eye, is under-pinned by dozens of questions to check for student understanding and has clear metacognitive steps for students to follow until the learning is internalised. Ten minutes of exposition is plenty; if this seems impossible it is because the direct route has not been found. Your lesson will be wasting time meandering around the island. This drifting and sight-seeing benefits only the teacher’s enjoyment of the lesson and the students who are fully equipped. On these longer journeys, our ill-equipped students get lost, cognitively overwhelmed and left behind. They don’t make it to the spot. They don’t ever make it to the spot in every lesson of every day whilst they’re at secondary school for five whole years. A 10 minute exposition is plenty of time if a teacher has a script. Teachers at HSAEL spend time before their lesson writing down the questions they will ask; the open and the closed ones, the method in which they will ask them, the hinge questions, the really, really good questions which deepen understanding and get to the crux of the matter. Teachers ask the questions that will gather the most efficient data on student understanding in the quickest possible time. This kind of teacher preparation gets all students on the island to the spot. Once the exposition is over, the teachers allocate students onto rounds of independent practice. Students need to be able to find the X on their own next time. 30 minutes of this independent practice follows giving students the time to absorb themselves in the practice. Next time their dropped on the island, they know the route and would never have got their by just by repeatedly being told. They get there own their own because their teacher found that direct route in the first place making sure no one gets left behind.

10 February 2025The success of our Golden Nugget projectMost secondary school age pupils in the UK move from lesson to lesson, day to day, week to week, year to year, making little to no progress with their academic studies. It is commonplace for teachers to teach brand new content every lesson in a bid to cover lesson sequences underestimating the importance of stopping and checking for understanding of even the most basic pieces of knowledge. At HSAEL, teachers know that just because that have imparted knowledge onto students doesn’t mean they understand. It doesn’t mean the knowledge will transfer into their long-term memory and it certainly doesn’t mean they will be able to apply that knowledge in any kind of powerful or critical way. Only once the most important knowledge becomes automatic can students begin to do the real thinking. Last January, we began the Golden Nugget testing project. Before the winter break, students were given the terms and definitions of the most important pieces of knowledge they had learnt the previous term in each subject. They were tasked with making sure the terms were memorised over the holiday and were asked to complete one piece of Look Cover Write Check for each subject. When they returned to the academy in January, the majority of students had not done their homework. We supported them in large numbers to complete this work before re-joining lessons and beginning their tests. The pass mark that Spring term was only 50%. Students were asked to pass all but one of their tests. A few weeks later, we celebrated 100 students who had managed to recall the key knowledge they had been taught with party hats and pizza. The term after we repeated the process. News of the knowledge party had spread. We raised the pass mark to 65%. 200 students attended the celebration on the green. The ice cream van paid students a visit to reward them for their hard work. A culture of achievement was beginning to embed. September 2025. The pass mark 80%. Students were allocated onto three pathways: Alpha, Beta and Gamma with students given scaffolded amounts of knowledge to retain depending on their starting point. Students could move themselves up but not down. 250 HSAEL students attended the celebration in the hall. Doing your homework, passing the tests and being congratulated for your hard work became the norm. Students were more engaged and focussed in lessons now that they knew their lessons had purpose; the knowledge was important, their teachers there to help and support them to develop their understanding of the world around them. January 2025. Almost every single HSAEL student came back to the academy in January with an exercise book full of LCWC homework. A very small minority of students were supported on the first morning to complete this work. Students began testing and, as usual, were allowed to re-take the test if they failed. Scores were posted on the cobbles before the ‘Re-test Centre’ opened after school for one week straight. Students took ownership of their work by seeing which tests they had not yet secured 80% in and visited the centre staffed by our wonderful Middle Leaders who supported them to achieve 80. Students hugged and jumped up and down when they achieved 100%. Students felt a sense of mission. Teachers and students high-fived and fist-bumped as scores of passed tests were inputted into our system. On Monday 3rd of February, 83% of our academy who achieved 80%+ in all but one of their subjects will be treated to the best Knowledge Celebration to date, a whole school trip to the cinema. The students who have still not met this bar will be kept on site and supported by some of our most experienced teachers to make sure they do not fall behind. Students who stay at our academy will be allowed to go home early once they have passed the tests, worked with teachers on their study habits and reflected on why they did not manage to get to the cinema this time. They will be empowered to get their next time. These students most importantly need to know we believe in them and the importance of their education so that every child can become a leader in their chosen field.

11 December 2024HSAEL in top 25 schools in UK for improvementThe provisional England school performance tables have confirmed the very pleasing progress we have made as an organisation over the past two years. In September 2022, outcomes at the then East London Science School were amongst the worst in the city (P8 -0.97), with disadvantaged students performing even worse (-1.5). Thanks to unified leadership, exemplary behaviour, an academic curriculum for every child and frequent opportunities for character development, the Academy is proud to report the below achievements: · HSAEL is the most improved school in Newham and Tower Hamlets over 2 years (out of more than 40 schools). · HSAEL is the 4th most improved school in London over 2 years (out of more than 300 schools). · HSAEL is the 24th most improved school in England over 2 years (out of more than 5000 schools). · Progress made by disadvantaged students at HSAEL was in the top 12.5% of schools in the country, outperforming non - disadvantaged students at the Academy (this is virtually unheard of). · Provision at HSAEL has matched that of the high performing Chobham Academy (Chobham has been Outstanding ever since it opened 10 years ago). · Outcomes and student progress at HSAEL is now better than all of our local competitor schools. · Disadvantaged student progress at HSAEL outperformed overall progress at very established and over-subscribed Newham schools. Principal, Dan MacPherson, said: “These results give further encouragement that Harris Science Academy East London will be one the best schools in the country by 2028 and I could not be happier with the progress made. Perhaps the most exciting thing of all is that we have really just begun, as our current Year 11 are on track to push the bar even higher. These results are not achieved in isolation, but thanks to strong partnerships with families. Together, we are supporting your children to become leaders in their chosen field and change the world.”. You can read more about our performance here. If you are interested in learning more about the Academy and would like to arrange an admissions tour, please contact admissions@harrisscienceeastlondon.org.uk. To arrange an informal discussion about working at the Academy, please contact info@harrisscienceeastlondon.org.uk.

30 October 2023HSAEL in top 3% of most improved schoolsThe release of school and college comparison data in October has confirmed Harris Science Academy’s place as one of the most improved academies in the UK. Thanks to support from the Harris Federation, the commitment of families and the hard work of Academy staff, in just one year there was an improvement in GCSE results by an average of more than half a grade. This is an exceptional achievement. Nationally, this places Harris Science Academy 121st for improvement out of the nearly 3500 schools where comparisons can be made. This is in the top 3% of schools for improvement. In London, Harris Science Academy was the 17th most improved school in the city and the 4th most improved school in East London. The Academy is moving quickly to provide every child with the education that will give them the knowledge and skills to become a leader in their chosen field and the current Year 11 and Year 13 are well placed to maintain and accelerate the pace of improvement. It is an exciting time to be part of Harris Science Academy East London. Principal, Dan MacPherson, says, “I am incredibly proud of the work that is going on at HSAEL to move us forward. Our students are amongst the best in London and I am so pleased to be working to ensure they receive a phenomenal education.”

24 August 2023Harris Science Academy East London Celebrates GCSE SuccessJust two years after opening, Harris Science Academy East London is celebrating a set of results likely to place it among the most improved schools in England, with a quarter of GCSEs awarded a top grade 8 or 9 – twice the national rate. Students from the most economically disadvantaged backgrounds did better than all students nationally with the ‘disadvantage gap’ removed from the academy. Special congratulations are due to the large group of students who are collecting some of the best results in the country today – all with straight 7-9s, which are equivalent to A and A*s in the old system: Ahnaf: nine grade 9s, three grade 8s, and an A in Additional Maths Daania: Eight grade 9s and an 8 Binta: Nine grade 9s and an 8 Jawad: Seven grade 9s, an 8 and two 7s Defne: Seven grade 9s, two grade 8s and a 7 Mahabi: Six grade 9s, two grade 8s and three 7s Aamna: Six grade 9s, two grade 8s and two 7s Anaand: Five grade 9s, three grade 8s and two 7s Dillon: Four grade 9s, three grade 8s and three 7s Principal, Dan MacPherson, said: “I am incredibly proud of these results, which are the product of huge grit, resilience, and determination. So many of our students have secured the top grades and demonstrated what can happen when you have hardworking students, excellent teaching and high-quality character development. “A number of our students faced really significant adversity over the past two years, including bereavement and homelessness, yet still found the courage to face their GCSEs head on and score incredible grades. They are an example to us all. Our Year 11 students are well-placed to go and be leaders in their chosen field, something we will continue to nurture in our sixth form, and I could not be happier for them.”

19 February 2025@@HarrisSAELYear 11 Art students visiting @Tate Modern and the @NationalGallery last week for inspiration and research for their GCSE Component 2, which requires them to develop a personal response to an externally set theme. pic.twitter.com/yn1cJhFxWV

18 February 2025@@HarrisSAELOur latest Weekly Community Bulletin is now available. https://t.co/yEhMtbJP9f pic.twitter.com/qIxu1Ehxmp

12 February 2025@@HarrisSAELRead our latest teaching blog. "Learning is like finding yourself abandoned in the middle of the ocean on a desert island. Somewhere on the island, covered in rocky terrain, with unpredictable weather and vicious wildlife, X marks the spot."https://t.co/M1nFTMgh4j pic.twitter.com/OPdvxO0spP

10 February 2025@@HarrisSAELThis week's Community Bulletin is now available on our website. https://t.co/vnBPT5OAlJ pic.twitter.com/dx8AptQRBI

7 February 2025@@HarrisSAELWe are looking forward to meeting with talented educators at the @HarrisFed Federation Recruitment Fair on Saturday 8 February in Central London. You can register your interest in the event here:https://t.co/yuQYSnslgG pic.twitter.com/c8HBin4fYE

5 February 2025@@HarrisSAELWe are looking forward to meeting with talented educators at the @HarrisFed Federation Recruitment Fair on Saturday 8 February in Central London. You can register your interest in the event here:https://t.co/yuQYSnslgG pic.twitter.com/5TPDcNF8Ma

3 February 2025@@HarrisSAELOur latest community weekly bulletin is now available on our website. https://t.co/B8fJcUnZ9U pic.twitter.com/VRxls35hew

27 January 2025@@HarrisSAELOur latest Weekly Community Bulletin is now available on our website. https://t.co/zeBcq5tjbW pic.twitter.com/RDJxtnS6B3

24 January 2025@@HarrisSAELIn April24, the amount people can earn before they start paying the High Income Child Benefit Charge increased to £60k. For parents/carers who have not yet claimed Child Benefit it can now be financially worth their while. https://t.co/Ks6ynIobrI pic.twitter.com/PaFp5hCTxA

22 January 2025@@HarrisSAELStudents from 'Be the Change' club are working with @ecoACTIVE_UK to create a 'wildlife corridor' and a place of serenity for students next to the River Lea. We are at the design state and students have great plans. Update to follow! We are grateful to @Bupa for their support. pic.twitter.com/BRYJ8vVwtk

22 January 2025@@HarrisSAELIn April24, the amount people can earn before they start paying the High Income Child Benefit Charge increased to £60k. For parents/carers who have not yet claimed Child Benefit it can now be financially worth their while. https://t.co/Ks6ynIoJhg pic.twitter.com/FUiHDiREOd

22 January 2025Students to create new space for wildlife and serenityStudents from the Be the Change club have joined ecology group Ecoactive in studying ecology and sustainability to create an area of nature on site and next to the River Lea, creating a wildlife corridor and a place of serenity for students. We are still at the design stage but things are well on its way. We are really grateful to Ecoactive who are running a series of workshops to support us throughout the project. HSAEL students are contributing some great ideas to the area’s design. Progress update to follow in the coming weeks! We are most grateful to @Bupa for their generous support.

20 January 2025@@HarrisSAELOur weekly Community Bulletin is out now. https://t.co/BmabyBJQo9 pic.twitter.com/cs6s0NtaDH