STUDENTS at a Teesdale school turned psychology on its head last month as the new subject became available.

Year 9 pupils at Staindrop School, in Staindrop, Teesdale, took control of the lesson as part of a task to choose their GCSE options.

Their audience consisted of the headteacher, Andrew Flint, and other staff members who were taught by the students and even set homework to complete.

E-learning and communications manager, Lisa Johnson, said GCSE Psychology is a new subject now being introduced at the school, with curriculum leaders suggesting that students research it and present their findings to the class in small groups.

She said: “Students took the suggestion a step further and presented a full lesson with starter activities, group work and a plenary.

“They even set homework for the rest of the class which they will mark.”

She added: “The students are examining methods of control, data analysis and data presentation.

“The class divided themselves into three groups each group taking one of the areas of experimental design: independent groups; repeated measures; and matched pairs to teach to their classmates and staff.

“The lesson was a great success and students commented how clearly they felt they had an understanding of the subject.

“Some of the students got into the swing of teaching very well.”