How whole-school culture and multi-subject strategy drove outstanding Tassomai engagement
Sir Thomas Wharton Academy is a large 11–18 secondary school on the outskirts of Doncaster, serving a predominantly white-British community with higher-than-average levels of deprivation and Pupil Premium representation. Over recent years the school has grown rapidly into a 1,300-pupil academy with a strong emphasis on raising achievement and developing consistent routines across KS3–5.
A whole-school approach to Tassomai
Sir Thomas Wharton Academy began using Tassomai in early 2023, initially with Year 11. The timing proved powerful: students had just received their mock results, and the school introduced Tassomai as a core strategy for closing knowledge gaps ahead of summer exams. Engagement was strong, and the impact clear enough that the school made a strategic decision: from September 2023 onwards, Tassomai would be used across multiple subjects — not just science — and across both Year 10 and 11.
Today, English, science, history, geography, computer science and maths all use Tassomai as part of their homework and revision routines.
Rachel Shaw, Sir Thomas Wharton Academy
For Rachel Shaw, English teacher and Tassomai lead, this cross-subject consistency has been transformative:
“Students like that it's all in one place. When Tassomai is used across many subjects, the routines stick. It's harder to ‘forget’ a single subject, because logging into one reminds them of all the others.”
This multi-subject approach has become an essential element of how the school builds recall habits, supports knowledge retention, and reduces cognitive load for students.
Why multi-subject use strengthens Eengagement
1. Stronger Habits Through Consistency
In Year 10, Tassomai is deliberately positioned as the core homework tool for subjects that use it. Students know that each week they have defined goals across all their Tassomai subjects — and crucially, they know the expectations are the same everywhere.
This reduces confusion and builds a predictable, low-stakes routine.
By Year 11, that habit is well-embedded. Tassomai continues to provide retrieval practice, while Satchel One is used for written assignments — a structure that balances automated recall with opportunities for extended application.
2. One Platform = Higher Completion
Before adopting Tassomai in maths, the school used Sparx. Completion rates were noticeably lower, and Rachel explains why:
“Because Tassomai is used for so many subjects, students are naturally reminded to do it. When something only exists for one subject, it’s easier to forget. Maths saw instantly higher completion on Tassomai.”
3. Better Insight for Teachers, Without Added Workload
Teachers value Tassomai’s diagnostic clarity. English, science and humanities staff can instantly see:
which topics students have practised
which areas are weak
who is behind on goals
which poems, equations, events or concepts need reteaching
The platform’s automation removes the usual workload of setting, tracking and marking homework.
“The data is incredible. It tells me exactly which topics need revisiting. And because everything is automated, staff workload is reduced — teachers have more time to respond to the data rather than create it.”
This insight is central to the school’s improvement strategy: teaching teams can target misconceptions earlier and more precisely.
Implementation done properly: routines, follow-up and collective responsibility
Sir Thomas Wharton Academy’s success is not accidental — it’s cultural. The school made Tassomai part of everyday life.
Year Group Assemblies
When the tool launched to each new cohort, assemblies showcased real case studies — students who moved from Grade 3s in mocks to Grade 5s in the real exams. These stories created early buy-in and helped students understand the “why”.
Subject-Leader Ownership
Subject leaders created launch slides and routines for their teams, ensuring consistency within departments.
Tutor-Group Follow-Up
Tutors monitor login data weekly and follow up with those who need a nudge.
SLT Presence at the School Gates
Senior leaders speak to students every morning about routines, behaviour — and Tassomai. This reinforces expectations from the very top.
The Right Mix of Sanctions and Support
For students who miss their weekly goal, the school runs short lunchtime detentions: five minutes to complete one daily goal. Students often say “yes!” out loud when they complete their session — a sign of how positive the reinforcement cycle has become.
Rachel notes:
“We don’t want learning to feel like punishment. Most of what we do is positive. The sanctions are small — they just keep habits on track.”
The power of rewards — from queue-jump passes to Tassimals
Rewards play a major role in Sir Thomas Wharton Academy’s culture of motivation. The school uses:
Weekly leaderboards shared on social media and displayed around school
Queue-jump passes for top performers
VIP prom table for the highest-scoring Year 11 student
Driving-lesson days in the school car park for sustained effort
Tassomai Tuesdays (a weekly treat for students who reach 100% of goals in all subjects)
And then came Tassimals — Tassomai’s in-app collectible stickers.
Rachel admits she was initially unsure whether Year 10 and 11 students would be interested. But the response has been extraordinary:
“Cool, sporty boys have pencil cases lined with Tassimal stickers. They come to me saying, ‘Miss, I’m desperate to get the pine marten’. They get annoyed if they forget to get the full-moon werewolf. It’s been a massive surprise.”
Staff have even embraced it — including a member of staff dressing as the hazel dormouse, with a badger costume waiting its turn.
Tassimals have given the school an additional, joyful layer of motivation that complements the more formal systems.
Impact: “You can tell who’s doing Tassomai”
Although the academy is still building whole-cohort datasets, the impact is visible across subjects.
Individual Progress Stories
In assemblies, Rachel shares anonymised case studies of students whose mock grades increased dramatically — often from Grade 3 to Grade 5 — when they consistently used Tassomai.
Science See Clear Correlation
The science team repeatedly highlights that the students who perform best in class are those completing Tassomai regularly.
More Strategic Revision
Students use the Tree to spot reds and weaker branches, then target their revision — something that wasn’t possible with traditional homework platforms.
Higher Engagement, Greater Independence
Students increasingly see Tassomai not as homework, but as a personal progress tool. For many, it’s their first experience of tracking their own improvement week-to-week.
The school believes this has shifted learner mindset as well as outcomes.
Why Tassomai works for whole-school improvement
Rachel summarises it simply:
“The biggest thing for us is ease of use. It’s automated, it’s adaptive, it’s personalised — and it works across multiple subjects. For students, it creates routine. For staff, it reduces workload. And as a whole school, it’s created a culture of success.”
Sir Thomas Wharton Academy stands as a powerful example of what happens when Tassomai is adopted not as a piece of software, but as a school-wide strategy.
What’s next for the Academy?
Extending impact analysis across whole cohorts
Continued multi-subject rollout
Further use of Tassimal “levels” and new motivational tools
Refining reward systems based on student voice
Continued alignment between Tassomai and written homework via Satchel One
As the school grows and exam cohorts evolve, Tassomai remains central — not just as a revision tool, but as a driver of culture, routine and student confidence.
Read more about STWA: Motivation that works: how Sir Thomas Wharton Academy uses rewards to drive exceptional engagement with Tassomai.
New to Tassomai? Learn more about Tassomai for schools here.