A Note from the School Captain

A Note from the School Captain s

Ashford School gives us an outstanding oppo rtunity to study with people of different nationalities, express ourselves and be valued.

Being a relatively small school in number, pupils of Ashford School receive plenty of individual attention from teachers, who are always willing to answer questions and encourage them to stretch themselves further. Although the smallness is sometimes associated with a homogeneous environment, which is directly opposite to Ashfordians’ diverse backgrounds with Intern ational students from the Continent and the Far East .

The ample opportunity for all Ashford students to attend unique workshops from various organisers including the Politics Conference at the Central Hall in Westminster and the Exploring Maths Conferenceat the Royal Holloway University is testament to th e academic rigour of Ashford School, which we believe will be stretched even further with the Academic Scholars programme.

Sixth Form is all about challenging and developing yourself as a person not only through academic subjects but also co -curricular ac tivities including school bands, musical production, competitive sports and volunteering activities, which all entail various leadership responsibilities. Wider Horizon and General Studies lectures gives the Six Form students access to speeches by inspirin g speakers of different backgrounds such as explorers and former gang member, we are challenged to ask questions and exchange ideas with them.

All Year 13 pupils are offered outstanding support for their future plans in life whether it is university or apprenticeships. The staff at Ashford School offers help at every stage, from advice on subject choices, information about different events of our interests to overseeing the UCAS application.

We are bothindividuals with powerful personalities who are alw ays searching for excellence by doing what we are passionate about and we want the students from Ashford School to be motivated when they look at us, we want to offer them support and connect with them in order to know how to change the school for the bett er.

The senior positions pushed us to explore ourselves further and challenged us to take initiatives yet remain part of the team. We look forward to boost students’ involvement in the school council and to help the school towards a more eco -friendly oper ation.

We are proud to be working with such talented and responsible Prefects as well as Peer Mentors who are always willing to help the newcomers and talk to the younger students.

We are excited to s ee what difference the prefect team can bring to the school and we hope that by the end of Year 13 we will be well -prepared for our future life.

Jonathan and Gaby

School Captain s 201 9-2020

Due to COVID -19, the 2020 -2021 School Captain has been delayed. The new School Captains will be announced 15 October 2020.

The Sixth Form Curriculum

Adventurous Learning means taking risks, being challenged to think, and learning from your mistakes. In the Sixth Form, we expect you to embrace opportunities and challenges, to take responsibility, and to lead ot hers. In this way, you will develop both academically and perso nally. The Sixth Form curriculum is designed to provide a mixture of challenge and support, so that y ou continually extend yourself, becoming better equipped for life beyond Ashford School.

There are certain activities that form the “core” curriculum, with which we expect all students to engage: • Your academic courses (A levels, BTEC Sport, EAL, Short Courses) • Wider academic development (e.g. after school talks, extension clubs, debating, wid er reading) Physical exercise and sport Social, Moral, Spiritua l, Cultural (SMSC) programme The School house system

In addition, there are plenty of other opportunities to pursue your passions. These include, but are not limited to, the following. • Sports teams, Music, D rama • A wide range of other activities (ranging f rom rock climbing to rock bands) • Formal leadership opportunities (e.g. peer mentoring, volunteering, prefectship) • Extended Project Qualification

All of these opportunities mean that you will h ave a stimulating, varied, motivating, rewarding and individual ised learning experience.

The majority of our students , study three subjects at A leveland complement these with various other learning. Note that students without an English Language GCSE w ill also study English as an Additional Language (EAL) for the IELTS exams.

Being a student in the Sixth Form is a full -time job(around 40 -45 hours per week of structured and independent learning). T he following diagrams give a rough indication of what a student mig ht study

Volun teering Prefect

EPQSports Peer Mentor

CORE 2 termsteam

CURRICULUM

Academic & Personal

Music

Development • 3 (or 4) A levelsDrama • GamesShort • SMSCCourses • Wider Horizons 1 term • House system

Activities

in Year 12. There are numerous possible combinations of all that is on offer, so the challenge may be in deciding what to leave out each term!

Student 1Student 2Student 3

How to Decide on your Subjects

In the Sixth Form, you have a wonderful opportunity to study the subjects you enjoy in depth. As you will be spending two years studying your three (or four) subjects, it is important that you choose wisely. We want you to both enjoy and achieve in your st udies in the Sixth Form. The table below gives some advice about how to choose your subjects.

Good Reasons

• I have read about it and it interests me • I am passionate about it

All subjectsrequire hard work and dedication – if a subject interests you, and you demonstrate skill and flair for the subject, youare more likely to be prepared to put in the effort required. • I have discussed it with my teachers and they think I am suited to it

Take advice from all of your relevant teachers. They can tell you more about the courses and give you an honest assessment of your likely chances. • It is required for the university courses I am interested in

This is always worth checking beforehand – see nextpage. But be realistic: check with your teachers as well to make sure you are suited to the course.

Satisfactory Reasons

• It complements my other subjects

Some combinations of subjects go naturally together, e.g. Mathematics and Physics, English

Literature and History. But remember that a mix of subjects can also work . • I find it easy • I get good grades in it • I enjoyed it at GCSE

These could be good reasons, b ut be careful – just because you found a subject easy or enjoyable at GCSE does not necessarily mean the same in the Sixth Form . Research the subjects carefully, and know what they will involve. • My parents think I sho uld do it

A tricky one: your parents kn ow you very well, and you should take their advice on board.

Ultimately though, you are the one w ho will have to do the subject!

Bad Reasons

• My friends are doing it

A very common error! Put yourself first, there is plenty of time for socialising outside of lessons.

I like the teacher / I think the teacher is good

Teachers may change, and you cannot know what teachers you will have. All teachers at

Ashford School are highly qualified. In Sixth Form study, the motivati on must come from you, not from the teacher.

There’s nothing I really want to do, but this is the least bad option

What is your motivation for continuing to study? What are your longer -term aims? Are you sure this isright for you?

Careers Support Head of Department: Dr K Dickers, dickersk@ashfordschool.co.uk

At Ashford School, we firmly believe in supporting the whole of a student’s learning experience. In terms of careers support, this take s the form of two primary aims:

1.Ensuring that all pupils are informed about relevant career, higher and further education options available to them; 2.Identifying what pupils enjoy, are good at, and might like to do in the future.

University represents an important route available to all pupils, but due to the dynamic and complex nature of the jobs market, our support extends to a much wider range of opportunities - including apprenticeships, other employment and gap years. To help Sixth Form pupils explore t he possibilities open to them, we organise various activities throughout the year.

External Speakers

We have a range of external speakers who deliver lunchtime talks about career options, university degrees and subject areas. In recent years, we have ha d representatives from universities to talk about degrees in the humanities (Royal Holloway), sports (Ca nterbury Christ Church), finance (Cass Business School, City University) and student life and study in STEM subjects (Imperial College London). We have also been visited by a partner from a major law firm to discuss the different routes into legal careers, BAE Systems to talk about their engineering career opportunities for apprentices and university graduates and the Kent Association of Training Organisa tions to introduce apprenticeship programmes.

Careers Library

We produce a weekly careers bulletin em ailed out to Sixth Form pupils and parents, outlining relevant career and university opportunities. This highlights upcoming university open days and taster days, conferences and external job talks open to pupils. We also have a careers library with guidesto apprenticeships, career options and university choices.

Career testing

In Year 12, students take the Morrisby Online career assessment, which giv es tailored advice on career pathways, degree courses and apprenticeships. This forms the basis for subs equent one -to one discussions.

One -to -One Support

The Head of Careers, Dr Dickers, meets with all Year 12 and 13 pupils individually to discuss thei r career plans and university options. This support is available throughout the year if pupils or parent s want to arrange an appointment at any time.

UCAS support

In Sixth Form the Head of Careers gives a series of talks to all pupils, covering topics such as choosing a degree course and university, researching university choices, the UCAS application p rocess and student finance. In Year 12, we have the Life Skills Company provide a specialist personal statement

workshop and in Year 13, form tutors and the Head of Careers provide all pupils with one -to -one support through the application process.

University & Careers Fair

Every two years we organise and host a University & Careers Fair, inviting universities, employers and training providers to atten d. In 2018, we had representatives from thirty -five UK -based universities, and others from overseas univ ersities, gap year organisations, apprenticeships, armed forces and specialist providers. In 2020, we hosted an online university fair, with speakers fr om thirty -four UK universities and apprenticeship providers. These have proved to be a great success in exposing pupils to the range of opportunities available after they finish school.