Academic Review

By Mr Mark Seccombe, Deputy Head Academic

The academic year started well with record results at GCSE and A Level. But, the legacy of Covid remained, both in terms of the restrictions on lessons and the impact of online learning. It’s striking to think that the Upper Sixth leavers haven’t had a ‘normal’ year at school since Year 10.

We have done our best to make up for lost time. Academic trips have returned to make learning more relevant. There have been visits to France, the Warner Brothers Studio, the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and English National Opera, Rushall Farm, the Globe Theatre, Victoria and Albert Museum, German and French markets,

Oxford Story Museum, Derron Brown, Bayer’s laboratories, Tate Modern, Mayflower Theatre,

Hampton Court Palace, Ashmolean Museum, Marwell Zoo, Milford-on-Sea and other locations

for Geography field trips, the Apprenticeships Fair at Surrey University, Particle Physics Masterclass at Rutherford Appleton laboratory, the British Library and The British Museum. There have been competitions as well including the Reading Challenge, the Mathematics challenges which included a particularly impressive performance from Robert Yin, the book cover competition, the RGS Young Geographer of the Year, a return of the

Declamations Cup for Year 9 and the Classics

Essay Competition.

The teachers have enjoyed being able to provide more practical learning opportunities. We have seen maggot races, rocket launching, exploding metals, earthquake resistant towers and historical reenactments. We have added new equipment in DT to broaden the range of opportunities there and have introduced online platforms to aid with learning and revision in PE and Computing.

The Summer saw the first cohorts of pupils complete the A Level in Politics and the BTEC

Diploma in Sport. Next year we are looking forward to adding the Sociology and Design Technology A Levels as well as increasing our portfolio of BTEC courses by adding Enterprise and Entrepreneurship.

The High Potential Achievers (HPA) programme has provided opportunities to go far beyond what pupils study in lessons through mentoring, peer discussion and presentations. I have also been hugely impressed with the quality and range of articles written for The Crow’s Nest journal which

covers everything from magic to the evolutionary history of bears, and from the nature/nurture

debate, to whether technology will save or destroy us.

Of course, there has also been the return of GCSE

and A Level exams for the first time since 2019

with the longest period of exams we have ever seen. The Year 11 and Upper Sixth have worked

incredibly hard in uncertain circumstances this year and we are very proud of their efforts.

Exam Success

After a three-year hiatus due to the pandemic, Sixth Form public examinations returned this year.

Although this was the first time that the current cohort had sat in conventional exam conditions, the results achieved reflect the determination and

diligence of our pupils, despite the pressures of the last few years.

At the time of going to press, the percentage of A*-B grades achieved at A Level was 57%, whilst the percentage of Distinction*-Distinction for BTEC grades was 87%. Those that chose to do an Extended Project Qualification (EPQ) during their Lower Sixth year achieved 100% A*-C.

The vast majority of our students will be progressing to their firm-choice universities, with over half of students going to Russell Group or similar higher tier universities. One of the many pupils who celebrated on results day was Senior Scholar Callum Bond, who achieved A*A*AA

across four A Levels. Callum studied Geography, History, Politics, and Religious Studies and will be accepting a place at the University of St Andrews to study Geography. Callum said: ‘I’m feeling really happy. I achieved the results that I wanted and gained a place at the university that I wanted, so I’m feeling ecstatic really. I’m looking forward to what comes in the future.’

Other high performers include Senior Scholar Peter Garnier who achieved A*A*A* in his A Levels and is going to study Maths at the University of Exeter, and Emily Walne who gained A*AB in her Business, Photography, and Psychology A Levels. Emily said: ‘I’m so happy with my results, I was actually quite surprised. I’m taking a gap year before heading off to Newcastle University to study Marketing and Business which was my first choice.’

We were similarly delighted with our GCSE results with our pupils achieving a pass rate of 93% (Grades 9-4). 46% of the Grades awarded

were between 9-7. We are particularly proud

of the increase in Grade nines which are nearly double the number awarded in 2019.

Congratulations goes to Eva Griffin who achieved nine Grade 9s. She said, ‘I’m kind of shocked!

The biggest surprise has been achieving a Grade 9 in Maths as I struggled with the subject in Primary school but worked really hard to achieve the best I could.’ Eva will be returning in September to study Biology, Chemistry and French A Levels.

Whilst the last two years have challenged our pupils in numerous ways, they should be incredibly proud of all that they have achieved, given the circumstances. I am impressed with the continuous dedication and attitude of our students, which has been reflected in their results.

My sincere thanks goes to our academic and pastoral staff who have supported our pupils during this challenging period, and I congratulate our pupils who have demonstrated enormous industry and resilience to achieve what they have.

Academic Colours awarded in 2021-22

Academic colours are awarded for constantly high performance and significant contributions to the academic life of the College. This year’s recipients were:

Callum Bond

Phoebe Curcher Peter Garnier Katharine Harper Tom Harvey Alice Moody