insideKENT Magazine Issue 32 - November 2014 | Page 148
EDUCATION
The EPQ for Sixth Formers
The Sixth Form at St Edmund’s School, Canterbury,
provides opportunities for pupils to excel in and to
enjoy the academic, sporting, musical, artistic and
dramatic aspects of life. In addition, it encourages
its students to take part in expeditions and
enrichment activities, and to explore the potential
for leadership and responsibility.
Back to school on a high note
for Kent students who can
enjoy fully staged opera in
Canterbury this autumn
As Kent schools return for the new academic year,
up to 1,200 of their pupils could soon experience
the exhilaration of watching fully staged opera in
Canterbury, thanks to Performances for Schools on
the Glyndebourne Tour.
Glyndebourne Performances for Schools offers both priority booking and
reduced price tickets to schools that wish to take their students to see an
opera, often for the first time. Since the initiative began in 2006, over 30,000
children have been able to experience top quality, live opera in their
hometowns.
Following a successful pilot in the town last year, Glyndebourne Performances
for Schools will return to The Marlowe Theatre in Canterbury on 5th and
6th November 2014. On 5th November, primary school pupils can see
brand new musical production, Five Deaths and a Happy Ending, which
introduces opera to 7-10 year olds. In addition, on 6th November, secondary
school pupils can enjoy a new production of Mozart’s lesser-known gem, La
finta giardiniera, written when the precocious composer was just 18.
Katherine Stacey
Academic study towards A-levels is paramount for higher education, but
it is worth knowing that the AQA Extended Project Qualification is also highly
regarded by universities in their admissions process, and carries a UCAS
tariff equivalent to an AS-level.
Tickets are still available. To book, schools should contact The Marlowe
Theatre Box Office on 01227 787787 or email [email protected].
Candidates will complete a research project on a subject of their own
choosing. This provides an opportunity for pupils to follow their own interests,
and to demonstrate their ability to work independently and autonomously.
At St Edmund’s, the EPQ programme is well established as part of the
Sixth Form curriculum. Creativity and curiosity is encouraged and topics
chosen are diverse; examples of past projects include factors affecting
protein production, producing a blues-rock EP, and media influence on
body image.
To find out more about Performances for Schools,
visit www.glyndebourne.com/schools.
Ofsted early years statistics
– South East
Each pupil receives individual guidance from their EPQ supervisor and all
candidates attend a two-day seminar on research skills, project management,
and referencing at the University of Kent. Learning these key skills sets
them on their way to producing a high-quality EPQ, and the school is
particularly proud that to date over 75% of pupils who have successfully
completed their project have achieved an A*-A grade.
Upper Sixth pupil, Katherine Stacey, is currently working on her project
about marketing and said: “It is really satisfying to immerse myself in a
subject of my choice, and to be able to discuss my ideas with a supervisor
who is genuinely interested in what I am researching.”
This autumn, Ofsted published new statistics
regarding its inspections of nurseries and other
early year's providers.
In the South East, 678 early year's providers were judged between 1st April
2014 and 30th June 2014. Of these,
• 64 (nine per cent) were judged to be outstanding
• 460 (68 per cent) were judged to be good
• 106 (16 per cent) were judged to require improvement
• 48 (seven per cent) were judged to be inadequate
To find out more about what St Edmund’s can offer at Sixth Form, please
contact Amanda Selmon on 01227 475601 or come along to the open
evening on 19th November.
The statistics have a more detailed breakdown by
local authority area. These can be located online
at www.ofsted.gov.uk/resources/officialstatistics-early-years-and-childcare-registeredproviders-inspections-and-outcomes.
www.stedmunds.org.uk
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