Academic Enrichment Guide

ACADEMIC ENRICHMENT GUIDE

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What is +2?

At Lord Wandsworth College, our stretch and challenge programme is represented by the +2 symbol. +2 is all about a new mindset: we ask our students to stretch themselves to an academic level two years ahead of where they currently are.

Inspirational teaching is at the heart of this project.

We want our pupils to ask that extra question, discover new interrelationships and share their knowledge with whoever they come across in their daily lives.

Academic Enrichment Guide +2 What can be more important for a school than to allow its pupils to aspire? At LWC, we have a deserved reputation for nurturing young hearts and minds. No project which focuses on the purely academic will truly deliver our responsibilities as a school. Equally, education which does not stretch and challenge denies pupils the chance to deepen and enrich their understanding of the world in which they live. This booklet sets out how our academic departments aim to deliver that stretch and challenge, including opportunities provided by departments for enrichment beyond the classroom.

A life-long love of learning is our goal. There is excitement to be found in quantum physics, learning about the Magna Carta and understanding the changing nature of religious identity in a fractured world.

There is magic in the unveiling of a piece of artwork, the solving of mathematical theorems and in the study of the mysteries of human behaviour. Above all, there is the engagement with truly varied subject matter and a sense of fellowship both with those who learn as well as those who teach as the academic journey takes its twists and turns through the school and beyond to the world at large.

Christian White Head of Academic Enrichment Art class

ACADEMIC ENRICHMENT GUIDE

Art Art students demonstrate depth of ability by extending themselves in the studio environment, enriching their understanding of the visual language and putting their work in the context of the world they live in today.

To extend and inform this process, all students undertake a programme that includes gallery visits, personal presentations, tutorials and artist workshops including life drawing. All 6th Formers are expected to research and share Pinterest boards and take on leadership workshops with other students.

The department encourages students to self-direct by visiting galleries and keeping up to date with art-related social and political debates. We encourage all students to extend their learning by linking with the Art School’s twinned department for the year. Students also have the opportunity to enter competitions including Articulate which is supported by lectures at Clare College, Cambridge.

Biology Students are encouraged to show academic stretch in Biology by studying the transmission of diseases or deepening their understanding of synapses by understanding how painkillers work. The impact of Biology on society is also considered. Issues relating to cloning, genetic modification, stem cell research and a wide range of other topics are considered from a variety of viewpoints.

Enrichment activities run on a Saturday morning in the form of the Science Club and Dissection Club. The whole of the 4th Form take part in an annual residential field trip run jointly with the Geography Dept. We also undertake more ambitious projects such as travelling to Dominica to contribute to ongoing research projects with Operation Wallacea.

The Institute of Chartered Accountants’ national business and accounting competition, BASE.

Business Studies Able students are encouraged to think strategically and display a broad understanding and awareness of the dynamic nature of business. Students mirror the best collaborative business practices by working in groups to consider a wide range of current business questions such as: the extent to which new players in the business world, like Uber, benefit both stakeholders and customers or the threat posed to UK businesses such as Dairy Crest when taken over by non-UK corporations eg. MĂźller.

Students are encouraged to plan and deliver a business discussion group programme with younger students.

This is delivered through Saturday morning activities by students who run their own businesses. Applying business theory and teaching others really adds value to their learning.

Students also have the opportunity to take part in competitions such as the BASE competition run by the ICAEW, where complex case studies allow them to analyse corporate decision making.

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Chemistry Scientific enquiry is positively encouraged for all students. Relating their scientific learning to their lives and the world of work is an integral part of the LWC syllabus. Emphasis is put on practical and investigative work. They are frequently asked to assess and present their work and analyse the work of their peers. They are all encouraged to ask how, why and just as importantly, why not. They discuss science in the news and media from altering vehicle emissions tests to ice sheet melting.

Throughout the year enrichment activities run on a Saturday, designed to help students to become more inquisitive. These include a Science and Young Engineers Club. Activities may include making bouncy balls, silver mirrors, rocket science and doing all those crazy and explosive practicals on a scale not allowed during normal school lessons.

Students are given opportunities to increase their subject knowledge and skills through debate, research and presentation. Students have the opportunity to go on departmental trips to ‘Science Live’ and the Big Bang Fairs. They are encouraged, supported and directed to the available science competitions they can enter: RSC Chem World and the Bill Bryson Science Communication Competitions, or the British Association of Science Crest Award projects. Each year we also perform the RSC global chemistry experiment. In the 6th Form students also prepare for and enter the RSC Chemistry Olympiad.

5th Form Chemistry class

ACADEMIC ENRICHMENT GUIDE

Classics and Latin

Computer Studies

The department encourages the reading of Latin aloud in the classroom, with a view to participating in the local Latin Reading Competition. The online Cambridge Latin Course allows for independent research and reading and students are encouraged to use this knowledge to prepare presentations on their research.

Students develop their own programs in the 1st Form using Scratch, a program designed by MIT in Boston.

In the 3rd Form, students are introduced to raspberry Pi’s, web design and mobile phone app design. In App design, students make real programs for Android phones. At A Level, our students are required to build programs for outside companies, to their specifications.

Most of the Classical literature, history, civilisation and mythology teaches us something about the world we live in today and, at all levels of the school, we encourage our students to find those links and learn something from them.

The department offers academic enrichment by taking students to the theatre to see Greek Tragedy and by visiting classical sites at Silchester, Fishbourne, Bignor and Lullingstone. In addition, the biennial trip to Rome and the Bay of Naples together with trips to Hadrian’s Wall extend the focus of the department still further.

Coding club runs as part of the Saturday enrichment programme. This is where students can work on their own projects. The department is also building a database of internships and charities for students to work with in the summer and apply their skills in the real world. Teaching Java further helps students to connect their work in school to the wider world.

Design and Technology Students are encouraged to enrich their skills in Design and Technology through their work books, having the space to expand on creative ideas and develop designs past simple drawings. Classroom tasks focus on basic designing and research techniques. In the 3rd Form, units such as Product Design, Computer Aided Design and Computer Aided Manufacture are used to aid designing, modelling, manufacturing and presentation of ideas. At GCSE, skills are refined and tested through more demanding practical work which, with small group sizes, allows students to deepen their understanding of the more complex techniques like laminating, aluminium casting and 3D printing. Able students at A Level go beyond simply designing products: they also consider the use and function of these products in modern living.

Students are encouraged to refine their practical skills in DT club. They have the opportunity to understand the workings of a young enterprise, by manufacturing their products and selling them with all profits going to the LWC Foundation.

Latin class

Design & Technology class

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Drama Students display academic depth in Drama and Theatre Studies by demonstrating a highly developed awareness of theatre history, drama theory and practice.

At Key Stage 3, they are offered optional, researchbased, extension tasks that focus on both historical genres, drama practitioners and influential theatre companies. Students bring this work back to the classroom to inform their practical lessons.

At GCSE and A Level, students extend their knowledge of theatre by examining the role of different theatre companies and directors. The emphasis is on interpretation, analysis, appreciation and contextual understanding of plays and themes in relation to a contemporary audience. Students may learn more about drama training, theatre festivals, educational drama resources, theatre companies through websites such as National Theatre Archive and Theatre Performance at the Victoria and Albert Museum.

We offer an array of extension opportunities such as drama productions for all year groups, LAMDA classes and technical theatre clubs. Students can direct, act, produce and support productions and events. As part of the Saturday programme, we offer drama skills workshops, history of theatre explorations and drama outreach sessions. We support National Youth Theatre and Drama School/University auditions by having oneto-one rehearsal slots available for those that need them.

Economics The successful economics student is one who is engaged with the outside world and seeks to make links with politics, philosophy and other related subjects.

In class and through other materials, students are expected to read challenging texts and analyse data from sources like the IFS, OBR, ONS and World Bank.

They are provided with an extensive curated list of suggested reading, which highlights interdisciplinary links. There is a thriving economics social media scene, e.g. on blogs and twitter, where academics - including Nobel prize winners - discuss current economic ideas, and students are encouraged to cultivate a network of sources to help keep them up to date on topical issues, beyond simply reading the news.

Students are also exposed to current debates in the subject beyond the syllabus, such as the future of work in an age of computerisation and robotics, morality and markets, Behavioural Economics, and fundamental issues such as the overarching organisation of society and inequality. By the end of the 6th Form, they can expect to have encountered the work of economists and philosophers as diverse as Hayek, Minsky, Piketty, Rawls, Sen and Sandel.

The department enters the Bank of England’s annual Target 2.0 competition, a prestigious event which asks students to undertake an in-depth analysis of the UK economy in order to make recommendations on monetary policy.

Outreach drama masterclass at a prep school

Independent study in 6th Form Centre

ACADEMIC ENRICHMENT GUIDE

English The study of English Language and Literature is an ideal avenue to extend students’ appreciation of the words that they use and the thoughts that they convey. A study of English extends into an appreciation of History, Psychology, Economics, Philosophy and Geography.

Students are stretched and challenged to try and understand their own humanity in all their lessons in this subject.

Many students are challenged to keep a wider reading journal, recording their efforts and interests beyond the classroom. The 4th Form have the challenge of the Dragons’ Den public speaking competition, with the finalists from each class speaking in front of over 250 pupils and teachers. An Oxbridge preparation class for English Literature is offered to a select group of students from the 4th Form upwards.

Extension opportunities are popular, such as the summer creative writing trip to London for the 3rd and 4th Forms – a day of short writing challenges ‘on location’ in The National Portrait Gallery, Trafalgar Square, the Banqueting House, on Westminster Bridge (of course) and the South Bank.

In-house creative writing competitions, run by the English prefects, extend all students. Visiting authors extend the range and Saturday morning writing workshops are also offered. Students have also won national poetry writing competitions.

The Accelerated Reading Programme and Reading Journeys extend our younger students. There is recognition for any student at Key Stage 3 reading over a million words in a term/across the year. There are also summer reading challenges for all other year groups.

Theatre trips are actively encouraged e.g. a trip to see Benedict Cumberbatch as Hamlet and 6th Form students undertake an overnight trip to Stratford-uponAvon to attend a Shakespeare lecture by a world expert, watch an RSC production and have a backstage theatre tour.

English class

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Geography Geography students are expected to understand the key elements of the set courses and to extend this understanding by linking their work to the broader national and international context. Students in the 3rd, 4th and 5th Forms participate in the annual Geographical Association WorldWise Quiz. There is an annual trip to Swanage for the 4th Form and one to Nettlecombe for the L6th Form.

6th Form students also benefit from attending undergraduate lectures at the University of Royal Holloway to gain an insight to studying the subject at degree level. They have the opportunity to submit online entries to essay competitions with themes such as ‘Making Geographical Connections’. 6th Formers are also offered the opportunity to extend their academic skills by going on school trips such as to Iceland to study the relationship between glacial and tectonic plates.

History Students are showing academic depth when they can demonstrate a high level of analysis and evaluation of historical theory and physical material demonstrating why such analysis has relevance in the world today. In the 3rd Form, the department has launched a Jack the Ripper research project that looks to develop students’ ability to research and produce material over a six week timeframe in preparation for GCSE skills.

The department places a great deal of emphasis on handling wider reading material and students are actively encouraged to identify and use historical references to develop work within the classroom environment. This includes accessing and analysing material from noted historians such as John Guy and David Starkey within the Tudor topics, and a wide range of primary and secondary source material on the American Civil War. Geography trip to Nettlecombe

ACADEMIC ENRICHMENT GUIDE

Analysing primary documents is a key component of developing enrichment and the analysis of texts, pictures and paintings on key points of the course is a skill that we actively encourage.

The department runs a History debating team that competes against schools on an annual basis; it takes a biennial enrichment trip for 6th Formers to Auschwitz and runs a yearly Holocaust survivor talk. Our Key Stage 3 students also take part in a full-costume Tudor banquet with staff and 6th Formers as part of their study programme.

Maths class

Maths Students display academic depth in Mathematics by their ability to apply their mathematical knowledge to problems. Enrichment is not simply learning facts and demonstrating skills. The aims of the Mathematics curriculum are to support a problem-solving approach and to grow an appreciation both of Mathematics and of the development of conceptual structures.

In class we frequently use open ended problems, to promote mathematical reasoning and thinking skills, preparing students through breadth and experience to tackle higher level mathematics with confidence and a sense of pattern and place.

History trip to Ypres

The department takes part in the UKMT Maths Challenges each year at all levels (Junior, Intermediate and Senior). We also participate in the UKMT Team Challenges. We attend the Maths Inspiration Lectures, the largest maths enrichment programmes for teenagers, designed to inspire students in the 5th and 6th Form about the use of Maths in the context of exciting real world situations. We also host an annual Maths lecture - speakers have included Alex Bellos, Rob Eastaway, Simon Singh and Matt Parker.

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Modern Foreign Languages We incorporate self-study lessons into our teaching programme, including our ‘guided research’, using a variety of resources in the library and MFL self-study area and computer suite, including books, magazines, games and reference material.

There is a multitude of foreign language reading opportunities in the library including Harry Potter, Philip Pullman, Stephenie Meyer and many more translated into French, German and Spanish. We also have many of the classics, including medieval French poetry, German and Spanish novels and some old favourites such as Astérix and Tintin. Foreign films allow our pupils to access ‘real’ French, German and Spanish culture and language and are a weekly feature of all GCSE and A Level lessons. Subscriptions to online resources offer opportunities for extension and our pupils are regularly encouraged to use apps to allow them to explore language and develop their understanding. A Level students are encouraged to read original texts in the foreign language and to listen to on-line news each week.

Our full-time foreign language assistants bring a flavour of France, Germany and Spain to the classroom and offer a fresh perspective on the culture and traditions of their country. Native or bilingual speakers have the

French class

opportunity to study the language with an assistant off timetable in order to tailor the teaching to their individual needs.

Our twinning with the Art Department is bringing many exciting ideas to our lessons, allowing pupils to create stories, pieces of poetry and Art in a foreign language.

We offer Mandarin on Saturday mornings and have a class studying an extra GCSE off timetable. There is a Japanese Club and we offer French, German and Spanish extension groups which take a quirky look at language, including more advanced grammar, Oxbridge translations, literature and even some medieval poetry, which is excellent preparation for Russell Group universities.

A French theatre company visits LWC every year and offers our 1st and 2nd Formers enrichment through theatre and language.

All pupils have the chance to practise their languages in a real-life setting through a wide variety of trips on offer – to Paris and Munich, exchange trips to Toulouse, Freiburg and Galicia and our 6th Form linguists have the opportunity to do work experience in France, Germany and Spain.

Spanish trip to Galicia

ACADEMIC ENRICHMENT GUIDE

Music The Music Enrichment and Appreciation Programme covers a wealth of both academic and co-curricular opportunities. Recent highlights have included: a musicology lecture from published author Dr Graham Griffiths; GCSE Schools’ Concert with the LSO; and workshops delivered by members of the STOMP cast and an African master-drummer in support of our Key Stage 3 schemes of work. Performance and composition make up over 60% of GCSE and A Level specifications and have, therefore, been complemented by compositional workshops with Michael Omer and Robert Hartshorne.

Spring Concert

We have a full-time Musician in Residence who offers academic tutorials, clinics and evening composition lessons to individuals/groups, as well as theory and aural support.

Our co-curricular provision is extensive; students have the opportunity to perform regularly both in a solo and ensemble capacity. We schedule many clubs outside of the curriculum including composition clubs and training in technical support, for example, lighting and sound, and recording. We stage junior and senior musical productions (Bugsy, Little Shop of Horrors, Guys and Dolls) as well as end of term concerts, informal soirĂŠes, outreach projects at local churches and prep schools, student-led evenings, acoustic nights, house events, festivals and competitions. We also hold regular

ABRSM/TG music exams. The 1st Form Orchestral Initiative enables students to learn an instrument for free for a year in groups.

We have a regular programme of visits to hear live music outside LWC. This has included visits to local concerts as well as London venues such as the Albert Hall and Barbican. Highlights have included an Event Management Workshop at RAH, collaboration with Bury Court Opera, trips to see the RPO and Jools Holland, as well as numerous visits to the West End.

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Physics The Department aims to stimulate the natural curiosity and imagination of able students by encouraging reflection on content, practice and methodology.

Practical investigations facilitate teaching of content but more able students go on to understand the links between underlying principles of Physics.

Students are encouraged to explore both immediately accessible material and more demanding material. The department encourages them to indicate whether a task is sufficiently demanding.

Online resources further support the stretch agenda.

The Isaac Physics project (Cambridge University) and echalk both form part of the department’s academic expectations of students and both have proved popular at all ages. Modern practical equipment such as sensors and data logging tools are used to enable students to become familiar with physics in the modern world.

Other extension opportunities include the 6th Form trip to CERN, evening lectures at Royal Holloway, Surrey and Southampton Universities, L6th Physics Extension group, Senior Physics Challenge (Cambridge University), Headstart Engineering courses, Saturday Science Club and Saturday Gadget Engineering Club.

Physics class

Psychology

6th Form Business Studies

Psychology students demonstrate intellectual acuity when applying psychological theories and concepts to real life and current news. Examples include exploring explanations for unreliable eye witness testimony in recent court cases.

consideration of the future of psychology and its links with neuro-science, the question of whether or not scanning could ever be used to read people’s minds and whether memory is more a matter of reconstruction than reproduction.

To prepare students for post-6th Form academic study, they conduct practical investigations which are written up as formal research reports; for example the nature of the relationship between brain masculinity and aggression, using psychometric testing and computer games.

Students register with the British Psychological Society’s online research digest, which gives details of contemporary research. External speakers include barristers from the Crown Prosecution Service, clinical psychologists and forensic psychologists, to complement topics being studied and encourage discussion. U6th students have the opportunity to lead an Introduction to Psychology course for GCSE students.

Regular discussions and debates which concern topics related to the A level course extend and challenge students’ reasoning. The topics discussed include a

ACADEMIC ENRICHMENT GUIDE

Religion, Philosophy and Ethics Students display academic depth in Religious Studies by demonstrating a highly developed awareness of theological and philosophical language, a sensitivity to complex ideas and a deeper understanding of the power of symbol, myth and analogy.

In addition to the requirements of our set courses, all students are also invited to engage with more challenging material. For example, our 3rd Form students are introduced to philosophy and ethics but can go on to tackle so-called ‘killer’ questions within each topic. Examples of these include: Are numbers real or made up? What does it mean to say something is fair? Is there a perfect answer to the Prisoner’s Dilemma?

Our GCSE students are frequently required to answer questions using writers such as Dostoevsky, Hume and Dawkins whilst at A Level, they tackle questions on evil, the existence of God and the challenge to religion posed by science by researching the ideas of Augustine, Feuerbach, Nietzsche and Polkinghorne.

The department currently runs a 6th Form discussion group called the Coffee House. This allows members of the 6th Form to present a discussion paper on a philosophical, political, religious, moral or social topic of their choosing. Past discussions have included consideration of Mill On Liberty, an investigation into why the brain is divided and reflection on the meaning of The Myth of Sisyphus.

6th Form tutorial

Religion, Philosophy and Ethics lesson

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Academic Clubs and Societies* • Build a Business • Design club • Young Enterprise • Drama skills workshop • Theatre workshop • Creative writing workshop • BBC News report • Toastmasters • 1 million words • History debating society • War memorial project • Junior Computing club • Coding clinic • Foreign film club • Japanese for beginners • Mandarin for beginners • Coffee House • Psychology forum • Gadget club • Beyond A Level: Physics at university level • Dissection club • RSC Chemistry Olympiad • aScience club • Online distance learning A Level eg. film studies * these clubs and societies are subject to change Science lesson with 2nd Form

ACADEMIC ENRICHMENT GUIDE

Other Enrichment Activities 3rd Form project

BBC School Report

In the 3rd Form all students engage in the 3rd Form Project which allows them to develop their independent learning, research and presenting skills. They are supported by teachers, tutors and 6th Formers who have completed the EPQ. The project aims to stretch and challenge students as they choose a topic from a given list, design a thesis and embark upon research over two school terms to produce a large poster displaying their research and argument, culminating in a presentation in front of tutors and peers in their houses.

The winner from each tutor group then speaks again in the final. The initiative reveals the best of what students at LWC have to offer as it showcases their curiosity, creativity, perseverance and engagement.

Each year schools up and down the country participate in the BBC Schools Report, where students learn to work independently and to real deadlines. They understand, interpret and create a variety of non-fiction and media texts along with video interviews. LWC runs this as an English extension opportunity for 3rd form and enables them to engage with contemporary issues which affect them and their peers in the modern world.

The Extended Project Qualification (Level 3 EPQ) The EPQ is a stand-alone qualification which will help pupils to extend their study skills and enhance their overall academic profile through acquiring transferrable skills which are vital for higher education or for employment. The project is a student-driven qualification, whereby pupils will be required to decide on a topic they wish to base their projects on and then will conduct a broad and eclectic range of research before embarking on their final piece, which can be either a written dissertation, an artefact or a production.

Throughout the entire process, pupils are required to record their research and other evidence they have acquired in their Production Logs and once pupils have completed their final piece, they will present their work to a non-specialist audience. Pupils are assessed on the product of their projects and on the process in its entirety.

Although the EPQ is student-led, pupils will have an EPQ Coordinator, who will be responsible for delivering the Taught Element side of the project to help guide pupils and teach students specific skills they will need to complete different aspects of their projects.

Furthermore, in addition to the EPQ Coordinator, each pupil will be assigned a Supervisor during the process, where they will be able to meet during designated stages of the process and review pupil progress and their projects individually.

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