Royal High Bath, GDST: Sixth Form Foundation

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Foundation for Sixth Form

A fast track course for Year 11 students to enable Sixth Form study at A Level/IB Diploma, leading to places at top universities worldwide

A fast track to Sixth Form studies

Royal High School Bath’s Foundation for Sixth Form programme provides a balance between helping international pupils develop their confidence in a UK boarding school setting and providing them with the skills and qualifications to make their Sixth Form academic experience successful from day one.

Students selected to join our intensive Foundation course will be able to study from a selection of GCSE courses, designed as a two-year course for UK Year 10 and Year 11 students, in just one year.

More than half of our Sixth Form Foundation students’ timetable is spent with our existing Year 11 pupils in GCSE and IGCSE lessons, in addition to the excellent opportunities to gain assurance from full participation in our co-curricular and pastoral programme.

This bespoke programme will help students’ development and achievement in two main ways:

1. Enabling motivated students with a strong academic record to complete between 5 and 7 GCSEs or IGCSEs in one year, ensuring a smooth transition into our highly regarded Sixth Form (Years 12 and 13) at Royal High Bath and then to take up places at leading universities in the UK or overseas.

2. Improving their understanding of the English language through learning in a fully immersive British educational context. Students will be taught exclusively in English and will be supported to improve their

level of both written and spoken English significantly.

Working in small groups with extra curriculum time, our specialists will use their expertise to help Foundation students to achieve strong GCSE results and provide an excellent foundation for further study in the UK.*

*Students will need to achieve a minimum standard in internal assessments so that we are confident that they can be successful in GCSE examinations. Those pupils who have not attained this standard will continue to study the courses and benefit from their experience, but they will not be entered for the examination.

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The Curriculum

We are pleased to offer the following subjects in Year 11 classes:

Maths IGCSE

Full IGCSE in Chemistry or Physics

Own language IGCSE qualification preparation support programme

Art or Music

Plus:

Our focus on integration across all aspects of school means our Foundation for Sixth Form students will have the full benefit of much more than academic lessons. Together with other students, they will also be encouraged to take part in our large and varied programme of Co-Curricular activities.

You will also be required to join the following bespoke classes:

English for Business Qualification

IGCSE English as a Second Language

Academic English preparation classes (for Sciences and Humanities)

Theory of Knowledge (a fortnightly critical thinking seminar, perfect preparation for the IB and A Level)

CAS: Bronze Duke of Edinburgh Award

• PE, Games, Tutor times, House Activities and PSHE

• Co-Curricular clubs including Music, Art, public speaking, craft and well-being options

The Foundation for Sixth Form course ends once exams have been taken and pupils return home after completing their final exam.

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English Teaching and Support

Students are taught in small groups by experienced teachers. We have many years experience of helping pupils learning English as an additional language (EAL) to become confident and secure learners who can use the language fluently.

Our Head of International Students will work with your daughter to develop her English so she is able to complete the IGCSE English as a Second Language syllabus. Exam success in the qualification provides a CEFR Level of B2+, required for entry to our Sixth Form.

Further English enhancing opportunities are provided within the Business English qualifications as well as dedicated lessons tailored around their studies to prepare students for the specialist academic language they will encounter in Sixth Form study across the curriculum.

This support continues in the Sixth Form so that they can achieve an IELTS Level 7 by the time they leave: this satisfies the English Language Entry Requirements for leading UK universities.

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Life at Royal High Bath

In our most recent parent survey (June, 2021) RSA Academics found RHB to be excellent not only in enabling our students to achieve academically but also to develop into rounded and confident young women through our excellent pastoral care and boarding houses.

“We are so happy to see our daughter as happy, balanced, flourishing and excited as she is each day. She always wants to come to school and that in itself is an extraordinary achievement.”

Activities

We offer all our students a rich and varied life outside the classroom and encourage everyone to try new sports and activities. This is a good opportunity to make friends with other students, day and boarding, and develop life-long friendships.

Weekends are busy with sports and activities, cinema trips, cultural visits and shopping and there are optional boarders’ outings at the weekends. These include trips to London, Bristol, Oxford, and other local places of interest.

We are proud to be a Steinway Music School, and students enjoy a wealth of musical, drama, dance, art and sporting opportunities. In addition, pupils take part in the many expeditions and curriculum trips available and immerse themselves in the busy life of the School.

“The school has given my daughter the chance to be everything she wants to be and more and the confidence to achieve her goals . Thank you.”

Sixth Form Foundation girls are provided with a network of support that will enable them to achieve their best in boarding, with their form tutor and with their peers. Our newly refurbished boarding houses provide a comfortable home-from-home with excellent facilities including WiFi, delicious and nutritious food and a professionally staffed Medical Centre.

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Ideal Pathways: Potential Developmental Sixth Course Outline

IGCSE

For our Foundation for Sixth Form students, our main aim is providing further functional English language support for academic subjects.

Students will follow the IGCSE English as a Second Language exam course materials to help build a foundation for students planning to move onto further study in English speaking environments. Students will sit the examination at the end of Year 11.

During the course, students will develop their understanding of a wide variety of complex reading texts, recognising implicit meaning. They will also gain a better understanding of standard spoken language and develop their ability to write clear, well-structured texts using an appropriate style, expanding and supporting points of view with supporting arguments.

All four skills (reading, writing, listening and speaking) are explicitly focused upon. The course is supplemented

Figure 1: Minimum expected English language levels for each year group.

by other course materials aimed at RHB language levels 5-7 (See Figure 1), selected for their relevancy to the academic aspirations of the cohort and based around current research and thinking on a range of topics.

Additional grammar work to hone an academic style will also be provided.

Content and Language

Integrated Learning (CLIL)

Strong curriculum links are maintained, with students receiving at least one Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) lesson for each core curriculum subject they are taking a month. These lessons link with the GCSE subjects the students are learning, helping them to better understand and access specific disciplinary literacies.

This also helps the subject teachers know how and when to further adapt material/ helps the EAL department to more explicitly support academic language development across the school.

Royal High Bath (RHB) Expected English Language Levels

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Business English Qualifications:

At Royal High Bath, our Foundation for Sixth Form students will be able to work towards business English qualifications of two levels:

B1 Business Preliminary

With a B1 Business Preliminary qualification, you show employers that you have a good knowledge of English for practical, everyday use in business.

The content for the exam is based on everyday work and business tasks and is designed to develop students’ business English skills. Royal High Bath Sixth Form Foundation students will all sit this important examination as part of their studies.

Students will learn how to discuss business subjects, understand charts and graphs and write short business emails.

B2 Business Vantage

For those who have mastered Business Preliminary, they will have the opportunity to work towards the Business Vantage qualification.

With this B2 qualification, you demonstrate to employers that you are ready to work successfully in international business. Students will learn to write business reports, read articles from business publications and listen to, understand and give answers in meetings.

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Boarding in Bath

Royal High Bath is set in beautiful, treelined grounds within walking distance of the centre of Bath, a UNESCO World Heritage City which combines history and tradition with a lively, contemporary culture.

Within easy reach of London, Bristol, Oxford and only 1.5 hours away from Heathrow and Gatwick Airports, our students are well placed to live, study and develop a global perspective.

We have a rich cultural mix – there are more than 20 different nationalities represented across the school, and we take opportunities to network with peers in other schools as well as providing aid and encouragement to project schools in Kenya and Cambodia.

Home from home

As a boarder, your daughter will be part of a warm and caring community offering all the support she needs to feel at home, to know that she belongs and to help her achieve her very best in school. Our boarding houses are run on kindness and respect and the House

Staff are always available for support and guidance.

Contemporary and chic

Described as ‘chic’ by The Good Schools Guide, our boarding accommodation is contemporary and comfortable. Our girls enjoy single or shared bedrooms, spacious communal areas, a large kitchen and quiet study spaces. While boarding with us, they are cared for and nurtured while benefitting from greater independence and freedom to prepare for university life after school.

Weekend fun

Our exciting programme of weekend and evening activities encourages our boarders to try new adventures, share experiences and ultimately have fun. The activities vary every weekend and every term, and have previously included theatre trips; arts and craft workshops; sightseeing in Oxford and London; iceskating, surfing, go-karting and zorbing to name a few.

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The Difference

We are proud to be part of the Girls’ Day School Trust (GDST), the UK’s leading family of 25 independent girls’ schools united in our aims and aspirations to support girls learning without limits.

As specialists in girls’ education, we tailor our teaching to the way girls learn best. In all GDST schools, academic excellence is a given –we also develop character beyond the curriculum. GDST girls learn to be confident, resilient and fearless, so they are equipped for the opportunities and challenges of the future.

The GDST also provides us with expert careers and university guidance including an Oxbridge preparation weekend, diverse sporting and music competitions, and exciting STEM-based trips to CERN in Switzerland and to NASA.

GDST Sixth Form students also take part in LEAD, an innovative Leadership

and Enterprise programme delivered and accredited by LSE Generate, the enterprise arm of London School of Economics. Consisting of weekly inschool taught sessions, online sessions with other GDST teams, and in-person “business boot camps” at LSE, LEAD is designed to enable our Sixth Form students to develop the skills to be future leaders and entrepreneurs.

All our students are part of the GDST Alumnae Network, a community of more than 70,000 former students and staff.

Being a GDST alumnae connects pupils to thousands of like-minded women all over the world, who are, forging their own way and making their own individual mark in the world. Opportunities range from mentoring programmes and business networking, to self-development and social events, the network offers a powerful professional community like no other.

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How to Apply

Applicants for the Foundation for Sixth Form Programme must be 15 or 16 on entry and have an IELTS Level 5.0 and above or equivalent (B1 or above). In addition, candidates will take tests in English, Mathematics and Sciences.

We will consider recent school reports and hold an interview in person or online

What next?

with a member of our Senior Leadership Team.

To apply please register via our website: www.royalhighbath.gdst.net

Please note a £100 registration fee will be required.

Entry to the Sixth Form: A Levels or the International Baccalaureate Diploma (IBDP)

During the first term, the curriculum team will send out information regarding the options available to study at A Level or the International Baccalaureate Diploma (IBDP).

Each student will also have a guidance

interview with a senior member of staff to give individual advice on next steps.

Shortly after options are received the Head will write to each family to confirm a place in the Sixth Form, subject to meeting our entry requirements.

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Royal High Bath is a licensed sponsor with the UK Visas and Immigration.

If a place on the course is offered and accepted, we will provide the necessary

Visas Guardians

It is a legal requirement for all overseas boarders to have a UK guardian.

All students accepted onto the course must appoint a guardian in the UK.

Your daughter’s guardian will help them

CAS letter to be used as part of the visa application process.

Parents are responsible for obtaining their daughter’s visa.

with travel arrangements.

They will also be responsible for them during weekend exeats (leaveweekends) and half term holidays.

For further information, please contact:

Sallie Taylor

Email: s.taylor@rhsb.gdst.net

Phone: +44 (0) 1225 313877

Miss Emma Symonds

Email: admissions@rhsb.gdst.net

Phone: +44 (0) 1225 313877

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For Girls. For Life. Royal High Bath Lansdown Road, Bath, BA1 5SZ 01225 313877 royalhighbath.gdst.net royalhigh@rhsb.gdst.net @royalhighbath

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