The Flagpole

As you may be aware, the Department for Education recently published further guidance concerning public examinations in the summer of 2022 which has been widely discussed in the press. In light of this, we wanted to update you on what this means for those members of the Princethorpe community completing GCSE courses this academic year.

Most importantly, it is clear that the government is both keen for examinations to go ahead and very much expecting that this will indeed be the case. As we will continue to remind our pupils, it is essential that they work in the expectation that they will sit full exams in the summer.

In order to reflect the disruption to their education that pupils have experienced, awarding bodies have also been directed to make adjustments to some aspects of the summer assessments, either by reducing the content covered or by providing advance notice of the focus of the content being examined. Precise details are expected to be published by Monday 7 February 2022, as this information is released, each individual department will make sure that pupils are fully aware of how this should affect their own revision and preparation.

In in the highly unlikely event that public examinations are cancelled once again next summer, the contingency arrangements would be a similar method of teacher assessed grades (TAGs) to that used last year.

In which case the two sets of mock examinations scheduled for Year 11 in January and February 2022 would provide key evidence for the TAGs. If summer examinations were to be cancelled, an additional internal assessments window could then be arranged, as was done last year.

The mocks will continue to serve their primary purpose of supporting pupil preparation for the summer. We are mindful of the fact that they could form part of a grading decision in the unlikely event that examinations are cancelled but our advice to pupils is to view them as a learning experience, requiring thorough preparation but also providing guidance of how to improve in the future. Teachers will be giving plenty of guidance to pupils as to how best to prepare for the mocks and how to use the Christmas holiday wisely in this regard. 

We have already shared this information with the Year 11s and we hope that this summary is helpful for you to understand the current situation so that we can work together to support pupils to achieve the best possible outcomes.

Despite the disruption caused by the pandemic of the last 20 months or so, Princethorpe pupils are in a strong position as they move towards their exams and the past two years’ exam results highlight that our staff have a great track record of supporting our pupils.

Please do not hesitate to get in touch if you have any further questions or concerns.

As you may be aware, the Department for Education recently published further guidance concerning public examinations in the summer of 2022 which has been widely discussed in the press. In light of this, we wanted to update you on what this means for those members of the Princethorpe community completing their A-level and BTEC courses this academic year.

Most importantly, it is clear that the government is both keen for examinations to go ahead and very much expecting that this will indeed be the case. As we will continue to remind our students, it is essential that they work in the expectation that they will sit full exams in the summer.

In order to reflect the disruption to their education that students have experienced, awarding bodies have also been directed to make adjustments to some aspects of the summer assessments, either by reducing the content covered or by providing advance notice of the focus of the content being examined. Precise details are expected to be published by Monday 7 February 2022, as this information is released, each individual department will make sure that students are fully aware of how this should affect their own revision and preparation.

In in the highly unlikely event that public examinations are cancelled once again next summer, the contingency arrangements would be a similar method of teacher assessed 7grades (TAGs) to that used last year.

In which case the two sets of mock examinations scheduled for Upper Sixth in January and February 2022 would provide key evidence for the TAGs. If summer examinations were to be cancelled, an additional internal assessments window could then be arranged, as was done last year.

The mocks will continue to serve their primary purpose of supporting student preparation for the summer. We are mindful of the fact that they could form part of a grading decision in the unlikely event that examinations are cancelled but our advice to students is to view them as a learning experience, requiring thorough preparation but also providing guidance of how to improve in the future. Teachers will be giving plenty of guidance to students as to how best to prepare for the mocks and how to use the Christmas holiday wisely in this regard.

We have already shared this information with the Upper Sixth and we hope that this summary is helpful for you to understand the current situation so that we can work together to support students to achieve the best possible outcomes.

Despite the disruption caused by the pandemic of the last 20 months or so, Princethorpe students are in a very strong position as they move towards their exams and the past two years’ exam results highlight that our staff have a great track record of supporting our students.

Please do not hesitate to get in touch if you have any further questions or concerns.

Now we are in to the second half term, it is important to recognise the stresses and demands on our Lower Sixth students. You should have noticed the level of study has increased somewhat but be aware that this level of load can cause difficulties and anxieties. Here are some tips to support your youngster.

Encourage your youngster to ask for help when they need it – seeking out a teacher before stress starts to build up is essential. This could be as simple as finding the teacher before class, chatting to their tutor or sharing worries with friends.

Stay organised – consider how your youngster is scheduling their time and ensure that they are setting aside time for each subject throughout the week. Encourage them to start assignments early, set deadlines and make the most of study periods in the school day.

Mix up your study routine – talk to your youngster about staying focused and positive during their study time. It is important that they use a variety of study techniques from using flashcards or mind maps, writing summaries and watching online tutorials to getting a friend or family member to quiz them, completing practice tests under exam conditions and working through questions from the text book.

Take time to research your post-school options – get your youngster thinking about their future aspirations. Taking time to research and make plans for post-school life can provide a nice break from studies, while also helping them to stay motivated by reminding them of the bigger picture. This may include researching institutions and courses of interest, organising things for a gap year and putting together course applications.

Stay calm and keep things in perspective – Sixth Form studies are rewarding but also demanding. Your youngster’s mental health is a vital component to success. Take time to encourage them to be involved in other activities and have a balanced life style.

For more suggestions, please click on this link.

Dr Liz Pyne
Assistant Head - Teaching and Learning

Progress Reports for Year 9 will be published on Friday 3 December, and will be available to view on My School Portal.  

Deputy Head - Academic 

Progress Reports for Lower Sixth, Years 8 and 10 will be published today, Friday 26 November 2021, and will be available to view on My School Portal.  

Deputy Head - Academic 

Thursday 2 December 2021 - 6.00pm to 8.30pm

The Lower Sixth Parents’ Evening will take place on Thursday 2 December 2021 from 6.00pm to 8.30pm. It will be hosted virtually through of a series of Microsoft Teams meetings with your child's teachers. Meetings will be booked online. Further details will follow on how to book the appointments.

It is hoped that all parents will be successful in gaining an appointment, however if this is not possible teachers may contact you via email to update you about your child’s progress.

You can find a list of your child's teachers under Teacher Contacts on MySchoolPortal.

Dr Liz Pyne
Assistant Head - Teaching and Learning

Tuesday 7 December 2021

We warmly invite all parents of Year 9 pupils to join us for our Online GCSE Options Information Evening on Tuesday 7 December. This event will be held online following the success of this format last year.

The welcome address at 6.00pm will explain the Princethorpe GCSE curriculum and the process for selecting options, followed by a series of subject presentations across four time slots; you will be able to choose which to attend based on the subjects your son/daughter is considering choosing. All sessions will also be recorded.

Additionally, should you wish to speak to Jacqui Quinney, our Head of Careers, regards the impact of subject choices on future pathways or any other careers/further and higher education matters, she will have a limited number of personal appointments available on the evening.

Evening Programme

6.00pm Welcome address, explanation of the options process

6.15pm to 6.30pm - Subject session 1

6.35pm to 6.50pm - Subject session 2

6.55pm to 7.10pm - Subject session 3

7.15pm to 7.30pm - Subject session 4

The links to all sessions and a link for booking career appointments will be emailed to you before the event.

Deputy Head - Academic
Assistant Head - Director of Studies