The Flagpole

As I mentioned in today's End of Term Assembly video and Mr Hester's referenced in his Flagpole message we are aiming to be able to provide at least some end of year assessments for the pupils. We think it is important that there is something for pupils to aim for at the end of the academic year but we are also very mindful of the pressures placed upon everyone due to the current situation. We will therefore put in place rather different assessments compared to previous years.

All the assessments will be distributed online via the class Teams and most, though not all, will take the form of a Quiz assignment which will contain both multiple-choice questions and some free text questions. The staff are already hard at work getting these prepared in these new formats.

For pupils in Years 7 to 9, the number of assessments that they sit will be considerably reduced compared to usual:

• Year 7 pupils will sit one test in each of the following subjects: English, Maths, Science, Spanish.
  
  
• Year 8 pupils will sit one test in each of the following subjects: English, Maths, Science, and their elected Year 9 language.
  
  
• Year 9 pupils will sit one test in each of the following subjects: English, Maths, Science, their elected GCSE options (except for those subjects which are new in Year 10)

Year 10 and Lower Sixth Pupils are of course already well into their GCSE and A-level courses and it is very important that they maintain their momentum ready to enter Year 11 and the Upper Sixth in a position of strength. These pupils will have one test for each of their subjects.

The teachers will outline for the pupils the rough content and format of the tests so that they know exactly what to expect. They are also being supported by our excellent Learning Support department to help make sure that the tests are as accessible as possible. The built-in accessibility tools of Office 365 are a great help in that regard.

I hope you agree that this strikes the right balance and supports the pupils, maintaining their focus and drive without adding undue pressure or concern.

Some of you may be aware that end of year tests have in previous years been helpful evidence when deciding on setting for the following year. Please be reassured that the outcomes of these tests will not carry the same weight that they normally would in that regard. We have extensive data about the pupils’ progress in all their subjects through the year so teachers will be in a strong position to make good professional judgements in that regard. We are already planning the curriculum model next year to allow us the flexibility to move pupils around a little if it looks like they aren’t quite in the optimal position by the end of September of October.

We are also mindful of the fact that some families with multiple children at Princethorpe may not have the IT equipment at home to be able to support a number of siblings all taking tests at the same time. We are currently working on a timetable to spread the tests out between year groups in such a way as to absolutely minimise any overlap. We hope that this will be helpful.

The tests are scheduled to take place in the usual week: from Monday 18 May.

Dr Michael Reddish
Deputy Head - Academic

Back in February pupils from Princethorpe College took part in the 2020 UK Mathematics Trust (UKMT) Intermediate Challenge, a prestigious national problem-solving competition that recognises the best young mathematicians in the country. The Challenge involves answering multiple choice questions and is sat under normal school exam conditions. The papers are then sent away to be marked by UKMT and the best pupils in the country are awarded Bronze, Silver or Gold Certificates.

The competition is aimed at pupils in Years 9, 10 and 11 and 67 Princethorpe mathematicians were selected to take part. It is a demanding exercise designed to stretch and test pupils’ mathematical skills, so the College is delighted that this year, Princethorpe’s mathematicians achieved exceptional results.

Congratulations to Ben Scares in Year 11 and Rahul Samra in Year 9, who were awarded a Gold certificate, and took the joint award for best performing pupil in school. Both boys performed so well that they also qualified for the follow-on round, the Intermediate Kangaroo challenge.

Silver certificates were awarded to: Ben Shipton, Ed Sharpe, Ciaran Smith, Joshua Rawlings, Aryan Chima, William Hawkins.

Bronze certificates to: Mary Lomas, William Gibson-Sexton, Anthony Convey, Ben Stitson, Carys Burchell, Rory Draper, Madoc Williams, Amy Hogg, Caitlin Mason, Eleanor Page, Joseph Newborough, Zak Abba, Harry King, Pratheesh Prabakaran, Alex Allison, Jack Grindal, Lucy Gribben, Molly Minshull, Remo Volpe, Daniel Webb, Seb Dibb, Zak Johnson, Dominic Lee, Jack Henderson, Oscar Page, Amelia Burgess, Ella Dunkley, Harry Horsley, Molly Wincott-Thomas.

Then on Tuesday 3 March, Princethorpe Year 9 and Year 8 pupils, Ben Smith, Ed Twyman, Emma Sarkies and Rahul Samra, took part in the Regional Final of the AMSP (Advanced Mathematics Support Programme) Team Maths Challenge.

Run in conjunction with the UK Mathematics Trust, the Team Maths Challenge is another prestigious problem-solving competition for the best Year 9 and Year 8 mathematicians.

The pupils took part in an intense four hours of problem-solving, progressing through a series of rounds that tested their mathematical, communication and team-working skills.

Princethorpe’s team did very well and were pleased to finish eighth overall.

Mathematics Teacher, Theo Scoutas, said, "Many congratulations to all of the pupils who represented the College in both of these testing competitions. Pupils achieved a fantastic set of results and we are very proud of your achievements.”

Well done and many thanks to all of the pupils who so enthusiastically took part in both of the competitions, we hope you enjoyed the challenge.

Please click for here the Easter holiday homework expectations.

Thank you 

Dr Liz Pyne
Assistant Head - Teaching and Learning

Whilst we are all on a steep learning curve, we hope that your experience of home learning has been positive this week. Teachers and pupils have found the week challenging in different ways and we all are adapting the way we work to maintain the progress of all individuals. I have heard many positive comments about home learning this week but there are still some issues to rectify. In that light, a parental survey will be issued to canvass opinions.

However, the most important outcome of this experience, is that families are spending more time together than ever before. Home learning is providing the opportunity for siblings and parents to talk about their learning. This is vital to ensure that our pupils can articulate their ideas; being able to explain what has been learned is a key skill that shows understanding. Discussions at the end of the day may provide some interesting topics and conversations. Young people’s learning is very diverse!

As a reminder, please encourage your child/children to complete their ‘log’ of their learning each day. This is important for our tutors to check if pupils need additional support but also for the pupils to realise that their learning and the school continues as normal.

Dr Liz Pyne
Assistant Head - Teaching and Learning