HOW H I G H CAN YOU FLY?

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PR E -A LEVEL PR O GRAMME

1 Y E A R I G C S E C O U R S E

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P R E - A L E V E L P R O G R A M M E

This document should be read in conjunction with the Pre-A Programme literature.

There are two major components to the one-year Pre-A Programme at St Bees School.

How St Bees prepares its second language students for the demands of the A Level, with a focus on the academic dimension. This focus comprises the subjects studied, the character attributes which develop students’ EQ skills and the progress tracking delivered through the school’s mentoring system.

The second component relates to enrichment and support.

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This counselling is provided individually for each student through the school’s specialist staff along with general seminars on university applications.

University Counselling

During the Pre-A Programme students are prepared for University life. As members of the St Bees boarding community, they grow in maturity, learning to accept responsibility for their own behaviour and contributing positively to leadership and teamwork. Personal organisation is one the ten character attributes we promote at St Bees, and whether a Pre-A student continues at St Bees for the A Level programme or moves elsewhere, they will be fully prepared for an independent life in a western country.

Preparation for University Life

St Bees provides its students in Pre-A and A Level classes with two additional course enrichments:

• aimed primarily at foreign nationals, our life skills course delivers an understanding of what it means to live and study in a foreign context – cultural, political, social and religious contexts, along with the associated do’s and don’t’s

• our unique Global Awareness Programme (GAP) is mandatory for all students at St Bees and is designed to develop all ten of our character development attributes

Life Skills

E N R I C H M E N T A N D S U P P O R TDuring this A Level preparation year students have a range of opportunities to broaden their horizons.

St Bees operates an International Centre which provides made-to-measure language support. Once the language needs of an individual student has been defined by our team of specialists, the student receives a schedule of the timings and location of the EAL support lessons. These are scheduled to complement the student’s academic timetable. EAL support lessons take place in a group of 2-4 students who share similar language needs.

EAL support

L E A R N I N G E N V I R O N M E N T

The St Bees railway station is located a 5-minute walk from the school, with regular services to the major rail-hubs in the UK.

The school’s minibus provides a convenient and reliable service to and from the nearest airports.

Transport

St Bees is one of the few UK schools which owns and operates a golf course on school land, and can provide practice and coaching facilities on demand.

Golf Academy

At St Bees School we are confident that we can deliver the very highest standard of education for our students, going above and beyond the provision offered by most other schools. So confident are we that we give a guarantee to our students, based on successful pre-admissions assessments, that they will be successful in gaining admission to a Russell Group or top-20 UK University. Details of the terms of our Russell group guarantee are available on request.

The Russell Group Guarantee

St Bees has been voted the safest town in the UK to bring up a family. St Bees students therefore enjoy the safest of learning environments far from the problems associated with the bigger cities.

A Safe Environment

St Bees schools are committed to providing a rounded education to our students, encompassing both academic and holistic dimensions. For our students, academic success develops hand-in-glove with their interpersonal and communication skills, and their ability to think and act creatively and independently – taking responsibility for their learning within the frameworks we provide.

The boarding dimension is a second home, and plays a complementary role in providing our students with the extended range of opportunities which play a key role in developing such competencies.

S T B E E S E D U C A T I O N A L P H I L O S O P H Y

Fusion begins with an ‘attitude’ for positive integration which reflects an ‘understanding’ underpinning the importance of integration.

A Fusion school is defined by:

• one Fusion curriculum which integrates Chinese and English curricula , followed by schools in China and the UK, allowing a free-flow of students between the two countries

• one Fusion collaborative structure of school leadership and management which integrates East and West management teams

• one common approach to learning and teaching, which is a fusion of the most effective strategies from both systems

• one set of desired Fusion outcomes for students into which both Chinese and western objectives feed

• the balanced emphasis on academic attainment and character development which provides a fusion of IQ and EQ.

F U S I O N S C H O O L S - T H E N E X T G E N E R A T I O N O F S C H O O L I N G

IQ + EQ : Academic Attainment in balance with Character Development

This is the cornerstone of the St Bees educational philosophy and the first of our Guiding Principles. Unlike the myriad components of the Chinese ‘virtues’ education, the St Bees character development programme focuses on those attributes which combine to enable students to maximise their educational potential.

The St Bees Character Attributes

This dimension is not a ‘bolt-on’ or delivered through worksheets. St Bees schools commit to the development of this dimension in two main ways: 1 integrated within lessons, with opportunities designed into all schemes of work2 delivered through the weekly GAP lessons for all students.

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C H A R A C T E R D E V E L O P M E N T

TEAMWORK

CONFIDENCE

PERSONAL ORGANISATION

CREATIVITY & ORIGINALITY

RESEARCH SKILLS

COMMUNICATION

INDEPENDENCE

CRITICAL THINKING

PUBLIC SPEAKING

LEADERSHIP

C H A R A C T E R D E V E L O P M E N T

G L O B A L A W A R E N E S S P R O G R A M M E

Do you understand how the world works?

Can you work well with others in a team?

How good is your world geography? Can you work to deadlines?

Can you organise your ideas?

Can you lead a team?

Can you work independently?

Can you do really effective internet research?

Can you speak in public with confidence?

GLOBAL AWARENESS

What specific skills are developed through GAP?

• English speaking, listening, reading and writing.

• Public speaking and presentation skills.

• Independent research on a subject and reporting back.

• Teamwork : working as a group, dividing up tasks, reporting back and compiling a composite report.

• Using different media to present information.

• Finding information, selecting information, organising information, presenting information.

• Creating graphic frameworks for information (displays, formats, etc.).

• Working to deadlines.

• Staying focused in preparation, using time efficiently, effective internet browsing techniques.

• Debate, discussion and constructive argumentation.

• Balanced opinion.

• World geography, world history – understanding the interconnected world.

• Different cultures, different politics and understanding why things happen.

GAPBRAINSTORM

Mind-map all areas

S H A R E I N F O R M A T I O N

Gather everything & choose what to use

P R A C T I C E

Choose who presents which

part & rehearse

P R E S E N T A T I O NThe group makes its presentation

A S S E S S M E N T

How did we do?

What’s the big idea?

C E N T R A L I D E A

R E S E A R C HFind all relevant

information

D E V E L O P T H E

A R G U M E N T

Organise the information

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E X A M P L E W E E K L Y T I M E T A B L E

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Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday

07:30 - 08:15 BREAKFAST

08:35 - 08:40 REGISTRATION

08:40 - 09:40 1 English Maths English Biology Geography

09:40 - 10:40 2 ICT Business English Biology English

10:40 - 11:00 MORNING BREAK

11:00 - 12:00 3 English Geography Private Study Maths Art

12:00 - 13:00 4 English Physics Chemistry Maths Art

13:00 - 13:45 LUNCH

13:45 - 14:15 Assembly MENTORING

14:15 - 15:15 5 GAP Chinese / PS PE English Chemistry

15:15 - 16:15 6 GAP Physics PE Business Chinese / PS

16:15 - 16:30 AFTERNOON BREAK

16:30 - 17:30 7 GCAS PROGRAMME

18:00 - 18:30 DINNER

18:45 - 20:30 HOMEWORK

FREE TIME