We aim to educate and excite our pupils, to fire their imaginations and develop students who are able to think independently and make their own decisions.
We do this by providing a broad, balanced, challenging and relevant curriculum, underpinned by our values of mutual respect, acting with integrity, taking responsibility, being resilient and resourceful in the face of challenge, embracing the productive exchange of ideas, and collaborating with and listening to the perspective of others.
Our Scholars play a key role in the life of College and have access to opportunities designed to enrich and challenge them to think critically.
Teaching at College is of an excellent standard and enables every pupil to make progress. Teachers are actively encouraged to differentiate in the classroom to meet the needs of all pupils and departments have specific provisions in place to stretch and challenge the most able. College values intellectual development, curiosity, the ability to enhance debate in the classroom and the acquisition of skills. Staff will encourage our scholars to develop as open-minded, enquiring individuals.
Outside of the classroom, we have created a tailored Scholarship Programme to stretch and inspire our scholars. Provision for Academic Scholars is through enrichment activities and experiences beyond the curriculum, under the banner of Forum42.
Each week pupils will deliver TED-style talks to their wider peers, such as ‘Should the UK still have an army?’ or ‘Can science disprove free will?’, and we also host our much-loved 'Three Humans on a Sofa' event where teachers debate ideas, with recent topics including whether science can exist outside of politics or economics, or whether prisons really work. Scholars attend masterclasses with young academics on themes such as who owns health or how fiction impacts our daily lives, and also have regular lectures from influential people in society, with pupils hosting our guests for supper beforehand. Recent sessions have included ‘Art Behind Bars’, ‘Tracking Gorillas’, and ‘Adding Colour: Diversity in British Cinema’.
Pupils are encouraged to explore their ideas through moocs, podcasts, and essay competitions, with many achieving national success. Pupils also take part in a bespoke six week mentoring project with young academics, opting for projects such as coding the mars lander descent and considering how the law could do more to protect vulnerable children in care.
Above all, we encourage our Scholars to reflect on their experiences and aspirations, to enable them to add value to the classroom and learning at College more widely.
To find out more about applying for a scholarship at College, please visit our Scholarships page.
“This evening was so intellectually stimulating for me, and I really hope there will be more opportunities for similar things in the future. The most fascinating project for me was a thought experiment about the nature of free will … This evening made me consider new possibilities for my future, as I never realised how much I enjoy things like this - a combination of philosophy but also sciences!”
- Lower College pupil talking about a presentation by an Academic Scholar
