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Ashmole
sixth form

Able Gifted and Talented Programme

“Very effective partnership of teachers and students working together to achieve their joint vision is at the heart of the high attainment in the sixth form.” OFSTED

At Ashmole we aim to provide an education suitable for all students and where every child can make excellent progress. In January 2015, the school achieved the NACE Challenge Award. This Award is the highest accolade awarded by the National Association for Able Pupils in Education (NACE). To achieve this the school was visited by NACE inspectors who observed lessons, inspected pupils’ work and spoke to parents, staff and governors.

To ensure that more able students make excellent progress, we identify them on the School Able, Gifted and Talented Register. Such students have all round ability across the core subjects of English, Mathematics and Science and have developed to a level significantly ahead of their year group. These students enter the Sixth Form with a significant number of A* grades or grade 8 and above at GCSE.

In an increasingly competitive world, it is important that we guide and support our able learners so that their applications for higher education and employment are as enriched as possible. To achieve this, we have created a bespoke programme for our able learners called the Ashmolean Programme. The programme involves a variety of activities, including opportunities to visit higher education institutions to encourage aspiration. In addition, students can make use of Firefly – our virtual learning environment. The Gifted and Talented pages are filled with suggestions for able students to extend their learning. There are also suggestions for wider reading and exhibitions along with information on events and courses. Each subject area also provides a Gifted and Talented section with resources to extend learning.

Mentoring Programme

All G&T students’ performance is monitored and both individual and group mentoring sessions are conducted accordingly, at least once per term, to ensure that students are maintaining high levels of achievement.

Alumni visits

Ashmole has a healthy alumni community and this is regularly tapped into to provide inspiration and guidance for our most able students. Recent visits have included a Cambridge Economics graduate and an HS2 engineer.

Dipo – Ashmole & Cambridge Alumnus gave a talk on Banking

 

Alex – Ashmole alumnus giving a talk on Engineering


Trips & visits
A,G&T students enjoy various opportunities to visit relevant institutions and organisations according to their subject or potential degree interests. Recent visits have included St George’s, University of London for a Clinical Skills day when prospective Year 12 medical students got the chance to try out practical skills, a visit to Bart’s Pathology Museum for an ethical debate workshop entitled ‘Your Body, Your Consent’ conducted by the Royal College of Pathologists and a visit to Sky’s offices in Osterley for a day at the Sky Academy.



Year 12 students visit Sky’s offices at Osterley for a full-day experience that gives students an insight into the world of work. Activities during the day are designed to develop young people’s employability skills through a range of exploratory activities and work-based tasks. As part of this, experienced staff pass on their skills through group mentoring on the day.

‘We really enjoyed the day because it gave us a chance to gain some independence and show our creativity in a team environment. All these attributes are essential to succeeding in a job which is why this day was so beneficial.’ Kishan, Year 12
 
 
Workshops & Insight Days
A,G&T students are provided with multiple opportunities to apply for workshops, taster courses, lectures and insight days. The G&T Co-ordinator assists students with applications for these events. Recent events have included an Insight Day at the international law firm Taylor Wessing for Year 12 students interested in law and similar events at Citibank and Lazard for those interested in banking and finance.

Year 12 student Sharaf said of a recent Insight Afternoon at investment bank Lazard ‘It gave me an in depth and realistic experience of what it would be like to work in a big city firm and provided lots of ideas about my options for the future.’
 
‘(At Taylor Wessing) we were given the opportunity to work with the solicitors and people from other schools to create arguments for an ethical debate which was fascinating.’ Rawan, Year 12.
 
We were able to discuss different opinions with other students from across London and received active feedback from the Taylor Wessing solicitors.’ Richard, Year 12.
 
Mock Interviews
Some competitive universities and/or courses require students to attend an admissions interview. Students are offered a number of mock interviews including some conducted by alumni and external academics.