Our Sixth Form and (I)GCSE Curriculum Review took place on Tuesday 21 November 2023, with new structures, new subjects and more flexibility for our pupils announced.

By introducing up to three one-year GCSEs, it will now be possible to run more subjects, and thus give our pupils more choice. Overall exam preparation load will be spread over two years, making it more manageable. From September 2025, there will be a number of mixed Year 10 and Year 11 lessons, opening up more possibilities of peer-to-peer learning; a proven technique to accelerate children’s progress. Pupils will gain greater experience of public examinations in Year 10 and (we know from experience) are therefore more likely to find their Year 11 examinations less stressful, with an increased possibility of higher grades.

Further to this, there will also be more curriculum enrichment possibilities, meaning that important and interesting areas of learning, which aren’t examined, can be studied. The opportunity to develop these wider skills, in preparation for a rapidly evolving future, is particularly exciting to me. According to a panel of experts assembled by the Institute for the Future, up to 85 percent cent of the jobs that today’s college students will have in 11 years haven’t been invented yet, making the enhanced skills and knowledge we can now offer to our pupils an essential ingredient for future success.

• More flexibility of choice
• Also known as a Pre-IB course, one-year GCSEs provide excellent preparation for international pupils starting the IB Diploma
• Pupils develop a mature attitude to academic study earlier
• More possibilities of peer-to-peer learning
• Accelerated progress
• More manageable overall exam preparation load
• Curriculum enrichment possibilities

Click here for our initial (I)GCSE Options Sheet and (I)GCSE Curriculum Guide

Click here for our initial Sixth Form Options Sheet and Curriculum Guide

Windermere School is an Independent Boarding and Day School for ages 3-18, across Junior School, Senior School and Sixth Form. The school offers holiday courses and a summer school programme, as well as short term immersion courses for international pupils. Join the adventure today >