Ashbourne Independent Sixth Form College offers two year, 18 month and a one-year intensive A levels, providing a wide range of subject choices. These programmes are overseen by the Director of Studies, John Wilson, who is ably assisted by Breanne Grantham and James Wykes.
Students will find the atmosphere slightly different to more traditional schools. There is no requirement to wear uniform and many teachers prefer to be addressed on a first name basis. Despite the informal atmosphere, Ashbourne's A level programme is an environment for dedicated learning. Poor behaviour or a failure to comply with simple rules is not tolerated and any students who fail to accept the standards of behaviour and effort will be asked to leave the college. Ashbourne is therefore able to engender a positive learning environment in which students can grow in confidence and achieve their true potential. The class size for formal subjects rarely exceeds ten. AS students should expect to receive six hours per subject per week, though if there are fewer than three students per subject, this is reduced to four hours. A2 students will receive the same hour allocation for A2 material as their AS counterparts, but will also receive an additional two hours per subject per week to cover AS material, if they require resits.
Ashbourne A level students are usually from a variety of nationalities. The college's September intake consists of over 25 different nationalities and around half of the students are British.
Attendance is strictly monitored and any behavioural issues are communicated on a regular basis to parents. Parents will receive reports from tutors every half term, which will involve test results from mock examinations set within each subject. Parents will have the opportunity to meet with members of the teaching staff twice each year, after the Autumn and Spring half term breaks.
The college aims for Ashbourne students to obtain a place at a top UK university after completion of the A level programme. |
