GCSE students

Exam mode . . . activated

These students will often be meeting challenges of time-keeping, deadlines, versatile thinking and managing relationships with others through their first set of public exams. This might result in stress and anxiety also making a consistent appearance in their lives.

Introducing academic independence

We think that developing academic independence in these clients is crucial at this stage. This means that they increasingly see themselves as being able to solve their own academic problems. We catalyse this through creating a highly ordered and structured environment for clients. As they use our tools, we’ll help them to develop their own learning resources.

Our approach recognises that different subjects can bring layers of complexity, all easily tackled through meticulous organisation. We ensure that this organisation includes accessing extra and super-curricular activities and experiences. We use this to build the foundation for the client’s elevated communication and engagement with others.

Academic independence also manifests as being more vocal and participating in the school environment. We equip clients with techniques to do this and access resources that positively distinguish them.

A comprehensive plan

Our approach at this stage focusses on the five following areas:

  • Beyond the classroom - getting involved in extra-curricular and super-curricular activities, finding and developing new interests, building a profile early

  • Intellectual enrichment - engaging in deep discussion to develop thinking skills and broadening exposure through curated reading lists

  • Testing - a bespoke revision plan, including timeline and revision techniques, to ensure effective revision and prevent cramming. We manage internal (end of years and mocks) and external testing

  • Vocational – start to build knowledge of the workplace and career paths – this includes work experience, courses, employer events etc.

  • GCSE ‘exit plan’ - bespoke advice for the crucial choice of A Levels, balancing their interests with considerations about workload, their university applications, breadth and vocational relevance. After finishing GCSE exams, we guide our students in drawing a line under their GCSEs and transitioning to the next part of their academic journeys