A moment to celebrate for Croydon High Sixth Formers

Croydon High School GDST is delighted to be able to formally recognise the significant academic achievements of their A Level students in 2021.

croydon gdst alevels

Headmistress Emma Pattison expressed the view of the whole school community saying;

“We are extremely proud of this year group and wish to congratulate each and every one of them on all they have achieved. Their success not only reflects their individual abilities, but also an enormous amount of hard work, resilience and perseverance in the most challenging of circumstances.”

Today represents a considered, accurate and fair response to the process that the Government put in place for A level assessment in 2021. The work that has been put in to ensure that this process met all these requirements was considerable and was carried out here at Croydon High with the highest levels of professionalism and dedication.

Today we are celebrating the character and talents of a cohort of Croydon High A Level students, who have faced unprecedented situations during their sixth form years with maturity and positivity and who thoroughly deserve to have their achievements celebrated. I would also like to pay tribute to their teachers, whose determination to ensure that their students received the highest levels of pastoral and academic support throughout these difficult months has also been truly inspiring.”

 

“We are extremely proud of this year group and wish to congratulate each and every one of them on all they have achieved. Their success not only reflects their individual abilities, but also an enormous amount of hard work, resilience and perseverance in the most challenging of circumstances.”

 

Amongst the countless smiles, hugs and squeals of delight in school on results day were a number of stories of very significant achievements, representing years of dedication and hard work.

It is impossible to mention everyone here although it is fair to say that every single one of the Class of 2021 deserves to be celebrated. 92% of the cohort were awarded places at their first-choice destination and over two thirds of those opting for university will be attending the Russell Group institutions.

 

It is impossible to mention everyone here although it is fair to say that every single one of the Class of 2021 deserves to be celebrated. 92% of the cohort were awarded places at their first-choice destination and over two thirds of those opting for university will be attending the Russell Group institutions.

 

For Aditi Rammohan, studying Chemistry has always been her dream and she is well on her way to realising this. Her simply outstanding grades of A* in Maths, Further Maths, Physics and Chemistry, secure her place to read Chemistry with Molecular Physics at Imperial College, London.

Aditi was quick to acknowledge the support of the school throughout her time there, saying “When I was in Year 7 I was so shy; I am a completely different person now.” Congratulations Aditi!
Congratulations also go to Laveenaa Jeyaruban, who achieved equally outstanding results with A* grades in Maths, Further Maths, Chemistry and Physics. A place at the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) awaits and is fully deserved. Well done, Laveenaa!

It was straight A* grades in Economics, Maths and Physics and in her EPQ, for Isha Korantak who heads to the beautiful city of Bath to read Economics, with all our best wishes.

Virology and Immunology seems an appropriate choice of degree this year! Keya Patel, with A* grades in Biology, Chemistry and Maths and an A* EPQ has secured a place at Bristol to study this fascinating subject. Congratulations Keya!

Aspiring lawyer, Tasia-Jade Bogle is heading for UCL to read Law armed with straight A* grades in English Literature, History and Politics and an A* EPQ – a stunning set of results. Tasia joined Croydon High for the Sixth Form and in two short years has made a huge impact on the school despite a global pandemic! She played leading roles in the last two school productions as well as throwing herself fully into co-curricular activities with a passion for human rights developed as a leader of the Amnesty International Society. Tasia’s future looks bright – many congratulations to her.

For Music Scholar, Amy-Louise De Fabiani-Turvey, Law and Politics was the goal and her straight A* grades in English Language, Music and Politics, unsurprisingly secured her a scholarship at one university and she is currently reviewing other options. Wherever she goes, Amy-Lou will bring her inimitable style and talents – many congratulations go to her.

Annabella Christou is also celebrating a clean sweep of A* grades in German, Economics, History and her EPQ, taking her to Warwick to read German and History. She will be joined there by classmate Alice Monaghan who achieved an equally stunning suite of grades with A* in Drama English Literature and History and an A* EPQ. Alice will be reading Theatre and Performance Studies

The highly renowned University of Warwick has proved to be a popular destination for the Class of 2021, with Kaitlyn Klass (A*A*A and A EPQ) happily accepting her place there to read Politics, Philosophy and Law and Ariya Khandelwal (AAA and A EPQ) is on her way to read History. Congratulations to all.

Head Girls, Analisa Carrozzo (A*A*A) and Emily Martin-Pahl (A*A*A and A EPQ) are keeping the dream team together as they both head to King’s College, London, to read English Language and Linguistics and Psychology respectively.

Another double act, twins Megan and Sophie Webber, are heading to different parts of the country – which will be a wrench for them as well as proud mum and dad!
But no doubt exciting things await them both; for Sophie in Bristol to read History, with A* grades in History, Drama and Maths and a A grade EPQ and for Megan, with A* grades in Drama and English Literature, an A in Religion, Ethics and Philosophy and an A* EPQ. Megan heads north, to Liverpool where she has opted to take a foundation year at the highly regarded Liverpool Institute of Performing Arts (LIPA) before going on to her full degree. The Webber twins have lit up the stage at many a school production and we have no doubt they will continue to shine.

Choi Liu set about sixth form life in a typically dedicated fashion, studying hard and pursuing every work experience opportunity with vigour. Choi has secured a coveted place at UCL to read Applied Medical Sciences with her A*A*A and A* EPQ grades. We are confident that this is Choi’s first step on the road to realising her dreams and we know she will continue to excel.

Of course, university isn’t the right choice for everyone, and the school has always been delighted to support students who opt to go straight into the world of work or to apply for an apprenticeship scheme.

 

 Of course, university isn’t the right choice for everyone, and the school has always been delighted to support students who opt to go straight into the world of work or to apply for an apprenticeship scheme.

 

For Emma Cahill, her strong performance at A Level (AABB) armed with the confidence and ‘soft skills’ she has developed at Croydon High make her the perfect candidate for this. It is an exciting option and we look forward to hearing which route she opts to take. Emma will be a huge asset to any workplace.

It has been said that an exam-based system provides a snapshot of a student’s ability, at a particular moment on a particular day and inevitably there are significant contributory factors which can affect this.

Acknowledging this, Croydon High’s Deputy Head (Academic) Dr Philip Purvis explained “What we have found is that the teacher-led assessment process over an extended period has allowed for a more holistic judgement, taking into account different pieces of work and sustained performance levels. This should be seen as a positive indicator of both ability and effort and reflects the best that a student could achieve over a period of time, rather than a make-or-break performance on a single exam date.

Whilst neither the circumstances nor the resulting process are situations that we would have wished for, they have necessitated an unprecedented level of scrutiny of individual students and of our curriculum and teaching provision, to ensure we are able to corroborate every decision. We are very proud of the high standards exhibited in all these areas.”

For Holly Osman, who joined Croydon High for the Sixth Form, it is the teaching that has made all the difference, particularly her ‘amazing’ Head of Spanish! Holly explained that it was learning Spanish with Ms Diez that not only inspired her to continue with the subject, but also to pair it with Arabic, as she became fascinated with the influence of the Arab culture on Spain through her studies. A grades in Spanish and History and an A* in Classical Civilisation, means Holly is accepting her place at Edinburgh – and the only thing she is worried about is the cold! Pack lots of jumpers Holly!

As Deputy Head and Director of Sixth Form, Sophie Bradshaw, pointed out “Exam results are just one part of the vibrant individual picture that represents every student’s unique academic and personal development, during their time at Croydon High. Every single one of these students has faced their own challenges, dealt with adversity, acquired new skills and talents and formed close friendships and associations within a remarkably able, supportive and cohesive year group. It is these experiences, which go way beyond any academic results, that will continue to bring great fulfilment to their lives after Croydon High.”

 

“We will always be extremely proud of our Class of 2021 and we know they will continue to inspire us all as they move on to new adventures.”

 

The final word came from Emma Pattison saying “To the parents and families of our youngest alumnae, I would like to say thank you for entrusting your daughters to our care and for working alongside us to encourage and enable them to fulfil their potential and go on to achieve their dreams.

“We will always be extremely proud of our Class of 2021 and we know they will continue to inspire us all as they move on to new adventures.”