Learning pathway in secondary: English

What makes secondary school at Wellington College International Hangzhou so special? 

Please watch above welcome message from our deputy head of senior school, Mr. Philip Stainton and some of our secondary pupils to find out more.

At Wellington College International Hangzhou, our Key Stage 3 curriculum adheres to an adapted version of the Secondary School National Curriculum of England. The content of the National Curriculum focuses heavily on developing the essential knowledge and skills the pupils require as they work towards their IGCSE examinations and ultimately within adult life. The National Curriculum considers English, Maths and Science ‘core’ lessons and as such more time during the weekly timetable is devoted to teaching these subjects.

In this article, Mr. Samuel Tucker, Year 8 tutor and English teacher, offers a brief overview about the English subject covered in Key Stage 3. 

The secondary English course at Wellington College International Hangzhou is one that develops pupils as international citizens. Our course aims to give pupils the skills and expertise to not only sit the first language English IGCSE course, an internationally recognised qualification, but also to have the confidence to lead and inspire others. 

As one of our aims is to support pupils with taking an English native speaking examination, our curriculum is naturally challenging. Each lesson will surround pupils with new vocabulary, challenge their reading comprehension skills and support their writing. With time and practice, each of our pupils will be able to not only read sophisticated, challenging texts, but also produce them themselves. 

Each year pupils will practice a similar set of topics to enable them to improve on their previous year’s efforts. Each topic will also aim to make the learning relevant for our pupils by linking it to real-world events that can be discussed and debated. For example, in year seven we will look at the current refugee crisis in places like Syria and Europe; we will read modern novels, comics and news articles that will challenge pupils’ thinking and understanding of this difficult topic. In year eight, pupils will look at the nature of poverty and destitution by reading Charles Dicken’s novel, Oliver Twist. Finally, year nine will look at the nature of fake news articles and understand gender politics. Each of these topics aim to develop our pupils to be critical, resilient, and proficient in speaking, writing and communicating in English.

Pupils are constantly monitored and assessed in English. Any pupil the department believe requires additional support will be given additional tuition to enable them to undertake a native speaking IGCSE examination. This support often includes, individualised support outside of lessons, additional homework focusing on vocabulary and reading comprehension skills, and additional teacher-led support within class. Each of these methods of support, plus the support pupils receive in other subjects, means that our pupils always make excellent progress in English and are all more than capable of challenging native English speakers.

In all, our English course is one that not only enables pupils to take a first language IGCSE English examination, but also provides them with the confidence to communicate their ideas on the world around them.

It is never too late to start your learning journey at Wellington College International Hangzhou. If you would like to learn more about the College and our curriculum, please contact the school’s Admissions team via (+86-571)82396366 or admissions.wcih@wellingtoncollege.cn.