The Week Ahead

Senior School Matters

IGCSE qualifications represent a major strength of a British style education. They provide a rigorous curriculum framework to work with whilst still enabling pupils to exert a degree of control and experience an element of choice in their learning. This ensures that each individual pupil can experience an increasingly focussed and specialised, engaging and unique pathway to success as they get older. The choice element comes in at two points; in Year 11, when pupils select the three or four A Level subjects that will form their route into university, and prior to this, in Year 9, pupils pick their three IGCSE options. Our Year 9 cohort have been working during prep time over the past few weeks to learn more about the available choices and start picking the subjects that will make up their IGCSE options pathway for the next two years.

Year 9 learners are generally not experienced enough to select their personalised curriculum. Hence, we retain some oversight and insist that each pupil continues learning in our core subject areas – Maths, English, Science and Chinese. Pupils will also still undertake non-examined lessons in PE, Wellbeing, University Prep and Library lessons, plus the School Activity programme for personal growth and development. The rest of the curriculum time is for pupils to choose the three subjects which excite them and play to their strengths the most. Pupils interested in Humanities may opt for Geography and History as two options; tech-heads will look to Design Technology and Computer Science, creatives will pick from Art, Music and Drama, whereas future entrepreneurs will be drawn towards Business and Economics. Combinations of these subjects and the other subjects make up all 14 options courses available to pupils at Wellington College International Hangzhou.

A key message that I deliver to parents and pupils about IGCSE options choices is “Quality, not Quantity”. I have worked with parents in the past who have fallen into the trap of thinking that more qualifications are better. The harsh truth is that University admissions tutors look much more at levels of success rather than the number or even provenance of the qualification. It is also important for pupils to select options that enhance their academic strengths and support their passions and interests; otherwise, the IGCSE years can become very dull. We have an expert team of tutors, pastoral leaders, and subject teachers who work closely with pupils throughout their journey to ensure that the choices made enhance the chances that each pupil will flourish.

Stewart Brown

Head of Senior School

Sixth Form Matters

How do admissions officers select students for their universities? 
Part One

Just like you seek the best university for your child, university admissions officers also want to admit the best students for their institutions. So firstly, and most importantly, the admissions officers will look for the correct academic profile. This means suitable IGCSE results and A Level predicted grades. In most cases, when a pupil applies for university, they have not sat their final examinations yet, and therefore teachers provide predicted grades based on evidence. This consists of prior assessment data, classwork, homework, pupils performance in lessons and pupils attitudes to learning.

With all this data and a school reference in hand, admissions officers then compare this with their entry requirements. Every U.K. course has its own set of entry requirements; these can range from listing grades such as “BBB” or tariff points such as ‘104 UCAS points to specifying subjects such as “ABB with an A grade in Mathematics. In addition, courses in America will state a GPA (Grade Point Average, where the highest is 4), and some include a range of SAT and ACT scores that previous applicants held. For example, Duke University states that the most successful applicants “will have a minimum college GPA of 3.7” and that of those admitted in 2021, “the middle 50% of ACT was 33 to 35, and the middle 50% of SAT was 1460 to 1560”.

These entry requirements give us an idea of the calibre of students admissions officers are looking for. In Lower Sixth (the first year of A-Levels), teachers will begin to have an idea of pupils predicted grades, and once you know these, you and your child can start researching a best-fit university. This would be a university that runs a course that interests your child and has entry requirements that match the predicted grades. It is well worth noting that an application with a set of predicted grades far below the entry requirements would not even be considered. After all, Oxbridge and Ivy League institutions did not gain their reputations without setting some very high entry requirements!  

So how much do academic results matter when it comes to applying for universities? The short answer is that they are the first piece of information that admissions officers look at, and they will decide in a split second whether or not to continue reading an application. To avoid disappointment, it is always wise to apply to universities where the entry requirements are broadly in line with the pupil’s attainment. By working closely with our experienced university advisers and completing sufficient research, every applicant should be receiving offers from universities that best suit their abilities and aspirations.

Next week I will conclude with how extra and super curricular activities can make applications stand out.

Upcoming webinars / classes / events

City University of Hong Kong: Virtual Visit

Monday, 29 November, 1:15pm-2:00pm 
Meeting ID：987 4274 5526
Password：651007

Please click the following link to register: https://cityu.zoom.us/j/98742745526?pwd=OFVjK0pGM3VwQjZ4OUF4YjJxajFFQT09#success 

Understanding Art Schools and Careers in the Arts: 
School of the Art Institute of Chicago, Maryland Institute for Creative Arts, California College of the Arts, College for Creative Studies
Wednesday, 8 December, 8:00pm(CST)
Please click the following link to register: https://cca.zoom.us/j/91577635085#success

Hatty Leung

Head of Sixth Form

Primary School Matters

Multi-tasking

I recently had quite a few debates with colleagues and parents about multi-tasking and its effect on children. For example, a child uses a computer to instant message with friends while the television is on in the background or while listening to music. Firstly, it is important to realise that we all multi-task every day. Most adults I have spoken to acknowledge that it is probably an unwanted habit and quite possibly may slow or hinder their efficiency on a given task. They also recognise that their children imitate these habits from a young age. However, they also consider it a valuable skill, given that in our time-strapped society, multi-tasking allows you to complete many different tasks simultaneously.

Whilst research into multi-tasking and the effect on children is inconclusive, studies have shown benefits include improved divided attention skills and that multi-taskers are more creative on subsequent tasks. However, in contrast to this, it can also be argued that it reduces the efficiency and quality of work and increases stress. In addition, some studies found that multi-tasking reduced the knowledge children could recall, caused situational Attention Deficit Disorder, which led to irritability, declining productivity, and disorganisation and had social costs, such as decreased family interaction.

Multi-tasking is here to stay; the question is, how can we mitigate the costs?

One answer is reading. Research has shown that reading promotes imagination, increases vocabulary, and encourages reflection. But, perhaps most importantly, adults can lead by example to encourage breaks from multi-tasking. This may mean setting limits on media time or turning off the TV and pulling out a board game that requires concentration on a single task. But, more generally, it means slowing down the pace a bit and encouraging family time.

At school, we do value the skills that multi-tasking develops. We set aside purposeful time to develop these skills and teach children when it is appropriate to multi-task and when it is better to have a singular focus. We also acknowledge that we have to plan to build other skills. We purposefully make positive habits such as focusing meal and play times as social times, building engagement stamina in independent learning tasks and assemblies, and building into our learning intentional thinking about how you think and learn, also known as metacognition.

Matthew Coleman
Head of Primary School

Sport Matters

This week the WCH U12 boys football team defeated Wahaha School 9:0. The boys put on a fantastic display of skills, and it was wonderful to see them victorious after training so hard. The boys had practised in our school’s activities programme, with Mr Witter as their coach and mentor. Our school prides itself on coaching outstanding athletes who are proud Wellingtonians.. 

Timothy Schulze

Head of PE

Performing Art Matters

Photograph from Grand Hyatt carol singing 2020

Christmas time is here! A beautiful winter celebration to remind us of the importance of family and friends. The importance of practising kindness and caring for each other. At Wellington College International Hangzhou, we pride ourselves on showing kindness in everything we do.

On Saturday, 27 November, 17 members of our WCIH Choir will be performing at the Christmas Tree Lighting ceremony at the Grand Hyatt Hotel (by West Lake) at 5:00pm. Please feel free to come and join us at this spectacular celebration.

Alejandro Montoya

Director of Performing Arts

Upcoming Events

Explore Hangzhou with Wellington

- An English Wechat mini-app to help you settle into Hangzhou -