Curriculum
Thankfully the days of limited subject choice for girls are long gone. While the introduction of the National Curriculum in 1988 established what children should be taught in state schools, independent schools retain the right to offer their own courses. This gives them a great advantage because it allows each school to provide a curriculum which is specific to the needs of its pupils. In practice most take the core and the best parts of the national curriculum, and enhance it, for example with additional modern languages.
It also leaves independent girls’ schools able to develop a curriculum which is carefully chosen to bring out the best in their girls while ensuring that they have all the skills (and more) needed to compete effectively in the job market later on. Don’t expect any two girls’ schools to have exactly the same curriculum; the advantage of this diversity is that it offers you real choice in setting your own priorities for your daughter.
A good example of breadth and depth beyond the state school norm is GCSE science. In many independent girls’ schools there will be an emphasis upon the three separate sciences and GCSEs in Biology, Chemistry and Physics will be offered in addition to combined science courses. Similarly, your daughter may have the opportunity to develop her natural creative skills not only through subjects such as art but also areas such as textiles, food technology and resistant materials (better known as woodwork and metal work!). In these subjects the quiet discipline and small group sizes which are characteristic of girls’ schools can be extremely beneficial.
Developing her confidence is a crucial part of your daughter’s education. A broad curriculum which allows her to explore many different learning styles and discover her innate skills is vital to this. Girls are naturally effective communicators but still need encouragement and opportunities to develop their listening and speaking skills. Within the delivery of the curriculum, girls’ schools will look to provide these opportunities via debates, presentations and the exchange of ideas.
No independent girls’ school will limit its curriculum to the subjects you see listed in the prospectus. Ask about the extra curricular programme for sport, music and drama and more. Girls’ sport is now wide ranging; while PE within the curriculum is likely to combine traditional games and physical fitness, the extra curricular sport will almost certainly range well beyond this, covering activities as diverse as riding and sub-aqua, and in the ethos of girls’ schools, healthy competition and ‘having a go’ will be seen as the norm.
The main concern of a typical independent girls’ school curriculum will be to develop your daughter’s confidence and all round potential. It should offer challenge and choice and make a major contribution to your daughter’s happiness.
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