A letter from the Principal
Dear Student & Parent/Carer,
The exam season is upon us and this is your time to shine! I can’t say this is going to be an enjoyable few weeks, but it is necessary and something we all go through in our lives. It won’t be long before your magical Prom and longest summer holiday ever will be here. However, we can’t ignore the fact that these next few weeks will have a significant impact on the rest of your life. To help you through, I want to give you some tips and advice to help you perform to the best of your ability.
- There is still enough time to make significant improvements in your grades
The time studying at home and in revision classes will have a significant impact on your results, right up to the moment you walk into the exam. Keep working hard and use every moment you can to make that next grade. - This is nothing to do with luck
Your GCSE results are all about the effort and the work you do to prepare for your exams. No-one will say those students who do well have been “lucky”. Work hard and put the effort in and you will see the benefits. - Prioritise your time
Over the next few weeks, your exams must be your number one priority. This is the time to be disciplined about how you use the precious time you have. - Use the staff to help you achieve the top grades
Don’t sit at home worrying about some content you are struggling with, ask your teachers for help as they are the experts. They will always find time for you, and five minutes with a teacher could save you hours. - Attend all the extra sessions
Staff at Cowley always have extra sessions after college, at weekends and during the holidays, that are carefully planned to support you with exam preparation. Don’t miss out on these important opportunities as students who come to these sessions are far more prepared and achieve higher grades. - Work hard at home
Evenings and weekends are long enough to fit in relaxation and revision. Each evening, you should be studying for 2 hours (not including your Period 6). Split your weekends into 3 (mornings, afternoons, and evenings) and study for 2 out of 3. - Reward your hard work with some ‘down time’
Relax, get outside, and do some exercise. Studies show that students who punctuate their revision with exercise outside do better in their exams. - Be honest and ruthless with your distractions
We all have distractions in our lives that stop us from doing what we need to do. Be disciplined with these distractions, whether this is your phone, your PlayStation or something else. For the next few weeks, these must be managed. You will have plenty of time once the exams have finished! - Be organised and prepared for the day
Use your exam timetable to know when and where your exams are. The morning of the exam can be very busy and therefore preparation is key. Each night, make sure you have all the necessary equipment for the next day. If you are not sure on what equipment you need, please speak to your Team Tutor. - Use the resources provided
All the resources we have given you, including the ‘Knowledge Organisers’, GCSE Pod, Revision books and past papers. These are all brilliant, but only if you use them! Don’t spend time copying things down or making extensive notes. Familiarise yourself with key topics, make lists of areas that you are concerned about and speak to your teachers.
You are going to be nervous; it is normal to be nervous as it means you care, and these exams mean something to you. All you must do is work hard and ask for help when you need it.
I believe in you and your ability and look forward to celebrating with you at Prom and Results Day.
Best wishes,
Mr Cormack
Principal
Please see below a timetable of GCSE Easter revision classes. Please note that there aren’t any canteen facilities available, therefore students are advised to bring a drink with them.
Cowley International College’s U14 girls hockey team have been crowned champions at the recent North West State Schools Hockey Championships.
Competing against state schools from across the region, Cowley came out on top after recording an impressive set of results that saw them win four games and draw the other from their five-match series, giving them the best record of all the teams involved.
The girls achieved victories over Bramhall, Lytham St Annes, Sale and Wellington with a 0-0 draw against Bishop Heber in the middle with some excellent performances across the whole team.
P.E. teacher and hockey coach, Mrs Irwin, said: “I’m extremely proud of the girls for winning this tournament.
“We came up against a lot of strong teams, but the girls played some exceptional hockey and showed a great togetherness and team spirit by encouraging each other which got the best out of them.
“They demonstrated the core Cowleian values, played the game in the correct spirit and thoroughly deserved their success.”
The next major competition for the team will be the National State Schools Championships which is held in Nottingham later in the year.
A group of Year 10 students visited King Edward VI school in Handsworth, Birmingham, to meet staff from GCHQ and learn about how they use Languages in their work.
After learning some Mandarin, Korean, and Arabic, our students had to use these languages along with French and cryptic English clues to detect threats and report in French to a panel of GCHQ staff the essential information about the threat, including its identity, location, and nature.
The Year 10 pupils were fantastic and scored high in all tasks and one group was one of the first to complete it in full. One student got a prize for his effort at creating a GCHQ themed board game, which pupils had to design and create themselves and they had to ask for the items to make it in French from a panel of French teachers, including our very own Mr Chapple!
The students were fantastic and got fully involved with every task throughout the day.
On Tuesday, 2nd April, there will be some English masterclasses for all Y11 students from 10am-midday which will focus on GCSE Paper 1.
In addition, there will be 8 further hour-long Key Skills/Knowledge Workshops which will run from 12:15-1:15pm and will be bespoke lessons focusing on specific areas. These lessons will take a maximum of 20 students and you can only select one of these, so choose the best one for you.
Students will be able to reserve their place on one of the Key Skills/Knowledge Workshops from 5:00pm on Thursday, 21st March via this online link: English Masterclass Bookings.
The English department have put together the following Powerpoint presentation to explain further.
On Monday, 11th March, A-Level Ethics and Philosophy students from Cowley Sixth Form College attended a conference in Manchester, led one of Britain’s best-known philosophers, Peter Vardy.
The students got a taster of what university lectures are like based on topics they have studied/will study on their A-Level course. They had a fabulous day and even joined in with a debate on the value of individual conscience at the end!
Well done to all the students who attended this event.
More on A-Level Ethics and Philosophy
Trip to Poland – photo gallery
On Saturday, 10th February, 55 students and staff travelled to Krakow, Poland and spent four days immersing themselves in the history and culture of the city.
The group had a busy itinerary. During the short stay, the group visited Krakow Old Town, the Wieliczka Salt Mine, Schindler’s Factory, The Gestapo & Polish Resistance Museum and Kazimierz Jewish district and Heroes Square. The square, which is situated in the Podgórze district, commemorates the Jewish victims of the war both through its name and also with an artistic chair installation that can be found there, representing the formation of the Krakow ghetto.
The group made an emotional visit to Auschwitz-Birkenhau Concentration Camp where the students took part in a guided tour, before showing their respects by laying a tribute from Cowley. All pupils were very respectful and moved by the experience.
The students also had time to relax with some shopping, and experiencing a traditional Polish folklore night, where they got involved with the singing and dancing. The trip was an enriching, educational experience for the students.
Cowley International College pick up three awards at the National Operatic and Dramatic Association Awards
Cowley International College is delighted to have won three awards at this year’s National Operatic and Dramatic Association (NODA) North West District Awards for their whole college musical production, Evita.
The College’s production of Evita, which saw participation from students from each year group Y7-Y13, ran for five nights and six performances during October 2023 and was a huge hit with sold out audiences with the College receiving fantastic feedback.
Nominated in seven categories at the awards ceremony, which took place last weekend at the DW Stadium in Wigan, Cowley achieved the prizes for Best Leading Male Character in a Youth Musical (Sam Smith), Best Leading Female Character in a Youth Musical (Isla Graham) and Best Director of a Youth Musical & Best Artistic Director of a Youth Musical (Mr Watkins).
Assistant Headteacher and Strategic Lead of Performing Arts at Cowley, Mr Watkins, said: “It is wonderful to receive these awards as recognition of the hard work put in by both students and staff to make our whole college musical as good as it could be.
“We have some wonderfully talented students and a really dedicated Performing Arts staff at Cowley, so it’s lovely for their talent to be acknowledged in this way, I couldn’t be more proud of them.”
Cowley takes enormous pride in its Performing Arts offering. Cowley Sixth Form College runs a popular BTEC Professional Musical Theatre course as well as the equally popular BTEC Music Performance, with a number of students progressing into impressive careers within the Arts.
Mr Cormack, Principal of Cowley International College, added: “Cowley has a fantastic tradition of superb Performing Arts productions and this year’s performances of Evita were, again, exceptional.
“To win a hat trick of awards is a tremendous achievement and I’m extremely proud of the Performing Arts students and staff.
“The whole college production is always a highlight of the college calendar and I’m delighted that this has been recognised by NODA with these awards.”
Year 11 students have found half term masterclasses really useful in their preparation for exams, so once again, we will be offering some sessions to help Year 11 students with their revision.
Please see the days and details in the PDF attached and as an image below.
