Course success for Wallace pupils

TWO Year 13 pupils from Wallace High School have recently won places on the prestigious Villiers Park Residential Courses for prospective Oxbridge and Russell Group university students.
By The Newsroom
Published 19th Jan 2013, 11:29 BST

Jordan Brown, who joined the school in September 2012 after completing his GCSE studies at St Patrick’s High School in Lisburn will be joined by Chris Lennon. Chris was one of Northern Ireland’s top students at GCSE level gaining 10 A* grades and a top three place in both French and Mathematics. The boys will attend courses focusing on English literature and Mathematics respectively.

The students will experience tuition from Oxbridge academics whilst enjoying debate and discussion with other academically gifted students. Courses at Villiers Park, which is situated close to the university hub of Cambridge, are usually week long giving the young people a genuine opportunity to bond with others.

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Demand for the courses has become higher every year and Wallace can feel proud of its tradition of winning places annually. The courses are specifically designed to encourage and challenge students at AS level who are considering applying for the top universities in the UK. Previous attendees from Wallace found the experience invaluable in helping them secure interviews for Oxbridge.

The Wallace High School places a strong emphasis on providing opportunities for Gifted and Talented pupils. Miss Heather Gracey the school’s Special Educational Needs Coordinator and Mr Michael Lowry, the Gifted and Talented Co-ordinator, are working with pupils and staff to ensure that those who have a particular academic gift or a talent that reaches beyond the classroom are given the best opportunity to meet their potential.

The emphasis that Wallace has placed on Gifted and Talented provision in recent years is beginning to reap rewards with all of the pupils who attended university residential courses in 2011-2012 gaining places at either the elite colleges of Oxford and Cambridge or Russell Group in the UK and Ireland.