The Senior Department
AQA Baccalaureate

We are delighted to be able to offer all those entering the Sixth Form from September 2009, the opportunity to gain a Baccalaureate qualification which will embrace fully their Sixth Form experience. We believe that the AQA Baccalaureate (known as the AQA Bacc) offers the very best of the many examination options now available post GCSE.

LEH has chosen the new AQA Bacc because we believe that of all the possible qualifications it reflects perfectly the richness and diversity of the outstanding sixth form experience at LEH and offers the best preparation for university entrance and study, and for life in the wider world.

Uniquely amongst the new range of qualifications, from the Cambridge PreU to the IB, the AQA Bacc enhances the ‘gold standard' of A Levels by offering the opportunity for both broader and more specialist study, allowing pupils the chance to pursue in detail their academic passions, as well as validating their interests outside the classroom and contributions to community programmes. Indeed, the key features of the AQA Bacc have been hallmarks of Sixth Form education at LEH for many years.

There are four aspects to the qualification. To achieve the AQA Bacc at LEH, a student will need to:

• Study at least three subjects of their own choice to Advanced Level (most pupils at LEH take four subject AS levels and many choose to study all four to A2 level)
• Study General Studies to AS level (in addition to subject AS levels, this is already a compulsory part of our Sixth Form programme)
• Complete an Extended Project (the EPQ), worth half an A level
• Participate in Enrichment Activities

The qualification is available to all girls in the Sixth Form at LEH, but is optional. Throughout the process they will be fully supported and advised by their tutors, and staff with particular responsibility for the EPQ and Bacc.

The Extended Project is an independent piece of work of some 5,000 words on a topic of the student's choice which encourages the development of critical thinking, analytical research and presentation skills. We believe that this assignment will provide an excellent ‘bridge' to university study. Girls will be assigned a member of staff to act as their supervisor, and guidance on research and presentation skills is given during our AS/A2 Link Programme in the Summer Term of LVI. Work on the EPQ is likely to begin in earnest after AS levels in the Lower Sixth, and to be completed by Easter in the Upper Sixth.

As well as being a compulsory part of the AQA Bacc, it is also a free-standing qualification, entered on UCAS forms and which is equivalent to half an A level and marked up to A* standard.

The EPQ has already been enthusiastically received by university and college admission tutors. Encouraging independent research is nothing new to LEH – we have run Academic Symposia for several years – but the EPQ formalises our current provision and demonstrates to universities a commitment to academic inquisitiveness and the ability to work independently, qualities increasingly looked for in applications.

Pupils need to complete 100 hours (over two years) of Enrichment Activities in at least two of the following three areas, with a minimum of 30 hours in each:

• Personal Development (e.g. participation in sport, music, drama, and other extra-curricular activities)
• Community Participation (e.g. mentoring in local schools or other voluntary work)
• Work-related Learning (e.g. work experience, Young Enterprise)

Students will be able to record their activities in the AQA Enrichment Diary, which is easy and intuitive to use. It is accessible online and allows students to take responsibility for recording their own involvement.

At LEH there are almost unlimited opportunities to develop and explore both existing and new skills and interests, and a host of ways in which pupils can contribute to the school and wider community.

The AQA Bacc is awarded at three levels: Distinction, Merit and Pass:

We believe that this qualification will continue to ensure that our pupils are able to make competitive applications to universities, and will also be highly valued by future employers.