29 September 2021
Upper Sixth Oxbridge applicants were put through their paces by Kritikos* students in Years 7 to 11 on Friday 24 September. In small group sessions the older students shared their ideas on a topic related to their chosen course and encouraged debate and discussion with the younger girls. The range of courses the Sixth Formers are applying to offered Kritikos students a variety of interesting topics to choose from. These were:
Emily (Theology) - Perceptions on the existence of God
Jane (History of Art) - Diego Velázquez
Kiera (Classics) - The problems with how we perceive classical Greek culture
LouLou (PPE) - The time-presence theory in economics
Milly (English) - Jane Eyre
Nicola (Medicine) - The future of cardiovascular diseases
Sophie (English) - Feminism in Victorian Literature
Sophie explained the value of this lunchtime session: “It was a fantastic experience to be able to share our passions with girls from the younger years. I particularly enjoyed engaging in debates with them as this not only helped me to defend my own ideas, but also gave me more views to explore. The ability to think critically and formulate opinions is an important aspect of the Oxbridge application, so it was definitely useful for us to have to explain and substantiate our arguments, and hopefully we will have inspired some of the younger girls at the same time.”
The Sixth Formers also set challenges for the younger students, using Teams and One Note to continue this learning experience.
*Kritikos is the name for Woldingham’s programme for academic scholars in Years 7-11. Kritikos aims to encourage critical flexibility and nurture independent and enquiring minds.