Physics
GCSE
For GCSE, all pupils will do a good amount of practical work, which forms the basis for an enquiring approach. The topics cover the usual areas of energy, waves, forces, radioactivity and of course, the origins of the Universe - there is little practical work available here unfortunately. The pupils are encouraged to discuss their ideas and develop some critical faculties. Central to the teaching is the context of how science works.
The Sixth Form
At A Level, the Edexcel specification, which was new for September 2008, has a visit linked to a practical activity as the coursework at AS, and we expect to visit Solent Composite Systems at East Cowes. The new specification encourages teachers and pupils to approach the topics from a conceptual base and an applications driven base at the same time. This leads to interesting learning styles and will suit most pupils. The mathematical requirements are less than was traditionally the case and the AS course is very accessible. At A2 there are topics of fields and simple harmonic motion, usually thought of as tough. In essence, the topic areas are very similar to those at GCSE - it is, after all, Physics.