Welcome to King`s

 

I hope that through this site you will have a glimpse of the energy and spirit of the School community. It is a fascinating place where there are so many opportunities - intellectual, social, cultural, physical and spiritual - for young people to develop positively and purposefully.

Academic excellence is central. We aim to encourage an enjoyment of learning so that our young people will become independent thinkers. Qualifications must be of their best, too. But we aim for more. Being involved in a lively, creative and supportive community is a proven way of ensuring that the essential personal and social side of life is nurtured and developed. At King's relationships matter and the Christian nature of the School quietly influences all that we do. We are the inheritors and guardians of a great tradition in education.

Please come and see the School. There really is no other way of gaining a fuller insight into what King's is all about. You will be very welcome indeed.

Canon Keith Wilkinson
Headmaster

History

The tradition of education in Canterbury goes back to 597, when St Augustine arrived to evangelize England. The education provided by the monastic foundation, and by the ancient school of the City of Canterbury, was in 1541 made the responsibility of the new Cathedral Foundation of Henry VIII. He established within it 50 King's Scholars as well as a Headmaster and Lower Master. Thanks to this core of King's Scholars, the school came to be known as the King's School.

The Aims And Principles upon which the corporate life of the School, including boarding, is based:

1. The School will endeavour to be a co-educational community where each pupil may have opportunities to develop intellectually, socially, personally, physically, culturally and spiritually.

The co-curricular side of life at King's both complements and enhances the development of the enquiring mind. Education takes place anywhere and everywhere, at all times of the day. Academic excellence combined with creative activity and individual expression makes the School a thriving and highly motivated community.

Sport takes place on three afternoons, as well as on Saturdays for school fixtures.

Music, Drama and Art play an important part in the life of the School. Concerts, plays and exhibitions take place regularly.

King's Week, at the end of the School year, is a week-long festival of all the arts.

One afternoon a week is given over to Activities, including the CCF, the Duke of Edinburgh scheme, and many others from Asteroid Hunting to Gardening. Community Service is an important part of this programme.

There are many Societies, covering a wide range of interests.

There is a flourishing 'After Hours' programme, with Talks and other events, especially in the evenings and at weekends. There are also inter-house debating and chess competitions.

There are many Trips organised each year. These range from sports tours to theatre trips, and from field trips to historic visits.

The curriculum at King’s is based upon strong academic roots. It emphasises and relies upon what is best in traditional independent school education: scholarly excellence supported by a caring pastoral and tutorial system, and a wide-ranging co-curricular programme. However, it is continually adapting and reacting to the changing demands of modern education: new subjects are added, new teaching techniques adopted, and there is an increasing awareness of the need to provide programmes of study that match individual needs and skills.

The curriculum is divided into three units: the Lower School (Shells, Year 9), an introductory year; the Middle School (Removes and Fifths, Years 10 and 11), working to GCSEs; and the Sixth Form (6b and 6a, Years 12 and 13), taking AS and A levels. The Lycée Section enables children who have been educated in the French system to work for the French Diplôme National du Brevet (DNB). 

Full details can be found in: Shell Academic Guide; Middle School Guide; Sixth Form Guide 2007-9.

Formal and structured educational support, for those who need it, is available at all levels. The well-stocked Library is open 7 days and 6 evenings per week. ICT facilities (including the Internet) are available for all and the whole school (studies within the Houses as well as classrooms) is extensively networked.   
 
Pupils are offered extensive careers advice throughout their time at King’s. Almost all go to university, either immediately or following a GAP year.  The most popular university destinations are Cambridge, Oxford, Durham, Edinburgh, Newcastle, Nottingham, Manchester, UCL, LSE and Bristol. 

Director of Studies / Deputy Head Academic: Geoff Cocksworth: grc@kings-school.co.uk

Examinations Officer: Elaine McDowell: eam@kings-school.co.uk 

Lower School (Shells)

The specific aims of the Shell curriculum are to give pupils an academic introduction to a large number of subjects, together with their associate skills, and to help them acquire the personal proficiency needed for a successful career at the King’s School and beyond. 

This is, therefore, a preparatory year prior to the public examination years in which pupils begin to find their own levels of achievement at a higher level than hitherto reached. They also begin to discern their academic preferences and towards the end of the year, they are asked to make choices for GCSE.

Shell pupils take a large number of individual subjects. However, we are keen to help them to understand that these subjects do not exist in isolation. Thus, the Shells will be introduced to some cross-curricular themes. There will be days or longer periods when the majority of the subjects (both curricular and co-curricular) will be working towards a common goal on a common theme. For example, in the Autumn term, all Shells will travel to Ypres, with introductory and follow-up activities across the curriculum. The post-examination period in the Summer term also provides opportunities for cross-curricular work and here we aim specifically to tie it in with the co-curricular as well. Expeditions and days out are arranged to develop particular themes across more than one subject area.

The Shell Academic Guide (PDF 196K) provides full details of the subjects studied within the timetable, but it is important to point out that we regard the co-curricular as an integral and essential part of our educational provision.  

The Middle School Guide 2007-9 provides details of subjects that can be studied in the next two years.

Middle School (Remove and Fifth Form)

In the Middle School our aim is to present a wide-ranging curriculum that stretches our pupils intellectually, challenges them creatively, develops individuals personally and provides them with a good basis in knowledge and skills for the Sixth Form and adult life.       

Pupils in the Removes and the Fifths work towards GCSE courses. Most take between 9 and 11 GCSEs. All pupils take the core subjects of English Language and Literature (2 GCSEs), Mathematics, and Science (2 or 3 GCSEs), and four optional subjects of which one is expected to be a Modern Foreign Language. We encourage pupils, wherever possible, to choose at least one creative subject (from Art, Design & Technology, Drama and Music) and at least one humanity (from Geography, History and Religious Studies). 

At the same time, we try to provide flexibility within the programme, and, wherever possible, to respond to individual needs. We look to stretch the most able by providing the opportunity for them to take some GCSEs early and to take up some AS subjects in the Fifth Form. Equally, those for whom the standard nine GCSEs provide too great a challenge are allowed to drop one subject to free some time in their curriculum. The majority of our pupils, however, should continue to take GCSE qualifications at the end of the fifth year.

In addition to their GCSE studies, pupils have an enrichment programme of lessons designed both to aid their personal development and to broaden their options for the Sixth Form. Our aim is the provision of a curriculum which will prove efficacious in itself whilst also providing our pupils with the best possible preparation for their future university courses. 

Pupils should certainly be stretched and working hard, but this is also an essential stage for the development of their individuality and creative talents. The opportunities for music, drama, sport and other ‘after hours’ activities are essential aspects of the Middle School co-curricular programme. Through enlisting in the CCF or taking part in the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award Scheme, there are also many opportunities for service, skills, recreation and expeditions. 

Full details are in the Middle School Guide (PDF 221K).

A summary of the 2007-08 curriculum: Lower and Middle School Curriculum

In order to enter the Sixth Form, pupils should have at least seven GCSEs at grade B or above and should have at least grade B in the subjects to be studied at A Level. (For Mathematics, the Sciences and Modern Languages, A grades are almost essential if a pupil wishes to achieve a C grade, or better, at A Level.)
 
Sixth Formers normally study at least 4 AS level subjects in 6b (Year 12) and at least 3 A2s in 6a (Year 13). AS and A2 marks each contribute 50% to the final A level grade. Candidates can choose to ‘drop’ one of their AS subjects and continue with three A2s. We generally advise pupils who intend to apply for highly competitive undergraduate courses seriously to consider taking four A2s. We do expect pupils to obtain at least three ‘C’ grades in their AS levels before they can move on to A2 studies.

The only restrictions on subject choice are those imposed by timetable structure, but, during the planning, we aim to accommodate all reasonable combinations of subjects. The system offers a great deal of choice and flexibility.

Advanced Extension Awards, taught in most subjects in 6A, are designed to stretch the most able by providing opportunities to demonstrate a greater depth and understanding. They are not included in a university’s offer, but taking an AEA can demonstrate that a candidate is willing to study beyond the A level syllabus. 
 
The 6b programme also includes a choice of enrichment subjects to be taken in addition to AS levels. The aim here is to give pupils an opportunity to diversify, to broaden their overall knowledge and understanding, and/or to complement their main AS levels. Young Enterprise, Critical Thinking, other modern languages (Arabic, Chinese (Mandarin), Japanese and Russian), and Perspectives on Science are included. Enrichment and broadening continue beyond the immediate academic curriculum into the co-curricular. A great deal goes on in school life and pupils are encouraged to see their academic profile in the broadest sense. 
 
Careers advice is particularly important at this level.  Pupils are given assistance at every stage of the university entrance procedure. On leaving King’s, 98-99% go to university, either immediately or following a GAP year. Around 40% take a GAP year. The most popular university destinations are Cambridge, Oxford, Durham, Edinburgh, Newcastle, Nottingham, Manchester, UCL, LSE and Bristol.

Full details can be found in: Sixth Form Guide 2007-9 (PDF 416K).

A summary can be found in: Sixth Form Curriculum 2007-08