St. Columba’s College
St. Columba's College
In St. Albans, Hertfordshire, England, St. Columba's College is a private, coeducational Catholic day school and sixth form serving students ages 4 to 18. Phillip O'Neil started it in 1939, and the Brothers of the Sacred Heart took control of it in 1955. It belongs to the HMC (Headmasters and Headmistresses Conference).
The college is centered on the Watling House and Iona House, two historic homes that face St Albans Cathedral across the River Ver.
St. Columba's College, which was previously a boys-only institution, announced its transition to co-education in June 2020, with the first girls being enrolled as students in 2021. The school moved to its current location in 1948 after initially opening in 1939 on Beaconsfield Road.
Programs in St. Columba's College
The Columban learning ethos of resilience, teamwork, and a positive growth mentality are immediately embraced by students as soon as they enroll in St. Columba's College's welcoming Reception classes in the September before they turn five. Students quickly advance from their own unique baselines while learning through play in an organized schedule of indoor and outdoor stimulus, making exceptional progress and growth.
A contented child is a good student, and St. Columba's College is aware that kids flourish most when they are the center of a friendly, active partnership between school and home. The Tapestry program, which St. Columba's College, in conjunction with its tight relationships with families, allows for the daily interchange of photos, information, and educational opportunities.
In the Reception classrooms, you'll find passionate, knowledgeable teachers and learning assistants who expertly create, deliver, and evaluate a dynamic curriculum that goes far beyond the Early Learning Goals. Along with creative chances, a strong emphasis on personal and moral growth, and a wide range of specialist-taught enrichment programs like PE, Music, and French, daily phonics sessions, individual reading assignments, and demanding math mastery tasks coexist.
Each student's performance is carefully evaluated by St. Columba's College, who makes sure they are challenged and supported while exerting themselves at a level that is appropriate for them. Strong principles and a professional approach to teaching in the classroom guarantee high levels of success and good standards, while interactive whiteboards, specialized art and science instruction, and a variety of field trips, seminars, and visits assist to liven up the serious business of learning. In Prep One, Tapestry is still used to facilitate communication and exchange between family and school.
Through exploration and adventure, students learn about fascinating subjects; pond-dipping, book-binding, drama, and songs all contribute to a vibrant and engaging curriculum that improves the capacity for introspection. In order to ensure good fundamental knowledge and skills, St. Columba's College education mixes humor, challenge, and a wide range of stimuli. The Upper Prep provides students with a thorough preparation for the Senior School through skilled specialist teaching in Music, Sports, Science, Art, Religious Education, Computing and IT, and Modern Languages, while instrumental classes and a broad variety of groups foster their creativity and enjoyment.
The Senior School curriculum is challenging and diverse; it is built on a long legacy of quality while remaining adaptable and attentive to the needs of students. Its goal is to motivate and prepare each student to meet their own highest standard.
In order to do this, St. Columba's College's enthusiastic and motivating instructors offer their students top-notch educational possibilities, educating every pupil to the best of their academic potential and providing support, challenge, and a tailored approach at every stage. St. Columba's College fosters a love of learning and a sense of personal, moral, social, and cultural education, building on the four cornerstones of speaking, listening, literacy, and numeracy. This enables the students to form opinions and make choices that reflect the highest level of academic success and personal growth.
In Form 1, all students at St. Columba's College benefit from a common curriculum that emphasizes the core subjects of mathematics, English, religion, and science along with two humanities, history and geography, a core language, either French or Spanish, and Latin, as well as specialized lessons in computer science, design technology, music, art, physical education, and games. Additionally, instruction is provided to increase their knowledge of STEM, Big Questions, and Rhetoric. A systematic career education curriculum is introduced to students in Form 3 to guide them as they choose their GCSE options.Up to eleven subjects are still being studied by students. Everybody will be urged to start out by taking a core course in English, English literature, math, religious studies, a modern language, and sciences. Along with their IGCSE course in mathematics, students who are proficient in math will also take Further Mathematics. A second modern language, art and design, geography, history, computer science, drama, economics, music, physical education, Latin, statistics, and design technology are among the additional disciplines that can be chosen. All St. Columba's College students take a course in physical education and games.
The Sixth Form encourages a broad range of studies. Students select between three and four complete A Level courses, with the number of subjects they take being determined individually. Twenty-two subjects are available for A Level selection.
At St. Columba's College, the progress of each student is carefully followed throughout the Sixth Form. The best A level subjects for each student are encouraged and assisted when choosing them. The College monitors its progress using a variety of metrics, including GCSE results, A Level Information Service (ALIS) tests, and target grades.
Subject coordinators and tutors collaborate, and frequent meetings are held to identify any prospective underachievers. This allows the College to anticipate problems and, as a result, provide the additional support required. For the Lower Sixth, there is one parent consultation in January, and for the Upper Sixth, there are two meetings in October and January.
In addition to these official events, the Head of Sixth Form will meet with parents frequently to maintain continued contact.
All St. Columba's College students participate in an enrichment program that includes religious education, young enterprise, a certificate or diploma in financial services, key skills in ICT, and the Extended Project Qualification in addition to the A Level course. (which develops independent learning skills). Games, with a variety of possibilities, continue to be a required part of the curriculum.
All students participate in an enrichment program that includes additional certifications like the Extended Project Qualification and the Level 3 Certificate in Financial Studies as well as supervised study time in addition to the A Level course.
Students in the sixth form receive extensive career and university entry advice as they plan their future.
School Life in St. Columba's College
For pupils in Form 1 through the Sixth Form, a wide variety of excursions and visits are available. Four of these excursions are Extended Extra-Curricular Activities (EECA) days, during which entire year groups are taken to activities in and around Hertfordshire in order to extend their educational perspectives. Over the weekends and during school breaks, lengthier domestic and foreign school travels are offered.
The numerous lunchtime and after-school clubs at St. Columba's College assist students to advance their skills, knowledge, and understanding in each of these areas by focusing on athletic, cultural, intellectual, and pastoral components. The new SHAPE timetable, which updates pupils on all events occurring each week, has been adopted at the school.
The College encourages students in the sixth form to participate in the extended curriculum program, where they are given a lot of responsibility within the activities available, encouraging them to pick up new skills, grow as people, and assume leadership responsibilities.
A wide variety of domestic and foreign excursions are available, and Sixth Form outings and guest lecturers aim to motivate the students for their future coursework and employment in further education and the workforce.
Senior members of the Combined Cadet Force (CCF) frequently take commissions as officers in the Army or the RAF, and some have been given Army Scholarships to continue their education. The Duke of Edinburgh Gold Award Program is particularly well-liked by students and calls for a high level of dedication, planning, and stamina.
Each year, teams from the Lower Sixth Form compete in the regional Dragon's Apprentice Challenge to earn money for charity in partnership with a nearby company. Additionally, they take part in the national Young Enterprise competition, which challenges students to launch a small business and introduces them to the world of entrepreneurship.
Future Prospects after study in St. Columba's College
St. Columba's College assists the Sixth Form in navigating the choices that are before them by drawing upon the experience and knowledge of many years and using published materials, personal contacts, and the significant input from their own alumni. These choices range from researching the first stages of ten-year professional training to participating in volunteer work as part of a gap year. St. Columba's College committed to igniting students' highest aspirations while honoring their decisions and fostering their goals at every turn.
St. Columba's College prides itself on having a particularly long and broad perspective on the concept of success for the students: instead of pressuring pupils to attend particular colleges, St. Columba's College assists them in finding the academic programs and career paths that best fit their individual aspirations. While St. Columba's College is careful to select students for the Sixth Form whom St. Columba's College truly believe will benefit from an academic course of study. Aston University, Bournemouth University, Cardiff University, Loughborough University, Liverpool John Moores University, and many other places were recent destinations.
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