Academic
To view a short video about academic facilities at Charterhouse, click on the link below:
Most boys arrive at Charterhouse from preparatory schools at the age of thirteen, though some are admitted from other schools in Britain and overseas. They enter the Under School of nearly 400 boys, and pass successively through the Fourth Form, the Remove and the Fifth Form. Girls are admitted only to the Sixth Form. There are over 350 Sixth Formers (Specialists) of whom 100 are girls.
The curriculum follows the normal path to GCSEs in the Fifth Form and AS/A2 in the Specialist years, but every effort is made to teach according to pupils’ abilities, and to stretch the ablest well beyond the demands of the syllabus. The academic life of the School is administered by the Headmaster through 100 members of Brooke Hall. James McConnell, in his English Public Schools, offered this observation on the atmosphere at Charterhouse:
‘Carthusians speak well of their beaks (teachers)…and find them very ready to give extra help when needed. The relationship between Brooke Hall and pupils is relaxed… Carthusians are usually ready questioners, easy to talk to, unselfconscious with strangers or adults, and on good terms with their teachers.’
Carthusians’ academic progress is closely monitored. In the traditional ceremony of Calling Over, the form master presents his class to the Master of the Under School, who praises those who have shown good effort, and encourages the less hard-working to greater endeavour. Specialists are also awarded regular grades for attainment and effort, which are scrutinised by the Master of the Specialists. Parents receive detailed reports at the end of each term (Quarter), and have a formal opportunity to meet their son’s or daughter’s teachers every year to discuss progress. The Higher Education and Careers Department provides guidance and training throughout the process of selecting and applying to university.
Sixth Form (Specialists) curriculum from 2008
We have now completed our review of the curriculum for Specialists. This has taken into consideration the changes to A levels from September 2008 and the emergence of a new qualification, the Cambridge Pre-U Diploma, which we have helped to develop. As part of this review we have also renewed our interest in the International Baccalaureate (IB).
From September 2008 Charterhouse will adopt a policy of linear assessment for our Sixth Form with all public examinations being taken at the end of the two-year course.
Our departments will be offering what they consider to be the best available syllabuses in their subjects. We believe that, in many subjects, the Cambridge Pre-U syllabuses are better than the A level syllabuses available. We will therefore be offering a mixture of A level and Pre-U courses. We will not be offering the entire Pre-U Diploma.
The IB Diploma has many attractions but we do not believe that it is suitable for all pupils. It is the School’s future intention to offer this broad curriculum as the alternative to our traditional specialised curriculum. The date of the IB’s introduction at Charterhouse remains under discussion.