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What Is Quantum Computing? + Academic Essays on Working with Nature, Driver Distraction and Climate Change from Brilliant Club Scholars Issue 10 July 2018 thebrilliantclub.org What is Quantum Computing? + Academic essays on Working With Nature, Driver Distraction and Climate Change from Brilliant Club scholars 1 Vol. 1 No. 10, July 2018 This issue The Brilliant Club Contents What is The Brilliant Club? The Brilliant Club is an award-winning charity that exists to widen access to highly-selective universities for under-represented pupils. We do this by mobilising researchers to bring their academic expertise into state schools through two core programmes: The Scholars Programme and Researchers in Schools. The Scholars Programme trains PhD and postdoctoral researchers to deliver university-style courses with rigorous academic challenges to small groups of pupils. These courses begin and end with information, advice and guidance trips to highly- selective universities. Researchers in Schools is a unique teacher training 3 7 route, designed exclusively for PhD graduates. It What is The Brilliant Club? STEM Articles provides the training necessary for PhD graduates Learn about our mission This term, we hear from scholars in the to become excellent classroom teachers and and programmes. Science, Technology, Engineering and university-access champions within their schools. Maths disciplines on subjects including Both programmes are designed to support pupils genetics, nuclear power and quantum to develop the knowledge, skills and confidence 4 computing. necessary to secure places at highly-selective News universities. All of the latest news from 41 The Brilliant Club. The Brilliant Club is building a national movement Arts and Humanities Articles to mobilise PhD researchers to engage with state The Arts and Humanities articles in this schools serving low HE-participation communities. 6 edition explore subjects including climate At present, we are supporting over 500 PhD tutors Guest Article change and a literary analysis. from 30 universities to work with more than 11,000 Guest article from Professor Jo Fox, 47 pupils from over 600 schools across the UK. Through Professor of Modern History, Institute of The Scholars Programme, our PhD tutors deliver Historical Research, School of Advanced Social Sciences Articles courses of university-style learning to pupils from Study, University of London. Our Social Sciences scholars look at Year 5 through to Year 12. The courses they deliver topics such as the youth justice system focus on fascinating topics ranging from ‘Are Some and driver distraction. Infinities Bigger than Others?’ to ‘Making Maps, Constructing Worlds: Geopolitics and Geography’. As the diagram to the right shows, The Scholars Programme consists of trips to highly-selective universities, a series of tutorials and the completion of university-style assignments, as well as one-to- one feedback for pupils from their PhD tutors. It is the best of these university-style assignments that are debuted here, in The Scholar. We are delighted to showcase our pupils’ work and celebrate their achievements in the country’s only academic journal dedicated to publishing university-style assignments authored by school pupils. Publishing original work is an important component of academia and it is exciting for us to introduce our pupils not only to the world of research but also to the next stage of publishing in academic journals. 2 3 Vol. 1 No. 10, July 2018 Updates Updates News from The Brilliant Club News from The Brilliant Club Welcome to the latest edition of The Scholar! We are delighted to be able to celebrate twenty three of the best assignments written by pupils on both The Scholars Programme and Uni Pathways here in The Scholar, Issue 10. The pupils featured come from schools The Brilliant Club Conference 2018 across the UK and their work covers a vast array of Friday 13 July was a truly auspicious day for The Brilliant fascinating topics, from advancements in the treatment Club, despite the spooky date, as it saw the charity of childhood cancers to quantum computers and the hold its fifth annual conference in Peterborough! The ethics of solitary confinement. conference was titled ‘Measuring Up: Research, Evidence and Urgency in University Access and University Success’ This edition of The Scholar features some of the most and saw delegates from schools, universities, charities articulate and inspiring articles ever produced by and beyond come together to share research and best pupils on The Scholars Programme and Uni Pathways. practice. We were delighted to hear from Chris Millward, The university-style learning that pupils take part in on Director for Fair Access and Participation at the Office our programmes is designed to provide pupils with the for Students, and to share interesting discussion on freedom to develop their own ideas and approaches. topics including ‘What Should University Access Look B Festival We believe this is a crucial skill for all young people and, Like in Ten Years' Time?’ and ‘Context Matters: Local and The Brilliant Club was honoured to be the charity of indeed, for society itself. As H. Duong so prudently states National Approaches to Improving University Access’. choice for B Festival 2018, an annual music festival in his assignment (pp. 41 - 42), ‘the legacy of our world Our Research and Impact Department ran sessions on held in Kent. Each year B Festival welcomes hundreds is at stake’ and young people can contribute to our The map above shows the locations of all pupils featured. how to effectively measure intermediate and long-term of guests to enjoy live music and to raise money for collective future through their work, whether that be in outcomes and we heard research presentations from the year’s nominated charity. This year’s festival was the sciences, arts and humanities or the social sciences. We would like to say congratulations to the pupils King’s College London on ‘Using Evidence to Change held on Saturday 7th July and saw The Brilliant Club published in this edition of The Scholar and to all pupils Institutions: Building Belongingness in King’s College running games and painting faces, while providing more By supporting pupils to develop their critical thinking who completed The Scholars Programme and Uni London’ and from the National Foundation for Education information on our programmes! and independent study skills, university-style learning Pathways. The programmes are designed to challenge Research on ‘What Influences a Pupil Premium Student’s can empower young people to share their ideas and and encourage you to take on new academic challenges, Secondary Outcomes?’. We loved working with Nene Year 12 Information, Advice engage in the debates shaping our world, whether they so all pupils who graduate from the programmes should Park Academy (part of Cambridge Meridien Academies and Guidance Conferences concern medical ethics, the importance of the arts or be very proud of themselves! Trust), who kindly hosted the event, as well as our the future of nuclear energy. On Wednesday 11 July and Tuesday 17 July, The Brilliant national partners, King’s College London and Ormiston Club welcomed Year 12 students and teachers to On page 5 we share some exciting updates on our Academies Trust, and our regional partners, the University Furthermore, universities have long been engines of university information, advice and guidance conferences Annual Conference, MP visits to schools running The of Cambridge and the University of East Anglia. If you’d in London and Sheffield. social change. They have been the home of scientific Scholars Programme and our Year 12 Information, Advice like to find out more, please see our website – we’ll be in discoveries that have changed the lives of billions, they and Guidance Conferences. touch about 2019! have seen student protests that have influenced policy Student sessions focused on getting in to university and making the most of university to prepare for life makers, and they contribute to the landscape of their If you are a teacher who would like to find out how local communities in numerous ways. We believe all MPs Visit Scholars Programme Schools! beyond. Students attended sessions led by Cambridge your school can get involved with The Brilliant Club, we Throughout the summer term, MPs from across the Assessment on preparing for admissions tests; Social young people should have the opportunity to experience would love to hear from you! Please get in touch with the and contribute to university life. country have been visiting schools in their constituencies Mobility Foundation on how to make an impression; the contact for your area below: that have partnered with The Brilliant Club to deliver The University of Bristol on the UCAS timeline and how to The Brilliant Club is passionate about exposing pupils on Scotland and the North of England Dr Natalie Day Scholar Programme. So far 77 MPs have met with over manage results day; The Brilliant Club on demonstrating our programmes to these important aspects of university [email protected] 1000 pupils to discuss their research and aspirations to subject passion; and Wadham College, University of go to university. Oxford on Oxbridge interviews, amongst others. and hope that their projects encourage them to dig a East of England Lucy Preston little deeper into subjects that matter to them and to seek [email protected] opportunities to make their unique contributions to their We are delighted that our pupils have had the Teachers also had a programme of sessions to attend, South of England Steph Hamilton opportunity to meet their MPs and showcase the which focused on supporting pupils with personal fields. In doing so, pupils can change their own lives by [email protected] enriching them with opportunities for learning and, as our fantastic work they are doing! statements, admissions tests and information on the Midlands and West of England Joe Loudon Sutton Trust US Programme from Fulbright. guest editor Professor Jo Fox attests, change the world.
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