DE LA SALLE COLLEGE SIXTH FORM PROSPECTUS 2020 teaching built on faith 2 CONTENTS 5 WELCOME TO DE LA SALLE SIXTH FORM 9 LIFE AT THE COLLEGE 13 PRACTICAL MATTERS 17 THE SPIRITUAL LIFE AT THE COLLEGE 19 ENTRY 2020 20 (a) SUBJECTS OFFERED AT DE LA SALLE SIXTH FORM 22 (b) SIXTH FORM SUBJECT SCHEMES 25 (c) SELECTION FOR ENTRY INTO DE LA SALLE SIXTH FORM 27 (d) ALLOCATION OF POINTS 34 (e) THE AUTOMATICQUALIFICATION SYSTEM 37 (f) APPLICATIONS 42 MAINTENANCE GRANT 44 DONATIONS 45 CONTRIBUTIONS BY STUDENTS 46 ASSESSMENT AND PROMOTION 49 REPEATING FIRST YEAR 50 CHANGE OF SUBJECTS 51 CODE OF CONDUCT 3 4 WELCOME TO DE LA SALLE SIXTH FORM De La Salle Sixth Form is a Celebrations, PSD Sessions, Roman Catholic Sixth Form Counselling, Assemblies as well College committed to the as opportunities for voluntary personal and spiritual growth and philanthropic work. of all its members based on Christian values, academic At De La Salle Sixth Form excellence and high quality students are inspired to pastoral care. The College is achieve academic excellence run by the International De La and personal success and are Salle Order which was founded actively supported to reach in France by St John Baptist De their full academic potential. La Salle in 1684 and which was The Sixth Form is for students subsequently established in who want to do well. It offers Malta in 1903. many opportunities, not only to pass exams and gain important Staff and students seek to qualifications but also to be live out the Gospel message part of an environment in which of faith, hope and love and students can mature and realise we aim to uphold students their career targets. We strive in their faith by providing to provide a stimulating and support, facilities and services safe environment to bring out such as weekly Eucharistic the best in all our students. 5 At De La Salle Sixth Form students are inspired to achieve academic excellence and personal success and are actively supported to reach their full academic potential. We also welcome innovation and are unafraid to tackle the challenges of education in this new century. Ours is indeed an exciting school where every person is valued and provided with the opportunity to excel. 6 HIGH QUALITY TEACHING AND HIGH ACADEMIC STANDARDS The College has over 30 overseas financed thanks to a academic teaching staff, all KA1 Erasmus Plus Programme of whom are well-qualified the Sixth Form was involved graduates and specialists in. These staff members were in both their own fields of trained in: the use of ICT in study and in sixth form work. Education, leadership, how to Collectively they make a highly help students to be leaders and professional team, committed innovators in the classroom, how to helping students realise their to be better communicators, the full potential and achieve their use of the flipped classroom, how goals. Staff are friendly and to carry out peer training and supportive and are interested entrepreneurship in education in students as individuals, so amongst others. that staff-student relationships in the College are excellent. We, at De La Salle, believe very much in ongoing staff formation and training. A good number of staff members had the opportunity over the last two years to attend courses 7 You will find life in our Sixth Form It is impossible to follow a sixth both enjoyable and stimulating. form course successfully without The atmosphere is informal – a considerable amount of private very different from the classroom study both in College and at of earlier years – and a move home. You will be expected away from the relatively tight to develop habits of personal structure of SEC/IGCSE Level organisation, independent study studies. Our emphasis on self- and reading that will be of value motivated learning, individual to you in the future, whether you study, self-assessment and the progress to higher education or development of skills gives you to employment. The atmosphere new opportunities and helps in College should encourage you you take greater responsibility to realise your full potential. In all for your own work. These are all teaching groups the tutor’s aim qualities – the life skills – that you is to establish conditions where will find essential for university you feel at ease and so benefit study and your future career. The fully from a free exchange of Sixth Form Tutors offer guidance ideas. The more you are prepared and help whenever needed. You, to involve yourself in the study as a student, will be encouraged of your subjects, the more likely to work diligently, develop you are to make good progress. independence, self-confidence Involvement means asking and an awareness of others and questions about points that you in return we expect a high level have not understood and having of responsibility and commitment the confidence to put forward in the Sixth Form Centre, school your own ideas. and community. 8 LIFE AT THE COLLEGE Maintenance of a friendly and and the educational curriculum happy atmosphere is valued at the college includes not only as important in contributing to intellectual and skill development students’ success. An important but very importantly too, personal, part of being at Sixth Form is, in moral and physical development. It fact, meeting new people and is for this reason that students are making new friends. What makes strongly encouraged to participate De La Salle so special is its friendly in the extra-curricular life of the Sixth environment where there is a spirit Form, including sport, community of social inclusion and where all activities, music and social events. students feel welcome. Therefore, With such a thriving Sixth Form the whether you join us from De La nature and range of opportunities Salle Secondary School or from are varied and wide ranging. The other schools you are likely to school ethos is strong on creativity, settle in quickly. encouraging its students to pursue their talents, talents that come to the front in the school’s soirée called School Activities ‘Lasallian Nights’ and in the annual World Night, a celebration of world At De La Salle Sixth Form the meaning culture through dance, drama and of the word ‘education’ is not merely cuisine. the transmission of facts. De La Salle educates the whole person 9 New ideas are always welcome. The old motto ‘Work, Rest and Play’ is alive and well at our sixth form and the wide range of student-centred initiatives have a great part to play in this. 10 Extra-curricular travel abroad where they certainly widen their horizons and develop Activities stronger friendships in the process. Places visited in recent years include We believe that the individual needs London, The Lake District, The Alps, to be an active agent, a critical thinker. Strasbourg, Paris and Frankfurt. The It is for this reason that students are school is also actively involved in encouraged to sample new skills Erasmus Plus projects. and develop existing ones beyond the classroom by participating in Science Forum and Mini-European Student Assembly for example and even in Participation JAYE. All this helps produce sensible, responsible, caring, thinking, mature The school council, elected by the young people with the personal school body, contributes greatly to skills needed to work effectively in a providing the warm and supportive team. By encouraging participation community found at the college. It in such events, students are helped makes an important contribution to develop the attitudes and skills to College life and provides for enterprise, personal success, students with a number of lively and lifelong learning and employability. interesting opportunities, as well as offering the chance for students to Students taught to look at the world take on posts of real responsibility. only from the perspective of their New ideas are always welcome. The own culture, without having been old motto ‘Work, Rest and Play’ is exposed to other cultures, are very alive and well at our sixth form and likely to reject or misinterpret all the wide range of student-centred that cannot resemble the narrow initiatives has a great part to play in categories of their own way of this. perceiving the world. This is why trips abroad are greatly encouraged by the school. In fact, many of our students seize the opportunity to 11 12 PRACTICAL MATTERS Timetable Discipline The College timetabled day is The College recognises the from 8.00 until 14.25. There are adult or near-adult status of two 1-hour lessons from 8 till 10, a its students and their need 20-minute break from 10 till 10.20, to advance towards full followed by three 40-minute independence. Emphasis is lessons till 12.20. There is a lunch therefore placed on self- break from 12.20 till 13.05 and discipline. Students are expected two 40-minute lessons till 14.25. to have a mature attitude to their Some students (depending on chosen courses, to co-operate subjects chosen) will have some with their tutors and to observe free periods during the week and the College requirements of they are encouraged to make attendance and punctuality. On good use of their time. Weekly accepting to attend our Sixth mass followed by assembly is Form all students sign the code compulsory for all students. PE of conduct which consists of the and PAL (Personal Awareness basic requirements expected Lessons) are an integral part of of all students, in order for our curriculum. them to complete their agreed programme of study. In the rare event that students fail to live 13 up to these requirements the the college and progress reports College’s formal disciplinary are sent home throughout the policy will be applied.