The Cardinal Wiseman School Sixth Form

The Cardinal Wiseman School Sixth Form
Address
Greenford Road Greenford , Middlesex , UB6 9AW
Information
Type	Voluntary aided comprehensive
Motto	Omnio Pro Christo (All things for Christ)
Religious affiliation(s)	Roman Catholic
Established	1959 as the Cardinal Newman School
Specialist	Technology
Ofsted	Reports
Chair of Governors	Leo Misquitta
Head teacher	Paul Patrick
Chaplain	Cecilia Finn
Gender	Coeducational
Age	16 to 18
Enrollment	c.300 (Sixth Form Only)
Houses	Campion, Fisher, More, Ward, Southwell
Colour(s)	Lower School: Royal Blue, White - Sixth Form: Black, White
Website	http://www.wiseman.ealing.sch.uk/

The Cardinal Wiseman Sixth Form is a part of The Cardinal Wiseman School located in Greenford, London. Students from the Year 11 class of the school have priority in gaining places into the Sixth Form's Year 12, although they have to meet criteria and produce good GCSE results. The Cardinal Wiseman Sixth Form aims to help students become more independent and responsible for their own education. Progression to Year 13 is not guaranteed, students are required to get at least a D in each subject they have chosen at A-Level. This often results in a large part of the Year 12 class dropping out of the Cardinal Wiseman School in the summer before Year 13.

Uniform

The uniform for the Sixth Form differs to the lower school. Students are required to wear a black tie with the school crest over a plain white shirt with black trousers or skirts. A blazer is available although most students prefer their own choice of plain black jumpers. Much conspiracy has been made of the legality of wearing 'hoodies' on site, with suspensions and expulsions. Interestingly enough, the leaving gift for the Sixth Form in the class of 2008 is a black crested hoodie which has been deemed permissible.

The Common Room

The Common Room is a privilege granted only to Sixth Form students. It is located on the top floor of the Pallottine building near the school entrance. Inside the common rooms are tables and chairs for studies as well as some more informal seating for discussion. The use of these sofas for socialising during free periods has been frowned upon as it detracts from study time, and students are therefore only allowed to use them during 'break' and 'lunch time', periods where most students choose to leave the site. There are two vending machines located in the Common Room also although they are regularly out of service.

Course Requirements

The strict requirements for getting accepted first into the Sixth Form itself and second, progressing into Year 13, are only part of what is needed at Cardinal Wiseman. In addition, two A-levels, Critical Thinking and Religious Studies are compulsory for at least the AS year. This means that students often have to sacrifice a subject that they might excel in, to fit other subjects into their timetable. Critical Thinking is a course that is very frequently disregarded by most of the top universities and therefore, its value is questionable. For all courses, a huge amount of work is expected from students to the point where they are not able to have any free time at all. The school also has a history of not appreciating students that excel, but rather boosting those who need support.

Policy

The Sixth Form has historically been regarded as a more liberal part of the school, where students are entitled to more freedom and self-guidance. Recently, however, it seems not the case. Attendance is a key part of the Cardinal Wiseman system and students are frequently reminded that if they do not attend at least 80% of classes they will be asked to pay £25 for their exams despite most exams costing £13.50. This has been installed as a deterrent for truancy. Students are often forced to overwork on non-coursework targets and achieve very high 'mock' examination scores just to stay in the teachers favour often failing to recognise the other demands on teenage students.

Staff

Director of Sixth Form in charge of Year 13: Ms J Somrah
Deputy Director of Sixth Form in charge of curriculum: Mr O'Neill
Home Schools Officer: Ms Durkin

The Wikipedia Scandal

For a brief time, an article was placed on Wikipedia which exposed the injustices suffered by the students due to the policies implemented by the senior staff of the Sixth Form. News spread to students and teachers alike which resulted in the vandalism and removal of information on the Wikipedia page completely in an attempt to censor the free speech of students. Nevertheless, the statements made on the controversial page were confirmed in a public address to the Sixth Form when it was said 'I am not going to apologise for being a dictator.'