Sherborne Accelerated Online EPQ

Deciding to turn adversity into opportunity, Sherborne has embraced the more flexible approach afforded by remote learning to enrol the entire Fifth Form into an EPQ. But this is not just any EPQ - this is the Sherborne Accelerated Online EPQ: a 10 week programme of Taught Element and intensive independent research. The end goal is an AQA qualification equivalent to half an A level for each boy: a huge achievement when some are still a few months shy of their 16th birthdays!  

With over 100 boys and almost 70 staff in the mix - none of whom knew they were doing this when school closed for Easter - it has not always been plain sailing. Remote learning and training has been a steep learning curve for all, and the Accelerated Online EPQ looks and feels very different from the usual qualification. However, as usual, the majority of boys have risen to the challenge with aplomb, and, only four weeks in, (and from a standing start) over half had got a clear project proposal approved and planned and were underway with their research. 

Adaptations have certainly been made: some boys are opting to continue their project through the summer, and a couple into the Lowe Sixth year, all possible due to the flexible nature of the qualification. The course continues to evolve and develop, and over the coming weeks boys will progress and learn at their own pace, developing independence, resilience and confidence as they do so. Two Upper Sixth boys have opted to take the course as part of their Upper Sixth Enhancement Programme, and two Lower Sixth boys who found the standard course hard to manage with full time school are using the accelerated online version to revive and complete their projects. 

The wide range and impressive ambition of many projects is a testament to the talent, creativity and academic curiosity of our boys - some of my favourites are listed below. Those who finish the qualification, and indeed all those who engage with it to the best of their ability, will find that the time management, planning, research and writing skills they have learned throughout their project will stand them in good stead for when the serious work of A levels begins next term.

Examples of Chosen EPQ Titles:

Are John Ruskin's views on social justice and his social experiments relevant today?
Can I plan and design a functional, sustainable tiny house?’
Design and produce a set of book illustrations.
Does Aquaponics have a place in the future of farming?
How and why are video-games used to support or subvert governments and ideologies? 
Has Darwin's theory of evolution and natural selection been affirmed or destroyed by our understanding of DNA?
The political impact of musical theatre productions.
How performance enhancing drugs impact the reputation of Elite Sport today.
Is the structure of North Korea sustainable in the 21st Century?
To what extent was Religious devotion the primary reason for Patronage in Renaissance Italy.
Does a corporate crisis create or only speed up innovation?
How much is the use of surveillance technology justified?
The use of nudge theory: is it too intrusive?
Was the development language the key factor in developing culture within Homo Sapiens?
Creating an app: what measures need to be taken to create a fully private and secure messaging system.

Charlotte Allen, Head of History and EPQ Co-ordinator