Budehaven's Top Course - Nationally

Budehaven Sixth Form students did extremely well last year and it was great to discover recently that a number of the courses run by the school  performed in the  top 5% of all advanced level courses (A levels and Level 3 Btecs) in the country and one of the school's courses, the Level 3 Btec in Outdoor Adventure, is actually in the number one position.

So does this mean that Bude's local school the best course in the country? Well, it probably does. According to the statistics collected and analysed by the Advanced Level Performance System (Alps) Budehaven's  very own Btec in Outdoor Adventure was placed in the top spot ahead of advanced level courses run in over 1200 schools.

Alps provides A level, AS level and Btec Level 3 value added reports to over 1,200 schools and colleges nationally each year.  Their reports give detailed analysis on performance; overall, by student and by subject against national benchmarks, so schools and colleges can see how they are performing comparatively. The analysis is value-added, taking into account the student's prior achievement in order to give a true picture of performance.

Of course there are many ways of getting a feel for how well a course is doing but being placed number one in a national list is very satisfying and something the school is very proud of. So what is this Btec all about and why has it done so well?

The level 3 Btec was first suggested as a way for the sixth form to broaden its courses when the school was applying to become a sports college. As the school's 'sports college theme' was outdoor pursuits and watersports the running of a Btec in Outdoor Adventure was an obvious choice. The course integrates perfectly with Bude's own status as an outdoor pursuits town and benefits from close contact with many of the town's outdoor pursuits providers and clubs. Many of the school's own staff have high levels of experience in a wide range of outdoor activities and this too has been of huge benefit to the course and the students on it.

The key though is that the course is not just about outdoor education. It actually uses outdoor education, at every available opportunity, as its method of educating its students. The course is extremely practical with one day a week out on practical adventurous activities ranging from rock climbing to sea kayaking and surf life saving, etc. Residential trips to Dartmoor, the Lake District and Italy not only fulfill syllabus requirements but importantly act as motivators and confidence boosters for all the students involved. Don't think that these activities and adventure are thrown in for fun; instead they are very much the raison d'être of the course from which over 60 individual assignments will be completed and graded over its duration.

Linking in with local employment opportunities, the course includes first aid training and qualifications to coach paddle sport as well as the beach lifeguard award. Students also complete an extended work experience placement with a local outdoor pursuits company by the end of which many have secured seasonal work in that field.

We all know that when students are motivated and enthusiastic they will put in a higher level of work and commitment and so it is on this course. The work is continuous but so is the enjoyment.  Keep this going for 2 years and the students finish up with a valuable set of life experiences and vocational qualifications, not to mention a great set of results. In 2011 twelve students from a class of sixteen finished the course with triple Distinctions, giving each of them the equivalent grades of 3 grade A A-levels and providing them with the opportunity of further education courses if they so wish.

Well done to all the students and teachers involved and to Budehaven, a little Cornish school that has proven it can be the best in the country.