100 percent increase in A grades at Paddington Academy
A MAIDA Vale school has achieved a 100 per cent rise in students gaining the highest grades at A-level.The number of pupils at Paddington Academy awarded A to A* grades has more than doubled from 9.9 per cent in 2009 to 21 per cent this year.Meanwhile, the overall pass rate rose to 98 per cent - a four per cent increase on last year’s results - and the A-B grades have increased by 20 per cent.
A MAIDA Vale school has achieved a 100 per cent rise in students gaining the highest grades at A-level.
The number of pupils at Paddington Academy awarded A to A* grades has more than doubled from 9.9 per cent in 2009 to 21 per cent this year.
Meanwhile, the overall pass rate rose to 98 per cent - a four per cent increase on last year’s results - and the A to B grades have increased by 20 per cent.
Headteacher Oli Tomlinson said she was “delighted” with both her students and her staff.
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She said: “All we did is think how can we improve the Sixth Form and this year it has come on in leaps and bounds.
“I’m delighted with the results but I’m most delighted that the students got what they deserved because the staff went the extra mile.
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“The whole staff has worked 24/7 to ensure that every child has been successful. They just haven’t left any gaps at all.”
Five of the highest achieving students at the academy also spoke of their joy on receiving their outstanding grades.
Ahmed Honeini, 18 who gained two As and a B in English Literature, Media and History. said: “I was ecstatic. I wasn’t expecting it because the English exam was the hardest exam I’ve ever sat in my life and I came out of it a wreck, so to have gotten an A for it is great.”
Two 18-year-old best friends Zana Rexha and Riam Muayad, who both got straight As, were also on a high.
Zana said: “We haven’t slept all night refreshing the UCAS page. We just started crying when we got the results. I couldn’t believe it.”
And explaining how the pair supported each other through the exams, Riam added: “We’re best friends. We’re together everyday - we made notes together, tested each other and forced each other to keep working.”
But the academy's newly appointed director of the Sixth Form, Luke Edwards, admitted there were worries about how the squeeze on university places might affect the students' prospects.
He said: “It was a major concern and we had to be very careful doing UCAS to make sure the balance between ambition and realism was there - without trying to place a ceiling on their aspirations.
“But the fact that we’ve managed to get someone into King’s, UCL and Royal Holloway is testament to the fact that if you work hard you can achieve.
Mr Edwards said the next step is to aim for consistent excellence and Ms Tomlinson said the school is now setting its sights on universities such as Oxford, Cambridge, UCL, Imperial and LSE.
