The Cheltenham Ladies' College backs report on physics in girls’ schools

A report by science experts about the benefits of a girls' school education has been backed by The Cheltenham Ladies' College.

Findings by the Institute of Physics show that girls from single sex schools are almost 2.5 times more likely to study the subject at A Level than their peers at co-ed schools.

The conclusions were welcomed by James Pothecary, Head of Physics at the College, where more than one in five girls take the subject post-16.

Mr Pothecary said: "Girls bring a different outlook to lessons and we strive to work with this outlook to deliver an engaging, vibrant and relevant physics education to the students.

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"Single sex classes enable staff to use a huge variety of contexts and make links to aspects of the world that the students are interested in, be it medicine, art, music or indeed bridges and aeroplanes."

The College has 68 girls taking the subject for either A Level or International Baccalaureate, out of a total Sixth Form cohort of 306.

These students are split into eight sets.

Research by the Girls' Schools Association supports the study.

The industry body's survey concluded that Physics comprised 4.2% of the A Levels taken by girls at single-sex schools last summer.

That compares to a national average of just 1.4% and the College figure of 4.4%.

The GSA says that girls' schools have the edge not just because they provide an environment in which girls are free from stereotypical expectation and pressure to act a certain way in front of boys.

The single sex classroom also gives teachers the freedom to adapt the entire lesson to appeal to girls.

Mr Pothecary added: "Excellence in teaching is in part down to having nine full or part-time physics specialists teachers, who teach all the physics lessons in College to girls aged 11-18.

"The resources in a department are also key and we are lucky to be able to invest each year in our equipment, always updating and innovating.

"Every year we have students who go on to university to read physics or engineering."