St George's approach to academic excellence

Teaching at St George’s all-girls' school in Edinburgh aims to give every pupil enthusiasm and confidence in academic subjects, both inside and outside the classroom. Of course, public examination results are vital to support future ambitions, but our teaching is about so much more: in fact, teaching which encourages confidence and academic flair as an end in itself enables girls to achieve more.

Our teachers’ natural love of their subjects stands out. But our approach has common features. We encourage pupils to focus on their own progress, rather than peer comparisons. We ensure that every girl learns to articulate her own thoughts and find her voice. And we ensure that pupils know that their teachers are always ready to provide individual support.

Above all, our teachers have excellent relationships with their pupils; as one recent leaver commented: “Our teachers know us and believe in us.”

All-through academic curriculum for girls’ aged 3-18

From Nursery to Sixth Form, St George's provides a coherent all-through academic curriculum, maximising the opportunity for building skills. This broad and balanced curriculum incorporates language, mathematical, scientific, technological, physical, social, religious and moral, and expressive education. It is based upon a ‘Best of British’ model with the Curriculum for Excellence, GCSE and SQA qualifications as the basis of flexible individual pathways.

To ensure our pupils possess the relevant aptitudes for the modern world, we develop digital skills;  internationalism; inter-disciplinary learning; challenge beyond the classroom and meta skills. It means gaining the ability to apply knowledge in different scenarios, and understanding how to communicate it and when to deploy it.

Academic enthusiasm also comes from time outside the classroom, with a diverse range of subject enrichment on offer: from academic publications written by the students, subject clubs (whether Mis-Education Society, Lego Robotics or Model United Nations Club), and collaborations with students from other schools and universities.

Students are encouraged to develop learning beyond the classroom through engagement with the super curriculum. This is the opportunity for students to extend themselves through stretch, challenge and digging deeper building enthusiasm and curiosity for a subject area or new topic and creating capacity for independent study.

Students gain a sense of accomplishment while developing research skills and the ability to debate, communicate confidently, and effectively, solve problems and think critically, reflectively and creatively. These are meta-skills that have inherent, life-long value, with universities and employers seeking candidates who possess them.

We particularly encourage our girls to pursue their individual research interests, from Global Perspectives projects in the lower years up to Extended Project Qualifications in the Sixth Form.