Hardly had we all returned from our welcome Easter break than the exams were upon us!  The students have remained calm and focused so far but they are examined in various papers over a period of nearly six weeks so it can be draining for all of them.  The classes are not suspended for ‘exam leave’ here at College.  After the students have completed their own series of exams they follow a work orientation programme and then a project week where they will be setting up an Amnesty International Group; looking at applying for Eco Schools status; finding out what it is like to be disable and finally making a promotional video for the College. As soon as the final ‘chunk’ of exams is finished we begin the A2 courses. Results day is 14th August for the students and we hope they get the results they have been working for.

Looking ahead we now have key staff responsible for university applications in various countries.  This will add a specialism where the staff responsible can keep their knowledge current and guide the students through the process.  The students applying for UK universities have already started work on their personal statements and those heading to Spain are checking the points required for entrance and ensuring they are taking enough exam subjects.

All the new staff have been appointed for the additional A levels we are bringing on line for September (Biology, Chemistry and German) and we will also be offering additional qualifications in subjects such as photography and finance.  The ongoing programme of expansion and development of facilities is underway and with a change of use for some of our teaching spaces we are looking ahead with excitement to the second year of teaching. 

We are delighted to announce a collaboration with The Pauline Quirke Academy. (http://www.pqacademy.com/locations/mallorca/ )

The Performing Arts students will be joining PQA classes on a Saturday morning from September until February, as part of their course in order to experience many more opportunities in all aspects of Performing Arts. This will also enable them to take part in productions of a larger scale, make and produce films and learn many new techniques such as movement, production, make-up, lighting and attending specialist Masterclasses.

With only five weeks until the end of term it feels as if this inaugural year has flown past.  A celebration dinner is being held both for students, parents and staff but also for all the wonderful supporters and providers of enrichment courses that we have had the benefit of over this year. Thank you to all who have given time and support to all of in this exceptional place!

March and April News

First Aid Course

I can hardly believe that the end of Spring Term is upon us.  So much has been achieved in what feels like such a short term.  The students sat mock examinations so there was a great deal of revision and hard work academically and they all benefitted from the experience.  The real A Level Language Orals have taken place already and the lengthy coursework elements for English Literature, Business Studies and Performing Arts are on track.

All the students sat the First Aid course and now have a valid certificate which lasts for three years.  This will enable them to supplement their cv’s whilst undertaking summer jobs.  They were very enthusiastic during this excellent course, particularly with CPR! During the Enrichment Activities this term they have been looking at some very diverse topics.   We have had a variety of speakers in to talk about their own working life and career paths. The students had the first in a series of interview skills exercises which was delivered and filmed by Jason from Mallorca Today TV. They had an excellent afternoon listening to how to live sustainable lives; they have been to the University of the Balearics to look at the damage done to kidneys on the island by the ‘cal’ in the water, and tested their own levels.  This produced some fun pictures! They listened to the superb Sabrina on how to manage stress during exams; hosted Jan Edwards, a journalist, who became a student for a day; put on a drama showcase in the Anglican Church Hall; took an English and Theatre studies trip to London for a weekend and of course took part in the Sponsored Walk.  A great deal has been achieved by them all. The final Enrichment Activity was a visit to Jungle Parc to complete a series of exercises through the tree tops.

Finally the Easter break has arrived.  We have much to look forward to in the summer term and beyond.  Work experience options are being finalised and a huge thank you to all the companies supporting our young people through this.

A number of new courses are being added next session for A Level options such as German, Chemistry, Biology and Photography.  We will be holding Art and Sculpture workshops in our beautiful new art studio and hosting a series of lectures.  Details will be on the website soon.

If you would like information about any aspect of Palma College please do not hesitate to get in touch.

Students raise € 1005

Exciting events have been taking place in Palma College this month, alongside the normal learning that goes on each day.  One of the advantages of being an entirely sixth form college is that we have the flexibility to take opportunities as they arise, hence our Maths and Physics students coming in early so they could visit the amazing natural phenomena of the sun lighting up the Rose window in Palma Cathedral.  The art students have been out and about in the galleries of Palma, most notably the Salvador Dali exhibition.  They have also been fortunate enough to have attended a Masterclass in sculpture with world renowned Joan Waelder at La Residencia Hotel in Deya. The Performing Art students are busy working on their own production – from start to finish – as part of their assessments and last, but not least, we had a whole College charity event organised by our A2 Business Studies students.  This raised a wonderful sum of 1005€ for the local charity Mediterranea. We welcomed journalist Jan Edwards to attend as a student for the day by shadowing ours.

The speakers that have visited us as part of our enrichment programme have held our attention in more ways than one.  The students were professionally filmed making a presentation, and we will be building these skills over the coming months in order to prepare them for interviews at work or for university.  We were lucky enough to have a fascinating talk about sustainable living from a hugely informed speaker Miguel Ramis from Artifexbalear.  Dr James Rieley spoke to parents about keeping the circle of dynamic learning rolling.

Our own exciting news is the expansion of the College buildings to incorporate a new Art studio, a dedicated Performing Arts space and some further classroom accommodation.  We are delighted to announce a working partnership with Lipofarma. This organisation is making its state of the art science laboratories available to us for our science students to conduct their experiments.  We are humbled by the community partnerships we are making, particularly in industry and the Arts.

January is both a time for reflection and to look forward to the coming year.  Looking back over the inception and launch of Palma College it seems like a distant memory.  I have been delighted with the way the new students and staff quickly came together as a community and established a positive and supportive learning environment.  The mutual respect that is evident is a special part of College and one which echoes the ethos of the founders.

Looking ahead there are new challenges to be faced and deadlines looming for the students.  On top of a heavy academic workload we are now beginning to look to the future and options for life after College whether it be in work or further study.  Interestingly although we have many nationalities the UK appears to be e choice of many young people for further study however, we do look at all options.

The Enrichment Programme for the Spring term is packed as always with many visiting speakers, workshops and activities.  We are enormously grateful to the professional people who give up their time to come and speak to the students.  It is by illustrating career pathways and encouraging high level decision taking that our young people are being given the best advice.

We look forward to a busy and engaging term in partnership with all of those who are members of the Palma College community.

Santa Ponsa Christmas Fair

The holidays are fast approaching and so much has been achieved by the students since half term in October.  Our Performing Arts students appeared in an inter-schools production of The Tempest where they performed admirably in association with two other schools and a theatre company.  All the rehearsals and learning of copious lines was in addition to their normal A Level work so a huge well done to them!  Last Sunday two students performed at the Calvia Christmas Fayre and they sang before a huge audience.  It was delightful to feel the community of Palma College coming together to support these youngsters in their first live performance.  Additionally one of our young singers is supporting ABC Mallorca at two events before Christmas. We held our first parent teacher afternoon and it was delightful to see many parents, accompanied by their sons and daughters, really engaging in the conversations regarding the progress being made and agreeing to support their children in any way they can.

On top of the extra curricular activities the students are heads down and getting on with their academic studies.  Many of them are involved not only with one or two course works projects but also art sketch book preparation which involves a huge amount of time over and above classroom hours. The staff are certainly glad that they have their degrees and teaching qualifications done and dusted as it appears the burden of work for young people seems to increase year on year.

We are looking forward to our final week of this term when we are holding a ‘taster’ afternoon for new students for entry in September 2014.  The teaching staff are holding mini sessions in their subjects for anyone interested.  There is still time to contact us if you would like a place.

Finally it just remains to wish everyone involved with our community a very happy and peaceful holiday season.  We are looking forward to returning fresh and positive in January!

The rhythms of College life are now firmly established just a little over a month after term began and it seems like the students and staff have been here forever.  The timetabled classes have settled into patterns with all of us being purposeful and motivated in our teaching and learning.  That is not to say it isn’t very hard work and by Friday afternoons there are some very tired faces leaving for the weekend!

What has been delightful to see is the growing relationship of mutual respect between the staff and the students.  As we have removed the traditional ‘them and us’ culture common to many schools we have found the students much more confident and open and not afraid to express their opinions. The staff are consulting them about their preferred ways of learning and this is working well. Needless to say teenage habits are harder to break in terms of a habitually messy common room!

We are also having lots of laughs!  The Enrichment programme has particular appeal and the students are always keen to know what is coming next but – for this year – we keep them in suspense!

We have had some unexpected late arrivals to the College and our founding students have made them feel very welcome.   We are on a small island and connections and friendships are quickly established. In an atmosphere of positive attitudes I have seen many delightful and spontaneous acts of kindness towards one another and to the staff.  I hope this has set the standard for the rest of the year.

On a final note a number of the students have already begun to look ahead at life after College and are wisely and carefully researching options including universities.  It is the right time to begin this as around January we will be running a series of workshop on university/ further education or Gap Year pathways.

First Day 2013

The day we have been all working towards for well over a year finally arrived when the students began their first day at Palma College!  It was wonderful to hear the building filled with young voices and to meet them with their enthusiasm and optimism.  I hadn’t realised how much I missed actually being in the company of younger people!

All the students threw themselves wholeheartedly into the morning’s activities which including memory games; a photography session and a time management induction.  After lunch lessons began in earnest and the students and staff settled into what I hope becomes a focused pattern of teaching and learning.  One member of staff even commented that they had overheard laughter in another teacher’s lesson – twice!

And so we begin our journey with these young people leading them through the demanding courses that will give them access to Higher Education if that is where they wish to go.  We also have some exciting Enrichment Activities planned for this half of term which will challenge them in all manner of ways.  We are hosting a welcome evening for all parents this week and I know that, already, the students feel confident enough to take their parents round the building and show off their rooms.

We look forward to welcoming any interested students and parents at our next Open Morning on 9^th November, but are always happy to see people through an appointment.

August brought record temperatures to Palma as we worked throughout the month preparing the College for the start of the new term on September 9th.  It was also exam results month which brought joy and disappointment, thankfully not in equal measure.  Many of our founding students achieved excellent results and can now approach the rigours of the A Level courses with enthusiasm and determination.  For a very few the inevitability of some resits looms, but with small class sizes and excellent teaching staff we will be able to offer every support.

August also saw the awarding of the first scholarship place in Performing Arts.  We had a number of auditions from hugely talented young people and it was a very difficult decision to select just one person.  Olivia May Green from les Bendinat school will be joining us on a part time basis over the next two years to study for her A Level in Applied Performing Arts.  Congratulations to Olivia and well done to everyone who auditioned.

We look forward to the start of a busy and exciting year where we will be providing the highest quality of education and working with our students and their parents to help them achieve their goals.  The Enrichment Programme has so many exciting activities on it: from personal finance to circus skills; food and nutrition to dry stone walling; preparation for interviews and university applications.  So much more is included and we will be posting the final programme on the website very soon.

If you are still looking for a sixth form education for this session please contact us as soon as possible and we look forward to meeting interested families for next session and beyond at our next Open Morning on Saturday 9th November.

Time appears to have flown by this month.  We had another Open Day on 13th July but were slightly hi-jacked due to the Baleares Symphony Orchestra giving a wonderful free concert 100 metres from our building with associated road closures!  Still, the hardy  managed and we welcomed some young people looking to enrol for 2014, as well as a few of our pioneering students who start this year!  Those who are going to study Art and Design have decided to come in one week before the beginning of the autumn term in order to refresh their skills and explore options for assessment with Maria Eugenia the art teacher.

We were delighted to welcome film industry experts on Open Day as the ten week film course begins in September.  Debbie, Matthew and David all have enormous practical experience in film making and will be mixing theory with practical application about all areas of the industry.  This is a course for everyone, young and old alike!

Language classes are also going on throughout August, despite the heat.  We can prepare candidates for the Cambridge Certificates at Palma College,  including the Advanced Certificate and the teaching is based on your abilities when you register.

The rooms are ready for our students to begin their work in September and the atmosphere is lively with staff and visitors popping in each day.  We are remaining open during August and in particular for results days on 15th and 22nd August.  Please do not hesitate to call or email if you didn’t achieve the grades you wanted, or in fact did better!  There is always a way forward.

How time is flying past for all of us here at Palma College.  Our second Open Day is fast approaching on Saturday 13th July and all our current island based staff will be there to answer questions about subjects, combinations and careers.

Before we reach Open Morning our summer classes begin on 9th July for two and a half hours per day.  Conversational Spanish classes are leading the way but we also have English classes; the opportunity to take Art classes and some catch up or revision for academic subjects if required.

We have been asked by some slightly more ‘mature’ students if they can come and either re-take a single A Level for university entrance and, in particular, join our Performing Arts course.  We are happy to discuss flexible and life long learning programmes.  After the shock of school exams becomes a distant memory it is often appropriate to return to education purely for the love of a subject.  We are currently putting together a twilight Film Studies course for the Autumn in connection with film industry experts which promises to be both educational and instructive.  More details to follow shortly.

Finally we are open all through July if you want to pop in for a chat (please check website for exact times).  We will be in College for results days in August for both A Level and later for GCSE.  The most important thing for students on those days is not to panic if you don’t achieve your predicted grades.  There are ALWAYS solutions, just keep calm and consider your options.  Your current school should be open for advice and help during this period but we are also happy to help parents or students if they have queries about next steps.

We hope everyone has a long, happy summer.  If you have holiday work to do don’t forget it and, if you are entering Upper Six after the summer and are applying to a UK university, remember to get working on those personal statements!