Carrickfergus Grammar School
Encyclopedia
Carrickfergus Grammar School is a grammar school situated in Carrickfergus
, County Antrim
, Northern Ireland
. Since opening in 1962 with 60 pupils and 4 teachers, its pupil numbers have increased to just over 800 pupils from ages 11 to 18 in Years 8 to 14.
The school is situated on the former site of Thornfield Manor, overlooking the town of Carrickfergus, and has a proud view of Carrickfergus Castle
and Belfast Lough
beyond.
The school is known for its sporting achievements, especially in rugby
, hockey
, and football and its music department, including the senior choir, which often performs in high profile venues and has made numerous television appearances.
The school motto Præstantia roughly translates as 'striving for excellence' and the school's mission statement reads "Further Excellence from Present Strengths".
The motto changed to Præstantia, the school crest was replaced with a new logo and the school colours changed to reflect better the diversity of the school community. The school continued to grow, and in 1999 was the first grammar school in Northern Ireland to achieve the Investors in People
award. It was also later awarded the Goldmark
by the Northern Ireland Sports Council for the quality of its physical education. In 2008, the school achieved specialist school
status, specialising in science, and was awarded the International School Award in recognition of its work encouraging global awareness in school. The school is currently working towards gaining the Charter Mark Award for Excellence
.
In 2009, the school achieved its first major school sports trophy for rugby in recent years, winning the Ulster Schools Trophy
.
, sports, music and other groups. Badges are also given to members of the school council and prefects.
Pupils who have excelled in sports, music or in other ways can be awarded with a colours tie (the normal school tie with navy stripes running diagonally down), and for further excellence in those fields pupils can be presented with a colours-with-distinction tie (the colours tie with the navy and maroon reversed). Special achievements such as head boy and girl, outstanding contribution to sports or music, or academic achievement such as 10 A*'s at GCSE level will be awarded with a maroon honours blazer and honours tie.
Critical Thinking was also offered, however as of 2007 it is no longer available.
German
was offered until the academic year ending 2009
, Downshire School
, and Ulidia Integrated College
to provide a wider range of options to Carrickfergus' A Level students. Pupils from Carrickfergus Grammar will be able to study these subjects at the corresponding school. This initiative is popular and is an appealing choice for those who wish to remain at Carrickfergus Grammar yet want to study another subject which the school doesn't cater for.
Subjects offered include:
A number of pupils from the other three schools in the CLC group can attend Carrickfergus Grammar School for alternative subjects to those offered at their school: Government and Politics, Geography, and French for example.
Carrickfergus
Carrickfergus , known locally and colloquially as "Carrick", is a large town in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It is located on the north shore of Belfast Lough, from Belfast. The town had a population of 27,201 at the 2001 Census and takes its name from Fergus Mór mac Eirc, the 6th century king...
, County Antrim
County Antrim
County Antrim is one of six counties that form Northern Ireland, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland. Adjoined to the north-east shore of Lough Neagh, the county covers an area of 2,844 km², with a population of approximately 616,000...
, Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
. Since opening in 1962 with 60 pupils and 4 teachers, its pupil numbers have increased to just over 800 pupils from ages 11 to 18 in Years 8 to 14.
The school is situated on the former site of Thornfield Manor, overlooking the town of Carrickfergus, and has a proud view of Carrickfergus Castle
Carrickfergus Castle
Carrickfergus Castle is a Norman castle in Northern Ireland, situated in the town of Carrickfergus in County Antrim, on the northern shore of Belfast Lough. Besieged in turn by the Scots, Irish, English and French, the castle played an important military role until 1928 and remains one of the best...
and Belfast Lough
Belfast Lough
Belfast Lough is a large, natural intertidal sea lough at the mouth of the River Lagan on the east coast of Northern Ireland. The inner part of the lough comprises a series of mudflats and lagoons. The outer lough is restricted to mainly rocky shores with some small sandy bays...
beyond.
The school is known for its sporting achievements, especially in rugby
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
, hockey
Field hockey
Field Hockey, or Hockey, is a team sport in which a team of players attempts to score goals by hitting, pushing or flicking a ball into an opposing team's goal using sticks...
, and football and its music department, including the senior choir, which often performs in high profile venues and has made numerous television appearances.
The school motto Præstantia roughly translates as 'striving for excellence' and the school's mission statement reads "Further Excellence from Present Strengths".
History
The school was founded in 1962 with just 60 pupils. The school was expanded to deal with this increase in numbers when an extension was built in 1983.The motto changed to Præstantia, the school crest was replaced with a new logo and the school colours changed to reflect better the diversity of the school community. The school continued to grow, and in 1999 was the first grammar school in Northern Ireland to achieve the Investors in People
Investors in People
Launched in 1991 Investors in People is a business improvement tool administered by UK Commission for Employment and Skills and supported by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills ....
award. It was also later awarded the Goldmark
Goldmark
Goldmark can refer to:*German Goldmark, coinage of the German Empire*Karl Goldmark , composer*Rubin Goldmark, composer*Peter Carl Goldmark, scientist and inventor*Peter J. Goldmark, rancher, geneticist and politician...
by the Northern Ireland Sports Council for the quality of its physical education. In 2008, the school achieved specialist school
Specialist school
The specialist schools programme was a UK government initiative which encouraged secondary schools in England to specialise in certain areas of the curriculum to boost achievement. The Specialist Schools and Academies Trust was responsible for the delivery of the programme...
status, specialising in science, and was awarded the International School Award in recognition of its work encouraging global awareness in school. The school is currently working towards gaining the Charter Mark Award for Excellence
Charter Mark
The Customer Service Excellence, is an accreditation for organisations and an independent validation of achievement.-History:...
.
In 2009, the school achieved its first major school sports trophy for rugby in recent years, winning the Ulster Schools Trophy
Ulster Schools Cup
The Ulster Schools' Challenge Cup is an annual competition involving schools affiliated to the Ulster Branch of the Irish Rugby Football Union. The Schools' Cup has the distinction of being the world's second-oldest rugby competition, having been competed for every year since 1876...
.
Facilities
Carrickfergus Grammar School has a wide range of on-site facilities for pupils:- The Grainger Centre, comprising the school library, careers office, pupil study area, and computer suite,
- The Jamison Room, Years 13 and 14 common room,
- The Parkison Suite, a purpose-built Home Economics suite,
- Irwin Park, The school's 3 rugby pitches located above the school,
- Playing fields, including rugby and hockey pitches, athletics track, and tennis courts,
- A music department, including classrooms, practice areas and study areas and a recording suite featuring an Apple computer,
- A fitness suite.
Uniform
School uniform is compulsory and all pupils wear a dark navy blazer featuring maroon detailing on the sleeves and pockets, and the school logo emblazoned on the left breast pocket. The school tie is maroon and is imprinted with small white castles. Girls wear a grey pleated skirt, a white blouse, and either black tights or white ankle socks. Boys wear black or dark grey trousers, a white shirt, and black or dark grey socks. All pupils wear black low-heeled shoes. A navy V-necked jumper is also allowed.Badges, colours and honours
School badges are awarded by many of the extra-curricular clubs and organisations which run in the school, including Young EnterpriseYoung Enterprise
Young Enterprise is a not-for-profit business and enterprise education charity in the United Kingdom. It is made up of 12 regional organisations, each operating individually under a license agreement...
, sports, music and other groups. Badges are also given to members of the school council and prefects.
Pupils who have excelled in sports, music or in other ways can be awarded with a colours tie (the normal school tie with navy stripes running diagonally down), and for further excellence in those fields pupils can be presented with a colours-with-distinction tie (the colours tie with the navy and maroon reversed). Special achievements such as head boy and girl, outstanding contribution to sports or music, or academic achievement such as 10 A*'s at GCSE level will be awarded with a maroon honours blazer and honours tie.
Curriculum
There is a wide range of subjects offered at Carrickfergus Grammar:- Accounting
- Additional MathematicsMathematicsMathematics is the study of quantity, space, structure, and change. Mathematicians seek out patterns and formulate new conjectures. Mathematicians resolve the truth or falsity of conjectures by mathematical proofs, which are arguments sufficient to convince other mathematicians of their validity...
- Art and Design
- BiologyBiologyBiology is a natural science concerned with the study of life and living organisms, including their structure, function, growth, origin, evolution, distribution, and taxonomy. Biology is a vast subject containing many subdivisions, topics, and disciplines...
- Business Communication Systems
- Business StudiesBusiness studiesBusiness studies is an academic subject taught at higher level in Australia, Canada, Hong Kong, India, Ireland, New Zealand, Pakistan, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Zimbabwe and the United Kingdom, as well as at university level in many countries...
- ChemistryChemistryChemistry is the science of matter, especially its chemical reactions, but also its composition, structure and properties. Chemistry is concerned with atoms and their interactions with other atoms, and particularly with the properties of chemical bonds....
- EnglishEnglish studiesEnglish studies is an academic discipline that includes the study of literatures written in the English language , English linguistics English studies is an academic discipline that includes the study of literatures written in the English language (including literatures from the U.K., U.S.,...
- English LiteratureEnglish literatureEnglish literature is the literature written in the English language, including literature composed in English by writers not necessarily from England; for example, Robert Burns was Scottish, James Joyce was Irish, Joseph Conrad was Polish, Dylan Thomas was Welsh, Edgar Allan Poe was American, J....
- European StudiesEuropean studiesEuropean studies is a field of study offered by many academic colleges and universities that focuses on current developments in European integration....
- FrenchFrench languageFrench is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
- Further Mathematics
- GeographyGeographyGeography is the science that studies the lands, features, inhabitants, and phenomena of Earth. A literal translation would be "to describe or write about the Earth". The first person to use the word "geography" was Eratosthenes...
- Government and Politics
- Home EconomicsHome EconomicsHome economics is the profession and field of study that deals with the economics and management of the home and community...
- HistoryHistoryHistory is the discovery, collection, organization, and presentation of information about past events. History can also mean the period of time after writing was invented. Scholars who write about history are called historians...
- Information and Communication Technology
- LatinLatinLatin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
- Learning for Life and WorkLearning for Life and WorkLearning for Life and Work is a pilot subject offered at GCSE level to United Kingdom schools. The subject covers three modules: Citizenship, Employability and PSHE....
- MathematicsMathematicsMathematics is the study of quantity, space, structure, and change. Mathematicians seek out patterns and formulate new conjectures. Mathematicians resolve the truth or falsity of conjectures by mathematical proofs, which are arguments sufficient to convince other mathematicians of their validity...
- MusicMusicMusic is an art form whose medium is sound and silence. Its common elements are pitch , rhythm , dynamics, and the sonic qualities of timbre and texture...
- PhotographyPhotographyPhotography is the art, science and practice of creating durable images by recording light or other electromagnetic radiation, either electronically by means of an image sensor or chemically by means of a light-sensitive material such as photographic film...
- Physical EducationPhysical educationPhysical education or gymnastics is a course taken during primary and secondary education that encourages psychomotor learning in a play or movement exploration setting....
- PhysicsPhysicsPhysics is a natural science that involves the study of matter and its motion through spacetime, along with related concepts such as energy and force. More broadly, it is the general analysis of nature, conducted in order to understand how the universe behaves.Physics is one of the oldest academic...
- Religious StudiesReligious studiesReligious studies is the academic field of multi-disciplinary, secular study of religious beliefs, behaviors, and institutions. It describes, compares, interprets, and explains religion, emphasizing systematic, historically based, and cross-cultural perspectives.While theology attempts to...
- SpanishSpanish languageSpanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
- Technology and Design
- Word ProcessingWord processingWord processing is the creation of documents using a word processor. It can also refer to advanced shorthand techniques, sometimes used in specialized contexts with a specially modified typewriter.-External links:...
Critical Thinking was also offered, however as of 2007 it is no longer available.
German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
was offered until the academic year ending 2009
Carrickfergus Learning Community
Carrickfergus Grammar School is currently involved in a new curricular scheme called the Carrickfergus Learning Community (CLC), along with Carrickfergus CollegeCarrickfergus College
Carrickfergus College is a secondary school located in Carrickfergus, County Antrim, Northern Ireland. The college was opened in 1959 and has over 750 students and 52 teachers. It is within the North Eastern Education and Library Board area.-College Ethos:...
, Downshire School
Downshire School
Downshire School is a community high school in Carrickfergus, County Antrim, Northern Ireland, on Downshire Road. It opened in 1977 and currently has an enrolment of 803 pupils and 59 teachers....
, and Ulidia Integrated College
Ulidia Integrated College
Ulidia Integrated College is situated in Carrickfergus, Northern Ireland. It was opened in 1997 with an initial 63 students. It is the 44th integrated school to be created in the province and currently provides education for over 530 Catholic and Protestant children.- Catchment area background...
to provide a wider range of options to Carrickfergus' A Level students. Pupils from Carrickfergus Grammar will be able to study these subjects at the corresponding school. This initiative is popular and is an appealing choice for those who wish to remain at Carrickfergus Grammar yet want to study another subject which the school doesn't cater for.
Subjects offered include:
- Health and Social CareHealth and Social CareIn the UK, Health and Social Care is a broad term that relates to integrated services that are available from health and social care providers...
(Carrickfergus College) - Media StudiesMedia studiesMedia studies is an academic discipline and field of study that deals with the content, history and effects of various media; in particular, the 'mass media'. Media studies may draw on traditions from both the social sciences and the humanities, but mostly from its core disciplines of mass...
(Downshire School) - Moving Images (Ulidia Integrated College)
- Performing ArtsPerforming artsThe performing arts are those forms art which differ from the plastic arts insofar as the former uses the artist's own body, face, and presence as a medium, and the latter uses materials such as clay, metal or paint which can be molded or transformed to create some physical art object...
(Ulidia Integrated College) - TravelTravelTravel is the movement of people or objects between relatively distant geographical locations. 'Travel' can also include relatively short stays between successive movements.-Etymology:...
and TourismTourismTourism is travel for recreational, leisure or business purposes. The World Tourism Organization defines tourists as people "traveling to and staying in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business and other purposes".Tourism has become a...
(Downshire School)
A number of pupils from the other three schools in the CLC group can attend Carrickfergus Grammar School for alternative subjects to those offered at their school: Government and Politics, Geography, and French for example.
YESIP
A new part of the curriculum is a programme called the Youth Education Social Inclusion Programme (YESIP). This program aims to educate Year 13s about cultural diversity and helps them learn more about their identity as a Northern Ireland citizen.Extra-Curricular activities
- Army Cadet ForceArmy Cadet ForceThe Army Cadet Force is a British youth organisation that offers progressive training in a multitude of the subjects from military training to adventurous training and first aid, at the same time as promoting achievement, discipline, and good citizenship, to boys and girls aged 12 to 18 and 9...
- Bridge Club
- Blokus Club
- Chess Club
- Choral Groups
- Junior Choir
- Senior Choir
- Mens Choir
- Girls Choir
- The Duke of Edinburgh's Award Scheme
- Instrumental Ensembles
- Wind BandConcert bandA concert band, also called wind band, symphonic band, symphonic winds, wind orchestra, wind symphony, wind ensemble, or symphonic wind ensemble, is a performing ensemble consisting of several members of the woodwind instrument family, brass instrument family, and percussion instrument family.A...
- Orchestra
- Senior Strings
- String Group (all string players)
- Brass Ensemble
- Breath Taking Ensemble (Clarinets and Saxophones)
- Wind Band
- Science Club
- Scripture UnionScripture UnionScripture Union is an international, inter-denominational, evangelical Christian movement. It was founded in 1867, and works in partnership with individuals and churches across the world...
- Junior & Senior Scripture Union
- CONNECT
- Scripture Union Band
- Showjumping
- Young Enterprise