‘The supreme task of the physicist is the discovery of the most general elementary laws from which the world-picture can be deduced logically’  - Albert Einstein

KS5 Physics at OASB

Students studying A-level Physics will continue they journey they began as scientists at GCSE and will leave prepared to study physics or any hard science at A-level. They will develop skills of inquiry, self-expression and data analysis to a higher degree, and will become discerning critics of their environment and their own assumptions.  

Students in A-Level Physics will study topics fundamental to all physics. They will for the first time learn how to express mathematical uncertainty, will review some of the basic evidence for wave-particle duality and the standard model of particle physics, the basic equations that govern waves and periodic motion, how to resolve and add vectors and components, and how to investigate and interpret electrical circuits. In their second year, they will apply their knowledge of forces, vectors, and electric effects to a study of electric and gravitational fields, their knowledge of particle physics to the study of atomic nuclei, and will extend and develop their knowledge of the universe further in the topic of astrophysics.

In the classroom, our Physics curriculum emphasises the primacy of fundamental knowledge. Students will recognise that the ability to understand and conduct research in physics with a high degree of facility is presaged by a powerful and deliberately constructed long-term memory. Students complete weekly quizzes of fundamental knowledge with an expected pass mark of 100%. Physics is also a practical subject, and students are expected to demonstrate their knowledge in assessed practical activities which contribute to their practical skills endorsement. Lessons are structured such that students first review the theory and methods linking their knowledge to the experiment. Students then spend a lesson carrying out the practical, and finally have a lesson in which to write their conclusions and review their work.

Our Physics curriculum is nestled within the transformative work of our school. Our students leave our program having gone beyond the requirements of the curriculum. They have a dedication and work ethic developed over two years of effort, no matter their background. Secure knowledge and a developing physical intuition mean that students have access to Physics and STEM degrees at the world’s best universities. For example, students have earned places at Brunel, the University of Sheffield, the London School of Economics, Oxford, Cambridge, and Imperial College London. Two have recently won prestigious Formula 1 engineering scholarships that cover the full cost of university tuition, room and board. All students will have had the opportunity to feel successful in a demanding STEM subject, and should feel confident pursuing physics or another science at undergraduate level or beyond.

For further information on the KS5 Physics curriculum at OASB please email stanton.wertjes@oasissouthbank.org