Following from the fantastic Two Counties Trust Elevating Maths Conference. A new collection of students from across The Two Counties Trust gathered at the University of Nottingham this time focusing on English. This is the fourth year of the conference running, helping to support Trust students in their English exams.
Students first gathered in a state-of-the-art University of Nottingham lecture hall. Starting in a lecture hall also gave students a valuable insight into university life as a potential future pathway.
Four sessions were presented to students designed by TTCT English staff to help plug knowledge gaps and improve understanding. The overall objective of all sessions was to pass on techniques, tips and insights to students hoping to move from achieving a Grade 4 to a Grade 5 in English.
Miss Hallatt from Springwell Community College delivered a session titled ‘Developing an Appropriate Persona’:
This session focused on developing an appropriate persona when responding to a statement. Students explored how to create clear, precise personas and match them with an appropriate tone, building credibility as a writer. Through this, they learned how to craft compelling and convincing responses that engage the reader and communicate ideas with confidence.
A session on ‘Unseen Poetry’, an exam topic that is worth 24 marks in an exam paper was delivered by Friesland School’s Miss Birch and Mr Sully:
This workshop helped students understand how the unseen poetry section connects to universal experiences. Students explored how poets draw on feelings, situations and moments that almost everyone encounters at some point in life, such as happiness, sadness, fear, love, or feeling left out, regardless of background or place. By recognising these shared human experiences, students developed greater confidence in interpreting unfamiliar poems and responding thoughtfully and insightfully.
Manor Academy’s Mr Richardson session focused on ‘Using an Extended Metaphor Method’:
In this workshop, students honed their descriptive writing skills by using extended metaphors to bring an image to life. By framing weather and setting through the lenses of war, religion, or hunting, students learned how sophisticated language choices can elevate their writing and create lasting impact.
The final session on offer came from Miss Avery from Selston High School with ‘Commenting on the Effect of Language’:
This workshop developed students’ confidence in commenting on the effect of language using a 100% Sheet to secure accurate terminology and analytical precision. Working with an extract from The Hunger Games, students moved beyond identifying methods to clearly explaining their impact on the reader, using enabling language to strengthen and deepen their responses.
Following from the fantastic Two Counties Trust Elevating Maths Conference. A new collection of students from across The Two Counties Trust gathered at the University of Nottingham this time focusing on English. This is the fourth year of the conference running, helping to support Trust students in their English exams.
Students first gathered in a state-of-the-art University of Nottingham lecture hall. Starting in a lecture hall also gave students a valuable insight into university life as a potential future pathway.
Four sessions were presented to students designed by TTCT English staff to help plug knowledge gaps and improve understanding. The overall objective of all sessions was to pass on techniques, tips and insights to students hoping to move from achieving a Grade 4 to a Grade 5 in English.
Miss Hallatt from Springwell Community College delivered a session titled ‘Developing an Appropriate Persona’:
This session focused on developing an appropriate persona when responding to a statement. Students explored how to create clear, precise personas and match them with an appropriate tone, building credibility as a writer. Through this, they learned how to craft compelling and convincing responses that engage the reader and communicate ideas with confidence.
A session on ‘Unseen Poetry’, an exam topic that is worth 24 marks in an exam paper was delivered by Friesland School’s Miss Birch and Mr Sully:
This workshop helped students understand how the unseen poetry section connects to universal experiences. Students explored how poets draw on feelings, situations and moments that almost everyone encounters at some point in life, such as happiness, sadness, fear, love, or feeling left out, regardless of background or place. By recognising these shared human experiences, students developed greater confidence in interpreting unfamiliar poems and responding thoughtfully and insightfully.
Manor Academy’s Mr Richardson session focused on ‘Using an Extended Metaphor Method’:
In this workshop, students honed their descriptive writing skills by using extended metaphors to bring an image to life. By framing weather and setting through the lenses of war, religion, or hunting, students learned how sophisticated language choices can elevate their writing and create lasting impact.
The final session on offer came from Miss Avery from Selston High School with ‘Commenting on the Effect of Language’:
This workshop developed students’ confidence in commenting on the effect of language using a 100% Sheet to secure accurate terminology and analytical precision. Working with an extract from The Hunger Games, students moved beyond identifying methods to clearly explaining their impact on the reader, using enabling language to strengthen and deepen their responses.
Speaking on the day, Mr Goodall and Mrs Mason, Trust Lead and Assistant Trust Lead (English) respectively both said:
‘Students demonstrated our core values throughout the day: Ambition, by striving for the next level of success; Teamwork, through working in partnership with peers from other schools; and Honesty, by openly and respectfully reflecting on their strengths and next steps. We concluded the day with a session in the Lecture Theatre where students were given revision tips for both English Literature and Language. Finally, their commitment and effort were celebrated with certificates and Proud Tickets, culminating in our TTCT English Raffle to appreciate their achievements.
Being immersed in a university environment added a powerful aspirational dimension to the experience, helping students to see what is possible and motivating them to aim higher in their academic journey. We know that our wonderful TTCT students will go on to achieve real success in their English examinations. #SmashingIt’.
These conferences offer vital exam preparations to TTCT students and positively reinforce their knowledge and understanding of the subject. When asked about the days learning, Harvey a Heritage High School student said:
‘English is important because it is an important subject which I need to help me get the qualifications needed for what I would like to do in the future. English also boosts my general knowledge’.
Students were joined at the conference by a collection of English staff members who not only supervised the visit to the University but also assisted students during the sessions, Mrs Sutcliffe who attended as a trip leader said:
‘The Elevate English Conference was a fantastic opportunity for TTCT scholars. It provided a wonderful insight into the university experience and offered a range of subject workshops. The expert teachers led passionately; the scholars benefitted hugely from their expertise and have gained both excellent subject knowledge and exam confidence. A superb day that our scholars were very grateful to have taken part in’.
Well done to all students who attended the conference, any attempt to reinforce improvement in exams is an embodiment of our Trust value of Ambition. Thank you also to all staff who have helped in any way to bringing this conference to fruition, from planning and delivering sessions to organising transport, your commitment to our students and their preparations for their exams is an example across The Two Counties Trust schools.