Published on: 7 February 2014


The first cohort of Global Perspectives students achieved outstanding results in the internationally recognised course following its introduction to Christ Church in 2013. Of the 15 boys who completed the course, Year 11 students Daniel Pelkowitz, Hock Yew Tan and Hamish Goater received A grades with nine others also performing well.

Headmaster Garth Wynne said he was excited about the potential of the Cambridge International Examinations (CIE) course to enhance the international perspective in learning at Christ Church. CIE examinations are part of the curriculum in more than 3,700 schools in 140 countries around the world.

The course, offered as a Year 10 elective, is designed to develop the ability to think critically about a range of global issues where there is invariably more than one valid point of view.  Students must conduct individual research, group projects and work with other learners from around the world.

Head of Humanities David Proudlove said while the course hours had to be tailored to suit the elective model, he had confidence the boys who chose the option were up to the challenge. “The fact our candidates were a year younger than many of their international counterparts was also seen as a challenge, rather than a problem,” Mr Proudlove said.

The boys had to complete two extended individual research investigations, one group project and a final examination. All the school-based tasks, once marked, had to be submitted electronically for moderation in the UK. Senior Librarian Greg Lindorff also played a key role in guiding the boys into efficient ways to investigate topics, consider bias from multiple documents, and to organise and cite the most useful sources.

Mr Proudlove said considering the challenge the course presented, all candidates deserved credit for their dedication and effort. “The future looks bright for the course at Christ Church with a 2014 cohort of 25 boys focusing particularly on issues of international law and politics under the watchful eye of Mr Richard Parker (Head of History, Teacher in Charge of Politics and Law),” he said.