The Key Subjects of IGCSE: What Should Students Expect?

Coast Academy Student Studying

The IGCSE is a reputed education qualification that’s awarded by Cambridge International and offered by top schools throughout the world.  It’s designed for students aged 12 to 16. While the demand for IGCSE education has grown progressively year-on-year, some students still struggle to select the best subjects. With other options to choose from, depending on what they want to study in the future.  Below are the subjects offered in the IGCSE Curriculum

Lower secondary (Year 7-9)

In the Lower Secondary level students are required to do the following subjects.

• English Language
• Mathematics
• Science (Biology, Chemistry, Physics)
• ICT
• History
• Geography
• French
• Kiswahili
• Art and design
• Music
• E and Swimming

After sitting for the Year 9 checkpoint exams, we guide our students through a career talk and subject selection based on their career of choice. At this point, students can now choose their subjects of choice as per their career aspirations. In years 10 and 11, the following subjects are compulsory.

• Maths
• English language
• Information & Communication Technology (ICT)

In addition, 5 subjects are to be selected from the following Optional Subjects offered, of which one must be a science.

• Physics
• Geography
• Biology
• Chemistry
• Business Studies
• Swahili
• French
• English Literature
• Art & Design
• Accounting
• History

When choosing subjects, it is recommended to read the subject syllabus overview of that particular subject which gives one an overview of the areas of study of the subject. IGCSE is preferred by many because it teaches students how to think critically and expands their knowledge. Not only do the exam questions test the student’s ability to understand key concepts but also test the student’s creative and innovative abilities.

Cambridge Checkpoint Results For The Year 2023

8 SIMPLE WAYS TO STUDY MORE EFFECTIVELY

While there is no ‘one-size-fits-all’ study technique,  there are methods that one can use to ensure a better understanding of concepts and the ability to recall. What works for one person will not necessarily work for another. Through consistency and planning your study time accordingly,  you are bound to achieve your full potential by developing your memory and academic excellence.

1. Plan

Making a realistic schedule will help you avoid cramming and procrastination.  Use a planner to keep track of deadlines, dates, and times so you do not forget anything important. Studying in small bits over time will help in remembering unlike staying up all night to cram before exams. Aim to schedule some study time each day.

2. Study In An Appropriate Environment

Pick a quiet corner in your room/ house or in the school library that is properly lit and well-ventilated away from distractions and preferably on a desk. Keep your phone away and on silent.

3. Prioritize

Start with the hardest tasks first. Incorporate flash cards if possible as they are excellent in boosting memory. Use applied learning if you are having trouble remembering.  You can do this by thinking about something that applies to your subject of study in real-life situations. Find out what works best for you.

4. Take Care Of Yourself

Eat well, sleep, and exercise. Getting enough sleep is crucial for good memory. A balanced diet with lots of water helps your brain in absorbing new information, while exercise helps reduce stress. Nuts, dark chocolate, grapes, and apples are supper foods for the brain. Avoid sugar, carbs, and processed foods.

5. Break It Up

Tackling individual parts is much easier than tackling the whole. Breaking a big assignment into smaller bits will make it easier to manage and understand. Always save your least challenging tasks for the end of your study session.

6. 30-40 Minutes Per Study Session

Our brain only absorbs information from the first and last 15 minutes of studies. This means that anything studied outside that time frame will likely be forgotten. Breaks are good for your mental health. They also improve your attention span, your creativity, and your productivity.

7. Join A Study Group

Forming study groups with your friends is a great way to help each other and challenge each other to better. It helps develop good study habits, teamwork and boosts confidence.

8. Reward Yourself

Reward yourself for a job well done after every study session. This in turn prevents burnout, uplifts your mood, and makes you look forward to the next study session. You could go for a walk, take a nap, indulge in your favorite snack, or hang out with your friends.

Why The IGCSE System Is The Best Option For Your Child

7 Effective Classroom Management Strategies at Coast Academy

Managing a classroom requires skills. A good teacher needs to connect with kids and keep them focused on the lessons. Below are 8 habits for good classroom management to ensure that the class feels safe, comfortable, and pleasant place for everyone.

1. Build A Relationship With Each Student

Our teachers are required to get to know each student as an individual and to Identify and praise individual milestones. Days begin with a greeting and a reflection of the previous day and end with a wave of goodbye while they leave for home.

2. Establish the Rules

Each teacher has individual classroom protocols in place to handle routine issues that occur in every classroom. These involve how to raise concerns in class, how to ask for permission, and general dos and don’ts in class. All children are familiar with these rules and when a student breaks a rule, they own up to their mistakes and act accordingly. We maintain a light atmosphere where students feel free to work and thrive, to try, laugh, and learn.

3. Modeling Way Of Ideal Behavior

Our teachers act as the ideal model of what is expected of the learners. Children learn best through modeling or copying so they are most likely going to act as they see the adults close to them act. At Coast Academy, we encourage the students to:

• Maintain eye contact
• Let one another speak uninterrupted
• Raise concerns about one another’s statements in a respectful manner

4. Have A Plan

All our teachers have work plans that they share it with their students, too. A plan can be simple “You have 10 minutes to practice on your own, after which everyone will make a presentation.” Going through the day’s agenda hooks the students interest from the word go and lessens the chances of misbehavior.

5. Engaging The Learners

Good teachers are enthusiastic about the subjects they teach they encourage classroom participation by asking questions and giving them discussion topics.  They walk around the class interacting with the children and offering assistance where needed.

6. Show Love and Kindness

Students are most successful when they feel liked.  Our teachers show care and compassion towards the learners. A smile goes a long way. Good work is applauded and Children are allowed to make mistakes and learn from them. This in turn improves academic and behavioral performance.

7. Be Fair and Just

Favoritism is completely forbidden at Coast Academy and all children are treated equally. In cases of behavioral issues, applicable disciplinary measures are applied that do not involve public shaming.

8. Hold Parties

Our termly classroom parties act as an acknowledgment o students’ hard work throughout the entire term, motivating them to keep it up, breaking classroom monotony, and creating room for the students to mingle, share and bond and have fun.

IMPORTANCE OF EDUCATING THE GIRL CHILD

Half of the girls in Kenya are getting little to no education. One in 2 girls in Kenya is married at the tender age of 19. It is a fundamental right of the girl child to receive a quality education. All learning centers should ensure that they provide a friendly, safe, and conducive environment for the safety of the girl child. Educating the girl child is like educating the entire community.  Below are 5 reasons for educating the girl child.

1. Increase in literacy level

When girls are educated, they Acquire the knowledge and skills necessary to compete in the labor market. This gives them the will and confidence needed to join the employment task force.

2. Ability to Make Smart Decisions

Educated women make better decisions when it comes down to healthcare, and marriage and are less likely to endure domestic abuse. Social skills, problem-solving, and critical thinking skills are also impacted and in turn, can help in settling disputes in the community.

3. Reduction of Child Marriages.

If all girls went to school and proceeded to finish secondary, it would have a great impact on the number of early marriages in school-going girls.

4. Reduction in Child Mortality Rates

According to the United Nations Girls’ Education Initiative, children of educated mothers are twice as likely to survive past the age of five. This is because they are more aware of the importance of good health care and would ensure that their children get all necessary vaccines required.

5. Continuation of Cycle

Education equips one with the socio-emotional and life skills necessary to adapt to the changing world. A girl that is educated will definitely want the same for her daughter’s education. They will beat all odds to ensure that their daughter gets quality education.

6. Economic Growth

Women invest their salaries into their families and their community at large. This in turn helps in poverty eradication. Educating the girl child will mean having more women in the workforce thus increasing the labor force needed for the country’s economic growth.

7. Self-Reliance

An educated woman is able to be self-sufficient. She is capable of taking care of her own needs without being dependent on either her husband or any other relative for survival.

5 BACK TO SCHOOL TIPS

Starting a new school year is exciting and can also be filled with anxiety for others, especially those joining a new school. Below are tips to curb the anxiety and prepare your child mentally, emotionally and physically for the new school year.

1. Get Back to Normal School Routine

Resume the normal school schedule a few days before school starts. This will help switch off the holiday mode and activate school mode. It involves going to bed early and getting up early to shower and have breakfast in time for school.

2. Purchase Required School Supply

Take a trip to the stationery supply stores and purchase the required tools such as crayons, story books, geometry sets, etc. Allowing your child to tag along, can make the back to school feel exciting as they get to pick their favorite pens, backpack, or supplementary book. This prepares them mentally.

3. Set Everything Ready

Organize books and stationeries, make sure the uniforms are pressed and school shoes polished. Make the necessary physical preparations i.e. visit the salon or barber to avoid last minute rush. Make the necessary arrangements for transport to and from school.

4. Acquire a Positive Attitude and Mindset.

The right attitude will greatly impact your child’s performance at school. Encourage them to Set a SMART target that will keep them focused even on those subjects that seem to be a challenge. Start the term on a high note and keep going.

5. Do a Pre-Visit to the School

If you are starting a new school, take the child for a pre-visit of the school to familiarize with the premises and if possible, get to meet the new teacher. This will ease the anxiety and help with the transition.

RENOWNED COAST ACADEMY ALUMNI

    1. Abdulswamad Shariff Nassir

The governor-elect for Mombasa County, Abdulswamad Shariff Nassir sat for his KCPE exams in 1988 at the Coast Academy. He was a student who would not quit on a task until he made sure he had successfully completed it. We wish him all the best as the second governor of Mombasa.

    2. Maisam Fazel

Dr. Maisam is a University of Cambridge–qualified consultant and specialist registered surgeon, in both cosmetic and breast cancer surgery with more than 21 years of experience. Dr. Maisam, the founder of Refresh Cosmetic Surgery, in the UK is also a pioneer in male breast surgery (gynecomastia surgery) and is highly recommended in his mummy makeovers.

    3. Fareen Samji

Fareen, who is also known as “Far”, is the 5 time Canadian Women’s long drive champion and former golf touring professional. She moved to Canada to further her education at McMaster University and graduated with degrees in Psychology and Kinesiology. In 2017, Fareen published her book, Smashing the Grass Ceiling which aims to empower, motivate and inspire professional women.

    4. Aanand Acharya

Dr. Aanand Acharya is a Master’s degree graduate in Medicine from the University Of Cambridge (UK), a Consultant ENT Surgeon in Perth, and a Senior Lecturer at the University of Western Australia. He is accredited in Otolaryngology with both the Royal College of Surgeons of England and the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons.  Aanand also provides Outreach ENT services to rural and remote parts of West Australia and is the lead clinician and coordinator of the Telethon Speech & Hearing Pilbara Ear Bus Program.

   5. Thomas N O Achia

Professor Thomas Achia is a professor of Mathematics at the University of Nairobi. And also a biostatistician at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Professor Achia graduated from the University of the Western Cape. He has previously worked at the University of the Witwatersrand as a senior lecturer in Epidemiology and Biostatics, specializing in Spatial and spatiotemporal modeling of diseases and public health issues He has written a number of research publications such as Identification of determinants of infant mortality in Rwanda using a shared frailty model, which was published by the European Journal of Scientific Research.

Why The IGCSE System Is The Best Option For Your Child

Why the IGCSE system is the best option for your child.

4 years after the introduction of the CBC curriculum in Kenya, most parents are yet to comprehend and understand its structure and what it entails.  With most parents not ready to embrace the CBC curriculum, many have started looking into the IGCSE system in trying to decide which of the 2 is the better option for their children.

Below is why IGCSE is the best choice for your child.

1. IGCSE is internationally recognized

Internationally recognized

IGCSE is an internationally recognized system developed by Cambridge University and considered the baseline for employment in most countries. It consists of early years, junior school and senior school. IGCSE certificate is recognized in any part of the world which makes it excellent preparation for further study in any University worldwide.

2. A wide scope of subjects to choose from

IGCSE offers a broad scope of more than 70 subjects to choose which are both applicable in life and offered at the universities such as law and psychology. Among the 70 subjects, 30 are languages. Learners select their subjects of choice based on their interests and abilities.

3. IGCSE is ability based

Unlike CBC, where all learners are equally tested, IGCSE exams cater to different learning and interpretation abilities as it considers that milestones are different in every individual. The exam board separates questions as per difficulty level.

4. Extended curriculum

IGCSE offers its learners an option to extend the curriculum. It mostly applies to students that are academically advanced and wish to take a supplement paper to support the core subject. This makes them become more advanced.

5. IGCSE is multicultural

Being an internationally recognized system, students from different cultures easily fit into the IGCSE system of Education which offers 30 different languages to choose from. Children whose English is not their first language are allowed more time to familiarize themselves with it before sitting for the exam.

6. Development

Learners gain skills that include listening skills, problem-solving skills, logical thinking skills, and practical skills among many others which they can apply in their day to day lives.

7. University scholarships to the UK

The IGCSE certificate is given preference in UK’s university placement. It is held with high value among the European Universities thus, increasing the chances of being selected to pursue higher education in their institutions.

 In conclusion, the IGCSE education system offers an all-rounded, in-depth, internationally recognized and quality education for learners of all abilities.  It is easy for a child to transition into IGCSE from the CBC curriculum since it is learner-based and the child is allowed to pick subjects that they have an interest in and would wish to pursue in Universities. IGCSE nurtures students into capable and fully equipped individuals ready to take on the world.

You should also read is the 844 system better than IGCSE?