Barton Court Grammar School

Barton Court Grammar School is a co-educational selective Academy of Excellence in Canterbury, Kent with approximately 900 students between the ages of 11-19. From September 2007 the school replaced A-levels with the International Baccalaureate. From September 2011 the school re-introduced A-levels but kept the International Baccalaureate, giving students the option to do either.

History

Barton Court Grammar School lies close to the old city walls of Canterbury in the conservation area and World Heritage Site of St. Augustine's Abbey. It was the farm of the Abbey from its foundation in 605 AD ('Barton' stemming from 'bere tun' or 'barley enclosure'). The school is built around the lake in which the monks of the Abbey farmed fish. When Henry VIII destroyed the Abbey, he gave the farm to one of his faithful. Its lake remains and is a haven for wildlife, still teeming with fish despite visiting herons. It also has the sixth Ginkgo tree to be introduced in England from China. The other five were planted into Kew Gardens.

The main house of the school was built in 1750 as a manor house with the name 'Barton Manor'; the other buildings have been added in most recent years, a 1961 block, which is now the hall and corridor, a core subject corridor in 1997, a language block in 2001 with new technology classrooms in 2007 replacing the old mobiles.

Language College Status

It currently holds a Foreign Language College status, and the school has transferred to the International Baccalaureate award scheme for those pupils in Years 12 and 13. Study of this course has begun from September 2007,^[1] and the first set of official results were published on 6 July 2009. The results were above the world average, and the school now put the Middle Years Program (a version of the International Baccalaureate for younger pupils) into use. MYP (Middle Years Program) was stopped shortly before the end of 2010 and was replaced on the timetable by ICT.

School day

From Monday 5 September 2011 Barton Court Grammar School started a new timing of the school day. This was a big change from the 100 minute lesson style. This is it.

• 8:40 Tutor Period
• 8:55 Period 1
• 9:55 Period 2
• 10:55 Break
• 11:15 Period 3
• 12:15 Period 4
• 13:15 Lunch
• 13:55 Registration
• 14:00 Period 5
• 15:00 End of School Day (extra curricular activities, boosters and homework club start)
• 16:00 End of extra curricular activities, boosters and homework club (all students must leave the school)

Changes from September 2011

From 1 September 2011, Barton Court Grammar School officially became an Academy. Barton Court did not change its name as it it wished to keep it the same. Also Barton Court now has tutor period with four tutor groups in each year: B, C, G & S. (There are five tutor groups in year 10: A, B, C, G & S). There is also a new prefect structure with school reps elected in each form. There is also Windows 7 on most computers in the school. Most of the computers have just their software updated but in Room 6 and Room 37 there are brand new computers. Every room, except the Art, Technology and Drama rooms have Interactive White-boards. The classrooms without them still have projectors.

References

External links

• School website
• The International Baccalaureate at BCGS
• Languages at BCGS
• Article on first set of IB Results

Coordinates: 51°16′36″N 1°5′30″E / 51.27667°N 1.09167°E / 51.27667; 1.09167