A former student has returned to Harrow College to speak about the importance of doing well at GCSE English.
Brandon Maxwell, 19, completed his BTEC Level 3 Sports course last summer at Harrow College. As a pre-requisite of achieving this qualification, Brandon also needed to pass GCSE English. He worked hard to achieve this and as a result, Brandon had many more options open to him which he took full advantage of.
Speaking with a group of new GCSE English students last week (28 September 2016), Brandon explained how he initially didn’t think English was too important having already passed English at Functional Skills level (level 2). However, Brandon soon realised that without a sound grasp of English at a suitable level, his opportunities to progress were being hampered. Brandon required GSCE English to progress.
He changed his attitude and enrolled onto a GCSE English class. He attended all of his lessons as well as extra lessons. He researched his projects and worked closely with his new GCSE tutor Emma Roberts (a proud onlooker today). He practised past exam papers and essentially made English a priority. The result, a conclusive GCSE English pass!
Brandon shared his top three tips with his intrigued audience of students:
Tip 1: Choose your friend circle wisely and don’t get distracted. Others may not share your educational / career aspirations and may even distract you. Plan your time so you spend time with friends but during lesson time, you focus on the job in hand.
Tip 2: Do extra work outside of classroom time. This will give you the time to practice what you have learnt in class and come back with questions if required.
Tip 3: Work hard. You come to college for one main reason – to get a good education. Make the most of it now so you can reap the rewards later.
Brandon has now secured a place at the Tottenham Hotspur Football Club foundation to study an Applied Sport and Community Development foundation degree.
Click here for more on English courses at Harrow College.