Academic Enhancement and Aspiration (AE&A)
During their time with us, we want every student to develop curiosity, academic confidence and a genuine love of learning. While students receive excellent support in the classroom, we also encourage them to stretch beyond the curriculum. Our Academic Enhancement and Aspiration (AE&A) programme is designed to nurture academic ambition and inspire students to aim for the highest opportunities – including the most competitive universities and degree apprenticeships.
Apertura
Apertura is the Laurus Trust’s flagship programme for academic enhancement. Taking its name from Latin, meaning ‘opportunities about to open’, Apertura is designed to expose high achieving students in Years 10-12 to academic dialogue and independent research in preparation for applications to competitive universities.
Students meet weekly in small groups with a supervisor. They also benefit from lectures by guest speakers, voice workshops and wellbeing sessions. Each student undertakes a research project in an area of personal interest and presents their findings at the end of the year. Further opportunities include the Apertura Summer School at the end of Year 11, alongside trips to universities, museums, galleries and places of scientific or historical interest.
Thinking Matters and Thinking Works
Thinking Matters (Year 8) and Thinking Works (Year 9) are super‑curricular programmes that help students develop critical thinking, reasoning and verbal communication skills. Through a series of sessions, students explore big philosophical questions and practise forming and presenting arguments.
University Experiences
From Year 7 to Year 13, students have opportunities to engage with university academics and research, and to visit a range of universities in the UK and overseas. Through our links with the Universities of Oxford, Cambridge, Durham, Manchester, Liverpool and Loughborough, among others, we help every student understand the opportunities and pathways open to them as they plan their Life After Laurus.
Super-curricular Activities
Super‑curricular activities are academic experiences that go beyond the taught school curriculum and PP&R (Practice, Preparation and Retrieval – our term for homework). They help students explore subjects more deeply, extend their knowledge and develop independent study skills.
The AE&A programme includes structured super‑curricular opportunities, but these are not the only ways students can extend their learning. Wider reading, research, academic competitions and personal projects can all form part of a student’s super‑curricular journey.