PE
KEHS is famous for its PE facilities and successes from county to national level in a range of sports, thanks to outstanding staff including several internationals.
Major sports include hockey, netball, dance, gymnastics, swimming, fitness, cricket, tennis, athletics, badminton and football.
In Lower School, students will focus on a particular activity for six weeks to develop their basic skills and understanding. They will spend each half-term in a different sporting activity, and each class will have two double lessons of PE per week in Years 7 and 8. This is reduced to one period per week from Year 9 onwards. There are an abundance of sports clubs available every day, with some sessions before school, at lunchtime, and after school.
GCSE PE is a combination of physical performance and academic challenge. It provides an exciting opportunity, encouraging students to immerse themselves in the world of sports and PE, giving them the chance to perform and delve into the how and why of physical activity and sport.
Students will study the following areas:
- Applied anatomy and physiology
- Movement analysis
- Physical training
- Use of data
- Sports psychology
- Socio-cultural influences
- Health, Fitness and Wellbeing
In year 10, students will develop their skills further graduating to activities like lifesaving, basketball and yoga.
A Level Physical Education is a demanding and rewarding course that is highly regarded by UK universities, including those in the Russell Group; it will prepare you for further study in sports science and will complement medical-related degrees. It will support university applications in a wide range of subjects including the sciences, social sciences (such as Psychology and Sociology) and humanities.
A Level PE is a varied course. Over the two years, you will do the following (amongst other things):
- Examine the frustration-aggression hypothesis and how this influences athletes’ performances
- Study the biomechanical principles of linear motion through Newton’s laws of motion, and then use this knowledge improve your own or others’ sporting performances
- Debate the ethics of performance-enhancing drugs
Investigate how advances in sports technology are influencing the production of Nike shoes.
The AQA specification has both a theoretical and a practical dimension. The theoretical side splits into seven areas:
- Applied Anatomy and Physiology
- Skill Acquisition
- Sport and Society
- Exercise Physiology
- Biomechanical Movement
- Sport Psychology
- Sport and Society and the Role of Technology in Physical Activity and Sport.
Meet the Head of Department
Mrs Blanks
Mrs Blanks is the Director of Sport at King Edward VI High School for Girls. She has a BA (Hons) in Sport & Recreational Studies from the University of Birmingham and over 150 international hockey caps for England and Great Britain. She captained England to a Silver Medal at the 2002 Manchester Commonwealth Games.
She is passionate about getting students involved and active in an inclusive environment. She believes that sports can develop girls’ confidence, physical competence, connection with others, and character. Mrs Blanks is committed to providing all students with the opportunity to participate in sport and to reach their full potential.
Beyond the classroom
The Department encourages all students to participate in the co-curricular programme. There is a wide range of activities to choose from, and students can participate on a recreational or competitive basis. We have weekly fixtures against schools both locally and further afield, and we also compete in a variety of competitions. Throughout the autumn and spring terms, we work towards a dance production that involves over 150 students from the entire school.
