A Level Physics

Overview of the course

The IGCSE course is covered in one year and students study basic concepts of mechanics, heat and thermodynamics, electricity and magnetism, nuclear physics and electronics. They also develop the basic skills to perform experiments, plot graphs and draw valid conclusions.

AS level: Students learn and gain in-depth knowledge of Newtonian Mechanics, heat and thermodynamics, sound and light, electricity, nuclear physics and electronics. The students also learn how to plan an investigation, follow scientific steps to perform an experiment, record the findings and evaluate their performance.

A2 level: Students are given the opportunity to plan and perform experiments on their own, providing a chance to measure their own performance and develop creativity. They also learn more about electricity and magnetism, nuclear physics, thermodynamics and electronic communication.

Physics is a popular subject for most Chinese students. They have a good understanding of basic Physics and enjoy learning more through experimentation and demonstrations, which is not normally a focus in most Chinese schools. In the IGCSE year there is a strong emphasis on science language learning. Class sizes enable students to have a personal interaction with the teacher during class time. The students are also keen to watch subject-related videos and review relevant information available on the internet. Project work forms an important step towards expressing innovative ideas, and the development of group working skills and presentation skills. All these strategies help our students to gain the required knowledge and skills. The results in Physics are very impressive and a number of our students have received awards in CIE examinations, including: 'Best Performance in the World' and 'Best Performance in China'. A number of centres run physics orientated clubs such as Electronics Club and Astronomy Club as extra-curricular activities.