Physics

Introduction to Physics

Physics is the study of the nature and properties of matter and energy. As a result, topics covered include astronomy, forces, motion, heat transfer, electricity, waves, electromagnetism, radioactivity and energy resources.

 

Curriculum

Starting in Year 9, we follow the Edexcel IGCSE syllabus, which links Physics theory to everyday life. Pupils can easily see how the theory relates to the world around them. Examples include home insulation, the environment and communications.

At AS and A2 Level, we offer the Edexcel syllabus (Salters Horners approach) which introduces all traditional areas of Physics via a relevant context.

At AS Level, mechanics is applied to its role in many sports, waves are taught around how a CD player works, whilst electricity is introduced with regards to powering a satellite. Other contexts include the food industry, medical uses and archaeology.

At A2 Level contexts include displaying messages, electromagnetic braking on eurostar, particle physics, and the physics behind the sun.

Physics is an incredibly popular subject throughout the school. Pupils at GCSE, AS and A2 Levels always gain very high grades, and a large number continue to study the subject at A Level. In some years, Physics has been the largest subject at A Level. A large proportion of our Sixth Form sets choose to study a Science-based degree, such as Physics, Engineering or Medicine.

Co-curricular Activities

Top sets in Years 9, 10 and 11 are occasionally set extension questions for homework, preparing them for the Physics Challenge competition in March of Year 11. A Level students have the option of attending extension classes throughout the Sixth Form and may choose to enter the AS Physics Competition in March of Year 12 and the prestigious Physics Olympiad competition in November of Year 13. When relevant, we also arrange lecture visits to the University of Surrey. See below for most recent results.

 

Recent News

Royal Society Prize Winner

Earlier this year, Celia Shen entered the AS Physics Challenge competition along with eight other students in Lower 6. Not only did she gain a Gold Award, but it transpired that she came in the top 5 nationally in this academically rigorous competition.

As a result, Celia and the Head of Physics. Mr Hallam, were invited to The Royal Society in London, which has promoted discussion and excellence in science in the United Kingdom since 1660.

Prizes were awarded by Her Excellency, The Ambassador of Estonia and the Right Honourable Valerie Vaz MP. Celia’s prize included a book entitled Chaos, which discusses elements of the classical and quantum worlds. The presentations were swiftly followed by a lecture from Professor Peter Wells of Cardiff University who works in cutting edge research on the medical applications of ultrasound.

This was an amazing achievement and experience for Celia and one of which she should be justly proud.

 

Great results in the Physics Challenge and Olympiad

The Institute of Physics runs three competitions every year to stretch the minds of Britain’s sharpest physics students at GCSE, AS and A2 Levels. Students have to think laterally and apply their knowledge to totally new situations: no mean feat! Our results have recently been received and are very pleasing.

 

In the GCSE Physics Challenge, pupils had to apply Kepler’s Law of planetary motion to the orbits of Earth and Mars and consider the mechanics of a bouncing rubber ball. Bronze awards were won by Andrew Aitchison, Alexander Balderstone, Dominic Catlow, Georgina Chapman, Max Davies, Thomas Eades, George Earl, Kate Farrow, Michael Harvey, Clara Hutter, Elena Koepke, Hannah Lingard, Celine O’Donovan, Gemma Pritchard, Nathalie Richards, Jack Roberts, James Salisbury, Cherry Shiu, Isabelle Skertchly, Joanna Sneller, Holly Stringfellow and Emily Wilson. A further 17 pupils gained an impressive Silver award: the most the school has ever achieved. They are Rebecca Baker, Alastair Cockrem, Freya Diffey, Jennifer Ding, Nicholas Etherington, Alexander Freeman, Andrew Headon, Ellie Irwin, Philippa Nicholls, Isabelle Pickett, Alice Roberts, Daniel Sareen, Karim Shabankareh, Krishan Shah, Alistair Smith, Alexander Tzortzis and Hugh Ward.

 

The AS Physics Challenge required students to work out the cooking times for different sized potatoes in a microwave oven and model a particle physics reflector using light rays and two mirrors arranged in a cone. Bronze was awarded to Jon Urquidi, Hannah Lee, Andrew Brinkworth, Marcus Dawes and Steven Pilley. Silver awards went to Marco Chui and William Mak, whilst Celia Shen’s answers gained her an impressive Gold award.

In the British Physics Olympiad, students learnt about the beats produced by a violin string and how the time period of a pendulum varies with temperature if the wire expands. They were also asked what happens when the pendulum was taken to the top floor of a house! Pictured at the top are Adrian Wai who achieved a Bronze Class 2 award, Jethro Au-Yeung and Mikhail Semenov who both received Bronze Class 1, and Celia Shen of Lower 6, who achieved a Gold award, which is an incredible achievement on this notoriously difficult paper. This places Celia in the top 150 out of all 1600 who sat the paper, most of whom would be in the year above her at school.

Mr James Hallam, Head of Physics, said: "The whole department is extremely pleased with these results and would like to thank the pupils for doing so well in these competitions."

 

Physics in Engineering Course

The course was a three day residential course offered by The Smallpeice Trust, and held at Reeds School in October 2011. John Morrison in Year 9 attended, and here is his report:

 

I participated in this course because I can see myself working in a career involving engineering. Even if I do not, I will still have a much better understanding of how engines work and how to problem solve.

 

When I arrived at the venue, I was shown to my room, which I shared with three school friends: Elliot Cox, Nathan Dunne and Ollie Minister. In the assembly hall we sat down in pre-arranged groups, which were numbered from one to ten. There were around 50 pupils on the course and each group had a supervisor.

 

Whilst on the course, most of our time was devoted to 'Design and Make' projects, which began with an electric car and after that either a train or a very strong container with strict specifications. We all worked to create the electric car on the first day and the groups were then combined to make two large groups, one to design and build the train and the other the container. I worked on the train thereafter.

 

Overall, the car took two hours and 45 minutes to build and the train took eight hours and 50 minutes (including presentation and testing). This may seem a long time but we barely got any instructions for the car and none at all for the train!

 

Every day we got two breaks of half an hour. If we were not at break or working directly on the projects, we would be in a Master Class. This was a lesson/lecture on different areas of physics and engineering eg lasers. In total, we had five master classes of around an hour. These classes were exciting, interesting and they kept you listening. The other sessions were on momentum, radiation, vehicle engineering, and radar.

 

The evenings were filled with an activity of some sort: DVD, sports etc. On the last night, we had a formal dinner with very good food and a disco until 11.00pm. This was an exception, as most nights we went to bed at 10.30pm.

 

The projects and each design task were very different, which was beneficial as each group had very different results and nobody knew what would happen to each project because of this. It was a competition to see who had the best product and this motivated all of us. On the penultimate day, we set up exhibition stands and explained our ideas about our train or container to members of large engineering organisations. The last day involved testing our products and then presenting our projects to other pupils working on the same project. The winning presentations were selected to exhibit their project and ideas to everyone else on the course. After this, prizes and certificates were awarded to groups. We achieved an award for best teamwork.

 

Final thoughts

This was a good course because the leaders tried to make us feel comfortable by putting us in rooms with people we knew and facilitated new friendships by putting us with strangers in our design groups. I gained social skills by working with people I did not know and talking to them outside the classroom. Additionally, I gained a greater understanding of not only how motors work but also about aerodynamics and radar. I also feel that I learnt how to problem solve and to think ‘outside the box’ when we had issues with the project.

 

Our Physics Students are real High-Flyers

On Friday 1st July, the Lower 6 physics students went to the Bedford Bodyflying Centre to skydive in the world’s largest indoor skydiving wind tunnel, 'flying' in winds of up to 120mph.

Upon arrival the pupils were split into three groups and given outfits for the day, consisting of a bodyflight suit - similar in shape to a boiler suit, a helmet, goggles, ear plugs and training shoes. This was followed by a session with the instructor about the correct method for flying and how to enter and exit the tunnel safely. Pupils then proceeded to the tunnel itself, many nervously, and saw some other visitors flying in the tunnel, taking note especially of how they entered and left the tunnel.

Each student was given three ‘turns’ in the tunnel, consisting of exactly one minute 15 seconds each time, firstly on their own with the instructor, and then in pairs. It was a most exhilarating experience as you have to concentrate on not only keeping your body in the optimum flying position and watching the instructor’s hand signals for instructions but, initially at least, also focus on how to breathe within the unusually fast winds. The trip was also enjoyable as the other groups could watch you from the ‘viewing area’ and, more often than not, laugh at your inability to keep your body in the correct position.

After the ‘flight’, pupils were able to see photographs taken whilst inside the tunnel, and each pair received a DVD of their flight. Furthermore, after each group session, the instructors all went in the tunnel for an incredible ‘staff demonstration’ which put all of our attempts to shame. It was most definitely a highly enjoyable and worthwhile trip.

Report by Stephanie Anthony

 

We are Good at Physics!

The Department was delighted to be told it had won four awards from the Good Schools Guide. The 2011 awards are made on the basis of results for the three years 2008, 2009 and 2010 combined, and on the basis of the popularity of the subject relative to similar schools, and of the success that pupils achieve relative to other examinations they take.

The Department has won the 2011 Good Schools Guide:

GCSE Award for Girls taking Physics at GCSE at an English Independent School.

GCSE Award for Boys taking Physics at GCSE at an English Independent School.

A Level Award for Boys taking Physics at A Level at an English Independent School.

A Level Award for Girls taking Physics at A Level at an English Independent School.

 

The Department is obviously delighted to receive these prestigious awards. Mr James Hallam, Head of Science and Physics, said: "I am delighted in the continued success of our pupils in physics both at GCSE and A Level. They work with interest and diligence and compare well against those in similar schools. I would also like to thank the teachers of these pupils, who work hard to give the pupils the best possible experience of physics."

 

Record Number of Awards in Physics Challenges

The Institute of Physics runs three competitions each year during March to stretch the minds of Britain’s sharpest physics students at GCSE, AS and A2 Levels. Students have to think laterally and apply their knowledge to totally new situations. In all three competitions, Freemen’s gained record numbers of awards.

In the British Physics Olympiad, students worked out the energy absorbed by the atmosphere as a satellite returned to Earth, along with the age of an old wooden boat using carbon-dating. Matthew Hood and Marcus Leung achieved a Bronze Class 2 award, whilst Nichol Tsang and Phoebe Tsang received Bronze Class 1. Matthew English, Tom Sneller and Jason Ho achieved Silver awards, which is a real achievement on this notoriously difficult paper. This places Matthew, Tom and Jason in the top 300 out of all 1700 who sat the paper.

The AS Physics Competition required students to analyse an 1849 experiment to determine the speed of light using a rotating cog and to calculate the change in frequency of a photon as it moves downwards in the Earth’s gravitational filed. Bronze was awarded to Charlie Buck, Kelly Chong, Sang-Min Lee, Joshua Meeking, Henry Sawczyc, Robbie Smart and Darcy Taranto. Silver awards went to Jethro Au-Yeung, Sharon Chak, Josh French, Jasper Hui, Jay Lau, Wilson Lee, Mikhail Semenov, Luke Shakerchi, Vincent Tsang, Teena Tse, Adrian Wai and Tracy Wu. The highest mark was awarded to Edward Walton, who has gained an impressive Gold award along with a book prize from the Institute of Physics.

In the GCSE Physics Challenge, pupils had to apply Archimedes’ Principle to a tethered buoyancy float and calculate the minimum volume of hot water required to melt one litre of snow. Bronze awards were won by Nicola Abbott, Lucy Archer-Lock, Charlotte Bader, Hannah Bennett, Louise Bluck, Andrew Brinkworth, Gabrielle Cox, Oscar Coyle, Alexander Culhane, Marcus Dawes, Sarah Du Plessis, Laura Else, William English, Jessica Filby, Callum Gathercole, Lauren Gordon, Matthew Hall, Thomas Heasman, Philip MacDonald, Nicholas Mays, Branduff McAllister, Rachel Mengham, Lawrence Message, Lauren Rofe, Katie Rutherford, Samuel Scott, Charlotte Sudell, Katherine Walkling, Oliver West and Emily Wilkes. The highest marks were awarded to Filip Obel and Steven Pilley, who each receive a Silver award for their efforts.

Mr James Hallam, Head of Physics, said: "The Physics Department is extremely pleased with these results and would like to thank the pupils for doing so well in these competitions."

Sixth Form Physics Lectures

In November 2010, a keen group of Sixth Form physicists visited the University of Surrey for a lecture entitled Superman and I. The lecturer talked about the development and uses of x-rays and how they might be used in the future.

Since we had enjoyed the first lecture so much, Mr Hallam organised a second to see Rock Guitar in 11 Dimensions. This was billed as linking the physics of musical instruments to the theoretical concepts of string theory. What we had not bargained for was the lecturer, Dr Mark Lewney (pictured), playing his rock guitar at full volume as we entered the auditorium. In fact, we later found out that he was known as ‘Hendrix meets Einstein’. This turned out to be more entertaining than the first lecture, but also more academically demanding and confusing, as it led to a discussion on multi-dimensional space.

Overall, attending these lectures was a great experience and a good insight into the world of the undergraduate. I would definitely recommend them to other physicists.

Report by Joshua Meeking

 

Physics in Engineering

Four Upper 4 pupils – Samuel Strijdom, Katie Griffin, Rosie Shakerchi and Antonio Rolandelli – attended a residential course entitled Physics in Engineering over the October 2010 half-term. They were put through their paces and made to think hard in order to solve some real-life problems. Samuel's article explains how much they enjoyed it and what they got out of it.

 

Success at A Level Physics

Th School has just been informed that Christopher Turner and Douglas Young, who both left Freemen's last summer, were both top-scoring students in last summer’s A Level Physics exams. They each scored over 590 out of 600, placing them in the top 21 students sitting Edexcel Physics. This is an incredible achievement for both young men and proves their academic credentials and sustained efforts. Christopher is now beginning a Chemistry degree at Bristol, whilst Douglas starts his Engineering course at Cambridge.

 

Academic Results

In 2011:

A2 Level: Of the 41 pupils who were entered, eight attained a grade A*, 22 attained a grade A, eight attained grade B, two attained a grade C, and one attained a grade E.

Four students went on to study Physics at university (Matthew English at Oxford, Frederick Grover, Physics with Particle Physics & Cosmology at Birmingham, Benjamin Pooley at Bath, Tsz Wun Phoebe Tsang, Medical Physics at UCL) and nine went on to study Engineering.

AS Level: Of the 51 pupils who were entered, 27 attained grade A, 13 attained grade B, nine attained grade C, one attained a grade D and one attained a grade E.

GCSE Level: Of the 94 pupils who were entered, 61 attained grade A*, 28 attained grade A, and five attained a grade B. Overall 95% of GCSE candidates gained an A* or an A.

In 2010:

A2 Level: Of the 33 pupils who were entered, ten attained a grade A*, 15 attained a grade A, six attained grade B, and two attained a grade C.

Two students have gone on to study Physics at university (at Manchester and Leeds) and seven have gone on to study Engineering.

AS Level: Of the 63 pupils who were entered, 34 attained grade A, ten attained grade B, and six attained grade C.

GCSE Level: Of the 86 pupils who were entered, 62 attained grade A*, 23 attained grade A, and one attained a grade B. Overall 99% of GCSE candidates gained an A* or an A.

 

Staff within the Department

Mr James Hallam is the Head of Science and Head of Physics. He joined Freemen’s as a newly-qualified teacher. As well as teaching mainly GCSE and A Level classes, he is also a sixth form tutor. Mr Hallam enjoys his busy roles as Head of Physics and Head of Science, though still tries to engage in the school’s co-curricular activities.

 

Mr Richard Alton joined Freemen's in January 2009 and teaches Physics to Year 8 amd Mathematics and Physics to Lower 6. Mr Alton, who is also the Second Deputy Head, is a Cambridge graduate who trained in Birmingham as a Science (Physics) teacher. He has been Head of Science in two schools, most recently at St Alban's School where he was also Assistant Director of Studies.

Mrs Jane Hawkes joined CLFS in 1990 teaching Physics and Electronics, mainly to the Upper School and Sixth Form. For six years, she was Head of Physics, before going part-time in 2002. Her focus, in recent years, has been on Sixth Form Physics, where she is involved with the Physics Olympiad competitions.

 

Mrs Helen Irwin began teaching at CLFS in 1995. She enjoys teaching a wide age range throughout the school, teaching Science to Lower 3 (Year 6) as well as Physics up to GCSE. She runs the Young Investigators club for Form 1 and is an Upper Junior form teacher. Mrs Irwin organises the very popular annual Junior Talent Show as well as coordinating the Junior School’s charity fund raising events.

 

Mr Mark Newcome teaches Biology to Junior School pupils and Physics to pupils in both the Junior and Senior Schools. In addition, he is an Upper Junior form teacher. Prior to working at Freemen’s, he has worked in a range of schools in the maintained sector including schools in inner London. Mr Newcome has been Head of Science and more recently Assistant Head. He has also studied for an MA in Education. In recent years, Mr Newcome found his role within schools to be moving further and further from the classroom, so made the decision to move back to teaching again.

 

Mr Paul Norman has recently started at CLFS and teaches Physics across the Junior School, Upper School and Sixth Form. He has previously worked in maintained schools and colleges and has been a Head of Physics. Whenever the chance presents itself, he enjoys getting out on to the sports fields for cricket and athletics.

Emily Guest,
Head of Upper School

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