Atlantic Academy Portland GCSE Results Day 2022: Celebrating the fantastic achievements & grades of students

‘In August 2020 and 2021 GCSE and A Level students received results that had been determined by their teachers because examinations did not take place due to Covid.  In these circumstances DASH (Dorset Association of Secondary Headteachers) agreed that it would not be appropriate to share the unvalidated ‘school’ results, but instead decided to focus on sharing the individual successes and stories of our students.  Following this, we received feedback from our parents and students that this approach was much preferred as it placed the spotlight on their hard work and achievements rather than a comparison of schools’ performance.  For this reason, DASH schools have decided to continue with this approach and ensure that results days remain focussed on celebrating the success of our students.’

 Dorset Association of Secondary Headteachers

GCSE Results Day 2022 at Atlantic Academy Portland.

Principal Lesley Bishop told the Dorset Echo: 

“We are incredibly proud of all our Year 11 students. Despite the many challenges they have faced, they have achieved fantastic results and that is down to sheer hard work and dedication. We are as ever impressed by the effort they have consistently applied, their resilience and above all their commitment to their education. We are really pleased today to be able to acknowledge  and celebrate their achievements and share in their successful progression onto the next step in their education.

I would also like to take this opportunity to thank the dedicated  staff  who have worked incredibly hard and have been totally committed in supporting  our students throughout their time with us. Finally , I would  like to wish all of our students the very best for the future and know that they will go on to achieve many great things.”

Scroll down for case studies: 

Caitlin Lane  (Head Girl)  is this year’s best-performing student at Atlantic. Among some of her achievements were 4 Grade 9s, 1 grade 8, 1 grade 7,  A* and a Distinction. She said: “I enjoyed the online learning but it was not the same as being in school. Being at home meant we also missed out on the important opportunity to build social skills. We had regular mentoring sessions with staff who were amazing and I can’t fault the support we were given by our teachers. I’m looking forward to studying for my A-levels and then hoping to pursue a career in law or financial law.”

Finlay Short  (Head Boy): His achievements included  2 grade 9s, 3 grade 8s, 1 grade 7 and a Distinction*: “I’m happy with the results and pleased overall with what I achieved. It was stressful obviously but I think I handled it quite well and the school handled it really well. I don’t think there was anymore that we could do to prepare for the exams than what was done. I’m now planning to study for A-levels in Biology, Chemistry, Maths & Further Maths.”

Katie Gregg:  Achieved 1 grade 9, 2 grade 8s  and 3 grade 7s: “I don’t think I could have done much better than I received today. I was very nervous about the exams and the results but all the hard work paid off. I’m now planning to study for A-levels.”

Poppy Clarke: Achieved 1  grade 9, 4 grade 8s, 3 grade 7s and a Distinction: “I put in a lot of hard work and it paid off. The school supported us a lot with all the after-school revision sessions and the encouragement.  I am going to study A-levels in History, Law & Psychology. The last two years have been really hard but I’ve had lots of family encouragement and support from talking to my mentor at school.”

Niamh White:  Achieved 1 grade 9, 1 grade 8, 4 grade 7s and a Distinction*. She said: “I’m relieved. I got the grades I wanted. The school has been very supportive from pastoral care to our mock exams and couldn’t have done more. I’m now hoping to go on to study Chemistry, Biology and Geography for A-levels.”