Sixth Form EPQ presentation evening

Yesterday evening some of our Upper Sixth students presented their Extended Project Qualification projects, to an audience of peers and teachers. The EPQ is a self-motivated project that requires self-discipline and independent research on a topic of the girls’ choice, so it is an excellent opportunity for the students to be able to follow their passions, and delve into areas not covered in their A Level studies. It was interesting to see the range of topics the girls had chosen to investigate, and wonderful to see them confidently share their findings with the audience. We warmly congratulate the girls for their presentations and thank Mrs Karole Lewis, our EPQ moderator, for her determined guidance throughout the girls’ EPQ projects.

Raphaella D.S. is keen on design and wanted to investigate whether there is such a thing as a perfect room, in terms of interior design. She discovered that different colours have different influences, for instance dining rooms are often red, as red is believed to increase appetite. Raphaella conducted surveys among 14 to 17 year olds, and gained valuable insight into the process of conducting surveys.  She refined the number of questions, and improved the clarity of the questions and the methods used (i.e. multiple choice) to ensure that the most useful data would be captured. In terms of completing the project itself, Raphaella said that she had struggled to come to a conclusion because of finding a wealth of contradictory evidence, and said “we all have different tastes and backgrounds too, so surely we wouldn’t all agree on what a perfect room would look like?”. Other difficulties arose in terms of sticking to her research timetable, and wading through unfamiliar psychology terminology – but these experiences will have given Raphaella a valuable insight into the sorts of projects that she might encounter in Higher Education or indeed in a future career in design. 

Abigail B. chose to focus on whether abandonment syndrome is a recognised condition – having learned about attachment in Psychology lessons and being curious to know more – and, if so, whether it can be overcome. She briefly outlined the four different types of abandonment syndrome (and the causes) and some of the more common symptoms for the audience, and explained that the APA (American Psychological Association) recognises abandonment syndrome as a syndrome, but that the WHO (World Health Organisation) does not – instead classifying the symptoms that sufferers might experience but not attributing these symptoms to an ‘abandonment syndrome’ specifically. Abigail spoke about the difficulties she encountered conducting primary research (it is extremely difficult to access individuals who have been fostered or adopted, and recorded data for these individuals typically ends once they have reached the age of 16), but said she had been interested to learn about the way different countries recognise or classify syndromes such as these.

Cody Y.’s project had some similarities to Abigail’s, in that she investigated Gender Dysphoria and how this is classified as a mental disorder by the APA (and is listed in the DSM – the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders). Cody recognised that there are some practical benefits of Gender Dysphoria being listed in the DSM as a mental disorder: it may be practically useful for some practitioners, perhaps in other countries where there is less of an understanding or awareness of desires for another gender; and being listed in the DSM enables American citizens to have gender realignment treatments covered by health insurance. However, Cody argued that the desire for another gender is not a mental illness, and listing it in the DSM causes individuals to suffer from unnecessary abuse and discrimination in the work place and in schools. In the same way that homosexuality was removed from the DSM in 1972, Cody argues that Gender Dysphoria should be too – that it has only been classed as a mental illness in the past because it was seen as a deviation from social norms. During her project Cody struggled with pinning down her project boundaries (having initially wanted to cover the nature vs. nurture debate), managing her time and workload, and finding a balance of arguments for both sides of the debate. She also enjoyed this aspect of balancing arguments though, and thinks that learning to analyse the evidence will be helpful in completing her A Level courses, many of which are essay based, and into university, where Cody plans to read Psychology.

Lucca C. presented next, discussing whether fracking should be banned in North Yorkshire – because it is topical, an important matter for the future, and Lucca enjoys Geography and wants to study it at university. In order to help audience members understand a little more about fracking, Lucca unravelled a scale map of the depth of a fracking site – which was strung almost across the entire hall. Having started the project assuming she would conclude that fracking should be banned, Lucca changed her mind and concluded that the complaints of anti-fracking campaigners were often unfounded, even mythical! Lucca interviewed the Operations Director of Third Energy, visited the proposed fracking site, and surveyed the support levels for the anti-fracking campaign in the surrounding areas to analyse the different levels of support in two local towns. She discovered that opposition to the proposed site waned significantly just a few extra miles away from the site, so that the closer to the site the more vocally against it residents are. Lucca learnt that it's important to look at both sides of the argument intently before making conclusions, saying “my project changed my opinion completely!”.

Alice B. spoke enthusiastically about her studies of two sites, Wicken Fen Nature Reserve (a National Trust site) and Welney Wetland Centre (WWT), and the relationship between humans and the environment. Another keen Geographer, Alice enjoyed observing and seeing the reserves up close, and learning more about how the land is managed – for instance sedge cutting every three years to allow proper drainage of the land to prevent flooding. Wicken Fen has a 100 year plan, which they refer to as the Wicken Vision, in which they purchase any land surrounding the fen in order to increase the reach of their land management.  Alice found it challenging to get in touch with the rangers and volunteers to interview them, and also to obtain the relevant permits to carry out data collection, but learnt to be resilient and keep going even when things don’t go to plan! The project has acted to strengthen her conviction to study Geography at university, and many of the skills that she will need to do so. If there were no involvement by National Trust, or WWT, in managing the fenlands, Alice warned that there would be many more floods and Cambridge and Ely might find themselves under water.  

Kiki K. wowed the audience with her presentation on China’s ability to become a global superpower – and on the factors keeping the country from doing so. As an international student (from China) studying Economics, Kiki was careful to consider any bias that she may have brought to the debate. She focused on four areas: the military; the economy; politics; and culture – and explained economic vernacular for the audience’s benefit, including ‘purchasing power’ and ‘GDP’. Kiki highlighted that despite China’s apparent economic success, corruption prevents the country from becoming more affluent across the board, and a ‘relative absence of the rule of law has led to widespread corruption in government’ – although she explained that the current president, Xi Jinping, is taking on corruption. She said that the project had given her more confidence in forming her own view, had reinforced her ability to do effective, independent research, and prepared her for the style of learning she will experience at university.  

In the final presentation of the evening Frances K. delved brilliantly into questions of identity, such as ‘what makes me different to you?’ and ‘what is the meaning of life?’. Frances spoke about ‘weighing the human soul’, the swamp man paradox, whether humans are pre-programmed to believe in a powerful being, and how having a faith is likely to have been an evolutionary benefit – it was also delivered with much wit (Frances clearly has the potential to be a stand-up comedian as a side line to future study of philosophy) and provided much food for thought, as did each of the girls’ presentations on their projects.