Waconian Diploma
The Waconian Diploma encourages all pupils to take part in a wide range of activities across the School and to reflect on their input and involvement in life at CHS.
It aims to give each pupil a greater understanding of our Waconian Values and their importance within everyday life. Each pupil is expected to demonstrate be able to show evidence of using each of our five Waconian Values within each of the three pillars of the CHS education and reflect on their activities. By the end of Year 8 we expect each pupil to have completed the diploma.
There are two levels of the Diploma: Achieved and Excellence, for those pupils who have gone above and beyond the minimum requirements.
Waconian Diploma FAQs
Each pupil will be awarded the diploma at the end of Year 8, before they start Upper School.
Yes. At the end of Year 8, each pupil can either receive the Achieved award or the Excellence award. There will also be an additional Head of Lower School award for a small number of pupils who have gone even beyond Excellence.
Each pupil will take responsibility for logging all their activities and independently reflecting on their progress. There will be an element of trust with this. Peer mentors will have fortnightly conversations with their cohort to discuss progress and areas to develop. At the start of each term the Form Tutor will speak with all of their tutees over a two week period to monitor progress. And finally the Head of the Diploma, Mr Wrathall, will oversee all of the pupils.
No, it is about the development of each individual pupil.
There are three levels for activities:
Level 1: Participation in a one-off activity
Level 2: Sustained commitment to an activity for one-term or organisational role in a singular event
Level 3: Sustained commitment for longer than a term or major leadership shown (e.g. leading an activity)
To complete the Achieved level at the end of Year 8, each pupil will be expected to provide enough evidence to sign off each of our five Waconian Values in all of the three A’s. This adds up to 15 categories in total.