Amos’s essay was ‘highly commended’ by University of Oxford programme
Well done to Amos in Year 10. His essay for a competition set up by the University of Oxford was ‘highly commended’.
Mrs Newby, who runs the Aspire programme at The Cotswold School explains:
“It was great to see several pupils from Year 7 to 12 taking on this Aspire opportunity and writing an essay for this competition. We are particularly proud of Amos as he was one of only four students nationally to be credited in the Year 10-13 category – meaning his work stood up against that of sixth formers.”
Amos takes up the story:
“The essay title I decided on was, ‘How effective do you think punishment is in shaping and changing behaviour?’. I argued that punishment, as we understand it, does little to nothing in changing or shaping the behaviour of an offender, and that retributive justice only further segregates society. I concluded that a rehabilitative approach was the only real option in changing and shaping deviant behaviour.
Mrs Newby added,
“Oxplore is a fantastic resource from the University of Oxford that we have embedded in our Aspire programme. Throughout the year we can take part in live-streamed events featuring exciting guest speakers, quizzes and thought-provoking Q & A’s. Oxplore’s ‘big questions’ tackle complex ideas across a wide range of subjects and reflect the kind of critical thinking students undertake at university.”
