STUDENTS from Ellesmere College have impressed educators from around the world at an international conference sharing the best teaching techniques.

Five students were invited to Warwick University to speak at the annual High Performance Learning (HPL) conference to discuss their experiences and what the HPL framework means to them.

HPL is an international framework delivering educational change, working with schools and teachers to build cognitive competences and designed to achieve academic and lifetime success through a flexible learning framework.

Ellesmere College is one of only 39 schools worldwide to have been awarded High Performance Learning World Class School Accreditation.

Daniel Bottom, head of English and a HPL mentor at the school, said they were delighted to be invited to talk at the conference and the students were 'superb'.

He said: “We spoke about how HPL aligns with Ellesmere College’s philosophy that the purpose of education is to make students ‘Life Ready’ so they can leave us fully prepared as they move on to their bright futures."

Zoe Fisher, teacher of English and drama and HPL Mentor, added: “A lot of delegates came over to thank the students afterwards.

"I think it is fair to say they were hugely impressed with their eloquence, confidence and ability to articulate how HPL is helping them develop.”

As part of the conference Year nine student Bella Spencer-Blow, Ethan Oliver of Year 10 and Year 12 students Dylan Cunningham, Iris Grigoras and Davit Chankseliani took part in a roundtable discussion with the HPL founder Dr Deborah Eyre.

Iris said: “As someone coming from a Romanian school that did not implement such a system, I have noticed a large difference between how I approach my studies of literature now, in comparison to how I used to.

“The implementation of HPL has allowed me to be far more creative during my lessons and work together with my classmates to better understand together the material we are studying.

“Not only are these skills tremendously useful in the classroom, but they have also benefited me in my extracurricular activities, such as the magazine I am an editor of.”

Bella Spencer-Blow from Ellesmere said: “I really enjoyed the conference, I was surprised by how interested and supportive the academic leaders, from many different countries, were.

“At first it was slightly nerve racking, but once we sat down and started talking, I felt at ease.”