Departmental Aims
The aim of the Physics department at Dominican College is help our pupils to understand the world around them, satisfy their curiosity and develop their critical thinking and problem-solving skills. We incorporate as much practical work as possible into our lessons as this facilitates their grasp of concepts in Physics and enables them to apply their knowledge in the ‘real world’.
Physics is recognised by Russel group universities as a ‘facilitating’ subject so we are preparing our pupils for a wide range of options when they leave our school. We aim to equip them with the skills required to find solutions to global problems such as the search for zero carbon energy and the development of new technologies to benefit society.
Staff
Mrs B Connaghan
Dr C McLaughlin
Mrs K Wilson
Key Stage 4
GCSE Physics
Key Stage 5
GCE Physics
Activities
Extra-curricular activities, trips, competitions
The department organises a weekly Physics Clinic during which A level pupils mentor younger pupils.
We regularly organise trips to many events and venues in Northern Ireland.
Examples are:
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Tyndall lecture at QUB. The Tyndall lecture is aimed pupils studying Physics from year 11 to year 14. The goal is to give pupils a sense of how Physics applies to the world around us. The lecture tours the UK and we have attended in Belfast at QUB on a number of occasions.
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Civilisation Belfast QUB. During this event year 13 and 14 pupils spend a day visiting Civil Engineering projects in the Belfast area.
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Armagh Planetarium. The planetarium regularly offers opportunities to attend star shows and laboratory workshops
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We have also attended workshops and conferences in Belfast such as the 2018 IMEKO conference on measurement and the 2017 SciTech workshop.
Careers
Possible career paths with subject
Career Opportunities:
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Physics at AS/A2 satisfies the entrance requirements for many courses including Engineering, Optometry, Medicine, Architecture and many other courses in Science and Technology.
Graduates in Physics are often recruited by organisations in I.T., Engineering, Research, Financial Services and other areas for their valuable problem solving skills.
Achievements
Special wards at GCSE and A-level, competition prizes, scholarships etc
The school awards the Andor Prize to the AS pupil achieving the highest mark and a school cup is awarded for the highest mark in both GCSE and A2 Physics.
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