The first students to graduate from Oxford University’s GCSE Latin Teaching Scheme received their exam results yesterday.
The scheme is part of the Classics Faculty Outreach Programme, and aims to provide the chance to learn Latin to local state school students in Oxfordshire, where there are currently no schools offering the course at GCSE level.
Cressida Ryan, the Classics Outreach Officer, said that the scheme was “a definite success”, with three out of twenty students having achieved an A* grade.
“More state schools than private schools have some Latin, but at examination level, on timetable private schools still have the upper hand. The more that we can do to redress this imbalance, the better.”
Currently there are only 13% of state schools across the UK that teach Latin, compared to 60% of independent schools.
Ryan added that the view of Latin as an ‘exclusive’ or ‘elitist’ subject is a “more problematic view among adults, rather than students, who then have this perception forced upon them – hopefully this scheme will help change this.”
