Students in Year 9 and Year 10 recently had the exciting opportunity to take part in a university-style lecture delivered by a guest lecturer from Brunel University. The session offered a valuable insight into higher education and introduced students to new ways of thinking about literature.

The focus of the lecture was on Imagism and its place within the wider literary movement of Modernism. Students explored how, at the beginning of the twentieth century, the world was undergoing rapid change, from advances in technology to shifts in social attitudes such as women’s rights. 

As part of the session, students engaged in a class discussion based on “In a Station of the Metro”  by Ezra Pound. Working in groups, they studied and annotated the poem, focusing on the striking imagery of faces in a crowded underground station compared to petals on a dark, wet branch. Students considered how the poem exemplifies the key features of Imagism, including its precise imagery, concise language and focus on capturing a single moment without explanation.

The discussion also encouraged students to reflect on the emotional impact of the poem. Many observed how the imagery transforms an ordinary, busy setting into something delicate and almost haunting, highlighting fleeting moments of beauty within everyday life.

This collaborative activity helped students to develop their analytical and communication skills, while the university-style format challenged them to think independently and share their interpretations with confidence.

The lecture was both stimulating and inspiring, giving students a taste of what studying literature at university level might be like. We would like to thank Dr Ellie Reed from Brunel University for delivering such an engaging and thought-provoking session.