DESBOROUGH COLLEGE
SPECIAL POINTS OF INTEREST: GOVERNORS THINKING
April 2015
UPDATE FROM OUR SPONSORS MATHS RESULTS 2015 KINGS COLLEGE TRIP VISIT TO RADLEY WORLD BOOK DAY SIXTH FORM TRIPS WRITING FOR TEENAGERS CONFERENCE UCAS CONVENTION & BIOLOGY CONFERENCE FOREIGN EXCHANGES MAIDENHEAD’S GOT TALENT DRAMA
Old Maidonians’ Dinner I recently enjoyed an excellent evening at The Old Maidonians Association Annual Dinner. The food was good, the company was wonderful, and it made a refreshing change not to have to charge up the M42 and M1 on my journey to Yorkshire. I popped into my office to pick up some newsletters to give to some of the Old Maids (the name given to all students who attended school at Desborough) and found half a dozen men who left Desborough 40 or 50 years ago reminiscing about their time here. My present office used to be the headmaster’s house (I should be so lucky) and they were exchanging tales of being caned and recalling the terror they experienced upon being summoned to see their headmaster's. I shared a table with some very interesting companions, including Colin Cutler, President of the Old Maids Association and Editor of the Old Maids Association newsletter; Brigadier Matt Holmes, Colonel Charlie Maconochie, Ex-Commander of the 3rd Battalion of the Rifles and a member of the General Staff and Mrs Betty Collin whose son, Paul, attended Desborough and who worked as a school secretary for 22 years and then went on to become Secretary of the Old Maids Association. What struck me most throughout the evening was the deep affection for our school that all who were present share and the many close friendships that had endured over a number of decades. People spoke quite movingly about the influence that their schooldays at Desborough has had on shaping their lives and were genuinely delighted by the recent upturn in our school's fortunes. As ever, I was made to feel very welcome. The evening brought home to me not only the huge responsibility that I carry in ensuring that Desborough's immediate future is as glorious as its past but also how privileged I am to be the Headteacher of such a wonderful school. Year 9 Mathmaticians Good luck to the boys in Y9 who are taking their Maths GCSE TWO YEARS EARLY in a couple of months time. There are about a dozen of them and they are all expected to achieve A or A* Grades. Mr. Horsell, who is turning out to be one of the best appointments that I have ever made, has been giving them additional lessons before the start of school. Mr Gove says that we shouldn't enter boys early for exams, but I don't believe that it is right to wait two years when they are capable of achieving top grades now. They can be challenged mathematically by following an A Level course over the next two years rather than treading water and getting bored. Good luck, too, to the boys in Y10 who are taking 4 GCSE examinations in their option subjects over the next couple of months. They might be taking them a year early but the predictions are very positive and they have worked hard over the last two years.
POETRY
Spoore Merry & Rixman Foundation DEPARTMENTAL NEWS 2DEGREES CHAMPIONS COMPETITION
I would, on behalf of everybody at Desborough College, like to thank SMR for their very generous support of our school. They have, over a long period of time, offered financial support to many boys so that they could enjoy trips and purchase equipment that they would otherwise miss out on. More recently, however, they have donated £5,000 to help run a Breakfast Club, £15,000 towards the cost of a much-needed mini-bus and £6,000 to help purchase IT equipment for use in a variety of lessons.
LEGACY
This is a tremendous organisation that benefits the local community through its charitable donations. They do not seek publicity for their philanthropy but I think that it is important that it is acknowledged and celebrated.
INFORMATION
Regards,
DESBOROUGH
FOR PARENTS
Paul Frazer
Governors’ Thinking
Article from Doctor Dan Jacoby, School Governor Governors have 6 meetings each major term. Our meetings in the second half of the Easter term included presentations on the Data Collection 2 and mock exam outcomes. These reviews, including the tracking of pupil progress, provoke discussions about the best way to encourage private study and exam preparation and the extent to which the experiences of mocks in particular can come as an unexpected surprise for many boys. Our staff are deeply knowledgeable about each of their pupils and the year group as a whole and in our meetings provide detailed plans for how they will help their pupils achieve successful outcomes. We were delighted to applaud the tremendous results achieved by our GCSE Maths early–entry cohort in January. Of our 60 boys entered, 97% achieved A*-C and 40% achieved A*-A. We also cheered our outstanding Maths staff who are dedicated and provided extra support to boys during their own time. The governors strongly support and agree with our Principal that we are here to make sure we stretch and help every one of our boys to achieve his own potential. The Department for Education (DfE) have changed the way they measure “Achievement” and will only use the first exam result in their so-called “league tables”. We do not believe that this should change the way our school behaves. We enter boys early if they are ready and capable of success, so that they can progress in their subject and we allow some boys to retake exams if we feel that their initial exam result was not in line with our assessment of their ability, even if it hits our “league table” results. We are not here working for the league tables but the boys. This half-term, we have had a significant number of parents asking for tours and meetings with our Principal and the word is getting out that we are the only Maidenhead school for boys, that has been Ofsted-rated as GOOD, but also we are now an Outstanding school (although we have to wait for Ofsted to return in 2 - 3 years to be officially rated as such). The governors appeal to parents to both login to Ofsted Parent View and express your own views on how we are doing against their 12 standard questions, but also to act as ambassadors in the community and amongst your friends, to encourage them to come and see what we are doing and make an appointment to talk about their son with our Principal, Paul Frazer. It is never too late to change schools, especially when boys can be so much happier, creative and productive at Desborough.
http://www.desborough.org.uk/ or https://parentview.ofsted.gov.uk/parent-view-results/survey/result/126992/ current
Nigel Cook Chair of AAB
Dan Jacoby Chair of Facilities
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An Update from our Sponsors, The Education Fellowship Do you ever come into work and standing in your office, classroom, or maybe the staff room and wonder "what am I doing here"? I do, on those challenging days when the problems seem both constant and repetitive, when the vision of what we need to achieve seems blurred, when knowing what I want to do both operationally and within our values is challenged by the pace demanded to achieve. What am I doing here? This morning as I ask myself that question I want to share with you my attempt to find the answer. Deep inside all of us in teaching and learning is a desire, no more than desire a burning ache to make a difference, to give our customers the life chances they not only deserve but increasing in our co-ownership forums are demanding as their right. At out Central Council Fellowship Forum, our customers, co-owners, challenged me about the service they demand. One customer demanded better teaching, they said "when we have cover teachers they don't know the subject they are teaching and they don't know where I am with the subject, they are robbing me of my education" much as I rejoiced to see co-ownership clearly in action it forcibly challenged me to know what I am doing here? Amidst all the times I am asked each week about "What is the Fellowship doing for me" I much less hear "What am I doing for the Fellowship". Education is no different than any other business in the area of effort before reward, we teach our customers that if they apply the effort, commitment and sacrifice then results follow. We teach them that there is no other way, no shortcuts, a mind-set that will also equip them for their futures. So in my attempt to answer the question "What am I doing here" I find myself challenged that I need to apply the commitment and effort to get the reward. But that made me reflect on what that really means. Is the level of commitment and effort I need to give what I perceive as my best or is that only ever acceptable when my best delivers what I witnessed our co-owners demanding at the Central Forum. Our recent poster campaign hit hard in its message, firstly "our pupils only get one chance, why should we have any more" and secondly "is our best good enough to make them winners". I was showered with comments and complaints telling me it demotivated and it was negative yet no one could tell me it wasn't true. It is simply what our customers demand. I know that when we are delivering an outstanding education to our customers and that is reflected in our outcomes, I want to be the first to light a bonfire with those posters. Maybe that's what I am doing here? Some said the posters were a cost that would be better spent elsewhere. But if they have challenged you, as they have me, and we step nearer to the delivery our customers need, then maybe we should ask them in 10 or 20 years’ time “was it money worth spent?�. Which reminders me - we are not sellers of teaching and learning but enablers of life chances.
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An Update from our Sponsors, The Education Fellowship Cont’d ……. So what am I doing here? Increasingly driven by the demands of our customers, I am here to deliver levels of excellence, in every thing we do, that our customers need and more and more demanding. We are compiling the 'Fellowship' definition of excellence, what we mark as Excellence. That definition will cover everything we do in the Fellowship but it will also define the level of excellence we will demand from our suppliers, consultants and even those we are accountable to. It will define the level of excellence we must deliver to our customers and the excellence they must demonstrate to us. Lizzie Rowe is defining and compiling the Fellowship definition of excellence across all levels, let her have your input. So what am I doing here? My attempt to answer that question leads me to realise that I must deliver the Fellowship level of excellence in everything I do and the challenge that the Fellowship level of excellence may be higher than what I perceive as my level, as my best.. That may require effort, commitment and sacrifice but as we enable our customers to learn, that always comes before reward. In my career, if I did not deliver to my customers the excellence my customers demanded my business would have failed and consequently I would have "lost my shirt". If I value my vocation, my chosen career then I must deliver every day the levels of excellence my customers need and demand, not the ones I define as mine or what I perceive as my best. "Sustainability Is the key goal for business ethics" is what they teach at Business Studies. So in answering my question: if I value what I am here to deliver then my levels of excellence must be the Fellowship's definition of excellence and be sustainable. Our third poster says "why are we different" and the poster outlines we are different because we all who work and learn in the Fellowship are co-owners. I know there is another reason..... Why am I here? Because like you I want to make a difference in education but education is a wide word so let's narrow it; I want to take away the excuses and give all our customers the life chances they deserve and their futures demand. That requires us all to not compromise the Fellowship levels of excellence but deliver them and embed them everywhere. We are different because I am surrounded by colleagues who like me ask the question "why am I here" and have found the same answer as me and for that I thank you. So my answer. I am here because my best will be good enough for us all to win and we are the team to do it.
Johnson Kane—CEO—The Education Fellowship
Information for Parents New research from the DfE suggests children who miss seven days’ schooling each year see their chances of gaining five good GCSEs reduced markedly. Only 31% of children who missed more than 14 days of lessons over two years got the “gold standard” of good grades in English, Maths, Science, a humanity and a language compared to 44% of pupils who attended school every day. Meanwhile, just 16.4% of children who miss 28 days of school over two years get five good GCSEs. The report also found that primary school pupils who miss just 14 days of schooling between the age of 7 and 11 are 25% less likely to achieve level five. Nicky Morgan, the Education Secretary, said: "The myth that pulling a child out of school for a holiday is harmless to their education has been busted by this research.
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Maths Results March 2015 Desborough College boys have been celebrating outstanding GCSE Mathematics results despite taking the examination six months early. 95% of the Year 11 boys who took their exams in January achieved A*-C grades with 40% achieving A* or A grades. The success is attributed to a very bright cohort of hardworking boys and a talented maths department who are determined to get every boy to achieve his potential. We have now got over our disappointment of only achieving a Good judgement following Ofsted's visit last September and are single-minded in our determination to be awarded the Outstanding judgement that we deserve. These exceptional results are only the beginning. Desborough College is going from strength to strength and this is reflected in the huge increase in parents opting to send their sons here next September. Jackie Carr, the Head of Mathematics, revealed the school's plan to enter 12 Year 9 boys for GCSE Mathematics in Summer: "We have some very able mathematicians in Year 9 who I believe will achieve A Grades this summer and go on to study AS Level Mathematics in Years 10 and 11.
Well done to our boys!
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Kings College Trip On Friday 13 February the GCSE Music class had a trip to Kings Cross London to see the London Sinfionetta perform a variety of minimalism music pieces. The programme for the concert comprised of the following repertoire from Steve Reich’s catalogue: Clapping Music (1972) New York Counterpoint (1985) Electric Counterpoint (1987) Nagoya Marimbas (1994) Along with these compositions the event featured a selection of audience participation exercises and interactive elements. The concert was presented by renowned composer and educationalist Frasier Trainer. The boys enjoyed watching different music played on large marimbas, electric guitars (8 in total at the same time) and simple clapping music! The trip was linked to the pupils’ exam for GCSE Music with one of the set pieces they have to learn being performed live, a rare opportunity. There were 10 other schools who watched the concert from schools in London and the surrounding areas. We stopped for some lunch afterwards in the stunning setting of the Sinfionetta Hall before travelling back to school. Miss Smith-Phelps—Head of Music
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Senior Rugby Players Visit Radley College The senior rugby players spent an outstanding day at Radley on the 25 of February focusing on strength and conditioning for the coming season. This day consisted of presentations, testing and technical work to support the boys. The visit provided the future stars of the school 1st XV with an outstanding opportunity to develop their strength and conditioning knowledge and technique. This will provide an extra edge for next season as the team look to build on the unbeaten season of last year. The opportunities the visit provided the boys with are unparalleled with any of our nearest rivals and should help provide the marginal gains that will be crucial in order to keep developing Desborough rugby. The day was organised by the Director of Health and Fitness at Radley College, Mr Mark Spivey. Mr Spivey is a well-respected member of the strength of conditioning community having been Head of strength and Conditioning for Bath rugby, the Australian Institute of Sport and most recently for England Cricket. The squad were clearly in safe hands. The day allowed the squad to improve in a number of areas from nutrition and preparation for games to technique of a number of strength exercises and circuit training. The squad pushed themselves to the limit in all the tests they completed and now have baseline data on which to improve. The challenge for the side now is to take this knowledge forward with hard training and effort to ensure that a solid foundation of strength and fitness is in place for the tests of next season. A huge thank you must go to Radley College, specifically to Mr Spivey and Mr Sparks for going the extra mile to make this happen. The squad are making the most of the opportunities that are being presented to them through days such as this. The upward curve of rugby at Desborough is sure to continue with the application and enthusiasm the boys are demonstrating. Mr Allen Head of Rugby
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World Book Day—5 March Desborough celebrated our love of reading for pleasure in great style with a wonderful array of literary costumes. Both staff and students joined in with the fun. Every child received a £1 book token to spend on books but I have some spare if any tokens have been mislaid. These can be collected from the Library. It is also not too late for boys to enter the “Guess the Shelfie” competition to win a box set of the Hunger Games. Match the member of staff to the books. We were very lucky to have the author of the novel Trash, Andy Mulligan visit that afternoon who very generously gave his time to talk to all the Year 7’s and 8’s. He enthused about the setting of his book and the inspiration for the story which came from his teaching post in the Philippines. The students had lots of questions to ask him, particularly regarding how the book was made into a film. A number of boys had their books signed and since his visit the reserve list to borrow the book from the library is huge. Thank goodness we have a few copies! It is extremely important that children have the opportunity to meet writers and we are grateful to the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead for helping with this event.
Mrs Hallissey School Librarian
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World book Day Photographs of Staff and Students
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Sixth Form Lecture at Radley College On the 4 of March we visited Radley who were hosting a lecture about Newton's only book in English called “Opticks”. A first edition copy of the book was available there. The lecture was given by Dr William Poole ( New College, Oxford) . Mr Tolput (Head of Physics from Radley) kindly picked us up from the station, which gave us time for a quick look round. We were all amazed at the size of the facilities - it was our first time there. The sports grounds were massive, the social and academic facilities were huge and the “appearance” of each department there was impressive. We met Mr Tolput's Physics class and worked together for a little while on some Physics Olympiad questions that we were given. Afterwards, it was time for the lecture. The talk was really interesting and fascinating to pay attention to. We left with knowledge about the life and backround of Isaac Newton and his conflict with Robert Hooke, what he (Newton) was like as a person and as a professional, and how he and his work made an impact on the perception and use of Physics from the 17 th century until now. Dr Poole himself mentioned that the publication of Opticks 'changed the history of optics' Manolis Mantaropoulos – Year 12
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Sixth Form Annual International Student Science Conference On Friday 6 March, Mr Hill took a group of six of us to the Annual International Student Science Conference, which was being hosted at Radley College this year. Some of the other schools that attended gave presentations on a wide variety of subjects that they had researched. There were Japanese and German students as well as English present, and we had an opportunity to speak to them regarding some research that they had conducted throughout the last year. This research was presented through either presentations or posters, and we were impressed by the range of their topics, all of which were presented in a professional manner. The topics included subjects from cosmic rays to the preservation of vitamin C in different foods. On arrival, we seized the chance to speak to the different students and had a brief look at the posters, which we would learn more about later on in the day. We then went into the presentation hall to listen to the first presentations of the day, which started off with a talk from Radley College on the structure of Copper Ethanoate. During their research they went to Oxford University to use the extensive equipment available there. After a quick break for refreshments, we went back into the hall for some more presentations. One of the presentations from this session that particularly interested us was on modelling disease spread using a mathematical method called percolation. Once the first two presentation sessions were over, we had more time to look at the other schools' posters and ask the students questions about them over lunch. The posters were on topics such as the optimal aerodynamics for a small plane, the advantages and disadvantages of nuclear power and how ‘good’ bacteria from faeces can be used to cure hospital superbugs and possibly obesity. After this, there was one last talk session which included a presentation by a school who help monitor cosmic ray activity, and are part of a group in Europe who all send their data to a central database in the Netherlands. Overall we found the day very interesting and inspiring. It was fascinating to hear how long some of the students had spent on their projects - some had been working for over a year. Given the opportunity, we all said we’d go again, only next time we would have completed our research in time to do either a presentation or poster on it. Jack Hillyer, Jack Tedham & Ross Taylor – Year 12
Above: Andrew Richards, right of Barclays Capital, with Anthony Robinson, Radley's Foundation Director
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Trip to the Writing for Teenagers Conference at Leighton Park School— 6 March This is the second year that a group of us has attended the conference on writing skills and writing for young adults. This year the subjects were journalistic writing, digital storytelling, creating comics, graphic novels and writing workshops. The first presentation was from the editorial team of The Day - an online newspaper designed for secondary schools by Joe Heppell and Editor Edgar Gerrard Hughes. They discussed the importance of writing balanced views, allowing the reader to make their own opinions and judgements. Free trial http://theday.co.uk/index. Bev Humphrey a former school librarian and self-confessed geek, showed us a range of apps that we could use to support creative writing. I particularly liked Writers Lists
Wordpack Brainstormer Writers Lists Story Cubes Book Creator
https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/wordpack/id730394011?mt=8 https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/the-brainstormer/id374496865?mt=8 https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/lists-for-writers-ideas-for/id506577862?mt=8 https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/rorys-story-cubes/id342808551?mt=8 https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/book-creator-for-ipad-create/id442378070?mt=8
We were also treated to a lecture on the philosophy of Harry Potter delivered by Mitch Whitehead, Head of Theory of Knowledge (IB) and teacher of Philosophy and Beliefs and Values at Leighton Park School. His intriguing approach to the series of books was thought provoking and helped us to think about viewing all the texts we read using higher thinking and critical skills following his philosophical approach. Author, and illustrator, Julian Sedgwick gave his talk on the history of graphic novels with references to his own graphic novel Dark Satanic Mills, the book co-authored with brother Marcus and illustrated by John Higgins and Marc Olivent. He referenced the Charlie Hebdo story in relation to the power of words and pictures. http://juliansedgwick.co.uk @julianaurelius. We all had a wonderful day out shared with other local schools that were invited. Here is Zachary Smith’s (Year 10) description of the day: The trip to Leighton Park School was a very enjoyable experience. The day started off with a talk from the online newspaper ‘The Day’, explaining how it is written and how it is used in over 1,000 schools to aid the learning pupils in the Classroom. Next we had a talk from Bev Humphrey, who is a technology and reading consultant, she told us about her website ‘The Write Path’ which was set up as a way to get teenagers writing and to give them a chance to be published in a book. She showed us a wide variety of apps to help aid the writing of a story, giving character ideas and settings for a book, which I found very helpful and I have used them since. After a short break, we received a wonderful talk on ‘The Philosophy of Harry Potter’ from a teacher at Leighton Park. It walked us through the way Harry Potter relates to the morals of the real world and talked of what we can learn from Harry and his friends. After a scrumptious lunch of fish and chips, we all went off to our separate workshops; my workshop was about journalistic writing. In the workshop I looked at an article written by The Day and first scanned it for any bias, which they had done a very good job of not doing. We thought about what ideas we could draw from the article, and what kind of thought processes the writers would have gone through to write it. After we had finished our workshops we headed back to the auditorium to listen to a talk on a graphic novel written by Julian and Marcus Sedgwick, but unfortunately Marcus couldn’t make it. So Julian talked about what a graphic novel actually is and how it is different to a comic book; and then spoke about the struggles of actually writing one. He finished by suggesting a few good reads, and the benefits of reading a graphic novel to a book or film. After that we said our farewells and made our way back to school. Overall it was an awesome day and I learnt some really helpful things, which I plan on using, I would really recommend the trip happens again. Zachary Hill Year 10 Mrs Hallissey—School Librarian
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UCAS Convention—16 March 2015 The UCAS convention was extremely beneficial. I had travelled there in a group of 4 and we all knew what ourselves and others were looking to gain from the experience. This meant if we found something someone else was interested in, we could refer them to it. We had a good idea of the type of degree we would like to do, along with a view of the kind of career we would like to pursue, which made the event much more pleasant, easier and less stressful. Walking around, we were able to talk to current students from the universities; what they thought the institute was good for and why they had chosen to attend it. In my case, I had already reviewed league tables and entry requirements for my degree, so I had acquired an appropriate idea of the universities which best suited me and which ones I’m capable of securing. I also had the opportunity to talk to people from Bank of America, Merrill Lynch, who inspired me to apply for an internship. In addition, I conversed with an accounting company, ICAEW, which I was already aware of, but they were able to advise me on how I could include what I’m currently doing with them, into my personal statement. From this escapade I found out more about my course, what universities are looking for, a wider range of universities with various entry requirements, universities I wouldn’t have known of otherwise and internships to enrol in. Overall, the UCAS Convention was worthwhile, due to being useful and valuable for my future. Rajvinder Mahil – Year 12
Biology Revision Conference Year 12 March The Biology Conference I attended in London was very helpful. The conference seemed to last for hours. The information given was very beneficial because it allowed me to have a better understanding of various topics within the AS Biology syllabus in finer detail. One thing that stood out to me about the whole experience was the, information given to us by the Examiners themselves. The atmosphere of the event itself was very motivational for me, as I was surrounded by other students of the same subject; seeing the effort they were putting into the subject gave me the motivation to put more effort into my studies and aim higher. Takudzwa Mukahiwa—Year 12
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German Exchange—28 February We sadly said our good-byes to our German exchange partners recently. Much fun was had on both sides; our German students participating in classes with us and many social activities planned between the various groups. The German students toured London, visiting amongst many other things Madame Tussauds and The National History Museum, of course shopping was a must on Oxford Street. It all culminated in a party at Newlands Girls’ School which was brilliantly organised with a linguistic quiz and Spanish dancing being some of the many highlights. Roll on the Exchange 2015-16! Mrs H Gerber—Head of Modern Foreign Languages
French Exchange—13 March Question to student: “Did you enjoy the French exchange?” Student answer: “Where do I start?... yes of course and I would definitely recommend it to anyone considering it. It was fantastic! “It was fun, interesting and eye-opening. Olly and I spent a lot of time working out the French, for example on the bus they had online screens with messages which we could work out from the context – learning without knowing it. We did lots of activities like visiting a museum, an aquarium and lunch on the beach. We visited Nice, Cannes and Monte Carlo – we even saw the hand prints of Charlie Chaplin at the Cannes Festival Hall – he had really small hands! Next up we are looking forward to the German Exchange, if it’s anything like this has been it’s going to be amazing!” Oscar Wallis YR 9/Mrs Gerber—Head of Modern Foreign Languages
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Maidenhead’s Got Talent Talented musicians, Lawrence Eaves (Year 12) and Will Palmer (Year 10), performed at the annual Maidenhead’s Got Talent event, sponsored by the Rotary Club, and held at beautiful Taplow Court in February
Desborough College and Newlands Girls’ School were the only state schools represented, with the majority of performers from private and performing arts schools. The evening showcased the talents of young people from the local community with Lawrence and Will demonstrating their ability on the piano. Lawrence performed the first movement of Schubert’s sonata in A minor and Will performed his own composition, Tranquil River. The evening was a great success and enjoyed by everyone. Although I am not sure everyone appreciated the grand finale, “Love is an Open Door” from Disney’s Frozen, sung by all the performers and actors dressed as the two princesses! Thanks to Miss Smith-Phelps for entering our pupils and encouraging them to pursue their musical interests.
Mrs Eaves – Assistant Principal
Drama News The Year 12 Drama students recently presented an evening of six short duologues to a visiting examiner and an audience of parents and friends in the Jacoby Studios. Although short in duration, the duologue performances were the result of many months of research and rehearsal, with particular emphasis on the detail of characterisation and interaction of relationships. This is no easy exam as every breath, intonation, flicker of the eye and purposeful gesture is monitored and assessed by the examiner in relation to a detailed written performance concept where students have to justify their original interpretations. The stakes were high, but as expected, the Year 12 Drama group took this all in their stride and rose to the importance of the occasion with every student performing to his or her potential. Some memorable moments included Tom Judd’s outrageously comic portrayal of Dario Fo’s Maniac, using astounding precision and imagination; Tom Downey’s powerful and physical portrayal of Alfred Jarry’s surreal character Pere Ubu as a parody of Macbeth; Joe Moore’s lovely pirouettes as Mere Ubu; and, from Of Mice and Men, Lennie’s accidently killing of Curley’s Wife where Daniel Henshaw and Megan Gilroy mastered the tragic death scene with physical skill and emotional intensity to create spine chilling and moving drama. The Year 12 thespians now move into a six week rehearsal block to prepare for the Group Performance Exams on Wednesday 20 May, 6.30pm Jacoby Studios. We look forward to seeing you there! Mrs Turner Head of Drama 15
Drama Photos
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Drama Photos Cont’d ..
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Magna Carta Poetry Workshop Year 7 pupils flexed their creative muscles during a workshop with the Fire Poet, Philip Wells, in preparation for a poetry joust to celebrate the 800th anniversary of Magna Carta. The Fire Poet told the boys about the anger and frustration of the barons during King John’s reign and how Magna Carta was their hope for a better world. The boys then had to use all of their courage and imagination to create and perform a poem made of three separate voices: the King, the People, and History. Philip was hugely impressed with the boys’ spirit and creativity both during the writing stage and the performance stage of the workshop. All the adults present were absolutely blown away by the quality of their ideas and their talent! All 40 pupils are entering their poems into a competition, the winners of which will be performing during the celebrations along the River Relay taking place on the weekend of the 13 June. Here are some sneak preview phrases! Jay Seabrook as the King: ‘I’m the tree, better than the strength of a thousand. Cowardly? Not for a moment!’ Charles Aldridge as the King: ‘Will you hack down my drawbridge and enter my dwelling?’ Hammaad Ashfaq as the People: ‘You are selfish but I am selfless!’ Murtaza Qamar as the People: ‘Why fights? Why knights? Ever heard of equal rights?’ Nathan Jefferys as the History: ‘Thanks be to Magna Carta- it is the Great Charter!’ Louie Atherton as History: ‘They deserve the Divine Right of the People!’ Thanks to Philip Wells and the RBWM Library as well as Ms Hallissey! Mr Craig-Wood – English Teacher
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News from the Technology Department Year 7 Toy plane designs have really come to life this term. With assembly and sanding complete it is time to let them loose on the laser cutter to bring some flare to their designs! Exciting! Quality is really excellent with this lovely bunch! Year 8 students are working tirelessly on their own clock designs. Most have completed frames for clocks and will be using 2D design and the Laser cut software to design and output their very own clock faces! Again the quality seen at this level is exceptional! Well done boys. Year 9 students are undertaking their first furniture project with their pine stools. They have been using very accurate marking out and mortise machines to create some strong joints to support the stool. These projects are giving the boys a real taste for Design Technology. We look forward to taking some of these boys into GCSE with us next year! Year 10/11 are working closer to their deadlines and we are all dying to be complete! The dedication seen over the past month has been refreshing with boys attending Saturday workshops to complete their products to the highest level. I look forward to sharing pictures with you in the next Newsletter when all is complete! Sixth form Our Sixth Form construction students have had an interesting term with lectures and activities with the UK’s top engineers and architects. From the Project Manager of the Cross Rail Development to training architects their lead trainer who is working on developments in Hong Kong currently. The class was also lucky that Mr Gallagher arranged with them a trip on site where the boys were able to delve into the working life of somebody in the construction industry. Year 12 Product Design students are also coming to the end of their coursework and the projects they are finishing are a credit to them. Again final photos will be shared in next newsletter as a few final pieces need to be completed. It has been a very exciting year with this group! Miss Kelleher—Head of Technology
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News from the Art Department Artists and Photographers of all year groups have busying themselves with preparation for their examination projects or final pieces. I would like to mention how dedicated our GCSE students have been in the run up to their exam, and it was pleasing to see that 30 out of 36 students attended extra revision on Saturday! This term, Year 7 produced a stunning set of cacti drawings that represent their learning of colour, shape, tone and texture. All the pencil drawings were completed from observation – which is a challenging task for young artists. However, as you can see from the quality of work that the boys have produced, they were clearly up to the task! The boys will now be focussing on a new project of “Creepy Crawlies” which studies print processes, mixed media work and analysis of artists. GCSE students are grafting away at their Exam preparation (Exam date 6 & 7 of May) on the topic of “Together/Apart” and students are exploring this in a variety of ways. Featured this time in our artists gallery is work from James Johnstone – who has consistently attended catch up sessions after school and is creating a strong portfolio of work. Ben Cox has started to explore how music brings people together through his studies of guitars and acrylic paintings, and Fraser Miller continues to produce stunning observational drawings based on his chosen topic of chess and games. James Garner is exploring Lego pieces and playing cards to develop his detailed use of pencil and colour. Well done boys – the work is paying off! And finally....Harry Messitt has proven that dedication to art work brings great results! He produced this lovely set of biro studies of shoes over the half term and has placed himself in a strong position for his Art GCSE Exam. Well done! Radley Trip & Talk by Ian Ellis, Head of Art Year 12 and Year 13 Art students were treated to a day’s trip to the Barbican Gallery and the National Gallery with Radley students. The Head of Art, Ian Ellis organised a busy day plus a bespoke lecture at the National Gallery that explored the history and development of art in a range of styles. Our boys were involved in discussions on the use of perspective in paintings, ways in which artists captured light and how power and religion influenced art. The Radley Art Department also gifted a book to Desborough called “Cabinets of Curiosity” which encapsulated the work on display at the Barbican. The exhibition included the personal items of artists ranging from Andy Warhol to Damien Hirst and allowed students to peek into their hidden obsessions. We are looking forward to developing our relationship with Radley even further, and planning to hold a joint exhibition in their gallery. Watch this space! Miss Rhodes Curriculum Leader for Art & Photography
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Work Produced by our Art and Photography students
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Get Voting for Desborough to Win 2degrees Champions Award
You can vote here: https://www.2degreesnetwork.com/ groups/2degrees-community/resources/meet-jacobystudios-second-most-energy-efficient-school-building-uk/
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Desborough Legacy Desborough Legacy is a Fundraising Charity by Parents & Staff whose purpose is to raise donations and gifts so as to provide the extra equipment and facilities that benefit the pupils and students at the college. We want to improve and enrich the lives of our children and the students attending Desborough College by enabling them to have the use of equipment that the college simply cannot include in their budgets from the monies government provide. Desborough Legacy is an opportunity for every parent and family to join in with their son’s college life, offering their particular skills and services and participating and helping, in our community of parents and staff. Because we are a registered charity, we are able to claim “Gift Aid” on donations and gifts, where the tax man will give us £500 for every £2,000 we raise ourselves (or 25p per £1). If you are self-employed and your business pays business tax, then you can claim exemption for donations and gifts to a registered charity. Why not give this tax to your son’s college via Desborough Legacy and not the tax man. Your accountant can advise you. If you work for a company or organisation, they too can donate to charity and receive the same exemption from business tax. Help your son’s college by encouraging your company to help us and not the tax man.
Donate to Desborough Legacy to improve and enrich your son’s college life. There is more information about the organisation and events on the website pages www.desborough.org.uk/Desborough-Legacy Charity Commission Registration Number : 1113365 Mr Ayres-Turner—Site Manager
Desborough Legacy Current Fund Raising Events Bags2school Collection We are still collecting unwanted clothes until 30 April to raise extra funds for the school charity. The scheme is simple – when you are spring cleaning your family’s wardrobes, simply put any unwanted items to one side and deliver to school in a black plastic sack. Desborough Lagacy will store and collate at school and they will be picked up and reused by Bags2school who will pay us £400 per tonne!
Suitable items are:
Bags2school do not accept
Men’s, ladies and children’s clothes Hats, bags, scarves, belts, ties, Shoes (in pairs only)
School uniform, work wear curtains, towels, bedding poor quality or damaged items.
So, no cost to you, no cost to us, just clutter free wardrobes and hopefully a large cheque from Bags2school! Please support the school by sending in your unwanted clothes between now and the end of April.
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Information for Parents There has been a national increase in the number of cases of scarlet fever. Scarlet fever is characterised by a rash, red swollen tongue and flushed cheeks and is sometimes confused with measles, though unlike measles is easily treatable with antibiotics. However it is very contagious. Below are a series of frequently asked questions (FAQ) provided by Public Health England (PHE), for your information. This includes a list of symptoms, details of diagnosis and treatment and where to get more information. If diagnosed the exclusion period is for 24 hours after antibiotics treatment has commenced, to prevent the spread of the infection. As a parent/carer if you suspect a ‘probable’ case please check the NHS Choices website first, then if still concerned phone your GP or NHS 111.
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Free £400 for Lunchtime Hot Meals If you are in receipt of state benefits or you work less than 16 hours per week with a family income below £16,190, your son may be entitled to free schools meals. This can provide you with more than £400 per child for free lunchtime meals in school. We believe that the FSM is a crucial entitlement to help ensure that all children, independent of their family income should be able to get a nutritious meal in the middle of the day. They also have important health and educational benefits for the children that receive them. All school providers are encouraged to introduce cashless systems so that children in receipt of FSM get this funding automatically. This was one of the reasons to improve our catering service. To complete an Application Form on-line press ctrl and click on the link below:-
https://www.cloudforedu.org.uk/ofsm/mwschools/ If you have any further questions, please contact the school on 01628 634505
Cashless Catering for Students Desborough has now launched our new look dining room. We have new caterers, the Catering Academy, and we have also introduced Cashless catering for all our students and staff. Desborough College is working in partnership with Catering Academy to ensure a healthier delivery of food to all its students and staff. Our dining room is open from breakfast onwards and offers hot and cold drinks, snacks, and home cooked meals created by the chef on our site. Samples of the Catering Academy menus can be found on the school website. Once your son is registered for our cashless catering system just follow the instructions on our website for the sQuid online payment system, and your son will be able to buy food in our dining room without the worry of remembering to ensure he has cash with him. The cashless facility has allowed us to provide the students with a quicker service as no money and change is being handled. Please be aware that there is no cash facility at the tills.
http://www.desborough.org.uk/sQUID-Online-Payments
Next Principal’s Surgery Parents wishing to have a private conversation with me about any issues relating to school are invited to attend my Principal’s surgery. The next one will be held on Friday 12 June 2015. These sessions are 10 minute slots. If you wish to have a longer conversation then please book a separate appointment via Nicola Humphries on 01628 762521.
Desborough College Shoppenhangers Road Maidenhead Berkshire SL6 2QB Tel: 01628 634505 Fax: 01628 639263 E-Mail: info@desborough-college.net
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Vacancies
ADMINISTRATION/FINANCE OFFICERS (1)Term time + 5 INSET days (2) 52 weeks per year Salary and hours for both posts are Grade 5 SCP 22-25 – Mon-Fri, 8 am to 4 pm The successful candidates must be able to work as part of a school team with excellent communication and interpersonal skills and have knowledge of SIMS, Word and Excel. For further information please refer to the full Job Descriptions for each role which can be found on our website at www.desborough.org.uk. Applications should be addressed to Tricia Jones at triciajones@desborough-college.net. you would like to discuss either of these roles please contact Tricia Jones on 01628 762524.
Alternatively, if
Closing date for applications: Wednesday 15 April 2014 ————————————————————————————-
FULL-TIME TEACHERS OF MATHS (Potential “Golden Hello” to outstanding candidates) To teach KS3,GCSE and A Level Mathematics.
PART-TIME TEACHER OF MFL To teach French and German at KS3 and KS4 and if possible A Level. All teaching posts are MPS + fringe. The posts could suit Newly Qualified Teachers, to whom a comprehensive support and development programme would be offered. Further information please see our web site www.desborough.org.uk. Please note that a CV alone will not be accepted. Applications should be addressed to Nicola Humphries at nicolahumphries@desborough-college.net
Closing date for applications: TBC All posts are subject to an enhanced DBS check.
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