Upper School Year Review

UPPER SCHOOL

YEAR REVIEW

When I arrived, 6 years ago, I did a presentation to parents about how leading a school was like getting on a ship that is already moving and how the aim was to get to the bridge as quickly as possible and take full command. In my final year at Harrow Bangkok, it is wonderful to look back on what we have achieved as a community, the storms we have weathered and the resilience we have developed. As I hand over to my successor, Kathryn Gavin, our ‘ship’ is on a clear head-ing and I know that she will be ready to get to the bridge very quickly and steer the ship on a new heading in her own style.

There is so much to reflect on from this past year. We were lucky to have a pretty normal first term and we used this time to make sure that we closed any potential gaps in learning from the previous year and pushed on with the courses of study, knowing that we might have to close again if COVID-19 returned. A highlight for me was inviting last year’s graduating class back with their parents to celebrate them finishing at Harrow Bangkok and going off to university. It was delightful to see our students able to participate in sports, music activities and House events and see the spirit and soul of the school come roaring back to life. The one thing we sorely missed was running residential House camps that have become a longstanding tradition. For me, the two highlights of the term were the House Music competitions, which included the standout performance of a Jamiroquai Beejees mashup performed by Nehru House, and Sports Day where the sports pitches were a sea of colour and students competed admirably.

UPPER SCHOOL

YEAR REVIEW

In Term 2, when we had to close again, the resilience of our students proved remarkable. Their transition to online learning was seamless and teachers commented on how impressed they were with how they adapted to learning online. Thankfully, it was only a short period and they were back in the classroom fairly quickly. For examination classes, the disruption was minimal. In some ways, they actually covered more and we found that the pace and intensity of learning can increase when learning online.

In Term 3, our examination students faced a highly disrupted examinations system with a mixture of examinations and internal assessments. It has been admirable how they have approached this and I would like to take this opportunity to wish them every future success. Sadly, the expeditions which we had hoped to run in Term 3 had to be cancelled. There was simply too much uncertainty given the COVID-19 situation.

As I come to the end of my time here, I would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone in this wonderful community. The staff are hugely dedicated and provide outstanding levels of support for our students. The students are delightful, dedicated and make us want to always go the extra mile to make sure they succeed. Our parent body is also hugely supportive. I would also like to thank all colleagues in the lower school who have contributed to my daughter’s education. It has been outstanding.

As I am staying in Bangkok to take on my next appointment, I hope to still ‘see you around’. Do come and say hello if I bump into you in a shopping centre.

Wishing you all the greatest successes in life and leadership.

Jonny Liddell Head of Upper School