Absolutely Education Dubai Spring/Summer 2017

EDUCATION

ABSOLUTELY

AB SO LUT E LY B R I T I S H E D U C AT I ON | D U B A I E D I T I O N

BRITISH

S P R I N G • S U M M E R 2 017

GO WEST

Applying to US universities

DUBAI EDITION

SPEAK OUT

Why the art of debating matters

SPRING • SUMMER 2017

TO BOARD OR NOT TO BOARD?

SUPER WOMAN

Meet the head’s wife

WWW.ZE ST.LONDON

OPEN DOORS

BE_Dubai_Cover.indd 1

TO A BRITISH EDUCATION

30/01/2017 10:26

Westonbirt gave me the opportunities to be Head Girl and to play lacrosse for England.

I was successful in gaining a place to read Medicine at Bristol University Emily

Visit the Westonbirt stand at the Independent Schools Show, Dubai, March 17 & 18.

From Sept’17: Day Fee £4,995/term; Boarding Fee £9,750/term.

E: admissions@westonbirt.org T: 01666 880333 www.westonbirt.org WESTONBIRT.indd 1 A4 - 26.1.17.indd 1 WBS - British Edu Dubai

26/01/2017 17:04 16:15

CONTENTS SPRING / SUMMER 2017

BRITISH E D U C AT ION EDITOR

Amanda Constance

UP FR O NT

A DV ERTISING M A NAGER

13 NEWS

56

What’s going on in the world of education

19 OVER BOARD

Your questions answered on boarding,

by Sue Anderson

Andy Mabbitt

SENIOR SA L ES E X ECU TI V E

Hayden Taylor

A RT DIR ECTOR

Phil Couzens

SENIOR DESIGNER

20 SOCAL NETWORK

Pawel Kuba

The parents job hunting at the school gates,

by Jasmine Robertson

DESIGNER S

Ekrem Yilmaz, Rebecca Noonan

P R EP

22 DISTANCE LEARNING

PRODUCTION M A NAGER

Chris Couchman

A Dubai parent shares her experience of UK boarding, by Sophie Pender-Cudlip

FINA NCE DIR ECTOR

Alexandra Hvid

26 MEET SUPERWOMAN The wives of prep heads are marvels, says Eleanor Doughty

PA TO THE DIR ECTOR S

Kerry Hollingsworth

32 STARTER FOR STEM

Why science must be taught in primaries,

by Hayley Jordan

34 EASTERN PROMISE

Why a dual language curriculum is a 21st century education, by Professor Hugo de Burgh

20

78

DIR ECTOR S

Greg Hughes, Alexandra Hunter

PUBL ISHING DIR ECTOR

Sherif Shaltout

For advertising enquiries please call 020 7704 0588 or email: advertising@zest-media.com Subscriptions are available simply by emailing marianne@zest-media.com

ZEST MEDIA PUBLICATIONS LTD 197-199, City Road, EC1V 1JN 020 7704 0588 ZEST-MEDIA.COM

SENIOR

36 SPEECH THERAPY Why debating helps engage pupils with politics, by Janette Wallis

48 GOING DOWN

Exhorbitant fees might be a thing of the past, says Lisa Freedman

48

Zest Media Publications Ltd. cannot accept responsibility for unsolicited submissions, manuscripts and photographs. While every care is taken, prices and details are subject to change and Zest Media Publications Ltd. take no responsibility for omissions or errors. We reserve the right to publish and edit any letters.All rights reserved.

@ABSOLUTELY_MAGS ‘ABSOLUTELY MAGAZINES’

56 GO SLOW

In an accelerating world, schools must provide balance, says David James S CHOOL LE AVER

68 ACROSS THE POND Tips on applying to US Universities,

by Dr Jon Tabbert S CHOOL’S OUT

76 HIT FOR SIX

Cricket is changing, even at schools, reports Mark Greenhouse L AST WORD

98 JOHN CLAUGHTON

Former Chief Master of King Edward's Birmingham and IB champion

F RO NT COV E R The cover depicts three pupils at St Francis' College, a boarding and day school for girls aged 3-18, in Hertfordshire. St Francis' College, Broadway, Letchworth Garden City, SG6 3PJ www.st-francis.herts.sch.uk

2017

Contents.indd 3

|

B R I T I S H E D U C AT I O N

|

3

27/01/2017 17:00

Fa de b”

.. eG oo

“D au Th nt

se

ols

Gu i

y’s d Sc is ho .

Discover Dauntsey’s

A home from home “Coming back to the Manor at the end of the day feels like coming home. There is so much to do and so many people I like - I’ve certainly never felt lonely!” - Second Form Boarder

Boarding & Day School Co-educational 11-18 www.dauntseys.org Wiltshire, Southern England, SN10 4HE - 150 km from London T. +44 1380 814500 DAUNTSEYS.indd 1 Spring 2017.indd 1 British Education Dubai

12/01/2017 11:25 12/01/2017 09:29:38

We l c o m e

From the

EDITOR

A

s someone whose childhood was almost entirely coloured by the works of Enid Blyton – I ached to be George from the Famous Five and eat midnight feasts at Mallory Towers – I am fascinated about how each generation relates to its fictionalised worlds. Enid Blyton means nothing to my own children.

Apart from the Faraway Tree, her books leaves them cold. Their idea of boarding school is solely based on Harry Potter. As soon as they spot a cape or funny hat, an ancient dining room or old-fashioned classroom, they declare ‘Ooh, it’s just like Harry Potter.” Every child their age is the same and so we are left with the irony that while Enid Blyton wrote

Boarding schools are now positively welcoming - no longer a place where someone is 'sent'. Indeed, even the most tweedy establishments now have pastoral care and PSHE lessons. But by far the biggest change, which Sophie Pender-Cudlip, a Dubai resident and mother-of-four writes about on page ??, is technology. Just as it has shrunk the world, technology has shrunk the distance between parent and child. You can now send your child to board in Britain and still know what they had for breakfast, lunch and supper; what mark they received in that Latin test and whether they scored a try in the afternoon match.

Pender-Cudlip knows only too well how miraculous Skype, FaceTime, WhatsApp and ancient old email can be for a heart-sore mother with an empty nest.

The best things haven’t

“THE MIRACLE OF TECHNOLOGY HAS SHRUNK THE DISTANCE BETWEEN PARENT AND BOARDING-SCHOOL CHILD” about boarding schools as a fantastic jolly jape with lashing of ice cream and soda pop when the reality was far harsher and colder, both emotionally and in actuality (brrr, those showers), JK Rowling conjures up an ancient world of magic and cloaked wizards and olde worlde schooling, just as boarding schools catch up with the 21st century.

Boarding schools have changed totally in the last few decades. There may be a whiff of Harry Potter in the grand staircases and vaulted halls but the bedrooms are likely to have all the mod cons and probably an en suite. I don’t think you’ll find many boarders sleeping in four-poster beds.

changed though. Visit a prep school like Hanford, Brambletye, Aldro, Beaudesert Park, Pinewood, Windlesham, Cottesmore, Hatherop Castle… (the list goes on and on) and you find a haven of green space and good outdoor earthy fun. Here children are building dens, riding ponies, playing conkers and no doubt having marvellous midnight feasts.

A bit like Mallory Towers, in fact.

I hope you enjoy this issue.

A ma nda Consta nce EDITOR

2017

BB_AW16_Eds_Letter.indd 5

|

B R I T I S H E D U C AT I O N

|

5

27/01/2017 17:04

• B R I T I S H E D U C AT I O N ’ S •

CON T R IBU TOR S

Charlotte Avery

Headmistress and President of the GSA

Charlotte Avery was educated at St Paul’s Girls’ School and Oxford. She is President of the Girls’ School Association (GSA) and Headmistress of St Mary’s School, Cambridge. She writes about engaging girls on page. 43 What omission do you regret in your own education?

I wish I had learned French more proficiently when I was at school, so that I would now be able to speak to my (French) mother-in-law more accurately!

Dr David James

Deputy Head (Academic) Bryanston

The best school?

The one offering the most choice.

David James has worked in independent schools for 20 years. His latest book, World Class: Tackling the Ten Biggest Challenges Facing Schools Today, will be published in May. He writes about the need to slow down on page. 56 What omission do you regret in your education?

My school didn’t tell me how important it is to develop contacts (and maintain them). Such skills are invaluable in life.

We are a highly successful co-educational school for 10 -18 year olds.

Choose from the IB Diploma Programme or A-levels.

Helen Peters

We offer boarding and day places.

Children's author

Helen Peters grew up on an old-fashioned farm in Sussex, surrounded by family, animals and mud. She is now a writer and lives at Roedean with her husband who is the headmaster. She writes about her dual lives on page. 75 What omission do you regret in your own education?

Art. I have a fantasy that when I’m an old lady I shall take art classes and then spend my holidays sitting at an easel in the Tuscan hills producing marvellous landscapes!

Call our Admissions team to join one of our open mornings or arrange a personalised visit

01572 758758 admissions@oakham.rutland.sch.uk

www.oakham.rutland.sch.uk

OAKHAM.indd 1

Contribs.indd 6

30/09/2016 12:50

30/01/2017 09:22

CHALLENGE

NURTURE

INSPIRE TAUNTONS.indd 1

12/01/2017 17:06

HA N F OR D Independent boarding & day school for girls aged 7 to 13

• B R I T I S H E D U C AT I O N ’ S •

CON T R IBU TOR S

“...if we had daughters we’d send them here” Tatler 2016

Cherishing childhood John Claughton

Legendary headmaster and IB champion

John Claughton was educated at King Edward’s School, Birmingham, and Oxford where he gained a double First in Classics and four cricket blues. He became Chief Master of KES in 2006 where he replaced A-Levels with the IB. He is interviewed on page. 98 What omission do you regret in your own education?

A failure to learn to dance, especially as I married a dancer.

Valuing individuality

Dr Jon Tabbert

Leading American university expert

A native of Chicago, Illinois Dr Jon Tabbert started an independent US admissions consultancy in 1995, to demystify the US application processes for students from the UK and abroad. He passes on his top tips on page. 68 What omission do you regret in your own education?

My lack of foreign language study. Very sad.

Nurturing talent

Sophie Pender-Cudlip Freelance journalist

Sophie Pender-Cudlip was educated at Leweston School and Reading University. She has four children, two dogs and lives between Dubai and Dorset. She writes about British boarding schools on page.22 What omission do you regret in your own education?

Not eating enough salad! We ate a lot of condensed milk out of tins.

To arrange a visit please call Karen on 01258 860219 email admissions@hanford.dorset.sch.uk www.hanfordschool.co.uk

HANFORD.indd 1

Contribs.indd 8

03/10/2016 11:17

30/01/2017 10:49

Study | Explore | Succeed

For more information or to arrange a visit contact: 01822 813193 admissions@mountkelly.com Mount Kelly . Parkwood Road . Tavistock . PL19 0HZ . UK www.mountkelly.com MOUNT KELLY.indd 1

03/10/2016 16:47

Registered Charity No. 312038

A DISTINCTIVE ROUTE TO HIGH ACHIEVEMENT FOR YOUR DAUGHTER

‘EXCELLENT’ in all 9 areas ISI Inspection 2016

GSA Girls’ Boarding and Day School 11-18 Situated in rural Surrey, since 1902. Entrance exams and interviews offered in country of residence

PRIORS FIELD.indd 1

admissions@ priorsfieldschool.com

26/01/2017 16:34

We l c o m e

From the

SCHOOLS SHOW

M

ore than 20,000 parents have visited our School Shows during the last decade. Our focus remains the same - to help parents save time and money, and provide the perfect environment in which to efficiently research and find the right school for their children.

We are delighted to be holding another Dubai show on 17th and 18th March at the accessible Sheraton Hall in the Mall of the Emirates.

Although schools need to demonstrate value by achieving top results, they equally need to provide their students with life skills for jobs that have not been invented yet.

The emphasis is on lessons learnt outside the classroom to prepare young adults to be the best they can

things boys and girls are doing at these schools, with the student-led plays, music, art and lectures.

They’re seizing all the opportunities before them.

The best schools don’t churn out generic public school fare; their students are passionate learners and highly engaging young adults, responsible and ready for the competitive and new world ahead.

In addition to the line-up of leading schools, we have devised a programme of talks to help Dubai-based families considering next steps, some highlights include: • A British Independent Education.

The best option for your child?

With Caitriona Redding, Head of International Admissions, Oundle School.

• IB or A-Level? Does it really make a difference? With Giles VosperBrown, Registrar, Malvern College.

“SCHOOLS MUST PROVIDE THEIR STUDENTS WITH LIFE SKILLS FOR JOBS THAT HAVE NOT BEEN INVENTED YET” be; the focus is on individual students and personal learning maps recognising that groups of children learn in different ways – no one size fits all.

Good schools, with the independence to govern themselves, remain unique. So are our children, and that’s what makes the show a highly relevant forum. Such schools are now harder than ever to get into as pre-tests creep earlier and minimum grade boundaries soar, but schools increasingly want a vibrant student body and good admissions teams look far beyond academic prowess.

I am completely amazed at the standards of

• How can you tell when your child is ready to board? With Lucy Thornton, Head of Admissions, Windlesham House.

I hope you can make the show this year and, like thousands of parents, leave inspired and encouraged by the school options available to us.

David Wellesley Wesley FOUNDER, BRITISH BOARDING SCHOOLS SHOWS

2017

David Letter_use.indd 11

|

B R I T I S H E D U C AT I O N

|

11

27/01/2017 17:05

Our aim is to anchor a 21st century education within the illustrious history of the oldest school in the country, dating from 597 AD. A King’s education rests on the simultaneous pursuit of academic and co-curricular excellence.

Situated in a UNESCO World Heritage Site within the Precincts of Canterbury Cathedral, the setting, by its very nature, creates a spiritually aware, historically informed and aesthetically appreciative community.

The King's education is based upon strong academic roots. It emphasises and relies upon what is best in traditional independent school education, namely scholarly excellence supported by a caring pastoral and tutorial system. The most popular leaver destinations are Oxford and Cambridge, the Russell Group of Universities and colleges in the USA. C

M

Y

King’s Week is a unique festival of music, drama, art and recreation that has been held every year in the last week of the Summer Term since 1952. Over 80 events ranging from jazz to dance, plays, lectures and recitals attracts thousands of visitors.

CM

MY

Over twenty sports are on offer from Rugby and Hockey, to Fencing and Equestrianism Eq with most pupils representing the school in inter-school fixtures.

CY

MY

K

Music at King’s has a distinguished history with a strong reputation for performances of outstanding quality and variety. Excellent facilities and generous awards are available for outstanding musicians.

OPEN DAYS - 13+ Entry - Saturday 11th March, Saturday 17th June Sixth Form Entry - Saturday 29th April, Saturday 7th October www.kings-school.co.uk KINGS SCHOOL CANTERBURY.indd 1

10/01/2017 12:11

Up Front SCHOOL NEWS

p.

14 TO BOARD OR NOT? p. 19 SOCIAL NETWORK p. 20

ART SCHOOL

Picture credit: Reproduced by permission of the Provost and Fellows of Eton College

John Constable's A Lady Looking at a Drawing. Part of the Loan Exhibition of drawings and watercolours from Eton College Collections exhibited at the Works on Paper Fair, at the Royal Geographical Society, South Kensington, from 9-12 February

2017

News_Openers.indd 13

|

B R I T I S H E D U C AT I O N

|

13

27/01/2017 17:15

Eve r y b o d y l ove s ku n g f u f ighting

ENGINEERING F E AT Two pupils from Bishop’s Stortford College, Hertfordshire, have been named recipients of an Arkwright Engineering Scholarship. Lower sixth students Chris Wilkin and Holly Radborne have been awarded two of the 413 scholarships to be given this year. Each scholarship is sponsored and includes work experience, support for A-Level projects or a personal mentor.

Chris will work with engineering consultancy Arup, and Holly with The Worshipful Company of Paviors, one of the City of London livery companies. John Trant, head of design and technology at BSC said: “Both Holly and Chris beat off strong competition for their places during a highly challenging selection process, which included an assessed online application for, a two hour technical design exam and a selection interview.”

Two brothers from Falcons School in Richmond have taken the top spots in a national Kung Fu competition. Yellow belts Sebastian, 12, and Ollie Crabb, 9, competed in the under-16 categories, despite having only recently taken up the sport.

Headmaster of Falcons School Deon Etzinger said: “We are extremely proud of Sebastian and Ollie’s achievements.

They both did incredibly well competing against much older children.”

O x b r i d ge q u a d s a t M a l ve r n S t Ja m e s Five pupils from Malvern St James School, Worcestershire, are celebrating having received offers to study at Oxford and Cambridge.

Congratulations girls!

Three for Oxford and two for Cambridge

To p o f t h e t a b l e Ackworth School in Pontefract, west Yorkshire, has been named the latest table tennis academy

by Table Tennis England. In September 2016 the school enrolled ten of the country’s top junior players, who receive 18 hours specialist coaching from top European coach Matjaz Sercer. In addition, Ackworth has opened opportunities up to pupils of local primary schools too with their table tennis talent development centre.

“We are honoured to have been appointed a table tennis academy,” said headmaster Anton Maree. “We are equally proud to assist local primary schools to develop one of the world’s most popular sports. ”

Chief inspector joins GEMS Sir Michael Wilshaw, former OFSTED chief inspector, has joined international education company GEMS to begin a new senior advisory role. Sir Michael will work alongside former Eton College headmaster Tony Little on the GEMS network of 88 independent schools. Sunny Varkey, chairman of GEMS said: “Sir Michael Wilshaw has a remarkable track record of transforming low-achieving schools in England into outstanding ones through strong values and innovative methods within classrooms.

We’re privileged to welcome someone of his distinction to advance the GEMS cause.”

14

|

B R I T I S H E D U C AT I O N

BE_News.indd 14

|

Sir Michael Wilshaw with Dino Varkey of Gems

2017

27/01/2017 17:14

UPFRON T / NEWS

By E L E A N O R D O U G H T Y

Turner Time

Top Story

“Teens hotfoot it to space with a little bit of a help from NASA”

Pupils at St Lawrence College, Ramsgate, have spent the past term celebrating the work of JMW Turner. As a sponsor of the gallery’s exhibition, JMW Turner: Adventures in Colour, the school embraced the theme with workshops at the gallery and activities in school. Principal Antony Spencer said: “The link we have with the Turner contemporary gallery is important to us, because we believe in the value of art and creativity in education. Young people who are able to express and understand themselves through words, music and art are more likely to succeed in the workplace.”

TOP OF THE CLASS New Hall School, Essex has been named the Times Education Supplement’s independent school of the year 2016. The principal, Katherine Jeffrey, said: “This recognition was unexpected and it is a real joy to know that our school is considered a model of excellence. We have been on a long journey of development in some challenging times.” The award comes after the school announced that it will open a new pre-prep building in 2018.

Hampstead teen soars into space Geno Racklin Asher, 14, from University College School in Hampstead has been made part of a team who will see their experiment carried out on the International Space Station. Last year when the 14-year-old applied for a space exploration summer course at King's College London he met astronauts from NASA and with his team, pitched their idea for an experiment on the ISS. Geno said: “We learnt a lot about things we would never have known about before, and it is amazing that we have an experiment in space.” The team is now waiting to send on instructions for the astronauts in the experiment.

Ballooning to victory Epsom College’s STEM club swept to victory in the Boscombe Down Balloon challenge. Organised by the Boscombe Down branch of the Royal Aeronautical Society to celebrate the society’s 150th anniversary, teams from 12 schools took part, aiming to launch highpressure foil balloons in a series of competitions over range, endurance and height, with the hope of winning a prize of £1,000 for their school.

Epsom won with their own homemade balloons, designed and built by sixth formers under the guidance of head of chemistry Jamie Styles. Mr Styles said: “Being able to launch multiple times gave us some excellent feedbacklaunch and improve our design, and software.”

“As a parent like any other, I know that a good education is the greatest gift we give our children” T O N Y L I T T L E , former headmaster of Eton College

SOMETHING THEY SAID “We class schools into four grades: leading school, first-rate school, good school and school” E V E LY N WA U G H , author, in his debut novel Decline & Fall (1928)

2017

BE_News.indd 15

{

{

|

B R I T I S H E D U C AT I O N

|

15

27/01/2017 17:14

how far would you go to get your child into the best school?

A leading co-educational Catholic boarding and day school for 3 – 18 year olds Developing outstanding leaders A school where each child receives extraordinary individual attention due to our unique heritage and tutor system, helping them fulfil their potential both as a person and a pupil Work experience and careers advice from Stonyhurst’s global community Producing world leaders for over 400 years

ARRANGE YOUR VISIT Please call to book a convenient time for you.

Excellent academic results Our top academic students (5 A*’s) receive Oxbridge offers with our other students achieving places in excellent universities We also offer the International Baccalaureate Diploma Top mark in 2016 was 44 out of 45 – equivalent to 6 A*s at A level

Caring pastoral ethos A vibrant boarding community

OPEN DAY INVITATION Open days arranged throughout the year.

Please see website for dates.

More than 100 clubs and activities – pupils participate in sport at all levels – from social to international Set in a beautiful rural location

Just over 2 hours from London by train and 1 hour from Manchester Airport

To book a visit or for more information, contact Mrs Lynnette Carr, Registrar, on 01254 827073 or email admissions@stonyhurst.ac.uk Stonyhurst, Clitheroe, Lancashire BB7 9PZ www.stonyhurst.ac.uk

STONYHURST COLLEGE.indd 1

26/01/2017 16:59

UPFRON T / NEWS

By E L E A N O R D O U G H T Y

No p h o n e z o n e

Sandhurst swo r d fo r D a u n t s ey ’s Old Dauntseian Rosie Wild was presented with the Sword of Honour at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst by HRH The Duchess of Cornwall in December 2016. Lt Col John Caiger said: “Rosie, from her first introduction to the Royal Artillery, displayed real talent.

She is a level-headed young officer with a glowing future in the Army.” Dauntsey’s tops the ‘Magnificent Seven’ league table of officer cadets at Sandhurst from independent schools.

A headmaster claims that he has revolutionised pupils’ behaviour by introducing a complete ban on mobile phones. Gregg Davies, headmaster of Shiplake College, Oxfordshire has decided to issue a detention to any pupil caught with a phone between 8.15am and 5.45pm. A new rule has been widely welcomed by parents, and Mr Davies claims that it has already made children happier now they are relieved of the pressure of ‘constantly showcasing life online’.

A recent study published by the London School of Economics fond that after schools banned mobile phones, test scores of 16-yearold pupils improved by 6.4 per cent.

“A nophone rule is welcome news”

Ron gets ready for a Quidditch match

Q U I D D I T H TA K E S OFF IN THE UK Good news for Harry Potter fans: a premier league has been set up for the best Quidditch players in the UK, with eight teams set to compete for the title of national champion. With 20,000 international players, 25 countries and even now, an international rulebook, Quidditch has well and truly been put on the map. In the Muggle world, the Harry Potter-inspired sport involves seven players on a pitch, each with a broom between their legs.

The Quidditch Premier League is an exciting opportunity and development,” said director Jack Lennard. “It’s an opportunity for more people in more places to find out about this incredible sport.”

For more information, visit quidditchpremierleague.com

Top Story

Fe a r s o m e Fe l s t e d h i t t h e p i t ch Seven hockey players from Felsted School, Essex, have been selected for the England high performance training squads.

Hockey at Felsted remains strong, and last season saw five teams compete to at least regional level, with U11, U13, U14 and U16 girls' teams crowned county champions.

SOMETHING THEY SAID “`I believe that what happens outside the classroom is as important as what happens inside.

Of course, exam results matter, but not as much as the qualities that allow pupils to leave school able to thrive in the fluid, ever-changing and let-go world of the 21st century. My favourite word at school is 'bouncebackability'" M A R K M O R T I M E R head of Warminster School

2017

BE_News.indd 17

|

B R I T I S H E D U C AT I O N

|

17

30/01/2017 09:30

WEEKLY BOARDING, FULL BOARDING AND DAY

HAPPINESS FIRST ACHIEVEMENT FIRST INDIVIDUALITY FIRST FRIENDS FIRST ENRICHMENT FIRST PROGRESS FIRST ALWAYS FIRST

HEATHFIELD SCHOOL, ASCOT Boarding and Day for Girls 11-18

VISIT US FIRST

OPEN DAYS

SATURDAY 4 MARCH & 20 MAY 10am - 12 noon PLEASE EMAIL:

registrar@heathfieldschool.net TO BOOK A PLACE OR TO ARRANGE A PRIVATE TOUR

heathfieldschool.net

HEATHFIELD.indd 1

17/01/2017 14:42

UPFRON T / OPINION

THE ‘B’ WORD To board or not to board? That is the question. Sue Anderson of Anderson Consulting has some answers

T

o board or not to board? This is a very difficult decision for most parents, Harry Potter inspired children and many are keen to experience the fun ofboarding school.

Of the 73,000 children currently boarding at schools in Britain, the vast majority are there because they actually want to be, for many it was their idea.

Preparation and planning is key to ensuring a successful boarding school placement. We all have access to the internet, research can of course be confusing, there is a lot of choice, they all look wonderful and families often do not know where to start. Talking to an education specialist for help and advice is a good starting point.

Short listing and visiting three or four schools an important part of the process and will be a deciding factor in selecting the right school. Meet as many people at these schools as you can. They are going to be a part of your child’s life, and are far more

“Parents of new boarders say how independent they become” important than the beautiful buildings and excellent facilities on offer.

“We took the kids out of school for a week and flew back to the UK to visit schools. It was a fascinating experience. Never had I seen schools so welcoming and interested in us. We came out of the first school and sat in the car, took a deep breath and went 'Wow!' The decision was made there and then that we would be happy to board.” (Ian, father of two new boarders.)

The boarding house parents have a wealth of experience in settling new boarders into their care. Schools are

A B OV E happy to arrange taster days or shoulders and lack of eye contact Pupils at sleepovers before the new boarder whilst mumbling monosyllabic Wellington starts and arrange buddies and answers to the simplest questions.

College mentors with current pupils to help She had negotiated both Heathrow them settle quickly. Open lines of and Dubai airports successfully communication are encouraged between and with the minimum of fuss and even children and parents; the first point of remembered to pack the correct books to contact will often be the house parents in do her holiday homework. I am so pleased the boarding house. we took the plunge and let her do this”.

“It’s harder on the parents," says Jane a (Sharon, a Dubai Mum) housemistress. "Boarding life is structured; We have visited over 350 UK boarding the children are kept very busy from the schools and offer free help and advice time they are woken until they go to bed. to families; “this first-hand knowledge After the school day has finished there are enables us to identify what is special and activities, sports training, music lesson, unique about each school and match this drama rehearsals, prep (homework), with the needs of each child. The ease and supper, and lots of fun and laughter.” convenience of our special educational Parents of new boarders service aims to make the will often comment on how search for the best school a independent and confident stress free experience”. their children have become...

“Deborah recently came home for half-term; we could The UK Boardng School not believe how much she Exhibition Dubai, Friday had changed in just six short 10th February - Saturday 11th weeks. There was an air of February. Grosvenor House confidence that had been Hotel, Dubai Marina.

SUE ANDERSON Anderson Consulting missing before, a real sense of For more info visit: self-worth. No more slouched andersoneducation.com.

2017

ANDERSON Consulting.indd 19

|

B R I T I S H E D U C AT I O N

|

19

27/01/2017 17:01

HIGH-WORTH

NETWORK London’s top preps are fertile hunting grounds for pushy parents wanting to get-ahead in their own careers JASMINE ROBERTSON

W

hen Abigail, an exCity lawyer, found herself as a single mum with two young daughters and in need of a new job, she knew exactly what her game plan was.

Get her daughters into Pembridge Hall, one of Notting Hill’s most elite preps known for its head count of senior bankers, get networking and nab herself a job back in the City.

So she did. She’s now back in the Square Mile and her girls are getting a pretty good education, too.

Parents, particularly of primary-aged school children, have long made firm friendships at the school gates. But with more and more women working, starting up and running their own business, they are also a great place for meeting and making business contacts. As the Talented Ladies Club website says: “The school gates are a brilliant chance to get to know a fresh group of talented mums and open your professional network even wider.”

We’re not talking networking in pinstripes in a monochrome office. This is more likely to be

a morning coffee in parkas and Uggs after drop off. But where mum’s coffee mornings might have once revolved around the kids, the dog and where to find a decent plumber, they are now just as likely to include how to 'up your SEOs', drive traffic to your site, or catching up with a friend on a new business pitch. Among my immediate group of school friends, there are senior editors, publishers, TV producers, account managers, lawyers and heads of charities. I was recently at my son's football match with one eye on the ball whilst discussing a how best to launch a brand with another mum, a lawyer and branding expert at one of the world’s largest drinks companies. Women have always been collaborative and involved with each other, just in some cases this has shifted out of the home and into the workplace.

And it’s not just women taking advantage. Just as mothers have got more involved in the working world, dads are more involved with their kids and will often be at the school gates and at sports matches and this can lead to all sorts of networking opportunities.

“It’s all about the school gate mate,” says Jonny.

A partner at a City law firm with four children at prep schools in north London, he says many a valuable client has been snagged through school

Many a valuable client or job has been nabbed via a ‘school gate mate’

20

|

B R I T I S H E D U C AT I O N

Social Network.indd 20

|

2017

27/01/2017 17:18

UPFRON T / OPINION

A B OV E

people. This is because you are already in the club – you are at the school so you have proved yourself, proved you are successful enough to have afforded it in the first place, so the guards come down and you can be genuinely matey.”

He points out it’s also “a stage of life thing”– when children are at primary school, parents tend to fit 35-45 age bracket – they are doing well but yet to peak career wise “it’s a very dynamic phase professionally and you are looking to talk to people about how it’s going to happen,” he says.

Jonny says what starts out as men comparing how rich and successful they are “ends up being collaborative and supportive – sort of like NCT meets the boardroom,” he says. When he went through a turbulent work patch, he found the interest and concern of other dads at his children’s

‘So many contacts, so little time’.

schools genuinely helpful.

Sport matches are a brilliant place to talk shop.

Hours and hours can be spent on a touchline where any conversation can be a boon and men, in particular, chat easily and openly when there is sport in the background. At a recent football match Jonny was chatting with a fellow dad “about how much he makes and how much he takes home. I would never have a conversation like that with a partner at work or a client,” he says.

The professional tribes you will meet depends very much on the type of school and which village of London you live in. Bankers, VCs, private equity boys and corporate lawyers will be at prep schools in the ‘posh’ pockets: Notting Hill and Holland Park, Hampstead, Chelsea, Dulwich and so on. Actors and illustrious

media folk from the worlds of TV, film, advertising etc, maybe further afield and many of London’s best state schools attract big names from the creative industries.

The world of private schools used to be riddled with that very English disease of class. One big change in melting pot London at least, is that social networking at the school gates has become “very international and meritocratic. It’s not about who you know and much more about what you do,” says Jonny.

And of course, no one is recommending you choose a school for your child based on how it will improve your job prospects but with nepotism and the old-school tie less of a workable option and Facebook and Linkedin too ghastly for words it might be worth considering when you fill in those forms.

2017

Social Network.indd 21

|

B R I T I S H E D U C AT I O N

|

21

27/01/2017 17:18

FROM A DISTANCE A Dubai parent shares her experience of choosing a UK boarding school education for her children.

SOPHIE PENDER-CUDLIP

M

ummy, all I want for Christmas this year is to go to boarding school,” said a small voice from the back of the car on the school run. He is seven and the youngest of our four children. To me, he is my baby. He still holds my hand walking into school and he still tries to sneak into my bed at night. His three older siblings board in the UK so I suppose the comment came as no surprise.

He chats to them on Skype every week and keenly listens to what they’ve been up to.

He reads their regular match reports on their school intranet. He pours over photos of them having fun at the fireworks party.

He listens wide-eyed about the weekend camp in the woods where the boys carved out pumpkins and slept in bell tents and he relishes in the latest dormitory antics.

When I was nine I said to my mother that I wanted to board and probably from the back of the car where I also couldn’t catch her eye. Again, I was the youngest and quite frankly wanted to follow my two older brothers. I couldn’t think of anything nicer than devouring a whole tuck box full of treats and roller skating through the school corridors with a gaggle of other girls. My mother relented and I enjoyed some of the best years of my life. However, when I was 22

|

B R I T I S H E D U C AT I O N

Sophie PC.indd 22

|

“21st century boarding bears no resemblance to 20 or even 10 years ago” a bit older my parents were posted to Saudi Arabia and I became an overseas boarder.

With a weekly phone call and the odd letter arriving, I found it desperately hard. To this day, I struggle with airport farewells.

When we moved to Dubai, boarding wasn’t the plan but like many families we ended up heading down that road.

21st century overseas boarding bears no resemblance to boarding twenty or even ten years ago. Stephen Ilett, Headmaster at Port Regis prep school in Dorset, says: “Boarding has changed beyond recognition.

Now, children almost exclusively board because they want to. Parents don’t ‘send’ their children to board anymore.”

Communication has transformed overseas boarding as children are able to Skype, use What’s App and text on mobiles.

Schools are progressing all forms of their communication to include live streaming of children in concerts or performing in school plays, so parents like us can sit back in Dubai and enjoy, albeit a rather late, evening’s entertainment. At Port Regis,

reports are posted after each match and although you may not be there on the touchline, you can read how your child played. Bryanston, a senior co-ed school in Dorset, has an impressive E-chart system where grades are posted after every lesson, together with a weekly comment from the pupil’s tutor. This enables parents to not only spot when their teen might be slacking but also when they’ve done particularly well.

Pastoral care too has progressed with dragon-like matrons being replaced by houseparents with their own families and the occasional black Labrador. Most of them are also trained counsellors. Phil Lawrence, a housemaster at Port Regis says, “It is now far more recognised that it is healthy to be emotionally open and show feelings rather than bottling them up. Houseparents are much more patient, aware and understanding of homesickness and have more strategies to deal with it.

Our ‘emotional intelligence’ is much better.”

Fiona MacKenzie, Director of Middle East at Gabbitas, says, “Pastoral and academic staff are professionals and they get to know your child very well.”

Facilities too have developed from Enid Blyton-style sparseness to accommodation that’s more akin to five star hotels. At Port Regis, children in the last two years have private ensuite facilities and can relax in chill-out rooms with flat screen TVs, pool tables and even an outdoor vintage caravan.

2017

27/01/2017 17:19

PR EP / BOA R DING

A B OV E

Port Regis pupils BELOW St Mary’s Shaftesbury have The vintage caravan power showers, fresh flowers at Port Regis and stunning views from all the bright dormitories. Bryanston pupils enjoy a cafe on site where they can pick up the odd cappuccino in between lessons. School food is no longer boiled cabbage and spam but organic, wholesome and fresh.

Choosing the right school can be tough, particularly when you are faced with glossy websites and can’t just nip down the M3 for an Open Day. “Some parents choose a school on the basis of where they have family or friends who can step in for exeat weekends, but others have no connection whatsoever to an area or even to the country,” says Elaine Stallard, Founder and CEO of Winter’s International School Finder. “It’s an extremely important decision for any parent to make,” she adds. Erika Clements, a Dubai mother of three, chose UK boarding for her daughter.

“We are from the US and selected a UK boarding school after looking at schools

Above Are our public exams no longer suitable?

2017

Sophie PC.indd 23

|

B R I T I S H E D U C AT I O N

|

23

27/01/2017 17:19

ANDERSON EDUCATION.indd 1

26/01/2017 15:55

PR EP / BOA R DING

KEY FACTS

487

boarding schools in the UK

.

70,000 boarders

.

27,000 non British boarders

.

5,000

British pupils from overseas

.

Minimum of 5 hours a week playing sport

.

2 hours performing arts

.

40% entry to Oxford and Cambridge

.

A B OV E

Happy boarding pupils at Port Regis

in Switzerland and America.

We felt the UK is the leader in boarding school education. Initially I had no foundation and didn’t even know what to look for or where to look.”

Clements had a few friends in the UK and tapped into them for guidance and then toured some schools herself. She settled on an all girls school with a full boarding environment because, “I didn’t want her to be alone at the weekends.”

She wanted a school with a large British population as “coming from Dubai we had experienced a very transient international population.” Excellent communication was a top priority and the school she ultimately selected was the most responsive sending a, “lovely personalised thank you email after our visit. This small touch made a big difference.”

Boarding schools are brimming with extra-curricular activities but it is worth checking that weekends are just as busy with full boarders of all nationality staying in. Magnus Bashaarat, Headmaster at Milton Abbey, says, “The school needs to have the right boarding offering for overseas families, which means full boarding. When visiting the school ask the pupil showing you round how many boarders there are for breakfast on Sunday. If you’re living in Dubai and you get a Skype call from your child who says there isn’t anyone at school, then you’ll have an unhappy child.” Having a proper boarding ‘community’ is crucial for successful boarding.

After making such a huge family decision, facing the opinions of other parents can be hard. For some, boarding is a total unknown and parents can’t even fathom it for their family.

Comments like “we couldn’t do boarding as our family are too close,” or “why have children if you send them to board,” are tough to deal with. The key thing is to keep focused on your decision as a family and remind yourself how happy your children are. Erika Clements adds, “Being away in Dubai is challenging but we live chat all the time. She calls me to tell me the funniest things and I get to see her face, her room, her friends as they giggle and shriek in excitement like normal 13 year-olds. I feel like we’re closer than ever.”

For all of us boarding parents there is no getting way from the ‘count downs’. We count down until they’re leaving and we count down until they’re home. But when we’re together, we enjoy every moment we have - laughing, teasing and listening to everything they have to say and they leave on a high, excited about seeing their friends.

On a practical note, a UK boarding education isn’t cheap, particularly when you take into account flights and taxi fares.

Fees now sit at around £15,000-35,000 per year (£10,000-14,000 for state boarding) but with school fees rising in Dubai, a fall in sterling and flash flight sales, UK boarding education is now back on the radar for many expats. As Mary Arnal, headmistress at St Mary's Shaftesbury says: “The world is getting smaller and boarding is becoming ever more attractive and accessible to overseas pupils.”

below 9.1% pupil to staff ratio

.

9 out of 10 go to top 15 universities according to ISC 2016 census.

Key factors to consider when choosing a boarding school from overseas Are there family or friends nearby?

How many boarders are there and how many are overseas?

.

What is the split between international and expat boarders?

.

How many children are full boarding, weekly or flexi?

.

How and when can I communicate with my child? What’s the WIFI like?

.

How far is the school from the airport or what are the transport links like?

.

Meet and get to know the pastoral care team.

Take into consideration the time difference.

.

Don’t listen too much to other parents unless they have something helpful to say.

“Check that weekends are busy with full boarders of all nationalities staying in. A proper boarding community is crucial” 2017

Sophie PC.indd 25

|

B R I T I S H E D U C AT I O N

|

25

27/01/2017 17:20

Behind every good man…

There’s a good woman and no more so than in the UK’s prep schools. Welcome to the world of the unsung superstar, the headmaster’s wife ELEANOR DOUGHTY

A

t every prep school there exists a superwoman. She rounds up children for bed, comforts them when they’re sad, and attends every games match. Mums will make their judgement on her, when visiting a school for the first time. They will describe her as a “big sister” – the mum who knows what it’s like.

She is the headmaster’s wife.

And yet her job is relatively unsung.

Despite a relentless timetable of jobs day on day, the headmaster’s wife rarely gets the credit she deserves for wearing hundreds of hats at once.

It’s more than a job, says Carey Lankester, who has been married to Robert, headmaster of Maidwell Hall School in Northamptonshire for 32 years. “It’s a way of life.” The Lankesters’ life changed 26

|

B R I T I S H E D U C AT I O N

ED_Sept16_Gifted 2.indd 26

|

“I’m involved in so many different areas which makes it fascinating and never boring” drastically when Robert began to get itchy feet at his job in the City, and decided that he wanted to go into teaching. Carey, with a background in Montessori, encouraged him, and the couple moved to Durham to allow Robert to complete a PGCE. Soon after, they were straight into life at Uppingham.

“He was just teaching there initially, and then after two years he was asked to go into a boarding house,” Carey explains. This was to kick-start a chain of events that would lead the Lankesters to Maidwell Hall, where they have been for the last 16 years. This will be their last school, Carey says. “We’ve got six more years and then we retire. We

wouldn’t want to go anywhere else.”

Life at Maidwell - a “really proper school”, says one parent, where the children wear blue cords and tweed jackets as uniform, and don’t watch television – has been revolutionised by the Lankesters, who introduced co-education six years ago. But what has remained traditional is Carey’s role as headmaster’s wife. “Robert is the boss,” she says. “But we do everything together. It’s very much a joint thing.”

The job involves a huge number of hats.

“I’m involved in so many different areas which makes it fascinating and never boring – from teaching drama and life skills, boarding duties, being a tutor, just everything. It’s a hugely varied role.”

At Hanford School in Dorset, Georgina “George” Johnston is in her third year of headmaster’s wifing. She married Rory, a former Deutsche Bank accountant, 20 years ago, and never expected that she would end up back at school. In 2008, Rory decided that enough was enough in the City and

2017

27/01/2017 17:08

PR EP / FE ATUR E

A B OV E

Georgina Johnston at Hanford School BELOW

Carey Lankester at Maidwell Hall

looked instead to teaching. “He was always one of those people that when friends came to the house, the children gravitated towards,” George says. So teaching it was, and the couple moved to Horris Hill School in Berkshire, where, after a year, they were asked to become house-parents for the junior boarding house. Three years later, they moved to Hanford for the headship.

Luckily, both Johnstons were used to the busyness of boarding school life, having been full boarders in prep and public school as children. “My father was in the army, so I know what it’s like to be moved around the world, when home is not home,” George says. “But my school in Norfolk was really wonderful – it didn’t matter where home with my parents was.” It is this experience that has focussed her mind on creating a home away from home for the 100 girls at Hanford.

Pastoral care is key, she says. “I’m everybody’s mummy up to a point – they know the things I won’t tolerate, which are generally unkindness and dishonesty.” From

Above Are our public exams no longer suitable?

2017

ED_Sept16_Gifted 2.indd 27

|

B R I T I S H E D U C AT I O N

|

27

27/01/2017 17:08

FELSTED.indd 1

30/09/2016 18:30

PR EP / FE ATUR E

"One has got to be a little bit of a nurse, a little bit of a cook, a magician sometimes"

Horris Hill, the Johnstons brought with them a pastoral tutor system, where each child has a “go-to adult, who they can sit down with once a week or maybe more”.

No two days are the same, George laughs. “I’m on hand shortly after breakfast time until after bedtime.” Each can involve dealing with the matrons to organising birthday parties, taking children to appointments, and “helping to scatter around a little bit of glitter as I go really, to make everyone happy”.

She compares the job to being head of a household. “I do sometimes feel like lady of the manor with a bunch of keys at my hips. One has got to be a little bit of a nurse, a little bit of a cook, a magician sometimes.” It is physically and mentally

Role models have been everything to Fiona. She names her mother as one.

“She was doing this job 50 years ago, and I can remember in the early days sticking stamps on envelopes and sending out reports. She was a very calm person.”

Bridget Woodcock, former headmaster’s wife at Dulwich Prep School has also been inspirational. “When we moved here she said to me that the most important job for the headmaster’s wife was to look after the headmaster!” And Cheryl Trafford, whose husband Roger was head of the Dragon until 2002, “was such a good role model.

Dragon is a big boarding school, and there were a lot of couples running houses, all with small children. Cheryl knew what that was like.”

Having someone to listen to you, when you are everyone’s go-to listener, is critical, Fiona says. One of her closest friends is Henrietta Hoyland, the headmaster’s wife at Pinewood School in Wiltshire. “We were both housemasters’ wives at the Dragon, and she is somebody that I trust 100 per cent,” Fiona says. “I can go to her for advice and know that it’ll be completely confidential.” With Ludgrove, Wellesley House, Pinewood, Moulsford and Cheam, Beaudesert is included in a group of schools that meet twice a year. “We need to support each other because it can be a lonely job,” Fiona says. “You’ve got to be very discreet – you’ve got parents, children and staff to deal with. It’s a very close community.”

George Johnston wouldn’t A B OV E change her job for the world – Fiona Womersley with her husband and pupils even if it defies the conventions demanding, however. at Beaudesert Park of full time work. Hanford is a “To everyone you are School far cry from her previous life as the main person, and a stay-at-home mum “who made that’s 100 children and everything that everyone ate, and potentially 200 adults who grew stuff that everyone ate”. Now, have a demand on your time. she laughs, she is the envy of most of her It can be very tiring if everyone friends. “They’re getting to the stage with wants a bit of you all at once.” children who are growing up, and they For Fiona Womersley, wife of James, are wondering what to do with their time headmaster of Beaudesert Park School in – staring down the barrel of a good 20-30 Gloucestershire, life in a boarding school years of working time.” Children keep you is more familiar still. The daughter of on your toes – “and your mind whirring”. teachers, she grew up in a prep school, Truly, she says, it is “one of the best jobs where her mother was headmaster’s wife. going. Having had two children of my own, She met James 30 years ago, and for the I have inherited hundreds of everybody majority of their married life they have else’s, which is lovely. I’m like Old Mother worked in schools together – first running Hubbard.” a boarding house at the Dragon School in Oxford.

2017

ED_Sept16_Gifted 2.indd 29

|

B R I T I S H E D U C AT I O N

BA R

C

Indepe

|

29

30/01/2017 10:52

PR EP / OPINION

Talking

HEAD

ALL JOIN IN James Hanson, Headmaster of Aldro, says an ethos of inclusivity and opportunity are key for boys’ prep schools

G

reat to see you on the pitch, Fred, you were playing brilliantly!” I said, as he sat down after finishing the U11 E football match. Clearly he had run hard, but he was looking proud of himself. He replied: “Thank you, Sir, I really enjoyed it; my coach suggested that if I played two games for the E’s this half-term, he was happy for me to go sailing on every other Wednesday afternoon – the best of both worlds for me.”

We may be different to other schools in our approach, but I wouldn’t have it any other way. My Directors of Sport and Music embody the same philosophy – inclusivity and opportunity – these make the best prep school education for boys. Alongside the centrality of academic excellence, we want every boy to have the chance to represent their school team in matches, and also every boy to have the opportunity to perform on stage in form assemblies, school

“Boys nag, cajole, beg and plead with their parents to board at Aldro” performances and informal concerts. We all know boys who need more encouragement to take part in activities, but to us, taking part is second nature. Aldro also offers an environment where chess is as important as football for the boys, resilience is taught gently from day one, reading is a central pillar and is totally embraced by all boys, and Swedish longball is a firm favourite.

In an age when boarding is potentially going out of fashion, we see quite the opposite. We don’t push boys to board, parents don’t force it either – it happens 30

|

B R I T I S H E D U C AT I O N

TH Aldro.indd 30

|

play in informal concerts because they want to build confidence. Performing to 10 rapidly becomes 800 for the carol service; next step they will be playing to a stadium full of people. Boys choose to sing in the choir right up until 13, which is one of the key advantages of a boy-only education.

Boys also need a long day and long week - they need to be challenged, fulfilled and nurtured. The worst cases are where boys are unfulfilled and bored, so I can’t understand schools that run Monday to Friday 9-4pm. Where is the fun in learning going to happen?

How can you guarantee not to miss a potential talent in a A B OV E because boys ask, child, ready to be nurtured?

‘The Crows’ nag, cajole, beg, plead Boys, especially, need to avoid growing Nest’: Aldro boys with their parents up too quickly. During the autumn, they are having fun to make it happen. If just as happy swapping Match Attack cards, our boys want more playing conkers, climbing on our wooden school, who are we to say no? For me, it is fort or building a den. a no-brainer: vertical friendships, dormBoys also love being outdoors in lessons decorating competitions for Christmas, - rebuilding Stonehenge out of cardboard waking up looking out on onto the most boxes or simulating an electric circuit by beautiful prep school view in the country, running round a court as current past joining a family community of 200 brothers, through different elements of the circuit taking part in the boarders’ feasts, the best are fun and proper kinaesthetic learning. food in the land too (however rare that We do PSHCE outdoors too. Why not teach might be for a prep school). community using a climbing frame, weeding If we ask for volunteers in assembly or the school vegetable patch, or building chapel, we get 95% of hands human chain to cross our lake going up straight away. “Even using just the wire bridge? We if it means coming up in also have the huge bonus of front of everyone to do some not being a linked or through impromptu drama?”, I ask junior school – so we aren’t them. Perhaps two hands forcing them into the same disappear, but still more than senior school. Ours go off to 90% stay resolutely high, over 20 different destinations, wanting to be involved. Over almost all of them at 13, so we 90% of all boys take music or help them go to the right fit for JAMES HANSON Headmaster instrumental music lessons, them – the end goal of a great Aldro with 75% volunteering to prep school education.

2017

27/01/2017 17:23

OFFERING AN

OUT STANDING EDUCATION

Outstanding off the field…

And on the field…

• Top 5% of UK Schools for value-added, 2015

• No.1 UK Junior Golf School (ISGA, 2014/15 and 2015/16)

• 97% A*- C pass rate at GCSE* • 90% of pupils gained places at their first or second choice university* • 50% of pupils went to UK Russell Group Universities, Bath, Cambridge, Oxford, St Andrews and leading international institutions* • SAT support clinics for applicants for American Universities held weekly. Students have gained admission to Ivy League Universities, such as Cornell and Brown • Gradual progression to secondary teaching from Primary 6

• No.3 UK Tennis School (LTA, 2016) • Representation in all of the 2015/16 Scottish National Rugby Teams • In 2015/16, there were 87 different teams, of all abilities, playing competitive fixtures across 16 sports: a total of 590 fixtures • 89% of all pupils, from 7-18, represented the School in sport in 2015/16 • New floodlit 2G AstroTurf *Academic Results 2015/16

“A balanced curriculum, excellent pastoral care and a high A Level pass rate make Merchiston one of the UK’s leading independent schools.” www.ukboardingschools.com

Direct flights from Abu Dhabi and Dubai to Scotland. We are 15 minutes from Edinburgh International Airport. +44 (0)131 312 2201 MERCHISTON.CO.UK Recognised by the Inland Revenue as a Charity, number SC016580 Merchiston Castle School, Colinton Road, Edinburgh, EH13 0PU, Scotland

MERCHISTON.indd 1

A Boarding and Day School for Boys aged 7- 18

27/01/2017 10:28

PR EP / OPINION

STARTER FOR STEM Hayley Jordan, STEM coordinator at Parsons Green Prep, on the importance of teaching these subjects at primary school

S

TEM influences nearly every part of our daily lives and is an area of industry set to burgeon in the future. As a result, it has already become an important aspect of the curriculum in secondary schools. Primary teachers are also keen to see STEM embedded in their curriculum.

Many primary schools could argue that they have been teaching STEM before the term was even coined, but it is becoming more explicit within the education setting as schools like Parsons Green Prep prepare their children for jobs that don’t yet exist.

That is a tall order for any subject so how does STEM do this? Rather than focusing on just subject knowledge, Parsons Green Prep encourages children to develop their skill set by finding out about the world around them. Inquiry learning is made more relevant through real life links and self-led problem-solving projects.

Listening to one another’s ideas and building upon what is said exposes children’s preconceived ideas, opens their eyes to alternatives and lets them find the truth of these. Taking turns and sharing

“STEM is needed in primary settings as we prepare children for jobs that don’t yet exist” are important contributions in developing a systematic approach to problem solving, building up thinking, patience and resilience. These skills are transferable into life inside the school as well as out.

At Parsons Green Prep a creative crosscurricular approach ensures that subjects are linked with purpose. For example, when Year 4 studied ‘Invasions’, they planned their own invasion through computing (using Scratch programing), explored 32

|

B R I T I S H E D U C AT I O N

STEM in Prep.indd 32

|

A B OV E

forces and materials in science to engineer attack catapults, and linked everything together with maths through measurement, use of Roman numerals, calculations and directions.

Explicit STEM sessions each week allow children to find common interests they want to explore, reinforcing learning. Year 6 are proud to show off the Lego WeDo creatures they have been working on. These animals have been programmed to move and create sounds. At the other end of the school, Year 1 have been developing tall structures.

Recognising how to organise spaghetti with marshmallows resulted in some sticky yet memorable moments. In all classes selfcontrol and teamwork is evident in problem solving.

Termly STEM activities are lauded to raise the STEM profile and children’s excitement. House Days offer full inclusivity to the pupils at Parsons Green Prep, providing children in Years 1 to 6 the chance to work together and collaborate, allowing for deeper learning. At our most recent House Day children turned detective, solving a murder mystery through chromatography, before taking a A pupil studies a model of the human brain

well-earned break by creating their own slushies, measuring out liquids and observing the chemical reactions between ice and salt.

The pupils love STEM and it is a highlight of the weekly timetable. ‘I’m so glad we are given the chance to learn about these subjects as they are fascinating,’ Amalie recently said. ‘I think we will be better prepared for secondary school because of the work we have done.’ With the after-school STEM club fully subscribed to, it appears parents and children are in agreement.

STEM projects are not just limited to the classroom. Parents get to join in the fun with termly homework projects. Open-ended tasks like the World of Wonder space project allowed pupils to pursue their interest and bring their parents along the way.

The school picked up the ISA school award for STEM this year and headteacher Helen Stavert believes that STEM has had a massive impact on the teaching and learning in school. "Parsons Green Prep School is a huge advocate of STEM, which are key subjects for securing positive opportunities and career paths for future generations. Primary school is the perfect starting point to encourage children to explore and begin to understand and realise the links between these subjects and why we study them."

H AY L E Y J O R DA N A Year 4 teacher and STEM coordinator at Parsons Green Prep

2017

27/01/2017 17:22

To learn more about Uppingham School, situated in a beautiful part of central England, please visit www.uppingham.co.uk or contact Admissions on +44 (0) 1572 820611 Uppingham School, Rutland LE15 9QE : Co-educational : 13-18

UPPINGHAM.indd 1

Reg Charity No. 1147280

There are very few real boarding schools left.

With 99% of pupils boarding, Uppingham is one of them.

If full boarding is what you want we believe we are among the best.

01/02/2016 14:32

Eastern PROMISE The Chairman of Kensington Wade School, explains why its dual language curriculum really is schooling for the 21st century.

PROFESSOR HUGO DE BURGH

E

urope’s first English Chinese Dual Language Early Years and Prep School is opening in London in September 2017.

Kensington Wade’s children will not only be prepared for the best independent schools by the time they are ready for Common Entrance, but also be fluent in Chinese. Why and how?

Four insights are behind it. Now that so much international business is conducted by Chinese speakers, being able to mix in their world is a precious asset which more and more parents want. China is the most important trading partner of more countries than any other (124), and set to be the largest economy by 2020. China also happen to be the most advanced in the use of digital media, with more New Media users than any other country and more netizens than India and the USA combined. Clocking this, British Ministers have encouraged Chinese language teaching in British schools such that 17% of state and 45% of independent schools now have some kind of provision and there will be

many more in future. Many argue that it is more useful for children that French be replaced by with Chinese as the obligatory foreign language, and that as an intellectual exercise it is at least as instructive as Latin; but these are not the only reasons for the ‘Chinese turn’.

A consensus has emerged that we have a good deal to learn from Chinese schooling.

Our Department for Education is driving the initiative to introduce Chinese-based Maths Mastery into schools and has encouraged English head teachers and maths specialists to go to Shanghai to find out why children do so well there.

For Chinese children in some parts of the country learn mathematics better and faster than comparable age groups in Anglosphere schools; if the PISA test results are to be believed, Shanghai children are the world leaders. This is not because of ‘rote’ learning; rather the opposite. A team of UK math teachers that went to Shanghai found that their peers have more time to prepare classes, give fuller feedback, inspire collaboration between advanced and laggard pupils and get their classes to focus, concentrate, better. Our Education Minister Nick Gibb

Scientists have identified special cognitive benefits from learning Chinese

34

|

B R I T I S H E D U C AT I O N

Eng/Chinese Education.indd 34

|

has set up 35 specialist teaching centres to spread Maths Mastery techniques and now plan that 8,000 primary schools will re-introduce whole class teaching ‘the Chinese way’.

Even these arguments are not the decisive ones that underpin Kensington Wade’s curriculum, developed with help from Roger Trafford, recent Head of The Dragon, professionals from Westminster School and the Head of Peking University’s junior schools programme.

For the third insight is that bilingualism

2017

27/01/2017 17:06

PR EP / FE ATUR E

is of immense benefit. Becoming bilingual through immersion is quite different from learning a language merely as a foreign language, with a very small number of hours per week. Around 450 bilingual schools have started up in the USA, of which 25 are bilingual with Chinese, many employing the immersion method that Kensington Wade will apply, by which children are fully immersed in English and Chinese on alternate days and all subjects are covered in both languages. Experts rhapsodize about the contributions of bilingualism to cognitive development and how bilingual children learn subsequent languages with greater ease.

The fourth insight is that, when the other language is logographic rather than alphabetic, as with Chinese, there are other advantages. At the most basic is stretching the memory; by the end of a Chinese child’s elementary school career she will

with the practical and creative. While there is individual and group work, the overall approach can be characterised as ‘interactive whole class teaching’. The style of teaching can in fact be less stultifying than in English schools: Shanghai maths classes are half the length of the average English class and are followed by 15 minutes of unstructured play. The ethical dimension would delight an Anglican chaplain, with its emphases on service to others, affection for parents and love of learning.

Kensington Wade is part of a movement to learn from China in order to improve English education and equip our children for a world in which it will be as great an asset to know Chinese as to know English. Two A B OV E & BELOW distinguished proponents of Pupils learning this will be at our inauguration: Chinese Lord Willetts, who as Science have learnt 3,000 Chinese and Universities Minister set up ideograms as a foundation. scientific and research links between So Chinese children learn to China and the UK, and Lord Nash, the memorise rapidly and, as did our Schools Minister behind the Free Schools forbears, tend to have a well stocked programme. repertoire of poems, songs and data that We do not forget, though, the advantages they can draw upon because of that early of English education, which are recognised memory training. Moreover, because the around the world. Kensington Wade will learner is drawing pictures rather than take the best of both systems. We are recording pronunciation when she or he proud of the English genius at encouraging learns to write Chinese, scientists have creativity and enterprise and balancing identified special cognitive benefits. book work with sport, crafts, dance, music Critics say that Chinese schooling is too and social service. Our children are to narrow and that many parents would opt be prepared for the leading independent for our schools if they got a chance. But senior schools. But we also want to see our their schools are changing, too. children flourish thanks to lessons from China is a mighty big country and, China, and learn to communicate in the unsurprisingly, you can find every kind and world’s most spoken language, in writing, quality of school. Just as in England, the digitally and face to face. This combination best combine a knowledge-based approach makes for a curriculum that really does with opportunities to reflect on, discuss prepares children for the 21st century. and initiate; they also balance the academic 2017

Eng/Chinese Education.indd 35

|

B R I T I S H E D U C AT I O N

|

35

27/01/2017 17:06

Oundle pupils hold a mock Scottish referendum

36

|

B R I T I S H E D U C AT I O N

ED_DEBATING.indd 36

|

2017

27/01/2017 17:03

SENIOR / TA LK ING POIN T

Speak Freely

In the light of Brexit and Trump, how do we engage young people in politics? The long tradition of debate and oratory in our independent schools is a very good place to start J A N E T T E WA L L I S

Y

oung adults have long punched below their weight when it comes to the ballot box: 18-24 year olds are less likely to vote than any other age group. But seldom has the consequence been as momentous as in 2016. If young voters had turned out in greater numbers, Britain's 'Europe problem' may now be confined to the Eurovision Song Contest and the US might be toasting its first woman president.

But the question stands: how do we get young people off their iPhones and into the voting booths?

“School debate and oratory certainly spur curiosity about politics,” says Andrew Fearnley, head of politics at Canford School in Dorset. “Controversies raised take root among a student body in the post event chat, while colleagues may take up ideas or points of interest in their subsequent classes. Rather like a stone being hurled into a still pond, the event is the stone, the chatter are the ripples, and the bigger the

stone, the greater and more extensive those ripples become.”

Kenza Wilks, captain of England's school debate team, school head boy, and debater extraordinaire, also sees debate's power to engage. “It's given me reasons to care about things going on outside my own immediate environment,” he says.

Kenza takes part in twice weekly, twohour debate coaching at Dulwich College, a school that inspires shock and awe in the world of school debating. Dulwich won the Oxford Union debating competition in 2014, 2015 and 2016 , the the Cambridge Union schools debating competition in 2014 and 2015 (the latter final saw two Dulwich College teams competing) and the Durham Union Schools Debating Competition in 2015. The house debating finals, for which some 600 boys squeeze into the Great Hall, is one of the college's great events.

Debate stands at the very heart of a classical education, says Keith Budge, headmaster of Bedales School in Hampshire. “In the classical context, the focus of education was on the subjects and skills deemed essential if one was to take

an active part in civic life – for example, public debate. Any effective contribution to public life requires the exercise of rhetorical skills, and Bedales encourages both public speaking and debating,” “Debating teaches intellectual nimbleness, the ability to express complex material clearly and the ear to listen carefully to what others say,” says Sarah Kerr-Dineen, headmistress of Oundle School in Northamptonshire. Senior debating is the very oldest of Oundle’s societies and the school offers a wide range of opportunities and coaching.

The rough and tumble of seeing one's opinions tested, and sometimes bested, helps to build character and mental robustness – providing an antidote to the 21st century so-called “special snowflake syndrome”. Pupils can learn to respect free speech and understand, or at least tolerate, opinions they may abhor. “There's a lot to be gained by learning to see both sides of an argument,” says Kenza Wilks.

“In the run up to the EU referendum the school staged a debate,” recounts Budge.

“One of our students found himself very

“DULWICH COLLEGE INSPIRES SHOCK & AWE IN THE WORLD OF SCHOOL DEBATING” 2017

ED_DEBATING.indd 37

|

B R I T I S H E D U C AT I O N

|

37

30/01/2017 09:23

• • • • • • • • •

Pupils leave Rendcomb College as articulate, confident and resilient young people able to deal with life’s challenges

230 acres of stunning Cotswold countryside A Level results 2016; triple A average GCSE results 2016; half of grades A or A* 95% of pupils secured their chosen university Leavers destination 2016 include; Oxford, Bath, Exeter, Imperial College London, King’s College London and Liverpool Personal Tutoring System Science Laboratories that reach the gold standard of teaching New 3.3 million pound Performing Arts Centre 90 minutes from London Heathrow

For further information visit our website www.rendcombcollege.org.uk or call Mrs Chrissy Laycock, Head of International Recruitment on: 0044 (0) 1285 832 325

Your adventure starts here RENDCOMB COLLEGE.indd 1

19/01/2017 16:34

SENIOR / TA LK ING POIN T

much in the minority in making a powerful case for exiting the EU. I am proud to report that the many students who disagreed with him equally passionately were also happy to share with him their admiration for the skill with which he made his case. We want our students to understand educational establishments as places where freedom of expression is a privileged principle, and that this means that they will encounter ideas that they do not like.”

Commitment to free speech was tested in 2016 when Langton Grammar in Canterbury invited old boy, Trump supporter and farright agent provocateur Milo Yiannopoulos to speak. After a whirlwind of media attention, and contact from the Department for Education's counter-extremism unit, the school cancelled the talk. Yiannopoulos was deemed to present too big a safety risk for pupils.

“Debating and oratory are skills which build pupils’ confidence to hold their own on stage”

to Moscow last year for a two hour meeting with Russian president Vladimir Putin in the Kremlin. The chaps, who arranged the trip and meeting entirely on their own, beat prime minister Theresa May and foreign secretary (and Old Etonian) Boris Johnson, neither of whom had yet met the Russian leader.

Sadly, the manufacture of such confident young debaters does not, in itself, assure better government or decision-making – as could be seen plainly in politicians' shellshocked faces on the morning after the Yiannopoulos had received a similar Brexit referendum. As Dulwich's Dr Spence invitation from the boys in Dulwich reflects,“In 2016 we came to realise that one College's economics society – with a similar of the weaknesses of contemporary political outcome. “The liberal dilemma is the discourse has been its domination by public acknowledgment that one sometimes has school or Oxbridge-educated men who have to determine exactly what sort and degree approached Westminster politics as if it of free speech is allowed and to decide was simply a grand English speaking when the expression of ideas is so union debating competition. Their gross that it represents an abuse strength and weakness is that of freedom of speech,” says A B OV E they could argue for anything, Dr Joseph Spence, Master A Canford School pupil and often did.” of Dulwich College. “When debating at the Model UN I saw on Youtube the RIGHT rabidly misogynistic line he Bedales Head Keith Budge took on anything relating BELOW to feminism or gender Debater extraordinaire Kenza Wilks equality, I had no hesitation in dis-inviting him, albeit this was only a couple of weeks after the Bataclan massacre in Paris, after which I had declared that diversity and the presence in any community of a variety of opinions was the best weapon any institution or society had against fanaticism.”

Public speaking opportunities vary widely at independent schools, from inhouse debates and speaking before small groups of supportive peers, to national events like the Oxford Union debating competition – one of the most prestigious schools debating competitions in the world with over 800 teams competing. Young Enterprise, Model United Nations and European Youth Parliament also provide Still, school debate stands as both a gold speaking opportunities at many schools. standard and a golden age – a throwback to “Public speaking by pupils is engrained a simpler, pre-digital era. “It's a reminder in the fabric of almost all activities at St of a time when politics was decided by Paul’s”, says Richard Girvan, Surmaster of argument rather than personality,” says St Paul’s School. “Debating and oratory are Sarah Lewis, whose three children debated skills which build pupils’ confidence to be in school. “I enjoyed it for the pure joy of able to hold their own on stage and develop beautifully articulated arguments. If a pupil the mental agility to hold and enjoy (and had hurled insults and bald-faced lies like more often than not, win) an argument. It Donald Trump does, he'd have been booed is the combination of this confidence and out of the house!” the exposure to the theory and probably a sense of the potential to have an impact on society that lead to sustained interest in JA N E T T E WA L LI S politics.”

And it is this sort of confidence, perhaps, Editor of The Good Schools Guide that encouraged 11 Eton schoolboys to fly goodschoolsguide.co.uk 2017

ED_DEBATING.indd 39

|

B R I T I S H E D U C AT I O N

|

39

27/01/2017 17:03

FETTES COLLEGE.indd 1 JULY 2016.indd 1 Fettes Absolutely Education

05/09/2016 15/07/2016 14:50 10:17

SENIOR / TA LK ING POIN T

STATE DEBATE Once the preserve of elite public schools, more state schools are teaching oratory skills with impressive results J O E L S TA R K E Y

R

eally, children should get more say than anyone in who runs the country as they use so many more things, like schools and playgrounds, than adults do." Hands shoot up to respond to the speaker's point; I choose one.

"Wouldn’t children just vote for the same people as their parents?’ comes the response. The first speaker’s brow furrows.

"Well, no, not necessarily" the pupil replies slowly, "not if they knew about what each group stands for. They might disagree with them." A pause (for dramatic effect perhaps). "Anyway, don’t most adults just vote the same as their parents?" This nine year old has a point.

The motion in Year 5 is whether 16 year olds should always be eligible to vote in major decisions such as Scottish independence or Britain’s EU A B OV E & BELOW membership.

Pupils involved in Where some pupils debates at School 21 started off almost

“By learning to debate pupils are finding their voice”

embarrassed to disagree so fundamentally with the teacher they soon learnt that this was the very purpose of the exercise: they are learning to analyse, to disagree politely but assertively and to question. They are finding their voice.

I spent two years leading a Year 6 debating club, becoming increasingly convinced that learning through talk and debate were game-changers for primary education, then 2016 happened and these convictions swiftly became certainties.

Anecdotes about current affairs in class often morphed into wider discussions about the ethics of displaced peoples or the relative merits of our brand of democracy.

Pupils led debating assemblies that tackled issues such as FIFA’s ban on poppies and the potential for media brainwashing during elections. With only a few well timed questions many of our English, History and RE lessons became forums for analysis and challenging of paradigms rather than exercises in information transfer.

For many families over the years, private education has seemed an automatic

decision when desiring articulate children.

It is also fair to say that political literacy, debate and oracy skills have hardly defined most state-school curriculums (especially in the performance-driven culture of the past decades). Yet, shoots of growth have been emerging recently in state schools across the country, aided by training courses from groups such as the English Speaking Board.

School 21, a state-funded free school in Stratford, is perhaps the flagship of this movement. Since opening in 2012 with small cohorts of 3-18 year olds, it now receives ninefold oversubscription, has received a DfE ‘Character Award’ for their work and the tone of its single Ofsted report can only be described as ‘giddy.’ One of its founding principles is expressed through the ‘Voice 21’ campaign (devised in collaboration with Cambridge University), seeking to raise the profile of speaking and listening skills to equal status with reading and writing.

Equipping children as confident orators is seen as vital for success in the 21st century so, far from simply assessing children in silent exam halls, pupils are expected to give five minute speeches without notes on topics of their choice. The remarkable progress and accomplishments made by all pupils has started raising school leaders’ eyebrows across London and beyond.

I welcome the day when schools are judged more on the confidence and tenacity of pupils rather than simply their exam grades; where politics, oracy and debate are taught, not at the expense of academic achievement but as a means to empower it.

J O E L S TA R K E Y Primary school teacher 2017

Statedebate.indd 41

|

B R I T I S H E D U C AT I O N

|

41

30/01/2017 09:22

WE CHERISH OUR PAST AND TEACH FOR THE FUTURE With a pioneering heritage and a global reputation, an education at Cheltenham Ladies’ College gives girls unparalleled opportunities to achieve their potential.

Consistently first-rate academic results at GCSE, IB and A Level are underpinned by extensive co-curricular activities, a strong wellbeing programme and nurturing pastoral care provision. Our girls leave us as well-rounded individuals, ready to make their way in the world.

We would be delighted to welcome you at one of our Open Days on 18th March or 10th June 2017. To book a place, please call +44(0)1242 520691 or visit our website: www.cheltladiescollege.org

TOP INDEPENDENT SCHOOL IN THE SOUTH WEST THE SUNDAY TIMES PARENT POWER TABLE 2016

CHELTENHAM LADIES.indd 1

26/01/2017 16:12

Talking

SENIOR / OPINION

HEAD

MAKE IT A GIRLS’ WORLD

Charlotte Avery, Head of the Girls' School Association, on how to empower young women in our new political climate

A

s students in the middle of their examination season will explain, you must thoroughly unpack the question that is put to you in an exam. Asked to write about ‘a woman’s place in a Trump world’ my natural instinct led me to want to unpack, and define, the different elements of the headline.

What do we mean by ‘a Trump world’?

There are many people who group together the election of Donald Trump to be president of the United States with the UK’s EU referendum result: both were widely considered to be ‘shock results’, and both leave a substantial amount of uncertainty surrounding what the future will bring.

Furthermore, many people claimed that those expressing shock at both events were simply out of touch with regular voters, tarnishing them as ‘the elites’, the ‘college educated’, and the ‘political class’.

The events of 2016 showed that the ‘rules’

“Girls must be encouraged by each other to speak up and be heard” of political discourse seem to have changed, and it strikes me that clarification is needed on whether there might be ‘a woman’s place’ in this ‘new’ world. Was there a ‘woman’s place’ pre-November, or pre-June? Whether president Trump or prime minister May intend to revise or create policies that impact on gender equality, the advice I would give to our girls and their parents remains the same: Analyse the context of art, literature, statistics, news bulletins, marketing material, historical texts, and so on:

the table and dominate the space. The book is a self-help manual about how women should lean in – but to do so, they need to find their voice.

SPEAK UP AND OUT

education needs to provide our young people with a political awareness. All of us who consume a diet of media which focuses only on a narrow political ideology need to be challenged to broaden our horizons by engaging with different points of view.

A B OV E

Girls at St Mary’s School mucking in together

Develop your abilities and confidence in public speaking and debating, if you want to be heard. Engaging in class is an important first step, and it is even more important to ask questions than to answer them correctly.

There are plenty of other opportunities to become more confident speaking in front of others too, for instance by offering to take an assembly, or by joining in with debates, both of which give an excellent opportunity to practise formulating opinions.

INVEST IN SOFT SKILLS

A way to do this is through taking on one or two substantial extra-curricular activities – whether individual or team sports, which will develop commitment, drive, resilience GET DIGITAL and teamwork; mastering a musical instrument or new language, or any other In an age where there is a wealth of range of new challenges. information online and no human By cementing these skills at an early age, ‘gatekeeper’, as there would be with a young adults are better prepared to deal traditional newspaper editor, for better with, and thrive in, working environments. and worse there is unverified information We all have a part to play in pursuing circling the internet. Students (and their genuine gender equality – and this remains parents) need to be educated not only about as true as ever. Girls must be online safety, but on assessing encouraged by each other, by whether the information they their family members, in their have found is reliable or not. interactions in the community, FIND YOUR VOICE and in their places of work, to speak up and be heard.

Cheryl Sandberg, COO of In turn, the girls themselves Facebook, wrote the wellhave a responsibility to known book Lean In, in which consider carefully what it is she says that, generally, CHARLOTTE AVERY that they want to say, and women tend to stand back Headmistress to articulate their message from the boardroom table, St Mary’s Cambridge confidently and effectively. whereas men typically sit at 2017

TH_Charlotte _Avery.indd 43

|

B R I T I S H E D U C AT I O N

|

43

27/01/2017 17:23

‘The spires of Oxford ... and the 100 acres of green loveliness make Teddies a winning co-ed boarding ticket.’

Tatler Schools Guide 2017

‘We chose Teddies because it is mixed, with a wonderful reputation for happiness.’

Current parent

See our pupils in action on Teddies TV www.stedwardsoxford.org

EDWARDS OXFORD.indd 1 ST EDWARDS.indd 1

26/01/2017 09:45 16:10 07/09/2016

Talking

SENIOR / OPINION

HEAD

LOOKING OUTSIDE THE BOX Dr Katy Ricks, Headmistress of Sevenoaks School, on the benefits of a truly international education

F

rom what we can see of the political and educational map at the beginning of 2017, the word ‘international’ in International Baccalaureate (IB) matters more than it ever has before. Against the backdrop of an unpredictable political landscape, a worrying lessening of respect for expert opinion and increasing isolationism in a range of countries, what will ‘international’ mean for the young people we teach as they begin to live and work in an increasingly globalised and connected world?

In any period of political and economic uncertainty, the value of a broad education of mind and character rises, and the International Baccalaureate is a reliable education tool to instil characteristics of liberal mindedness, tolerance, empathy and global understanding.

Originating in Geneva, the IB was introduced in the late 1960s as an alternative approach to educating the

“Referendum results reflect the fact that the young wish for an international approach” growing numbers of internationally mobile students. In the Cold War climate, the new scheme boasted educational values that were not tied to any national government’s agenda and aimed to develop students to be “inquiring, knowledgeable and caring young people who help to create a better and more peaceful world through intercultural understanding and respect.”

There was a real sense that the younger generation could effect genuine and lasting change to society, and its aim is still essentially that.

For our students, living, socialising and being educated with students from over 45 nations is the norm. They see the benefits of a multicultural approach, and life here is richer because of the different experiences our students bring.

Today, the IB is taught in more than 140 countries – the majority of which are European, and there are 125 UK schools currently offering the programme. What the majority of IB-equipped schools appear to have in common is the philosophy that British education needs to become more “European” in its outlook in order for British teenagers to prosper in an increasingly global community.

A B OV E At Sevenoaks At Sevenoaks, we enjoy the freedom of Pupils at Sevenoaks School, we have studying language, culture and literature School working been teaching the IB from around the world, and have built the together for nearly 40 years, study of literature from other countries, in and have educated and out of translation, into the Sevenoaks students from international countries for School Certificates, our Year 11 public considerably longer – potentially since exams. Our economics and geography 1770 if the story of Huang Ya Dong, our courses similarly range across the whole first Chinese student, is to be believed. world and we discuss ethical and faith Our pupils leave knowing that they have issues freely and with a genuine sense of a responsibility to work towards a better inquiry and mutual respect. world. We celebrate the unity in diversity Referendum results reflect the fact that that our students and staff generate, and in the young wish for a more international a post-Brexit and a new Trump era, this is approach to education. We can hope that surely a mindset worthy of celebration. their voting was driven by the principle of As a school and student togetherness. body at Sevenoaks, we believe A glance at the headlines that most progress in society from around the world comes from collaboration. confirms the view that the Having the empathy and world is in need of ideas that compassion to appreciate will bring people, countries others’ ideas and viewpoints, and cultures together. The IB and being able to synthesise diploma programme stands one’s own ideas with those of for the very best possible others, throughout history, educational background for DR KATY RICKS Headmistress proved to be the best way to the young people most likely to Sevenoaks School effect change for the better. come up with these ideas.

2017

TH SEVENOAKS NEW.indd 45

|

B R I T I S H E D U C AT I O N

|

45

27/01/2017 17:24

SENIOR / OPINION

Talking

HEAD

DEFYING ‘LITTLE MISS PEFECT’ Sylvia Brett, principal of Harrogate Ladies College, extols the virtues of single-sex edcation

What is the ethos of HLC? Harrogate Ladies’ College is a school where girls are free to be themselves and can aim to be the best that they can be. In a girls-only environment, they do not need to worry as much what other people think of them; there are fewer pressures to conform and there are more opportunities to develop every aspect of themselves.

Q

A

Q Why do you believe in girls-only education?

A I believe that a girls-only context for 11-18 education is the best environment for nearly all girls in which to do this. The young women that we send out into the world happy, self-aware, confident, emotionally mature and academically inspired.

What visible benefits do the girls get from it day-to-day?

A Daily I see my girls negotiating the tricky path of growing into adulthood and whilst they are at school they have one less thing to think about: they don’t feel the need to wear makeup or spend hours straightening their hair – they come to school smart and business like, focused on fulfilling their allround potential.

Q

How does single sex education affect academic achievement?

A We see in the UK league tables single sex schools dominating the top places because girls work so well and efficiently in that environment. In classrooms they can speak out without fear of what others will think. Girls grow and learn in a single sex environment according to their own passions and interests and not determined by the expectations of others.

Q

“There is no ‘norm’ that my girls seek to conform to” 46

|

B R I T I S H E D U C AT I O N

TH_Harrogate_Ladies.indd 46

|

A B OV E

Q Do you see a difference in uptake of STEM subjects?

A Girls at all girls’ schools are 75% more likely to do maths A level than at a co-ed school and 70% more likely to do chemistry A level. My girls can study the subjects that they love without any sense that some subjects are ‘for boys’.

Sylvia Brett celebrates with pupils on A-Level results day

Are girls are freer in single-sex schools?

Absolutely. Girls in single sex schools test themselves against themselves and the expectations that they have for themselves.

The result is that we send young women out into the world who have a strong inner core: they know who they are and are able then to make healthy choices in their lives about the way that they live.

Q

A

Q How do you combat the inevitable cliques that girls can form?

A There are no more cliques nor meanness in girls only schools than in co-educational schools and I would argue that there is less.

Cliques are formed when girls need to feel a sense of belonging and exclude others

to help themselves feel strong. There is no one ‘norm’ that my girls seek to conform to –they are all striving to be their best individual selves.

Or more anxious?

Girls are no more anxious in single sex schools than in co-educational schools.

Q

A

How do you give the girls experience of the other sex?

A Our girls have an active social life outside of school. We offer events and activities which invite boys to the school: plays, debating, conferences and Oxbridge preparation. The girls have plenty of time at the weekends to socialise with boys.

Q

Q Can a girls-only environment add to the dangers of 'Little Miss Perfect'?

A The times that I see my girls at their happiest is when they are laughing and joking together, and involved in a whole school event like World Book Day when they all dress up as their favourite character. This is not a 'Little Miss Perfect' environment, but a place where we want the girls to be is their very best selves.

2017

27/01/2017 17:24

Registered charity 1101358

How do we prepare children for jobs that don’t exist yet?

None of us knows today what the world is going to require of us tomorrow. But some of us are keeping an extremely close eye on things.

At Sevenoaks School, many of the skills that will be called for in the future are embedded in our curriculum now.

Critical thinking for instance, is exercised here daily from the start. So is complex problem solving.

With one eye firmly trained on the world beyond our gates, we equip all our students with the skills they will need to reshape it.

So if sixty per cent of roles have yet to be invented*, Sevenoaks alumni will be ready to take them on when they are.

www.sevenoaksschool.org

*The Future of Jobs report, World Economic Forum. Potential jobs listed include: Space Pilot, Recycling Enforcer, Nano-medic, Memory Augmentation Surgeon, Hydroponic Farmer, Graphene Engineer, Experimental Food Developer, Ethical Hacker, Climate Change Reversal Specialist, Avatar Manager/Virtual Teacher

SEVENOAKS DUBAI.indd 1

12/01/2017 11:34

DOWN TIME With fees now unaffordable for many, some schools are thinking the unthinkable and reducing the cost for parents LISA FREEDMAN

48

|

B R I T I S H E D U C AT I O N

Fee Changes.indd 48

|

2017

27/01/2017 17:07

SENIOR / FE ATUR E

other hand, was evidently a deterrent. ‘Our product was just too expensive.’ Swallowing this unpalatable truth, last year, Westonbirt announced an entire restructuring of its fees, reducing sixth-form boarding costs by 30 per cent and day fees throughout by 25 per cent.

At the same time, they took a fresh look at fee assistance. ‘We’ve now moved away there are many parents who would like to from scholarships to bursaries,’ says Mrs send their children to independent schools, Dangerfield. ‘We didn’t feel it was right that but cannot afford it.’ parents negotiate their daughter as part Unsurprising perhaps, since fees at of the deal, so we’ve introduced a proper independent schools, which start at about bursary process for those who need it.’ £11,000 a year and rise to over £35,000 for Over the past thirty or so years, as boarding, are three times what they were leading schools that were formerly boys’in 1990. only have increasingly welcomed the ‘Twenty-five years ago a GP with two or opposite sex, all-girls’ school have struggled three children could have managed to pay to maintain their clientele. Indeed, many private fees,’ says Susan Hamlyn, Director have been forced to close, which is perhaps of The Good Schools Guide Education why those who’ve survived have been in the Consultancy. ‘There’s no way that’s the vanguard of fee progressives. case today. The cost has grown out of all Leweston School, another proportion to salaries.’ all-girls’ day- and boardingFortunately, there’s now A B OV E school in Dorset, has growing evidence, that schools Racing towards lower fees? also been a pioneer. are taking concrete measures Pupils at Leweston to address this.

LEFT Natasha Dangerfield, for The 'glorious neo-Gothic' Westonbirt example, head of Westonbirt BELOW School, an all-girls’ daySt Paul's High Master and boarding-school in Mark Bailey Gloucestershire, has always been clear-sighted that’s she operating in a competitive world.

‘When I arrived at the school four years ago, we realised we weren’t sitting in the right position in the market. We carried out a full research project, investigating other schools’ fees and asking parents why they weren’t choosing us.’

It became clear that the education they offered was not the issue - housed in a glorious neo-Gothic stately home in the Downton mode, Westonbirt is as renowned for its academic ‘added value’ as it is for its exemplary pastoral care - the cost, on the

“Westonbirt has reduced its day fees throughout the school by 25%”

I

f you’re sitting there with a calculator agonising whether, if you decide to pay school fees, you’ll ever go on holiday again, you’ll appreciate the fact that independent schools themselves are also carefully doing their own sums - and sometimes coming up with surprising answers.

A few months ago, Barnaby Lenon, formerly head of Harrow School and now chair of the Independent Schools Councils (ISC), advised his members (who make up about 65 per cent of fee-paying schools) that, if they felt their fees were stifling demand, the remedy lay in their own hands. ‘This is a very good time to cut costs,’ he told The Daily Telegraph. ‘We know

2017

Fee Changes.indd 49

|

B R I T I S H E D U C AT I O N

|

49

27/01/2017 17:07

Harrogate Ladies’ College Giving girls the confidence to take on the world on their own terms GCSE and A level programmes

75% of pupils received offers from Russell Group universities

Extra-curricular activities and weekend trips

Safe and supportive environment

Scholarships available

Top UK boarding school for girls aged 11 - 18

Call +44 1423 537045 or email admissions@hlc.org.uk to find out more

hlc.org.uk Since 1893

HARROGATE LADIES COLLEGE.indd 1

26/01/2017 18:21

SENIOR / FE ATUR E

“Fees at independent schools are three times what they were in 1990”

Committed to offering a high-quality and affordable education, it has recently taken decisive financial action, streamlining its operations to enable it to become more affordable. Starting in 2015, it was able to introduce lower fees in its junior school, and, from September 2017, will follow suit for older pupils.

‘So many parents have to make a choice making boarding arrangements as flexible about when, if at all, to invest in their as possible. child’s education,’ says head Kate Reynolds, Elsewhere, ideas to ease the parental who, as the mother of four children, fully burden are under constant review. A third appreciates their dilemmas. ‘I’m delighted of pupils at Independent Schools Council that this new structure will mean the schools already benefit from some form exceptional education we offer is accessible of fee reduction, and, in December 2016, to more local families.’ the ISC proposed that the schools they And not only to locals, Leweston will represent could provide 10,000 meansalso be providing a 10-20 per tested places if the government were cent discount for those in the willing to contribute an annual military (helping ease any A B OV E subsidy of £5,500 for each pupil, shortfall in the Continuity of St Paul's boys in an idea similar to the assistedEducation Allowance), and the science lab places scheme begun under LEFT Westonbirt Headmistress Margaret Thatcher in 1980 and Natasha Dangerfield shreds abolished by Tony Blair in 1997. the old fee structure Some notable innovators, of course, are already steaming ahead without government support.

St Paul’s School in west London, for instance, one of the country’s highest flying academic schools (with 56 to Oxbridge last year) has had a ‘needs-blind’ approach to attracting the brightest and the best for over a decade.

‘Dr Martin Stephen, who became head in 2004, suggested at his first staff meeting, we become more like American universities,’ says Dr Andy Mayfield, Director of Admissions. ‘He argued that coming here

should not be about money, it should only be about ability.’

Dr Stephen left the school in 2011, but his legacy remains firmly in place. Today, as it declares on its website, St Paul’s is committed to providing ‘an exceptional education to any boy who fulfils the entrance criteria’. This means, in practice, offering unusually generous bursaries, providing some form of fee subsidy to boys where the family income is as much as £120,000 a year, and (where total parental income is less than £60,000 and families live in a reasonably modest house) there is the potential to cover the entire cost.

St Paul’s, of course, has amongst the highest fees of any day school in London £7,827 a term in 2016-17 - but streamlining running costs has never been an option.

‘Boys here devour everything you put in front of them,’ says Dr Mayfield. ‘We need the type of teacher able to stretch them and we’re in direct competition with others recruiting top graduates.’

To ensure the school doesn’t ever need to compromise on pupil talent to pay the high teaching costs, it’s currently canvassing donations from parents and old boys to build up a large endowment that will feed its bursary fund.

‘We want to make sure that everyone who should come can come,’ says Dr Mayfield.

An ambition, cost-conscious parents will undoubtedly welcome.

LI SA F R E E D M A N runs the education consultancy At The School Gates, www.attheschoolgates.co.uk 2017

Fee Changes.indd 51

|

B R I T I S H E D U C AT I O N

|

51

27/01/2017 17:07

The British Boarding Schools Show will return to Dubai in March 2017. The Show provides families living in the Gulf region privileged access to the Heads of some of Britain’s most distinguished schools.

At the British Boarding Schools Show we understand that choosing the right school for your child is both emotionally and financially demanding. Meet with Dubai parents whose children are already at school in the UK and attend seminars on achieving successful transfers into the UK system.

PLUS specialist advice on USA/UK university entrance.

Sheraton Hotel, Mall of the Emirates

Friday 17 March 12:00 - 17:00 Saturday 18 March 12:00 - 17:00

Meet the big names of British education SEMINAR PROGRAMME 13:00 British Independent Education – the best option for your child? Caitriona Redding – Head of International Admissions, Oundle School

14:00 IB or A-Level – does it really make a difference? Giles Vosper-Brown – Registrar, Malvern College

15:00 5? 8? 11? 13? 16? How can you tell when your child is ready to board? Lucy Thornton – Head of Admissions, Windlesham House

16:00 Moving on, the US college system and how to maximise your child’s chances of success Daniel De Witt – Director, Nemecek Bonas MacFarlane

i n p art n ers h ip with

B A R R AT T LONDON

“What an amazing event and concept, wonderful atmosphere and most importantly an incredible line-up of schools. I had all my questions answered and am now ready for the next step.”

Written by a British ex-pat mother of three children after visiting the 2016 show.

Badminton School Bedales Bryanston Cheltenham College Cheltenham Ladies’ College Dollar Gordonstoun Harrogate Ladies’ College Junior King’s, Canterbury Kilgraston Lomond School Loretto Malvern College Marlborough College Marymount International School Merchiston Castle Millfield School & Prep Mount Kelly Oundle School Radley College Repton School Rossall School Shrewsbury School St Edward’s School, Oxford St Mary’s Calne Strathallan The Downs, Malvern The English School of Kyrenia The King’s School, Canterbury The Royal School Wells Cathedral School Westonbirt School Windlesham House

FOR COMPLIMENTARY TICKETS VISIT DUBAI.SCHOOLSSHOW.CO.UK BBSS.indd 1 Dubai ad v3.indd 1 BBSS 210x297

26/01/2017 25/01/2017 14:41 12:29

Talking

SENIOR / OPINION

HEAD

WHY THE IB? Lee Glaser, Headmaster of Taunton School, on the benefits of the IB Diploma

L

ong considered by many to be the gold standard of world education, in recent years the International Baccalaureate Diploma has become increasingly admired in the UK. The IB’s growing attractiveness is part of a sea change in attitudes to sixth form education, whereby increasing numbers of young people are choosing to nurture a broad range of skills into their late teens, in preparation for university and job applications.

As well as the upswing in interest among students and parents, admissions tutors at university have become increasingly positive about the IB. They recognise that IB students are handsomely equipped to thrive in Higher Education. In a recent survey, they rated the IB better than A-Level at encouraging

“Universities think the IB chimes with the approach students will need as undergraduates” independent study, developing workplace skills, nurturing an open mind and selfmanagement. Three of our students who study IB have just received offers to attend two of the best universities in the world, Oxford and Cambridge.”

For proof of this change in attitude, consider how UCAS points offers for IB candidates have dropped over the last few years. For example, Birmingham University previously demanded 35 or 36 IB points for undergraduate entry, but for 2016 its standard offer at UCL was 34 IB points.

This change also recognises that, while A-Level grades have been rising, IB grades have remained consistent year-on-year.

The IB Diploma offers depth as well as breadth. Students take six subjects, three at

A B OV E Higher Level and three at Standard Even students whose talents Students Level, which must include a science, appear to lie very definitely in celebrating exam maths, a second language, a one sphere or another at age results humanity and a literature course in 16 can benefit from having a their native language. broader education up to 18. STEM Students also have to complete a 4,000 (science, technology, engineering and word essay on a topic of their choice, a maths) students will have to write essays course of critical thinking called Theory of and develop arguments to pass their exams.

Knowledge, and a personal development Even after graduation, they will have to programme entitled Community, Activity write reports and work with colleagues and Service. from different countries with different first Clearly, universities see much in the IB languages. Thus for STEM students, the which chimes with the type of approach ability to communicate and write clearly is students will need as undergraduates. extremely important.

Independent research skills are fostered by Similarly IB students are highly regarded the extended essay. Theory of knowledge as applicants to study medicine or veterinary aims to create open and inquiring minds, science as their success in the Diploma with students not just thinking around their indicates an aptitude for communication as subjects, but seeing the links well as science. On the other between them. hand, students specialising Lastly, IB courses all in the humanities will benefit highlight the real-world from having a sound grasp application of the material of numeracy and statistics. they cover, and urge students Even those whose strength is to use their knowledge and in the arts and literature have skills to work collaboratively found that continuing maths to solve common problems, and science is highly beneficial just as they will have to do in at university and in later life, LEE GLASER Headmaster higher education and in the whenever a sharp analytical Taunton School real world. approach is required.

2017

BE_HK_Taunton.indd 53

|

B R I T I S H E D U C AT I O N

|

53

27/01/2017 17:25

WELCOME TO BADMINTON Nestled in the leafy outskirts of the university city of Bristol, Badminton’s international day and boarding community is vibrant, with its holistic approach to education enriching the lives of girls aged 3-18.

Contact us to find out more.

90% A*-B at A-Level (2016 results)

“Excellent” in every area (ISI Inspection 2015)

Escorted travel to London airports

e: admissions@badmintonschool.co.uk BADMINTON SCHOOL.indd 1

t: 0117 905 5271

w: badmintonschool.co.uk 26/01/2017 17:21

Talking

SENIOR / OPINION

HEAD

FRESH AIR Andrew Johnson, the new head of St Benedict’s School, on the contrast between town and country schools

A

fter 10 years as headmaster of a rural, northern boarding school, I am now at the helm of a London day school.

The two schools could hardly be more different: one set in an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and housed in heritage buildings; the other in John Betjeman’s ‘Queen of the Suburbs’, with its Edwardian dignity, fine Benedictine Abbey, and impending Crossrail connection.

An obvious advantage for any London day school is that museums, galleries and many other wonderful resources are on our doorstep, bringing learning to life.

Inspirational visiting speakers are easy to attract to St Benedict’s, since many live in the capital. (Six authors recently attended our book week.) If there’s an open lecture at the London School of Economics, or the British Library is running research workshops, we can easily attend. Alumni regularly drop in too, to talk about their career paths and to offer work experience

“Day schools certainly move at a pace. Carpe diem is in their DNA” placements. City day schools benefit from a high degree of connectivity. What we may lack in rolling acres of green space, we make up for in stimulating events and exciting, interesting opportunities.

Day schools certainly move at a pace, and Carpe diem is in their DNA. An excellent production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream, for example, came together in just six weeks. The days are brisk, focused and full, beginning for some at 7:45am, and ending at any time between 4pm and 7pm.

All the elements for personal development – sport, drama, music, CCF, the Duke of

A B OV E Edinburgh awards, debating – are Boarding schools do this too, of Pupils at St just as strong in a day school; the course, but it’s more of a logistical Benedict’s in difference is that they have to be challenge from a rural location.

Ealing condensed into the working week.

London day schools reflect Where time-rich boarding schools the hugely rich and diverse sometimes try to fill the hours, day schools demographic of the city, rather than being puzzle over how to fit everything in. hermetically sealed, rarefied or remote. It’s Boarding school life can be a bit like interesting that both my former boarding life on an oil rig: intensely communal, and school and St Benedict’s each have pupils totally immersed in the term’s activity. who are of 33 different nationalities. The While rural boarding schools are relatively difference is that, at St Benedict’s, they don’t undistracted by ‘civilian’ life, pupils and fly in for the term; they live here, and belong teachers of a London day school are only too to the same society. London’s cosmopolitan well acquainted with it. That means we have and multi-cultural environment is a positive a particular responsibility to teach pupils feature of our thriving school's life. to engage safely with the real world, giving Some children thrive on the immersive straightforward information and advice education offered by boarding schools. about the negative influences Others need to return to they may encounter. Being their home at the end of a armed with this awareness busy day in order to reflect will serve them well – now, at on the day’s experiences, and university, and beyond. to have the space and calm Day schools can also enjoy to be themselves. It’s horses strong connections with their for courses, and everything local communities, through depends on the child. I feel voluntary service, for example, fortunate to have had the ANDREW JOHNSON in residential homes and opportunity to lead such Headmaster primary schools, or supporting contrasting, but equally St Benedict’s School local charities. excellent schools.

2017

TH St Benedicts.indd 55

|

B R I T I S H E D U C AT I O N

|

55

27/01/2017 17:25

GO SLOW The Deputy Head (Academic) of Bryanston argues that in an accelerating world, schools must maintain a balanced environment for pupils D AV I D J A M E S

L

ife is speeding up. Such a statement, one would think, would not stand up to much analysis: surely every generation has felt that they are doing more, and in a shorter time, than the previous generation; and no doubt we also feel that the pressures we have to cope with in this new, hyperfast, interconnected world, are fresh to us, and uniquely stressful. But in his recent book, The Great Acceleration, Robert Colville argues that this perception is in fact a reality. He writes about how research clearly shows that those who live in larger cities are doing more, and doing it more quickly, than those who live in smaller 56

|

B R I T I S H E D U C AT I O N

Insider_Bryanston.indd 56

|

communities. For residents of cities as diverse as Beijing, Mumbai, New York and London life really is getting faster. Not only that, but it is probably moving at the same tempo as well.

Don’t believe it? Well, try an experiment that begins Colville’s book: the next time you walk down a busy street look at people’s feet. You’ll soon notice that everyone is walking in perfect ‘lockstep’. Try as we might to assert our own individual stride we will inevitably revert to following the same walking pattern and pace of those around us. And if those around us are moving quickly so will we. This process of imitating the natural rhythm of others is called ‘entrainment’. It all adds to the great acceleration.

And with that acceleration comes a dwindling of patience: we demand webpages to load four times faster than they did in 1999; we expect same day deliveries of goods that used to take days (or weeks); we are delighted when we read that drones might start bringing us our latest purchase within an hour. As soon as we know such things are possible we want it. Speed defines our age like conflict defined the previous century, and industrialisation defined the nineteenth. We want it all, and we want it now. And it seems that in the future we will want it even faster than that.

For parents, of course, time takes on a peculiar new velocity. If the social and professional worlds around us move in a blur, how much faster it goes when we have

2017

27/01/2017 17:09

SENIOR / OPINION

children. As a father of three (20, 18 and 13) I find myself asking every day: where did the time go? What did that baby you once held in your arms turn into? Can he really be that hulking boy who plays rugby for the school?

Who is that fearless teenage girl who flies into hockey tackles as if sense, limbs and teeth were optional extras in life? Was she once my daughter who imagined there were fairies at the bottom of the garden? Where are those children now? I miss them.

School accentuates this sense of time passing. Indeed, time dominates the lives of teachers, pupils and parents: the academic year runs to its own idiosyncratic calendar, shaped by the broad sweep of terms and years, as well as the minutiae of fixtures and concerts, holidays and trips, lessons and examinations, as well as breaks and lunchtimes. And what good independent schools are trying to do is to ensure that each child is allowed to flourish within these time constraints, and to grow up as individuals. Independent schools try to foster independence of mind. But such schools are also aware of the need for pupils to conform, to follow the rules, to develop within certain parameters. Ideally, children should grow up in a school knowing that there is a strong safety net beneath them to catch them if and when they fall. We are, in our own way, trying to get a complex BELOW

A housemaster with junior boys

community of children and teenagers to follow the same patterns: or, to put it another way, to work in lockstep, and in a closely related movement of entrainment.

The best independent schools do this by creating clear identities which pupils respond positively and strongly to: they are proud of the house they are in, and the school that they attend. Following the rules is simply adhering to expectations of common sense and common decency. The best schools have very few disciplinary problems because pupils like being in them, enjoy learning, and see no need to break rules.

But if the world is speeding up then so are schools, and new technology is adding to this process. I have worked in boarding schools for 20 years. I started out as a resident tutor in a junior boarding house comprising of 65 children aged between 11 and 13. The biggest difference between now and then is the impact that technology has had on almost every aspect of a school’s everyday life. Our pupils socialise differently (sometime choosing online friendships over face-to-face contact), they learn differently (sometimes eschewing the library for websites), and they relax differently (gaming with ‘friends’ around the world, rather than kicking a ball on the back field). But another key area of change

“We demand web pages to load four times faster than they did in 1999” has been between how parents and their children interact during term time: many are in almost constant contact, either through email, text, FaceTime, social media or phone calls. Now this brings new challenges to schools: at its most extreme, the boundaries between home and school dissolve too quickly, and can be undermining of the school’s authority. For example, I once gave an essay back to a pupil with a low grade on it, and before the lesson had finished I’d received an email from the parent asking to speak to me immediately to discuss this serious issue.

The pupil was in Year 9.

But there are many positives to this new form of school and home entrainment: by working in close conjunction with each other schools and parents teachers are better informed about the issues that affect the young people they are responsible for. As an inspector of independent

A B OV E

schools I am constantly impressed by the depth of knowledge LEFT and understanding Relaxing in the school grounds staff have of the wellbeing of their pupils, and this is made more balanced with a healthy, mutually respectful relationship between parents and teachers. Speed, and the fast interchange of information, really does help here.

The best teachers model behaviour that they want their pupils to aspire to and, collectively, schools do the same. One of the many strengths of independent schools is that they constantly push their pupils into areas of what Robert Bjork calls ‘desirable difficulties’: this can be playing for the third XI, as much as it might be doing a practical in Chemistry, or singing a solo in the school choir. Most of the activities that school are involved in happen in real time, away from a screen. And although technology is speeding things up, and adding to the complexity of school life, the best schools will always keep it in perspective (as long as the adults do as well). Independent schools should be trusted to do what they have done so well for so long: namely, educating young people to become happy and healthy adults. They will remain essentially social places, where there is laughter, tears, mud, mess and mistakes, as well as joy, inspiration and aspiration. That is their strength. And in the very best schools there will be time to slow down, and reflect, and be offline, and to nurture the qualities that make us who we are, free from the lockstep of collective endeavour, alone for enough time to form one’s own dreams.

A young cellist at Bryanston

2017

Insider_Bryanston.indd 57

|

B R I T I S H E D U C AT I O N

|

57

27/01/2017 17:09

www.farringtons.org.uk A leading independent co-educational day and boarding school offering high academic standards, excellent pastoral care and a wide extra-curricular programme within a supportive Christian environment.

Co-education Juniors 3 – 11, Seniors 11 – 16, Sixth Form 16 - 18 Perry Street, Chislehurst, Kent BR7 6LR T: 020 8467 0256

www.farringtons.org.uk FARRINGTONS.indd 1 General 2016-17_297x210.indd 1

03/10/2016 03/10/2016 10:18 08:03

Talking

SENIOR / OPINION

HEAD

MODERN FAMILY

Peter Roberts, Headmaster of the King’s School, Canterbury, on what makes a good school

T

he most significant and long overdue change over the course of my career has been the toppling of the traditional divide between the selfcontained institutional views that schools have tended to hold and the opinions and judgements of parents about their children’s experiences within those hallowed walls.

That in a modern and dynamic twentyfirst century school there should be broad, if not identical, agreement between the teaching staff and the parents about the ethos and aims of the education on offer amounts to a revolution of stance and perception. It is a revolution that is even more refreshing in the way the very best schools’ leadership teams take the views and interests of the pupils seriously.

RIGHT Peter Roberts with For a fullsome prefects boarding school like BELOW King’s Canterbury, The school's historic it stands to reason buildings

“A good school can become a truly nurturing environment”

of teacher-pupil interaction and the friendliness of pupils both to each other and towards visitors. Parents should gauge whether different pupils feel a sense of belonging in an equal way. Do they identify with the school’s values, seeing them as helpful and relevant to their lives and their own ideals? Would the school be brave enough to enable its pupils to develop qualities such as inventiveness, creativity and open-mindedness? Does the school say ‘yes’ to pupil initiatives without falling into the trap of a child-centred pursuit of education? Good senior schools develop young adults into taking responsibility within a carefully laid down framework.

SCHOOL SHOULD BE FUN This main thread encourages young people to see school as fun as well as useful. While many parents readily acknowledge that such principles lead to a well-balanced and healthy upbringing, perhaps not enough see the link with plenty of school time dedicated to co-curricular pursuits, both those which that the strong sense of community will lend champion development of character (the itself to this seemingly modern approach.

CCF, the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award Equally, as the oldest school in the country Scheme spring to mind), and the range of and part of the Foundation of Canterbury activities which are linked to later life skills Cathedral, it has – like many of the nation’s (such as sports, music and drama). most famous institutions – learned to adapt Lively and interesting adults who and change, growing stronger over the ages. passionately believe in this wider view A good school is much more than an of a good school are likely to be inspiring educational opportunity; it can become a presences in the classroom. There is ample truly nurturing environment, for many akin space within a good school for scholarly to a second home. It encourages and gives teaching in parallel with all pupils believing support as well as celebrating in the pursuit of academic success. It is then most likely excellence, but surely it is the to replicate what a good family overall cultivation of mind, is able to achieve. body and spirit that counts for most? Particularly so, since SCHOOL ATMOSPHERE the discipline of managing One of the characteristics those other pursuits alongside that parents should look out academic studies brings for on an Open Day is the the ability to cope with the PETER ROBERTS atmosphere in the school. pressures that university Headmaster Particular reference should and a career will ultimately The King’s School, Canterbury be given to the positivity impose.

2017

BE_TH_Felsted.indd 59

|

B R I T I S H E D U C AT I O N

|

59

27/01/2017 17:24

Market FORCES London's top day schools have been experiencing unprecedented demand but this could change with three new openings in September A M A N D A C O N S TA N C E

W

ho knew London’s senior schools were like buses? You wait years for a new one and then three come trundling along at the same time.

This September three new senior London day schools will be opening their doors to pupils. Notting Hill Prep is opening a new senior school in west London. Details are yet to be confirmed but it’s thought the school’s location will be in the Park Royal/ North Ealing area. The location of Fulham Prep School’s new senior school is currently a closely-guarded secret but it is likely to be in south-west London. And Eaton Square School is opening a senior school in the very grand 106 Piccadilly, a Grade I-listed building in Mayfair.

The main driver for these openings is that London’s existing senior schools are hugely oversubscribed – 1,300 children, for example, sat the 11+ for Laytmer Upper in January 2016.

“London is chocka”, says Sebastian Hepher, the current headmaster of Eaton Square School, who will be taking on the role of overseeing head of all the Eaton Square schools come September.

“I’ve been head for 24 years in London,” 60

|

B R I T I S H E D U C AT I O N

New London Seniors.indd 60

|

says Hepher, “and moving on from prep is much harder now – particularly for boys.”

There are far more prep schools, he explains, but not the corresponding number of places at senior schools. Anyone with a son of 11+ age in London will be aware that places for boys are very limited (partly because boys were traditionally sent away to public school), hence the hideous bottle neck at 11+.

“We’ve wanted to open a new school for the past five years,” says Hepher “the trickiest part was finding the right site.”

106 Piccadilly certainly has the wow factor – Aatif Hassan, the boss of Minerva Education, the schools group behind Eaton Square Schools, admits he fought very hard for it. It’s a very impressive building, bang opposite Green Park and its W1 address will no doubt appeal to the international crowd.

The other reason for opening Eaton Square Upper was to get away from the “endless assessments” that children are now subjected to, says Hepher. The senior school will create an all-through school.

“You will be able to join us at three and half,” says Hepher, “and stay until university if you want to.”

The school will be non-selective. All pupils, both internal and external will sit the ISEB pre-test when joining Eaton Square Upper, but only for setting purposes. And pupils arriving from other London preps will be interviewed.

The bid to create an all-through school is also behind the new Fulham Senior School.

Like Eaton Square, Fulham has a pre-prep and prep, and pupils enrolled at Fulham Prep School will automatically receive a place at the senior school.

“It makes complete sense,” says Neil Brooks who will be head of the pre-prep, prep and senior schools. “Not least because it meets demand but also from all education points of view – the children won’t have to

2017

27/01/2017 17:13

SENIOR / FE ATUR E

A B OV E

Pupils at Fulham Prep School LEFT

“London is chocka and moving on from prep is much harder now” do the 11+. They can stay with us so it will alleviate anxiety.” Existing pupils will do the 13+ for setting purposes, and the school will maintain the 11 and 13+ for children from external schools.

Brooks was appointed head of FPS in September 2016, taking over from Jane Emmett who founded the school in the midNineties. She has always wanted to create a senior school, but it was the acquisition of FPS by Inspired, an international education group that started in South Africa, that seems to have energized the move.

Brooks says Inspired’s forward-thinking

An art class at Eaton Square Upper

ethos of educating the whole RIGHT An Eaton Square pupil child was also behind the move to create a senior school “Fulham Prep School’s decision to open a new school is more than just a response to the growing demand for more senior school places in the independent sector in London, but a natural extension of our ethos to provide pupils with a broad spectrum education that will prepare them and instill them with confidence to go onto positions of influence, authority and leadership in adult life," says Brooks.

It remains to be seen if these new schools will take the heat out of the senior schools market. There are plenty of new preps opening in September, too, including a pre-prep for boys at Faulkner House, a new Wetherby Kensington and Eaton House Boy Prep opening in south Kensington. It is perfectly possible that demand will continue to outstrip supply for some years yet.

2017

New London Seniors.indd 61

|

B R I T I S H E D U C AT I O N

|

61

27/01/2017 17:13

SENIOR / OPINION

ART OF THE MATTER The Head of History of Art at Latymer Upper on the survival of her subject and making it available to all RUTH BELL

L

ast year saw indignation rise from Art History students and teachers on hearing the news that AQA, the only exam board offering History of Art A-Level, had axed the subject.

A lot of guff was published in the press.

Headlines claiming it was a total farewell to Art History for the 16-18 age group were plain wrong. Cambridge International Examination board (CIE) still offers an Art History course to Sixth Formers as a Pre-U. The irony, however is that due to the comparatively high exam entry fee, the Pre-U is favoured by independent schools, so was, perhaps, the more ‘select’ option.

Initially, speculation about why Art History was dropped centred on Michael Gove’s legacy. Studying a great book was deemed ‘enabling,’ while analysing a great painting wasn’t. Art history wasn’t rigorous.

It was soft. Simon Schama tweeted ‘Art History A-Level axed as ‘soft.’ SOFT? Tell that to Kant, Hegel, Burckhardt, Panofsky, Schapiro and the rest.’

“The House of Lords debated the AQA axing for more than 45 minutes” Despite only attracting 839 A-level students in 2016, news of Art History’s demise galvanised many to action.

Students at Latymer Upper School, were quick to sign the #SaveArtHistory petition which totalled 8,063 signatures. 220 experts from esteemed institutions including the University of Oxford, Sotheby’s and the Courtauld Institute of Art presented an open letter of protest to AQA. The issue was debated in the House of Lords for over 45 minutes. Highlights of the debate included reference to Sophocles, 62

|

B R I T I S H E D U C AT I O N

Insider_Latymer.indd 62

|

A B OV E

‘Whoever neglects the arts when he is young has lost the past and is dead to the future.’

The Lords diagnosed that Art History A-Level’s departure, along with other under-valued subjects like Archaeology, was due to a ‘false hierarchy of subjects.’

Art History’s ability to explore important issues never ceases to amaze me. Take just one example; the Pre-U set-work The Holy Virgin Mary (1996) by Chris Ofili. This work with its black Mary unfailingly stimulates impassioned debate about racial identity and integration in the UK. Discussions include the fine balance between needing to respect religion and freedom of the expression, and often touch on the distinctions between street culture and fine art when analysing the work.

AQA claimed the decision to drop Art History A-Level ‘was not about money or whether History of Art deserves a place in the curriculum’ but the ‘complex and specialist nature of the exams creates too many risks.’ The exam board was correct to be concerned about students’ entitlement to fair results. No one can deny that it is a complex process to assess student essays fairly. We do the Pre-U Art History at Latymer pupils studying the Death of Socrates

Latymer Upper School because the marking is always trustworthy. Any future A-Level board could take some useful lessons from CIE. Assessment of students’ work is done residentially by a team of markers experienced in teaching the subject. If a surprising answer comes up, it is assessed by group consensus.

So why does Art History matter? Student's answers included visual literacy, enriching links with other subjects; cultivating awareness of different cultures and creating transferable skills of communication and analysis. Former Art History students expressed concern that future students would be deprived of similar learning opportunities. Surely that’s the point of a well-rounded education: to create a memorable experience, to spark a passion you hope grows beyond school life.

The good news is that Pearson will be offering Art History A-Level from September 2017. If I could make a resolution for Art History A-|Level for 2017 it would be to remove the financial barrier to the subject. History of Art has so much to offer intellectually and culturally and yet only eight state schools are able to teach it at the moment. We offer a full Art History bursary at Latymer Upper School which is a small step in the right direction.

RUTH BELL Head of History of Art Latymer Upper School

2017

27/01/2017 17:11

Windlesham INDEPENDENT BOARDING & DAY SCHOOL FOR BOYS & GIRLS AGED 4 TO 13

• A RECORD NUMBER OF SCHOLARSHIPS GAINED TO SENIOR SCHOOLS THIS YEAR • OUTSTANDING OFSTED AND ISI REPORTS • EXCELLENT PASTORAL CARE & EXTRA CURRICULAR PROGRAMME • 45 MINUTES FROM GATWICK | 1.5 HR FROM HEATHROW To arrange an individual tour of the school please call admissions +44 (0) 1903 874701 whsadmissions@windlesham.com | visit windlesham.com Windlesham House School, Washington, West Sussex, RH20 4AY

WINDLESHAM HOUSE SCHOOL.indd 1

30/09/2016 10:45

An inspiration on the educational landscape

Lancing College Senior School & Sixth Form

AN EXCEPTIONAL INDEPENDENT EDUCATION FOR BOYS AND GIRLS AGED 13 TO 18

www.lancingcollege.co.uk Tel 01273 465805

West Sussex BN15 0RW

Registered Charity Number 1076483

LANCING COLLEGE.indd 1

29/09/2016 12:28

SENIOR / OPINION

LIVING HISTORY The Head of Classics at Dauntsey’s, Wiltshire, on why her subject remains ‘supremely relevant’ today AY E S H A W E B B

C

lassics is the name given to the study of ancient Greece and Rome. In schools, this encompasses three subjects: Latin, Greek and Classical Civilisation.

Classics, once the bedrock of English education, is now increasingly threatened: when the examination board AQA decided to withdraw Classical Civilisation from its portfolio, OCR became the only board to offer GCSE and A-Level examinations in Latin, Greek and Classical Civilisation.

Whilst Latin and Greek rightly have a reputation for being intellectually rigorous, Classical Civilisation suffers from being perceived as a ‘soft’ subject. I would argue that it is stimulating, challenging and of supreme relevance. Exploring ancient Roman and Greek civilisations involves the close examination of literature, history, art, religion, architecture and philosophy; all of which are highly pertinent to the world in which we live.

Let me give you an example. In Homer’s

“In Homer's Iliad the characters talks about losing their home and being a refugee” ‘Iliad’, a poem about the Trojan War composed in the 8th century BC, many characters talk about losing their home, being a refugee and their reception by others. What, therefore, does this mean for how we address the migration crisis that we currently face? Will we emulate the sympathetic Peleus or the disdainful Agamemnon? In developing a close understanding of our ancient forebears, we can develop a different – and more enlightened – perspective on the complex economic and political debates of today.

Parents often ask me about the merits of

studying Latin and Greek when sparked an enthusiasm for A B OV E modern foreign languages offer archaeology which, in turn, has Pupils at Dauntsey's a more obvious practical benefit. led to an interest in surveying I am certain that the benefits which is likely to be her ultimate of studying ancient languages university course. Options are equal: the linguistic roots explored by other classicists enable students to understand English include becoming an author (JK Rowling), and a host of other European languages; a politician (Boris Johnson) and a musician the grammar and linguistic concepts (Chris Martin). I hope parents can feel encourage a precision of understanding reassured! which improves one’s approach to any 2016 was a year of tumultuous change intellectual endeavour; and the opportunity across the globe and 2017 is set to present to appreciate original literature. yet more challenges. Our leaders could do a Learning Latin and Greek demands worse than look to the ancient civilisations rigorous and disciplined study, which is at to see what lessons they might learn. odds with our modern culture of instant Consider Santayana’s quotation “those who information. It is for this very reason that cannot remember the past are condemned they provide an excellent foundation for to repeat it”; how can we make progress intellectual training and develop flexible without studying earlier culture? thinking. A current Upper Sixth pupil of mine recently commented: “Studying Virgil’s epic poem ‘The Aeneid’ has given me insights not only into the themes within the poem but also into the history of ancient Rome. The mix of fact and mythology is complex to unravel – it’s challenging but very rewarding.”

A-Level students may go on to study the AY E S H A W E B B subjects at University or it can provide a route into a range of other courses.

Head of Classics One pupil’s study of Classical Civilisation Dauntsey’s 2017

Insider Dauntseys/Classics.indd 65

|

B R I T I S H E D U C AT I O N

|

65

27/01/2017 17:10

We’re letting you into a little secret...

Wells Cathedral School:

an ancient 3-18 co-educational day and boarding school set in the heart of England’s most beautiful Cathedral city with an internationally-renowned specialist music faculty. Wells, in the county of Somerset, is a haven where every student can thrive and flourish, whatever their interests and talents. Just two hours from Heathrow Airport.

See it to believe it!

“Tracing its roots back to 909, Wells is one of the world’s oldest schools, and wears its age beautifully; there surely can’t be a lovelier place of learning anywhere.”

Good Schools Guide, 2015

since AD909 www.wells-cathedral-school.com admissions@wells-cathedral-school.com +44 1749 834213

WELLS SCHOOL.indd 1

13/01/2016 11:53

PROFILE

The

M A K ING of Me

Michael Bond

The author of the legendary Paddington Bear books on his unhappy days at boarding school

M

remember hoping I would get a mastoid like my cousin, and the Brother would be sorry…

ichael Bond is a children's author best known for his Paddington Bear books. He has also written a series about a guinea pig called Olga da Polga. Bond is 91, has two grown-up children and lives in London, not far from Paddington Station.

Q

A

Q What effect do you think your schooling had on your character?

A It made me more aware of sin.

Q How did it influence the rest of your life and career?

A Not at all

Where did you go to school and when?

Presentation College in Reading

Q Do you think other aspects of your early years were more influential, like your time in the army for example?

A I would say that Army life had a far greater effect.

What sort of school was it?

A Roman Catholic boarding school. I am not a Catholic but my mother liked the colour of the blazer – and I was a day boy.

Q

A

What beliefs do you think that particular school instilled in you?

A A strong sense of right and wrong.

Q

You left school quite early, why was that?

A I wasn’t very happy there and I left at the age of 14 – besides there was a war on.

Q

What inspired you to write Paddington Bear?

A A small bear sitting on the mantelpiece – he looked so lonely in the shop that I bought him and took him home for my wife.

Q

Q What was your favourite subject or activity there?

A English was my favourite subject, and I enjoyed long distance running.

Q What was your proudest achievement?

If you didn’t have one at school, then what and where?

A My proudest achievement was coming in last in the slow bicycle race, for which I was awarded an Ingersol watch.

Q Who was your favourite – or most influential - teacher?

A The Head Master who was a monk.

Q What was the most trouble you got into?

A Laughing in class.

Q How would you sum up your school days in five words?

A Words fail me – not for the faint hearted.

Q Did you have a favourite ‘secret’ place at school? If so, where was it and what did you do there?

A The bicycle shed where I avoided lessons.

Q What is your most vivid memory of your time there?

A When I upset the English master, a Brother, who beat me to the floor I

Michael Bond’s new book, Paddington’s Finest Hour, is published by HarperCollins on 6 April.

Q What are your plans for Paddington in the future?

A It would be more accurate to ask what his plans for me would be.

MY FAVOURITE PLACE WAS THE BIKE SHED WHERE I AVOIDED LESSONS 2017

Making of Me Michael Bond.indd 67

|

B R I T I S H E D U C AT I O N

|

67

27/01/2017 17:12

GO WEST? Before deciding to study in America, make sure you have the answers to these fundamental questions D R J O N TA B B E R T

A

s an independent educational consultant, I have spent the last 22 years speaking at schools and conferences on the subject of American universities. In the post-presentation Q&A sessions, the same five questions always come up: IS AMERICA THE RIGHT PLACE FOR ALL STUDENTS? No, it most assuredly isn’t. Specifically, there are two groups of students who are not good fits for the States. Anyone considering professional studies such as Medicine, Law, Dentistry or Veterinary Science is advised to stay in the UK. This is because in the US these courses are taught only at the postgraduate level. Thus, if a student’s goal is to be an American-trained lawyer, he or she will need to acquire a three to four year undergraduate degree first, before moving to law school for a further three years. After seven years of study, nonAmerican citizens are expected to return to their home countries. It is therefore much easier and much quicker to study one of these subjects here in Britain. There is a second group of students, however, that also may not be a good match for the US. These are students who only want 68

|

B R I T I S H E D U C AT I O N

American Universities.indd 68

|

to study one subject from the first day of university to the final day. If a student only wants to study, say, Chemistry, then the American liberal arts approach will be frustrating. Even Chemistry Majors will be required to undertake some course work in the humanities, fine arts and social science fields. This approach is by design; it obliges students to continue to engage with academic areas that US universities believe benefit them for ‘living a rich life’. If a student, therefore, does not buy into the idea of breadth, then the US is the wrong place to study. The converse advantage of this approach is that is really suits students who aren’t ready to narrow down to one subject as is required of them in the UK system, for example.

WHERE DOES ONE START THE OVERALL PROCESS? With over 4,500 colleges and universities to choose from, knowing how and where to begin the process is important. Given this huge number, I recommend that students start the process with themselves. After a number of years in school, there must be things that they love about education; there may be things they loathe. Thus, give consideration to personal preferences, such as location in the US, physical setting (a rural environment, suburban, urban), whether there is a campus or non-campus, co-educational vs single-sex, the size of the student body, cost and so forth.

“If you want to study Medicine or be a Vet, then the US is not for you” HOW DO US UNIVERSITIES EVALUATE APPLICANTS? Though it can differ, most US universities are interested in obtaining as broad a picture of an applicant as possible. In taking this holistic approach, universities will evaluate: school exam results and exam predictions (GCSEs, A Levels, Pre-U, the IB, GPA etc.) pre-entry tests (the SAT or ACT), teacher reference letters, extracurricular activities and application essays.

A university’s goal in doing so is to see if the applicant is an appropriate match for their institution.

2017

27/01/2017 17:01

SCHOOL LE AV ER / US UNI V ERSIT Y

working their way up to Number One. In doing so the student The Baker Clock will come across a great many Tower Building at universities – all in the Top Dartmouth College 40 of National Universities – BELOW which they may never have Street signs on the heard of; institutions such as Harvard campus Brandeis, Wake Forest, Case Western Reserve, Carnegie Mellon, Tufts, Notre Dame, Washington University in St Louis, Rice, or Liberal Arts Colleges such as Carleton, Pitzer, Pomona, Harvey Mudd, Middlebury and Macalester. All highly ranked, highly regarded and very worthy of consideration.

LEFT

WHAT ARE SOME OF THE BEST COLLEGES IN THE STATES? Too many international students are only interested in Ivy League universities, a group of eight institutions – Harvard, Princeton, Yale, Brown, Penn, Cornell, Dartmouth and Columbia. I strongly advise considering a wider range of colleges.

Apart from the very selective nature of the Ivy League, it is fair to say that these universities are simply not right for everyone. So how can you find these other institutions? There are excellent resources available, such as: Princeton Review, Barron’s, Fiske, Peterson’s and so forth. I always recommend the website www.usnews.com. Their ranking system of National Universities and Liberal Arts Colleges offers a student the chance to see where US News places these institutions.

I often suggest to students that a good way to find out about 'unknown universities' is to go onto the US News website and start with the university ranked at Number 40,

IS IT AFFORDABLE? Though British universities are working hard to catch up with their American counterparts, they still have a way to go.

There is no doubt that US universities are a real investment. Tuition, room, board and other expenses (insurance, books, etc.) can be near the $70,000 a year mark. And while some universities will offer financial assistance to non-American students, most will not. Therefore before thinking about a US education it’s imperative that financial considerations be taken into account. But not all US universities have a $70K price tag. There are excellent universities with fees much closer to $30,000 to $40,000 per year. The best source, of course, of financial aid and scholarships are the universities themselves. On their websites they will indicate who is eligible. One of the keys to obtaining aid is to start researching universities as early as possible certainly no later than in Lower Sixth / Year 12.

American universities like students educated in Britain. They respect the rigour of the educational system and the fact that British students fit nicely into the States – they speak the same language, listen to the same music and watch the same films.

Though funding is an issue, American universities are very interested in enrolling British students. Though navigating the system can be challenging, every year I send happy students off to Columbia, UCLA, Harvard, Stanford, and the like.

With the right preparation and some carefully-made decisions, the American dream is within reach!

D R J O N TA B B E R T Managing director Jon Tabbert Associates 2017

American Universities.indd 69

|

B R I T I S H E D U C AT I O N

| 69

27/01/2017 17:01

Top Spring

BOOKS With a new year and hundreds of new children’s books on the shelves, here’s our selection of brilliant reads

11+ 9+

WELCOME TO NOWHERE

by Elizabeth Laird MACMILLAN CHILDREN’S BOOKS

ROSE RAVENTHORPE INVESTIGATES: BLACK CATS AND BUTLERS

In the winter of 2015, sixt-time CILIP Carnegie Medal-shortlisted author Elizabeth Laird travelled to Jordan to volunteer in two refugee camps. This is the result of her experiences there. It tells the story of Omar and his family, who fled Syria when the bombs started falling. An excellent book for young people who want to know what is happening in Syria. £9.99

b y Janine Beacham HACHET TE CHILDREN’S GROUP

R

ose Raventhorpe loves nothing more than wandering around Yorke with her beloved butler Argyle, so when he is murdered, - the third butler to be stabbed in a week – Rose knows she must find out what really happened.

Join Rose on an adventure into a hidden world of grave robbers, duelling butlers and magicians. £6.99

70

|

B R I T I S H E D U C AT I O N

Spring Books_v2.indd 70

|

9+

Emerald

SECRET

b y Susan Moore NOSY CROW

The second exciting instalment in the Nat Walker trilogy, a series of action-packed adventure stories with a go-getting girl hero set in a futuristic, steam-punk London. Susan Moore used to work at LucasFilm in California and her writing is a bit like Star Wars – fastpaced and epic in scale. £6.99

2017

30/01/2017 10:47

SPR ING BOOKS

4+ 4+

Big Book of BEASTS

MUST READ

b y Yuval Zommer

F

THAME S & HUDSON

rom the author and illustrator of the best-selling Big Book of Bugs comes a brilliant book about the hairiest, grizzliest, growliest and most fearsome beasts on our planet. It is packed with fascinating information and full of gloriously illustrated wildlife scenes. £12.95

9+

T H E WO R L D ’ S G R E AT E S T S PAC E C A D E T

by James Carter BLOOMSBURY

Join poet Carter on a journey through space and time and meet everyone from a Viking warrior to a crazed cat. This wonderful collection is the perfect way to get children interested in poetry. £5.99

9+

THE ROAD TO EVER AFTER

by Moira Young

MACMILLAN CHILDREN’S BOOKS

The author has put her own spin on the Christmas classic It’s a Wonderful Life in this story of friendship and redemption. Orphan Davy David is no stranger to loneliness but when he meets old Miss Flint, they set off on a magical adventure together. This book is sure to become a classic. £9.99

8+

THERE’S A WEREWOLF IN MY TENT

b y Pamela Butchart NOSY CROW

Izzy and her friends are SO excited about their school trip. They’re going camping and there’ll be marshmallows and no washing and everything. But then weird things start to happen. There are howling sounds at night and some sausages have gone missing…

Another brilliantly funny read from the best-selling author who brought you Attack of the Demon Dinner Ladies and To Wee or not To Wee. £6.99

12+

K A I ’ S S T O RY

by Judy Waite BLOOMSBURY

Kai just wanted a bit of fun but now his video has viral, his friends are upset and he is getting messages from strangers on the internet…

Welcome to The Street! A High Low book from Bloomsbury that aims to encourage and support reading by providing gripping and ageappropriate stories for struggling and reluctant readers. £5.99

2017

Spring Books_v2.indd 71

|

B R I T I S H E D U C AT I O N

|

71

30/01/2017 10:47

CATHOLIC BENEDICTINE 11 – 18 CO-EDUCATIONAL SCHOOL IN THE HEART OF SUSSEX

MEET US AT THE SHERATON HOTEL MALL OF THE EMIRATES 17– 18 MARCH

 Education with heart and soul  Academic ambition  Choice of IB and A Levels  Friendly community

 Excellent pastoral care  Lively weekend programme for boarders  Beautiful countryside location  Less than 15 minutes from Gatwick Airport

www.worthschool.org.uk WORTH SCHOOL.indd 1

29/09/2016 16:44

SPR ING BOOKS

5+

7+

The Big GREEN BOOK

MUST READ

by Robert Graves, illustrated by Maurice Sendak

VINTAGE CHILDREN’S CLASSIC S

T

his is the only children’s book written by war poet and revered British writer Robert Graves.

Written when he was 67, it was illustrated by a little known artist, who was yet to create his iconic Where the Wild Things Are. A long-forgotten and wonderful story about the magic of reading. £12.99 11+ 7+

Famous Five: FIVE G ET I NTO TROUBLE

b y Enid Blyton (Book 8) HACHET TE CHILDREN’S GROUP

THE BONE SPARROW

b y Zana Fraillon

ORION CHILDREN’S

Shortlisted for the Guardian Children’s Fiction Prize last year, The Bone Sparrow is the deeply moving story of a boy who has spent his entire life in a detention centre. Perfect for fans of The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas and out now in paperback. £6.99

T

he Famous Five are back for another adventure. It’s Julian, Dick, George, Anne and Timmy's 75th anniversary this year and all 22 titles will be available in new editions. This edition has beautiful new covers from in-demand author Laura Ellen Anderson to appeal to a whole new readership. £6.99

2017

Spring Books_v2.indd 73

|

B R I T I S H E D U C AT I O N

|

73

30/01/2017 10:47

The Mary Erskine School Stewart’s Melville College The Junior School

MAKE YOUR FAMILY PART OF OURS Like any family, values lie at the heart of who we are. We help the boys and girls who live in our Boarding Houses to learn to live up to these values in all that they do both as children and throughout their adult lives. Our Boarders have unrivalled

Boarding for boys and girls from age 10+ in Edinburgh, Scotland Please contact us at any time

0131 311 1111 admissions@esms.org.uk www.esms.org.uk

sense of responsibility in a caring environment.

Stewart’s Melville College The Sunday Times, Scottish Independent Secondary School of the Year, 2013

The Mary Erskine School The Sunday Times, Scottish Independent Secondary School of the Year, 2012

Merchant Company Education Board Schools. Registered Charity No. SC009747 ESMS.indd 1 Ad 210x297.indd 1 ESMS Boarding

30/09/2016 27/11/2013 10:14 12:11

SPR ING BOOKS

Head LINES

A children’s author on what it’s like to combine the roles of successful writer and wife of the headmaster of Roedean HELEN PETERS

I

have to confess that when my husband became headmaster of Roedean, one of my first thoughts was, “Now I can write a boarding school story!”

I grew up near Roedean, and it seemed a mysterious, almost mythical place, a castle on a clifftop.

Fed on a diet of Mallory Towers, I longed to go to boarding school, but never in my wildest dreams did I imagine that one day I would find myself living in the Headmaster’s house at Roedean, writing books for children. I loved reading and writing, but it never occurred to me that I could become a writer myself. I became an English and Drama teacher instead, and satisfied my creative urges by directing school plays.

When I met my husband, I told him about my childhood on an old-fashioned Sussex farm, where we turned a tumbledown shed into a theatre and invited our families to pay actual money to sit in a freezing outbuilding and watch our masterpieces. Oliver suggested that I turn those experiences into a children’s book, and that really was a lightbulb moment. I started writing The Secret Hen House Theatre immediately, with huge enthusiasm and no idea how difficult it would be to write a publishable book. Twelve years, much advice and many rewrites later, The Secret Hen House Theatre was published, and I’m now writing my seventh book.

My stories are influenced by my own childhood and my life as a teacher. I taught one particular boy who had a genius for inventing creative excuses for his lateness to class. Two of my personal favourites that

made it into my books were, ‘Sorry, Miss, my goldfish got run over’ and ‘My mum’s on a life support machine and I had to go and put another 50p in the slot.’

I’ve managed to restrain myself from writing any Roedean students into my stories, but my Year 7 class have made me promise to include ALL their names in the third Hen House book, so watch out for seventeen new female characters…

When we first moved to Roedean, I had to put my writing on hold for a while. We wanted to get to know people, so we invited every single person at the school – pupils, parents and staff – to tea in our house.

So, after a week spent unpacking boxes, putting up pictures and sewing name tapes into every item of my children’s new school uniforms, we found ourselves, over the course of a fortnight, hosting twelve separate parties for seven hundred people.

I didn’t get much writing done, but it was a great way to feel at home here.

My creative brain definitely works better in the morning, so I try to get to my desk as soon as my husband and children have left for school. On the mornings when I teach, I aim to get two hours’ writing done. On my free mornings, I can write for three or four hours. Afternoons are for admin work, food shopping and so on. I cook dinner for the family and then there’s sometimes an evening event at school. Now that I’m a Roedean parent (our daughter is in Year 7) as well as Headmaster’s wife, teacher and occasionally a visiting author, I find I’m attending more and more school events, and sometimes I have to stop and remind myself which role I’m in!

My latest book, Evie’s Ghost, is narrated by a stroppy 13-year-old girl. Evie is not, of course, inspired by Roedean students, who are quite possibly the most delightful teenagers I have ever met. (I do, however, have a 13-year-old son at home, whose voice I might possibly have channelled at times.)

And I haven’t got around to writing that boarding school story yet, but I fully intend to do so one day.

A Duckling Called Button by Helen Peters, published by Nosy Crow, is out in March 2017.

Evie's Ghost is out in April 2017.

2017

Helen Peters.indd 75

|

B R I T I S H E D U C AT I O N

|

75

30/01/2017 11:07

HIT FOR SIX With traditional cricket under threat from its bolder, brasher Twenty20 sibling, Absolutely looks at how the game is changing in schools MARK GREENHOUSE

76

|

B R I T I S H E D U C AT I O N

Changing Cricket.indd 76

|

2017

27/01/2017 17:02

SCHOOL'S OU T / CR ICK ET

C

big reason for this uplift in attention from today’s school pupils. “Moving to a shorter ricket has always game format means that logistically there been intrinsically are far more opportunities for players to entwined around take part – we can now start a match at the essence of 5pm and students will enjoy a couple of ‘Englishness’ – lush hours of play – without it impacting on green pitches with everything else they are doing in their busy picture-perfect school lives.” Whilst it may be obvious, the thatched pavilions, implications are far-reaching. “Students the gentle thud of leather on willow, and the who have more opportunities to play are civility of stopping play to take tea. able to practice more, to develop and hone In recent years however the game has, their skills and to have more time to just quite literally, been hit for six – crashing enjoy taking part.” past the boundaries of ‘tradition’ and ‘Englishness’ – straight into the future.

Twenty20 is Test cricket’s younger, yet bolder and brasher sibling - with its brightly adorned players, and its fastpaced, exciting-to-watch game.

It’s certainly made an impression in schools up and down the country. “The younger generation love the sparkling lights of Twenty20,” says Neil Johnson, Director of Cricket at Oakham School. “They get to The second reason that Twenty20 is wear the flashy clothes with their names going down so well on school sports pitches on their backs. They can play a game more is the desire from pupils to emulate the quickly, and they really relish the challenge big hitting they see on screen. “Power of hitting sixes” play encourages cricketers to play in a Johnson, who played professional cricket completely different way – they now need for 17 years at international and national to be able to repeatedly smash the ball,” level before joining Oakham, thinks that the Johnson explains. As such, the nature new game-play has already, and will of school coaching has changed, continue, to broaden the sport’s too. “We now offer sessions on appeal. “We’ve certainly seen A B OV E ‘six hitting’ where you put a more interest from students On the pitch at pupil in a cage and get them to who perhaps would have Sandroyd hit for six, continually, just to shied away from the BELOW focus on these skills alone. We traditional format.”

An Oakham pupil also now teach them where to The speed of play is a in action find new places to secure runs, along with mastering sweeps and switches; all techniques that just wouldn’t have necessarily been taught or encouraged before the advent of Twenty20.”

There are, however, downsides to these changing attitudes. “Test cricket is a long game – mentally and physically. It’s a real ‘test’ of all your skills. But today’s younger players are often only watching the edited highlights – days of matches are reduced down to just the wickets, fours and sixes,” Johnson continues. “They don’t see the slow building of pressure on the batsman.

They don’t watch maiden after maiden.

They don’t see the play that caused the wicket to fall.” This is further exacerbated by the popularity of computer games, where there is no waiting; it’s all express play with extreme results.

“Today’s young players are not used to waiting, to playing the long game”

And how it has changed at prep…

N

owhere could better showcase just how much youth cricket has moved on than Sandroyd School – given that the sport has been a part of school life since its founding in 1888.

“It’s no longer just played by the school’s elite players in the summer term,” explains Headmaster Alastair Speers. “It’s hugely popular with all the pupils – boys and girls – and is now an all-year-round sport as we run a ‘Winter Academy’, with professionals from Hampshire CCC coming in during weekday evenings to run individual and group sessions.”

Alastair attributes the sport’s popularity with the introduction of Kwik Cricket, which he describes as an excellent way to get children "hooked” on the sport from a young age.

It’s a short-format game played with teams of eight players, and is a precursor to the Twenty20 and limited overs cricket that Prep pupils then move on to play. Sandroyd’s pupils begin to play in the Pre-Prep, from age three, with lessons from Director of Sport Trevor Webster, who, prior to his teaching career, played representative cricket in South Africa.

“Starting early, teaching and then honing their core skills at a young age, means that by the time they reach Year 3 our pupils are ready to play competitive matches.” Kwik Cricket can certainly be credited for developing girls’ interest in the sport – to such a degree that Sandroyd now has both county level players and girls trialling for places in the School’s 1st XI.

As such, Johnson argues that schools often have to ‘un-teach’ pupils what they perceive the game to be. “More and more, coaches are having to teach the nature of the sport – that it’s a long game, a long day.

We have to encourage them to understand both types of game – Twenty20 and Test – and that the sport can’t just be reduced down to hitting the ball as hard as possible.”

Putting the challenges of new coaching methods aside, the changes to the sport should hopefully mean that more students continue playing after they’ve left school.

Johnson concludes, “more people playing cricket, at school and at local grassroots level – regardless of what type – is great for the sport. It’s good in terms of viewership, the business of cricket and the future of England’s cricket team, as well as the obvious benefits to people’s health if they find a sport they enjoy and continue to play well into their adulthood.”

2017

Changing Cricket.indd 77

|

B R I T I S H E D U C AT I O N

|

77

27/01/2017 17:02

Playing like a girl Cricket is becoming a far more popular women’s sport. Here two schools outline how they’ve introduced and encouraged girls’ cricket

78

|

B R I T I S H E D U C AT I O N

Girl's Cricket.indd 78

|

2017

27/01/2017 17:07

SCHOOL’S OU T / GIR LS’ CR ICK ET

competition, encouraging discussion as a development tool as well as action based responses and understanding the individual and team dynamic.

Having a supportive environment was key to growth in player numbers.

We soon recognised that our core playing group were encouraging their friends to come along and join in the fun. If they had enjoyed the experience, then there was a good chance that one of their friends would come and sample cricket for the first time.

MARK GARAWAY

E

Millfield’s Director of Cricket

ven in 2012 girls’ cricket was very much in its infancy at Millfield, a school where cricket has long been a popular sport.

That year we started our girls cricket journey with a plan to grow ‘bottom up’; It felt quite ambitious at the time but from 15 girls four years ago we now have over 75 regular players across Millfield and a growing team at our prep school.

There has been much written about the need to encourage girls to participate in sport at that crucial drop off age of 14 and the need to adapt coaching styles to best suit female athletes. Girls need different things within a coaching and sporting environment and that includes a focus on personal improvement rather than internal

“Girls’ cricket was in its infancy at Millfield as recently as 2012”

LEFT

A cricketer at Blundell's BELOW

Bowling at Millfield

It was also important to find ways to encourage both experienced players and newcomers to play together. We found that using a tape ball in indoor cricket was a successful way of giving more experienced players meaningful game based practice whilst also providing a safe soft ball environment for new comers. A hard cricket ball is not always the best introduction to our sport!

With the support of a dedicated girls cricket coach, the girls squad have had a focused pathway to follow which has been personalised to their needs. We now have 15 summer term hard ball fixtures spread over two squads (Junior and Senior), which is a real sign of progress and we are introducing additional outdoor tape ball fixtures for 2017 to increase opportunities once more for girls to connect with this great game.

KIM COOIL

2nd in PE and Games Department St Mary’s School, Cambridge

T

he lack of coverage of women’s cricket by the media is part of the reason that schoolgirls are often less interested in the sport; they simply have not been exposed to it. Men’s cricket is highly televised, publicised, and popular, and so it is a common school sport which has a lot of coaches and international male

role models. At St Mary’s School, Cambridge we often talk about the importance of having positive female role models to show our students that women can achieve great things across the breadth of careers; the same is true in sport.

I also believe schoolgirls have a general perception that cricket is a long and boring game, which often deters them from wanting to participate. The England Cricket Board advocates adapting games to engage girls who are new to the sport – for example the Lady Taverners indoor (schools) competition, which is aimed at girls, is very inclusive, and is over in a matter of a few hours. As cricket continues to become more established as a girls’ sport it will also naturally increase its demand for exposure within the media, which should in turn boost its profile.

Women’s cricket is now one of the fastest growing sports among girls, and understanding the growth of the sport has meant that we have been increasing our own cricket provision. Last summer, First Choice Coaching came in to our school to deliver cricket as an extra-

“Schoolgirls have a perception that cricket is long and boring” curricular club, giving the girls a better understanding of how fun cricket can be. We intend to further enhance our cricket provision in a way that is engaging and fun for the girls, and also play competitive fixtures against local schools.

Sports scholar and Cambridgeshire U17 Batter/Wicket Keeper Olivia says she has seen a marked improvement in Cambridgeshire women’s cricket in recent years, with an increasing number of girls participating and with better facilities, conditioning, coaching and support now available.

The number of pathways through which girls can become involved in cricket is increasing, both within local clubs as well as through the county system, and our hope is that by better introducing girls to the joys of cricket while they are still at school, we will play our part in developing celebrated female cricketers who will then inspire the next generation of girls.

2017

Girl's Cricket.indd 79

|

B R I T I S H E D U C AT I O N

|

79

27/01/2017 17:08

British Boarding Schools Show DUBAI Friday 17 March 12.00 • 17.00 Saturday 18 March 12.00 • 17.00

The British Boarding Schools Show will return to Dubai in March 2017. The Show provides families living in the Gulf region access to the Heads of some of Britain's most distinguished schools. At the British Boarding Schools Show we understand that choosing the right school for your child is both emotionally and financially demanding. Meet with Dubai parents whose children are already at school in the UK and attend seminars on achieving transfers into the UK system.

S h e r a to n Ho tel , Ma ll o f t h e E m i r a tes Sheikh Zayed Road, al Barsha 1, Mall of the Emirates, Dubai

Kilgraston School

Loretto School

boarding

day and boarding He a d m a s t e r : Dr Graham Hawley U S P : Scotland’s oldest boarding school, it follows the English curriculum with GCSEs and A-Levels but has its own pipe band.

No t a b l e a l u m n i : Alistair Darling, Andrew Marr

W h e r e? Perth, Scotland W h o’s i t fo r? Girls, 13-18, day and

W h e r e? Musselburgh, Scotland W h o’s i t fo r? Boys and girls, 3-18,

He a d m i s t r e ss :

Mrs Dorothy MacGinty U S P : Voted Scottish independent school of the year by The Sunday Times, Kilgraston is the only school in Scotland with equestrian facilities. It boasts a high calibre of sportswomen: the director of sport, Pauline Stott MBE, is a double Olympian, and captained Great Britain at hockey at the Sydney Games in 2000.

loretto.com

Radley College

W h e r e? Abingdon, Oxfordshire W h o’s i t fo r? Boys, 13-18,

all boarding Wa r d e n : Mr John Moule U S P : Radley boasts a Lancelot ‘Capability’ Brown-designed parkland, plus a beagle pack and the boys wear gowns as normal garb.

No t a b l e a l u m n i : Andrew Strauss, Andrew Motion

kilgraston.com

Wells Cathedral School

W h e r e? Wells, Somerset W h o’s i t fo r? Boys and girls, 3-18,

day and boarding He a d m i s t r e ss :

Mrs Elizabeth Cairncross U S P : Wells is a specialist music school, one of only four in England recognised by the government. It’s also one of the oldest in the country, having been founded in 909AD. No t a b l e a l u m n i : Glastonbury Festival founder Michael Eavis wellscathedralschool.org

80

|

B R I T I S H E D U C AT I O N

ED_Schools Show Profiles.indd 80

|

radley.org

Rossall School

W h e r e? Fleetwood, Lancashire W h o’s i t fo r? Boys and girls, 2-18,

day and boarding ST EDWARD'S SCHOOL

He a d m i s t r e ss : Ms Elaine Purves U S P : Rossall is in partnership

with Fleetwood Town Football Club

2017

27/01/2017 17:16

SCHOOLS SHOW / EXHIBITORS

Dollar

W h e r e? Clackmannshire, Scotland W h o’s i t fo r? Boys and girls, 5-18,

day and boarding R e c t o r : Mr David Knapman U S P : The school occupies a magnificent 70-acre campus within easy reach of Edinburgh, and has an award winning modern languages centre. dollaracademy.org.uk

Repton School

W h e r e? Derby, Derbyshire W h o’s i t fo r? Boys and girls,

THE ROYAL SCHOOL

where pupils can join their elite football academy programme. rossall.org.uk

Marlborough College

W h e r e? Marlborough, Wiltshire W h o’s i t fo r? Boys and girls, 13-

18, predominantly boarding He a d m a s t e r : Mr Jonathan Leigh U S P : Land around Marlborough College has been dated back to 2,400BC – a truly ancient site for an education.

No t a b l e a l u m n i : The Duchess of Cambridge, Sir John Betjeman marlboroughcollege.org

Junior King’s Canterbury

W h e r e? Canterbury, Kent W h o’s i t fo r? Boys and girls, 3-13,

day and boarding He a d m a s t e r : Mr Peter Wells U S P : Located two miles from the centre of Canterbury in 80 acres of idyllic countryside, Junior King’s is a haven for pupils who then make the easy transition to life at senior school by the cathedral. junior-kings.co.uk

The Downs, Malvern

W h e r e? Malvern, Worcestershire W h o’s i t fo r? Boys and girls, 3-13,

day and boarding He a d m a s t e r : Mr Alastair Cook U S P : The Downs has its own 9” gauge miniature steam railway, offering pupils the opportunity to incorporate engineering into their weekly schedule. thedownsmalvern.org.uk

Mount Kelly

W h e r e? Tavistock, Devon W h o’s i t fo r? Boys and girls, 3-18,

day and boarding

13-18, day and boarding He a d m a s t e r : Mr Alastair Land U S P : Repton has a popular satellite school in Dubai, with a second due to open in India this year. When Roald Dahl was a pupil at Repton Cadburys used to send tasting boxes of chocolate for the boys to mark, and this is thought to be the inspiration for Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.

No t a b l e a l u m n i : Jeremy Clarkson, Roald Dahl

The rules of football were devised at Shrewsbury and an original copy is in the library

repton.org.uk

He a d m a s t e r :

Mr Mark Semmence U S P : The merger of Kelly College and Mount House prep school has formed Mount Kelly. Their Devon coastline comes with lovely views, and pupils can complete the 35, 45 and 55-mile Ten Tors Challenge. mountkelly.com

St Mary’s Calne

W h e r e? Calne, Wiltshire W h o’s i t fo r? Girls, 11-18,

day and boarding He a d m i s t r e ss : Dr Felicia Kirk U S P : About 15 per cent of girls

go to Oxbridge a year, and St Mary's have a unique partnership with RADA giving girls access to their advance communications course at sixth form. Girls board “horizontally” in age groups.

No t a b l e a l u m n i : Jade Jagger stmaryscalne.org

Gordonstoun

W h e r e? Elgin, Scotland W h o’s i t fo r? Boys and girls,

13-18, predominantly boarding He a d m a s t e r : Mr Simon Reid U S P : Gordonstoun has its own fire service, and the unique curriculum offers a true “service” education with pupils committing to one of the school’s 12 services on offer.

No t a b l e a l u m n i :

HRH The Duke of Edinburgh, HRH The Prince of Wales

THE KING'S SCHOOL, CANTERBURY

gordonstoun.org.uk

2017

ED_Schools Show Profiles.indd 81

|

B R I T I S H E D U C AT I O N

|

81

27/01/2017 17:16

LORETTO SCHOOL

Westonbirt

Marymount International School

day and boarding

W h e r e? Kingston, Surrey W h o’s i t fo r? Girls, 11-18, day

The Royal School

He a d m i s t r e ss :

and boarding

day and boarding

Mrs Natasha Dangerfield U S P : Quintessentially English, but with girls from 22 countries on roll and Mandarin offered at A-Level.

No t a b l e a l u m n i : Fashion designer Natasha Rufus-Isaacs

He a d m i s t r e ss :

He a d m i s t r e ss : Mrs Anne Lynch U S P : The 'diamond school' model

W h e r e? Tetbury, Gloucestershire W h o’s i t fo r? Girls, 11-18,

westonbirt.org

marymountlondon.com

Bedales School

W h e r e? Petersfield, Hampshire W h o’s i t fo r? Boys and girls, 3-18,

day and boarding

go by their first names, and they have a unique Bedales curriculum: there’s no other school like it.

No t a b l e a l u m n i : Lily Allen, Cara Delevingne bedales.org.uk

|

B R I T I S H E D U C AT I O N

ED_Schools Show Profiles.indd 82

Merchiston Castle School

W h e r e? Edinburgh, Scotland W h o’s i t fo r? Boys, 7-18,

day and boarding He a d m a s t e r : Mr Andrew Hunter U S P : The only all-boys boarding school in the region, Merchiston particularly excels at rugby, and has sent 62 boys off to play at senior international level.

No t a b l e a l u m n i : Sir Peter Burt

He a d m a s t e r : Mr Keith Budge U S P : No uniform, teachers

82

Ms Sarah Gallagher U S P : Marymount was the first school to install a “Fab Lab” – fabrication laboratory – for the teaching of computer programming, coding and robotics.

merchiston.co.uk

|

W h e r e? Haslemere, Surrey W h o’s i t fo r? Boys and girls, 1-18,

Some of the land around Marlborough College in Wiltshire dates back to 2400BC

– children learn together at prep school, then go single-sex at senior school, and back together for sixth form. royal-school.org

The King’s School, Canterbury

W h e r e? Canterbury, Kent W h o’s i t fo r? Boys and girls,

13-18, day and boarding He a d m a s t e r : Mr Peter Roberts U S P : King’s is allegedly the oldest school in the country, with origins dating back to 597AD, and sits within the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Canterbury Cathedral.

No t a b l e a l u m n i : Orlando Bloom, Michael Morpurgo kings-school.co.uk

2017

27/01/2017 17:16

SCHOOLS SHOW / EXHIBITORS

St Edward’s School

Badminton School

13-18, day and boarding Wa r d e n : Mr Stephen Jones U S P : 'Teddies', as it is better known, has just opened a brand spanking-new £7m music school.

No t a b l e a l u m n i : Holly Branson, Kenneth Grahame

W h o’s i t fo r? Girls, 3-18, day

W h e r e? Oxford, Oxfordshire W h o’s i t fo r? Girls and boys,

stedwardsoxford.org

Malvern College

W h e r e? Malvern, Worcestershire W h o’s i t fo r? Boys and girls,

13-18, day and boarding He a d m a s t e r : Mr Antony Clark U S P : Pupils eat meals in their houses with staff and guests, to reinforce the family atmosphere.

No t a b l e a l u m n i : CS Lewis, Jeremy Paxman malverncollege.org.uk

Shrewsbury School

W h e r e? Shrewsbury, Shropshire W h o’s i t fo r? Boys and girls, 13-

19, day and boarding He a d m a s t e r : Mr Mark Turner U S P : Rowing is big at Shrewsbury,

but it was here that the rules of football were devised and an original copy still resides in the school library.

No t a b l e a l u m n i : Charles Darwin, Michael Palin shrewsbury.org.uk

Millfield School

W h e r e? Street, Somerset W h o’s i t fo r? Boys and girls,

13-18, day and boarding He a d m a s t e r : Mr Craig Considine U S P : So sporty a school is Millfield that if it were a country, it would have beaten Canada at the 2012 Olympic Games in London.

No t a b l e a l u m n i : Max Mosley, Sophie Dahl millfieldschool.com

Cheltenham College

W h e r e? Cheltenham,

Gloucestershire W h o’s i t fo r? Boys and girls,

13-18, day and boarding He a d m a s t e r : Dr Alex Peterken U S P : Cheltenham College is the only school in the UK to have two Steinway concert grand pianos. cheltenhamcollege.org

W h e r e? Westbury-on-Trym,

Bristol and boarding He a d m i s t r e ss :

Mrs Rebecca Tear U S P : Sixth formers can take on a Leith's diploma in food and wine in addition to their academic studies.

No t a b l e a l u m n i : Indira Ghandi, Rosamund Pike badmintonschool.co.uk

Cheltenham Ladies' College

W h e r e? Cheltenham, Gloucestershire W h o’s i t fo r? Girls, 11-18, day and boarding He a d m i s t r e ss :

Ms Eve Jardine-Young U S P : Cheltenham Ladies is the largest girls’ boarding community in Europe, and offers more than 160 extra-curricular clubs for girls.

No t a b l e a l u m n i : Kristin Scott Thomas, Amber Rudd

No t a b l e a l u m n i : Lucian Freud,

Ben Fogle bryanston.co.uk

Lomond School

W h e r e? Helensburgh, Scotland W h o’s i t fo r? Boys and girls, 3-18,

day and boarding He a d m i s t r e ss :

Mrs Johanna Urquhart U S P : Non-selective family school on the west coast of Scotland. lomondschool.com

Harrogate Ladies' College

W h e r e? Harrogate, Yorkshire W h o’s i t fo r? Girls, 2-18, day and

boarding; boys, 2-11, day only P r i n c i p a l : Mrs Sylvia Brett U S P : Day fees include two nights free boarding each term. hlc.org.uk

Windlesham House School

W h e r e? Washington, West Sussex W h o’s i t fo r? Boys and girls, 4-13,

day and boarding He a d : Mr Richard Foster U S P : Traditional prep school with cosy full-boarding weekends, and an outdoor pizza oven for snacks in the woods. windleshamschool.co.uk

The English School of Kyrenia

W h e r e? Bilim Sokak, Cyprus W h o’s i t fo r? Boys and girls, 3-18,

day and boarding He a d : Mr Hector MacDonald U S P : Set in the Kyrenia foothills

overlooking the Mediterranean, parents will be pressed to find a more picturesque location. englishschoolkyrenia.org

cheltladiescollege.org

Strathallan School

W h e r e? Perthshire, Scotland W h o’s i t fo r? Boys and girls, 9-18,

day and boarding He a d m a s t e r :

Mr Bruce Thompson U S P : Strathallan covers 153 acres of Perthshire – the equivalent of a Caribbean island. strathallan.co.uk

Oundle School

W h e r e? Peterborough, Cambs W h o’s i t fo r? Boys and girls, 11-18,

day and boarding He a d m i s t r e ss :

Mrs Sarah Kerr-Dineen U S P : The third form’s 'Trivium' course is based on 'interestingness and outside-the-box thinking.

No t a b l e a l u m n i : Richard Dawkins, Charles Wintour oundleschool.org.uk

Bryanston

W h e r e? Blandford, Dorset W h o’s i t fo r? Boys and girls,

13-18, day and boarding He a d m i s t r e ss :

Ms Sarah Thomas U S P : Liberal and artistic outlook – which also includes no uniforms.

HARROGATE LADIES' COLLEGE

2017

ED_Schools Show Profiles.indd 83

|

B R I T I S H E D U C AT I O N

|

83

27/01/2017 17:17

PROMOTION

A perfect gem An education at one of Ireland’s top schools for boys

G

lenstal Abbey School stands out as one of the leading boarding schools in Ireland for boys aged 12-18.

Situated in County Limerick, in the heart of Munster, Glenstal Abbey is only 40 minutes' drive from Shannon Airport and just over two hours' drive from Dublin Airport.

Glenstal is a small school with small classes; there are approximately 250 students divided into groups mostly of 12 to 16 pupils, in line with the clear policy and academic vision of the school.

A Catholic school, Glenstal welcomes students from all traditions and sees itself as a partner with parents in the formation and nurturing of its students in a climate of learning.

Each student at Glenstal is encouraged to fulfill his potential. The school’s ethos is grounded in the values of reverence, respect and responsibility drawn from a long monastic tradition.

“Academia, pastoral care, sport, art and music are seamlessly woven into the educational fabric”

84

|

B R I T I S H E D U C AT I O N

ED_ADV_glenstal.indd 84

|

The Irish Department of Education and Skills recently completed a Whole School Evaluation on the management, leadership and learning at Glenstal Abbey School.

The report warmly endorsed the school’s academic, pastoral, sporting, art and music programmes: “All these aspects of the students’ experience appear to be woven into a fabric of care, support and pedagogy to nurture the academic, social and personal development of the students while in the care of the school.”

Glenstal has regularly topped The Sunday Times ‘Parent Power’ survey over the last 10 years. These tables are based on the percentage of students progressing to universities in Ireland and the UK. There is no better way for parents to discover what life is like for a students here than to explore the school and its grounds for themselves.

A B OV E

Year 11 pupils at Glenstal Abbey

The annual boarding fee is in the order of €23,500 For further information about Glenstal Abbey School see www.glenstal.com email admissions@glenstal.com or telephone +35361621044

2017

30/01/2017 09:44

I WANT TO EXPAND MY INVESTMENT PORTFOLIO

C

M

Y

CM

MY

CY

MY

K

THE HOME OF REAL ESTATE INVESTMENT Cityscape Abu Dhabi, the capital’s largest and most influential property exhibition is back. Bringing together investors, developers, government officials and real estate professionals, there is no better place to find investment opportunities and new business partners. With hundreds of developments from Abu Dhabi and overseas being showcased, Cityscape Abu Dhabi 2017 is the home of real estate investment.

Register now for FREE entry +971 4 336 5161

info@cityscapeabudhabi.com Research Partner

CITYSCAPE ABU DHABI.indd 1

Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre, UAE

Business Publication

www.cityscapeabudhabi.com Organised by

26/01/2017 15:12

HURTWOOD HOUSE.indd 1 (Absolutely).indd 1 Dance Ad Double Page Spread

08/09/2016 11:08

www.hurtwoodhouse.com

HURTWOOD HOUSE.indd 2

08/09/2016 11:08 10:46

LEADING THE WAY Allow us to introduce Mr Mortimer, our Headmaster.

His passion for education is only matched by his love of sport – a keen rower, he’s twice rowed the Atlantic.

At Warminster we don’t only choose the best teachers to educate our pupils – we choose the most interesting ones.

Collectively, our staff have walked the beat as a Special Constable, played World-class rugby, led expeditions, directed West End musicals, surfed at a national level and climbed Kilimanjaro.

Individually, we are diverse in our interests, driven in our passions and determined to work together to do things a little differently. If you are too, then get in touch.

01985 210160 admissions@warminsterschool.org.uk www.warminsterschool.org.uk

WARMINSTER.indd 1 WS056_LeadingWay_EducationDubaiAd.indd 1

20/01/2016 11:44 18/01/2016 16:57

ng di ar Bo

Millfield and Millfield Prep would be delighted to invite you to a personal visit find out more at millfieldschool.com/admissions

m fro

A compass for life 18 7es ag

Doctor Guitarist Hockey Player

A

AMPLEFORTH COLLEGE & ST MARTIN’S AMPLEFORTH

millfieldschool.com/everyfield

A sense of belonging in the Ampleforth valley Co-educational boarding and day school for 3-18 www.ampleforth.org.uk MILLFIELD.indd 1 1 AMPLEFORTH.indd

_DUBAI_HP_QP.indd _ADVERTS.indd 11 1

12/01/2016 14:59 14:35 30/09/2016

27/01/2017 09:53 12:44 11/02/2016

“A wonderful place to grow a rooted sense of self, and joy in life and learning” Good Schools Guide 2016

Weekly boarding | 1 hour from London

To book a place on an open morning or to arrange an individual visit, please contact Janie Jarman, Registrar.

T 01730 711 733 E jjarman@bedales.org.uk Petersfield, Hampshire GU32 2DG

www.bedales.org.uk BEDALES.indd 1

IF YOU WANT TO SEE 21ST CENTURY LEADERSHIP OPPORTUNITIES FOR GIRLS, COME TO RUGBY

30/09/2016 10:39

PARENTS KNOW NOT ALL PRIVATE, CO-ED SCHOOLS ARE TRULY EQUAL. Simply admitting girls is not enough. Can all co-ed schools claim there are as many opportunities, particularly in leadership roles, for girls as for boys? Is there an equal emphasis in the classroom, on sport, in societies, in cocurricular activity?

We invite you to visit with your daughter and let her experience a day in the life of a girl at Rugby School.

#wholepersonwholepoint www.rugbyschool.co.uk RUGBY.indd 1

_DUBAI_HP_QP.indd 2

04/10/2016 16:01

27/01/2017 12:45

Outstanding education at one of the UK’s leading co-ed boarding schools Less than one hour from Leeds Bradford International Airport Clifton St Olave’s St Peter’s 01904 527300 www.stpetersyork.org.uk 3–8 8–13 13–18 Registered Charity Number: 1141329

ST PETERS SCHOOL.indd 1

29/09/2016 12:59

“A very special place to grow up in” Good Schools Guide

FRANC

HA LEAL

ETO GE

www.godolphin.org GODOLPHIN.indd 1 07364_generic_ad_Absolutely_British_Education_190x134_2016_09.indd 1

_DUBAI_HP_QP.indd 3

30/09/2016 30/09/2016 15:24 11:03

27/01/2017 12:45

Co-educational school forfor 3-18 years in in South-East England Co-educationalday day& &boarding boarding school 3-18 years South-East England

Small enough to ensure that individual pupils receive the attention and care they require, but large enough to provide outstanding facilities.

Strong Academic Results Full boarding 7 to 18 years

T: 01843 572931

New Boarding FAcilities Fast direct train to London

E: admissions@slcuk.com

www.slcuk.com

St Lawrence College, College Road, Ramsgate, Kent CT11 7AE

ST LAWRENCE COLLEGE.indd 1

26/01/2017 17:05

‘‘Bringing out the best in boys’’

A day in the life of Aldro... come and see for yourself If you would like to attend an Open Morning, to request a prospectus, or to arrange an individual tour, please contact the Admissions Office on 01483 813535 or email: admissions@aldro.org Aldro, Lombard Street, Shackleford, Godalming, Surrey GU8 6AS www.aldro.org ALDRO.indd 1

_DUBAI_HP_QP.indd 4

04/10/2016 10:37

27/01/2017 12:45

Huntingdon

Ely

Cambridge Bedford

Bassingbourn

Royston Saffron Walden

St. Francis’ College

Letchworth Stevenage

Luton Harpenden St Albans

Stansted

Welwyn GC M1

A1(M)

A10

M11

London Kings Cross

M40

Easy access to London Heathrow Airport and just 30 minutes by train from central London

M4

Heathrow

Excellent British independent boarding and

Tel: +44 (0)1462 670 511

day school located close to London and

admissions@st-francis.herts.sch.uk

Cambridge for girls aged 3 - 18 years.

www.st-francis.herts.sch.uk

ST FRANCIS.indd 1

26/01/2017 14:37

The Leading Boarding and Day School for Girls aged 4 - 18

Who do you want to be?

Your story starts here...

Contact us to arrange your personal visit or boarding taster www.malvernstjames.co.uk

admissions@malvernstjames.co.uk

01684 584624

Curiosity • Creativity • Challenge MALVERN ST JAMES.indd 1

_DUBAI_HP_QP.indd 5

19/01/2017 11:59

27/01/2017 12:45

Bry Generic Hpage ls Jan 17 190x134 hr2.qxp_Layout 1 17/01/2017 13:13 Page 1

B RYA N S T O N One-to-one attention for the individual is at the heart of all we do

�

�

�

13–18 co-ed boarding and day Scholarships and bursaries at 13+ and 16+ Set in 400 acres of glorious Dorset countryside

Rated excellent in all categories by the Independent Schools Inspectorate

+44 (0)1258 452411 admissions@bryanston.co.uk

www.bryanston.co.uk BRYANSTON.indd 1

17/01/2017 17:37

%Q GFWECVKQPCN r &C[ 9GGMN[ (NGZK CPF (WNN $QCTFKPI r t [GCTU

1RGP &C[U $CPM *QNKFC[ /QPFC[ UV /C[ CO s RO (TKFC[ VJ 1EVQDGT RO s RO r 5CVWTFC[ VJ 1EVQDGT CO s RO Private visits are also available at any time (QT OQTG KPHQTOCVKQP RNGCUG EQPVCEV -CVJGTKPG %QZ 4GIKUVTCT r TGIKUVTCT"VJGFQYPU OCNEQN QTI r YYY VJGFQYPUOCNXGTP QTI WM THE DOWNS MALVERN.indd 1

_DUBAI_HP_QP.indd 6

26/01/2017 14:49

27/01/2017 12:46

Catholic Day and Boarding School for girls aged 11 to 18 • Experience teaching the IB Diploma for over 35 years • Exclusive pre-IB Middle Years Programme • Nurture and support: girls gain excellent results • Places achieved at top Universities worldwide

• Scholarships and bursaries available • Multilingualism: up to 9 languages taught • Internationalism: over 40 nationalities, yet one shared mission • All faiths welcome

Please contact: admissions@marymountlondon.com www.marymountlondon.com Tel: 020 8949 0571 George Road, Kingston upon Thames, Surrey KT2 7PE. MARYMOUNT.indd 1

F L A I R

04/10/2016 10:02

•

D I S C I P L I N E

•

A C A D E M I C

R I G O U R

REGI

BROMSGROVE SCHOOL FOUNDED 1553

One of the country’s leading Day and Boarding Schools Come and see us at work - we welcome individual visits, please contact us to make an appointment.

Huge investment in boarding and sports facilities.

Heart of England location with easy access to the Midlands motorway network. Set in 100 acres of beautiful tree-lined parkland.

ISI Inspection 2016 - Excellent in every category Co-educational, Day and Boarding 1400 pupils aged 7 to 18 with 500 full time boarders Please contact Admissions to arrange a visit Telephone: 01527 579679 email: admissions@bromsgrove-school.co.uk www.bromsgrove-school.co.uk BROMSGROVE SCHOOL.indd 1

_DUBAI_HP_QP.indd 7

04/10/2016 10:36

27/01/2017 12:46

Your daughter is unique, her education will be.

Top 5

An all-round education for girls aged 3 - 18

BOARDING SCHOOL for GIRLS iN THE UK

- Outstanding academic results, enabling our girls to attend the top universities of their choice.

- The Sunday Times highest performing independent school in Scotland for Intermediate 2, Highers and Advanced Highers.

- Specialist teachers, small class sizes and motivated pupils help to ensure our girls gain excellent results.

- Wide range of co-curricular activities that develop students’ wider interests and skills.

- Outstanding modern facilities including Scotland‘s only school equestrian centre, £1million science centre, theatre, all-weather pitches, tennis courts • The very best in British education and a 25m indoor Swimming • SuperbPool. achievements in Music, Drama and STEM subjects (Science, technology, - Scotland’s only CReSTeD accredited school. engineering, maths) - Direct links to Edinburgh• and Glasgow iPad Centre of Excellence airport.

Forest School in our own wooded campus - English Language School• (www.klacscotland.com).

Talbot Heath Independent School for Girls aged 3-18

• National finalists in sixteen sports

• UK No.1 Tennis School for Girls, No.4 in the World

Week 1 26th June 2nd July

Week 2 3rd July 9th July

Week 3 10th July 16th July

Week 4 17th July 23rd July

EQUESTRIAN HOCKEY MULTI SPORTS MUSICAL THEATRE DISCOVERY SCOTLAND

TENNIS

INCLUSIVE • INDIVIDUAL • INSPIRATIONAL

Thriving and friendly independent HMC school Boarding (full, weekly, flexi) and day 450 boys aged 11-18 and girls aged 16-18 Overlooking the river near Henley-on-Thames Outstanding pastoral care and academic value-added

40 Minutes from Heathrow Easy access to Reading, M4 and M40 and London

www.kilgraston.com

Get social with us, search @TalbotHeathSch

RESIDENTIAL LANGUAGE ACTIVITY HOLIDAYS IN STUNNING SCOTLAND

• Private minibuses to London Airports.

• Voted in the top 5 boarding schools for girls in the UK by Study International, Oct 2015

Rothesay Rd | Bournemouth | Dorset Tel: 01202 761881 | talbotheath.org

mer Sum 16 20

Full boarding £3428 per term, Weekly £3059 per term, Flexi £61 per night/£150 for 3 nights inc weekends.

Senior tuition £4444 per term.

Kilgraston School, Bridge of Earn, Perth, PH2 9BQ Tel: +44 (0)1738 812257 Email: admissions@kilgraston.com Building confidence & character since 1886 Kilgraston School Trust is a charity. Scottish Charity Number SC029664

www.shiplake.org.uk www.klacscotland.com

Kilgraston School, Bridge of Earn, Perth, PH2 9BQ A full ISI inspection Shiplake Telephone: +44judged (0) 1738 812257 College as EXCELLENT across every inspection category Email: languageschool@kilgraston.com

KILGRASTON.indd 1

02/02/2016 09:40

TALBOT HEATH.indd 1

29/09/2016 13:21 COLLEGE.indd 1 SHIPLAKE

04/10/2016 12:02

Stamford Endowed Schools

BOARDING Boarders receive excellent support “from staff which is greatly enhanced by the warm and positive relationships which exist between them.

”

In the recent ISI Inspection Report we were rated as ‘excellent’.

For more information on our Schools please call

+44 (0)1780 750311

or email admissions@ses.lincs.sch.uk Visit www.ses.lincs.sch.uk

STAMFORD ENDOWED SCHOOL.indd 1

_DUBAI_HP_QP.indd 8 _ADVERTS.indd 8

02/02/2016 09:53

27/01/2017 09:52 12:46 11/02/2016

Bishop’s Stortford College

Building Confidence for Life

As well as offering a top academic education, let us stretch, engage, challenge and enthuse your child.

By encouraging pupils to get excited about learning, together with offering a wealth of opportunity, we do more than just educate; we build confidence for life.

To discover what we can offer your family, we invite you to visit the College and see our campus first hand; please contact our admissions team.

Visit our website for more information: www.bishopsstortfordcollege.org

St Mary’s Calne A Top Independent Boarding & Day School For Girls Aged 11-18

For further information or to visit the school, please contact admissions@stmaryscalne.org +44 (0) 1249 857200 stmaryscalne.org

BURGESS HILL GIRLS. DAY AND BOARDING SCHOOL FOR MORE INFORMATION VISIT BURGESSHILLGIRLS.COM

T. 01279 838604 E. admissions@bishopsstortfordcollege.org

Consistently ranked within top 100 Independent Schools; based on A Level results.

Telegraph league table/ISI

Maze Green Road, Bishop’s Stortford, Hertfordshire CM23 2PJ Charity No. 311057 Bishop’s Stortford College and the Crest are registered trademarks of The Incorporated Bishop’s Stortford College Association.

Catholic independent boarding and day school for boys aged 11 to 18

Open Mornings Twice Yearly Daily Show Rounds Taster Days & Boarding Experiences Good Communication links (45 minutes from Heathrow and 30 minutes by train from London)

Excellence in Education Since 1906 Charity Number 307001

_DUBAI_HP_QP.indd 9

For more information email: enquiries@oratory.co.uk phone 01491 683500 or visit: www.oratory.co.uk Woodcote, South Oxfordshire, RG8 0PJ

27/01/2017 12:47

Dyslexia

SCHOOL SEARCH

Experts in placing children with Educational Learning Difficulties.

• Dyslexia • Dyspraxia • Dyscalculia • Dysgraphia • Autism • Asperger’s Syndrome • and other complex learning difficulties

Your journeY starts here Let us help you find your way and the best school for your child.

Telephone: +44 (0) 1728 687 964 Mobile: +44 (0) 7754 756726 info@dyslexiaschoolsearch.com

www.dyslexiaschoolsearch.com

HORRIS HILL.indd 1

05/10/2016 11:13Steen ad1 134x90 v1.indd 1 DYSLEXIA.indd Sheridan

Ackworth School

HMC, Quaker, Co-educational Boarding and Day School for 2½ to 18 Years

Buying A Property In Central London?

30/09/2016 16:22 15:59

Request Your Free Copy of The Insider’s Guide To Acquiring Luxury London Property Written by Jeremy McGivern, a leading expert on acquiring property in London, the book reveals everything you need to know. Discover:

Traditional UK Boarding and Day School, with some international students

September entry application now being accepted Ackworth, Pontefract, West Yorkshire, WF7 7LT Tel: +44 (0)1977 611401 /AckworthSchool

_DUBAI_HP_QP.indd 10

Email: admissions@ackworthschool.com

www.ackworthschool.com

@ackworth_school

1. How To Become a “Preferred Buyer” 2. How To Source Off Market Properties 3. The Simplest Way To Ensure an Astute Acquisition 4. How To Avoid The 7 Most Expensive Mistakes Buyers Make 5. Why only naïve buyers rely on websites and how to see the best opportunities 6. 30 Pages of Tested & Proven Negotiation Techniques to Help You Achieve the Lowest Price Possible and much more to help you find and buy your ideal home or investment on the best terms possible.

To request your complimentary copy of the book simply visit www.insiders-guide-london.com, email veronika@mercuryhomesearch.com or call +44 (0) 800 389 4280

27/01/2017 16:56

60

L A ST WOR D

seconds with

John Claughton The former Chief Master of King Edward’s Birmingham and vocal advocate of the IB on a lifetime devoted to education

Tell us about your new role at the IB School and Colleges Association.

Having retired from King Edward’s at the end of the last academic year, I wanted to do something to help the development of IB in this country. So, I see myself as something of an ambassador, talking to IB schools about their needs, talking to universities about the value of IB, trying to raise the visibility of IB in the media. There is a growing debate in this country about the nature of education, what it is for, how it is preparing students for their future lives and future jobs in a rapidly changing world.

35+ boys a year come on Assisted Places and that’s because we have raised £10m from alumni for the purpose, an extraordinary effort. This change has done all we could have wanted: more bright boys, greater social and ethnic diversity, better results, a more interesting, livelier school.

Q

Why do you support the IB? In the end, IB is an education, a proper education. This is an education that turns away from the anachronism of specialisation and requires all students to study language and communication, science and maths, the humanities. And it explicitly teaches the skills that the world needs, for example through the Extended Essay and the broader thinking in Theory of Knowledge.

Q

A

Why do you think it benefits pupils?

All students study to the same depth in their strong subjects but they do so much more: scientists get the chance to read literature, to study a modern language and Philosophy or Economics or History; Humanities students must do some Maths and science. That must be better for their future careers and lives. And there is no doubt that students are better prepared for university.

Q

A

What evidence do you for this?

One piece of evidence is that universities are increasingly aiming to attract IB students by lowering their offers. There is also research that shows better university outcomes for IB students.

Q

that has happened. The long-serving teachers who have spent decades teaching A-Levels would agree with that. And our university entry has improved at every level: our Oxbridge entry has doubled in the last decade, for example.

A B OV E

John Claughton

Q During your decade as Chief Master of KES, you doubled the school’s assisted places. Tell us about that.

A This was fundamental to my time as Chief Master. When I was a boy here, 80% of us came for free by government support and King Edward’s was a great engine of social mobility – and the best school in the country. By 2006 the number of Assisted Places was down to perhaps 10-15%. Now

A

Q In 2010 you abandoned A-Levels at KES, in favour of the IB. Why? A We made the move originally to restore the intellectual life of a great school and

98

|

B R I T I S H E D U C AT I O N

60 secs with John Claughton 2.indd 98

|

“Universities are trying to attract IB students by lowering offers”

Q Do you think the independent sector needs to be more accessible?

A Absolutely: it is vital for the sector’s success, if not survival.

The government wants it and many schools need it. More schools have to do more to raise funds for more Assisted Places.

The schools that have been active have shown the power of such a strategy. It would be wonderful if the state collaborated in these efforts, as has recently been suggested.

Q What do you think is the greatest challenge facing independent schools?

A I don’t think there is one single challenge because the sector is so diverse. In the prosperous London and the south, the problem may be the problems that come with success and excess. In the Midlands and the North, and amongst smaller schools, it may come down to survival, maintaining pupil quantity and quality when the number of fee payers is in decline. And regulations and policies, all necessary, don’t make life easier for schools, either.

What are you proudest of in your career as a whole?

A Nothing could beat being the head of my old school and having the chance to make a difference in a school that meant everything to me. However, if you want a moment, it was being in charge of an Eton cricket team that beat an outstanding Radley team in the Silk Trophy at Shrewsbury about 20 years ago. Andrew Strauss got out to a filthy long hop on the ball before tea.

Q

2017

27/01/2017 17:00

B O A R D I N G & D AY S C H O O L F O R G I R L S A G E D 1 1 T O 1 8

“I chose

Mayfield”

50 MINUTES FROM CENTRAL LONDON BY TRAIN - WEEKEND RETURN BUS TO LONDON SET IN BEAUTIFUL ENGLISH COUNTRYSIDE - SAFE & NURTURING ENVIRONMENT OUTSTANDING ACADEMIC RESULTS - SCHOLARSHIPS AVAILABLE STATE-OF-THE-ART EQUESTRIAN CENTRE ON CAMPUS

MAYFIELDGIRLS.ORG MAY_TDA31736-ISS MAYFIELD.indd 1 Battersea Advert chosen.indd 1

07/09/2016 11:03 13:47 04/10/2016

the most inspiring classroom in the country

+44 (0) 15394 46164 www.windermereschool.co.uk admissions@windermereschool.co.uk

WINDEMERE.indd 1

04/10/2016 17:22