A Week in Education

Time on the Job: The present Minister of Education can not be accused of letting moss grow under his feet as he continues to roll out one initiative after another. One recent announcement, however, that was rather less well-received was his suggestion that school holidays be reduced and the length of school days extended. His announcement smacked a little of Boxer in 'Animal Farm', blinkers on, uttering the refrain 'I will work harder' before ending up, exhausted, but no wiser in the knacker's yard. Surely, it is not the time spent in learning, but the effectiveness of learning that is important - not working longer, but working smarter, making sure that the children are fully focused and engaged in learning while in lessons, rather than trying to make school some sort of endurance test.

History: Interesting to note that criticism of the Common Entrance History syllabus and exam at the Examination Board's Westminster Conference has led to a major overhaul of the exam. Various interested parties (including Sherborne Prep) are taking part in preparatory meetings to look at how the subject can be radically improved. In the meantime, we continue to offer our own history curriculum from Years 1 to 8 that

University Transfer: It was interesting to recently attend an inset session hosted by the senior schools in Sherborne on the subject of what universities are looking for in their future students. The university representative spoke of the absence of creativity and imagination from students coming through to universities, the increasing pressures from parents and the need for better skills to be taught at senior schools, such as note-taking and précis - to which the retort from the A Level teachers was 'if only the examination boards would allow us'. The same day, the Headmaster of Eton addressing a meeting at Westminster was talking of schools being stifled by a lack of autonomy over the curriculum and the restrictive demands of university entrance.

From a prep school perspective, this is so much déjà vu as we have long bemoaned the time and opportunity wasted in moving students from one stage of education to the next, and the unnecessarily prescriptive and relentless examinations.

Headmaster, Peter Tait, MA, FRSA

10 February 2012

Exams under Examination: Further to the article 'Public Examinations on Trial' (see 'Thoughts From the Study'), two items have appeared in the press today dealing with the same topic. In a letter to The Times, Anthony Seldon argues how the current menu of exams fails 'to encourage sufficiently well the development of thinking, problem solving and imagination among the young' while John Wood, incoming chair of the Independent Schools Association, has called for exam boards to be barred from endorsing text books or running teacher seminars closely linked to exam content. Whether tidying up some of the iniquities of the current system or advocating wholesale changes to what and how we examine our children, it is good to see senior colleagues engaged in healthy debate.

ICT: The announcement by Michael Gove that the national ICT curriculum is to be completely overhauled is timely indeed. Over recent years, many schools have continued with outdated ICT programmes, buying their requisite number of whiteboards and spending considerable sums of money on developing ever more elaborate computer suites that are out of date within a year. The problem has been that we are still teaching children how to use various software instead of how to use technology creatively. As Michael Gove was quoted, "instead of children bored out of their minds being taught how to use Word and Excel by bored teachers, we could have 11-year-olds able to write simple 2D computer animations using an MIT tool called Scratch." The Government announcements is in line with the review we have set up to look at our use of technology in our teaching and how to better teach computer science (rather than information technology) in the future.

Peter Tait, Headmaster

January 2012

Tables: Sometimes we read articles in newspapers giving the findings of yet another research study that seem to state the obvious. A recent University study concluded that learning times tables by heart and mastering traditional ways of working out sums are the key to raising mathematics standards in primary schools. Schools with strong maths results share an emphasis on basic skills in arithmetic and stick to a small number of methods of calculation to avoid confusing pupils, especially the less able.

Academies: At a recent conference, Dr Anthony Seldon, Master at Wellington College in Berkshire, exhorted prep schools to start their own academies. A recent decision by the GSA (Girls' Schools Association) not to support the academies highlighted the mixed response to the programme. The main arguments against centred around the cost to school in time and expertise and the fact that most independent schools, apart from the every large public schools, cannot afford to support academies. Needless to say, no prep schools are involved in the programme as yet.

Follow Your Dreams: Over the years, I have frequently exhorted children to follow their dreams and approach everything in life with an aim and purpose. While not wanting to dilute that very important message, sometimes it requires an intermediary message and of late, I have settled on 'work hard and be kind' as two simple steps to follow. The messages we give to our children, whether by word or example, are important and keeping them simple is always best to avoid any ambiguity and confusion and to ensure the right habits are acquired.

Peter Tait, Headmaster

25 November 2011

Parent Classes: The headmistress of one of the country's top girls' schools is to offer parenting lessons to families who are struggling to devote time to their children because of long absences at work. Clarissa Farr, high mistress of St Paul's Girls' School in Hammersmith, which regularly tops the exam league tables, said the seminars would cover everything from how to set boundaries for teenagers to dealing with exam stress. It is thought to be the first time a private school has provided such parenting advice and so far two seminars have been held at the school. Farr says working parents in dual-career families are hungry for more. "It's offering active guidance for parents who are quite keen to get the school's view on even quite basic things like how much pocket money or what time bedtime should be," she said. "Some of the things we've considered are: staying safe in London as a teenager, managing the party scene as a parent and setting boundaries for harmonious family life." Farr said busy parents sometimes overcompensated for being away during long working days by being over-generous and failing to be "tough enough" with their youngsters. "Some busy parents give their children everything except the boundaries they need to find their secure place within the family and at school."

Lost Youth: A research poll carried out for Barnado's produced some shocking results, the foremost of which were that 49% of the UK population believed children were beginning to behave like animals, 47% agree that the trouble with young people is that they 're angry, violent and abusive while 44% believe children in the UK are becoming feral. They are frightening statistics, frightening in their divide, in their perception, and in the attitude that is becoming commonplace. What happened to the old adage that it takes a village to raise a child and communities being made of families?

Handwriting (ctd): Kenny Pieper's recent article on handwriting and how to convince students that it is the most personal, creative, individual thing they will ever learn to do was an excellent and compelling piece of writing. If you would like to read it, it can be found here.

Peter Tait, Headmaster

4th November 2011

Handwriting: Almost on cue in response to last week's rant on handwriting, the subject has appeared in the public arena this week. Professor Carey Jewitt from London University's Institute of Education said students' handwriting skills were "absolutely appalling", adding that many failed to get the practice they needed at home or in the classroom. Other academics warned that a failure to teach children to write may stunt their development and hold them back in the classroom.

Teaching History: It was pleasing this week to have found an ally in Jeremy Paxman supporting our decision to teach the history of the British Empire in Years 7 and 8. Mr Paxman attacked the 'dreary educational establishment' for erasing 'Empire' from the history taught in schools and called for a change to the syllabus.

Parent View: Ofsted have launched a new website on which parents are able to rate their school against 12 different criteria, covering safety, bullying, behaviour, teaching, leadership, homework and pupils' progress. Teaching unions have criticised the move - and rightly so in my view - for opening up schools to criticism that can be both highly subjective and anonymous.

Special Needs: The proportion of children now diagnosed with special needs has risen 10% in five years so that 1 in 5 children are diagnosed with special needs. At the current rate of increase those children who don't have special needs will be in the minority by 2025, which will place them in a category requiring special needs.

Technology: While the internet has improved transparency and speeded communications, its overall effect of schools has been deleterious. I estimate e-mail has added another six hours a week to the average workload, time that should be spent on teaching and learning which is now deflected onto extra administrative tasks.

Peter Tait, Headmaster

1 November 2011

Teaching to The Test: At the annual meeting of the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference, the philosopher A.C. Grayling claimed that A-level results are no longer a reliable indicator of academic ability. Professor Grayling argued that the exams system "distorts" pupils' performance and the education system has been undermined by the "tyranny" of testing to such a degree that grades alone can no longer be trusted to identify the best university candidates. Hardly new, but good to hear it from the eminent philosopher.

The Dangers of Technology: In a similar vein was the excellent lecture given by the eminent neuroscientist Baroness Susan Greenfield at the opening of the new science centre at Sherborne Girls last Friday. Baroness Greenfield warned of the addictive effect of on-line games on young minds and the need to get them outside. Pleasing, therefore, to see so many children here using skipping ropes and throwing frisbees at morning and lunch break last week.

Peter Tait, Headmaster 18 October

What it Takes to make it at Oxford: In an article in the Telegraph, Brighton College headmaster Richard Cairns wrote about what is required to gain a place at Oxbridge, urging those with the necessary grades not to be put off by the high standards required. Noting that it is more than grades that count and putting emphasis on the personal statement, Mr Cairns omitted one overriding factor that still allows more students from independent schools to gain access to the top universities than students with identical grades from comprehensives. For most of their history, Oxford and Cambridge were the domain of public schools, with transfers often arranged between housemaster and the Master of the College. While those days are long gone, the DNA of the major universities still resides in the public school common rooms which consistently boast a considerable proportion of Oxbridge graduates who know how to raise aspirations and provide the experience necessary for their students - something many state schools don't possess.

Peter Tait, Headmaster 7 October

David Hemery: Last week, the IAPS Heads Conference was held in Birmingham. There were a number of excellent presentations, but none more so than that given by the former Olympic champion, David Hemery, on his life's journey and what made him successful. As a youth, he was dyslexic and unable to read until the age of ten, and at 14 years weighed six stone and was only five feet and three inches high. Not the resume one would expect from someone who went on to win a gold medal in the 400 metres hurdles and who has written four books and accumulated four degrees from Boston, Oxford and Harvard - and who didn't specialise in a single sport until he was twenty.

Dyslexia: The term dyslexia is never out of the news it seems. A recent study using brain scans undertaken by researchers at Stanford University argues that dyslexia is just a label and that 'any child with a reading difficulty, regardless of his or her general level of cognitive abilities, should be encouraged to seek reading intervention.' And so the debate rumbles on with a recent Telegraph article contending that dyslexic children are actually at an advantage in life, citing a number of famous 'dyslexics' including Jamie Oliver, Keira Knightly, Tom Cruise, Eddy Izzard, A. A. Gill, Jerry Hall and, of course, Henry Winkler, (The Fonz).

The Age of Austerity: Last Saturday's paper featured a story about how the recession will result in a drop in the standard of living of all, but senior managers. It appears that heads of leading public schools are included in this list as, since the recession began the number of heads on salaries of £150,000 or more has increased from 5 to 24.

Social Engineering: Earlier this week, the announcement that examination boards may choose to discriminate against students at A level depending on which school they attended has caused an understandable outrage, with accusations made that this was simply social discrimination against the most successful schools. The argument put forward by AQA was that some students with lower grades from poorer schools do better by their third year than students from selective schools who start off with much better grades and that schools should therefore by debited or credited a number of UCAS points either way.

The response of HMC was interesting, naturally arguing that schools should not be disadvantaged for getting the best results and those students who pay for the tuition they provide or who are lucky enough to be in right zone for a grammar or high performing state school should not be penalized. The corollary of course, is that the universities don't always get the most able individuals who have not had the benefits of the best schooling, but exhibit greater potential and are likely to do better in the long run.

One way of countering such moves would be for senior schools to put more emphasis on providing an education that is sustainable, and not just preparation for passing A Levels or equivalent to maximise their place on the league tables. If the grades achieved within the walls of public schools were maintained at university where they were without all the nurturing, individual attention and academic support they had come to rely on, then there might be no basis for the argument at all.

Undoubtedly, the scheme which suggests that universities discriminate against schools in favour of individual student on the basis of potential is highly contentious and has already been quietly shelved. Yet if the schools don't provide a level of education that can be sustained beyond the grades achieved at A levels, then perhaps there is some justification for revisiting the criteria used to ensure the best students end up graduating.

Peter Tait, Headmaster - 3 October 2011

World Cup: It is good to see the children getting behind the World Cup campaign and increasing their knowledge of the world map in so doing. Whether they will be able to find Tonga, Samoa and Fiji on a world map may be doubtful, but they will be aware of their national teams by the tournament's end.

Powys Lectures: Our programme of Powys Lectures got off to an excellent start last weekend with a fascinating talk on Horatio Nelson delivered by Mr Reay. There were so many interesting facts, including the return of Nelson's body in a half-cask of brandy, that the audience was riveted throughout.

Old Preppers' News: Complementing news of the academic and leadership achievements of Old Preppers, we are delighted to hear that news of the sporting success of two of our old girls.
Siobhan Stewart who is in the lower 6th achieved 1st place in the under 20 Great Western 10 km race, represented Dorset in the South-West cross-country championships and and was named as Dorset Independent Schools Under 16 athlete of the year for the third successive year. As well, she paired up with another old Prepper, Laura Bowker, in reaching the semi-finals of the Under 16 County Tennis Championships. It was a good holiday for the Massey family with Rebecca Massey achieving an A*, A and B in A levels and Imogen and her twin brother James achieving 5 x A* and 4 x A each in a wonderful display of sibling togetherness.

Peter Tait, Headmaster - 16 September 2011

The penultimate week of the holidays is always an exciting time as teachers return from their holidays to start preparing their lessons, parents coming into the uniform shop, teachers starting to prepare the lessons and classrooms while Mike Nathan and his team race against the clock to ensure that all the holiday works are completed on time. More on those later . . . .

Congratulations to Gemma (Illidge) and James and on the birth of baby daughter, Grace and to Becky and Steve Horrocks on the birth of their daughter, Amelia.

Thank you to Mrs Shardlow for her sterling work in running the second-hand uniform shop, a vital part of the school's function. Even on Bank Holiday Monday, she was hard at work with a number of new families ensuring that their children are properly equipped for the start of term.

Junior Engineer For Britain: Two teams from The Prep entered the Somerset and Dorset County Finals for the K'Nex Junior Engineer for Britain. Christian Cherubini and Matthew Asplen-Taylor were placed joint 3rd and Isaac Boswall and Toby Whigham 1st which mean they will be competing in the National Final which will be on Tuesday September 13th. Thank you to Lucy Allen for preparing and entering the teams.

Welcome to New Staff
A special welcome to our new staff, Sophie Clark (Director of Studies and Head of Latin), Frank Bridgeman-Sutton (Dean of Year 6, Head of Humanities and Assistant Housemaster) and Gail Culston who is covering junior science classes this term.

Holiday Clubs
The Prep has been buzzing with drama, football and holiday activities for children of all ages. If you would like your children to take part in any of the different clubs in the holidays do contact the School Office to book a place.

Holiday Works: The maintenance staff have had an exceedingly busy holiday as will be evident on returning to school. The main jobs have been:

Rebuilding the steps to the tennis courts and car park.
Painting of the two school cottages at the main gates
Repainting the dining hall
The major refurbishment of the Music centre
Refurbishment of 7M classroom

Headmaster 2 September 2011

Brothers-in-arms (with bats): Well done to George and Tom Pope who became the first brothers to score centuries in the same season for The Prep. George scored 103 not out earlier in the season against Clayesmore Prep while younger brother, Tom, scored 100 not out against Fulham Prep off just 66 balls. Well done to both batsmen.

We Want to Teach the World to Sing: One of the highlights of the Summer Music Concert was the beautiful singing from our Russian and Spanish pupils, who sang folk songs in their own languages. At our end of term prize-giving, our Head Boarder, Lola de Marcos, made a lovely speech to the School and a variety of pupils and staff were presented with certificates, one person selected by each overseas pupil as having been a true friend and mentor. We want to continue shrinking the world as there is such richness in doing so.

Parting is such Sad Sorrow: This was a year for tears as our leavers found the last few days very emotional indeed. While looking forward to what lies ahead, albeit a little nervously, some have struggled a little to sign off on what many of them say has been the best time of their life. Their heartfelt comments about the school and their kind and generous thanks for those who have taught and cared for them are very much appreciated. They will do well and we look forward to hearing of their progress in the years ahead.

July 1st, The Headmaster

Building Leaders: After having two Head Boys (that we know of) in situ this current school year, Ben Watkins (Taunton School) and Robin Hawkins (King's Bruton) this current year, I am pleased to hear that Harry Evans has been named as Head Boy at Milton Abbey School in September and even more recently, Iram Hasan, as one of the Head Girls at Sherborne Girls. Leadership and independence of thought and action are amongst the traits that we try to encourage and it is always good to hear of such training bearing fruit.

The Exam Factory: I was interested to read this week of Amanda Forman's experiences with A levels, albeit a few years ago. Amanda Foreman, who has a PhD from Oxford was the winner of the Whitbread Prize for Biography for 'Georgina: Duchess of Devonshire", based on her doctorate thesis. At A levels she got two Cs and an E in English. She re-took her English at a crammer - and still got an E. Although she applied twice, not one British University made her an offer. Such is the way we measure our children. Thankfully, by going to the United States and re-launching her education there, all came right, but how many others are lost to a patently flawed system?

French: This is the year we have been waiting for, when the first year group who studied German (Year 3) and Mandarin (Year4) have reached the top of the School. In spite of concerns voiced at the time about the effect of broadening our language base on the teaching of French, I am delighted that our French results at Common Entrance are the best for ten years. Why are we not surprised?

Headmaster 23 June 2011

Much ado about drama: This week our children have been entertained both at School by the Quantum Theatre's 'Green' production of 'Bin Raider' dealing with re-cycling and matters green and at The Globe with an outstanding production of 'Much Ado About Nothing.' Drama, of course, remains at the core of our school life and at present, we have three shows on the go with our Year 8 rehearsing for Alice in Wonderland, Year 5 for specially adapted performances of class adaptations of Macbeth and the Pre-Prep with their end-of-year show, 'Happy Hat Land'. Drama is such an important part of our curriculum and to see the confidence it gives to children taking part and knowing how much being in a play sticks in the memory is a delight.

Gold and More Gold: "This has been the best year for athletics for more than two decades." That is the word from Brus Watters on the remarkable success of our athletes at the County Championships. Our team won a total of 9 gold medals with 13 of our athletes winning places at the Nationals in July. We look forward to seeing if they can match the performance of our swimmers on the national stage.

Knighted: Chris Woodhead, former Head of HM Inspectorate until his spectacular fall-out with the teaching unions was knighted in the recent Queen's Birthday honours for his services to education. Observant pupils and parents will have noticed (or remembered) that Sir Christopher opened our School Library in 2005, an honour accorded not because of his academic credentials and contribution to education, but because he was and is a keen devotee of the writings of John Cowper Powys, after whom the library is named.

Headmaster 18 June 2011

National Successes:

While we send many of our pupils to local schools, it is pleasing to note that, since last summer, two of our pupils have won places at Eton College, a further two at Radley while two other boys currently offered places at Winchester. Not to be outdone, one of our girls has won a place at St Mary's Calne. Interesting also is the fact that the last pupils we have sent to Abingdon, Badminton and St Swithun's respectively have all been scholarship winners.

Reading:

Interesting to read the debate on the future of libraries (and more on this soon on my webpage). What is, and will remain at the core of the School - in fact, any school, is the need to enthuse children to read. The statistic that 97% of children over 11 own a mobile phone set against the fact that one in three children of the same age don't own a book is depressing indeed. As an action plan, may I suggest that any television sets, computers and play stations loitering in bedrooms are replaced by sets of bookcases - preferably loaded!

Headmaster June 11 2011