Private School News

FARNBOROUGH HILL BUCKS NATIONAL TREND IN SCIENCES

Farnborough Hill aspires to academic excellence and to giving pupils a sense of fun and enjoyment in their learning. Evidence of the success of this strategy was seen in the GCSE results for Year 10 candidates in Biology, Chemistry and Physics. All the Year 10 students sat three written unit examination papers in June. Eleven girls scored maximum points (100) on all three papers, while 40% of the year group scored the maximum 100 on at least one unit. Mrs Susan Macey, Head of Science, commented ‘the students really enjoy the science subjects and they worked very hard to achieve this excellent set of results’.

Farnborough Hill girls are challenging recent reports that students are opting to study easier subjects and moving away from rigorous subjects such as the three sciences and languages. Students at the school study all three sciences to GCSE level and the sciences remain a popular choice at A level, leading the girls to study medicine, dentistry and veterinary science as well as natural sciences at university. In fact more than half the current Sixth Form are studying at least one science or mathematics for A level.

Further proof of the school’s success in the sciences came with Hannah Shelley and Vinaya Srirangam Nadhamuni being ranked among the top ten in the country for Biology and Mathematics respectively at AS level.

Picture: Farnborough Hill Year 10 science students jump for joy having achieved maximum marks in their GCSE papers

A childhood dream comes for Cottesmore’s new Headmaster

Tom Rogerson is certainly coming home when he takes over as the new headmaster at Cottesmore School in Pease Pottage, West Sussex, one of the longest-established IAPS prep schools in the country.

Some thirty years ago Tom himself was a pupil at the school, where his father Mark was headmaster. Born and brought up at Cottesmore, Tom decided at an early age that he would like to run the school some day – as in fact Mark had done too, because his own father had been head there for nearly thirty years!

So Tom becomes the third Rogerson to lead the school, and if ever there was a family school, this is it!

Cottesmore provides full and weekly boarding for boys and girls aged 8 to 13, and prepares them for entry to all the top public schools. Tom himself went to Eton and, following his ambition, set about gaining strong teaching experience that would equip him to run Cottesmore one day. He has worked at a number of leading prep schools, including Broomwood Hall, Eaton House The Manor, and Ludgrove, so he understands what parents want for their children and is well well placed to provide it.

An English graduate with a broad range of interests in sport, art and music, Tom is married to Lottie who is a very experienced early years teacher.

Tom is young, energetic and passionate about Cottesmore and its children. He takes over a school that was described as “excellent” no fewer than 17 times in an ISI inspection during the spring term. That in itself makes Cottesmore remarkable, but Tom has plenty of ideas about how he will develop the school over the coming years:

“Cottesmore has always offered an amazing education by making sure everyone has plenty of fun while they’re learning and playing. As a country boarding school we can provide facilities, opportunities and experiences that no other type of school can. I want Cottesmore to be known as a school where children are just bursting to tell their parents what they have done, a school parents would wish they’d been to themselves, and a school where our children love it so much that they want to come back and run it one day!”

Definitely a school to watch as Tom gets going!

For more information, please contact Tom Rogerson at Cottesmore School on 01293 520648 or visit www.cottesmoreschool.com

TEACHERS FROM AROUND THE GLOBE VISIT BROMSGROVE SCHOOL

Fifteen teachers from around Europe, including Malta, Spain, Turkey and Italy visited Bromsgrove School as part of a two week visit to England to compare schooling with their own countries. The teachers sat in on lessons in Modern Foreign Languages, English, History and Geography and had a talk from Bromsgrove’s Assistant Head, Academic (Mr Peter Ruben) and a demonstration on using an interactive white board in the classroom.

BROMSGROVE SCHOOL DEBATERS TAKE PART IN EUROPEAN YOUTH PARLIAMENT SESSIONS

Ten Upper Sixth pupils from Bromsgrove School participated in The National Sessions of the European Youth Parliament held at Durham University during the weekend of the 20th and 21st September; the pupil’s took part in thirteen debates, gave an attack speech in another and defended their own resolution with skill, flair and a masterly grasp of their subject.

The fifteen debates over two days were a culmination of hours of preparation beforehand, but they also spent time working on teambuilding skills with delegates from thirteen other schools from across the UK. During this time they were able to stay in university accommodation and appreciate what the city had to offer them in what little free time was left to explore. The Team comprised of: Henry Cowen, Alex Harding, Joe Harris, Matt Simkiss, Jack Taft, Katy Blunt, Dimple Divecha, Henna Khattak, Becky Pile, Ellie Wilson.

Sport For All Ball at Handcross Park

At Handcross Park, parents and friends mingled with famous names from the world of world class cricket and the media at the fabulous Sport For All Ball on Saturday 4th October. The school was raising money for the Lords Taveners, of whom Mike Gatting is Chairman, and for a new sports pavilion for the girls and boys. In the unrecognisable and glamorous surroundings of the Sports Hall, decked out in black, white and gold, guests enjoyed fabulous food, an extensive auction overseen by television’s John Inverdale and music by Southern FM DJ Danny Pike and local band Rusted. Chris Adams, until very recently Captain of Sussex Cricket Team and the Headmaster, Warren Hilton, both very involved with organising the event, were delighted with the evening and grateful to the generosity shown by so many which resulted in over £20,000 being raised.

SIBFORD ACHIEVES TOP RESULTS … BUT SAYS ‘NO’ TO MORE SATS

Sibford School near Banbury is to scrap SATs for its junior pupils and instead will be offering children the chance to spend more time outdoors using the local environment to enhance their learning.

Said Sibford Head Michael Goodwin: “Our SATs results for this year have been some of the best we have ever seen, however we have become increasingly concerned that national tests at ages seven and 11 can, and do, cause unnecessary anxiety for children. This is against our whole ethos as a Quaker school and we have therefore decided that in future we will not be putting our junior pupils through this trial.”

Results for 2008 show that at Key Stage Two, 64% of Sibford pupils achieved a level 4 in English (compared to the national average of 47%), 91% achieved level 4 in Maths (compared to 45% nationally) and 55% achieved level 4 in Science (compared to 47% nationally).

“We are exceptionally proud of our pupils for achieving such high results,” said Michael Goodwin. “However, we believe that young children should be free to develop a passion for learning, rather than being given an educational diet focused on getting through tests.

“We recognise the value of taking time to enjoy discovering new skills and talents and for introducing freedom into the curriculum, which is why we plan to spend more time out doors, making the most of the excellent location we have here.

“This is a very exciting time for Sibford School and I believe that our new junior curriculum will result in pupils who have a real passion for learning, a healthy self esteem and a greater respect for the world around them.”

The Marist School GCSE performance

85% of Marist GCSE students have achieved A*, A and B grades this year, with 100% of students passing their examinations overall.

Madeline Gale and Alex Kyjak-Lane each received A* grades in ten subjects. Last week, Alex also achieved an A grade in A Level German for which she had been fast tracked. Kirsty Crowder, Victoria Sauven and Nanaki Virk received A* grades in nine subjects each. The girls scoring the highest overall points in the year were Kayla Spitzer with six A* and five A grades, and Georgina Singer with six A* and four A grades. Both girls took 12 GCSEs and achieved A*- B grades in all subjects.

Two students who were fast tracked to early GCSEs were Luisa Schulte-Bockum, Year 8, who received an A* in German, and Laetitia Viskovic, Year 10, who also achieved an A* in French.

Karl McCloskey, Headteacher, said: ‘The Marist GCSE results maintain the high standards of academic attainment which featured last week in our students’ excellent A level achievements. The teachers and I are very proud of the girls. We have also maintained our 100% pass rate again this year. Those students with outstanding results will now be awarded prestigious academic scholarships and exhibitions to the Marist Sixth Form.’

Excellent A Level results at The Marist School!

Marist Senior School girls received excellent A Level results again this year, with 83% receiving grades A & B, and students achieving a 100% pass rate overall.

Sophie Morgan achieved A grades in all four of her subject areas and will go on to study English at St John’s College, Cambridge. Other high achievers include Stephanie Halksworth, Stacey Begg, Charlotte Brooks and Abigail Hobbs.

The girls also produced full marks and perfect module scores for some of their subjects. Sophie achieved full marks for English, History and Latin, Stephanie achieved full marks for English and Spanish, Abigail achieved full marks in two Art modules, and Charlotte a full module score in Art and Design.

Karl McCloskey, Headteacher, said: “Every student has worked extremely hard to achieve these outstanding results. The key formula for success is the student’s hard work, good quality teaching and supportive parents. These combined areas ensure that every student has the opportunity to reach their full potential.”

AS Level results have also been very good and the School is delighted for all its students. Katie Horbury, Wallace Martin-Kerr, Guiseppina Magistro and Laura Fox all achieved 4 subjects at grade A. Alexandra Kyjak-Lane, Year 11, has achieved an A grade in A Level German while still in her GCSE year.

Cavendish School visit The Globe Theatre

It was a gloriously warm and sunny day for our visit to the Globe Theatre. Year 5 have been studying Elizabethan England, its theatres and the period’s most famous playwright, William Shakespeare. So it was with much excitement and anticipation that we set off, armed with our sunhats and sunscreen, to tour this wonderful replica theatre, take part in a workshop on A Midsummer Night’s Dream before seeing the Globe’s production of the play in the afternoon.

It was very exciting to be taken into the theatre for our tour only to discover that the cast were in the middle of a rehearsal! They were rehearsing their entrances and exits with the musicians in the gallery above the stage. The director and musical director were giving instructions,
stopping and starting the players to ensure that we would have the best possible performance that afternoon.

Valentine, our workshop leader, then took us to a building, on the site of the original Rose Theatre and just a few metres from the Globe, to workshop the play. The room contained a replica Elizabethan stage and the girls did
some warm up exercises before acting out some of the more memorable lines and events of the play on the replica stage. Everyone worked very hard, all listening and concentrating carefully.

After a picnic lunch by the Thames in the sunshine, we returned to the Globe for the real performance. What a
difference to see the same actors and musicians we had seen in rehearsal all dressed in their magnificent costumes and performing to a packed theatre! The performance was lively and hugely entertaining. Above the pit an enormous orb represented the moon and it was not difficult to imagine we were in a magical land of forest mists, fairies and potions. Puck, the mischievous fairy appeared from the roof of the stage whist the actors regularly ran in and out of the audience.

It was an excellent day. Thank you to the girls for their exemplary behaviour and to Mrs Thomas and accompanying parents, Ms Ford and Mrs Randall-Cutler. Now we look forward to Year 5’s own ‘production’ of A Midsummer Night’s Dream in Assembly later this term.

Outstanding A Level Results

Students at King Edward’s have once again performed exceptionally in their A-Levels this year, with a 100% pass rate. Well over half of all entries were awarded an A grade and an impressive 85.3% were graded A or B.

One third of the candidates achieved A grades in all their subjects, with 13 candidates achieving 4 grade As and 3 candidates gaining the top grade in 5 A-Levels! Most students have again gained entry into the top universities, with 7 pupils gaining entry into Oxford or Cambridge.

Congratulations are due to all students, who have worked extremely hard for their success and of whom the School is very proud.

Martin Boden

HEADMASTER