Wednesday, 7 July 2010
From the Headmaster... for the final time
It is true education that I want to talk about for a moment or two. As Headmaster elect of my new school in Kent, I have been asked many times already, by prospective parents, by current parents and by staffall
anxious, for various reasons - what my vision for the school is? A difficult question and one that is impossible to answer until you have got underneath the skin of a school to understand its workings.

A better question would perhaps be, "What really matters?"
Well, Principles matter. Some things are non-negotiable. Whatever the government does to examinations and qualifications, however culture alters; as generations come and go, even as the Eaton Square School swimming team move from winning to losing ways and back
again; values do not change. As I remember the many children who have graduated from the blue caps and the many staff that have worked here, I am reminded that this school has always stood for certain things: for ambition, respect, kindness, awareness, sensitivity, duty and curiosity. Long may that continue. Principles matter.

So does the Product. Another question I am asked frequently on parent tours is "what sort of child does the School produce?" As I see the diversity of prize winners today, as I reflect on the leaving Year Six girls and Year Eight boys who embody so many characteristics as a collective group in what has been a highly successful year, there is no monochrome answer. Nor should there be. We do not produce clones.

Passion matters. The rather vapid world of computer
games, reality television and Facebook can all too
easily engulf us and make us a generation where to
care is to be uncool; where to dare to express opinions
is to tread on the toes of the politically correct; where
all is processed packaging; where the question asked in
classrooms is 'do we need to know this?'; where all is
utilitarian, formulaic, and dull. Samuel Butler said,
'The man who lets himself be bored is even more
contemptible than the bore'. He was right. We must
teach pupils passionately, teach them to think for
themselves; teach them to want to win and how to lose,
above all we must not just avoid them being bored but
teach them how to be curious and excited about
learning.

Partnership matters too. Gone are the days, I hope,
where parents and school do not work together. The
partnership between the school and our parents is
massively facilitated by our amazing PTA. I would
like to thank our Co-Chairs this year, Nathalie Teilhard
de Chardin and Gabrielle Voumard for their
commitment in ensuring that the community aspect of
our school continues so strongly.
And so back to vision. Young men and women who
leave the school should do so confident without being
arrogant; aware of their strengths and their weaknesses;
as knowledgeable and compassionate citizens; able to
ask the right questions; to be life-long learners; and be
ready for the next step.