Head's Blog - September 2011

 

Week Ending 9th September 2011

 

Of course our school starts the new year in confident shape with our fifth successive year of record results; over 96% of our young people achieved five or more A* to C at GCSE, 99% pass rate at A Level and 92% of Year 13 making it into their University of choice.

 

On Monday we had a Staff training day, where I took the opportunity to make sure our staff were clear on our school's ambition and commitment to see these standards rise again this year and the next ones. In my two assemblies of the week, to Year 10 and Year 11, I set them the challenge of seeing how close to 100% achieving 5 or more GCSEs A* to C they can get. We are setting ourselves increasingly challenging targets each year, and nothing will be left to chance to ensure that the levels of student achievement continues to rise.

 

We also welcomed new staff this week. We have recruited nationwide to ensure that our young people are taught by the best, and we are delighted to see our excellent teaching team yet further improved by the following additions:

 

Miss C. Atkinson (Maths), Mr D. Patten (Maths), Mr E. James (Economics), MissE. Millington (Maths), Miss E. Hoyle(English), Mrs F. Pope (English), Mr K. Appleyard (ICT) ,Mr M.Bickerdike (Maths), and Miss N.Welsh (English)

 

One of the joys of our size and recent success is our ability to recruit specialist graduate teachers into every teaching position.

 

Everything we do at Boston Spa is underpinned by our Mission Statement, which appears in the 'School Aims' section of this website. It begins with a statement about our academic ambition for young people, and the second and third parts are about developing the whole person. Professor Tim Brighouse recently summarised for our values as seeking 'young people who think for themselves, but act for others'; I really do wish I'd said that!

 

Tuesday saw the new school year start. It was lovely to welcome the new Year 7s, and to see such pride in all our young people in the new uniform. They just look so smart; it is brilliant to see how much the young people are enjoying wearing their uniform.

 

Week Ending 16th September 2011

 

This week was my first opportunity to catch up with a full report of our two teams of young people who went to Kenya and Tanzania in the summer. One set off from Tanzania and travelled to Kenya, and the other group did the same expedition but in the opposite direction. It was brilliant to hear of the success of both trips.

 

The challenge involved students developing their leadership and communication skills to organise and plan an effective expedition. This included two trek's through the exquisite National Parks of Kenya in the company on Massai Warriors; this was a real challenge and the young people had to cover a great distance and camp 'wild'. I can fully understand how this is described as 'unforgettable and challenging'. 

Travelling between Kenya and Tanzania by road presented challenges in itself but both teams arrived travelled safely and both spent time in a community project in Mwanga just beside  Kilimanjaro at the local primary school. The teams were involved in several projects which included building a toilet block, gardening, painting educational pictures, fixing classroom equipment and teaching English and PE lessons. This experience made such a huge positive impact on our young people, and they really appreciated the opportunity to contribute to the local communities and to make a difference to children's life's.

 

The photos show our young people and staff in front of the mural they created when we were at the primary school in Mwanga, and shows both school logos either side of the 'friendship and community tree' they created.

 

I wouldn't want you to think it is all hard work though, the groups also had the chance to go white-water rafting, a safari in the NgoroNgoro Crater and a boat trip to Zanzibar! I am really grateful to Mr Young, Miss Elias, Mr Brennan, Miss Blakey and Miss Sweeney who all gave up a month of their summer to support these young people.

The school at Mwanga have given is a school jumper from their school uniform, which we will treasure. It will be framed and hang alongside our other framed shirts in our Reception area beside those
from South Africa, Bangladesh, Spain, and Fiji.

 

Week Ending 23rd September 2011

 

STEPHEN LAWRENCE AWARD

This is a week to celebrate in the life of our school, as we receive the ‘Stephen Lawrence Award’.

The Award was created in response to the 1999 MacPherson Report into Stephen Lawrence’s death in 1993. It is designed to identify good practice in promoting race equality and achievement, and to encourage all schools to place a commitment to racial equality at the centre of their curriculum, policy and practice.

What began as a nervous day as the assessors arrived in school soon became a celebration of years of exemplary practice across school. The Award recognised the fact that our values and ambitions for all our young people are exemplified in our practice, and that there is a whole school commitment to them in both word and deed.

It was good that all the hard work and professionalism of our staff was recognised in this way, but particular credit is due to Mr. Potter who led our school through the assessment process.

It is lovely that so many national external bodies look at the work of Boston Spa School and recognise it with the award of quality standards. In the last four years we have received Investors in People, Inclusion Chartermark, the National FA Charter Standard Award, the International Schools Award, Investors in Pupils, and now the Stephen Lawrence Award.

 

VISITS TO LESSONS

I very much enjoyed observing some lessons this week; it was good o see so many judged as ‘Outstanding’ against the new OFSTED framework.

In particular the quality in Languages was notable. There was real pace, with learning from start to finish, so little teacher talking, but a real focus on learner activity supported by targeted questions with young people given the opportunity to demonstrate their learning. Mostly importantly of course we could see evidence of progress for every child in each hour.

 

BANGLADESH

It was a delight to hear this week from our friends at the IET Government High School in Bangladesh. The work this school is doing is brilliant and we are proud to be associated with them; not only are they great professionals, they are lovely people too!

 

They have been developing young leaders in school who have been have been creating fantastic sporting festivals. Now they are working hard on developing new sporting provision particularly in football. I am delighted to see that they already are experiencing some success.

 

I am grateful to the work of Mr Swales in this, particularly as he pulls together further support for them in the development of football.

 

 


 

THEATRE SUCCESS

I am delighted to hear of the success of Emily Sinker, 12 years old and in Year 8, who has been successful in 4 consecutive auditions to gain a part as an orphan in the musical ‘Annie’ that is running at the West Yorkshire Playhouse from the 21st November to the 21st January.

She has been a dancer since the age of three and excels in tap, ballet and modern and will be singing in the chorus line. We are very proud of having such an academic scholar who also excels in the Performing Arts and her teachers and friends can’t wait to see her on stage!

 

 

HOUSE COMPETITIONS

This morning it was the Thompson House Assembly.

I am one of the few members of staff in all four Houses, so which badge to wear? I decided I would wear the badge of the House making most progress in collecting ‘Community Contribution’ points, so for the first weeks of term it has only been a blue Cooper badge. Hoping I could wear a different colour next week I have just checked the scores ... but I am staying in Cooper!

 

Week Ending 30th September 

 

TENNIS CENTRE OPENING

It was great to be a part of the Boston Spa School Indoor Tennis Centre official opening. We were privileged to have the Deaf Olympic Tennis Gold Medalist Catherine Graham with us to open the Centre, and to host Alec Shelbrook MP, Cllr Lamb and our friends from St.Johns School for the Deaf.

Catherine’s speech was inspirational to all who heard it. She said “it is an honour to be involved in the opening, especially as I have a link with Leeds Metropolitan University as an ex-sport scholar… the strong links Boston Spa School has with Leeds Metropolitan University can only be advantageous and I wish you the best of luck and success in this new partnership”.

 It is brilliant that the locality is finally gaining a state of the art facility such as this one. Our school Governors and Mr. Philip Harper, our Business Director, deserve real credit for the way they have supported and relentlessly pursued this project. It has taken some steadfast vision and determination in such economically difficult times to build a facility as great as such as this one, particularly as we have managed it without the cost of a single pound to our school budget. Our tennis centre will support the continuing rise in achievement at Boston Spa School while at the same time create new opportunity throughout the district for adults and children to engage in sport.

 

 

     

 

 

EUROPEAN LANGUAGES DAY

Young people arrived in school on Monday with the statue wearing a European flag, as we supported European Languages Day.

All our staff had to learn some phrases in an allocated language and use them through the day. Young people in Year 8 allocated the languages, and for some it was easier than others; frankly my Romanian is still rubbish!

 

CELEBRATION EVENINGS FOR YEAR 8, 9 and 11

It was lovely to see so many staff, young people, Governors and families at our three Celebration Evenings.

The young people honoured on each evening have so much to be proud of, and it was a privilege to be with them and hear of not just their academic success, but their admirable personal qualities and sporting achievements.

It was a good opportunity to be reminded that school achievements are made up of hundreds of really important individual successes; there really was so much to be proud of.

For every subject there was an Academic Achievement Award, recognising the single best performance in the Year Group, and a Progress Award for each subject too. Each Year Group had three special Awards for Overall Academic Excellence, Outstanding Progress across the entire curriculum and the Good Citizen Award, recognising an individual whose personal qualities have shone during the last year.

Congratulations are due to the following:

Darren Carver-Balsiger, Ellen Keag, and Richard Mawson each won the overall Academic Excellence Awards. To Alex Williams, Antonia Milostic and George Davies who won the three Outstanding Progress Awards and Callum Reid, Emma Croll and Tom Bleasby who understandably each won one of the good Citizen Awards. I am so proud of them and all the other young people who were a part of the celebration Evenings.

    

   

 

A LEVEL BIOLOGY

On Thursday our Year 13 Biologists had a glorious day at Robin Hood's Bay doing their "rocky shore" assessed coursework.  

Activities included running a line transect up the shore studying zonation and investigating the effect of wave action on the shape and size of limpets.  I am grateful to Mrs Varley and Miss Corcoran for creating this opportunity; an excellent day was had by all. 

Congratulations to Lucy Ward who had exceptional observational skills, and won the coveted ‘Ecologist of the Day’ Award.

 

   

 

ASPIRING CHEFS

Our Year 9 aspiring Chefs were taken by Miss McMorris to a practical workshop arranged by Leeds City College as part of the World Curry Festival in Leeds. Held at Millennium square the 3 day event has 2 demonstration marquees, lots of free sample of food, stalls and the workshop for schools.

Our young people had the opportunity to try making Samosa, Onion Bhajis and Thai Curry. After sampling their efforts they watched two live demonstrations and visited the stalls and exhibitions.

   

 

SAFETY

The safety of all our school community is our first concern. At the start of the year we take the opportunity to have a road safety input to all our new students. We also have a series of fire practices so that we are all sure of our responsibilities.

This year our Road Safety trainer was in school during a routine Fire Practice, and he sent the following feedback:

When the fire alarm went off 1st thing my heart sank!!  I have been to so many Schools and seen ‘Fire Drills’ which end up in total disruption...Not so at Boston Spa !!.The students were excellent. They were disciplined and controlled and took it all in their stride. It’s a shame you weren’t able to video it as a record of ‘How it should be done’

 

HOUSE

As the week draws to a close I ask the same question, as I wear the badge of the House making most progress in Community Contribution points; so will I still be wearing a Cooper House badge next week?

Much to the credit of everyone in Cooper, my badge stays blue; I am sure that I will receive dismayed emails from one or two Governors in the other Houses over the weekend!