Headmaster's Newsletter Friday 10th February 2023
Dear Parents,
It has been Children’s Mental Health Week this week. It has also been, in a somewhat cruel twist of irony, mock exam week for our Year 8s. Bearing in mind that exams can have a significant impact on the mental health of young people, it is worth considering the two things together, and to be honest and up-front about the situation. We are well aware that exams and their results can, when not managed properly, be a source of anxiety and stress for pupils, their families, and indeed their teachers. Our approach at NCS is, instead, to (a) accept that exams are a fact of our lives, and (b) work out a way that we can guide and support our pupils through exams, and get them into good exam-season habits, that will stand them in good stead for the coming years of their school and university lives. All while (c) working to keep them as happy and healthy as possible.
Easier said than done, and I wish we could all get it right all the time. But by getting into good habits at a young age, the better the chances we have of the boys getting used to exams as something to be navigated rather than feared. Learning how to revise is one of the first things we do with the boys, teaching some simple techniques, and giving plenty of ‘dry runs’. One of our Year 8s observed to me recently that their mocks are a practice exam for a practice exam, which is getting them used to sitting papers so when public exams come along, there are no big surprises. While I probably resented, at the time, the fact that my grammar school made me sit exams twice a year for most of my secondary school career, I will grudgingly accept now that it meant that I was in a good place for when ‘real’ exams came along. I have written in these newsletters before about the sweet spot of a ‘high challenge, low threat’ approach to education, and I think that exams in a prep school environment come into this category: the boys are learning to sit exams in a safe and supportive environment and, if a bad day happens, it happens – the results aren’t going on their CV.
While exams have their place in teaching pupils to retain information and, ideally, to process it in new ways that show understanding, many of us would agree that they should only be one feature of the pedagogical and assessment landscape. Learning is so much more varied and joyful than that which can be written at speed over an hour or so. That’s one of the many reasons why we celebrate as many of the boys’ achievements and interests as possible, so as not to reduce them to an exam score, an impersonal statistic (don’t get me started on that one!). But to return to (a) above, as we sit writing and reading this in the middle of Oxford, the reality is that exams are there and they aren’t going to go away. It’s how we approach them that is key. I was particularly interested to read recently this observation, post-lockdown, of the consultant clinical psychologist Lucy Maddox: ‘Imagine if some of the energy that was put into creating league tables was put into facilitating conversations which involved teachers, students and mental health and social care professionals; into devising policy about how the school system could hold wellbeing in mind as much as the testing of learning outcomes.’ Thank goodness we haven’t got to worry about league tables at NCS, so we do have more space, time and freedom to think about the bigger educational and pastoral picture. But I worry about the generations of young people who don’t get to benefit from that perspective, and I worry about education systems that are forced down statistics-obsessed rabbit holes, and reduce children to a number that is then only of use if it’s a number that nudges a school up a league table. I, for one, will keep resisting.
Have a great weekend, and a restful half term if you can!
Matt Jenkinson
Congratulations to Didrik in Year 8, who has been awarded a music exhibition to Radley!
Congratulations, too, to recent NCS alum Xander, who has come runner-up in the Oxfordshire Junior Concerto Competition Final, playing the third movement of Strauss’s Horn Concerto No. 1.
And, of course, well done to the choristers who sang so brilliantly for BBC Radio 3’s live broadcast of choral evensong on Wednesday: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m001hnp9
From the Charity Committee: A huge thank you to all those pupils, families and friends who have supported our Charity Week raising funds for the Oxford Hub. We are really impressed by the creativity, care and effort that has gone into the baking to support this term’s local charity. Thank you for all the help in kitchens at home; it was a pleasure to hear stories from pupils around the design and making of the cakes and we are hugely appreciative of your time and financial contributions. Pupils also enjoyed a basketball match against the teachers as a celebration today at lunch. Most importantly, over £650 was raised to support the Oxford Hub who run many worthy programmes in the local area, with a particular focus on young people and equality through community engagement. All the cakes were enjoyed by the boys; the catering team have chosen the following as worthy of special mention this term: Winners: Thomas in Year 4 (The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe), Freddie in Year 5 (The Sea), Herbie in Year 7 (Simpsons Donut) & James in Year 2 (Space). Highly commended include: Gianni & Tino in Years 4 and 1, George and Henry in Years 7 and 3, Max in Year 7, Edward in Year 8, Alexander in Year 3, Ollie in Year 4, Alex in Year 2, Harry L in Reception.
World Book Day is on 2 March, and will be upon us before we know it after half term. As ever, we will be joining schools around the country in encouraging boys to come in dressed as a literary character (though not one who looks, say, surprisingly like a prep school boy in home clothes). Please do not go to any great effort or expense for this; imaginative and recycled costumes are often the best ones!
Please find below the link to buy tickets for the next NCS Chamber Choir and Choral Society concert, with the Instruments of Time and Truth. It will take place on Saturday 25 March at 19.00 in New College Chapel. The programme will feature J.S. Bach’s Markus-Passion (BWV 247), reconstructed by Malcolm Bruno. https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/j-s-bach-st-mark-passion-tickets-525465450307
The Oxford Brookes Science Bazaar 2023 is a free event held on Saturday 18 February at the Headington Campus (Just off of Gipsy Lane OX3 0BP). The event provides fun for all the family and is most suitable for 5-12 years. There will be a relaxed autism-friendly early opening from 9:30-11:30 (booking is required). The event will be open to all from 11:30-16.00, followed by a film at 16.00-18.00 (no need to book, simply turn up and explore). There are several timed activities that can be booked upon arrival including: a visit from Science Bazaar regulars Crocodiles of the World, comic book drawing workshops with graphic artist Neill Cameron (author of MEGA ROBO BROS), Chinese Handcraft and Kung Fu workshops led by the Confucius institute at Oxford Brookes, and an interactive session exploring the Large Hadron Collider. There will also be over thirty table top stalls to explore from Oxford Brookes staff and students as well as from friends of the Bazaar including: The University of Oxford, The Open University, UKAEA, UKCEH, Bright Sparks Science, The Brick People, and Beyond Blocks. With activities ranging from robots, LEGO, VR, and coding to wildlife, health, and forensic science there is sure to be something for everyone!
From Mr Bishop: Following on from such a stellar week on the hockey pitch last week, we were all hoping for another reason or two to celebrate just before half term. The boys of NCS answered the call and I am pleased to report on some amazing hockey this week. To kick things off the U9 teams played in three brilliant fixtures against MCS. All three games were fantastic to watch and I witnessed first-hand a wonderful player of the match performance from the captain of the C team, Thomas M. His tireless running and strong tackling were a joy to behold. In the B team game Mr Gardner was extremely proud of the boys as they managed a dominant 4-0 win with Hugh L the player of the match thanks to his fast running and skills on the ball. In the A team game, the boys got off to a shaky start as they gifted MCS two goals with errors in defence. However, after a little encouragement the NCS boys completely turned the game around and they had the dream second half as they dominated the game with strong passes and even better tackling. A brace from our ever-reliable striker Luca P saw us draw the game at the end of the game. The MCS coaches singled out Felix T as the player of the day.
On Wednesday afternoon it was the turn of the U11 A-D teams as they hosted The Manor. As both schools were lacking a few players we decided to combine the C and D teams to create a third team match that will live long in the memories of all that witnessed it. A 2-0 win thanks to a Charlie S brace was the icing on the cake as the NCS boys played some of their best hockey this term. In the B team game, there was another NCS win thanks to strong outfield performances and, more importantly, another strong showing in goal from Peter K. In the A team game, on the back of their IAPS win, it was always going to be difficult to match the highs of last week. However, after a slightly slow start, the boys got into their stride and began to create the goal scoring chances we’ve got used to. Another hat-trick from Xander S ensured a comfortable win and another clean sheet for our brilliant keeper Hugo C.
Finally, this week the U13 A team played host to Cokethorpe. With both schools playing large squads, the players were frequently rotated over the course of the hour-long match. The NCS team played some very classy hockey and moved the ball across the pitch with accuracy and finesse. I was really pleased to see them create many goalscoring chances thanks to the precision of the midfield. With the NCS team getting their goal tally into double figures this was a most entertaining game with all the players improving over the course of the game. There was a brace for both Benji W and Max J and a hat-trick from Rishaan C, but what topped all of this off was the agility and athleticism of our goalkeeper Henry W. He pulled off some simply excellent saves to keep the Cokethorpe score down to just 2. On Friday this week the U13 team are also due to play in the IAPS regionals at Cheltenham College; we look forward to hearing all about it next week!
Upcoming Events
Saturday, 11 February 2023
Start of Half-Term
Monday, 20 February 2023
14.00 U13 Hockey House Matches. St Edward's
17:30 Drama Club Presents Toad of Toad Hall
Tuesday, 21 February 2023
14.30 U8&9 A-C Football vs Ashfold. Away
14.30 U9 A Football vs Ashfold. Home
Wednesday, 22 February 2023
9.00 Chapel. Speaker: The Chaplain
14.15 U11 A-D Hockey vs Ashfold. St Edward's
14.15 U13 A- D Hockey vs Ashfold. Away
Friday, 24 February 2023
10.00 Year 4 Mosque visit, return 12.00
14.00 U11 Hockey House Matches. St Edward's
Tuesday, 28 February 2023
14.15 U9 A-C Hockey vs Dragon. Away
Wednesday, 1 March 2023
8.15 School Council meeting, library
9.00 Chapel. Speaker: Revd Fr Benedict Manning CO, The Oxford Oratory
12.00 U10 A St Edward's Hockey Festival. St Edward's
14.00 A13 A-C Hockey vs Thorngrove. Away
14.00 U11 A-D Hockey vs Thorngrove. Bradfield College
18.00 Year 5 parents' evening
Thursday, 2 March 2023
World Book Day
14.00 U8 & U9 Hockey House Matches. Iffley Road
Friday, 3 March 2023
10.00 Year 3 trip to Ashmolean, return 11.50