Headmaster's Newsletter Friday 13th January 2023
Dear Parents,
Over the break I found myself reading two very different reflections on the educational world: one from The Times and another from The Financial Times – I do also read other papers for editorial balance, honest. The first was by Matt Knott, writing a column to trail his new book: ‘Confessions of a tutor to the super-rich’. It was hilarious, in a deeply sad kind of way. Knott wrote of a family scheduling their child’s intensive tutoring around skiing, with the tutor flown out to the resort. When they were not skiing they were on their yacht in Capri or flying between the two on a private jet. Knott also described being beaten recreationally with birch branches by a businessman, a tutee’s father, in a basement while listening to pan-piped covers of Simon and Garfunkel and the tutee looking on. Or a ten-year-old living off Pall Mall whose father had decided that their offspring was one day going to be Prime Minister or, as a back-up plan, Governor of the Bank of England or Head of the UN. Another tutee became known for ‘offering some bold but foolish response, then capitulating the moment it was questioned’, as someone who was ‘breezily comfortable with his own limitations and didn’t regard them as any impediment to his progress through life’. Knott ended up writing the child’s essay on Twelfth Night because it was easier than trying to get them to do it and it was just bringing a war of pedagogical attrition to a slightly quicker end. Knott and these children were operating within a system, he observed, that stripped children ‘of their individuality and turned them into high-achieving automatons’. See what I mean about the deep sadness among the humorous tales?
The second article was by Lucy Kellaway, reflecting on a term’s teaching in a large secondary school almost three hundred miles – and a world – away from Pall Mall. In her first staff meeting, Kellaway was told ‘it was our job to love all our students – especially the ones who were hardest to love’ because ‘from it everything else flows … you work harder for them, you want the best for them’. This was, she observes, not quite the mantra that was repeated in her previous obsessively results-driven schools. Her school is in an area from which families have not moved far (about three-quarters of her students have grandparents living nearby) but she sees the positives in this: what might easily be dismissed as lack of ambition could just as well be seen as valuing a close-knit community and successive generations wishing to stay within it. There is a value, she reminds us, in having the perspective to see that different people might want different things from life, and that they can decrease their stress levels and enhance their wellbeing by sometimes eschewing somewhat narrow definitions of ‘success’ or ‘achievement’ – that definition being increasingly set by people who think, with a straight face, that becoming Governor of the Bank of England is a Plan B.
Obviously, both columns are making a point by taking us further from the centre ground than most of us would accept. (Columnists get more attention if they write something more extreme and eye-catching, as our local farmer Mr Clarkson can attest.) We exist somewhere in the middle of the two scenarios: we want to pursue high standards, but we still want to ensure that this is done in a healthy fashion, and we want to understand that one person’s definition of ‘success’ is quite often different from someone else’s. This is a difficult balance to strike, and sometimes we need to rethink and recalibrate, but it’s important that we try, maintaining all-important perspective as we go. And if any NCS parents were thinking of thanking my colleagues at the end of term by beating them with birch branches: it’s ok, thanks, your kind words are enough.
Have a great weekend,
Matt Jenkinson
We wish the choristers well as they begin their services for Hilary term this evening. As ever, NCS families are always very warmly welcome to New College chapel. The full schedule of services is available at https://www.new.ox.ac.uk/chapel.
As we continue through the pre-test and scholarship season, I would like to extend our best wishes to all those boys (and their families) who are involved. There is a lot of steady preparation being done, I know, to ensure that the boys feel comfortable and can give their cheerful best. We can’t ask any more from them than that. Further information about our pre-test preparation can be found at https://www.newcollegeschool.org/future-schools.
The NCSPA meeting is next Monday 16 January at 19.00 in the school hall. If there are small issues that can be quickly dealt with by a form tutor or class teacher, do please use this first avenue. There will, no doubt, be discussion of the much-anticipated return of the NCSPA Quiz on Friday 27 January at 19.00. A separate Parentmail has been sent out and the SLT is having a lot of fun putting together the questions!
We are looking forward to our music scholars’ concert next Wednesday, 18 January, in the Holywell Music Room from 18.00. In addition to performances from those boys applying for 13+ music scholarships at their senior schools, the school orchestra will be playing at the start of the concert. All NCS families are very warmly invited to attend this special event in what is thought to be the first purpose-built concert venue in Europe, and one of the earliest purpose-built concert venues in the world.
From Mr Bishop: After a week or so of good quality training from the boys, the U11 and U13 teams were ready and raring to go for their first hockey matches of the season. The U11 A-C teams played host to Cranford House and all three teams managed to emerge with a win. Both the B and C teams won thanks to hard work and solid defences that didn’t give away many chances. On this occasion it was the tale of the two Henrys: Henry T with his well taken strike on goal to secure the win and Henry who ran hard all afternoon and was a key member of our midfield. A great showing boys, very well done. Mr Swanepoel has the following to say regarding his U11 A team who also won but by a larger winning margin. “We took an early lead and doubled up not long after. A few good passes from Cranford saw them pull one back by half time. The second half was an exact repeat of the first: we scored two more quick goals with Xander doubling up and Noah joining in the scoring. Thomas H notably played well using space on the turf and Max LL had a good game all-round moving forward with the ball and covering ground when defending.”
The U13s were also in action against Cranford House. We made the journey over to the Wallingford Sports Complex only for the rain to start. Nonetheless the C&D teams took to the turf and played out two brilliant games of hockey. I was lucky enough to be involved in the D team game where Tolly ran his heart out all game long. Thanks to his tackling and his calm and measured passing, I have to say Will T deserves the player of the match award. In the A team game, I witnessed some fantastic hockey and some brilliant build-up play to create shooting chances. We could have scored at least six in the first half alone; however the heroic antics of the Cranford keeper meant we were only 2-0 up at half time. After the break we quickly added another two goals with Max J peppering the goalkeeper with some magnificent strikes from the top of the circle. A final score of 4-1 and a combined result of 7 games and 5 wins for the NCS teams was a quality return for the first round of games.
Sunday, 15 January 2023
Start of University Term
Monday, 16 January 2023
19.00 NCSPA Meeting
Tuesday, 17 January 2023
14.15 U9 A-C Hockey vs MCS. Away
Wednesday, 18 January 2023
8.15 Eco Committee Meeting, library
9.00 Chapel. Speaker: Mr Patrick Horne, Principal, D'Overbroeck's
10.00 Rehearsals for Scholars' Concert (Holywell Music Room); Full orchestra 10.00-11.00
14.45 U13 A&B Hockey vs Abingdon. St Edward's
14.00 U11 A-D Hockey vs MCS. Away
18.00 Music Scholars' Concert (Holywell Music Room)
Thursday, 19 January 2023
9.00 IAPS Hockey Regionals. Tilsley Park
Tuesday 24 January 2023
10.00 LAMDA Examinations
Wednesday, 25 January 2023
9.00 Chapel. Speaker: Mrs Ruth Ward, Director of Knowledge, Government Legal Department
14.15 U13 A-D Hockey vs Summer Fields. St Edward's
18.00 Year 4 parents' evening
Friday, 27 January 2023
15.30 U13 A Hockey Oxon County Cup. Hawks
19.00 NCSPA Quiz Night