Message from the Head of Secondary

“Time flies like an arrow, fruit flies like a banana”

I love this statement on many levels. It’s thought-provoking. It highlights the complexity of the English language. It’s true. It’s eye-catching. And it’s amusing.

“Time flies like an arrow, fruit flies like a banana”

I love this statement on many levels. It’s thought-provoking. It highlights the complexity of the English language. It’s true. It’s eye-catching. And it’s amusing.

However, what’s the relevance of this title to today’s newsletter? To our students in Years 11 and 13, it must seem like only yesterday that they were beginning their IGCSE and IBDP courses thinking that the exams were somewhere in the distant future- well, that ‘distant future’ is about to arrive with the IBDP exams starting shortly and the IGCSE exams not too far behind them. Often the culmination of nearly 2 years of work, the exam sessions are the time to show-off to the anonymous global examiners the hard work, determination and hours of revision that have been done. In this final countdown, our whole community is firmly behind the students wishing them success. Staff will continue to offer help, advice and guidance now and throughout the exam period. I leave you with the words of General Colin Powell: “There are no secrets to success. It is the result of preparation, hard work and learning from failure”, hoping that the latter has been ticked off already.

For our remaining students, both academic and non-academic reports are being compiled and will be sent home in the coming weeks. Education, and being educated, are about so much more than paper qualifications and grades and we know that these two reports will complement each other in providing a more complete snap shot of progress from both an academic and social perspective. I encourage you to discuss both reports with your children to help them continue to make progress both academically and socially.

Brian Irving
Head of Secondary