TKAT
Menu
View Page Gallery
Back to News ListPreviousNext
Posted on: April 21st 2023

Headteacher Update 21.04.2023

Alaric govan sml pic

“It is not enough to be busy; so are the ants. The question is: What are we busy about?” – Henry David Thoreau

Schools are busy places, even during the holidays. The Easter break started with the sixth form braving the elements in the Brecon Beacons. The weather, according to Mr Tidy and Miss Gault, was typically British, with persistent rain creating an additional challenge to the sixth formers working towards their Duke of Edinburgh awards.

The challenges continued over the first weekend. Some of you will remember the headlines of coaches being stuck in fifteen-hour queues waiting for the ferry across the channel. Well, our students and staff were part of that in a journey that took over thirty hours on their way to begin the annual ski trip. Quite how Mr Boniface and his team managed to break down the time waiting for their coach to be called is beyond me, but he assures me that the students accepted the delays with good grace and that spirits remained high. The skiing, when they finally arrived, was well worth the wait.

And then during the last week of the holidays. Year 11s and 13s came in every day to take part in revision activities. Attendance was excellent, everyone was focussed, and I'm sure the students all benefited from the additional work. It’s difficult to forgo holiday to come into school to complete work (for staff as well as students), but with the exams less than a month away it was definitely worth it.

Thank you to all the staff who gave up their time for all these activities.

This is crunchtime for students in Years 11 and 13. The exams started this week and from now until late June there will be examinations taking place on most days. The whole-cohort exams start on Monday 15th May and there was a good turnout at Year 11 Parents’ Evening this week - an additional consultation evening that we added to support students and families in this crucial last few weeks.

Achievement is difficult and, to be honest, it should be. If it isn’t, then there is no sense of accomplishment. It requires hard work, determination, and the resilience to know that there will be setbacks on the way. When you listen to accounts from people who have been successful - in sport, business, or any field of excellence - all of them talk about how many times they were unsuccessful before they made it. James Dyson built over 5000 prototypes before he finally mastered his vacuum cleaner.

In my first year of teaching (a long time ago), I was part of a Year 9 camping trip where it rained constantly for four straight days. On the last day, we had to complete a long hike of about ten miles in the rain. Everyone was cold and wet, we all felt miserable at the time, but the students talked about it for years afterwards. I met one about fifteen years later and he still remembered (as a grown man) how difficult it had been and how proud everyone was that they’d overcome the elements and completed the walk successfully. Sometimes it's the struggles and the difficult times that stick in our minds the most.

Two final notices. Firstly, we sent out a letter about the strike action next Thursday. Secondly, don’t forget that an emergency alert is due to go off this Sunday on most smartphones (UK emergency-alert system: What is it and when is the test? - BBC News). 

Don't be alarmed (no pun intended) when this happens!

Have a good weekend everyone.

Back to News ListPreviousNext

Categories

Archives

Also in the News