EDUCATION CORNER PODCAST
EDUCATION CORNER PODCAST INTERVIEW WITH HEADMISTRESS
Miss Joanne Croft RYE ST ANTONY SCHOOL, OXFORD
KEY TOPICS: Rye St Antony’s ethos What is ‘The Rye Way’? Being apart of the Girls on Board approach Boarding options Supporting the students’ academic, physical and emotional wellbeing SEN and bursaries The school’s Oxford location
Could you tell me a bit about the school’s ethos and how you achieve it?
I am thrilled to be able to talk about Rye because it is a real hidden gem in Oxford. It is a small place, although 12 acres, hidden away, but is a fantastic school that has been there for 90 years. The school is focused on the individual child and that is why we chose to be small. It is a choice that we make. Our school is all about empowering the child to be the best version of themselves. It is about giving the child space to learn and love learning. It is about giving the child space to find their own talents, their own individual
skills that they are good at. It is a place where they learn how to become global citizens, and that is so exciting for the future. The thing that underpins all that we do is our Catholic ethos. We are a community of respect. We show each other dignity and tolerance at all times. The school particularly emphasises its ‘Rye Way’. Can you explain to me what this means for both teachers and students?
Yes. The Rye Way is a phrase that we coined two years ago along with something else that we were doing. It’s all about ambition. We were taking a look at the school,
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coming up to our 90th birthday, celebrating the 90 years of Rye. We thought, where do we see ourselves and where do we see the school? What do our pupils need? They need a first-rate education at all costs. That means that they should be challenged. They should be challenged, pushed, and challenged to think and be curious in their learning. The Rye Way is all about the way in which we teach. It’s about making sure that we go over things, and that we challenge them, remind them. We get them to ask questions about our curriculum. We now ask lots of questions. We want children to be questioning what they are
