Half-termly news from Highgate Wood School Issue No 30
May 2016
GOVERNING BODY UPDATE Mr Chris Tully, Chair of Governors writes: I am extremely honoured to become the new Chair of Governors, having been elected to the governing body in 2013. Both my children have attended Highgate Wood School, and as my youngest prepares for A Levels, I count myself fortunate to have been part of the wonderful school community for 10 years. In that time I have witnessed considerable changes: the academic aspirations and success of students, the development of a school ethos that places commitment, respect and inclusion at its core and the on-going work of fantastic staff. What has not changed is the desire to make Highgate Wood School a school that reflects the community it serves – a truly comprehensive school in the very best sense of the word. My predecessor, Charles Wright, played a significant role in overseeing the governance of the school and supporting staff and parents to deliver the very best outcomes for students. After five years as Chair he has earned his “retirement”. I and the rest of the governing body would like to thank him for his work and hope he will continue to play a part in the ongoing success of Highgate Wood School. And on the subject of success, I’d like to wish all students taking exams the very best of luck. It’s a stressful time for them (and us parents and carers) but with support and hard work, the sky’s the limit. Cover picture: We have lots of things happening over the coming half term from Celebration Evening for the fantastic Class of 2016 to our first ever MADFEST NIGHT. We do hope you will be able to attend the public events and witness some of the amazing talent at Highgate Wood School.
Year 11 Dress Up Day! Photographs from the Year 11 Dress Up Day on Friday 27th May will be available shortly on the school website. 2
This year’s MADFEST will take place in the evening on Friday 1st July. Everyone welcome. Please visit http://bit.do/madfest2016 for more details or if you can offer support.
Don’t forget easyfundraising.org.uk. Visit www.easyfundraising.org.uk/hwspsa
HIGHGATE WOOD SCHOOL GOVERNING BODY Chair of Governors: Chris Tully (Parent Governor) Governor: Cllr Eddie Griffith Parent Governors: Julia Chalfen • Dr Torun Dewan • Mark Harber • Mano Manoharan
Co-opted Governors: Brenda Allen • Oli Blackaby • Phil Cavendish • Phil Cocksedge • Joe Demetriou • Phil Dileo • Violet Hazelwood-Henry • Elizabeth Hess • Chris Parr • Imogen Pennell • Charles Wright Headteacher Governor: Patrick Cozier Staff Governors: Emily Ford If you wish to contact the Governing Body please write to the Chair of Governors, c/o Mrs K Ozturk, Highgate Wood School, Montenotte Road, London N8 8RN Or email: governors@hws.haringey.sch.uk Issue 30 May 2016
Progress 8
As you may recall from a previous edition of Insight, the government now has new ways of measuring school performance. The main difference is that accountability measures are more based on the progress that students make whilst at the school rather than what proportion of your students achieve 5 or more A* to C grades including English and maths. The main measure is called Progress 8, where zero represents progress as expected. Anything above zero means better than expected progress, and if the figure is above +0.45, then you are approaching outstanding progress. You can see from the table above, based upon current predictions we are on track to do very well across all groups of students at Highgate Wood School. Value Added Measure
Welcome to the May edition of Insight. As always you will find this edition full of information highlighting many of the achievements of our incredible students over the last few months. We hope that you will get a sense of the amazing range of activities and opportunities that our students benefit from at this school thanks to our dedicated staff. As ever, this is a very exciting time to be part of the Highgate Wood School Community.
Progress of Our Year 11 Students – Good News!
Number of students
MESSAGE FROM THE HEADTEACHER
Whole cohort
241
1031
+0.47
Boys
128
1030
+0.45
Girls
113
1032
+0.50
Disadvantaged
94
1038
+0.52
SEN
26
1044
+0.64
Post 16 Applications & Places Offered – An Update We are delighted with the very high number of offers that we have been able to make for places in the 6th form. We have offered a record number of places for students both from Highgate Wood School and from other schools. This confirms our feeling that HWS Sixth Form continues to be more popular both within and beyond Highgate Wood than in previous years and that more and more we are achieving one of our key aims of being the local school of choice. Internally, I am proud of how well our students presented themselves during their interviews and I have been impressed with the maturity that they have shown in discussing their futures.
GCSE 2016 Predictions
Importantly, and similar to the last four years, in order to deal with the high demand for places at the start of the autumn term, we have taken the decision to hold our first day of enrolment on Thursday 25th August – the day of the GCSE results. This will give Highgate Wood School’s year 11s the first opportunity to secure places onto their choice of courses.
Our overall progress 8 prediction of +0.47 would be considered in the outstanding bracket. It is significantly better than our 2015 actual progress 8 figure of +0.23 (which was already significantly better than the overwhelming majority of schools nationally). If we were able to achieve the value added prediction of 1031 that would represent our highest ever value added score which would certainly be significantly positive in RAISE (the tool that OFSTED use to judge student progress). Year 11 2015 had a value added score of 1024 which placed us in the top 17% of schools nationally for progress, so we are on target to beat that.
We are very proud of our Year 11s, we have every faith in their ability to do well in their exams and we look forward to seeing a large number of them thriving in the 6th form this September.
What is particularly pleasing is the progress that we are predicting for our disadvantaged students (+0.52) and our students with special educational needs (+0.64) which is even higher than the other
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students. That means that we are able to narrow the attainment gap with our higher attainers who are already performing excellently. All of this data is a simply that… data. What is more important is what the information is showing us; namely that the incredible hard work of our students and our staff is paying off. We pride ourselves on making a positive difference to the lives of our students and securing exceptional academic progress is just one of the key ways in which we do this. Kirkland Rowell Survey Thank you to those of you who participated in the Kirkland Rowell survey to give us some feedback about how you feel the school is doing and how we can best work with you as parents/carers. We have recently received the feedback from the Kirkland Rowell and Mr Hewitt has included an overview of the findings in this issue of Insight. As a brief summary, the good news is that the results are very positive and confirms that parents and carers recognise the very good work that we do and appreciate the positive difference that we make to the learning and experience of your children. Parents and carers have overwhelmingly expressed a view that their children learn well at Highgate Wood and that they have a wonderful and enriching experience at the school. One particularly pleasing aspect of the feedback is the response to our new homework policy and the information that we share with parents and carers on Show My Homework. This information is also supported by the separate Key Stage 3 Homework Survey, and Mr Mansfield writes about these findings in more detail in this issue. As always, there are learning points as well and we will be taking these on board moving forward. This will include thinking very carefully about some of the ways in which we might communicate even better with parents/carers. We also need to review our systems of feedback and assessment, and Mr Hewitt writes about these elsewhere in this issue of Insight.
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Farewell to staff who have left during the course of this half term… Member of Staff Ms N. Edwards Ms O. James Ms Byfield-Elizabeth Elia Conesa Elaine Brochu
Role Learning Support Assistant Teacher of English Pastoral Care Mentor Languages Assistant Languages Assistant
Ms Edwards has been with us since September and has provided excellent support as part of the Learning Support Department. She has struck up a good rapport with many of our students and we know that she will be missed. Ms James also joined us in September as a teacher of English. In that time she has been an important member of the English department and has played her part in the great work of the department this year. Unfortunately, Ms James will be leaving us this at the end of this half term. We wish her the very best of luck in her career in the future. Elia Conesa and Elaine Brochu have both made very valuable contributions to our Modern Foreign Language department during their time with us and we hope they will be able to keep in touch with the department now that their time has ended. Ms Byfield-Elizabeth joined the school in June 2012 as a Pastoral Care Mentor. During the time that she was with us she had a significant impact on many of our students, particular those in Edison House. We wish her the very best for the future, and congratulate her on her new role as a mother. ... And Finally – Thank you for your support! I would like to thank you all again for your valued and continued support. I wish you and your families a pleasant half term break. Please remember, we return on Monday 6th June at 8.35am. It will be Week 2. Regards Patrick Cozier Headteacher
Issue 30 May 2016
RAMADAN AND EXAMS
During Ramadan some students fast from dawn until sunset, and as this year Ramadan takes place in June it could mean they will be going without food and water for upwards of 19 hours. For students in Year 11 and in the Sixth Form the timing of Ramadan also coincides with the main bulk of their examinations. So clearly, this year there are some extra challenges that will need to be met.
Lots of advice will be available from families and relevant authorities with regard to how best the demands of revision and of Ramadan can be met together. As a school we will do everything we can to support all our students. We do understand that some students may feel they are missing out on the spiritual benefits of Ramadan because they don’t have time for extra prayers, Qur’an recitation or charity work because of exams. Don’t forget that revising is spiritual too! Educating yourself is an important part of all religion. Revise with good intentions: to increase your knowledge and to make your teachers and loved ones proud of you. And remember that sometimes small gestures are those most valuable. Is there any better charity than helping out your friends and classmates during this stressful time? And that applies to every one of us.
The best way to predict the future is to invent it
From caring comes courage
Success comes from perseverance
59,766
59,551
57,866
so far this year
so far this year
so far this year
Top Merit Earners Joel Olatunji (Yr 11) Nimisha Patel (Yr 10) Rebecca Manoharan (Yr 9) Lotte Ezer-Ahern (Yr 8) Eden Cavendish (Yr 7)
Top Merit Earners Maddy Baron (Yr 11) Daniela Ismaili (Yr 10) Rory Butler (Yr 9) Hugo Clague (Yr 8) Manon Elliott (Yr 7)
Top Merit Earners Janice Makambu (Yr 11) Melisa Biner (Yr 10) Claire Schumann (Yr 9) Macy White (Yr 8) Zoe Street (Yr 7)
Thanks to all the parents\carers who have logged into e-praise, and for your positive comments. If you still need an account for the system please email data@hws.haringey.sch.uk with your child’s name. Issue 30
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DIAMOND AWARD WINNERS
Mr Cozier and our Chair of Governors, Mr Tully, were delighted to be able present Diamond certificates to the amazing students who have achieved either 300 or 400 merits this year. To do that these students will have averaged multiple achievements every single day of the school year! Red Diamond Winners (400 Merits) Rosie Boardman (7T) Manon Elliott (7A) Lottie Ezer-Ahern (8H)
Shareef Garcia (8I) Alice Jenkins (7T)
Parents and carers who are signed up to e-praise will get automatic alerts when their child has passed an achievement threshold. For more information email data@hws.haringey.sch.uk
Pink Diamond Winners (300 Merits) Yusra Abdi Aweys (8H) Lily Bacon Darwin (7W) Layla Badalova (7A) Ariba Baig (7A) Eliza Buckton (7S) Talia Bunting (7T) Rory Butler (9A) Alexandra Catalui (8I) Su-Lim Chang (7T) Hugo Clague (8A) Celeste Clift (7T) Julia Coroama (7A) Olivia Dennis (7A) Brandon Durand (9T) Caitlin Gillespie (8H) Matilda Heath (7T) Blane Heerey-Piszko (8H)
Rosie Hegarty Morrish (7T) Rebecca Manoharan (9G) Leila Mentesh (7D) Taya Miller (7D) Maya Muir (7S) Tasio Nogues-Summerscale (8H) Nicole Pawlikowska (7E) Paris Reid (8H) Olivia Small (8A) Zoe Street (7D) Ella Sweeney (7D) Tatiyana Thomas (7A) Sal Tibbett (8H) Fab Valancogne (7T) Julianne Vitoriano (8G)
Congratulations also to our Gold and Silver Award winners who received their certificates this week! 6
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HIGHGATE WOOD SCHOOL MASTERCHEFS Ms Went writes: Eat your heart out MasterChef! These are just a few of the fantastic dishes that have been cooked by our Year 11 Food Tech GCSE students as part of their coursework this year‌ and they tasted just as good as they look. Ms Rowe and I are now on a strict diet until September.
Andrea Bevilacqua: Italian Meringue with
Angelica Udedweze: Prawn Gyoza with
Angelica Udedweze: Terriyaki Chicken with
Grape Sauce
Pickled Vegetables
miso noodles and Yuzu Carrots
Angelica Udedweze: Scallop tortellini Gyoza
Ava Brightling: Deconstructed Crispy Duck,
Ava Brightling: Dim Sum Pork and Prawn
w pickled vegetables & Shitake Mushrooms
Pancakes and Plum Sauce
Ava Brightling: Egg Noodle Soup
Caylan Samuel: Bar-b-que Jerk Chicken with
Ebony Walcott: Chicken Curry
Coleslaw and Fries
Francisco Dias Domingos: Portuguese
Gabe Monaighan: Creole bread with Orange
Hannah Ramsden: Tofu and Beansprout Pot
Chorizo Stew
Cream Sauce and Stewed Fruit
Sticker Dumplings
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James Cooper: Garlic and ginger steamed
James Cooper: Vegetable Wonton Soup
Karol Sagan: Sausage Lezco
Melisa Guvenler: Vegan Savarina with
Rawan Ataya: Nutmeg semolina cake with
raspberry and blueberry coconut cream
Fresh Fruit Garnish
Remy Beckford: Chicken Soup
Remy Beckford: Jamaican Fried Chicken with
oriental salmon and lemon infused noodles.
Maddie Baron: Quiche Lorraine
Rawan Ataya: Nutmeg semolina cake with lime zest and strawberries.
Sophia Dottore: Mango and Coconut cake
Rice and Ratatouille
Sophia Dottore: Thai Chilli Chicken
Sophia Dottore: Thai Pork Spring Rolls and Chilli dipping Sauce
We are very proud of the fact that many of our students will be using the knowledge and skills they built up during the GCSE in their future careers. Angelica Udenweze is going to be starting an Apprenticeship in Professional Cookery NVQ diploma level 2 at Westminster Kingsway College, Karol Sagan and Andrea Bevilacqua will both be starting the three year Professional Chef Diploma course at Level 1, also at Westminster and Ava Brightling is now planning to go to university to study Food Science and Nutrition
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Issue 30 May 2016
MEDIA STUDIES AT THE GCSE SHOW
10th JUNE 2016 6:00pm Ms Daws-Knowles writes: Forty-six brilliant Year 11 students of Media Studies will be presenting their magazine covers, Television Crime Posters and storyboards, Music Promotion videos and print campaigns at the GCSE show. The students have worked incredibly hard and it will be great to see everyone celebrating their success. I am incredibly proud of all of my students and wish them all the best for the future.
RESISTANT MATERIALS AT THE GCSE SHOW
10th JUNE 2016 6:00pm
Mr McDonagh writes: Examples of lighting products styled on the twentieth century 'Memphis Milano' design movement and produced by the current Y11 Resistant Materials group. These exhibits, and others, will be on show at the GCSE Show on 10th June from 6:00—8:00pm
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ART AND DESIGN AT THE GCSE SHOW
10th JUNE 2016 6:00pm
Ms Zwicky writes: Our Art & Design exam cohorts have just finished their courses and what beautiful results we have been able to see. At GCSE we have had a wide range of challenging work produced to the theme of Past Present and/or Future, making full use of our fantastic resources here at Highgate Wood School. Many students were working in the darkroom, with Laura Gibbons' and Alfie Perry's work showing exciting use of the techniques in their fantastic outcomes. We have had Ilyas Nelson-Reshat create a range of kiln fired clay sculptures based around social media and mobile technology. The more traditional practices such as drawing and painting have also been showcased beautifully, with Lilly BolongaroEyre’s exquisite pencil drawings and Berivan Korkmaz's caricature of Mr Cozier deserving a special mention. Some of our students have created a range of installation and sculpture pieces, with Ruby Neale, and Athena Howard-Brown deserving a special mention. Ahmed Hashi made fantastic use of our department's printing press by creating a strong series of mono prints based around a palm leaf. Well done to our entire GCSE cohort,. We are all very proud of you, and look forward to seeing you when we showcase your work on the 10th June at your exhibition.
Berivan Korkmaz
Ruby Neale
Ella Pollack–Flemming
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Daniel Craig
Alfie Perry
Stephanie Durand
Laura Gibbons Issue 30
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Come and see these and other fantastic pieces at the GCSE Exhibition on 10th June. 6:00—8:00pm 11
STRUCTURAL ENGINEERING IN YEAR 7 Mr McDonagh writes: Year 7 students have been tasked to use their ingenuity and design skills to create a structure that was stable and secure. 7A’s Layla Badalova, Ariba Baig, Armando Idrizi and Irah Spanswick Smith were the winners. Their tower was the most structurally efficient, taking 4.9Kg to crush it! Well done to everyone involved. Your architectural vision and engineering skills were very impressive.
SCIENCE AWARD WINNERS
Ms Andreas writes: Congratulations! Highgate Wood School has won this year’s Don Henderson Award Trophy . A group of year 9 successfully competed against 20 other Schools at the Science Conference held at University of Westminster on the 20th April 2016. The judges were impressed by the excellent visual design, research and confident presentation of their project 'How good are teeth whitening products at removing stains like tea and coffee?'. The students also took part in a day of interactive workshops, talks and lectures on motivating students to study science and influence them on their career choices. It was a wonderful day for all. 12
I would like to personally thank them for their hard work and commitment to attending the Science Club after school and completing an amazing project. The students involved were: Dilara Kasapoglu, Erica Watkin, Tia Dyett, Samia Mohamoud, Lilian Vitoriano, Olivia Birkett, Libby Smithson, Nino Geliashuli, and Rosie Ashworth Issue 30 May 2016
CRAFTING A BETTER ENVIRONMENT
Ms Jones writes: Students on the BTEC Sustainability Skills Level 2 programme are making designs for decorating the school benches in the playground by using mosaics. They have been concentrating on the skills of mosaic making in class and their first Installation outside will be mid June. Students have been placing mosaic tiles on to mesh ready for installation. They have been inspired by Antoni Gaudi's Serpentine Bench in Park Guell, Barcelona.
APPS FOR GOOD FELLOWS HELP COLERIDGE
Mr Talbert writes: In May, 2014 Apps for Good finalist and Apps for Good Fellows of the Year 2015, Nancy Levy-Vegh (10A) and Rhea Patel (10A) visited Coleridge Primary School to give advice and tips to one of their teams, Team Oscar, who have made it to this year’s finals. Team Oscar’s app idea “Changes” helps children deal with puberty. Nancy and Rhea both provided key points that they learnt from their experience at the finals which gave Team Oscar a real confidence boost and made them more aware of what to expect. The finals take place on Monday 20th June, so a massive good luck to Team Oscar from everyone at Highgate Wood School For more information about what is happening in Haringey over Easter visit haringey.gov.uk/ holidayfun
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MAKING FEEDBACK COUNT Mr Hewitt writes: Staff have been working hard this year on improving the quality and therefore the impact of marking and feedback. Part of the rationale for focusing on feedback comes from the research done by the Education Endowment Foundation (EEF) which identifies high quality feedback as being one of the highest impact, lowest costing interventions teachers can make to improve student progress:
Whilst we are aware that we need to celebrate the efforts and achievements of students, we also need to note the recent DfE concerns that teachers often spend 10 or more hours a week marking. Therefore, it is crucial that we maximise the impact of this. In short the EEF report emphasizes two things, which we are already working on: 1.
Teachers should mark less but mark better
2.
Students need to be given time to respond to this marking
Again on this second point the support of parents would be very helpful. If you look at your child’s books and see lots of yellow boxes for them to fill or marking which asks them to respond to questions then please encourage them to do so (if they have not done so already).
Initial work was done in the autumn term with staff delivering presentations on how best to utilise the ideas from Dylan Wiliam’s study: ‘Embedding Formative Assessment’. One of Wiliam’s key findings is that formative feedback (ie how to improve) is more effective than giving students grades. In fact, giving formative feedback is more effective than giving them formative feedback and grades. As a result we are shifting our practices in this direction. Of course, students are sometimes keen to be given grades on their work but we now know this is rarely beneficial. It would therefore be helpful if parents could support us in emphasising that what is crucial is that learners focus on what they need to do next and how they can improve. Related to this is the finding of a more recent EEF research on marking. Though published last month this important report reflects our thinking and direction of travel here at Highgate Wood School. It reiterates the possible negative effects of giving grades but also highlights the low impact of what it terms ‘acknowledgement marking’ (reading through all of a student’s work, ticking it and writing cursory comments such as ‘well done’). 14
We are also embracing the results of research which demonstrates the benefits of activating students as owners of their own learning and as instructional resources for one another. In terms of marking and feedback this may take the form of self or peer marking, checking each other’s work before it is submitted to the teacher or other similar practices. It is important to emphasize that whilst this may sometimes be used as a time management technique by a busy teacher, primarily we are trying to enable students to take more responsibility for their work and progress because in doing so they will become more effective learners. Students are often resistant to this at first, however if we teach them how to do it effectively, they will ultimately become not only more independent learners but also highly accomplished learners We are not suggesting we have fully cracked this, but it is good to know that our teachers are really engaged with the most recent research and are looking for ways to translate this into classroom practices which improve learning for students. Mr Mansfield and Ms Chaudhuri are currently leading a group of staff who are using all of this information to update our marking policy. If you have any queries, comments or ideas about any of this please contact myself or Mr Mansfield.
Issue 30 May 2016
KIRKLAND ROWELL SURVEY
Mr Hewitt writes: Parents will be aware that we recently circulated a survey which invited responses on a wide range of issues within the school. I am pleased to report that the response was generally a very positive one, for example 92% of parents said that they would recommend the school to other parents. Also of particular note is the impressive rating for the setting of homework, something which has been an issue for the school in the past. We have brought in new systems and expectations around this and it is great to see the impact of this being acknowledged by parents. One of the advantages of this particular survey is that it benchmarks our scores against other schools nationally, thus giving us a good indication of how the school is perceived by parents compared to other schools. On this basis the results confirm our own internal evaluation processes and rate the school as very good in most areas. Of course we are in no way complacent and recognise we can still improve and therefore we are already looking at how we incorporate some of these issues into our School Development Plan for 2016-17
One key area we are working on is feedback and assessment, you can find more information about this in a separate article in this edition of Insight. Another issue is communication and we have asked Mr Ashman to speak to the PSA about how we can make this more effective. Thirdly, we were rather surprised that the school received a slightly low rating for ‘exam results’, perhaps this is an issue of awareness as our results are actually very positive, e.g. we have won awards for two years running for our students making progress from KS2 to KS4 which puts us in the top 20% of schools nationally. Our Raise online (DfE) rating for our GCSE results puts us significantly above the national average for the past three years. On the new Progress 8 measure we scored +027 last year, again significantly above national averages. Our predicted results for this coming year look to be even more positive. Finally we were slightly disappointed that the return for the survey was not higher, particularly from years 9-11, therefore we are going to do the survey online next year to see whether this gains a better response. In the meantime if you do have any kind of feedback about the school, both positive and constructive ideas for improvement, please email the school at feedback@hws.haringey.sch.uk.
STUDENTS AT WALTON ON THE NAZE
Mr Thomas writes: Golden sands, swaying palm trees and turquoise seas were all descriptions of the Year 10 Geography field trip to Walton On The Naze this year. Accompanied by Mr Cozier, we completed a The students worked well together and acquired a geographical investigation into costs and benefits of range of new skills which they are currently writing management used along this stretch of the Essex up as their GCSE controlled assessment. coast. Issue 30
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TURKISH VISITORS AT OUR SCHOOL ON ENVIRONMENT PROJECT
Mr Grimmett writes: th
On Friday 13 May Highgate Wood School hosted students from Fenerbahce school in Istanbul, Turkey, as part of a Geography project investigating the environment. Our students worked in teams to research and discuss the topics ‘water quality’ and ‘climate change’ which concluded in TED Talk style presentations on their findings with suggestions on how we can lead more sustainable lives. The key findings from the groups were that we should reduce consumption, particularly in energy and plastic use. If you don’t believe them, then type in
‘plastic gyre pacific’ on Google Images. Our Turkish visitors were very happy with their time in school and mentioned how polite and friendly everyone was towards them. They were particularly impressed with our canteen and the food available which they keenly told me is much better than what they get in their school! A big well done to Sude, Yakup, Berzan, Neva, Buse, Baran, Ibrahim, Selin, Bell, Ferhat, Berkan, Rose, Chamya, Tyreke, Tyrcia, Mason and Brittany for being such fantastic ambassadors to our school and country.
LADY GEEK VISIT AND INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S WALLPAPER WINNERS Mr Talbert writes: Belinda Parmar of Lady Geek visited Highgate Wood School in May to present Ramneet Bains (8G) with her prize of a Raspberry Pi 3 for winning the International Women’s Day school computer wallpaper competition and hand out books to our students. Ramneet’s wallpaper was so impressive; Belinda Parmar even showed it to international delegates at an UN conference during her presentation in March. In addition to Ramneet winning a prize, Daisy Underwood (7E) also received a runner-up prize for her entry. Well done girls! 16
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KEY STAGE 3 HOMEWORK SURVEY Mr Mansfield writes: This half term parents of students in Key Stage 3 were asked to complete a survey on key aspects of our homework policy that arose from parental feedback at our Learning Review Day in the Autumn term. We are grateful to everyone who completed the survey. Your views and comments were appreciated and will be fed back to our heads of department for discussion and further development. Some of the initial outcomes are as follows: How frequently is homework set across the curriculum? We will share the comments with the heads of departments and discuss how closer monitoring of the homework being set can occur across the whole department and school. The intention is to ensure that all staff are setting homework in line with the expectations set out in the policy. How challenging is the homework across the curriculum? We will share the comments with the heads of departments and ask them to review the homework set in each scheme of work with the aim of making it differentiated to ensure there is appropriate support and challenge for all. How useful the homework tasks were in developing the learning? On the whole, this was a very positive result with a large majority of parents saying homework was useful either all the time or sometimes. In subjects where it was not useful, we will share the comments with the heads of departments and ask them to review the homework set in each scheme of work with the aim of making it closely linked to the knowledge or key skills that are being developed in class and/or to make students more aware of how the homework does help with the learning. How useful is the feedback and does it enable your child to improve? Generally this was not a problem across the whole of the school, but was identified as an issue in specific Issue 30
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subject areas. We will share the comments with the heads of departments of all subjects and will discuss the possibility of the type of feedback to be used for a specific piece pf homework to be shared when it is published on Show My Homework so parents and students know in advance. For example, if the homework will be assessed by the teacher then the students will be informed, or if the homework will be used as part of a future lesson’s learning and will be marked by peer assessment. How accurately do teachers estimate the length of time needed to complete the homework? This was not a problem across a large majority of departments, but was an issue in specific subject areas. We will share the comments with the heads of departments, where it was relevant, and ask them to review the tasks set for homework and the actual time taken. This should be reduced when all teachers are setting homework where students choose the task that is of a suitable challenge or have clear guidance and support to enable them to understand what is required. How useful is the fortnightly timetable? We will share the comments with the heads of departments and discuss how they can conduct closer monitoring of what is being set in line with the homework timetable. How useful is Show My Homework? We will share the comments with the heads of departments and discuss how they can conduct closer monitoring of homework being set on the online system. We will also remind parents how they can have their own log in to use the site more effectively, and how to report any technical issues, if and when they occur. On the whole the survey revealed that parents and carers felt the recent changes were steps in the right direction and, where things needed to be looked at, they gave positive suggestions about how things can be finely tuned. A key message from the majority of returned surveys was around our new online system for sharing homework, Show My Homework.
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Some of the comments included: Show My Homework is amazingly useful for helping students to be organised and parents to monitor what needs to be completed Gives children who may have not understood the homework when it was set in class an opportunity to know what to do Show My Homework works really well when parents use their own personal log in Great for checking past and present homework Gives parents an insight as to what has been set, so discussions about homework with a child are now informed – and there is no way of their child getting out of doing it
Areas for us to look into with departments after half term: How can we ensure that all homework are recorded in Show My Homework? How can we be clearer on the way the homework will be assessed and who it will be assessed by? What feedback will be given and how? How can we ensure that the guidance on how to complete the homework is clearer and more helpful to all students? How can we ensure that the homework timetable is used more consistently by staff to ensure students are not underwhelmed or overwhelmed on some evenings? Do we delay the amount of homework set in the first half of the autumn term for year seven students to allow the transition process to be successful for all? I would like to thank all of those parents who took the time to complete the survey. The feedback was really useful, particularly the suggestions. I also thank all of you for understanding that we are always looking to improve things, and hope that when we conduct another review next year, you are able to see that things have further developed in a positive way around homework. Thank you for supporting your children in the completion of homework. If you need help logging onto Show My Homework please email data@hws.haringey.sch.uk
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APPS FOR GOOD EXPERT VISIT
Mr Talbert writes: In April, Year 8 Apps for Good students had an expert visit from Barclays Bank’s Corporate MI Project Manager, Nick Blake ,who came in to give the students advice about their Apps for Good entries for this year’s competition. Students were able to ask him questions and showcase their App ideas so that they could fine tune their competition entries in the regional and national finals. In addition, our Head Boy got some career tips in banking from Nick Blake too. YEAR 7s GET PROGRAMMING WITH BBC MICRO:BIT
Mr Talbert writes: This term Year 7 students were finally given their BBC Micro:Bit, a tiny device that can be plugged into a computer and programmed to do all sorts of cool stuff. The BBC Micro:Bit is the brainchild of the BBC who introduced computers into schools in the 1980s to help encourage children to code and they are hoping to do the same with the Micro:Bit for a new generation of students by giving every Year 7 student in the UK a Micro:Bit. If you are in Year 7 and have received your Micro:Bit, go to the Micro:Bit website (www.microbit.co.uk) and explore the many things that you can do with it and the amazing lessons planned by your teachers. Issue 30 May 2016
BBC YOUNG JAZZ MUSICIAN
JACK PETCHEY AWARD WINNERS Ms Gribble writes: We are pleased to be able to nominate three students for Jack Petchey awards this term: Lucy Whelan Lucy has been a treasured member of our school and has made considerable contributions to our community over the 5 years she has been with us. She always works extremely hard and many of her school council nominations were to acknowledge the work that she has done for Model UN and the example she has set as Head Girl for her house this year (amongst many other valued inputs).
Mr Harlow writes: Noah Stoneman performed admirably at the final of the BBC young Jazz Musician of the Year. Performing with the World renowned Gwilym Simcock trio in Cardiff, Noah impressed the panel of judges with the maturity of his playing on both the Piano and the organ. To reach the final of such a prestigious competition is an amazing achievement, but to do so while still only in year 10 and to hold his own against Jazz undergraduates is astounding. You can still catch Noah's performance on iplayer. Well done Noah! http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00bb3wt/
Anders Skovsende Anders is always a friendly, welcoming and a cooperative person. Everyone in his tutor group is happy to work with him. The School Council feels he is a valued member of our school community and has settled really well into Year 7. Ramneet Bains Ramneet is always friendly to others, she has shown resilience and persevere in all subjects and has a great sense of humour. Ramneet served on the School Council last year and played an important role in the meetings that made it what it is today.
STUDENTS VISIT THE FRENCH INSITUTE Ms Mayer writes: At the beginning of the Summer term the languages department took a group of year 9 students on a cultural visit to the French Institute in South Kensington. The French Institute promotes French culture and language in the UK. Students enjoyed a morning of language activities and a French film in the afternoon. The sun came out and a great day was had by both staff and students! Eleanor in year 9 writes: “As someone who is taking French for GCSE, I found the trip to the Institute very helpful as we were learning in a different way. It helped that you were mostly spoken to in French making you more accustomed to the language. Issue 30
May 2016
Everything I learnt from this trip I found very interesting and I know I will be able to use in later life.�
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DEBATE MATE NEWS Ms Sayer writes: It’s been a very busy half-term for Highgate Wood’s fantastic Debate Mate team
On 20th April, Mrs Bielby and I took two teams of students to the Debate Mate Cup, held at the University of Westminster’s Marylebone Campus. The first motion – ‘This house would ban the military from advertising’ - had been released a week in advance, allowing the students to prepare arguments for both sides, but two unprepared motions followed; teams were only allowed 15 minutes to prepare, without the help of notes or electronic devices. Our students were particularly impressive when arguing in opposition of the motion ‘This house would force broadcasters to give equal air time to female sports’, taking the team-line that it is patronising for male-dominated broadcasters to decide when women deserve equality.
A few weeks later and we were competing again this time at the Debate Mate Novice Cup. The students were fortunate to be hosted by Credit Suisse, one of Debate Mate’s corporate sponsors, at their offices in Canary Wharf. This competition tested the skills of students who had only been taking part in the programme since September.
After tackling the prepared motion ‘This house would only imprison violent offenders’ and the unprepared ‘This house would ban cars in cities’, our team was the highest scoring of the fifteen schools there. We took part in the final, proposing the motion ‘This house would ban gambling’ against Sydenham School. The maturity and skill with which the six students debated was inspiring and they were narrowly beaten by the opposition.
After three compelling rounds, one of the our teams was ranked second overall! Freya Dougan, Isabel Pountney, Lucy Sutton and Iola Elson, supported by Tom Carter and Anna Jevons, proposed the motion ‘This house would make voting compulsory’ in front of hundreds of other students, teachers and Debate Mate mentors. They debated with conviction and passion but were unfortunately beaten by a very strong team from Sydney Russell. 20
Finally, on Monday 23rd May, Charlie Newbold, Rebecca Manoharan, Lucy Sutton, Iola Elson, Freya Dougan and Isabel Pountney took part in the final rounds of the Urban Debate League. Any Twitter uses might have spotted that we were ranked 5th out of 200 schools nationally after the two heats! Issue 30 May 2016
This earned us the right to enter a team into the final rounds, held at the offices of KPMG in Canary Wharf. There were two unprepared debates. Firstly, we opposed the motion ‘The house believes that the education system should prioritise teaching life skills over academic subjects’ against a team from Little Ilford School. Our team’s case was helped by careful examination of the current education system, as well as asking whether the proposition team had considered where this extra time in class would come from. Secondly, we proposed the motion ‘This house would ban the sale and consumption of meat’ against a team from Greycoat Hospital School. Despite losing this debate, we still had one of the highest speaker scores after the two rounds and so advanced to the semi-finals.
Here we were up against Greycoat again, this time proposing that ‘This house believes that children should have legal obligation to support their parents or guardians in old age’. Although the HWS students made excellent arguments about the marginalisation of the elderly in society and the benefits of inter-generational relationships, the opposition were concerned about those children with a negative relationship with their parents. It was a close-fought match but Greycoat won! I feel enormously privileged to accompany Highgate Wood students to these competitions. They are always ambitious, competitive and confident whilst remaining polite, humble and measured. Both experienced debaters and newcomers have worked extremely hard and listened carefully to the advice of our university mentors Hugo and Mariam. Issue 30
May 2016
LRC ADVANCE NOTICES The LRC will be hosting lunchtime talks by Charlie Higson and Arabella Weir after the half term break. Please sign up at the LRC issue desk if you would like to attend.
Thursday 9th June: Arabella Weir Arabella Weir is a comedy actor and writer, broadcaster and presenter. She is probably best known as one of the stars of the BBC’s multi-award-winning The Fast Show. As an actor, she appeared in the cult teen drama SKINS as Anna, Michelle’s mother. Arabella has written a series of three funny books about the life of teenager Tabitha Baird.
Thursday 16th June: Charlie Higson Charlie Higson is a successful author, actor, comedian and writer for television and radio. He wrote the phenomenally successful Young Bond series. The series began with SilverFin and was followed by Blood Fever, Double or Die, Hurricane Gold and By Royal Command. All five novels entered the children’s bestseller charts in the top five. After Young Bond, Charlie moved on to write a bestselling zombie-adventure series for teenagers. The first book in the series was The Enemy. Book 7 in the series, The End, will be published in June.
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HARINGEY CHILDREN’S BOOK AWARD Ms Ereira writes: There is something very exciting about being in a room full of talented and successful authors. And even more exciting to have the chance to vote for your favourite book and see the winning book announced there and then. The Year 7 book club travelled to Heartlands School to join reading groups from 15 other schools and vote for the Haringey Children’s Book Award. Five fabulous books were shortlisted, and the book club have been reading and enjoying them all. It was a packed and eventful day. In the morning, the school groups were given writing workshops. After lunch at least ten authors were set up with signing tables and the Big Green Bookshop ran a very busy stall before the ceremony began. The Workshop Our group was lucky enough to have a writing workshop with SF Said, author of the shortlisted book Phoenix and the ever popular Varjak Paw and The Outlaw Varjak Paw. A charismatic and compelling speaker, SF talked to us about the importance of reworking your writing. He wrote 17 drafts of Varjak Paw before publication, and 13 drafts of Phoenix before he was satisfied with it. SF asked the students to come up with story ideas, write the opening and then produce a second draft. In just a few minutes some really entertaining and intriguing ideas took shape. The Ceremony Catherine West, our local MP, was there to open proceedings with a speech about the power of voting and the importance of libraries and of supporting our local shops. Besides the shortlisted authors, there were several authors present as Patrons of Reading for various Haringey schools: Karen McCombie, Daniel Whelan, Jonny Zucker, Matt Brown and Piers Torday. Last year’s winning author Gill Lewis spoke about the importance of both reading and writing. She then opened up the envelope to reveal that the winning book was SF Said’s Phoenix, a thrilling epic space quest with brilliant mythic resonances. It was a truly memorable and inspiring event. 22
The book group setting out
Workshop with SF Said
SF Said receiving the award
SHORTLISTED BOOKS Phoenix by SF Said Whistling in the Dark by Shirley Hughes The Boy in the Tower by Polly Ho-Yen The Wolf Wilder by Katherine Rundell The Broken King by Philip Womack Issue 30 May 2016
POLLY HO-HEN VISITS THE LRC
ACCELERATED READER AWARDS
Ms Ereira writes: Congratulations to all the AR award winners this half-term. Gold Certificate (800,000 words) Isabelle McBroom 7H Silver Certificate (400,000 words) Joseph Screene 8G Eden Cavendish 7H Bronze Certificate (150,000 words)
Ms Ereira writes: ‘Not many people have heard it yet. Well, no-one’s heard it really, so… be kind!’ Polly Ho-Yen responded to a student’s request for a ‘secret behindthe-scenes excerpt’ by whipping out her laptop and reading the opening of her forthcoming book Where Monsters Lie. Those of us who were lucky enough to hear it are now dying to know what lurks beneath the waters of the loch in Mivtown. At a lunchtime event on 12th May, Polly talked to us about what inspires her writing and how a doodle came to generate the plot of The Boy in the Tower, together with her own experiences of south London tower blocks and her love of classic sci-fi novel The Day of the Triffids. Read The Boy in the Tower to see how the pieces fit together. The Boy in the Tower has been very popular here. It was shortlisted for the Haringey Children’s Book Award and one student admitted to casting multiple votes in the hope of boosting its chances. Look out for Polly’s new book later in the summer!
Katya Dickson 7G Pia Kanani 7D Zoe Street 7D Holly Tunnicliffe 7H Cassia Begg 7H Tamsin Orford-Williams 7H Elsa Pountney 7H Ava Todd 7H Maria Tewodros 7I Gulcin Dinc 7I Tsiona Fernandes-Tadesse 7S Yandeh Faye 7T Alice Jenkins 7T Lily Bacon Darwin 7W Louis Yule 7W Bethany Matsuda Gaviria 7W Manon Elliott 7A Tian-Xing Chaudhry 7A Tolga Tarhan 7A Irah Spanswick-Smith 7A Brian Li 7W Daniel Doggett-Jones 8A Zak Fowler 8A Bell Overton Farnham 8D Sude Bektas 8D Tyce Griffiths 8D Maya Koski-Wood 8E Naima Boukhemal 8G Sam Marks 8T Bronze 5 Quizzes Passed Katya Dickson 7G Zoe Street 7D Ava Todd 7H Maria Tewodros 7I Gulcin Dinc 7I Yandeh Faye 7T Alice Jenkins 7T Manon Elliott 7A Ariba Baig 7A Zak Fowler 8A
Issue 30
May 2016
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MOIRA BUFFINI VISITS HWS
FRENCH SCHOOL VISIT
Mr Gowen writes: This term the English department were visited by playwright Moira Buffini who gave a talk to year 9 and 10 students about what the life of a writer was like. Moira, whose plays have been performed at the Royal National Theatre, was able to give expert insight to students about what it took to become a writer and how to make a successful living from it. She left extremely impressed at the challenging questions asked by the group and hopes that some of them have been inspired to pursue their own writing goals.
Ms Lacroix writes: On Friday 20th May, students and teachers from Collège Les Avaloirs, PrÊ-en-Pail in Mayenne visited Highgate Wood. We spent the first hour in our French class with students discussing the cultural differences between the two countries and provided a great opportunity for our students to practice the language they have learned in a real context. Later in the day we all l had lunch together and shared more stories. Our students were delighted of this experience, many shared pictures and are hoping to see them again very soon
YEAR 8 COLLAGRAPHY Ms Zwicky writes: This term Year 8 have been learning all about different printing techniques in art. Initially we got to grips with different mono printing techniques, and this week some classes have been able to use our fantastic printing press in the department with their collagraph designs which they have been working towards for the last few weeks. The images are created on separate plates through texture and collage before then being inked up and printed. The students needed to carefully consider texture and selection of material during the collage, and learn how to evenly apply ink prior to printing in order to achieve a clear and effective print.
Katie Ley Mia Blasi
Tallulah Cox
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Issue 30 May 2016
Leah Whittaker
YEAR 9 FOOTBALL SUCCESS
MIDDLESEX RUGBY FESTIVAL
Mr Bomani writes: The year 9 football team put in an excellent performance to finish 3rd in the Haringey football tournament at Frederick Knight Sports Ground last month. They battled through wind, rain and hail to take the third spot. Despite remaining undefeated in the tournament, one draw meant that 3rd place was the best they could achieve. The attitude of those who took part was fantastic. I would also like to add a thank you and say well done to all the other year 9s who have taken part within the football team this year, you have been a credit to the school and represented Highgate Wood fantastically.
Mr Adams writes: This was the first Rugby tournament Highgate Wood School has attended. It was a brilliant day with lots of Rugby matches. The year 7 and year 8 teams that were taking part enjoyed the competition against other schools of a similar ability. During the course of the day all the students played in a pool of 8 other teams. Both our teams were very successful with lots of wins, which was extra special as only a handful of the students had played rugby previously. Overall, the Year 8s finished 7th in their age group whilst the Year 7 team finished 4th out of 12. Five of our students were selected for Gifted and Talented training sessions, which was a real bonus. Well done to everyone who took part.
HARINGEY ATHLETICS CHAMPIONSHIP
Mr Ifrim writes: On 18th May, we took 30 aspiring Athletes to the Haringey Championships. It was a fantastic day with some very strong competition from the local schools. Every single one of our athletes was exceptional, showing real power, pace, strength and tenacity. Well done to everyone. Junior Girls:
Cerys Walker and Laurel Smith achieved 2nd and 3rd place in the Hurdles Hope Selby secured 2nd place in the Long Jump
Junior Boys:
Finley Reed achieved 4th place in the 300 metres Marco Reeve secured first place in the Javelin
Intermediate Boys: Freddie Caldwell achieved 2nd in the Javelin
Issue 30
May 2016
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2016 SWIMMING GALA
HWS SWIMMERS SUPPORT OLYMPIADS
Ava Todd writes:
Ten Highgate Wood School students are heading just a few miles south of their Tottenham and Crouch End-based training pools to the LEN European Swimming Championships (16th – 22nd May). They are volunteering their time to assist British 2016 Rio swimmers such as Adam Peaty, Ben Proud and Jazz Carlin, along with several athletes from across Europe. Held at the London Aquatic Centre, LEN is the final international competition for many aquatics athletes before heading to the Rio 2016 Summer Olympic Games.
Before breaking up for the Easter holidays, many Highgate Wood students took part in a swimming gala at our local swimming pool- Park Road. It was a fun morning and many students were wowed by each other’s skill in the water. It was a great event, filled not only with breathtaking races, but also Mr. Adams’ DJing and commentary! Although Edison House won the gala overall, both Seacole and Da Vinci won many races, and therefore the final scores were very tight. It was really nice to see the support shown between everyone from all years, cheering each and every person on. There were many strong swimmers in the gala and several that stood out more than others. Some of the younger students stunned the higher years with their pace and talent. In particular, Max Green and Rosie Boardman impressed all their fellow students, Rosie going home with four gold medals and Max with five. Being there was a great, enjoyable time and it was amazing to see how fast some of my peers could swim! 26
The students (Maisie Ayres, Megan Boardman, Rosa Georgiou, Max Hanson, Sophie Kinloch, Charlotte Ley, Kelton Ryland, Morwenna Taylor, Laurie Taylor and HWS Alumni Sushi Ghose-Coveney) will be representing their club, Haringey Aquatics. They will be serving as kit carriers and providing event assistance on behalf of the British Swimming Association. Laurie Taylor said: “carrying the kit for such talented athletes and seeing them, our heroes, up close will be such an inspiration and who knows ... maybe in a few years it could be us!” This is the second year in a row that our students have volunteered to support a major swimming championship, with last year's British Swimming Championships allowing them to gain practical event experience to inform their academic and career pursuits, watch world and national records fall, and interact with Olympic, Commonwealth and national champions. To learn more about becoming a part of Haringey Aquatics, follow @teamharingey or visit www.haringeyaquatics.org.uk Issue 30 May 2016
EDUCATIONAL OUTCOME AWARD FOR 2015
Highgate Wood School has been recognised for its exceptional 2015 performance by the Schools, Students and Teachers network (SSAT). Educational Outcomes data analysis from SSAT has shown that the school is in the top 20% of schools nationally for high average grades achieved by students and the top 20% nationally for progress made by pupils between their key stage 2 results at primary school and their key stage 4 results. The school’s SSAT Educational Outcomes awards will be presented to the Headteacher at a regional celebration event held to draw attention to the work of high-achieving, improving and innovating schools and teachers. Sue Williamson, Chief Executive of SSAT said: ‘It’s my great pleasure to commend Highgate Wood School on their excellent 2015 performance, and to have the opportunity to highlight and share their great work at the SSAT Educational Outcomes celebration evening. I have the privilege of visiting a lot of schools and I am always impressed by the creativity of teachers in engaging and inspiring their students. ‘I hope that SSAT’s Educational Outcomes awards will highlight the professionalism, commitment and hard work of the leaders, teachers and students at Highgate Wood Secondary School. Recognising and sharing successes like this is at the heart of SSAT’s mission, so I’m delighted to congratulate Highgate Wood School on their achievement.” We are delighted that, once again, the school has been placed in the top tier of schools both for student progress and for the achievement of exceptionally good grades by our students. We are confident this will be maintained for our current students and their forthcoming examinations. Issue 30
May 2016
ISM RECOGNITION
We are delighted to have received a Bronze award from the Incorporated Society of Musicians for our achievements in GCSE Music last year. Deborah Annetts, Chief Executive of ICM says: ‘Music is a hugely important subject in itself, for future professional careers and for wider learning in a school; it adds huge benefits to the wider curriculum, school and community life and educational opportunity. As the professional body for musicians, we are delighted to recognise this high level of achievement with this certificate.’
MADFEST AUDITIONS
Mr Harlow writes: This year’s Madfest will take place on Friday evening and will provide the opportunity for students to showcase their talents in music, drama, performance and the visual arts. As usual, a Year 10 committee has been appointed and will oversee the auditions . These will take place in the week beginning 13th June. Make sure you keep your eyes open for announcements about this after half term. If any parents or others wish to be involved in Madfest or support the PSA’s organisation of the event, please complete the form on the school website at http://bit.do/madfest2016 . 27
School begins again on Monday 6th June 2016
at 8:35 am It will be Week 2 KEY DATES Sports Day
Friday 10th June
GCSE Exhibition (evening)
Friday 10th June
Year 10 Exams
20 June - 1st July
Year 11 Celebration Evening
Friday 24th June
New Parents’ Evening
Monday 4th July
Year 6 Transition Day
Tuesday 5th July
STAFF INSET
Friday 8th July
KS3 Celebration Assembly
Friday 15th July
Summer term ends
Thursday 21st July
A Level Results Day
Thurs. 18th August
GCSE Results Day
Thurs. 25th August
Sixth Form Enrolment
Thurs. 25th August
INSET Days
5th & 6th September
Term Starts
Wed. 7th September
AUTUMN 2016
SPRING 2017
SUMMER 2017
Wed 7th Sept
Term Starts*
Wed 4th Jan
Term Starts
Tues 18th April
Term Starts
24th 28th Oct **
Half term break
13th - 17th Feb
Half term break
29th May - 2nd June Half term break
Thurs 22nd Dec
Term Ends
Fri 31st March
Term Ends
Fri 21st July
Term Ends
*Term starts for students (5th & 6th September are INSET Days) ** 31st October is an INSET day
The school calendar is available on-line at www.hws.uk.com
Find out what is going on at Highgate Wood School and keep up with our news
visit us at our website www.hws.uk.com follow us on twitter twitter.com/highgatewood Check the school’s opening status Call 02084087508 and give the school’s DfE code: 3094030
Insight is available on-line at www.hws.uk.com