LOOKING AHEAD
Ambition | Independence | Responsibility
Term has whistled past so fast, and I am so impressed by how much Years 12 and 13 have achieved: from academic challenges of mock examinations, to Tutor group presentations via a plethora of trips such as visiting McLaren and the Houses of Parliament. Being in the Sixth Form at Malvern St. James has a breadth and depth beyond the immediate, and the pupils also find time for fun and socialising. The Spring Term edition of the Looking Ahead offers a tantalising glimpse of the possibilities, and I am delighted to invite you to read on!
Best wishes,
Dr Bowdrey
bowdrm@malvernstjames.co.uk
every success
WISHING OUR YEAR 13 COHORT GOING INTO THEIR FINAL TERM AT MSJ
Pudding Club: Samara Gannon
Isobel, Year 12
It was such a pleasure to meet theatre director and Old Girl Samara Gannon (MSJ 2012) in Pudding Club on Friday 5 March. I had previously considered acting as a career choice, but Samara opened my eyes to directing as a career. After studying A Level Drama here at MSJ she continued her studies at Bristol to do a classics degree, but she couldn’t shake her love of the theatre. She progressed to RADA to study Text and Performance and found her love of directing. She read plays and produced practical work almost every week and is now directing many plays covering a variety of genres, but her main focus is the plight of women. The experience of having her talk to Theatre and Drama pupils with a Q & A session at the end helped me and my fellow pupils to understand directing and to recognise different approaches on how to infiltrate the industry and the struggles you might face. At the end of Samara’s talk, she stated to ‘Remember why’ which was based on the idea that you need to remember why you took that career path and it is hugely helpful advice for us to take forward!
MSJ Trip to the Houses of Parliament
Michaela, Year 13
In the morning, the R.S. pupils, including myself, visited University College London, UCL to see the preserved body of the philosopher and ethicist Jeremy Bentham. Meanwhile, the rest of the group visited various museums and enjoyed free time at lunch. Then everyone re-grouped outside the visitors’ centre of Parliament. We embarked on a tour beginning in the House of Commons in which we enjoyed listening to a debate regarding the 2022 Final of the UEFA Champions League. Before going to the House of Lords to listen to further debates, we stopped in the Central Lobby to admire the architecture and history of the building, particularly the four large mosaic panels depicting the patron saint of each of the four constituent countries of the UK. The tour ended in Westminster Hall where we stood in the same place multiple historical figures had delivered momentous speeches, such as Nelson Mandela. The day was enthralling, and my personal highlight of the tour was seeing the scarf belonging to martyr and suffragette Emily Davison.
On 1 February, Year 12 & 13 Politics, History and Religious Studies pupils went to London for the day.
MSJ Sixth Form Wine Tasting Experience
On Friday 3 February pupils from Year 12 & 13 took part in a wine tasting social event. The night consisted of sampling a sparkling wine, red wine, white wine and a rosé to finish off. The favourite wine in the room was the white wine, which was described by one pupil as being ‘light and crisp’. Lemon slices and sweets were paired with some of the wines so that we could identify the effects of different flavour combinations on the palate. It was surprising how much of a difference a slice of lemon made with a glass of white wine. In addition to the wine, a range of canapés, olives and crisps complimented the event. As a group we learnt that people are increasingly aware of what they are consuming and how it impacts society, which is part of the reason the purchases of natural and organic wines have increased dramatically over the past decade. In summary this was an enjoyable and informative evening that we plan to repeat again in the future.
Working as a Team
Dr Bowdrey
The various tutor groups of Years 12 and 13 have been working together on a topic of their choice to present in form times to their peers. The subjects are quite diverse, covering topics including: “Chocolate”, “The Importance of Laughter”, “Do UFOs really exist?” and “Should Harry and Meghan still be a part of the Royal Family?” Pupils have worked together over a short time scale to produce informative items, enhancing their team working, presentation and communication skills. It is no mean feat to stand up and confidently present your findings to a large audience. We have very much enjoyed the wide variety of talks, and look forward to their next choices!
Scarlett, Year 13
McLaren Trip
Visiting the McLaren group in Surrey was not only an extremely interesting and valuable experience, but also gave me a much clearer insight as to how important the subject of psychology, specifically sports psychology, is to not only the drivers in the racing sector of the team, but also the company as a whole to understand the psychology of its target audience.
In regards to the automotive and racing departments of the corporation, they hugely differ in their aims, which therefore also has a knock-on effect to the psychological aspect of their strategies. We learnt that the
automotive sector has a limited cost to work with, and is mainly focused on making profit, whereas the racing team is all about ‘spending as much money as possible’ and is mainly focused on winning, therefore granting the team more prize money which they can then put towards the development of their cars. This ‘winning at all costs’ mindset indicates how important sports psychology is to the drivers of the racing teams, as their job is based on success. Due to racing, especially Formula 1, being a hugely mental sport as well as physical, a driver’s mindset could be a huge advantage, or alternatively very detrimental to
their own, and McLaren’s success.
We also found out about how, although sports psychology itself is a very niche subject, it has a foothold in so many different areas of the McLaren group. For instance, it can lead into the marketing sector, as the group would need to understand the psychology of their target audience, to enable more sales and therefore generate more money, specifically relating to the sport aspect in the racing team. Psychology in general is also critical for any company as it would help the management in each sector select, support, motivate and train employees, leading to optimal performance.
Lottie, Year 13
Chinese New Year
Javis and Dongzi, Year 12
It was our first time celebrating Chinese new year in MSJ, and we were wonderfully surprised by the planned celebratory activities for that day. We were in Greenslade for the event, and we participated in the making of tomato and spicy flavoured hotpot, along with our two Housemistresses and other boarders. The Housemistress bought us a variety of ingredients, varying from tofu to homemade egg fried rice. Soon, many of the boarders in the house came to take part in the making process as well, and helped with cutting up vegetables and serving chicken wings. After settling down, supper began with students helping themselves with the hotpot and sitting together around tables. Overall, we were beyond grateful for the effort put into such a festive day, especially when most of us are far away from home on this familyoriented event.
We were able to enjoy the company of our fellow friends, as well as our Housemistresses who were determined to make the meal as authentic as possible. All of this was delightfully unexpected and we were happy to celebrate Chinese New Year together here in the UK for the first time.
Oxford Schools Debating
Lucy, Year 13
On 18 November, Alyssa, Florence, Esme, Sylvie, and I from the Debating Club participated in the Oxford Schools Debating Competition. We opposed the motion of banning digital manipulation in advertising, including in a social media context, arguing that the service can boost the marketing strategies and campaigns, and likened digital manipulation to autotuning and its widespread societal acceptance. We questioned the ideas of the opposing sides with numerous points of rebuttal which led to a riveting and engaging debate. We also listened to another group debating vegetarianism who said they had given up meat for a week just to get into a vegetarian’s mindset! Overall, it was a great opportunity to discover more about the subjects that interested us, and to broaden our minds to topics we hadn’t thought about before.
Year 13
Life Skills
Dr Bowdrey
During the Spring term, Year 13 pupils have had a carousel of life skills during their weekly PSHE sessions. The pupils have been introduced to the traditional craft of knitting, which once the basics have been conquered, allows a calming moment as you become absorbed in creating, and gain pleasure from seeing your efforts grow. Pupils have learnt how to sew a hem, carry out basic checks on cars including checking oil levels and tyre pressures, and made their own set of shelves – very handy for University storage! All of these are definitely beyond the academic curriculum, and are another step in preparing pupils for life beyond School, equipping them with the means to be independent, resilient to life’s twists and turns, and of course, looking super smart with no untidy hems getting in the way!
Maths Fest 2023
Athena,
Year 12
The 2023 Maths Festival at The Royal Institute was led by world renowned Maths speakers with the enigmatic Matt Parker as host, providing a day of learning and entertainment. Each speaker showed their enthusiasm towards Mathematics and the Sciences by sharing ideas of uncommon knowledge around the field. For example, Dr Tom Crawford, a Mathematics tutor at the University of Oxford shared how we can use mathematical models
and equations to save the planet by working out where the water from rivers goes when it enters the ocean and how this relates to water pollution and climate change. The third mathematician on stage, Zoe Griffiths discussed how data used in the news or on the internet can mislead people due to intentional number selection bias. Aside from the six great mathematicians, there were students that were able to volunteer and compete for the
best three-minute presentation on a topic related to Mathematics. There were also a variety of competitions and Maths stalls with which to engage during the breaks. Overall, it was a remarkable experience and widened our experiences of Mathematics. We shared some of the concepts and ideas that we learnt with the rest of the School in the International Day of Mathematics assembly on 14 March.
Classics Visit to Warwick University
by Olivia, Laila, Ella and Morganne, Year 12
We had an amazing day out at Warwick University, getting a feel for university-style teaching and having the opportunity to see the campus.
Our introduction and first lecture was by Professor Michael Scott, we were talking about historical context related to Athens and the history of Greek theatre. This made a great introduction to the day and added to what we have been learning in Classics.
The iconography lecture by Eric Csapo was insightful and easy to follow and gave us all a bigger picture about how comic characters are presented on Athenian vases. It helped us to develop our knowledge of comic characters, as well as interpreting vase paintings and analysing tragic and comic texts
We had the chance to take part in a seminar about the creation of comic characters, and although we found the style of teaching quite challenging, it encouraged us to think independently about how tragedy and comedy are related but created in different ways.
At the end of the day we watched a modern interpretation of Aristophanes Assembly Women,
produced and performed by the students at Warwick. The comedy invents a scenario where the women of Athens gain control of the government. The performance was enjoyed by all who attended and by the majority was named the favourite part of our trip. We really enjoyed the day, and it made a great day to look at Warwick University for the future.
Coutts Bank Open Day
Coutts is a very familiar company to me, having my parents in the banking industry. The Open Day helped furthered my knowledge in the finance world and I couldn’t be more grateful for the opportunity. I immersed myself into the experience, soaking up every bit of advice and insight into their world. I was able to learn a lot and further explore what avenue of banking I might wish to pursue.
As a Sports scholar, I found the sports, media and entertainment side of Coutts to be completely captivating, as it allowed me to look at my interests and bring them into a corporate world. I am extremely lucky to have experienced a Coutts Open Day, giving me insight into possible future careers and opportunities. I knew from the minute I stepped through the door this is exactly where I wanted to be, a sense of comfort and real vision of seeing my future self-there overwhelmed me. I am beyond thankful and so glad we were able to access this wonderful opportunity through making contact with Old Girl Alison Robb (MSJ 2010) through Pudding Club and the OGA.
Molly, Year 12
Night of the Arts
Vicky, Year 12
On Friday 10 February, my EPQ project came alive through the “Night of the Arts”. In August 2022, my Grandma was unfortunately diagnosed with bowel cancer. “Night of the Arts” was a charity showcase event partnered with Bowel Cancer UK to raise awareness for the disease. It was truly a magical night filled with a variety of different acts: Hettie singing ‘Nessun Dorma’ accompanied by Jess, the School’s dance team, Reginae, dancing to Confident by Demi Lovato, Martha and Grace acting a piece from Shakers and so much more!
The night ended with a total of £1122.96 raised! All proceeds have been donated to Bowel Cancer UK charity. It was such a heartwarming experience to see everyone working as a team to raise awareness for Bowel Cancer. I would 100% do it again!
