Master’s Review Prize Day Speech
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s the Marlburian community met online for the second year in a row for Prize Day, marking the passing of a most extraordinary year and celebrating our unique boarding community, I could not help but think of the world of ancient Greece – of the era of Homeric epic poetry – of Odysseus, famed King of Ithaca whose homecoming – or nostos – from the Trojan War to his beloved Kingdom saw him face seeming insuperable challenges on his gruelling
10 year homeward journey. Odysseus, in Homeric text, is referred to again and again as polutlas, meaning much enduring. Everything that he knew, everything that he held dear was kept from him, almost suspended in time, until he could at last return home to a land recognised but changed. And I have no hesitation in describing every member of this community as polutlas. For this last year, every single Marlburian, every single member of staff has been tested, has faced unprecedented challenge, has extended themselves in a way that was hitherto utterly unthinkable.
‘Our pupils’ contribution to outreach, to partnership, to seeing beyond themselves, to making a difference to this community and to society as a whole is inspiring indeed...’
But, of course, Odysseus came to be known as polutropos – metaphorically it means a man of many ways/devices – he was agile, he was cunning, he would not be defeated, he adapted to his environment, he shaped himself to the trials and to the characters he encountered. And, if there was ever an adjective that could be said to be applicable to how our own community has responded to present Covid 19 challenges, it must be polutropos. The agility, the determination, the resilience with which each one has faced this global pandemic has been inspiring and it has been humbling. All at Marlborough have learnt from these times and we have had our limits tested but, as the smiles confirmed when we came together on site towards the end of a Lent term of lockdown, this will be a stronger community for the challenges that we have faced, and we will certainly appreciate what is important in life, if we didn’t before. Marlborough, beyond these challenges, is enjoying a sea change in ambition: I see more ambition and aspiration in our pupils than ever before, and it is of the moment, but not unprecedented, that this should happen in such starkly challenging times. This ambition extends far beyond the academic and the co-curriculum. Our pupils’ contribution to outreach, to partnership, to seeing beyond themselves, to making a difference to this community and to society as a whole is inspiring indeed; and very much paves the way towards Marlborough’s desire to be a yet more inclusive and diverse school – to welcome pupils and staff from all walks of life with all manner of means. On the academic front, pupils and colleagues have coped brilliantly, remaining focussed on what is important, despite inhabiting an ever-shifting landscape, and I am happy to report that our grades last year did our pupils and our school great credit. In 2020, at GCSE we saw 50% of entries awarded grades 8 and 9 (which is the equivalent of an old A* grade), with over three-quarters of the year group achieving eight or more grades at 9 to 7 (the equivalent of an old A grade). At A level and Pre-U, 60% of our grades were A*s and As, or D1 to D3 at Pre-U. I thank all teaching colleagues for their remarkable contribution this year – to have been required to both create and then deliver an internal assessment process is beyond the bounds of the expected remit of a school. Our pupils have done well to withstand the pressure and turbulence; and so too have the staff.
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The Marlburian Club Magazine
