Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 23 Page 24 Page 25 Page 26 Page 27 Page 28 Page 29 Page 30 Page 31 Page 32 Page 33 Page 34 Page 35 Page 36 Page 37 Page 38 Page 39 Page 40 Page 41 Page 42 Page 43 Page 44 Page 45 Page 46 Page 47 Page 48 Page 49 Page 50 Page 51 Page 5220 TRIPS AND VISITS House Spelling Fun The House Spelling finals have been taking place in Big School, where each tutor group’s spelling champion has been competing against their fellow champions to gain points for their houses. The spelling champions were as follows: Year 7: Sadikur Chowdhury from 7 Galahad; Year 8: Mohammed Haseen from 8 William; Year 9: Solomon Khan from 9 Alfred; Year 10: Manamrit Bains from 10 William; Year 11: Saud Nasir from 11 Henry; Well done to all who took part in the finals! Mr Conway Computer Science Masterclass In February twenty Year 12 Computing and Multimedia students attended an app development and design workshop at Aston University. The workshop was run by Dr Jo Lumsden and Dr Lilit Hakobyan, both experts in Human Computer Interfaces (HCI). The purpose of the workshop was to create a concept and then design a fitness application. Our students, along with a number of external students, were split into teams of six and given an hour to create a concept and then design certain aspects of the desired application. Group 1 featured the department’s star students! – creating an application named ‘EZFit’. The application took advantage of a device’s geometrical components such as the motion sensor, along with GPS capabilities in order to provide accurate and efficient tracking functions. The application also used an advanced formula that granted users points, taking into consideration the amount of exercise the user performed and the user’s BMI. The point system provided a competitive platform where friends could collaborate, in a manner that promoted a healthy lifestyle. Wearable technology was also considered. Group 2 took a similar approach with an application named ‘iGo-uGo’. The application also considered various components of a device in order to provide similar tracking to that achieved by Group 1. Group 2 offered the ability to track the user’s diet along with several aspects of fitness. Group 3 took an interesting approach with their application ‘World Run’. Rather than taking a conventional approach of having a user’s fitness tracking as the main aspect of the application, they instead attempted to incorporate a game-like aspect into the application, in order to appeal to a younger age group. The application included images of world renowned locations in order to persuade the user to interact with the game while motivating them to lead a healthy lifestyle. All three groups excelled in the workshop, providing them with valuable information and experience in the field of Human Computer Interfaces (HCI). Hence, on behalf of all the students who attended, we would like to thank Dr Jo Lumsden and Dr Lilit Hakobyan along with Aston University for a valuable and memorable experience. Donnell Burgess, Daniel Ahmed, Jason Lee and Reedwan Ali Geography Enrichment Lecture On 22nd September seven Sixth Form Geographers attended a fascinating lecture about India at King Edward VI Five Ways School. This is part of our collaboration work with Grammar Schools across Birmingham and enables HGS to provide deep and challenging enrichment opportunities for our students. As a British Indian, the title of the lecture sounded quite controversial. However, the premise of the lecture was India’s huge cultural diversity and the challenges this presents for the world’s largest democracy. India is a country of many contrasts; notably gender inequality, the gap between rich and poor and life in the cities compared to life in rural areas (where 72% of Indians live). This is further complicated by the many religions in India, a caste system which gives people a social status at birth and the challenges presented by a progressive federal government dealing with the ‘rich states’ of the west and the ‘poor states’ of the north and east (6 states here have over 50% of the population classified as malnourished). I was shocked to hear about the issue of gender inequality. It troubled me to hear that many women are beaten and even raped and murdered if they are seen to bring shame on their family. Indeed, there have been very upsetting news items about this kind of behaviour towards women and these have helped to galvanise Indian opinion to ensure that such tragedies are not repeated. I understand that peoples’ beliefs – whether religious or cultural – may bring a conservative point of view, but this kind of treatment and lack of tolerance is holding India back in my opinion. On the positive side, India’s software manufacturing and IT services are bringing much needed investment and have been at the forefront of economic growth. It is one of the fastest growing economies in the world and rapid rural-to-urban migration is placing huge pressure on India’s cities. Whilst huge challenges remain, the potential efficiencies of urban living; and access to health care, jobs and education could help lift millions of people out of poverty. Taranvir Bedi & Mr D Bird Mr Conway provided a competitive platform where friends could collaborate, in a manner that promoted a healthy lifestyle. Wearable technology was also considered. Group 2 took a similar approach with an application named ‘iGo-uGo’. The application also considered various components of a device in order to provide similar tracking to that achieved by Group 1. Group 2 offered the ability to track the user’s diet along with several aspects of fitness. Group 3 took an interesting approach with their application ‘World Run’. Rather than taking a conventional approach of having a user’s fitness tracking as the main aspect of the application, they instead attempted to incorporate a game-like aspect into the application, in order to appeal to a younger age group. The application included images of world renowned locations in order to persuade the user to interact with the game while motivating them to lead a healthy lifestyle. All three groups excelled in the workshop, providing them with valuable information and experience in the field of Human Computer Interfaces (HCI). Hence, on behalf of all the students who attended, we would like to thank Dr Jo Lumsden and Dr Lilit Hakobyan along with Aston University for a valuable and memorable experience. 20