Focus on Education June 2023
In Shakespeare’s play Macbeth, King Duncan is planning for the succession, the time when he will no longer be King, and the intention is that his son Malcom will succeed him. The two other key characters are Macbeth, a brave captain in the King’s army and his friend Banquo. For those who know the play, Duncan is saying that he has planned to develop both Macbeth and Banquo and they, in turn, talk about their devotion to serving the King, being loyal to him and protecting him. If you read Macbeth, you will find that this isn’t quite how things play out.
On Saturday May 6th, we saw something that I don’t think anyone reading this FOE has ever experienced before, the Coronation of our King, Charles III. His mother, Queen Elizabeth II will have planned carefully for this succession and the aim will, I suspect, be that there is the smoothest of transitions from the reign of one to another as we are now seeing – unlike the goings on in Macbeth, witches and the like!
At the coronation His Majesty The King was crowned alongside Her Majesty The Queen Consort in a ceremony that has remained essentially the same over a thousand years. For the last 900 years, the English coronation has usually taken place at Westminster Abbey in London. The service has been conducted by the Archbishop of Canterbury, since the Norman Conquest in 1066.
During the ceremony, the Sovereign took the coronation oath which involved The King promising to rule according to the law, to exercise justice with mercy and to maintain the Church of England. The King was then ‘anointed, blessed and consecrated’ by the Archbishop of Canterbury, seated in King Edward’s chair (which was made in 1300). He received the orb and sceptres – the orb being part of the Crown Jewels and a symbol of the power of God and the sceptres represent the power of the Sovereign. After this, the Archbishop placed St Edward’s Crown on the King’s head – the crown which was made for Charles II in 1661 as a replacement for the medieval crown which had been melted down in 1649 following the execution of his father Charles I.
As Monarch, King Charles III will not have the ability to pass laws, which is the responsibility of Parliament, but he is Head of State and indeed Head of Church of England. Recognising that modern Britain is a multi-faith society, other faiths featured in the Coronation for the first time which was a significant act of inclusion and diversity.
So, I hope you have taken the opportunity to watch the ceremony or at least some parts of it, which I suspect will not happen too often in our lifetimes. As suggested by the details, the ceremony is a continuation of what has happened with Kings and Queens for centuries and even though the world has changed enormously in that time, the passing of one Monarch to the next has happened in a similar way and throughout his life, Prince Charles will have known that his destiny was, one day, to become King Charles. The same can be said for Prince William who played a significant role over the Coronation weekend.
In contrast, last week I was chatting to a Sixth Former about the courses that they might like to study at University. We talked about where these might lead and there were no fixed plans…indeed the plan was to decide what interested this student most, find the most interesting relevant course at the best university and then take things from there. There would be plenty of options, their career could be in the UK or another part of the world. Exactly what that career was, remained to be seen and the area of work when this individual graduated was unlikely to stay the same throughout their working life. There would be plenty of opportunities and the student would be free to take those opportunities.
And that approach will, I hope, apply to many of us. If we work hard, gain the best qualifications we can, develop interests and skills, doors will be open to us – we will have choices. Indeed, a benefit of education is that it allows us to recognise the options available and equips us to choose the best path for us as an individual – whatever that is.
That is very different to the life that King Charles has had. For all the privilege he has enjoyed, he has always known that one day his path in life would bring him to the Coronation and the formal investiture of him as Monarch. We have more freedom to choose the paths we take, to pursue our own interests to work in areas that appeal to us.
And that perhaps is the point. Sometimes we have opportunities to do things completely differently and to forge brand new paths. On other occasions, we choose, or are chosen, to follow in the footsteps of others. Whichever it is, we perform best, when we do our very best – when we try our hardest to fulfil our commitments as well as we can, doing things for the right reasons. The American educator and author of The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, Stephen Covey, stated “Moral authority comes from following universal and timeless principles like honesty, integrity … treating people with respect.” These are attributes that we model as school leaders and encourage the young people in our care to do the same – clearly there are always lessons to be learned whatever your role and status. Food for thought.
Stay safe and well.
Be kind to yourself and others.
Best wishes,
Dr Bird
LAMDA Success
Our latest LAMDA results are below, these are excellent performances from the LAMDA Exams taken at the Birmingham Public Centre in April 2023. Congratulations to all involved and to Mrs Reynolds our LAMDA teacher.
Business Studies – April trips 2023
April is usually a busy month for all businesses. The end of the financial year bringing big challenges and tight deadlines, however it was busy for an altogether different reason for HGS’ A-level Business students as they journeyed across Birmingham to brush up on their business acumen and expertise.
First, 8 year 12 students attended an enterprise taster day run by Aston University’s Business School. They heard from amazing guest speakers in local industries, learned more about pathways into enterprise at university and got to try their hand at some marketing challenges. It was a great experience for the students and invaluable for explaining to them how they can enter the world of business in higher education and beyond. The student testimonies below show the value of the experience.
Overall, the trip was interesting and informative, especially for the people with an active interest within business. The trip has highlighted to me what courses I want to partake in when I go to University. (Manish Doal – Year 12).
The trip to Aston University was definitely an inspiring experience! For me personally, as someone who wishes to enter both a marketing position and become an entrepreneur in the future, looking at courses and pathways that I may well be looking into in the near future was incredibly useful. Although we didn’t get to do all of the planned workshops, the ones we did do were enjoyable. I would definitely recommend this taster day for future business students. (Sami Zahid – Year 12)
Year 13- Workshop Trip
For hardworking year 13 students working hard with the prospect of exams looming a trip to Star City was the perfect tonic. Now I know what you’re thinking – bowling, relaxation, good food, the cinema – our students had a carefree day or R & R. Sadly not. Instead, year 13 went to the cinema for a revision conference where they performed excellently and got some great tips to excel in their external exams. They were a true credit to the school and really benefitted from the experience as they attest to below.
In the midst of your constant revision at home and in school rooms, it was a nice change of mood to recap business content and exam techniques with Tutor2u. Resuming our revision process in the cinema largely helped me to revisit subject knowledge and enjoy some memorable moments with a nice heart-warming picture with the creators to perfectly end the day. (Omar Elderiny- Year 13)
I believe the business workshop was a valuable experience as it allowed us students to meet business experts and learn new skills that will best adapt us towards the exams in the summer. In the workshop we were able to practice our quantitative business methods and access new specialised resources given by the very friendly staff. The sessions were engaging and interactive which allowed us to meet plenty of students in similar positions to ourselves to improve our business knowledge. Overall, the business workshop was a great experience that I would highly recommend as it improved our confidence moving forward to the exams. (Jay Surray- Year 13)
The business revision workshop helped me in several ways, providing me with the opportunity to enhance my exam technique and consolidate subject knowledge. I was able to get a further insight into an examiners perspective and have learnt the techniques to make my answers appeal to examiners and get me into the top band of marks. Also, the opportunity of meeting Jim Riley allowed me to finally put a face to the voice from all his tutor2u videos I regularly watch for my revision, and by being able to learn from him in a real life environment meant I could ask questions if I was confused allowing me to get instant feedback. (Aliya Zaman- Year 13)
Sixth Form Football Team
The Sixth Form team before their final game of the season against Arthur Terry which finished 2-2.
Focus on Education May 2023
First They Came
First they came for the Communists
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a Communist
Then they came for the Socialists
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a Socialist
Then they came for the trade unionists
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a trade unionist
Then they came for the Jews
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a Jew
Then they came for me
And there was no one left
To speak out for me
You may well have heard or read the poem above which was written by Martin Niemöller. He had been a prominent pastor of an influential parish in Berlin from 1931 and he became famous for opposing Hitler and the treatment of the Jews by the Nazis – eventually.
Initially Niemöller, who was decorated in the First World War as a submarine commander was a supporter of Hitler. However, a turning point came in January 1934, where Niemöller and several bishops had a personal meeting with Hitler. He started to feel nervous about where the regime was going and began to see the Nazi state as a dictatorship, which he opposed. And so Niemöller became more outspoken in his preaching which then came to the attention of the Nazis.
In 1937 he was arrested, taken to prison before he spent time in two concentration camps, the second of which was the infamous Dachau. But for four years prior to his arrest, Niemöller had been silent about Hitler’s attack on Jews and others who opposed the atrocities that were taking place. Following the end of the second world war, Niemöller repeatedly expressed regret at his previous support for the Nazi party, and his failure to speak out against it more broadly and more quickly – a regret he expressed in the above poem.
The obvious question is what would we have done in the 1930s if we had seen our Jewish friends and neighbours taken away, not to return – quite possibly knowing that they had come to the most horrific end. In October 1945, Niemöller headed a group of German church leaders who admitted they had not done enough to oppose the Nazi regime when it really mattered.
But what would we have done? It is great to think that we would have spoken out against what was going on… but would we…would we really? And what do we do when we see wrong going on around us today – perhaps when the wrong is done by those who we would consider to be our friends. Perhaps, when those friends make an unkind comment which we might say that they did not really mean – after all it was just a joke or perhaps banter – as if that makes it ok. What do we do in those circumstances?
So we hear our friend making a derogatory comment about someone’s appearance. It raises a laugh – we know they do not really intend to cause offence or hurt because they are normally better than that. Perhaps the person concerned hasn’t heard it – does that mean it is acceptable?
Or going into lunch or in the Form room, someone makes a comment to play to the crowd which singles someone out for one reason or another. Do we choose not to hear it because it doesn’t affect us, even though we know it is wrong? Or do we say something, then or afterwards, because we know that the comment is unkind and therefore unacceptable? And what about if the comment is about someone’s sexuality or religion or ethnicity. Do we speak out and call out what we know is never right – are we brave enough to do that?
Martin Luther King said that: “In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies but the silence of our friends”. Not the words of our enemies but the silence of our friends. The target of the type of comments I am talking about, will remember those who laughed or smirked, even if they pretend they can shrug it off, and they will remember those who simply kept quiet.
It does take real courage to speak up when we see wrong done – but that is the right thing to do and if we do do that, then we help to shape and maintain the right culture, in what is our community at HGS. It really is ours and it is up to all of us to work to ensure that the culture is the right one. If someone does speak up because something is wrong, they are not being disloyal or a snitch, they are helping to make the community better for all of us.
I hope all of us will be remembered for doing or saying the right thing, at the right time in the right way – as a friend who speaks up, not one who keeps silent – so that the tone across our community is one in which everyone feels included and treated equally, not singled out. Ultimately treated by others as we would like to be treated.
Some disruption lies ahead with Bank Holidays and the Coronation, so it will be even more important to organize ourselves carefully to make the best of our time in school, particularly when preparing for examinations. We will also need to show sensitivity and understanding towards one another, particularly as challenges approach. E M Forster, spoke of the “aristocracy of the sensitive” and I believe most fervently that there are few more valuable attributes to have than sensitivity towards one another and the emotional intelligence to be understanding and supportive as well as doing the right thing.
Stay safe and well.
Be kind to yourself and others.
Best wishes,
Dr Bird
Model United Nations
Geneva, New York, Birmingham…
For one weekend only in late March, the United Nations opened a new headquarters in the heart of the UK’s second city. HGS were lucky enough to send three delegations who gamely represented the interests of France, Kenya, and the United States of America.
Students from 11 schools across the foundation and all areas of Birmingham made key opening speeches full of rousing dialogue and oratorical flourishes. Indeed, Arjun Lyall (10A) quoted Kennedy and embodied great statesmanship.
All the HGS delegates got stuck in to some good, old-fashioned negotiating. Sitting round the table and hammering out the issues of the day. It was great to see our students work with others to find equitable solutions to the world’s problems. HGS students held their own in the face of formidable opposition from the revanchist powers of KE Aston. Aston’s Russian and Iranian delegations worked tirelessly to thwart the progress of our delegations in the different committees, but our students were more than up to the challenge.
The final events of the conference were some amazing and thought-provoking lectures from Professors Mark Webber on the history of the UN and NATO and David Dunn on the precarious re-emergence of nuclear weapons in our international affairs. The 1st KES MUN conference was a great experience for our students, and I am confident it will not be our last.
What the students said?
“The experience was incredible. The event itself was well-planned, interactive and thought provoking. Everyone there was friendly and professional, so there were some very interesting conversations.” Sami Zahid 12DGR
“A wonderful experience overall. It was an amazing opportunity to learn new things, meet new people and most importantly reach a solution to make the world a better place for all. The staff, student and delegates were extremely helpful and friendly – there were no flaws. I am so grateful for this experience and have taken a lot from the past few days. I would love to do it again next year.” Arjun Lyall 10A
Instrumental Progress Evening 2023
Forty students performed to a near full Big School at our annual ‘Instrumental Progress Evening’. The concert is aimed at our students who are in their early years of studying an instrument. The vast majority of the boys were in years 7 and 8 with a couple from years 9 and 10. Our beautiful new Bechstein piano was heard for the first time in a school concert and was beautifully played by Ayaan Pirani, Darren Lounguedy, Matthew Fenwick, Enzo Lee, Stanley Todd, Adam Cunningham and Jerren Okyere-Darko. It was also the first opportunity for parents to see the new stained glass window and the newly cleaned stained glass window, from 1922, in Big School.
We enjoyed solo performances from Rajan Dhupar and Raman Hayr (dhol), Ziona Paulson (flute), Hritik Bansal, Nicholas Bob, Abel Shane and Hardev Manku (violin), Arjun Sond and Kieran Hay (classical guitar), and Tiziano Pasqualini (saxophone). Our year 7 guitar ensemble, junior guitar ensemble, string ensemble and woodwind ensemble delivered a number of items in a range of different styles, including eastern European folk tunes and music by the film composer John Williams. ‘Well done’ to the boys who performed that night and a big thank you to the teachers who work so hard with them. Our next concert will be the Summer Concert in Big School.
