#putneyhighschool

It’s an old adage and one that is so often mindlessly trotted out when discussing the teaching profession: “Those who can do, those who can’t teach”.  We have George Bernard Shaw to thank for this beguiling piece of nonsense, first voiced in his play Man and Superman, 1903 - but quite why it has become such a fixture in commonly used rhetoric is a mystery to us.

At Putney High School  those who can, do in fact TEACH. You only have to look at the extra-curricular achievements of just a few members of our talented teaching staff...

Novel Inspiration

When she is not teaching creative writing at Putney, English teacher and Extended Project Qualification Coordinator, Rebecca Wait is an accomplished novelist. Author of The View on the Way Down (Picador, 2013) and The Followers (Picador, May 2015) Miss Wait is currently working on a hotly anticipated, third novel.

Here are just a few of the comments made about her recent work: ‘Wonderfully written… highly sensitive… thought-provoking… ultimately uplifting.’ ~ The Bookseller and ‘…a great surging shout of a novel.’ ~ Guardian

Olympic Role Models

Not only is our Headmistress Suzie Longstaff an ex-Olympic Cox but did you know that our part--time rowing performance coach, Jessica Eddie is herself an Olympic silver medallist?

She was part of the first-ever GB women's eight to win both an Olympic medal and European title in 2016.

Triathlon Triumphs

This summer, Lori Westcott from our PE Department competed in the Lanzarote 70.3, widely known as the toughest on the ironman circuit (Half Ironman distance Triathlon - 1900m swim, 91k bike and 21k run). She qualified for the World 70.3 Championships in South Africa next summer , not only winning her age group but beating the professionals to come 15th overall.

“Lanzarote was by far the toughest race I have done to date, purely because of the 30 degree heat, 1800m elevation on the bike course and 30mph winds. However, the toughest races make you stronger and challenge you the most.,”she says

Getting Creative

Putney Art Teacher, and practising artist, Nigel Murray studied illustration at Harrow School of Art and Art History at Camberwell. He has exhibited his work in solo exhibitions and will be showing recent paintings as part of the Wandsworth Artists' Open House event on the weekend of the 7 - 8 October at Putney Methodist Church, SW15 6SN. Open 11am - 6pm.     

Award-winning Learning and Research

Putney High School considers itself to be more than just a teaching establishment; it is a centre for learning and research, with teachers who are constantly engaged in their own learning. We have just been celebrating Putney’s success in the Inaugural GDST Impact Awards where Pippa Wadey (Head of Learning and Research at Putney High School) won firstplace in the Senior schools section for a project to encourage collaboration and debate within the classroom. Highly commended entries were also made by Putney’s Justyna Sokolowska (Head of Learning Enrichment and PHSE) for her work on Peer Mediation, Antony Barton (Acting Head of English) on the relevance and impact of the Key Stage 3 grading system, and Jo Jones (Key Stage 1 coordinator) for her project entitled Curiosity, Collaboration and Empathy.

Conservation campaigns often try to spread awareness using horrifying images. Whilst these are most certainly memorable and often effective, how many more birds with plastic filled stomachs will it take for us to become disengaged and numb? Environmental issues can be tackled in a positive engaging way, says Vivienne, Putney High School Alumna (Class of 2009).

She is currently reading her master’s degree in Marine Environmental Management at the University of York (MSc) and is on course to receive a distinction. This year, she developed the #ditchthosebeads campaign to raise public awareness about plastic pollution. She has also been offered the chance to work for the Blue Marine Foundation in the Maldives.

Vivienne describes how she got into marine conservation and discuss the innovative campaign she developed:

“After my A levels, I took three successive gap years, travelling and working in Australia and Tanzania. Working on a conservation project in Tanzania reminded me of my absolute adoration for wildlife and nature which was instilled in me from a young age, spending many years in South Africa with my family. I decided that I wanted to ensure that wildlife is conserved for generations to come and applied to study zoology (Bsc) at Royal University of London.

 In my final year of my undergraduate degree, I carried out a research project in Indonesia, where I spent eight weeks diving and studying nudibranchs on coral reefs. After this experience, I decided to specialise in marine conservation and began my masters at the University of York, where I am based now.

 Since December 2015, I have been developing the #ditchthosebeads campaign to raise public awareness about plastic pollution and the environmental issues around microbeads. Microbeads are small plastic beads which are added to cosmetic products such as scrubs and toothpastes and marketed for their exfoliating properties. Due to their small size they are not filtered out by water treatment and end up in our oceans. As foreign materials in this environment, animals are unable to recognise them and avoid them and so unintentionally consume these beads. They are not digested properly and build up in digestive systems resulting in fatal consequences for not only for the animals but also for those who prey on them. Considering we eat seafood, microbeads also pose threat to us. Microbeads are totally unnecessary additives and there are many natural alternatives available.

As a young conservationist I am always so surprised at how little the general public often knows about marine environmental issues and equally how difficult it is to get people to become engaged in marine conservation. I’ve also noticed that many conservationists or activists often publish disturbing images to shock the public into caring about various issues, however I believe these will not forever be effective as media develops and we continually become increasingly exposed and accustomed to such images. I believe it is therefore crucial that we experiment and explore new ways of trying to engage the public in important issues.

I am interested in the potential public response if we integrate a marine conservation issue like microbeads with something with a more positive tone which will make people smile and laugh. I have produced a parody video of Uptown Funk by Bruno Mars as a mean of engaging people with the issue of microbeads in a light-hearted manner. The aim of the video is to simply spread public awareness and get people to sign the petition to get these beads banned from products in the UK. 

Working in conservation is a challenging field for economic, political, environmental and social reasons. Conservation efforts are incredibly limited by funding and may encounter governmental resistance, as it is the case for microbeads. It can also be very challenging to work with people on improving environmental practices, however travelling and working for such a vital cause are the perks of the job – not many people get to say that they dive on coral reef for a living! “

Year 7 pupil Nadia Charawala has won a Radio Times Competition to celebrate the Queen’s birthday. She designed a cover for the Queen’s 90th birthday edition of the magazine and was one of two runners up out of 11,000 entrants!

Her entry, in the 9 – 12 years’ age category, has been published in the Radio Times June issue.  “I was so pleasantly surprised when my parents told me the amazing news that it took me a few days to realise. Then excitement took over!” says Nadia.

She entered the competition through the school.  “I was really enthusiastic about it, I put a lot of thoughts in my work. I wanted my design to be simple, creative and unique. I wanted it to represent Britain” she says.

The result was a flowery cup of tea with a pink lipstick mark and white smoke shaping the number 90, drawn with pen and pencils. Author and illustrator Judith Kerr, BBC arts editor Will Gompertz, Blue Peter presenter Lindsey Russell, Radio Times Editor Ben Preston and Radio Times Art Director Shem Law were on the judging panel. Blue Peter’s Lindsey Russell declared: “I love the details, particularly the lipstick mark. It’s so elegant and well-drawn!

“I pictured the Queen drinking her cup of tea at the end of the day, looking back at all the things she has accomplished in 90 years. Therefore, I wanted something simple and refreshing,” Nadia says.  

“Although I would like to be a doctor later on, I would like to keep art as a hobby. It is a way to express my creativity.”

Year 9 composer Rosie Thorogood has won the Royal Opera House Fanfare competition 2016.

Rosie, who plays no less than five instruments, started composing ‘The Final Flourish’ a few months ago. “I write a lot of music and I am part of the composition club but it was the first time I have entered a competition. It was thrilling to win,” she declares.

The competition invited young people aged 11–18 from across the UK to compose their own fanfare, drawing on musical motifs from the Royal Opera House’s ballet and opera repertoire.

The winning fanfares were chosen from 129 entries, and selected by a panel of musicians and staff members from a range of departments across the Royal Opera House, including Music Director of The Royal Opera House,  Antonio Pappano.

Winning entrants were then invited to perfect their fanfares at a workshop and hear them played and recorded by the Orchestra of the Royal Opera House. They had the opportunity to work with composer Duncan Chapman and members of the Orchestra to arrange and perfect their fanfares. 

The fanfares will be recorded by Antonio Pappano and the Orchestra of the Royal Opera House in June and will be used to call the Royal Opera House audiences into performances throughout the 2016/17 season. Audiences in Covent Garden will hear the first fanfare before the Season opening performance of Norma on 12 September 2016.

For the full list of winners, and to hear Rosie’s fanfare as well as the other original entries, please visit http://bit.ly/1T7Ap6G

Debate has always been inextricably intertwined with democracy; from the Greek agora in Ancient Athens to the current state of the British parliament, it has become the vehicle of freedom of speech and confrontation of opinions.

As open democratic places, schools allow students to experience, both inside and outside the classroom, public and responsible speaking. Debating is a key skill in education; it does not only teach pupils how to win an argument, but also develops a crucial academic, social and professional skill set.

It requires students to engage with new concepts and unfamiliar language, to recognise and acknowledge how others think, to research and critically analyse current pressing issues. They become comfortable and good communicators, learning how to express their thoughts clearly and fluently. Debate also improves creative thinking, problem solving and active listening and ultimately, it increases students’ self-confidence, resilience and empathy.

Universities like Oxbridge and the Ivy League colleges, as well as world leading companies, are looking for applicants with a debating background; many lawyers, teachers, public relations officers, radio and television personalities, and prominent public figures can testify to the benefits of debating.

In Putney High School, we aim to provide an environment which stimulates intellectual agility and independence of mind, offering all Senior School girls the chance to join our debating society. It meets every Wednesday at lunchtime.

The aims of the society are to develop the skills and confidence required for engaging in public debate and speaking in front of large audiences as well as helping pupils to engage positively with moral, ethical and political issues which affect all of our lives. We enter a range of debating competitions such as the London Junior Debating League, the ESU Churchill Public Speaking Competition, The London Middle School Debating Competition, The Chrystall Prize and the ESU-MACE debating competition.

This year, year 11 Imaan Ahmad won the Chrystall Prize, speaking on ‘The best possible time to be alive – reasons to be cheerful in 2015.’ “Taking part in this competition involved four months of research, planning and writing about complex topics,” says Imaan. She adds: “The hardest aspect of writing was thinking of thought-provoking ways to present my viewpoint. I am so proud of the speech I created and my interests in speech-writing and politics have been encouraged by my success.”

Year 10’s Lara Brown, who won the prize for best speaker at the ESU Churchill Public Speaking Competition, has debated since Year 7 and “can’t imagine [her] life without debating”. It is an “intellectually inspiring and exciting activity. I love it, it makes me feel alive. It has given me confidence in expressing my opinions,” she says. 

Reception pupil Maggie Pardo de Santayana had very long brown locks until last week, when she had it chopped off for a very good cause.

She donated her hair to help children with cancer, and has so far raised £596 for the Little Princess Trust, a charity that helps to make wigs for children undergoing cancer treatment.

Maggie, who had never had more than a trim, decided a year ago that she would grow her hair until her fifth birthday and give it to little girls who have lost theirs because they are sick.

Her birthday is on 31st May and although she has already had her hair cut, you can still donate by following this link: https://www.givey.com/maggiegivesawayherhair

Tailor and Old Girl Rachel Singer, whose ambition is to open her own house on London’s prestigious Savile Row, has won the GDST Emerging Talent Award 2016.

Rachel (class of 2009) wants to create a fashion house offering bespoke tailoring to women.

She will use the £3,000 prize to purchase essential tailoring equipment which will enable her to build a home studio and take on private commissions, helping build her skills and profile.

Rachel graduated in Graphic Design from Kingston University and is currently training at the Savile Row Academy, where she focuses on traditional tailoring methods, creating pieces by hand, cutting bespoke patterns and fitting in harmony with body shape for style, elegance and comfort.

She said, “I am so grateful to the GDST for helping me buy the equipment I need to grow my bespoke tailoring business. My eventual goal is to open a bespoke women’s tailors on Savile Row and it feels really special for the GDST, where my ambitions started, to kindly support my future.”

The Emerging Talent Award was launched in 2015 to provide financial support to a GDST alumna with a burgeoning talent in a specific field. Each year the competition has an area of focus: in 2016, it was the creative arts.

More than 20 girls from schools across the GDST network were invited to attend the prestigious Annual Reception of the Women of the Future Ambassadors Programme at the Foreign & Commonwealth Office this April.

The programme, led by Pinky Lilani CBE DL, connects its community of influential women with sixth-formers to provide students with mentors and role models, aiming to inspire and engage the next generation of female talent.

The speakers included Dr Jena Meinecke, an astrophysicist from the University of Oxford; Annie Zadie, a professional football coach and Karen Pierce, Chief Operating Office at the Foreign & Commonwealth Office.  All of the speakers, and indeed ambassadors who attended the networking event later in the evening were inspiring and funny, and gave students the confidence they can do anything they put their mind to – if they are prepared to work hard. It was a great evening celebrating the success of women and motivated the girls to learn more about career opportunities. All the girls who came along were buzzing with inspiration and have expressed how much they enjoyed the event with the intention to make the most of the contacts they made. One sixth-former commented she is now considering a sector she had never even thought of and another noted that this was the kind of advice they couldn't get on any website.

Year 13 Georgina Boardman, shares her experience of the event:

I found the Women of the Future event really inspiring and stimulating as it opened my mind to the multitude of jobs available in so many different areas. It really motivated me in showing what the end result of exams and university degrees could be. The women who spoke were all completely loving what they do each day as well as continuously being challenged, which is exactly where I want to be in my career. They emphasised the necessity of hard-work and hustle, particularly as a woman in what is still a very male dominated world. That a passion and desire to work hard for what you believe in as well as maintaining kindness along the way, are the most important keys to success. They filled me not with doom about the minority position of women in so many workplaces, but with a sense that this is so possible to change if we, as women, have the right attitude and spirit to want to change this.