MESSAGE FROM THE HEAD MASTER
I have had a most interesting week as the school has settled into its normal routines. I have been to House lunches, to Assemblies, met the Friends of Harrow, been interviewed by Year 5 and started to observe lessons. There is so much to be proud of in this school.
It was excellent to be able to hand out so many Head Master’s commendations at the Secondary Assembly on Monday to students who had achieved outstanding results at IGCSE and A-level. Academic performance is the bedrock on which we build everything else so it is good to see such high levels of achievement. Teaching is clearly key to this but so is the motivation of the students; I am impressed with the enthusiasm I have witnessed from students in the classroom and around the school generally. It is of course all the elements that we do in school which come together when students sit their public examinations-the creation of well rounded individuals who can perform to their best under pressure. The discipline of a musical or dramatic performance or the calmness needed at a key sporting moment are easily transferable into the exam hall.
I enjoyed meeting with parents this week at the Friends of Harrow meeting and answering questions about a wide variety of topics. One issue was whether A-Levels will enable students to gain entry into universities other than in the UK: the answer is emphatically yes. All the Harrow Foundation Schools take A-levels and students from all the schools go to Universities in America, Canada and Australia. Last year Hyung Mee Lim won a scholarship to Yale, an outstanding achievement.
Those of you with children in Year 5 will know my entire life history following my grilling by them as part of their topic on
‘’Life in the UK’’! They asked some very interesting questions and I was very impressed with their English and the knowledge they already had at their fingertips. My rather rusty knowledge of Latin came in useful when Year 4 appeared as Romans on Tuesday although my efforts were as nothing compared with the dressing up skills of their teachers!
It has been delightful to go into lessons in all parts of the school this week and see my colleagues in action with the students in the classroom, the sports hall and on the fields; this is where the most work is accomplished on a daily basis. I have seen some outstanding teaching and learning taking place.
My memorable moment of the week was the look on Mrs Alexander’s face when I arrived for K2 Assembly; the children were completely unfazed of course and I enjoyed every moment.
I look forward to meeting many of you during the term.
Kevin Riley
Head Master
