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6 JulyThoughts: The day after the end of term always feels slightly eerie. The buzz of the final few days of term included the buffet supper in the marquee for Chalmers and Rogerson parents and pupils, allowing them to mingle in a very relaxed atmosphere – Mrs Hunter and I were particularly pleased to have the opportunity to speak to many parents. We also enjoyed watching the Pringle Celebration of the Year, the presentations by each of the year groups, as well as listening to music and seeing many boys receiving their prizes. Our Third Formers graduated into the Middle School as each one received his Middle Over the holiday, there will be a number of trips and activities: our tennis players will be playing in the Public Schools Tennis Championships (the Youll Cup) at Eton and will then be going on to the National Finals of the Glanvill Cup (for the second consecutive year). The CCF Summer Camp has departed and the 1st XI Development Tour is in Gloucestershire. Our marksman will shortly leave for the busy Rifle Meeting at Bisley; Pringle boys will be going to Ru’a Fiola; and later in the holiday our Rugby Development Squad will be playing in Caen, France. We are also hosting our own residential sports camps at Merchiston. 2 JulyThoughts: This week’s Headmaster’s Assembly moved to Thursday to take account of the fact that many of the boys were out of School earlier this week enjoying a variety of trips and activities. First, we practised the hymns for the Leavers’ Service this evening and yet again we practised Ready Ay Ready. Our School Song certainly travels beyond “our Castle walls” for I have heard it sung all over the world as Merchistonians go out from Merchiston, Edinburgh, Scotland to far flung parts of the world. Earlier this week, the Upper Sixth played their end of term prank! Often in schools, the staff are extremely tired by the end of term and can suffer from sense of humour failure – headmasters are no exception! However, their prank involved a reasonable attempt at a play on words displayed on a massive banner, proclaiming Ready Ay Rowdy, hanging across the front of School. The following charming note was left in my study: “Dear Headmaster, This is not meant to be damaging or insulting. This is a thank you to all the teachers and yourself for all the hard work you put in over our Merchiston careers. Thank you. Yours sincerely. The Upper Sixth. PS Difficult is worth doing!” Well, I am gratified that the Upper Sixth can remember one of my Thoughts for the Year! (Actually, I need to give the boys credit as we are always talking to them about how the modern, young gentle man is never rowdy!) I reminded the School that nobody ever forgets the stamp of style but nobody respects or appreciates a joke that is misguided and damages School property, or indeed the morale of hardworking staff. I spoke to the boys about the Football World Cup in South Africa. Personally, I have found it difficult to get excited about this World Cup mainly because I feel that too many footballers (and managers) appear to be highly overpaid for this activity. At the same time, the World
We must be realistic about Merchiston just like any other school. Whilst we are in a celebratory mood, we are always looking at our performance and the behaviour of pupils, and trying to evaluate whether or not and how we can improve.
 week: Third Form Careers Day; Second Form trip to Bamburgh; Chalmers East trip to Alton Towers; Lower Sixth Duke of Edinburgh Gold Award expedition; Fifth Form Duke of Edinburgh Silver Award expedition; Third Form trip to the Glasgow Science Museum; First Form trip to the Dinosaur Workshop and Jimmy Cheungs; the U15 cricket tour to Nottingham High School; the J4/J5 trip to North Berwick and the Bass Rock; the U14A cricket tour to the North of England; the Lower Sixth Business Dynamics Course; the Lower Sixth Conservation Day; the 1st XI cricket match against the MCC etc. I reminded the boys that they are so fortunate to have these opportunities and must never take them for granted. I likened them to buses which come along and the boys have the choice of whether or not they are going to jump on the bus and seize the opportunity. Finally, as regular readers of Headmaster’s Headlines will know, I often like to end Assembly by listening to live music and yesterday morning Fingal played Sacro-Monte by Turina for us. It is a fast and vibrant piece, and some would say it sums up Merchiston! We now look forward to the end of term celebrations this evening and tomorrow, and I intend to write a final Headline for this academic year next week.
29 June
Congratulations: Friday’s Headmaster’s Assembly saw a huge raft of congratulations.
22 June
 Highlights: First, I am absolutely delighted that so many of the pupils enjoyed their outdoor education trips last week: the First Form were at Loch Insh; the J4 and J5 boys spent the weekend at Dalguise and a group of Pringle boys went to Blakerston Camp; and the Chalmers East Duke of Edinburgh Bronze Award assessment took place on Sunday in East Lothian. Outdoor Education should always be a part of the total curriculum, and it is so important in a young person’s growing up process. I am indebted to all the staff who help in this really important area. Secondly, I congratulate our U18 tennis side (John-Martin, Jasper, Patrick and Hamish) on winning the Scottish Schools Tennis Championship for the third consecutive year. I am so pleased for these boys. Moreover, at the weekend our team in the Glanvil Cup, the UK national tennis championships, won their play-off against the Royal Grammar School, Newcastle, and now proceeds to the national finals at Queenwood. This is a tremendous achievement by the team (Jasper, John-Martin, Patrick, Hamish, Robbie, Rob and David), and it is the second time in three years that Merchiston has qualified for the finals. The team will also be playing in the  Public Schools Tennis Championships to be held at Eton College at the beginning of the holiday. My third highlight was the 1st XI cricket match against Strathallan. Too often, especially in schoolboy sport, winning is seen as all-important – none of us like coming second. At the weekend, there was a tremendous match between the two 1st XIs. Ultimately, Strathallan won by three runs! Freddie, a full Men’s Scottish International, scored 83 for Strathallan and I watched him taking one of his two incredible catches. This was a wonderful day of sport and we congratulate Strathallan heartily on their victory. A final highlight is the beauty of the campus, which has been enhanced by this week’s beautiful weather. It has been wonderful hearing the voices of boys all over the campus, as they enjoy time off after examinations or prep before they go back to academic work – a real boys’ world! Week 10 is already underway, involving post-exam trips for some (and how lucky they are!); sporting fixtures; exams and lessons; the Pringle sponsored walk; the Sixth Form Business Competition; the Games; the Celebration of Sport Dinner; and much, much more.
15 JuneThoughts: This is another very busy week for many of the boys in the School. Our Fifth Formers will be happy to be finishing their GCSEs this week. The Lower and Upper Sixth Formers have begun their public examinations, but some members of the Lower Sixth are enjoying a Work Experience Week. The rest of the School is involved in important internal examinations. I always tell the boys that they should seize this opportunity to show the staff how good they are! This is reverse psychology and is intended to help relax the boys so that they can demonstrate how much they have learned! TV sporting coverage over the weekend was fascinating and to see a goalkeeping mistake translated into something close to a tragedy was a reminder to all of us how easy it is to get things out of proportion, that there are more important matters in life than sport and that balls do not necessarily make the world go round! However, it is wonderful (so far) to see the joy and delight on the faces of so many South Africans, who are revelling in hosting this festival of sport. Coincidentally, Scotland achieved a remarkable victory on the rugby field against Argentina away from home. This week’s Common Room meeting was held in the Pringle Centre. We were welcomed by two boys stationed at the doors and by the Pringle Centre staff, and we enjoyed being shown round this ‘diamond’ part of Merchiston by the boys who were clearly delighted to show us their work. On a serious note, I spoke to the School at Headmaster’s Assembly this morning about bullying and foul language. I construe bullying as making any one of us feel uncomfortable in their own ‘skin’. This is something that we must all continue to be aware of and do our bit to eradicate. Equally, foul language may be a ‘boy’ thing – although I am not totally convinced on that score – but it is unacceptable at Merchiston and runs contrary to our aim of developing gentle, sensitive, young men. We all make mistakes as we grow up but what is important is that we learn from them!
Highlights: I have four from last week. First, under the aegis of Mr Heathcote, I am delighted that the Student Sustainability Committee is gathering pace; the boys are looking at issues like waste management, energy management and transport. Secondly, I have already mentioned the McLeod Cup and Forbes Bowl; it is really important that music plays a prominent role in the Merchiston way of life, not only for our most talented musicians. Indeed, this morning we practised one of the hymns for the final Whole School Service of the term on the evening of Friday 2 July, Now thank we all our God with heart and hands and voices. Thirdly, the annual CCF Piping and Drumming Competition took place at George Heriot’s on Sunday; congratulations to Aaron on winning his Intermediate Drumming Section (out of 20 entries) and Angus on coming 3rd in his Intermediate Piping Section (out of 24). Well done! Finally, I wish to congratulate and thank the Housemasters and House staff for organising so many educational trips and activities for the boys; whether these take place during the week or at weekends, they are extremely important in the overall education of the boys. Turning to this week, I have already mentioned examinations. We also have fixtures in cricket and tennis; we have full bore shooting training; and our sub aqua enthusiasts will be training in the pool and taking part in an ocean dive at St Abbs. There is a staff cricket match, the second round of drama auditions for Grease and the Lower Sixth trip to see King Lear at Stratford. Equally, at the end of the week our Shell boys will be participating in the Duke of Edinburgh Bronze Award assessment – the Stratford trip and the Duke of Edinburgh assessment are two prime examples of trips/activities which are broadening the horizons of our young men. 10 June
Congratulations: Once again, there were many congratulations this week.
4 JuneThoughts: As I sit writing this entry over Half Term, reflecting on week 6, several thoughts come to mind. It is admirable that the Pringle World Issues Week is embedded in Pringle’s annual calendar – it is so important that we continue to look beyond our walls here on Colinton Road and remember those who are less fortunate than we are, by and large, in our relatively affluent society. Our Fifth and Lower Sixth Formers had a huge week in terms of public examinations. In addition, there was much sporting activity – sub aqua, cricket, tennis, shooting and golf – and the Second Form Enlightened Curriculum event, the visit to the Risk Factory, caught my eye! This interactive safety centre is located quite close to Merchiston and one gets to it by walking along the Water of Leith and the canal. My thanks to Mr Williams who oversees our Personal & Social Education programme.
27 MayThoughts: In this week’s Headmaster’s Assembly, I thanked the School for making one of our benefactors, Lord and Lady Laidlaw, feel so welcome, when they visited Merchiston last week. In particular, our musicians played some stunning music over the course of the day, namely the Pipe Band; Craig (Passepied by Debussy on the piano); Fraser (a medley of Scottish tunes on the accordion); the rock band Bwani Junction – Rory and Daniel performed Alison, Clear that Day; a string trio consisting of Ralph, Mars and Chloris performed the Concerto in A Minor by Vivaldi; and musicians also played at and after lunch.
 wisdom and understanding. Third, I would like to highlight the quiet work that goes on in the background by our Examinations Officer, Dr Tim Lawson. We have our three top year groups (and some Shell boys) sitting exams and it is absolutely critical that everything is administered in a calm and effective fashion. The administrative preparation for the summer examination session started many months ago. We all wish the boys (and Dr Lawson!) all the very best in the coming weeks. This week we have visitors from Murrayburn Primary School for a Science Day; the Primary Schools Music Evening, including the first public performance of the Merchiston Boys’ (Community) Choir; our Pipe Band has taken part in Beating Retreat at the Palace of Holyroodhouse and Edinburgh Castle; and on Saturday we have our Commemoration celebrations – a special Service, Art & Design and Design and Technology Exhibitions, a Music Concert in the Dining Hall and a light lunch before Half Term commences! I wish all boys, parents and guardians some refreshing and restorative family time together.
18 May
13 MayThoughts: The Summer Term is always extremely important academically for the Shell Form upwards, as everything we believe in with regard to teaching and learning, including the Enlightened Curriculum, is tested in public examinations. Clearly, this accreditation is vital to all of us, including, of course, the parents of the boys. Will the passion of our boys and staff shine through and be translated into excellent results – we hope so! Over the past week, we have had further sessions of ‘Reading Rocks’ to celebrate the Spawforth Library’s Tenth Anniversary and a highlight has been Director of Drama Stephanie Binnie’s revival of the old
Highlights: I have three from last week. First, under the aegis of our International Students Co-ordinator, Joanna Bisset, and our International Students Committee, the boys laid on for us our first “International Week” in recognition of the diversity of cultures and nationalities of the pupils at Merchiston. At present, we have boys from the following countries: Argentina, Australia, Austria, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, China (and Hong Kong), Estonia, Germany, Japan, Kazakhstan, Mexico, Russia, South Africa, South Korea, Taiwan, Tibet, Ukraine, USA and Uzbekistan. A group of pupils from the Second-Fourth Forms presented a display of national flags with interesting facts and cultural symbols, while we all had our palettes educated with an international menu comprising dishes from South Africa, Germany, Mexico, Russia and Japan. The week culminated in a well attended international film night in the Napier Schools, where films for all ages were shown (some with English subtitles) in French, Spanish, Russian, Japanese, German and South African! All in all, we were given the opportunity to lift our eyes above the horizon. Secondly, whatever we may feel about the challenges of an Iraq or an Afghanistan, and whether or not these wars are “just”, the 3 Rifles Welcome Home parade through Colinton was supported by the School and so many of the boys turned out to watch. This was an extremely moving and humbling experience. Thirdly, Mrs Hunter and I always enjoy watching the boys as they take part in their various activities and last week we were privileged to attend the annual 4 May
 We intend to take part in the Run on an annual basis, thereby raising funds for so many worthwhile charities. I am indebted to the boys, the staff, the parents and the supporters for running in this year’s event; a notable achievement was that of George who won his age group race – well done, George! Thirdly, I think that the ambitious, and mostly successful, attempt by the pupils and staff to achieve breadth and depth within and outwith the classroom is staggering. However, we always have to keep an eye on the balance between the boys’ activities and it is important to bear in mind that whilst revelling in the excellence of the co-curricular opportunities at Merchiston, we continue to emphasise the primacy of the classroom and that academic work is at the heart of the total curriculum. Fourthly, the boys are so lucky to have an active outdoor education programme, which I believe should play a prominent role in the education of young people, and the Chalmers West boys were all out last weekend, practising for their Duke of Edinburgh Bronze Awards. It would have been fascinating to have been a ‘fly on the wall’ as it  were! Finally, this week we have been extremely fortunate to welcome back to Merchiston Major Graeme Wearmouth, BA, MA, Merchistonian (86-90), one of the four sons of Mrs Pat Wearmouth, our outstanding Pringle Housemother. A graduate of Warwick University and King’s College, London, Major Wearmouth commands B Company, 1 Scots (The Royal Scots Borderers). He has just returned from Afghanistan where B Company was serving as part of the International Security Assistance Force, a NATO-led security mission in Afghanistan, established by the United Nations Security Council in 2001. Major Wearmouth gave us a fascinating talk on war in the modern world and how in Afghanistan the United Nations Security Council is trying to foster democracy and the setting up of infrastructure and education. Equally, he could not avoid saying that the Royal Scots Borderers had suffered casualties. These were wise and humble words which gave us all pause for thought. At the end of Headmaster’s Assembly, it was a great pleasure to present a bouquet of flowers to Mrs Pat Wearmouth on behalf of the Merchiston community, and two crystal goblets, engraved with the Merchiston crest, to Major Wearmouth. He was also presented with a bouquet of flowers for his wife, Ruth. We are delighted that Major Wearmouth will be spending more time at the School in the coming months. We hope that many boys will be lining Colinton Road on Friday for the “Return Home” parade by our close neighbours, the 3 Rifles, who have also just returned from Afghanistan. Occasionally, we like to end Assembly with a piece of live music as we reflect on the joys of challenges of daily life and Alan played Bourrée by Jacques Saint-Luc on the flute.
28 April
Sports colours were awarded to the following pupils: The Senior Prefects were congratulated on conducting the Whole School Chapel Service on the theme, “Are leaders born or are they made?” Turning back to sport, the following cricket teams were congratulated on their wins against Loretto: 1st XI, U15A, U14A and U14B. In tennis, the U10 and U18 teams were congratulated on winning their club matches.
We are incredibly busy this week with the Pringle and Chalmers Cecil Stagg Society meetings, House photographs, the first rehearsal of our new Merchiston Boys Community Choir, fixtures in cricket and tennis, the British Schools Clay Pigeon Shooting Championships, and I am absolutely delighted that so many members of the School community are participating in the Great Edinburgh Run to raise money for “Leukaemia Research” or “Get Kids Going”. 26 April
 Overseas parents and boys will be well aware from parentnet that we have tried extremely hard to help our Fifth, Lower and Upper Sixth Formers by sending out academic work and keeping parents and pupils fully informed while the backlog of flights to the UK is cleared and we will be teaching extra lessons to make up for lost time. On that note, lessons started after ‘handshaking’! We have already had a Spawforth Library 10th Anniversary event; the boys have attended functions with both St George’s and Kilgraston; and last weekend there were sporting fixtures in cricket, cross-country and tennis. There has been a Cecil Stagg Society meeting (part of our provision for able and talented pupils). House trips have happened to the British Rallycross Championships at Knockhill; Waterworld, Leith; and the cinema. How fortunate the boys are! Moreover, in our first of this term’s four Whole School Chapel Services, we were challenged by the Senior Prefects as they led us through our worship, taking as their theme “Are leaders born or are they made?” Having the Senior Prefects conduct a Whole School Chapel Service is a long-standing tradition at Merchiston. And turning to our links with the local community, the final Merchiston Reel Club Highland Ball of the academic year was held in School on Saturday evening. This is a community initiative which has been run by Ken and Jean Houston for many years (Ken is a former Deputy Head at Merchiston) and Scottish Country Dancing lessons take place on the first Monday of every month, leading up to two Highland Balls each year. On Saturday, funds were raised for the Alzheimer’s Trust. Week 2 is underway and the boys are extremely busy, both within and outwith the classroom
Archive: Autumn 06, Lent 07, Summer 07, Autumn 07, Lent 08, Summer 08, Autumn 08. Lent 09, Summer 09, Autumn 09, Lent 2010 |
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School tie from Mr Rossiter, and a Pringle ‘thank you’ mug. That evening saw the Whole School End of Term Service, including First Prizegiving. It was a pleasure to welcome so many parents and guests to the Service, some for the last time. The singing of Lord, for the years your love has kept and guided and Now thank we all our God, with heart and hand and voices was full and beautiful. The Leader of the Chaplaincy Team, Mr Blair, spoke so aptly on the theme, You can take it with you. The Service ended with the now traditional ‘handshaking’, whereby members of staff lined the stairs down from the Memorial Hall and shook hands with members of the Upper Sixth, their parents and guests. Thereafter followed one of the most stylish functions we have seen in a long time here, namely the Leavers’ Dinner Dance and entertainment. Our Lower Sixth 
Formers acted as butlers and we enjoyed some wonderful food provided by our caterers. The magician entranced us as he moved from table to table! The fireworks were a joy to behold (and good planning had ensured that our neighbours had been informed about it beforehand!). The Scottish Country Dancing allowed boys to dance with their mothers. The remarkably talented Bwani Junction, consisting of Rory, Daniel, Fergus and Jack, entertained us with some of their own new numbers as well as the mandatory reprise of the Edinburgh Song! The Upper Sixth slideshow provoked gales of laughter from the parents and boys; this was followed by a short disco and as the event drew to a close and the boys returned to their Houses, the sound of Ready Ay Ready could be heard all over the campus. The final event of the term and the academic year was Prizegiving and the Upper Sixth Graduation 
Ceremony on Saturday morning. 
Mrs Hunter and I wish all members of the Merchiston community some relaxing family time over the holiday: the pupils, parents, and last, but not least, the staff. Thank you all for your contribution to what is so central at Merchiston: the relationships between the boys and the staff, both within and outwith the classroom, and that between Merchiston and the home of every pupil. 
Cup is also generating so much happiness and joy, and I am delighted that so many smaller nations are faring well. It is also interesting that many of the teams which have done well are pursuing their own programme of outreach in South Africa and coaching football in townships in between their matches. Maybe this is the best way to keep football in perspective! As I often say to the boys, balls do not make the world go round! I mentioned to the School that Frank Hadden, our esteemed former Master i/c Rugby, who subsequently became the Edinburgh coach and then the Scotland national coach, spends four months of his year coaching rugby in the developing world. He is, as it were, an evangelist for the sport and he is still pursuing his passion. I am sure we will see more developing nations participating in Rugby World Cups in the future. It is gratifying for Merchiston to be connected to a man who ‘lives’ his mission. I informed the School that Mr du Coudray, our Tennis Academy lead coach, was given leave from the Academy to spend 2-3 weeks 
helping Nikolay Davydenko, the present world no 5, in his preparations for Wimbledon. It must be very rare for a member of staff to be working so closely with such a highly ranked sportsman. Mr Davydenko has kindly donated to the School a book entitled Wimbledon 2009, which is the official account of last year’s Championships. He has dedicated it to me on the flyleaf and I will be passing it on with great pleasure to the Spawforth Library. The book contains some extraordinary photos alongside some extremely well written text. Picture On a different note, I went on to speak to the School about how we all face challenges as we grow up. I have often given the boys my simple aide-memoire for such situations; indeed I have been doing this for years over the course of my housemastering in two different schools. The aide-memoire is as follows:
Congratulations: We congratulated Jamie on gaining a Distinction Grade 1 and Tom on his Merit Grade 1 Rockschool Music Certificates. Secondly, Fingal was congratulated on gaining his Maths Gold Award. Hamish was congratulated on being a member of the Tennis Scottish Schools Cup winning side. The U11A and U15 cricket XIs were congratulated on being unbeaten this season. At Merchiston, it is traditional for members of such teams to receive Undefeated Ties and this will be happening for next term. 
Thoughts: This week is so busy with boys out of School on trips that we held an extra Headmaster’s Assembly last week. In this Assembly, we heard from Graham about his first published novel, 
leavers can spend a year at Waseda. Takuma was inspiring and he expressed his gratitude for the opportunity he had been afforded to come to Merchiston. I am immensely pleased that Struan, a member of the Upper Sixth, will be going to Waseda after the end of term. Jamie spoke to us about the Edwards Reading Prize. This Assembly also saw the handing over of student leadership from this year’s triumvirate of Callum (Captain of School), Marinus (Vice Captain of School and Head of Chalmers West) and Myles (Captain of Pringle) to next year’s team of Patrick (Captain of School), Peter (Vice Captain of School and Head of Pringle) and Alex (Vice Captain of School and Head of Chalmers West). Callum spoke on behalf of all the Senior Prefects, particularly Marinus and Myles, about how they had enjoyed leading the student body this year. The new triumvirate was welcomed onto the stage. The applause was extremely warm as they walked back into the body of the kirk – it spoke volumes for them and how they are respected in the School. 
Athletics – Jay, Will, Myles and Raleigh (Full); Lachlan and Cameron (Half)
Highlights: I have five for last week. First, our Pipe Band was invited by a set of former parents to play at the Royal Highland Show Dinner – it was a wonderful opportunity for our pipers and drummers. Secondly, we are always mindful of the important role our alumni play in the Merchiston community, and I am delighted that, on the behalf of the School, Mrs Carolyn Thornton hosted a drinks party for Merchistonians at the Running Horse, Mayfair, London. Third, The Games, which took place on Friday for age levels U13, U14, U15, U17 and O17, were a tremendous occasion. There were some extremely accomplished performances by outstanding athletes but, equally, other boys achieved their personal bests. It was a pleasure to see so many parents at the Arena. Fourth, at the Celebration of Sport at Merchiston evening on Friday, the guest speaker was Ms Jeanette Kwakye, a Beijing Olympics UK 100m finalist; she spoke about her legacy and asked the sportsmen what legacy each of them would like to leave behind them. Eighteen sports were represented at this function; 14 Sports Cups were on display; three sports have achieved Scottish Schools Honours (tennis, curling and clay pigeon shooting); 13 boys were identified as internationalists in six sports (athletics, cricket, cross-country, rugby, shooting and skiing). Ms Kwakye presented the three most prestigious Merchiston sports awards: The Mann Shield for Team of the Year to the tennis and curling teams; The Duncan Watson Memorial Vase for Sportsman of the Year to Patrick; and the Stewart Crerar Quaich for International Sporting Achievement to Oliver. Fifth, the whole of our Lower Sixth took part in a Leadership Development course at Hawkshead. This will have seen next year’s 93 Upper Sixth Formers working out each other’s strengths and areas of development, and considering how to get the best out of one another. And so, we are now in the final week of term. There are many boys out of School, taking part in a variety of activities, and I have indicated to them that it is extremely important that they thank the staff and the bus drivers at the end of the trip. The co-curricular life of Merchiston is important for whilst we focus on the primacy of academic work within the total curriculum, these experiences outwith the classroom allow the boys to become rounded young men. On a different note, a Headmaster occasionally receives news from parents who are finding life difficult, sometimes for health or financial reasons. We always endeavour to look after our parents and we are particularly aware of doing our best to look after their sons discreetly and sensitively. We concluded Headmaster’s Assembly by listening to Johnny sing Trade Winds by F Keel, for which he won the McLeod Cup earlier this term.
Thoughts: The Summer Term in any school sees the wonderful juxtaposition of academic work and co-curricular activities. Our Fifth Formers have nearly finished their GCSE papers; the Lower Sixth are back in School, starting new classes for their A2s next year; and the Upper Sixth are in the midst of their incredibly important few weeks. Equally, members of staff are enjoying marking the internal examination papers sat by the rest of the School and we are preparing our end of term reports. It is giving me much pleasure to read the reports of our Upper Sixth leavers, of whom there are 70, and looking at each report reminds me of how much Merchiston owes them. At this morning’s Headmaster’s Assembly, Iain performed the saxophone piece, Aria by E Bozza, which won him the Forbes Bowl recently.
Congratulations: In Design & Technology, the following were congratulated on being selected as Students of the Term: Callum (Senior); Lewis (GCSE) and Jamie (Junior). Mathematics: this year we had an excellent 30 certificates awarded in the Junior Mathematics Challenge. Andrew gained a Gold Award and won the Best in School accolade; Gold Awards were also achieved by Tom, Alan, Kirill, Matthew, Guy, Mars, Drummond, Jamie, Benjamin, Fingal, Victor and Harry.
Congratulations: Myles spoke at Headmaster’s Assembly this morning about 
Cricket: the 1st XI defeated the Borders U17 XI. Kyle scored a century and was awarded a bat – this was his third century for the 1st XI in three years. In Pringle, the U10As won against Cargifield; the 1st XI recorded wins against Riley House (Strathallan) and Loretto; the 2nd XI and U11As too won against Riley House.
At the same time, I thanked the School for their efforts with regard to what appears to have been a very successful inspection visit by the Care Commission last week and I also thanked the pupils who looked after Dr Paul Silverwood, the Headmaster of Queen Margaret’s School, York, when he visited us last week.
Thoughts: The second half of this short term is well underway – I very much hope that parents, guardians and boys enjoyed some ‘family’ time together. This week’s Headmaster’s Assembly was moved to Thursday to allow as many of our public examination candidates as possible to attend. This is a major week for them, particularly for the Fifth Formers, and the papers will shortly begin for our Upper Sixth Formers. This week, it was a pleasure to welcome to the School Paul Silverwood (left), the Headmaster of Queen Margaret’s School, York, one of our sister schools. In this morning’s Assembly, we thought we would start with a little bit of fun as we remembered that the pop singer, Tom Jones, turned 70 this week! Unfortunately, the special rendition of “Delilah”, organised for his 70th birthday, involving many artists, and indeed schoolchildren, was postponed due to the passing away of the drummer in the band Stereophonics. However, we enjoyed watching a YouTube video featuring “Delilah” and singing along! 
Young Engineer for Britain Competition: in the U16 age category, Duncan won a prize for "Best Design, Innovation and Presentation" for his 
Senior Games Ties - Cricket: : Angus, Chris and Josh 
Cricket: The 1st XI won against the Merchistonians and Gordonstoun. Bats were presented to Patrick (century against Merchistonians) and Oliver (century against Gordonstoun. Oliver is not playing cricket for the School this year but is representing The Grange in the Scottish Premier League, in which he has already scored a century this season; his century in the School match against a very strong Gordonstoun side was also acknowledged.
Squash: The team was congratulated on winning the Lothian Schools U16 Cup: Teddy (capt, photo right), Adrian, Andrew, Chris and Fraser
Tennis: Rob reached the final of the Road to Wimbledon County finals. (As runner-up, he might be given the chance to play at Wimbledon in August.)
Highlights: I have many from last week! First, Murrayburn Primary School, one of our local schools, held a Science Day at Merchiston. It was a self-run programme and they arrived with clip boards and questionnaires. They walked through the grounds, identifying plants, and they stopped off at the Biology Department to see its new chickens! The youngsters were shown round our laboratories and they were delighted, perhaps inadvertently letting out a snake or two! Secondly, Barbara and I were so pleased to be able to attend two Beating Retreats by the Massed Bands of the Scottish Schools’ Combined Cadet Forces – at the Palace of Holyroodhouse and on the Esplanade of Edinburgh Castle. At Holyroodhouse, we were so fortunate that a Merchiston parent who works at the Palace gave us permission to take some of our young pipers and drummers along to watch this spectacular event and be inspired. At Edinburgh Castle, the bands were from Dollar, Edinburgh Academy, Erskine Stewart’s Melville, Fettes, George Heriot’s, Glasgow Academy, Glenalmond, Loretto, Morrison’s, Queen Victoria School, and of course Merchiston. Taking part in 
Beating Retreat must be so special for the musicians. My third highlight was the annual 
events. And finally, we held our Commemoration Day on Saturday. Our Commemoration Service speaker was Mr John Broadfoot, the retired Rector of Kelvinside Academy, a Merchistonian (1962-7) and Merchiston Governor. He spoke movingly about the school in the largest slum in Africa – in Nairobi – with which Kelvinside Academy has formed links, in association with the Balcraig Foundation, which helps to fund education for children in Nairobi; Mr Broadfoot illustrated his talk with some interesting and engaging photographs. I particularly enjoyed listening to the Chapel Choir singing two anthems, Ave Verum Corpus by Fauré, and Let all the World in Every Corner Sing by Vaughan Williams. Some of the excellent work of our Art & Design and Design & Technology pupils of all ages was on display, and our musicians did well to perform a wonderfully varied concert against the background hubbub of voices in the Dining Hall at the buffet lunch! I congratulate all the pupils and staff who contributed to these five highlights. I have been very fortunate in the past week to have had many days when I have listened to music. A day with live music is always a better day! We are slightly unconventional as a boarding school in not having a full week’s Half Term in the Summer Term but I very much hope that all boys, parents and guardians have enjoyed some time out over recent days. We like to settle the boys down again over the Friday, Saturday and Sunday of week 7 before the busyness of week 8 takes over!
Secondly, we were delighted to welcome to Assembly Mr and Mrs du Coudray, Mr du Coudray’s mother (who is over from South Africa) and, most important of all, baby Alex, who was born earlier this month. Alex received a blessing from Nick Blair (Leader of the Chaplaincy Team). Marcel du Coudray was appointed Head Coach of the Tennis Academy in September 2007. I outlined to the School some of the questions I ask when I interview potential new staff for Merchiston. First, does this person have the capacity to inspire boys of different academic abilities? Secondly, does he/she understand the importance of the total curriculum at Merchiston? Thirdly, does this person appreciate the importance of pastoral care to Merchiston? And finally, does this candidate push the boat, just for the sake of it, for his/her pupils and his/her colleagues? Mr du Coudray is an outstanding tennis coach and it is a joy watching him inspiring the pupils. I reminded the School that, in my view, they are incredibly fortunate in the way in which the staff at Merchiston endeavour to inspire each and every boy on his educational journey.
Congratulations: Bobak, Sam, Alasdair and Chips were congratulated on undertaking a six-month engineering project in partnership with a local engineering company. They had to research and develop a ‘real world’ project, build a working prototype, attend several residential workshops and seminars in local university faculties and finally present their project to a panel of professional working engineers. Along the way, they had to develop new skills, learn about teamwork and time management and understand what it means to be an engineer in our modern technological world. The boys were very highly commended on all aspects of their project and gained CREST (Creativity in Engineering, Science and Technology) GOLD Awards. Sports results: senior cricket – the 1st XI, U15As, U14As and U14Bs won against Fettes. Pringle cricket: the 1st XI beat Fettes, Dollar and Belhaven Hill; the 2nd XI won against Dollar and Belhaven Hill; the 3rd XI won against Fettes; the U11As beat Fettes and Belhaven Hill; and the U11Bs defeated Belhaven Hill. The golf team defeated Strathallan 6-0. The U12 football team won against Currie Star FC. Merchiston won the Lothian Schools U16 Squash Tournament for the second year running – the team consists of Teddy (captain), Adrian, Fraser, Andrew and Chris. I was particularly pleased to be presenting awards to two brothers: James received a Major Games Tie (for being a member of the 1st XI cricket team) and Harry was presented with a special award (a cricket ball) for taking 9 wickets in the U11B match v Belhaven. Well done to you all!
Thoughts: Amidst so much activity, both within and outwith the classroom, it was wonderful to receive the following feedback from Emma Bartholomew after a 
Congratulations: This week again saw many pupils coming up onto the stage to be congratulated. Biology Olympiad: Sixth Formers King Fan and Gavin gained Bronze Medals; Callum and Nicholas achieved Highly Commended; and Craig and Myles were Commended. British Physics Olympiad: there were 1800 entrants from all over the UK in the AS Physics Competition and of these, 28 students achieved a Gold Medal – among them were John and Horace; Benny and Chips gained Silver; and 
Sam, Victor, Jamie, Gavin, King Fan, Daniel, Sam, Chris, Jun and Nicholas were awarded Bronze. In the GCSE Physics Challenge Competition, there were 3000 UK entrants; of these 30 students achieved a Gold Medal, including Duncan; Lawrence and Jack gained Silver; and Ryan, Timothy, Angus and Rupert achieved Bronze. Rafael and Vincent were granted the School’s Commendation for Achievement (for Piping - photo extreme below right); they are only in their second and first years at Merchiston respectively from Germany and it is remarkable that they have shown such determination and talent in learning to play the pipes – so much so that they participated in the rendition of Highland Cathedral at the recent Piping and Drumming Concert. Craig (photo above) too was awarded a Commendation for Achievement for responsorial singing of psalms in the School Chapel Services – this 
is a real skill, one in which he continues to develop. Colours: Jack and Will were awarded Full Colours for Shooting. They have both contributed to clay pigeon shooting over the past four years and have represented the School at Scottish and British events eight times; they have won Junior and Senior categories at the Scottish Schools event (in the latter, they took the A Team trophy and Will won the overall High Gun). They have both captained the shooting team. Squash Half Colours were awarded to Patrick and Teddy 
(photo below). Sports results: Tennis – wins were recorded by the 1st VI and the U13s against Watson’s and the U16s vs North Berwick Tennis Club. Cricket: (Pringle): the 1st XI, 2nd XI and 3rd XI won against Edinburgh Academy; the U11As defeated South Morningside and Edinburgh Academy; the U11Bs won against Clifton Hall; and the U10As defeated Belhaven. The Pringle 1st XI also won against the Borders U12s. Senior: the 1st XI. 2nd XI. 3rd XI, U15Bs, U14As and U14Bs won their matches against Edinburgh Academy; in the U14B match, Brahim scored 118 not out and was therefore awarded a bat. 
Highlights: First, the boys will know that the sub-title of one of E M Forster’s famous novels, Howards End, is Only Connect. Last week, Andrew Taylor, the Principal of Maru-a-Pula School, Botswana, visited Merchiston. I last saw Mr Taylor in 1973, when he was an English Speaking Union Scholar from Connecticut at the South of England school in which I taught English. He was an outstanding academic, sitting three A Levels in one year; he trod the boards in two major drama productions in that year; and he was also a first rate tennis player. My parents invited him to join us for a holiday in our home in Kenya and thus 1973 and 2010 has seen Only Connect. Maru-a-Pula School is a multi-racial independent school. He spoke to our Sixth Formers in their Morning Assembly about how, in his school, voluntary service happens every day in the afternoon before sporting activities. He also urged the pupils to stretch themselves and understand the importance of friendship. We very mu
ch hope to have Mr Taylor back at Merchiston in January to conduct a series of seminars for our staff, pupils, and indeed parents. My second highlight is the Boys’ Community Choir. Whilst we have been running a Primary Schools’ Choral Evening for many years now, the Boys’ Community Choir is a new venture for us. Approximately 40-45 boys take part, including 17 from Balgreen, around 12 from Bonaly and 6 from Craiglockhart Primary Schools. They have sung Scarborough Fair as a round, singing games, Scoop and Pie Jesu by Andrew Lloyd Weber. I am indebted to Stephen Dennis and our Music Department, and our senior pupils for looking after these boys. Every week we have fixtures in so many different sports but it was a particular pleasure to see eleven cricket matches being played here on Saturday. My fourth highlight was Jeremy Balfour’s talk at Sunday evening’s Chapel Service. (Mr Balfour is a City of Edinburgh Councillor.) He spoke about milestones and how all of us, including the boys, will have good ones and bad ones, but it is how we handle the challenging ones along our journey that will make the difference. We are now in week 5 and we have sports fixtures in cricket, golf, tennis and shooting ahead of us, as well as sub-aqua training in the pool; we will also have drama auditions; and a number of Enlightened Curriculum events, including a visit to the Museum of Scotland, a Biology coastal fieldwork day, a Mandarin morning at St George’s and a visit to the Edinburgh mosque. The pipers and drummers will be practising on Sunday at Redford Barracks in preparation for Beating Retreat at the Palace of Holyroodhouse and on the Esplanade of Edinburgh Castle – Merchiston’s band will be playing alongside all the other Scottish Schools’ CCF pipe bands and I really recommend these two events to parents (on Tuesday 25 May at 6.30pm and Wednesday 26 May at 8pm respectively). Last, but not least, we are in the midst of public examinations. Accordingly, it is cheering for the boys that the weather is a little warmer!
Merchiston Castle dramatic tradition of Napier's Vision under the title 
Congratulations: This week’s Headmaster’s Assembly saw much applauding and the following pupils were congratulated on stage. Patrick received an All Rounder Award. Lewis, Kerr and Andrew were awarded Piping Exhibitions. In the Chemistry Olympiad, Ruoyu won a Gold Award; Scott and Rakeeb gained Silver; and Craig, Nick and Myles achieved Bronze. Intermediate Maths Challenge: 2010 was another excellent year for Merchiston pupils, who won a total of 40 awards. Duncan was ‘Best in School’ and Fingal (Second Form) gained a Gold Award – a remarkable achievement as the competition is open to pupils up to the age of 16! Other Golds went to Tim, Ralph, Jack, Hugh, Howard, Harry, Terry and Charlie. Finally, Lawrence also won Gold and went on to achieve a Certificate of Merit in the 
Maths Olympiad follow-on round, placing him in the very top echelon of the UK’s young mathematicians. Turning to sport, George was congratulated on representing Scotland over the Easter holiday in the Home Nations Cross Country Championships in Cornwall – Scotland came second behind England. George recently won his age group race in the Bupa Great Edinburgh Run earlier this month. Euan was congratulated on being selected for the Scottish Ski Team for next season. Cricket: the 1st XI built on their excellent start to the season with a victory over Watson’s in the Lothian Schools Cup. The 2nd XI defeated Strathallan and 
Dollar; Jamie scored 111 not out against Dollar and was awarded a bat. The 3rd XI won against Strathallan. The U15As beat Dollar and Fettes; the U15Bs and U14Bs beat Fettes; the U14s defeated Dollar. The Pringle 1st XI won against Ardvreck and Jordan was awarded a bat for scoring 100 in this match. In tennis, the 1st VI won against Stewart’s Melville, Glenalmond and North Berwick; the U16s beat Dunfermline; the U15s beat Glenalmond; and the U13s won against Stewart’s Melville in the Cup. In athletics, the Merchiston team defeated the Edinburgh Academy. On another note, I thanked the 50 boys and staff who cleared a section of the Water of Leith of litter and rubbish on Sunday morning, in conjunction with the Water of Leith Conservation Trust. Well done to you all!
Piping and Drumming Concert. What I particularly appreciated about this event was that we had extended an invitation to Christopher, who attends the Royal Blind School in Edinburgh, and who has visited us before to play with our pipers. It is wonderful that under the careful instruction of our Master i/c Pipe Bands, Gordon Campbell, Christopher started on the chanter and is now playing the pipes. He is now to embark upon a Further Education College course in Hereford. We were delighted that he also joined us at this week’s Headmaster’s Assembly to reprise the pieces he played at the Concert: Highland Laddie and Paddy’s Leather Breeches, and joined our Pipe Band in playing The Green Hills of Tyrol and The Battle’s O’er. I took the opportunity to thank our piping and drumming instructors, namely Messrs Campbell, Walker, Donaldson, Speirs and Macleod for their tutoring of our boys up and down the School who play the pipes and drums – an important part of our wide and varied music provision. We are fortunate that one of our Merchiston parents has given me permission to take many of our pipers and drummers to Beating Retreat at the Palace of Holyroodhouse. Amidst the splendour of this occasion, I believe that our boys will be really inspired to go on practising! Finally, as some of you know, I often like to have a piece of music to send us on our way to the challenges and joys of a new week and once again we so enjoyed listening to our talented Pipe Major (and he has held this title for four years) Marinus, and Pipe Sergeant Myles playing The Banjo Breakdown, La Baum and The Glasgow City Police Pipers. The musicians, including Christopher, of course, received rapturous applause from a full Memorial Hall. And so, we have now embarked upon Week 4 with a sense of happiness, joy and purpose. 
Thoughts: Week 2 saw a tremendous array of activity, both within and outwith the classroom. I was fascinated by the meeting of the Student Sustainability Committee. We are trying to get up to speed on this issue and it is our students who are leading the way. The public examination period has already started for our modern linguists with their oral examinations. There were numerous Enlightened Curriculum events last week, including the Junior Maths Challenge and the Memory Challenge. The second half, as it were, of the Spawforth Library’s 10th Anniversary celebrations continues apace with the Junior Bag-a-Book Days and more sessions of Reading Rocks. I thanked all the senior pupils who were so effective in helping the School to host Saturday’s Information Morning and, as ever, it was a great pleasure to listen to our musicians playing at the beginning of the event. 
Congratulations: In this week’s Headmaster’s Assembly, we gave pride of place to congratulating some of our musicians on their examination success, namely Fingal (Distinctions in Grade 7 Piano and Grade 5 Clarinet); Alan (Merit in Grade 4 Piano); Jamie (Distinction in Grade 1 Piano); Ruaridh (Pass in Grade 4 Saxophone); Johnny (Distinction in Grade 5 Singing); and Benjamin (Distinction in Grade 2 Saxophone). Alan and Philip were presented with their Music Scholar’s ties. I was delighted to congratulate William on his appointment as a prefect in Rogerson House. Congratulations to the following 
cricket teams on their wins last week: the 1st XI against 40 Club and Glenalmond; the U15As against Strathallan and Glenalmond; the U14As and U14Bs against Loretto; the Pringle 1st XI versus St Mary’s and Stewart’s Melville (they drew against Cargilfield); the Pringle 2nd XI against Stewart’s Melville and Cargilfield; and the U11s against St Mary’s and Cargilfield.
Thoughts: You will see from Week 1’s entry that we are well underway! In this week’s Headmaster’s Assembly I took the opportunity to remind the School of our expectations, using the phrase “Do what you do do well”! Some readers of “Headmaster’s Headlines”, who are old enough, may remember the country singer Ned Miller who did this song in 1964 – it was his second biggest hit! Whilst I may have been lighthearted in my approach, we have high expectations of the boys, both within and outwith the School, in all aspects of their lives. For the most part, our pupils rise to these expectations extremely well; they support each other; and equally we always give guidance to the boys to help them when they are facing challenges. I have laid down a challenge to our immensely successful Upper Sixth rock band, Bwani Junction, to see if they can produce a version of this song for the Commemoration Concert in the Dining Hall at lunchtime! Finally, at yesterday’s Assembly, I reminded the boys of my “Thoughts for the Year”. These are not my own – they are often advertising slogans or quotes from other people – and they are displayed on School and House boards. You may be interested to see them.
Congratulations: Yesterday saw a vast array of pupils being congratulated on the platform. I reminded everyone that I hoped that other forms of congratulation and praise were happening in House Assemblies with Housemasters and Assistant Housemasters. First, an outstanding piper, Marinus, was granted a Commendation for Achievement, not only in recognition of his incredible piping commitment to Merchiston over six years, but on coming second in the recent Glasgow Highland Club piping competition for Scottish schools. The Pringle cross country team (Benn, Duncan, Alasdair, Alasdair and Charlie) came first in the Scottish Primary Schools Cross Country Championship and came up onto the stage to present their trophy to the School. Readers of my “Headlines” will know that Merchiston was the first Scottish school to reach the semi finals of the Rosslyn Park Sevens an
d the squad were presented with their ties on the platform. The squad consisted of Harry, Myles, Mark, Dougie, Jacob, Callum, Nick, Patrick, Josh, Angus, Alex and Jonathan. It is worth noting that at the end of the tournament, Harry was selected by the organisers as a member of a notional “team of the tournament” – a great honour and achievement. 
Fives Full Colours: Douglas, Patrick and Peter
Highlights: I have one highlight from the beginning of this week, namely the Higher Education event hosted at Merchiston on Monday. Representatives from Higher Education institutions came to Merchiston and our senior pupils, in addition to girls from St George’s and St Margaret’s, were able to start (or continue!) thinking about the next stages of their lives. After all, none of us wish to have pupils who have succeeded brilliantly in school but do not move onwards. Mrs Chispa Prini Garcia, our Head of Careers, spearheaded this annual event at Merchiston. 
Thoughts: For the most part, the School has settled happily into the Summer Term, although there have been many absentees due to the effects of the volcanic ash on travel. The blossom is out on numerous trees and the sun has already broken through! The cricket squares are marked out and the athletics arena is ready for a term of activity. I would normally have written this blog earlier but Barbara and I were away at her mother’s funeral in England; sadly, both of us have lost our mothers in the last three months. The end of term and holiday trips and activities were impressive and numerous: the Fourth Form Geography fieldtrip to Grey Mare’s Tail, Moffat; the Pringle Drama Afternoon and the J4/J5 Panto; the National Schools Rugby Sevens at Rosslyn Park; the Sixth Form Spanish trip to Malaga; the GCSE History trip to Eastern Europe; the ski trip to Sölden; the 
National Fives Championships; and the Multi-Sports Camp at Merchiston. Moreover, our Duke of Edinburgh Silver Practice Expedition took place in the Cairngorms as term began in very cold temperatures, including snow! I am extremely grateful to the staff for accompanying the boys on the various trips and activities during the holiday. As is normal in the contemporary school, members of staff spend time reflecting at the beginning of each term as part of our inservice training programme. Last week, we looked at what makes a great teacher; we also had presentations about YouTube, preparation for HM Inspectorate of Education inspections, and staff pensions. Moreover, time was spent on staff welfare with health advice from our leading medical adviser. The “Working Memory” sessions conducted by Dr Tracy Alloway were a highlight and I am delighted that so many parents were able to attend the evening session.
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