Headmaster's Headlines: Summer Term 2007

17 July

As many of you will know, sadly, David Stranock passed away last week. Many members of David’s family, colleagues, former colleagues and so many Merchistonians of very different ages attended the Service of Thanksgiving for David’s life at Mortonhall Crematorium on Friday 13 July. I am extremely grateful to the members of staff who contributed to this Service, namely Nick Blair, James Rainy Brown, John Hart, Chris Caves, Mark Appleson.  This cannot have been easy.  The tributes to David spoke of his passions as a Biology teacher, a rugby coach and tour manager, a cricket coach, a photographer, his love of Northern Ireland, as well as David, the husband and family man.  Mention was made too of a Pringle trip to Bamburgh Castle. There was laughter at some of the comments in the tributes and this was fitting, and many of us smiled wryly at David’s request to end the Service with the singing of William Blake’s Jerusalem.

As to the future, my wife, Barbara, and James Rainy Brown had met David before he passed away, and he had indicated that he would like a book to be produced in his memory entitled Faces of Merchiston, which would include his photographs of music makers, actors, sportsmen in action, the Army game, some winners and achievers, “we are in charge” (the Common Room!), out of School tours, and finally visitors and events.  David asked that all proceeds from the sale of the book should go to a children’s hospice, and the School will sponsor the publication. 

We continue to keep Chris (David’s wife), Victoria (his daughter), Stella, and other members of the family in our thoughts. 

10 July

Prizegiving is some two weeks gone as I sit writing this in my study, and we have at last seen the sun after all the rain! ‘Prizegiving with a difference’ was this year’s theme, with the electronic summary of the year appearing on screen before the ceremony, and visuals accompanying my address and then that of Lord Laidlaw. At the end of his speech, Lord Laidlaw announced two gifts to Merchiston: £1 million towards the Sixth Form House Appeal and a further £1 million to fund Laidlaw Scholarships over five years for gifted and talented pupils who would not otherwise be able to attend Merchiston. He also made the official announcement about Merchiston’s partnership with a charity his Laidlaw Youth Trust supports, namely The Place2Be, which helps children of primary school age and their families, who are facing challenges. In addition to the School providing some financial support, senior pupils will be trained in counselling skills so that they can play a role in mentoring young people in some of the Edinburgh primary schools linked to this charity. Moreover, we are hoping that the children can come and use our facilities and be coached by our senior pupils of a half day. We want to undertake this initiative altruistically, “for the sake of it”; however, I am sure that our pupils will also derive no little satisfaction from being able to make a difference. It was certainly a momentous day for the School! To read Lord Laidlaw’s address, please click on the link.

Last week, my support staff worked extremely hard to ensure that your son’s report and much accompanying Merchiston information are safely despatched to you!

As regards holiday activities, the 1st XI cricket team has already returned from Holland. Unfortunately two of its three fixtures had to be cancelled due to the weather; however, the team won its match against the Hague Cricket Club, whose side included four Dutch Internationals. Our voluntary service Fiji Millennium ‘3’ Project group has departed for Fiji (our 6th such venture since 2000). Other activities include the annual Pringle trip to Ru’a Fiola, the Bisley Target Rifle Meeting and the CCF expedition to California.

Mrs Hunter and I were invited to the Palace of Holyroodhouse on Tuesday 3 July for the annual Duke of Edinburgh Presentations. Much is said and written about the role of the royalty in modern society, that is not always wholly positive, but we found this ceremony so impressive. His Royal Highness The Duke of Edinburgh spent time talking to nearly every single young adult of the 300 at the morning Presentation. There was also an afternoon session for the same number of Gold Award recipients. I know that he made two young Merchistonians feel special!

On Saturday morning, we received the sad news that David Stranock had passed away peacefully in his sleep. The funeral will be on Friday 13 July at 1 pm at Mortonhall Crematorium; refreshments will be served at the School afterwards. In the meantime, our thoughts are with his family.

To all the Upper Sixth who have just left Merchiston, I repeat my words at Prizegiving: “I sincerely believe that each and every one of us has the power to make a difference for the better in some way. Friendships within a community are special and should never be taken for granted. I hope you will go on being ambitious, having a sense of adventure and enjoying those deep friendships forged over many years of growing up together. You are entering a new phase in your lives, which will bring many pressures and challenges, as well as wonderful opportunities. Your world of work will have high expectations of your education; technology will continue to move forward at lightning speed, demanding ever-quicker responses, and targets will be set which you will be expected to meet. I do, however, believe, from what I know of this year group, that you will rise to the challenges in a measured way, and do well. In his Commencement Speech at Harvard in June this year, Bill Gates quoted the following (from Luke 12:48 in the Bible): “From those to whom much is given, much is expected.” I know you will also find fun and laughter along the road, and you will do it in your own way.

Barbara joins me in wishing everyone a good and safe summer.

26 June

My thoughts: This week’s Headmaster’s Assembly saw a relatively empty Memorial Hall as some boys were still finishing public examinations, and so many year groups were on trips!  However, the reduced congregation still managed to raise the roof!

My congratulations: First, I congratulated and thanked Archie (photo right), the Captain of School, for everything he has contributed to the School over the course of the year; he has been a fine Captain of School.  Pipe Major Hamish handed over his Pipe Band responsibilities to Duncan and Oliver. Arts Honours (Pipe Band) were awarded to Hamish, Richard, Bruce, James, Matthew and Max.  In Design and Technology, yet again, I am amazed that we have achieved such success in the Young Engineers for Scotland Competitions: Fraser won First Prize in the 17-19 age group (for his ski bike); Jamie gained Second in the same age group (for his log clamp); and Grant was awarded First Prize in the U17 age group (for his greenhouse watering system).  Cricket Colours were awarded to Carleon; Cricket Half Colours to Ralph; Athletics Half Colours to George (who also received Shooting Colours), Alasdair, Richard, James and James. Shooting Colours went to Ben and James; Shooting Half Colours to Richard; and finally Golf Half Colours to Alastair.  In shooting, Robin was congratulated on being selected to represent the Scotland A Team in the British Home International Small Bore Competition.  As part of Prizegiving at the end of term, we have a Graduation Ceremony for the members of the Upper Sixth leaving the School.  However, one can also ‘graduate’ and receive a Merchistonian Leaver’s tie if one is 16 and over, and if one has been at the School for at least a year.  Accordingly, ties were presented to Henry, Jamie and Michael who graduate from the Fifth Form; to Florian, Moritz, and Peter, who graduate from the Lower Sixth; and to Fahad, Ahmad and Chi Wang who graduate from the Upper Sixth but cannot be with us at Prizegiving.  Furthermore, last week we held The Games in somewhat inclement weather; nevertheless, there were some good performances, in particular Glenn’s effort in the U17 discus, where he broke the School record.

My highlights:

19 June

My thoughts: In this morning’s Headmaster’s Assembly, I thought that Mr Blair, the Chaplain, hit the nail on the head in his words to us after we had sung an unusual song for Merchiston – “Jerusalem”! He asked, “What is it that each one of us is trying to build?” This was an apt question, bearing in mind the rest of the Assembly.

My congratulations: Before I congratulated numerous pupils (48 in total!), I reminded the School that often the quiet achievement matters more than one that is acknowledged publicly. This could be the result of a classroom test, or it could be a quiet word from a member of staff to a pupil, or going the ‘extra mile’ in helping someone.

Archie handed over the Captain of School baton to Bruce. Tom and Alex were promoted to the status of Senior Prefect for their outstanding service in two boarding houses over the course of this year. Cheng gained a Silver Award in the GCSE Physics Challenge Paper, and Alex and Arthur received Bronze Awards. Tommy and Jack continue a fine tradition established by Mr Pitts, namely that of Merchiston pupils being awarded Arkwright Scholarships: in their GCSE projects, Tommy designed a scoreboard, which incorporated a clock, and Jack designed a meat chopping board (above). Hamish and Laurence were awarded Arts Honours for Music. Turning to sport, John received his Cricket Full Colours, and Cricket Half Colours were awarded to Oliver, Ralph and Jamie. In athletics, Robbie received his Full Colours, and Half Colours went to James, Mohammed, Alasdair, Rickie, Cameron, Jamie and Malcolm. Shooting Full Colours were awarded to Tom, and Tom and Richard received Half Colours. In golf, Matthew gained his Full Colours, and Alistair and Jamie their Half Colours. Edward, Callum and Fergus were awarded Football Half Colours, and Edward gained his Tennis Half Colours. Again in sport, I congratulated two of our participants in the recent Scottish Schools Athletics Championships: Glenn on his Silver Medal in the Shot, and Malcolm on his Silver Medal in the High Jump in addition to his Bronze Medal in the 100 metres. Both Glenn and Malcolm have been selected to represent the Scottish Schools International Track and Field Match in July. In the U15 category, Monty (left) was congratulated on winning Silver Medals in the 80 metres Hurdles and the High Jump – in doing so Monty broke two School records. Jonathan gained a Silver Medal in the 100 metres. In cricket, the U14½A and B XIs were congratulated on their victories against Stewart’s Melville, as were the tennis team for their convincing win against Edinburgh Academy. Finally, I thanked Ross, Peter, David, Josh, Harry, Ruaraidh, Alex, Callum, Michael and Matthew for their tremendous help in looking after groups of Merchistonians at last week’s reunion.

The diary continues to be action-packed over the next two weeks!

My highlights: At the Assembly, we celebrated the achievements of all the above pupils, yet it was also salutary to hear our visiting speaker, Mr Jonathan Wood, who told us about the charity he works with, ThePlace2Be, which supports primary school children, by offering them a place where they can express their feelings through talking, creative work and play. Merchiston has become an Official Charity Partner of ThePlace2Be, and we look forward to developing strong links with some primary school children in Edinburgh. Mr Wood reminded us that listening to others is critical. We also remembered that a Colinton family is showing huge courage as they face the loss of their four-year-old daughter in a recent car accident, let alone the amputation of her mother’s leg just below the knee. The fortitude of this family is a lesson to us all. Finally, this was all underpinned by Andrew (above) performing his winning piece on the clarinet from the Forbes Bowl and McLeod Cup Competition, Duo Concertante by D Milhaud. As he played, we were able to think quietly about what it is we are building as individuals.

12 June

My thoughts: In this morning’s Headmaster’s Assembly, we welcomed Mr Trevor McIntyre, the Headmaster of Christchurch Boys High School, New Zealand. He gave the School some wise words on the importance of looking outwards and making the most of all one’s opportunities. This week sees the First Form-Shell sitting internal examinations and our 8 and 9 year-olds recently undertook their 5-14 assessments, part of the Scottish curriculum. If we add to this that the Fifth, Lower and Upper Sixth are still in the midst of public examinations, then we have the whole School being examined! I indicated to my audience that academic ambition continues to be at the forefront of our ethos. Whilst Merchiston is not an academic ‘hothouse’, we do expect every pupil to learn to like learning more! Furthermore, we try to inspire each young man to see examinations as an opportunity to prove to his teachers how much he has learnt.

My congratulations: I congratulated George on being awarded a Certificate of Merit in the UK Intermediate Mathematics Olympiad 2007. He also gained a Gold Award in the GCSE Physics Challenge Paper. In the latter, Tommy, Niall and Cheng won Silver Awards, while Arthur, Stewart, Alex, Ossian, Richard, Mark and Alex gained Bronze Awards. Our shooting teams continue to go from strength to strength: James and Robin were selected to represent the Scotland A Team in the British Home International Postal Small Bore Competition and Ben was chosen for the B side. James, Robin, Ben and James were members of the Merchiston A Team, which took part in the County Life Small Bore Competition, and they were placed 7th out of 186 entrants across the UK. In addition, Tom, Nicholas, Niall and Duncan were members of the Merchiston B Team who came 8th. In the recent Scottish Schools TR Competition, our team of James, Robin, George, Ben, Tom, Nicholas, James and Duncan were runners up to Dollar. We had another centurion in cricket last week and accordingly Alastair was presented with a bat for his performance in the U14½A match versus Watson’s. On the stage, I was presented with the U15s Scottish Schools Athletics Association 4 x 100 metre Relay trophy, and also with the Loretto Six-a-Side Cricket Tournament trophy, which Pringle won. Moreover, the Pringle 1st and 2nd XIs were congratulated on their wins against Watson’s and Riley House, Strathallan, and the U15½Bs, the U14½As and the U14½Bs on their victories over Watson’s. The golfers had a good draw in their match against Strathallan and next week we will hear from our athletes who did so well at the Scottish Schools Championships at the weekend. Lest you think this blog is all about winning, our 1st XI cricket side lost against the Royal Grammar School, Newcastle, on Saturday – moving forward is all about learning from defeat.

My highlights: Over the weekend, Mrs Hunter and I attended a graduation party held by Mrs Suchde Grütter and Dr Grütter for Siddharth who recently graduated from Harvard College in the US. Siddharth attended Merchiston from 1999 to 2003, and he gained straight As in his three A Levels and two ASs, as well as playing squash to an extremely high standard, while still finding time to be a prefect in his final year. I took the opportunity to interview Siddharth at the party and you can see the transcript here. He came across as very cosmopolitan, gracious and modest, yet competitive, and a young man who continues to ask questions, and to ask “Why?” These are qualities I would like to see in every pupil at Merchiston.

5 June

My thoughts: The run-up to Half Term was unusually busy, with Beating Retreat on the Esplanade of Edinburgh Castle, and then on the Forecourt of the Palace of Holyroodhouse the following day. Around 100 pupils in the School are learning to play either the pipes or the drums and I was delighted that some of our developing pipers and drummers came down to Holyrood to see the massed Pipes and Drums of the Scottish Schools’ CCF Beating Retreat in the presence of His Royal Highness, Prince Andrew, who took the salute. A few days later, we had our Commemoration Weekend, which included the Art & Design and Design & Technology Exhibitions, the Dinner Dance on the Friday evening, the Commemoration Service on Saturday morning, and the Music Concert in the marquee. It always gives me great pleasure to see pupils’ work and yet again Barbara and I enjoyed walking round both exhibitions. The Dinner Dance is one of our most popular annual events and so many parents and staff enjoyed themselves to music provided by one of our Rock Bands, as well as The Late Shift Band. We were honoured to have Professor Peter Guthrie OBE, BSc, MSc as our guest speaker at the Commemoration Service. Professor Guthrie is a Merchistonian (64-68) and is currently a Professor in Engineering for Sustainable Development at the University of Cambridge.  His talk is available by following this link.

My congratulations: This morning I congratulated Haoyang and Hamish (left) on winning a Silver and Bronze Award respectively in the Physics Olympiad AS Physics Competition. I was also delighted to award Stewart (inset below) his Tennis Colours. He has recently reached the Semi-Finals of the Scottish Senior Open, and he has also won the Ayrshire Junior Open and the East of Scotland Junior Open. In addition, Stewart will travel with Tennis Scotland to a number of ITF events, where he will compete for junior world ranging points. Follow the link for more details. Moreover, Major Games Ties were awarded for cricket to Alastair, and for athletics to Oliver, Mohammed, Michael, Richard, Rorie, Max, Angus, Jamie, Rickie, James, Robbie, Kit and Benny. (Jamie, Rickie, James, Robbie, Kit and Benny had already received Major Games Ties for rugby.) The U15 Relay Team (Josh, Jonathan, Tom and Monty - below) was congratulated on coming 1st in the Final of the Scottish Schools Relay Championships by over 3 seconds in a season’s best time of 47.90 seconds, and the O17s did well to come 4th in the Final. Carleon (below right) received a cricket bat for scoring 100 not out in the match against the Merchistonians, his second century in two years. The cricket 1st XI continued on its winning way with victories over the Merchistonians, Glenalmond and Gordonstoun. Also in cricket, the Pringle 2nd XI and U11 A XI won their matches against Fettes, whilst the Pringle 1st XI defeated Dollar and Aysgarth. The golf team won its fixture against Heriot’s, and both the 1st VI and U15 tennis teams won their matches against Fettes.

My highlights: I always like to think that when we do things wrong at Merchiston, we learn from our mistakes and become a better school. Thus, it is marvellous to read the letters of some of our visitors – one recently wrote to me, “I found the two young men who gave me a tour of Merchiston thoughtful, relaxed but considerate, interested and interesting, and most definitely proud of their school”. Mrs Lorna Guthrie, the wife of Professor Guthrie, wrote, “We were very impressed by the boys, the various Departments, the Library, and even the School fish and chips at lunchtime on Friday were excellent! The Pipes and Drums finished our visit off beautifully!” My other highlight was Professor Guthrie’s speech at the Commemoration Service, which we will post on our website, and will also print in The Merchistonian magazine. Peter attended Imperial College London before doing VSO in Nigeria and working as an engineer. He founded RedR – Registered Engineers for Disaster Relief – in 1980 after working with the Malaysian boat people disaster in 1979; the charity has been responsible for bringing safe water to countless thousands of refugees following disasters all over the world. In 2005, he was awarded the Beacon Prize for charitable giving in recognition of his technical support to more than 2500 missions. He finished his talk by asking the School, “What are you going to contribute?”

22 May

My thoughts: What a tremendous message we received this morning in Headmaster's Assembly from Mrs Gillon, a member of the Chaplaincy Team! She plays such an invaluable role in this team, and when she comes into School to speak at Assembly, it is so noticeable that she is at breakfast with the boys beforehand. She reminded us that four of the seven gifts at Pentecost are knowledge, wisdom, understanding and courage. As members of the Fifth, Lower Sixth and Upper Sixth Forms undertake public examinations, her crisp punch line to them was, "Don't just take the exams, take them on!" I do hope that each pupil finds such words of comfort and reassurance, and that he will indeed take courage from them.

My congratulations: So many boys at Merchiston are also challenging themselves outside the School in national competitions, whether this is writing poetry, or the Physics or Mathematical Olympiads. I congratulated James, Ben and Angus who won Silver Awards in the Physics Olympiad, and Yujie, Bo, Thomas and Mark who achieved Bronze Awards. Following very good results in the UK Intermediate Mathematical Challenge, George and Tom were invited to take part in the Mathematical Olympiad; 1,600 pupils took part in this out of the original 202,238 entries. George received a Certificate of Merit, and Tom came in the top 50 - only one other pupil from Scotland was in that group, and accordingly he received a book prize and a Silver Medal, which is the highest award in this category. (The book has a tremendous title: "Why Do Buses Come in Threes: The Hidden Mathematics of Everyday Life".) Tom has been placed on the reserve list to attend a Mathematics Summer School in Birmingham !

My highlights: Being a Merchistonian, whether as a former pupil, a present pupil, or indeed a member of staff, means being 'of Merchiston'. It never ceases to amaze me how the young people in this community make links with each other all over the world. It is a good thing that often the Merchiston young man uses a rugby ball to connect people: for example, I have seen touch rugby played in so many different parts of the world by Merchistonians and they have used this opportunity to invite other people to join in. This week's highlight was listening to Angus (left), the Piping Scholar from Lindisfarne College, New Zealand, playing his pipes for us before he returns home on Saturday, having spent the first half of this term here. It crossed my mind that this was another example of a symbol linking people across the world.

18 May

Out and about: Last weekend, Barbara and I had the pleasure of visiting S Anselm’s prep school in Bakewell, Derbyshire, where we were kindly hosted by Richard and Rachel Foster. “Only connect” is one of my favourite phrases, and Richard and I went to prep school together in Kenya in the 1960s and early 1970s. We were inspired by teachers at Kenton, a Nairobi prep school, and went on to separate senior schools in the UK, and we often sparred against each other in national sporting competitions over the following years. Moreover, it was a great delight to spend one year at university together, still trying to work out who was the better tennis player! Richard became one of the youngest prep school heads, at Pembroke House, Kenya, at the age of 28 and he has since been Headmaster of S Anselm’s. He moves on to Windlesham House, Sussex. In the past, pupils from S Anselm’s have come to Merchiston on sporting tours and we very much hope that we will see a pupil from Windlesham House at Merchiston in due course. I enjoyed preaching at S Anselm’s and the singing of the boys and girls was extremely impressive.

Visitors to Merchiston: It was a particular pleasure to welcome Lord Laidlaw of Rothiemay, philanthropist and Merchistonian, to the School yesterday. A Banffshire woollen mill-owner’s son, Lord Laidlaw attended Merchiston from 1956 to 1960; he was awarded the Economics Prize in the Sixth Form. He attended Leeds University, gaining a BA in Economics in 1963, and then went to complete an MBA at Columbia University, USA, in 1965. He was the founder of the Institute for International Research, one of the world’s largest conference and training specialists. In his spare time he loves sailing, opera and vintage car motor racing.

Charity is high on Lord Laidlaw’s agenda: he is passionate about education, nurturing talent and giving fair opportunity to young people. He has said: “Education cannot be ignored. We must do more for your young people. Children are our future, and yet there is so much wasted talent out there, and we cannot afford to waste talent in Scotland.” He is Chairman of the Laidlaw Youth Trust, which he funds, and which at present supports a total of 75 various mentoring schemes/charities working with children and young people in Scotland. He is also sponsoring an academy (called Excelsior Academy) for 1800 11-18 year olds in one of the poorest areas of Newcastle.

Lord Laidlaw will be our guest speaker at Prizegiving on Saturday 30 June 2007.

15 May

My thoughts: I always like to think that the School exudes a calm sense of purpose, which is particularly important at this time of the year for the pupils who are preparing for their public examinations, and indeed these have already started. However, that same sense of purpose and quiet determination should characterise each member of this community! At the same time, we are mindful of tragedy and turmoil happening out in the ‘real’ world, and our thoughts have particularly been with the parents and family of Madeleine McCann, the 3-year old who has been abducted in Portugal.

My congratulations: I congratulated and thanked members of staff who organised the Merchiston Swimming Gala, involving teams from Merchiston as well as primary and prep schools. The event was a great success and was enjoyed by both participants and spectators. Moreover, there were cricket wins for the 1st XI against Watson’s in the Lothians Cup and for the 3rd XI and U15½ A team against Stewart’s Melville and Glasgow Academy respectively. Both the U14½ XIs won against Fettes. I am delighted that the sporting successes also extended to the 1st and U15 tennis teams who won their matches against Watson’s, as did the School Athletics Team. Calvin, Seb, Alex, Henry, David and Alastair were congratulated on the platform on being awarded Major Games Ties for cricket. This tie is presented to a young man who has been selected for the starting line-up of the 1st XV, 1st XI (cricket) and the Senior Athletics Team on three occasions. I also congratulated Jamie (pictured) on his Century at the weekend – this was his first ever century. I also congratulated the Close Harmony Group and the instrumentalists who participated in the concert at Closeburn, Dumfriesshire. This went extremely well and attracted a large audience.

My highlights:

8 May

My thoughts: Mr Blair started this week’s Headmaster’s Assembly by reminding us of the need to give thanks.  Indeed, we have so much to be thankful for!  The next six weeks are potentially very challenging for the Fifth, Lower and Upper Sixth Forms as all three year groups sit public examinations, and I encouraged the pupils to give themselves the medium-term targets of doing well in their public examinations and then enjoying the summer holiday.

I reminded all the young men that the Spawforth Library is also open on a Sunday from 2pm to 5pm, and is an excellent environment in which to revise. 

My congratulations: The Information Morning and ‘Experience Pringle!’ on Saturday could not have happened without the tremendous work of the guides and helpers, and indeed members of staff, who are all to be praised.  I was delighted to congratulate on stage two centurions: Patrick (left) scored 115 runs for the U14A XI against Dollar, while Calvin (above) scored 101 NO in the 1st XI match against Dollar.

My highlights: Three this week:  first, it is a joy to see all the games’ pitches and the facilities being used to the full by the pupils of an afternoon and evening.  The atmosphere in the School this term seems to be better than ever, yet at the same time there is a real sense of determination and purpose with regard to the academic work of each pupil.  Secondly, Barbara and I very much enjoyed the Piping and Drumming Concert on Thursday, which is an annual event lasting for about an hour; this year 20 pupils played the chanter, 32 the pipes and 22 the drums, and at the end all three Pipe Bands (74 boys) played Highland Cathedral together.  It was particularly good to see so many pupils supporting their peers. My third highlight was the Sixth Form leading the Whole School Service on Sunday, and indeed Archie is to be congratulated on his address and the witty ending of the Service, when the congregation left the Memorial Hall to the sound of the gospel song Oh Happy Day (which Archie dedicated to all those who would be leaving the School at the end of term!).   I particularly enjoyed the singing of Love Divine All Loves Excelling.

2 May

My thoughts: The light early mornings and balmy spring evenings see the School at its very best!  Academic work continues apace with the pupils attending many classes and three year groups are working particularly hard in preparation for their public examinations.  Yet, there is also a sense of balance and the co-curricular activities flourish.  Most of all, it is a pleasure to see so many young men enjoying the grounds of their School at the end of a day, whether it be touch rugby, a game of football in an imaginary European Champions League semi-final, or cricket played between two trees. 

My congratulations:  This week I congratulated Tom on being awarded a Gold Certificate in the UK Intermediate Mathematical Challenge; he also gained the Best in School accolade and, moreover, had the highest score ever achieved by a Merchiston pupil in this external competition.  George, Scott, Kelvin, Alex and Cheng also achieved Gold Certificates (photo left).  Euan (on right in photo above) was congratulated on his Bronze Medals in both the ‘Children 1’ Slalom Event in the British Children’s Skiing Championships and the ‘Children 1’ Super G Event in the English Skiing Championships.  George (photo above: left) won a Silver Medal in the Scottish Schools Cross Country Championships.  Moreover, I was delighted to congratulate two centurions on stage: Jacob (right) scored a century in the recent U15B match against Fettes, and John did likewise in the recent 1st XI fixture against Stewart’s Melville.  Congratulations also go to the 1st XI, 3rd XI, U15A and B XIs who won their matches against Fettes; also to both Pringle XIs who defeated Stewart’s Melville. 

My highlights: This week I have two highlights.  Rod Grant, a Merchistonian (1978-83), spoke in yesterday morning’s Headmaster’s Assembly.  To me it is so important that there are Merchistonians who are Head Teachers: Rod is Headmaster of Clifton Hall, a prep school in Newbridge, Edinburgh, and Mike Dickson (1075-80) is Headmaster of a prep school in Kenya, The Banda School. Merchiston and Clifton Hall have close links and Rod’s message was so succinct and pertinent – please click on the link if you would like to see his notes (pdf file).  We hope Rod enjoyed seeing round his former school and meeting former pupils.
My second highlight was receiving the following message:
“My daughter, toddler grandson and I arrived at the bus stop to catch the number 10 bus down to town.  A group of senior boys preceded us in the queue, none of them known to me personally.  As the bus drew up, one boy stepped forward with a smile and picked up the pushchair and loaded it onto the bus for us.  The group then quietly insisted that we should get on the bus first.  My daughter commented afterwards that what had impressed her above all was that the boys behaved so unostentatiously, as though this courtesy came naturally.” 

25 April

My thoughts:

March to October often sees the School bathed in a wonderful, warm light; this first half-week of term has been no exception and the spring days have filled everyone in the School with joy. It has been tremendous to see pupils starting the new term - so many lessons and preps; preparation for public exams; the Higher Education Careers Convention; a moving Confirmation Service; let alone the fun of many successful sporting fixtures, House social events over the weekend, and last, but not least, the Mystic Floorboards playing in the Battle of the Bands!

My congratulations:
First, the Sevens Team was congratulated on its very good performance in the Rosslyn Park Schools Tournament at the end of last term: it won three of its four matches and lost to the eventual runners up of the event. The cricket teams have made a successful start this week, including wins by the 1st and 2nd XIs against Loretto, and it is tremendous news that our School football team has reached the semi final of the Scottish Independent Schools Cup for the first time, having defeated The High School of Glasgow in the quarter final. On the stage, I was presented with two trophies for Young Enterprise and Curling respectively; parents and visitors may wish to have a look at our display cabinets in the Well at the front of School, which always contain interesting trophies!

On an individual basis, I congratulated David and Ka Ram on being awarded Basketball Colours; David on the award of his Major Games Tie; Qi on winning a Gold Award in the International Chemistry Olympiad and, incidentally, gaining a place in the Top 60 out of 1360 candidates! I also congratulated Chi Wang on his Certificate of Commendation. Both mind and body are important so it was a remarkable occasion when I congratulated Alasdair on receiving a Commendation Award in the 2007 Institute of Biology Olympiad, and secondly, in a quite different area of activity, on winning both the Featherweight Section of the Scottish Junior Boxing Championships and his match in the recent Scotland v Cyprus Boxing Competition. Oliver received a bat for scoring 107 runs against Loretto, his first century as a 1st XI player. I also congratulated Tom, David, Andrew, Henry, Tommy and Rory on being selected for the Edinburgh Integrated U16 XV last term (pictured here after their match on Easter Sunday at Currie RFC when they won against the Borders team). Kit was congratulated on successfully auditioning last month for the Training Choir of the National Youth Choir of Scotland; he also performed sufficiently well to be offered a place as a reserve for the Main Choir which will be touring Hungary in the summer.

My highlights:

My first highlight was Sunday night's Confirmation Service at which Edward and Timothy were confirmed into the Church of Scotland by The Revd Dr George Whyte BD, BSc, Minister of Colinton Parish Church, and Ross, Miles and Alisdair were confirmed into the Anglican Communion by The Right Reverend Brian A Smith MA, BA, Episcopal Bishop of Edinburgh. This is always one of the most important Services of the year, so ably led by our Chaplaincy Team, and I particularly enjoyed seeing so many members of the School community sharing the 'peace'.

I always try to ensure that Headmaster's Assemblies are interesting occasions. Yesterday's seemed to epitomise a rich vein of talent amongst the pupils and the staff in this School. I particularly enjoyed seeing Matthew show the School a fantastic piece of embroidery (using at least 46 colours) of the Merchiston coat of arms, Ready Ay Ready, the work of his grandmother, Mrs Mary Johnstone, who lives near the School and often visits us (photo above). Matthew then presented his grandmother with a small gift from the School, to the sound of the longest applause of the morning. Matthew himself is in his sixth year at Merchiston, and is studying English, History and Spanish in the Upper Sixth; he is a Senior Prefect in Chalmers West, a member of the golf team, he likes his football and he has given a huge amount to the Choir, Choral Society and the Close Harmony Group. He is aiming to read International Relations at the University of St Andrews. My third highlight was Mr David McLetchie's talk at the Assembly (photo left); you can read further details by clicking on the link.

18 April

This week’s Whole School Assembly started with a warm welcome to Mr Clayton, a new member of staff, to new pupils Scott, Rory, Ayaz, and to exchange pupils Alvaro, Sam, Calvin and Angus. It was a particular joy to congratulate Miss MacMillan on her marriage to Mr Alan Trotter during the holiday (photo left). Equally, I encouraged the School to wish a happy birthday to Mr Rossiter who turned 48 on 17 April, and to Mr Charman who was 31 on 18 April. Moreover, Mr Nicholls was 40 on 19 April!

I took the opportunity to remind the School of the huge number and variety of activities that took place at the end of last term and in the holidays (listed in my end of term blog). I was delighted to hear from staff that nearly all the pupils on these trips had been a joy to be with in terms of their demeanour, spirit, enthusiasm and good behaviour.

I informed the pupils that they should expect to see contractors on the campus as we begin the re-engineering of the Sixth Form boarding and day accommodation, and the Fifth Form boarding and day accommodation in the present Rogerson West. It is intended that these facilities will all be re-engineered, including present prefects’ bedrooms, to be ready for September 2008.

“We don’t need no education; we don’t need no thought control” – Pink Floyd

This great song by Pink Floyd epitomises the rejection of a structured education and I felt it was important in this first Assembly of the term to ask some pertinent questions in a quizzical light. As we know, every coin has two sides – ‘heads’ and ‘tails’. There is the possibility in life to move upwards or downwards, to make a change. Accordingly, I went through some of the choices we face in the School community:

• Am I slovenly in aspects of my life in the School, not least my academic work?
• Do I dress incorrectly?
• Do I epitomise somebody who has no self-respect?
• Am I uninterested in contributing to the community in a positive way, whether this be in my academic work, culture, music or drama?
• Do I live a selfish existence and fail to respect others around me as being different and distinct?
• Am I careless in my choice of words?
• Do I blatantly disregard simple School guidelines, which leads to the School being a less positive community? In other words, do I convey a sense of “I just don’t care”?
• In my “I just don’t care” attitude, am I not at all concerned about being given a blue paper let alone a detention?
• In my “I just don’t care” attitude, am I not at all concerned about opening doors to and for each other and adults, and am I not at all bothered about addressing members of staff, adults and visitors, both within and without the School, as ‘Sir’ and ‘Ma’am’
• In my use of the wonderful tool of the internet, and such sites as ‘bebo’, ‘myspace’, ‘you tube’, ‘rate my teacher’ and ‘wikipedia’ am I completely and utterly irresponsible and involved in hurting other people, pupils, staff and schools? In other words, in my “I just don’t care” attitude, or in my “it’s just a bit of fun” attitude, am I involved in cyberbullying?
• Finally, am I in my “I just don’t care” attitude aware of the dangers of drugs, including alcohol, used for recreational purposes? Am I aware that the use of any drug, including alcohol, causes changes in my body and my behaviour?

These are all questions which, to my mind, belong to the concept of “I don’t need no education”. In my challenging reflection to the School I concluded by playing the recent dance version of this song.

The other side the coin could be epitomised by the following:

• I believe in myself; we believe in ourselves.
• We have standards.
• We show self-confidence and self-assurance.
• We aim high; we wish to do well.
• We never display arrogance.

I believe that such principles are important and irreplaceable, and such an attitude produces a happier and more fulfilled school community. The Pink Floyd “I don’t need no education” or “I don’t care” produces the opposite.

So, as we start a new term we have two choices: “I don’t need no education” or we care and we build up a daily, positive jigsaw. Essentially, the Headmaster’s personal phrases for each pupil on a daily basis epitomise this: “Try your hardest; make the most of your talents; look after each other”; “work hard; develop hard; play hard.”

As wonderful as the sound of Pink Floyd’s “We don’t need no education” is, we do need a purposeful and disciplined education. I indicated to the School that they need to be ready for one another’s expectations and indeed those of members of staff.

The Assembly concluded with the joyful singing of the School Song, ‘Ready Ay Ready’, and ‘Handshaking’, whereby pupils shake hands with members of staff lined down each side of the main staircase on coming out of the Memorial Hall, as a symbol of the School community welcoming one other back to a new term.

17 April: The end of the holidays!

An extraordinary level of activity occurred at the end of last term and over the course of the holidays, to which I referred in my last update. In addition, we held our annual Multi-Sports Easter Camp at Merchiston and some of our geographers were fortunate to go to Iceland on a field trip!

We look forward to the boys returning to School but I just wish to focus on one of my highlights of recent weeks. At the kind invitation of Hong Kong Merchiston parents, Barbara, my PA Sharon, and I visited Hong Kong at the time of the Festival of the Hong Kong Sevens. (Follow link to see photos of our trip). To be accurate, our Hong Kong parents have been extending this invitation for the last four years! The purpose of the visit was also to heighten the profile of Merchiston. We were invited to dinner at one of Hong Kong's leading restaurants, the Yung Kee Restaurant, and we attended the 50th birthday party of a parent.

We also held a Drinks Party at the Hong Kong Club for parents and pupils (current, former and prospective), during which some of our current pupils took part in a Question and Answer session, the pipers piped, and the Mystic Floorboards played! This was an extremely successful event, and Barbara, Sharon and I were particularly struck, and indeed moved, by the tremendous warmth and pride of the boys and young men who were so delighted to welcome us to their home country. In my short talk, I spoke about this opportunity for us who were visitors to enact E M Forster's concept of "only connect the East and the West". Furthermore, by holding up one of the Merchiston rugby balls I was able to illustrate that we were also 'connecting' through this sport. Attending the Sevens was an eye-opener in itself! A tremendous amphitheatre of a stadium saw 2½ days of remarkable rugby by not only the major rugby-playing countries, but also the minnows - one of the biggest cheers of the Festival was a Hong Kong try scored against the defending champions, England ! It was tremendous for us to visit this vibrant city, and to experience at first hand how far the boys fly to school at Merchiston, Edinburgh.

We were also delighted to cross over to Guangdong in mainland China to visit Zhuhai No 1 Middle School, which may well become a partner school, and discussions were held with regard to proposals for pupil and teacher exchanges.

All in all, the whole experience was most stimulating and refreshing, and we are most grateful to the parents who helped to co-ordinate our trip.

Archive: Autumn Term 2006, Lent Term 2007