Issue No.31 March 1996
Issue No.31 March 1996
| FROM THE HEADTEACHER
Security in School - following the awful events in Dunblane, I have been asked about the security system here. All visitors are asked to report to reception and are signed in and given a visitor's badge which must be displayed. All staff are asked to challenge any unknown person not using a badge. If such a person cannot explain their presence senior staff are summoned. The Governors and I are aware of the potential problem and are not complacent. The school has over 40 exterior doors and this makes it difficult. Together with other local headteachers I met the Education Minister, Mrs. Gillam, last week to make representations about the Rosebery School Selection issue and we were very warmly received. I will keep parents informed. Mufti Day on the 15th raised £864. This will be divided among the four House Charities and the British Olympic Appeal fund. SCHOOL WILL CLOSE AT 1 PM ON FRIDAY. NEXT TERM STARTS AT 8.45 AM ON MONDAY, 15TH APRIL. The day trip to Boulogne to give Year 10 students the opportunity to try their French oral skills was a great success. A visit to the sea life centre of Nausicaa where visitors can view sharks from a close but safe distance and can 'stroke' more friendly fish was popular and a shopping expedition to the old town where Mr. Boucry's expertise in the choice of cheeses was called upon, allowed pupils to try out their French. For some pupils it was their first visit to France and all agreed it had added value to their language skills as well as being a great day out. Mrs. Pass was no doubt rewarded by their 'thank yous' and when the memory of struggling to get 47 passport photos and 47 indemnity forms back on time has faded, she will contemplate organising next year's day trip! Mrs Jones still has one or two places available on the 1997 Mediterranean Cruise. See her for details. Les Orres in France is the proposed destination for next year's Ski trip organised by Mr. Hill. The February half term is the traditional time for this visit and in 1997 the dates will be 14th-22nd February. Also taking place during this half term period will be a visit to the East Coast of the United States run by Mr. Tattershall. This is open to Sixth Formers only and breaks new ground for Therfield. For years we went to Russia in the Christmas holidays, then two years ago visited Eastern Europe and now have the contrast of the United States. The cities of Boston, New York, Philadelphia and Washington DC are on the itinerary and it looks like being a busy seven days. Year 8 visited the Science Museum on 11th and 12th March. They concentrated on the four main areas of space, food, flight and medicine so as to reinforce National Curriculum lessons they have covered or are about to do so. Pupils were issued with worksheets; prizes and merit awards were given for the best efforts. Building work on the new Sixth Form block, addition to the Dining Hall and new walkways is progressing and the Boathouse has been reallocated to its new site. Sailing Club members are now redecorating. The two pupils who were injured following an accident at the end of Dilston Road are now out of hospital. They would like to thank parents who were there when the accident happened and helped and comforted them. The Friends Auction of Promises is to be held on 11th May. Please could all 'promises' be in by 19th April - Pat Williams on 01372-273359 will be pleased to hear from you. Do try and support this venture - tickets for the night will be on sale soon. Other dates coming up - Jumble Sale on 28th September, Black and White Ball on 5th October and Craft Fair on 2nd November. The next Parents' Prayer Group will be held at the school at 8 pm on 13th May. Details from Mrs Poole (01932 864059). The school's Swing Band under the direction of Mr. Pratt is still very much in demand and recently was much praised for its playing in a SeeAbility fund raising concert. You can hear the Swing Band plus the main orchestra, second orchestra and both choirs if you come to Tuesday's Spring Concert at 7.30 in the school hall. A few tickets are still available. The main school production this year will be 'A Midsummer Night's Dream' to take place on 12th and 13th July. Auditions are being held on Monday and Tuesday next week. Year 12 students are relaunching Therfield Debating Society. The first meeting is to be held next Wednesday and will debate - "This House believes that women are now the dominant sex". Jon Buckley and Jon Coello are the organisers and a lively meeting is promised! Four Year 8 pupils - Robert Caldwell, Edward Waller, Helen Prowse and Claire Mitchell - attended an English Project Day at Guildford and were judged joint first on their presentation. As this was an initiative for pupils adjudged to have exceptional ability in English their success was especially meritorious. The return French Exchange visit of senior pupils saw 11 students from Lycée Virlogeux, Riom spend two weeks with their Therfield hosts. Four days were spent in school, two joint outings were arranged and the French party spent a lot of time in London, being particularly grateful to a parent, Mrs. O'Connor for organising a visit to the House of Commons. A request from Home and Food Technology - the department would like to thank all parents who have supplied textiles materials in the past but, once again, supplies are running low. If anyone can donate textiles they would be very grateful. While large pieces of fabric are very useful, samples (even of furnishing fabrics), off cuts, beads, buttons, threads are always welcome. Many thanks. Therfield has been asked to host a morning visit by a group of international environmental teachers who will be attending a conference at Nower Wood. On Thursday (28th) they will spend a morning in school, sit in on some Geography and Science lessons and talk to staff and students. When it came to a problem solving contest organised by Surrey SATRO (Science & Technology Regional Organisation) our Year 9 team of Philip Haines, Michael Peck, Matthew Robertson, Neil Ferguson, Robert Hicks and Thomas Greenwood beat all comers in the regional contest. Together with our Sixth Form team they competed in the county final but this time were not successful. However, they have plans to take part again next year as they found the challenge very worthwhile. Sporting Round-Up A school tennis tournament is being organised again, probably run on a knock-out basis with a plate competition for those who lose in the early rounds. Each year will have a separate competition. Again the school plans to enter the TSB Tennis Challenge Cup. Athletics will, of course, feature strongly in the Summer programme. A full round-up of winter sports will be given in the next Newsletter. Our footballers are doing well with the Year 10 team having already won their league. Rugby saw the girls XV playing their first matches and the Year 8 boys finished oft their season with a victory against Howard of Effingham. Cross country has seen the school's most successful season - Terry Lyszyk was praised by the Surrey Schools Athletic Association for his running in the national championships. Terry, one of the youngest competitors, was the second Surrey boy home and is now ranked 59th nationally. In last Saturday's district Netball tournament our U13 team were runners-up in their group. At the recent Papercourt Regatta, James Angus took the Littleton Trophy, he was runner-up for the Kings Plate with James Hardwick third and Mark Crysell was placed third for the Papercourt Trophy. DIARY DATES: KEELE UNIVERSITY: SUCCESSFUL SCHOOLS
SUMMARY The questionnaire was administered to a random sample of parents and children in each year group in the target schools last October. Returns have now been analysed and reports prepared. They make valuable reading. While it is comforting to note that 99% of parents think Therfield is a good school and would recommend it to their Mends, there are areas to be worked on, for instance why is there such a wide variation between Year groups in participation in extra-curricular activities? Nationally, participation is greatest in Year 8 and then tails off as pupils move through the school. At Therfield there is no such pattern with a huge variation between year groups, with boys being more likely than girls to take part in extra-curricular activities. The school offers so many clubs, sports teams and outof-school activities that some years clearly need to be encouraged to take full advantage of what is available. The survey shows that homework is seen as important by all parents and at Therfield pupils do more than most schools in the report. Boys say they do less homework than girls - even though they are set similar amounts. Over 80% of parents check work and have confidence that the children will be expected to work hard and will enjoy success at school. Attendance at Parents' Evenings is shown as 97%. Attendance at concerts and shows, Friends' functions and Governors' annual meetings are lower, though most parents seem happy with the information given about the work of the school and the governors. While a disquieting percentage of parents (15%) see bullying as a problem (19% nationally), only 6% of pupils of pupils at Therfield consider it a problem and when reported it is always taken seriously and dealt with promptly. The state of the school buildings, overcrowding and condition of the toilets produced many adverse comments from parents and pupils, but the new buildings and walkways should do a lot to make the school environment more pleasant. As for toilets we are constantly upgrading, refurbishing and repairing - nudged very often by reports from the School Council. The three most popular reasons for parents choosing to send their children to Therfield are 'good examination results' (76%), 'child would be happy' (72%) and 'attended open evening' (69%). When it comes to pupils, 93% respond that school work is important to them, though only 73% say they work as hard as they can! A good percentage of Therfield pupils (55%) see themselves as above average in ability. Interestingly this is common to both boys and girls, whereas nationally the boys (52%) are more positive about their abilities than the girls (44%). There are always dangers in statistics' surveys but we are grateful to all the parents who filled in the information for this survey. We will be using the results to ensure that Therfield continues to give the best education and opportunities possible to your children. The reports are detailed and extensive and it would not be economic for us to copy them for distribution to all parents. However, if any parent is interested, please contact Mr. Geary and he will arrange for you to see a copy. |