June 2012 archive

A visit to China: Taking Educational and Cultural Exchanges to the next level

Tomorrow I am headed for a week to China, first to Shanghai and then to Beijing, to participate in the annual conference of the World Leading Schools Association. I feel very privileged to be able to attend – partly because it is my first visit to China, and partly because it is always a privilege …

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A handshake, a smile and a thank you … and they were on their way

Ever since our annual Founders’ Day at St Mary’s Calne on Saturday 23rd June – my last at the school before I head to Australia in December – I have been reflecting on the departure of our UVI Formers. There were many special moments during the day – the service in the morning, the speeches …

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A Manifesto for Young Women by Janet Street Porter. Some thoughts.

In today’s Daily Mail, Janet Street-Porter has written a great article outlining her ‘manifesto for young women’, which ends by saying that young women need to believe in themselves. She has some excellent advice, including ‘work like hell at school’, ‘hold your head high’, ‘set your goals’, ‘swap telly trash and internet twaddle for books, …

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What sort of schools do we need? Reflections on a debate at the Wellington College Festival of Education

What a stimulating day! It was a pleasure to discuss wide-ranging educational issues at the Wellington College Festival of Education; I sat on a panel debating the question: What sort of schools do we need? For me, the answer is simple – we need great schools. There are, I believe, three main elements to this …

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Aung San Suu Kyi at Oxford: a moment in history

This may be the week of our school Founders’ Day, but I had an important appointment today in Oxford, at the Sheldonian, to watch part of the University’s annual Encaenia celebrations. Each year, a number of distinguished people are honoured at the Encaenia ceremony with an honorary doctorate in their field, and this year was …

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Founders’ Day and the importance of valuing our history

At the end of this week – on Saturday 23rd June – we celebrate our annual Founders’ Day at St Mary’s Calne. For me – for us all – it is arguably the most important day in the school;s calendar: a day when we remember the Founders of the school, and value their legacy. We …

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Madwomen or mothers of invention?

My eye alighted on this letter in last week’s Sunday Times, addressed to the Editor from Lynnea Shrief, Berkhamsted, Hertfordshire: “Your article “When mums go mad” (Style, last week) contained out-of-date information about me and my children. Furthermore, I understood it would be about my placenta encapsulation business, not about my mothering skills or preferences. …

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The house of dreams: pioneering work for girls in a Mumbai orphanage

This week’s Sunday Telegraph magazine, Stella, contained an uplifting article by Sally Howard, which I have yet to find online; if you can find it and read it, do. In it, she describes a visit to Shraddhanand Mahilashram, an orphanage for girls in Mumbai, India, where girls are taught to be independent, confident young women, …

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A small victory for Afghan equality

It is so easy to get caught up in day-today issues, and to lose an awareness of what is happening in the world. We take so many of our rights for granted, and we are so quick to challenge perceived injustice, that we can sometimes lose a sense of perspective about how lucky we are, …

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Dedication to the lives of others: the way to bring harmony to the world

I very much enjoyed listening on the radio to the Archbishop of Canterbury’s sermon during the National Service of Thanksgiving in St Paul’s Cathedral on Tuesday, as part of the celebrations for the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee. Ever thoughtful, Rowan Williams, reflecting on the Queen’s 60 years of service to the nation, took the opportunity to …

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