New Staff

Over the past few weeks several new staff have joined us.

Computing/Business Studies – Ms N Stevenson

Drama/Media – Ms H Leith

English – Ms K MacSween

English – Ms F Murray

Modern Languages – Ms E Sinclair

Modern Languages – Mr N Ponte

Mathematics – Mr B Lewis (Curriculum Leader)

Mathematics – Ms E Haldane

Chemistry – Dr K Wallace

Senior Science Technician – Ms D Adams

Classroom Assistant – Ms S law

Modern Studies – Ms M Willis

Administration – Ms S McGinnity

A warm welcome to all!

Rock night 2013

We had a brilliant night this evening at the Liquid Room on Victoria street just off the Royal Mile. The pupils involved (and the staff band!) played their socks off and entertained 150+ of us for 2 hours. The music on offer included well known cover versions and some that were new. It was great to see so many of our pupils being original and creative in this tremendous venue.

One parent I spoke to at the end of the evening remarked that 'Gillespie's celebrates  what other schools would barely tolerate'. I think she's right and I feel proud of our uniqueness and how we encourage and develop independence and creativity across our community
.

Spanish exchange

Messrs Irvine and O'Connor and 20 pupils set off today for a 1 week study exchange in Tenerife. Our pupils will stay with Spanish families and attend classes in Tenerife in the same way that our Spanish guests did when they visited Gillespie's earlier this year.  I am delighted that we are, once again, offering exchanges for our pupils. I'm sure that all involved will benefit hugely from this wonderful experience.

S4 Work Experience

During this session we will be changing our approach to how our S4 pupils participate in work experience. Following feedback from pupils, parents and staff, we will no longer have all of our S4 pupils on work experience at the same time. Over the past few years this has happened in the second half of November.

This practice resulted in limited opportunities for some pupils who were slower of the mark in getting their placements organised. Instead, during this current session, S4 pupils will arrange a week's work experience at a time of their choosing throughout the session. Some may choose to work during a holiday in order to avoid missing classes. Teachers are happier with this arrangement as their teaching schedules are not interrupted in November.

Over the years across different schools I have found that pupils benefit hugely from spending time away from school in a work environment. Some find it tough and don't make it through the week. For many it is a wake up call that to earn a living the work they do won't necessarily be glamorous and as highly paid as they would wish it to be. Most return to school energised and much more focused than before. We mustn't lose that opportunity to broaden and enrich our pupils' education.

On Sunday afternoon, I was in the garden with my two daughters enjoying the splendid Autumnal sunshine when, as in previous years, Jenny drew our attention to a sight that has always make me stop what I'm doing and gaze in amazement at the skies above. I was reminded of a blog I wrote a few yers ago.

I am referring to the wonderful and awesome sight that is a skein of geese. Seeing the geese in their familiar 'V' formation reminded me of a lecture delivered by Dr Richard Holloway at the 2008 Summer international conference in Edinburgh on School Leadership, in which he suggested that humans had much to learn from nature as far as good examples of leadership is concerned. 

The first lesson is: work as a team. Geese migrate long distances flying in V-formation. This formation results in reduced wind resistance, which allows the whole flock to add around 70 percent greater flying range than if each bird flew alone. Geese find out quickly that it pays handsomely to be team players. Second, wise leadership: when the leader at the apex of the V gets tired, it is relieved by another goose. Leaders rotate, empower, delegate, and even step down when it's in the best interest of the team. How often do we see this taking place among organisational leaders? Wise leaders ensure that their followers are well trained and developed in order to achieve true empowerment and smooth succession processes. Third, humane behaviour: if a goose drops to the ground when it gets hurt or sick, two of its colleagues go down with it to take care of it until it either gets healthier or dies. In this fast-paced and competitive age, how often do we see managers going out of their way to help colleagues who are in trouble? I am in no doubt that in organisations, morale, productivity, and loyalty increase when employees look after each other and are treated humanely.

S1 residential

Well done to our S1and accompanying staff who spent the first three days of this week at Broomlee outdoor education centre in West Linton. A third of our S1 (Kyi Community) spent Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday getting to know each other in this beautiful country setting in the conservation village of West Linton. This is the first of three residential experiences that we have organised for our new S1. I spent Monday evening with the group and I was delighted to see how well they were entering into the spirit of the excursion and how much they were enjoying themselves.

As many will know outdoor education was removed from the curriculum in most Edinburgh schools by the early 90s. It's great to now see schools returning to this very exciting and stimulating mode of learning.

I have a dream ...

Earlier this week I chose to talk about dreams to our new S5 at assembly. I spoke about what lies in store for them in the next year and how it is going to be a challenging year. S5 is the year when pupils take their Highers; widely regarded as the 'Jewel in the Crown' of Scottish education. Highers are the main qualifications asked for by Universities recruiting onto their undergraduate programmes from Scottish schools. Highers are difficult and S5 is a particularly challenging year for pupils. I suggested to all that they needed to aim high and to dream of what they might achieve if they worked hard and focused their efforts.  There is disappointment when one falls short but there is no shame. The shame would be in not trying.

I then went on to refer to Dr Martin Luther King's 'I have a dream' speech of 28 August 1963 and how impossible what he dreamt of may have seemed at the time. However, we now have a black president in the White House and equal rights for all is a cornerstone of American society.

I have a dream

I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed - we hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal. 

I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave-owners will be able to sit down together at a table of brotherhood. 

I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a desert state, sweltering with the heat of injustice and oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice. 

I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the colour of their skin but by the content of their character. 

I have a dream today! 

I have a dream that one day, down in Alabama, with its vicious racists, with its governor having his lips dripping with the words of interposition and nullification; one day right there in Alabama little black boys and little black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers. 

I have a dream today!

 

S1 settling in evening

We had a very good turnout this evening at our S1 social evening. The evening began with a glass of wine served by the S6 students who opted to become befrienders to our new S1. As I remarked in my introduction, it's not often I take an assembly where those in the audience have a glass of wine in their hand!

This was the first opportunity for the new S6 to contribute to a school function and they did us proud. They are a great group of young people and I'm sure they'll have another terrific year.

The evening presented an opportunity to introduce several staff in the school to parents and also gave parents a chance to meet each other. A brief presentation from Mr Ben Lewis, our newly appointed Curriculum Leader of Mathematics, gave an overview of how class groups are formed in S1 and how movement between classes takes place. In maths we will assume that all pupils are highly talented and encourage all to achieve at the highest level.

Mr Jonathon Wallace, our Active Sports Coordinator, shared a short video highlighting some of what happened during last session's health week for S1. This was followed by an overview of our sports membership scheme for the coming session and the arrangements for pupils to travel to and fro from Sports centres.

The meeting concluded with questions from parents on a range of issues including:

• Setting policy in maths
• Class groups in English
• Arrangements for the S1 residentials
• Football clubs
• Music clubs

Overall I was very pleased with the evening. I hope that many of those present choose to become members of our Parent Council or our events group.

Pupil voice

Over the past few days I've spoken to a sizeable number of pupils across various year groups to hear their views on how they are settling in to the new session. At both Darroch and Lauderdale the pupils have responded very sensibly and maturely whilst adapting to their new environments. The main concern raised by senior pupils is the time that they are losing whilst in transit between both campuses. Staff are aware of this concern and will ensure that suitably adapted teaching programmes are implemented. During next week, a more extensive survey of pupils will take place in order to ensure that our school's leadership team knows what the concerns and issues are. We will then work with Curriculum Leaders to plan to ensure learning and teaching opportunities are maximised.

Child development and the teenage brain.

Last Friday afternoon all of our teaching staff attended the first in a series of training sessions designed to give us a better understanding of how humans develop from an early age and the conditions that allow children to grow and flourish. Later sessions will take us through the challenges that teenagers face as they move through adolescence and, in particular, how we can best support children this stage in their lives. An entire session will be dedicated to training staff on supporting our pupils when they are feeling stressed. The training will also be offered to pupils and parents later this session.

At a time when there is so much pressure on young people to aim high and be the best they can be I'm really pleased to be in
volved in this exciting initiative.

Darroch - shaken, not stirred.

Since the beginning of last week, our senior school has 'decanted' to Darroch. Overall, the move has gone well and the pupils and staff are now settling into new routines and adapting well to their new surroundings.

The following information was obtained from the official Darroch website which is maintained by a proud and growing former pupils' association.

 ‘Darroch School was built in 1908 but was originally called Gilmore Place Primary School.  However in 1928 the Education Committee decided to convert the school into a three year secondary school to be named after the late chairman of the committee, Professor Darroch, and was retitled Darroch Intermediate School.  A couple of years later in 1932 it was renamed as Darroch Technical and Commercial School.’

By the 1950’s it was called Darroch Junior Secondary School and when it eventually closed in the early 1970’s the title had been truncated to Darroch Secondary School. In the intervening years Darroch has accommodated a number of other schools whilst they were being rebuilt.

Perhaps Darroch’s most famous FP is Sean Connery.  Most people I know regard Sean as the best ever Bond. As a Bond fan, I’m inclined to agree.

End of first week

We are now at the end of the first completed week for pupils and whilst, all appears to be up and running, we will now need to review our progress and, where we can, make some adjustments. Over the next two days I will be visiting classes at both Lauderdale and Darroch to speak with pupils and staff about the first week. The three questions I will be asking are:
1) What's working well?
2) What's been tricky and
3) What changes should we make.

Armed with this information I will then meet with senior staff and assess which of the current arrangements are causing concern and what changes we will make.

During the past week the pupils and staff have been superb. There have been some glitches but all have been patient and used common sense and initiative to resolve settling in issues.

Parents are invited to drop me a note or contact me by email to share any feedback they have at this stage. I will report on progress on this blog and in the next newsletter which is scheduled to go out in 2 weeks time.

Pupils return

The second full day with pupils is now complete and I am delighted that we are now quickly settling into a very positive and purposeful way of working at both the Darroch site (for S4,5 and 6) and at Lauderdale (for S1,2 and 3). The staff and the pupils have been magnificent in spite of a few teething difficulties, that have limited our capability to communicate both within and outwith the school. Now that our ICT has been repaired we can, once again, access emails and use ICT for teaching, registration etc. As is often the case, one doesn't appreciate the value of something until it is not available. This is very much the case with our ICT. Teachers and pupils now expect to have ready and easy access to the 'World wide web' to enhance all that they do and take advantage of the many benefits that electronic devices present.

All pupils are quickly familiarising themselves with their new classrooms and, in some cases, their new teachers. There is a real buzz around the school as we settle back into our routines and picking up where we left off in June.

New term

Staff have been very busy over the past few days in anticipation of pupils returning to school after the summer holiday. Returning to school this year though is quite different.

From tomorrow, our senior pupils (those in years 4,5 and 6) will be based at Darroch for many of their classes. Pupils in years 1,2 and 3 will have all their classes at the Lauderdale Campus.

I am delighted that both schools are ready for 'business as normal', thanks to the hard work of staff and those who have supported us. We have had some technical difficulties with 'phones and accessing email and I know that this has caused frustration for parents and pupils who have tried to contact us over the summer,and particularly last week when the exam results were received. Sincere apologies to all who have been inconvenienced by this. 'Phones were restored early last week and I am hopeful that our email communication and access to web based resources will be fully restored in the next few days. In the meantime we will endeavour to work through the backlog of email and we'll do our best to respond to all who have contacted us.

I am very pleased with the results overall and especially so in S5 where the percentage success rate for gaining 3 or more Highers is the highest in the past 5 years. Similarly, in S6, we have had record numbers achieving passes in Advanced Highers. Well done to everyone associated with our school community.

Tomorrow (Wednesday) we will warmly welcome all pupils back to school, especially our 200 new S1s as they embark on their 'Journey to Excellence' with us at the High School. Pupils should view our 'Homepage' for details of where to report for registration on Wednesday 14 August.

'It takes a village to raise a child' (Old African proverb).

Recovering from chronic fatigue

To mark the start of the school holidays we've had friends staying with us for the past two days. What has been remarkable about this get together is having the opportunity to witness the incredible recovery that their 16 year old daughter has made in the past two months. This girl has been suffering from chronic fatigue for the past two and a half years; the illness has resulted in her dropping out of school and becoming a virtual recluse trapped in her tiredness and severely curtailed lifestyle.  Family routines have been turned upside down whilst a succession of tests and treatments proved fruitless. To add to the sense of loss and frustration she was a top performing pupil with varied musical and sporting interests in common with many of her peers and friends. 

  Following several sessions with a trained therapist, this girl's life has taken a dramatic turn for the better. Her recuperation continues but seeng her looking like her former gregarious and energetic self has been wonderful. What a magical start to the summer holiday. 

June newsletter

Please follow this link to our June newsletter.

http://jghsnews.blogspot.co.uk/

China trip 2013

Good luck to 50 intrepid explorers who are currently in Beijing, China. This is the first year that we have run this particular trip; I'm sure it will be a great success.

A text from Mr Irvine, received earlier today,

reads as follows:

We finally arrived at the Rainbow Hotel in Beijing on Friday, around 1 am local Time. After a short sleep we were up again. I was really pleased to see the students trying typical Chinese breakfast food, the small white dumplings were delicious. We are now on a bus heading north, a 60km bus journey, to the Great Wall. We are having a lesson on Chinese language, characters and culture en route. 
Unfortunately my iPad seems unable to access my China Blog when I am in the hotel. I will try my best to keep you updated on our Chinese adventure.

We are running this trip jointly with Liberton High School - my former school.

Poor white children do worst at British schools

Earlier this evening I came across this comment on 'The Times' website by a gentleman in response to an article entitled: 'Poor white children do worst at British schools'. It makes interesting reading and offers a bit more depth to the discusion on school attainment than normally appears in the press.

I find the  reports from Ofsted and similar sources on the performance of children in education to be seriously lacking in depth and perhaps understanding. I was born during the second world war and raised in a coastal town port area. The school catchment took in children from all over the world. And yes, there was serious poverty. However, some children from the lowest districts did very well. Some because of the encouragement of their parents to do well at school and a few who, despite the lack of interest from the parents, were determined to escape the poverty and the depressed areas where they lived. For these the Grammar schools were the escape route to a better life. Some of the boys who were very intelligent had no encouragement at home to study and the emphasis was for them to leave school and start earning so they could contribute to the upkeep of the family. There were many boys who were not academic but were skilled with their hands or in other ways. Yet again some were not very bright but many were kindly and well behaved. The majority were very valuable young people who, with the right kindness and encouragement would develop to be very useful and worthy people in our society. Academic achievement is not the only marker of value and worthiness, and poverty is not the only reason for the lack of success. A lot is to do with the feeling of confidence and the sense of self worth or the absence of these life elements.
If we move forward to my 40's there was a period when I became a volunteer tutor on the County adult literacy and numeracy scheme. The reasons for illiteracy were complex and the level of illiteracy was severe, with some unable to spell even three letter words. These students were not stupid or thick, and it was a great reward to see the students develop. I am reminded of a few cases as an example. The first was a man who used to make model steam engines from scratch as a hobby. He used to buy the blueprints of locos and because he could not read he used to get a friend to read all the technical notes on the drawings out to him. He remembered (because he had to) all the notes, usually from several drawings, so that he could build the engines, which he did superbly. I remember well a lady student who was so thrilled when for the first time she could read Christmas and birthday cards and know who they had come from, and also be able to read the instructions on food packaging and washing powder etc. There was a local scrap metal merchant who was very wealthy, illiterate and who wanted to learn to read; his motivation was the feeling of shame. But perhaps the saddest thing of all were the teenagers, the door latch children, who had little attention or guidance from either parent, because both were working. These children brought themselves up by their own shoe strings. Typically in many of their houses there were no books to be seen or even contained anywhere in the house. There could be a lot of material goods and the latest electronic gadgets - but no books. Often there was no peace and quiet in which to settle down to read or do homework.
I am in my 70's now so my views will be out of date in many respects. However, the lack of money itself does not necessarily mean a child is held back. The culture and atmosphere in the home, in school and in society is a very big influence towards success or otherwise. It is unfair on teachers to publish inspection reports which do not fully take into account and openly admit the wider influences in a child's life. It would be good to read a detailed response from Sir Michael Wilshaw which acknowledges and shows his depth of understanding of the deeper issues affecting the education success of school children. Over to you Michael Wilshaw and indeed all others who can make suggestions for actions with more positive outcomes for the children- it is the outcomes that matter and not the theories.

Farewell to the outgoing S6

On Friday evening, in the warm June sunshine, we bade farewell to our wonderful S6 pupils. saying farewell to the outgoing pupils is always special but particularly so this year as this is the last session in the current campus buildings.  The evening began with a champagne reception for serving staff, parents and S6. Following this, pupils were led off the campus for the last time by one of our pipers and onto the coaches that awaited in Lauderdale Street. Pupils and staff then enjoyed a sumptuous meal at the nearby Grosvenor Hotel.

The final words from my farewell speech were as follows:

''None of us knows what lies in store for each of us. What you do and where you go will be a combination of choice and chance. I have no doubt that Jghs has prepared you well as rounded individuals for all the uncertainty and excitement that lies ahead. 

My final words I draw from the great Nelson Mandela for whom we wish a speedy recovery from his current illness. He said “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.

To all of the outgoing S6 I invite you to go now and change the world and make it a better place. ''

Donald John Macdonald (Headteacher)

Farewell

Serving and former colleagues enjoyed a lovely meal tonight in the Bruntsfield Hotel to mark the retiral of four special colleagues. To Mrs Woods, Ms Malcolm, Mrs Young and Mr Pennell, we wish a very long and happy retirement.

The Spark

Two months ago, Emma (S2 pupil) came to see me to discuss an initiative which she was keen to develop. Emma - calmly and very sensibly -explained to me that my newsletter was ok but it's format and content didn't really appeal to pupils. She suggested that a more pupil friendly newsletter was needed. The recently published 'The Spark' 
http://www.jamesgillespies.edin.sch.uk/pupils/THE%20SPARK-1.pdf 
is evidence of what Emma's team has produced over the past 8 weeks! 

Proud to be from Edinburgh

Earlier today we visited this memorial site with 35 Jghs pupils. 

History trip to Belgium

On our second day of our History 'Trenches Trip' Janie Rose Cowan shares her reflections on her first two days. 

We started yesterday by taking a boat ride around Brugges. It was such a beautiful city. We then went to the trench of death. Today, (Sunday 19 May) we started off by going to a cemetery. It was really emotional and very sad to see just a tiny proportion of the soldiers that died. After that, we went on on to the Flanders Field Museum. We learned about some of the soldier's tragic stories about being in the First World War. We also visited the Sanctuary wood. It was actually really terrifying to what it must have been like for the soldiers in the First World War in the trenches.

The thing that struck me most was just the sheer number of gravestones in the cemeteries that we went to. It was so sad and a really emotional day. 

Digital learning in schools

One of the issues that schools are grappling with currently is that of digital learning and especially 1:1 learning for pupils. The following link is worth looking at as it takes you to a summary of the main opportunities and challenges.   One to one digital learning

Ubuntu

At yesterday's conference for Edinburgh Council school leaders mention was made of 'Ubuntu' by Steve Munby our main speaker. Given Gillespie's strong links with South Africa I was intrigued to find out more. What I found out was fascinating. 

As I have become older and wiser I find myself becoming a much stronger advocate and practitioner of restorative approaches to managing behaviours than was the case in my earlier career. Becoming a parent has also influenced how i work and relate with children. I have found a restorative approach to be much more effective in changing and sustaining improvements in teenagers' behaviours in the long term. There remain however in our schools and society at large a significant group that believes in a system based on proportionate and often severe punishment. Perhaps that explains why as a country Scotland has the shameful distinction of incarcerating the highest proportion of its citizens in Europe. 

The following extract from Wikipedia explains what the Ubuntu philosophy is about.

Tim Jackson refers to Ubuntu as a philosophy that supports the changes he says are necessary to create a future that is economically and environmentally sustainable.

Judge Colin Lamont expanded on the definition during his ruling on the hate speech trial of Julius Malema.

Ubuntu is recognised as being an important source of law within the context of strained or broken relationships amongst individuals or communities and as an aid for providing remedies which contribute towards more mutually acceptable remedies for the parties in such cases. Ubuntu is a concept which:

1. is to be contrasted with vengeance;
2. dictates that a high value be placed on the life of a human being;
3. is inextricably linked to the values of and which places a high premium on dignity, compassion, humaneness and respect for humanity of another;
4. dictates a shift from confrontation to mediation and conciliation;
5. dictates good attitudes and shared concern;
6. favours the re-establishment of harmony in the relationship between parties and that such harmony should restore the dignity of the plaintiff without ruining the defendant;
7. favours restorative rather than retributive justice;
8. operates in a direction favouring reconciliation rather than estrangement of disputants;
9. works towards sensitising a disputant or a defendant in litigation to the hurtful impact of his actions to the other party and towards changing such conduct rather than merely punishing the disputant;
10. promotes mutual understanding rather than punishment;
11. favours face-to-face encounters of disputants with a view to facilitating differences being resolved rather than conflict and victory for the most powerful;
12. favours civility and civilised dialogue premised on mutual tolerance.