Annual Greyfriar's lecture - Wednesday 9 October

This year's annual lecture will be delivered jointly by Anne MacPhail (Ht of Bun Sgoil Taobh na Pairce) and me.

 

Every year, the Gaelic congregation of Greyfriars Tolbooth and Highland Kirk hosts a public lecture, inviting well-known figures to speak on some aspect of the Gaelic world. Poets, academics, language activists and others have spoken on a range of subjects covering the history, culture and present-day situation and challenges of the Gaelic language and the communities who speak it.

This year has been a big one for the Gaelic community in Edinburgh, with the opening of the capital's first fully Gaelic Medium primary school - a milestone in the development of Gaelic education, and an important step in the revitalisation of the language. Recent years have also seen considerable growth in the provision of Gaelic-medium education and learning opportunities at high school level in the city. We have therefore decided that this year's lecture will be on the subject, "Gaelic Education in Edinburgh", and will be delivered jointly by Anne MacPhail (Head Teacher of the new Bun-sgoil Taobh na Pairce), and Donald Macdonald (Head Teacher of James Gillespie’s High School).

The lecture is sure to be of interest to anyone with an interest in Gaelic, minority-language rights and education. All are very welcome to attend.

The lecture will be delivered in English, with time for discussion at the end. Tea and coffee will be provided afterwards.

9 October at 19:30

Greyfriars Kirk

.

Magic moments

Undoubtedly, my favourite moments in teaching occur through interactions I have with pupils. When I set off on a walk round the school you never really know what's going to happen or who you're going to speak with. I think that's why I consider my job to be so special and magical.

Last week, whilst I was speaking with a parent at our reception, a S1 boy sidled up to me and when he caught my eye he asked me if I could help him. On enquiring further he asked me if I could post a letter for him. I was curious to say the least, as no pupil had ever made this request of me before. Thus, I enquired further. 'John' then explained that he wanted to write to the White House to offer advice on how they should respond to the unfolding events taking place in Syria. I was intrigued.

John explained to me that he had been listening to the news and felt strongly about what was happening and so he felt compelled to write. Reaching in to his well stocked schoolbag John retrieved and shared with me a neatly folded piece of A4 paper.  I unfolded it and read John's letter.

Dear Mr Obama,
I am a first year pupil at James Gillespie's High School and I would like to offer you some advice on how to deal with the Syrian Government. I think the Americans should attack from the East and the British from the west. 

Please do not hesitate to contact me if you would like to discuss this further.

Yours sincerely,

John


I suggested to John that he should hand his letter in to reception so that Mrs Gordon would make the necessary arrangements.

After break, Mrs Gordon asked me what she should do with the letter. Without hesitation I suggested we enclose a 'With Compliments' slip and post the letter to America. I'll be really interested to see if John gets a response.

Later in the day, as John was departing, he once again came to speak with me and politely enquired if the letter had been posted. I explained that it had. 'Good' he said, I'll have another one tomorrow for Downing Street and Buckingham Palace.

When things are getting too fast in the fast lane ...

A professor stood before his philosophy class
and had some items in front of him.
When the class began, wordlessly,
he picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar
and proceeded to fill it with golf balls.

He then asked the

students

, if the jar was full.
They agreed that it was.

The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured
them into the jar. He shook the jar lightly.
The pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls.

He then asked the students again if the jar was full. They agreed it was.

The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar.
Of course, the sand filled up everything else.
He asked once more if the jar was full. The students responded with a unanimous 'yes.'

The professor then produced two cups of coffee from under the table and poured the entire contents into the jar, effectively
filling the empty space between the sand. The students laughed.

'Now,' said the professor, as the laughter subsided,
'I want you to recognise that this jar represents your life.
The golf balls are the important things - family,
children, health, Friends, and Favorite passions –
Things that if everything else was lost and only they remained, Your life would still be full.

The pebbles are the other things that matter like your job, house, and car.

The sand is everything else --The small stuff.

'If you put the sand into the jar first,' He continued,
'there is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls.
The same goes for life.

If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff,
You will never have room for the things that are important to you.

So...

Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness.
Play With your children.
Take time to get medical checkups.
Take your partner out to dinner.

There will always be time to clean the house and fix the disposal.

'Take care of the golf balls first --
The things that really matter.
Set your priorities. The rest is just sand.'

One of the students raised her hand and inquired what the coffee represented.

The professor smiled.
'I'm glad you asked'.

It just goes to show you that no matter how full your life may seem,
there's always room for a couple of cups of coffee with a friend.'

Newsletter Sept 2013

The September Newsletter is now on our school website and can be accessed via the menu bar on the left of our home page.

My introduction is as follows:

Welcome to the first edition of the Newsletter after the summer break. I hope you had a wonderful summer and enjoyed time away from the school routines to spend time relaxing with friends and family over what was an unexpectedly but welcome warm and pleasant summer.

The pupils are back, enthusiastic and refreshed and we look forward to working with them and yourselves towards ensuring that each and every one aims high and that they do the best that they can.

I am delighted to report that this session has started very positively and we are all now settled into a purposeful routine after the summer break.  Pupils and staff who are travelling between both the Darroch and Lauderdale campuses have found the quickest route and with the exception of a few stragglers I am pleased at how smoothly the changeover between classes is working.

This year’s SQA results, particularly at Higher, were excellent so I’d like to congratulate everyone on their achievements. Throughout the session our newsletters and website will share with you the many and varied achievements of our pupils. We continue to be immensely proud of the variety of achievements from the young people in Gillespie’s.

The new S1 have settled in well.  Staff invariably describe our new charges as polite, well-mannered and sensible. Well done to our new S1! The reintroduction of our S1 residential experience has been warmly received by pupils and the first of these involving pupils in Kyi last week at the Broomlee Outdoor centre was an outstanding success.  

It was great to meet so many of our new parents at our social evening on Thursday 29 August. Please contact your child’s guidance teacher if there are any matters that concern you as your child is finding his/her feet at High School. I hope that many parents will come along to our next Parent Council meeting on Tuesday 17 September at 7 Pm.

I am delighted to report that since we resumed in August we have seen a significant improvement in the amount of litter that was being discarded around the school. Thank you to everyone for your support in this.

You may be aware that we have placed a copy of this year’s school improvement plan on our website. This will allow you to view what we are planning to improve. The areas chosen for improvement are based on our ongoing evaluations of how we are doing in tandem with feedback throughout the year from all members of our school community.

Throughout the coming session we will continue to raise money for a variety of worthwhile causes. These will include school based projects and charities at both home and abroad. As has been the tradition over many years, our S6 will lead on fundraising efforts for our link South African schools. A St Andrew’s Day event, run by senior pupils, as well as several events throughout the year, will be organised by our Parents’ events group and JGHS Trust. In addition, there will be occasional fundraisers sprinkled throughout the year as organised by pupil led committees. Please continue to give generously. I look forward with enthusiasm to working with you all in the coming session.

Donald J Macdonald (Headteacher)

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.