As many of you will know, last Thursday we had our final whole High School assembly of the year and on Friday we had our last formal day of teaching for our wonderful, inspiring first ever grade 12 students culminating in what is sure to an iconic school tradition – the Grand Walk. These were days of mixed emotions, as are right and proper during rites of passage, and I want you to know how the days went.
The assembly was conceived, crafted and delivered by students from grades 9, 10 and 11; it consisted of recognising what has happened over the last few years in High School with grade 12 as the role models. It was a great tribute to the spirit of the school that students create and deliver such events; it’s also a wonderful tribute to the grade 12 leavers that there was so much to say about them, and so many people who wanted to say it. The culture of recognition and celebration is one that these grade 12s have created, nurtured, and are now passing the tradition on; it’s clear that the impact of our senior year has been so strong, and so keenly felt by the whole High School.
So although this was a Grade 12 leaver’s assembly, really, it was about the whole High School, because we are now very close to having completed our first full year, with all grade levels. That means we are no longer ‘new’, no longer officially a start-up – we are about to close the cycle and so in a sense, it’s our first birthday.
We heard about the wonderful things that have happened with Grade 12 this year, last year, and the year before. I think what most students in other grades may not have recognised was that it can be pretty tough being the most senior year. Grade 11 are, I suspect, feeling it now – but those in grade 12 have been the most senior students for at least two, and for ex-FIBs, for three years. It is a rare privilege, to be the role models for a K-12 school – it usually lasts a year and by the time they reach grade 12, students are ready for it. But to have been in that role for as long as grade 12 have been, with no peers to look up to, no peers to give you that friendly advice, no peers to guide you – that’s been tough. Teachers are there, of course, but peers were not. And this was tougher perhaps than grade 12 have realised, for the whole of the last three years; there was never the chance of seeing how the year before did it. So all future years have a lead to follow, and we owe the grade 12s a huge debt of gratitude.
And what have grade 12 achieved? What have they left as a legacy for all future grades to follow? Well, when they started, two or three years ago, we made it clear just how much we expected from them; how high our hopes were for them. Their teachers, who have taught all around the world, in some of the best schools around the world, came here to create something special, and our expectations have been incredibly high. We really are so incredibly proud of them.
And what are we proud of? That grade 12 have made their High School education;
- More about the skills and qualities of a decent character that will take them great places in your lives, rather than about narrow grades that will, frankly, have forgotten in a few years anyway,
- More about the critical thinking that they need for a lifetime of learning, rather than about a few years of memorisation
- More about who they are and about being the best they can be, rather than who they beat in class, or on the pitch
- More about working toward getting better rather than toward being what seems now to be the smartest, or getting an award for winning
And so they leave behind memorable things that others will come and build on, and improve, and be inspired by:
- A series of iconic school events – imagined by them, created by them, and in the first instances, led by them
- First – rate university offers and places that would be the envy of any school, and the award of some the most prestigious university scholarships available anywhere in the world.
- Perhaps most importantly, and most profoundly for the other grades, they are leaving a culture that has squared the circle between focussed academic excellence and broader holistic values; they have excelled at both, and watching them, I think they have, for the most part, had a lot of fun doing it.
We hope they know that you will be missed; there will be some quiet tears shed when they leave; I have been through many Leaver’s Days, but I have never been sadder to see a group go.
If there is an overall message here for us at East, it is for us all to look back and reflect that it didn’t seem like that long ago when this all began; when they were new. But for the whole High School, we can see that what seems a long way away for all of us – doing GCSEs, reaching grade 12, graduating from university, whatever it is – is really not that far away. So what we can learn? I think there is a profound truth here, and one that gets truer and truer as you get older: What seems like a long time from now, will be now really, really soon. And that means that we need to make the most of each day, each week, each year – and we’re so pleased that grade 12 have done exactly that in their time here. It’s been a pleasure and a privilege to see it happen.
The days ended with a wonderful and touching assembly (this thank you video for teachers was especially moving) and our first ever Grand Walk – where some 2500 people across East Campus recognised and celebrated with our graduates. We were all struck by the way the rest of the school supported our leavers, and the way bonds were strengthened and recognised. I think these photos say a lot about our community.
