Why are Feast Days important?

In common with many other faith schools, Notre Dame School has a feast day to celebrate its foundation, in this case on the 15 May, the anniversary of the sainthood of St Jeanne de Lestonnac who opened her first school in 1607. My own friends often talk about Feast Days or Founders Days from their own childhoods, and when I say I’ve had a great day at school they often laughingly ask: “Was it a Feast Day?”

However, in these busy times, when performance and attainment are uppermost in people’s minds and the fear of lesson time wasted or ill used for entertainment is a prevalent fear, I believe it is time for us to remind ourselves again about the importance of Feast Days.

For me, excellent education is a holistic affair. Children need to become rounded, moral, thinking, spiritual beings in order to be fulfilled in life and to contribute to society. These dispositions do not happen by accident, and although their own families are the first best educators, it is the experiences shared in common with their peers and their role models that really help them to develop. Experiences provided by the school shape and form an individual far more than the taught concepts. Living life and learning to manage it, with all the complexity of social interaction and the ability to understand what contributes to happiness and self-satisfaction, is far more likely to make a positive difference to success in life than an extra hour of maths and English.

So my school reorganises the day, to allow for most of the usual lessons to be fitted in, but making space for the whole school to come together for a service of celebration and thanksgiving and for shared lunch where all of the age-groups mix to make new friends and ‘big’ or ‘little sisters’. Aside from the social aspects, the bigger girls are role models for the younger. Their tenderness with the youngsters is touching to see, and a valuable part of life.

The Feast Day for me also focuses attention on a shared celebration that touches this whole community. Unlike any other event it does not reward the success of the few, it does not rely on competition, and it is not more applicable to some than others. A Feast Day simply offers itself as a shared celebration in common with whole community, much as a birthday or Christmas celebration might in the family home. School spirit, something that translates itself through life into family spirit, community spirit, or even a willing or tireless work ethic begins here, and cannot be created by lessons alone. Character is not the result of audited academic success. Being part of a community and being able to celebrate that 'belonging' is also an essential part of personal happiness.

On other days beyond the norm, for house competitions, rehearsals, concerts, assemblies, music ensembles, sports activities and the like, children are given opportunities to contribute to the community in a way that does not simply benefit them or lead to personal success. I firmly believe that understanding the contribution that one can make to the whole is an essential discipline. Work in the twenty first century is more than likely to involve collaboration, presentation, self-discipline, ability to listen (Apprentice candidates take note!), and discernment about one’s place in the group and judgement about who to imitate and follow. All of these are learned more effectively through activities and experiences beyond the classroom. For pupils that cannot be happily involved beyond the limelight, who are not trained to watch and join in on cue, who don’t know that there are strengths and rewards in being an anonymous part of a celebrating community, who do not turn up to events after hours if their parents are not going to be in the audience, who cannot feel motivated if there is no reward, life will be deeply frustrating, puzzling and hard grind.

So happy Feast Day to you all, whenever that day may be for you. 

What is the point of an all through school?

Notre Dame School Cobham, of which I have recently become the Prep Head, has embarked on a new era by becoming one school for pupils aged 2 to 18. We are now taking girls straight through one school from Nursery to University. Although there have been two schools on this site for over fifty years the schools have this year merged to make fuller use of resources, expertise and leadership in depth.

By happy coincidence in today’s Guardian there is an article about partnerships between primary and secondary schools http://www.guardian.co.uk/teacher-network/teacher-blog/2013/may/08/collaboration-primary-secondary-schools-working-together?CMP=twt_gu which underlines the benefits of primary and secondary practitioners working alongside each other for the good of pupils.

The first obvious benefit is the use of shared facilities, which for us has been possible for some time as we share one beautiful site, but now will be timetabled together by the Heads to allow for greater flexibility. Introduction of new subjects such as food technology for older juniors also becomes possible through shared staff, and can also offer an early start to senior school languages and other subjects where cross phase teaching becomes available.

One of the greatest benefits is the community of practice that can develop when teachers working with different age groups can come together to discuss issues and solutions to teaching conundrums – and also help to develop schemes of work and models of good learning for, and with, each other. Trust in a learning community always engenders better experiences for pupils, especially when the style and history of education, curricula and learning objectives are fully open and understood as the child passes into each new phase. Training for staff can be geared to the needs of subjects, departments or to the whole school as pupils are enabled to build upon their primary school foundations and to achieve greater success in their futures. Resources and buildings can be utilised to the maximum and older and younger pupils can benefit from learning alongside each other for particular projects, such as reading to a class or sharing a celebration.

In some environments primary teachers believe that senior teachers are only interested in examination success in their subjects and don’t have a holistic view of education. In some schools secondary teachers believe that primary teachers play all day and that education proper begins aged eleven. Not so in my own school where collaboration and shared understanding are beginning to lead to better planning across the whole school and to create dialogue between clever and reflective professionals. This will have a positive impact on achievement for all pupils, who can be known and valued as they grow and develop throughout their school careers. 

  

Of course this all takes time and energy; however a good school will easily understand that this shared endeavour, which in our case is underpinned by 400 years of good practice (as part of a worldwide foundation) and an educational project that is uncompromising in seeking the best for all of our pupils, is worthwhile. Joining two into one, like a thoughtful and loving marriage, or even a sword and ploughshare, certainly creates something for our pupils which is far greater than the sum of its parts.