Greetings from Brighton, where I have spent two days with nearly 400 Prep School Heads for our annual conference. Whilst I never enjoy being out of school, these few days provide valuable opportunities to discuss important sector-wide trends and updates, and delve into the important detail of looking after young people. Sessions on 13+ assessments, AI, welfare and safeguarding, special educational needs and boarding were all informative; however it is always the opportunities to engage with fellow Heads to share good practice which is always so nourishing and important.
Learning and Teaching is always at the heart of our discussions, especially pertinent now as we navigate the shifting landscape around AI and assessment. I was gratified by the numerous references to our own curriculum journey, and in particular emphasis on the skills and mindsets that our Packwoodians will develop. Lots of Heads were keen to learn more.
A good conference should always galvanize some intent back at school, and this time it was two remarks that struck a powerful chord with me.
The first was from an excellent speaker today, Alex Partridge, who gave a keynote on supporting young people with ADHD. He gave a wonderful analogy of a child’s mind sometimes being clogged up by what he coined as “highly caffeinated squirrels running in lots of different directions”. He was referring to children with ADHD, but his remark reminded me of a comment from Dominic Norrish, CEO of IAPS, in his opening address on Wednesday – my second remark. Referencing recent events in both the USA and London, which saw the very real consequences of extremism across both sides of the political spectrum, he gave a passionate appeal for Prep Schools to continue to do what they do best: nurture kind, decent, tolerant and balanced human beings.
In this context, the analogy of squirrels racing around in different directions relates to the global confusion we find ourself educating young people into. The amplification of polarised voices fills the airways, with algorithms – and in some cases human intervention – drawing out those with the most extreme views. This, amidst the context of the reality of real world readiness, places our children in a position where childhood has become such a complex journey, often laden with expectation.
As I travel back from Brighton, therefore, I consider what my key take away messages are. There are many; they transcend across all areas of school life.
However, I alight on what I believe to be the most significant driver behind a brilliant prep school education, and an aspect that is sometimes overlooked in our race to achieve immediate results in the classroom, on the games field and in the plethora of co-curricular opportunities we provide.
It is simple, really, yet totally transformational: it is our moral imperative to draw out kindness, balanced and totally non-judgmental mindsets and an acceptance for, and celebration of, difference in Packwoodians. It is in our relentless pursuit of this that will enable our young Packwoodians to calm their inner squirrel and navigate their journey with clarity and compassion.
William Goldsmith
Head of Packwood
