“Education should be gentle and stern, not cold and lax.”
John Rae, Head Master of Westminster School from 1970 – 1986 often referenced Joubert’s quote, above. Rae was a prolific writer, publishing his diaries and collections of various letters written and received during his headship. His philosophy towards education seems to align with Joubert.
As a Head, Rae was progressive and shaped Westminster to be the school it is today: academic, liberally-minded and fiercely focused on the individual.
One of John Rae’s books, Letters from School, contains a series of thoughtfully written letters he wrote to parents during his headship. Long before email and the perceived need to address issues quickly and without proper thought, some of these letters are just as relevant today. I have found one that seems very apposite on the theme of late developers (I should add that I don’t agree with the term late developer, given the connotation that late is somehow a handicap).
Herewith an extract from the letter John Rae wrote:
“Yes, I do believe in the late developer. I know that he exists. [From] my own experience, I failed A-Level, or Higher Certificate as it was then called. When I applied to Cambridge I was advised to go straight into commerce. When I started teaching, the Headmaster asked if I would like to take a non-academic role.
It is a commonplace story and not at all remarkable, yet there are still many teachers and academics who write off children because they have not passed the right exam at the right age.
What exactly is a late developer? Strictly speaking, he or she is the opposite of an infant prodigy. There are individuals who are born with an aptitude for mathematics or languages but it does not follow that almost everyone else will find the subject difficult, and there are types of intelligences that schools cannot measure.
The School system measures and praises a certain type of intelligence. Intelligence tests measure verbal and logical reasoning ability. This is an important type of intelligence but there are many others that the tests are not designed to measure. For example, they do not measure the intelligence required to assemble a car engine, to run a successful business, to command an army. Nor can they measure common sense. And there is no harm in this as long as teachers and parents do not believe that verbal and logical reasoning is a superior type of intelligence. Unfortunately that is exactly the message that the academic rat-race emphasises.
The system requires children to peak academically at various stage, but maturity will not be hurried“
This letter (which is much longer in his book), guides me to two points which I feel are relevant for our pupils:
Rather like popcorn kernels in a pan, everyone has the capacity to reach their goals and find success; hurry them at our peril.
As has always been the case, success is about academic achievement and wider dispositions – in the form of attitudes and character strengths.
It takes thought and courage to see beyond a verbal, non-verbal, maths or English number, but, as John Rae also remarked:
Waiting for the late developer is not easy and it might take longer for he / she to discover what their potential is and how to develop it. Whatever happens, believe in them.
