Last night saw the launch of the fine new edition of A Portrait of St Columba's College 1843-2013
by Patrick Wyse Jackson and Ninian Falkiner, published by the Old
Columban Society. The first edition went up to 1993, and Ninian Falkiner
has now updated it with 50 extra pages of photographs and text.
The
result is a very handsome volume of fascinating photographs of the
College from its earliest years to 2013, with accompanying text. The new
supplement includes much material on sport, drama, new developments
such as the Library, the Sports Hall and the Cadogan Music Centre, and
features on prominent academic and non-academic staff such as Patrick
Gray, Bud McMullen, Peter Kielty and Jimmy O'Connor. Page 47 has a
striking photograph by Peter Watts of many of the small children of the
teaching staff of the school, who in recent years have contributed to
the distinctively family atmosphere on campus. The new pages also
frequently refer to the College's first-ever independent assessment last
year through the extremely positive Whole School Evaluation by the Inspectorate of the Department of Education and Skills.
Last
night guests gathered in Whitehall to be welcomed by the Warden, who
paid tribute to the editors for their initial project, and to Ninian's
dedication, meticulous attention to detail, and hard work in putting
together the new book. He also welcomed Professor David Dickson (Old
Columban, 1960-65), Associate Professor of History at Trinity College,
Dublin, who formally launched it.
In his comments, Professor
Dickson said that a strong sense of place struck him on reading the
book, of the place that had been the College's home since 1849, and also
that the College was pretty much the same age as photography itself.
Some of his favourite photographs were striking ones of the former
Chaplain, Bert Walsh, preaching in Chapel (page 122, in 1988), of the
former Sub-Warden, Norman Lush, at the reopening of the cricket pavilion
(page 38, 2010) and especially of the staff in 1959 (page 95), a small
and hugely talented group of men who were very very good teachers and,
as has been throughout the College's history, were educators who left a
permanent influence on so many pupils. Did the teachers make the place,
or has perhaps the place itself made these teachers through the ages? He
ended with an appeal for photographs and their 'meta-data' to be
preserved digitally in the future.
Ninian Falkiner then voiced
his appreciation to all for coming to support the venture - a real
gathering of the Columban community. He said that the College and the
Old Columban Society had always had a close and happy bond, and this was
plainly still the case, especially in the complete support the Warden
and Sub-Warden had given him. He thanked the latter, John Fanagan,
several members of staff, and especially Peter Watts for his
photographic expertise, as well as Robert Doyle of the printers
A.D.&D. He reminded all that profits will go to the Bursary Fund of
the Society, and help the children of Old Columbans attend the College,
and concluded by thanking his original co-editor, Patrick Wyse Jackson,
and stating, once again, 'Floreat Columba et Floreant Columbanenses.'
Copies of the book can be purchased from the College Office at €20 each.
Pictured: Professor David Dickson, Ninian Falkiner, Patrick Wyse Jackson, Warden Lindsay Haslett.
All Transition Year Extended Essays are now in (we will post the best of these in due course).
In her reading for the essay, Lucy Maxwell-Brown included Christopher Reeve's autobiography Still Me, and while she was mid-book wrote :
"I think this book is one of the most moving and sad stories I have read in a long time. This honest book tells us a lot about how Christopher Reeves's life went up to the stage that he was now in a wheelchair.
To make a long story short this man was a very active and sporty man; he never stopped - he was swimming, horse riding, cycling, you name it and he probably did it at one stage of his life. Sadly one day Christopher fell off his horse during a important competition and he became paralysed. He was never going to be able to recover from this so after quite some time of being in hospital and the paparazzi chasing him for his news he has come up with an idea.
I am more than three-fifths through the book and I can't manage to put the book down. I recommend this book to everyone and can't say enough about it for people who love autobiographies. This is the most moving and touching book I have ever read."
Another book recommendation by a TY pupil on reading for the Extended Essays, which are now being handed in.
Louvisa Karlsson-Smythe read Maya Angelou's I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, and writes:
"I enjoyed this book a lot, and would recommend it for a variety of reasons.
The book is set between Stamps, a small village in the Southern part of the States and St Louis, and gives us the autobiographical point of view of Maya, originally Marguerite, a black girl who was shipped off to her grandma's to be brought up. It's the travelling between these two destinations and the contrast between them that really makes this book. Also, the book is beautifully written, taking us through the author's childhood is a way that emphasises the small details you wouldn't normally notice, giving them a new level of importance that really makes it seem as if it was the seven or eight year-old Maya writing.
It is a very emotional book in that it takes us through many hardships that she has to endure, but she manages to write about them in a way that is almost elegant.
All in all I rate this book 4.5 out of 5, 0.5 deducted for the ending which I thought was a bit abrupt - for me it just needed more of a elaboration after the climax."
On Thursday, Friday and Saturday we saw the excellent Senior Play production of J.B. Priestley's 'An Inspector Calls'. Here Sofia McConnell from Fifth Form gives her account of the play:
The play starts in Brumley, North England, in the home of a rich industrialist. It is a spring evening in 1912 and the Birling family have just risen from a comfortable family meal, celebrating the engagement of their daughter, Sheila, to Mr. Gerald Croft. The lights shine onto a small set. Four straight-back chairs surround a coffee table in the foreground; to the left there is a large armchair under a lamp. At the back of the stage there is another table, on it a collection of old, leather-bound books and an assortment of drinks. Enter stage right, Sheila (Siobhan Brady) and her young, wild brother, Eric (Sam Clarke), talking, laughing and drinking. They are soon followed by the rest of the party; Arthur and Sybil Birling (Mark McAuley and Gabriella Masding) and Gerald Croft (Aidan Chisholm). Once they are all seated and happily talking, the maid, Edna, (Lydia Johnson) brings in a round of port to finish off a successful evening. So all is well in the Birling household.
A short while later, the bell rings. Edna announces the arrival of an Inspector Goole (Mark Russell). He is here to investigate a suicide case. The suicide of a young, pretty, working class girl, Eva Smith, who killed herself by drinking strong disinfectant. As the plot progresses and thickens the audience is captured up in twist after turn of the inspector’s vigorous questioning. We learn of her previous employment and dismissal at Birling’s factory, of Sheila’s upset at a clothes shop where Eva had found work, which results in Eva being fired again, of Gerald’s “helping hand” once Eva (after changing her name to Daisy Renton), has been reduced to a “different kind of life”. Next to be revealed is Mrs Birling’s prejudiced refusal to give help to Eva from the charity committee of which she was president, simply because the girl, in her desperation, lied about her name and situation. Finally the horrifying truth of Eric’s drunken nights about the town comes out, how he made the same girl pregnant and stole money from his father to support her. The audience watches, helplessly, as Inspector Goole rips apart any walls, any confidence or comfort that this family has established. They fall into disarray, quarrelling, shouting, crying and lapsing into utter despair.
After the inspector has left, Gerald suddenly has an idea that they have been fooled. All expectations are raised suddenly as the inspector turns out to be a fraud. They see a hole through his questioning. What if they’re not all talking about the same girl? What if the “inspector” was pulling their leg and making them believe a collection of girls was actually only one girl. When they call the infirmary and ask about the arrival of a suicide victim that afternoon they are relieved to hear that there was none. All but Sheila and Eric, who are still appalled at all the horrifying truths that have come out, laugh and smile. It seems that, although all is not as it had seemed an hour ago, and although Sheila has broken off (for now) her engagement to Gerald and it seems as if life can go on in the Birling house without public scandal. Suddenly the phone rings. Silence falls on everyone in the room. You could hear a pin drop in the audience. Arthur walks slowly towards the telephone and raises it to his ear. A girl has arrived at the infirmary. A suicide victim, she swallowed a strong disinfectant. A police officer is on his way to ask some questions. All hope is shattered.
The cast were all brilliant and never lost character for a moment. I believe Mark Russell (the inspector) deserves huge praise for his outstanding performance, but huge effort was put in from every one of them and it all paid off. Mr McCarthy and Mr Swift produced an amazing play and so a big thank you to both of them. Overall I think the play was a great success. The whole audience was enraptured from start to end and, when asking people what they thought of the play as they were leaving, one parent told me it was the “greatest, most thrilling performance I have seen in St Columba’s yet.”
Tonight sees the preview of this year's Senior Play, J.B. Priestley's An Inspector Calls, directed by Mr Peter McCarthy. Rehearsals have been under way since near the start of term.
In
this classic drama of mystery and shared responsibilities a small cast
is asked to give intense performances over three acts. The play, to be
performed on three sides, is set in the early part of the 20th century
on a night of self-satisfied celebration for one wealthy family. But not
all is rosy in the Birling household...
The first performance proper is
in the BSR on Friday 15th November, at 7pm, and the second performance
the following evening - same time, same place. All parents and their
guests are most welcome.
(Poster by Molly Dunne)
Another in the irregular series of round-ups of interesting English links from our recent
Twitter stream :-
Two more book recommendations from TY pupils currently writing their Extended Essays:
Andrew Holt has read The Moon is Down by John Steinbeck:
"This novel is set during the Nazi invasion and occupation of neutral Norway. The book is set in a coastal village, one of the first to fall to the Nazis ; it surrenders with little fighting. The book focuses on the silent hatred of the German officers and patrols, and how the people carefully plan and attack the Germans in small outbursts of fighting. I enjoyed this book because it is not about a usual war, it was a mental war of hatred and resentment against the Germans."
Valentina Ascensio recommends Patrick Suskind's Perfume:
"This book is completely different and eccentric.The novel is situated in the eighteenth-century, in France. Jean-Baptiste Grenouille is born with one strange gift: a special sense of smell. As he is growing up, he becomes obsessed with capturing the smells, especially the smell of virgin women. This leads him to create 'the ultimate perfume' and become a cold-blood murderer.
The author is objective; he describes awfulness without giving his opinion, in an inhuman way. The time in which the book is situated is a really difficult time. There were no human rights so civilization wasn't really civilization and the author made the perfect description of that time. I loved this book because is different and really well written."
Two more recommendations based on Extended Essay reading:
Janet Boyd has read Harper Lee's classic To Kill a Mockingbird and writes:-
To kill a Mockingbird was one of those books I always heard people talking about or reading and now I understand why. The book makes you think. It's about a girl thinking back to her childhood and her father's involvement in a case where a black man was accused of rape. Not only was the case interesting, the back story and the secretive neighbour Boo Radley really draw you in. I would recommend this book to everyone.
And Laia Casas Abella has been reading Waris Dirie's autobiography, Desert Flower:-
In my opinion, Desert Flower is an amazing book that reflects the role that women have in Somalian culture. On one hand, it explains some traditions where is shown the discrimination that a lot of African women suffer every day, such as the circumcision. On the other hand, it also shows the valour and the courage of the main character, and the fighter spirit that helped her to get thorough any obstacle and achieve her aims. Therefore, I strongly recommend this book.
Today IV formers start writing their Transition Year Extended Essays. As always, we will post some of the best of these when they are complete.
Meanwhile, three more recommendations of books they have been reading.
Valeria Torres Landa:
A perfect world where there is no sadness, no jealousy, no worries, everything is the same for everyone and decided and controlled by the government. That is what the book The Giver by Lois Lowry is about. This book makes you explore so many feelings and makes you think and give thanks for all the things you have and the things you are allowed to do because in this book everything is decided by the government. I really recommend this book because from the time you open it you will not be able to stop reading.
Alexis Freytag- The Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett:
I got this book from my father for Christmas and and my first thought was: bloody hell is this long! I will never do this. But when I started reading it I just couldn't stop because it was so exiting. The book deals with the building of a cathedral in Kingsbridge near Canterbury in the 12th century. What makes the book so exciting? Well, the whole book is the fight between the monks and the wealthy knights and you just can't guess what happens next. The books is full of surprises!
Thomas Lyster: Colin Montgomery's autobiography:
Monty's book is very good because he talks about his golfing career in which during that time the majors eluded him and he became the best golfer in the world never to win a major. He also talks about his Ryder Cup career which he played in seven times, one as captain in which Europe won by a point.
We start half-term today, and so this blog will get going again on Monday week.
Here are the latest two book recommendations from IV formers reading for their Transition Year Extended Essays, which they will write when we resume (as always, a selection of the best will be published here).
Sophia Wehner has read The Fault in Our Stars by John Green:-
This book is one of my favorite books because it is not like other books about cancer, it is refreshing in the way it´s written even if you think you know from the beginning how it will end. It tells the story of twoyoung people, Hazel and Augustus. Hazel was diagnosed with Stage 4 Thyroid cancer with metastasis forming in her lungs when she was 13, but has managed to live with her disease thanks to doses of an experimental drug called Phalanxifor. They get to know each other in a Support Group for children with cancer. Augustus or "Gus" shows her that everything could be possible even if she is ill. They fall in love although they know that Hazel has not much time anymore... If you want to know how this book ends, read it!
Simon Glennon recommends The Hunger Games, Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins
I always go for dramatic books. I like to always have something to think about and to be lead on by. Something to keep me reading. The Hunger Games is a great book series as it's so unpredictable. I highly recommend the series to anyone with similar interests.
Three more recommendations from IV formers of books they have read recently for their TY Extended Essays:-
Michael Murphy has read Michael Morpurgo's Alone on a Wide Wide Sea:-
I really liked this book because it was so interesting to find out what was going to happen in Arthur's life. It was the first book I've ever wanted to actually make sure I get my prep done fast so I can have a little time just to read more of the book. The story is very good and also very sad; it really makes you feel like you know the characters as if they were your actual friends in life. I'd recommend this book to anyone as I'd know they'd enjoy it as well.
Ciaran Chisholm recommends Erich Maria Remarque's classic All Quiet on the Western Front:
Anyone at all interested in the First World War would love this novel. Remarque describes the perspective of a everyday German soldier in the trenches with very powerful and poignant imagery that keeps the reader gripped with every word.
And Oisin Large recommends Hermann Hesse's The Glass Bead Game:
It's about a man named Joseph Knecht who explains his life through the
book. His dream is to become the Magister Ludi (the master of the game)
of the glass bead game. The glass bead game helps people to understand
their own lives better. It makes fiction become reality and you realise
the truth of the world.
Earlier today INOTE, the Irish National Organisation for Teachers of English, held its annual conference in Kilkenny. Here are some tweets and resources from the day:
On Sunday 29th September we had the annual Transition Year House Speech competition in the Big Schoolroom. Now we have a very thorough review of the speeches and the evening by TY pupil Louvisa Karlsson-Smythe.
As she writes: All in all, the house speech competition was truly a wonderful night. From touching, heart-wrenching speeches to ones which made us cry with laughter, that night, we had it all. The wide variety of subjects chosen by the pupils gave an interesting mix to the whole evening, which I will do my best to review in the following lines.
Read Louvisa's full review here.
Clara Vogel has read John Boyne's The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas for her TY Extended Essay and writes:
This book is one of the most interesting books I have read about the Second World War. Lots of books about the Second World War are told from the view of a victim. But this book is from the view of an officer's child, which is very difficult to do.
The family has to leave Berlin for moving to the Aus chwitz concentration camp. The two siblings don't really know where they are and why they had to move away from their hometown Berlin. The older girl is very self confident and does not have a problem with having no friends there. She is always playing with her dolls. But the younger boy Bruno misses his friends very much. He is very desperate because no other kids live next to him.
One day he decided to explore his environment and finds a fence. He really wants to know what is behind the fence. Then one day a little boy of Bruno's age is sitting on the other side of the fence. They become friends and talk every day. Bruno is learns new things about the other side, where everybody is wearing the same 'pyjamas' and the same short haircut.
I really like the book because of the fact that it is based on a true story. It is very well written so you can't put it away.
For his Transition Year Extended Essay, Harvey McCone is reading Kazuo Ishiguro's haunting Never Let Me Go and writes:-
I like weird books. In a different kind of world or time. That is why I decided to read 'Never Let me Go'. It is a tale of three main characters: Kathy, Ruth and Tommy. The story is told by Kathy. She talks about her meories of their time growing up. They were raised in a picturesque boarding school in the countryside called Hailsham. However this school is different. The students never leave and they call their teachers guardians. They are taught that personal welfare is most imortant.
This is a story of young people growing up and discovering the devastating truth about the short lives ahead of them. It is about love, freindship and loss. I liked this book a lot. I developed strong feelings for the three characters, especially Kathy. If you enjoy books about young people and don't mind something a bit different, this should be the book for you.
Now for the first in our annual series of book recommendations by Transition Year pupils currently reading for their Extended Essays.
Margareta Laudien thinks that John Green's The Fault in our Stars is 'superb', and writes:
It is about the story of two teenagers, Augustus and Hazel, who get to know each other in a support group for people with cancer. But the incredible thing in the book is that Green is able to push the cancer into the background. You almost forget the disease while reading the book. Augustus and Hazel both concentrate on each other, on their life, and try to ignore their bodies - with success. They finally fly to Amsterdam together, where Hazel is hoping to meet her favourite author.
Once started, you don't really want to put the book down. Green wrote it with so much love and humour, that it is nearly impossible not to cry or laugh while reading it. It doesn't tell the story of two teenagers who have cancer. It tells the story of two teenagers who fall in love and live their life.
I recommend this book to everyone. Not only to teenager girls and boys. This is one of the most powerful books I've ever read and can be an inspiration for everyone!
Last week Sadhbh Sheeran travelled to London to read her poem 'Anniversary' at the HMC Conference, and here is her account of the experience -
Last
Tuesday, the 1st of October, accompanied by my ever-encouraging
mother, I headed for the HMC conference in London. I had been chosen by the poet
laureate, Carol Ann Duffy (pictured), as one of four runners-up in the HMC’s sixth form
poetry competition and I was to read my poem at an evening of music and poetry
in London. On arriving at the Hilton hotel on Edgeware Road, where the
conference was being held, I was met by the Warden and James Priory, organiser
of the event. After meeting the winner and other runners-up we had a short
rehearsal. The evening was opened and
closed with a number of pieces of music from different schools. The music
varied from jazz to opera. I was particularly taken by a choir from King's
School Canterbury who had put a modern twist on some classic songs. When it
came to the poetry section of the night we were each presented with a
certificate by the Poet Laureate and in turn read our winning entries. She read
a few of her poems including the very amusing ‘The Laughter of Stafford Girls' High’.
I still
cannot quite believe that Carol Ann Duffy has not only read my poems but that I
was able to read one to her. I had a lovely evening in London, albeit a
somewhat unexpected addition to my week. I particularly enjoyed hearing Carol
Ann read her own work; it had an entirely different
impression on me when read by its author. Meeting her and other young poets has
encouraged me to continue writing. It was altogehter together a thoroughly inspiring
experience.
Anniversary
by Sadhbh Sheeran
I want to say I threw you a party,
Played your songs and told your stories,
But I didn’t.
I wore pyjamas down to breakfast.
I want to say I put on your jacket,
The one you gave me,
But I didn’t.
I did visit you, for the first time all year.
A muddy oblong without a stone.
I chose a card for you. I’d painted it,
Brimming with colours.
I didn’t know what to write so mummy did it.
Maybe you could read it,
I couldn’t.
I did bring you flowers, boring out of season
Flowers; white, cold, nameless things and
Yellow roses.
I placed them close to your head.
Maybe you could smell them.
I couldn’t.
Somebody had put a rock where your heart should be,
Flat and round and white against the mud.
Maybe you could feel it.
I could,
It hurt.
I wanted to tell you that Spring will come
But I didn’t,
Because I know that you know that,
Can taste it in the earth and rain.
For then the mud shall turn to flowers,
And you shall show the world you came!
The iPad is making plenty of waves in education, and certainly for teachers, for whom its portability and handiness for display is just right. So here are some recommended apps for English teachers (and pupils). And plenty will suit teachers of other subjects too, of course. Many are free, few cost much.
Join in the comments section if you'd like to recommend others...
Notes:
- Notability: top class app for taking notes (including audio) and using for class demonstration and annotation of texts.
- Simplenote: excellent simple note app which syncs with apps for other operating systems (the Mac app has just been released - needs Mountain Lion). Searchable, with tags.
- Notesy: another simple and elegant note-taking app (backup through Dropbox).
- Paper: beautiful drawing app for displaying your own notes to class (in-app purchases for more tools).
- WorkFlowy : excellent versatile outlining tool, with perfect syncing on other devices - our review here.
Admin:
- SugarSync: similar to Dropbox, but in some areas even better - bring all your notes and English documents to class with you.
- Numbers: there are lots of grading and specialist teaching apps out there, but this standard Apple spreadsheet app does the job well. So ditch the paper markbook and make sure you backup via iCloud.
- Quickoffice: now free from Google, with Google Drive integration. Allows you to work easily on Microsoft Office files
- Attendance: well designed and easy to use app for taking attendance records - our quick review here.
- Edmodo: Facebook-like app for connecting with classes, accepting essay submissions, storing class documents and more, all within a safe private environment. And you can connect with other teachers around the world too.
- Good Reader: possibly the best app for reading and annotating PDFs. Well worth the modest cost.
- Phoster: creates attractive posters for noticeboards easily.
Classroom:
- ShowMe: excellent demonstration app - check out our own video/audio annotations of texts such as The Great Gatsby, Pride and Prejudice, Hamlet and Macbeth here.
- MarkUp: from the people behind ShowMe comes this simple and very handy marking app. Take in pupils' work via email, mark it, send it back.
- Haiku Deck: classy and dramatic presentations.
- TED: there's a wealth of material on TED for classroom discussion, such as Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's 'The Danger of a Single Story'.
- Story Cubes: great app for prompting ideas about story-telling and narrative structure. See our review here.
The Usual Suspects
Everyone recommends these, and everyone's right
- Dropbox : still the best way to save and share your files across all devices. Our own Department 'filing cabinet' now exists in Dropbox, with a shared folder of administrative documents and teaching materials.
- Google Drive : the best medium for collaboration between pupils and between staff. And more besides.
- Evernote : some swear by it, some don't really get going. At its best, a great place to store notes, pictures, projects and more.
- Skype : connections with educators and classes all over the world - see Skype Education.
- Twitter: essential Personal Learning Network, with resources and support from all over the world. See #engchat for English teaching matters. We recommend Tweetbot for using Twitter.
Reading
- Instapaper: English teachers and pupils are (should be) 'text maniacs'. Instapaper is a terrific service that saves long articles from the web, strips out the 'gunge' and allows you to sit back and read them on your iPad at the end of the day. Pocket does the same job.
- Kindle: the original and the best. Plenty of annotation and note-taking opportunities, and you don't need a Kindle for reading.
- Zite: excellently designed aggregator for browsing items of interest.
Literature
- The Waste Land: more 'expensive' than most apps, but worth it - a stunning teaching and learning resource on Eliot's complex poem.
- The Sonnets: all Shakespeare's sonnets beautifully presented in text, audio and video, with plenty of notes. See our review here.
- Cambridge Shakespeare: excellent resource for Macbeth, Romeo and Juliet, A Midsummer Night's Dream, Othello, Twelfth Night.
(see a related and sometimes overlapping series on iOS apps here).
