Issue 1 - King Edward VI Sixth Form College, Stourbridge > Home

Issue 1 October 2012 contact us at askedit@kedst.ac.uk Page 1

Contents page 

My first day of college 3 

Does growing older... 3 

An interview with Andy Adamson 4 

Extreme Education 5 

Race for Life 5 

Annual Poetry Competition 6 

Mitch Iles 7 

Angela Eggleton 8 

Does fashion define friendship? 9 

DIY Shorts 10 

Arts Review 11 

Meet the team 12 

Hi Everyone! 

Issue 1 October 2012 contact us at askedit@kedst.ac.uk Page 2 

Welcome to our very first issue of Ked-It. 

We have worked so hard to bring you a 

magazine that is for the students by the 

student. 

Hope you enjoy reading about the interesting, 

exciting and let’s face it sometimes a little 

weird goings on at college. 

Be on the look out for our columns including 

art, fashion, sport and much more. 

See you next issue! 

Astra, Nana and Natasha 

(Co-Editors in Chief)

My first day at College... 

I've made a mistake. This sentence was going 

around my head for all of my first week at King Ed's. 

I've made a mistake. 

I felt so lonely. Despite being surrounded by over a 

thousand other students, I felt alone. 

However, even when I had bad days at college, I 

found myself looking forward to the next day, 

determined to prove to myself that it would get better. 

I was right; each day was better than the last. 

As I started to make friends, I found myself really 

beginning to enjoy King Ed's. Even now as the work 

is piling up, actually, I think I made the right choice. 

Laura Brown 


Does growing older create ignorance towards 

making friends? 

Joining a new college after being in the same school 

for 5 years is a frightening thought and whenever we 

have to face up to this new challenge and 

experience, the majority of students fret as well as 

lose sleep over the thought of making new friends. 

However, we have had a similar experience when 

moving from primary school to secondary school, so 

why is this change a more worrisome thought? 

Through surveying a select number of students in 

Year 12 at King Edward’s, I have discovered that 

growing up entails distress towards meeting new 

people as teenagers are often paranoid and 

sometimes trivial and select in terms of who they 

choose to spend their time with. These are only a few 

of the reasons as to why moving schools is more 

nail-bitingly stressful than when we were 10 or 11. 

Olivia Nash

In September King Edwards not only opened its 

doors to 800 new Year 12’s but also welcomed Andy 

Adamson. We thought we would find out more about 

King Edwards’ newest and highly enthusiastic 

Classics teacher… 

How are you finding King Eds so far? 

I’m enjoying everything so far and all the staff 

and students seem really lovely. 

How does the college rate in comparison to 

where you have taught before? 

The expectations are much higher here than 

anywhere else I’ve taught, that is mostly down to the 


students being more focused and interested and 

clearly want to be here. The college has a very good 

reputation in the wider community which encourages 

students to come here and do well. 

Why did you decide to be a teacher? 

I failed the intelligence test to be a milkman. 

What is the best part of being a teacher? 

No two days are the same and you are always faced 

with new challenges. I also like getting to know 

everyone and finding out about their lives. 

“I failed the 

intelligence test to 

be a milkman.” 

What are you most looking forward to this 

academic year? 

I am looking forward to finding my feet and 

establishing myself as part of the 

college…and…Christmas! 

What do you do when you are 

not teaching? 

I like to spend time with my kids, 

normally stopping them from fighting. I play Call of 

Duty and Football Manager online but I never go 

out, not when I have three small children to look 

after. 

Emma Stevenson

Extreme Education 

We've all had to work hard and make 

sacrifices to get to this college, given the 

academically selective nature of King 

Edward's, but some take the desire to get in 

to this college to a whole new level. 

Nathan Hatch of year 12 has moved from his 

life-long home in Canterbury, Kent to Kinver 

so that he can attend this college. Previously 

living in one of the most affluent areas of the 

country, Nathan heard the reputation of this 

place and realised he needed a slice of that 

education based pie, so much so that he 

persuaded his parents to move 

up here! 

Well done Nathan! 

(The names and locations have been 

changed according to “Nathan’s” 

wishes.) 

Toby Stone 


Race for life 

Thousands of women 

turned Himley Hall into a 

sea of pink on September 

23rd to raise money in the 

fight against cancer after 

the event was cancelled 

due to the weather months 

ago. 

Amongst the runners was year 12 student Emma 

Edwards who had been inspired by family members 

to take part. Emma completed the 5k route in just 35 

minutes and although exhausted said "I am really 

satisfied with my achievement as well as being 

rushed with adrenaline, I'm really chuffed I raised 

money for a very important cause that means a lot to 

me."Emma intends to take part again next year and 

is encouraging friends and family to join her so that 

more money can be raised. Race of life in the 

Midlands will raise about £1.5 million this year for 

Cancer Research UK. 

Abbie Blackford

Annual Poetry Competition 

Following previous success, the English department 

has once again run its poetry competition to tie in 

with National Poetry Day which took place on 

October 4 th . This year’s theme was ‘Stars’, and over 

200 budding poets entered, following in the footsteps 

of William Wordsworth and Carol Ann Duffy. Anyone 

interested in reading the students’ fantastic poetry 

should head over to C Block where a display 

showcases the entries. With many different 

interpretations of the theme and various styles of 

poem, there’s bound to be something to interest 

everyone. Congratulations to Jenny Bullas for her 

winning entry: 


Ode to a Stargazer 

Stop watching me when I'm trying to pull shapes with 

my friends, 

We came here together for a good time. 

Didn't ask for some parka-clad weirdo to check us 

out. 

Ogle us with his wide-angle lens. 

Give us pet names - 

I take particular exception to "Great Bear". 

You take photos; 

Blow them up, pin them up. 

Slip them into albums with the time and the date and 

where we went. 

Some nights I hope it clouds over. 

Creep. 

Carys Homer

Mitch Iles 

Picture this, a brave knight going to battle for the first 

time. He has his new shiny armour; he has his new 

sword and his new helmet. He is prepared to fight, he 

has trained for this, he has worked hard, just to get 

this far. He is ready to step on to the battlefield. 

Now swap that knight for Mitch Iles, one of our year 

13 students. Swap the battlefield for a cycling road 

race, the sword for his brand new Specialized S- 

Works Tarmac Sl3 bike and his shiny new armour for 


the purple of the Halesowen cycling club uniform. 

The scene is set; he is ready for his first race. 

Mitch Iles (Halesowen A&CC) completed his first 

cycling Solihull road race last Sunday. Unfortunately, 

half way around the first lap (of five), he crashed. 

Mitch didn’t give up though. As he saw the peloton 

disappear up the road, he knew he had to finish. He 

rode the last four laps on his own and finished the 62 

mile course in the cold, wind and rain while everyone 

else was inside getting warm having finished the 

race. That takes a lot of courage, determination and 

perseverance. 

Mitch is definitely one to watch! 

William Hier

Angela Eggleton 

Shortly after ex pupil Helen Scott, competed for team 

G.B in The London 2012 Paralympics, King Ed’s 

welcomes a new national cyclist Angela Eggleton to 

the student body. 

Angela is balancing her studies of Music, 

Psychology, P.E and English literature alongside a 

tough training and racing routine. Angie has enjoyed 

recent success winning the national ‘Scratch Race’ 

as she made a phenomenal performance, streaking 

ahead to seize the win from the previous champion. 

Angie describes feeling ‘overjoyed’ at a win she had 

‘trained so hard for’. 

‘It’s all about getting into the 

zone; I listen to music, eat 

some energy gels and get 

myself pumped up’. 


Often an independent traveller Angie has cycled in a 

range of countries including Majorca, Lanzarote, 

France and Italy. Her experiences and day to day 

life, certain differ greatly from the average year 12 

student, as whilst the rest of us are enjoying the last 

blissful hours of our night’s sleep, Angie is up and on 

the bike, often attending gruelling pre-college training 

sessions. 

Angie describes her pre-race preparations, ‘It’s all 

about getting into the zone; I listen to music, eat 

some energy gels and get myself pumped up’. She 

also emphasises the importance of careful thought 

rather than just raw fitness in a race ‘it’s all about 

tactics, especially when we’re working as a team’. 

With long term Olympic dreams Angela can certainly 

look to Helen Scott for inspiration- King Ed’s appears 

to be the perfect place to pursue both academic 

studies and Olympic cycling goals side by side. 

Sarah Collins

Does fashion define friendship? 

Throughout the years it has become increasingly more 

acceptable to express your individuality. This is evident 

around college as each sudent carries an air of confidence 

whilst proudly showing off their latest outfits and fashion 

finds. Clothes can tell alot about a person’s identity, can we 

give hints regarding their personality and are a fantastic 

way of expressing yourself. However, are people drawn to 

those dressed similarly to them? Often people become 

segregated due to their choice of clothing and will form 

friendships with those who share their preferences and 

opinions. 

Despite this, students at King Eds are significantly less 

segregated. The friendly college community allows people 

to accept each other, ignore barriers and form friendships 

despite contrasting views. So, ignore the sterotypes. 

Instead, accept and commend people for their fashion 

choices, see past the clothing and judge someone by their 

personality. Open yourself to new possibilities, and dont 

allow fashion to define friendships! 

Lauren Day 


DIY FASHION: Shorts 

Denim shorts are really in fashion at the moment, 

especially with a high waist. Shorts are not just for 

summer they look amazing in the winter with thick tights 

and cuddly jumpers, but they can be so overpriced. Here 

is a step by step guide into making a pair of old out of 

fashion jeans or a cheap pair of jeans from a charity shop 

into a brand new pair of fashionable shorts. The best part 

of it is its super easy and anyone can do it. 

1) Take your pair of jeans, put them on 

and mark with a pen an inch longer than 

you want them to come and then cut 

along the marks you have made, 

slanting them slightly upwards, but not 

too much, only a little. Make sure you 

don't cut them too short, if there too long 

you can cut more off!!! 

2) Try them on again and if they are 

now the correct length fold them in half 

and cut the other side this will insure 

that they are the exact same length. Try 

them on again to make sure that they fit 

well and are still the preferred length. At 

this point they will still look unfinished 

but don’t worry. 


3) Throw the shorts into the wash 

and see how much they fray. Now you 

have three different options... 

If you think they have frayed enough, 

just leave them and they are ready to 

wear. 

If you don’t think they have frayed 

enough, use a large nail file, open 

scissors or sand paper to rub against 

the edge to give them even more of a rough, relaxed 

look. But remember they will continue to fray a little more 

for the next few times you wash them so don’t overdo it. 

If you think the frayed look doesn’t fit your style, simply 

fold up the edges and sew them upwards as tight as you 

can using cotton that matches your shade of denim (if 

you don’t know how to sew try watching a YouTube 

tutorial to help you). 

And there you have it, a brand new, one of a kind pair of 

shorts! 

Paige Bayley and Katie Christopher

Arts Review- The Electric Cinema- Birmingham 

Subtly concealed 

between a chain 

of downtown 

Cantonese 

restaurants and 

shabby karaoke 

bars, along Station 

Street within the 

cityscape of 

Birmingham lies 

the entrance to a 

cinematic wander 

way back. Way 

back to when the 

magic of cinema was encapsulated within art deco 

walls and accompanied with a glass of gracious, 

green Absinthe. The Electric Cinema is the UK’s 

oldest cinema, holding its first cinematic performance 

in 1909 and is a highly authentic and popular spot for 

the artistic community of Birmingham. The venue has 

maintained its art deco interior and charm within its 

stylistic theatre whilst interpreting two high-tech 


digital screens, where you can catch brand new 

mainstream films such as; Skyfall, Looper, On the 

road as well as a selection of classic, independent 

and foreign film screenings. In the upcoming months 

the cinema has a range of exciting special events, 

such as a unique Halloween extended screening of 

Stanley Kubrick’s ‘The Shining’ with 20 minutes of 

unseen footage. Along with several stand up 

comedy nights and a showing on Oct 12 th of the 

classic 60s zombie film ‘2.8 Hours’, promoting the 2.8 

hours real-life interactive Zombie chase game which 

will be hitting the streets of Birmingham on Oct 17 th ! 

I recently went to see Joe Wright’s ‘Anna Karenina’, 

starring Keira Knightly and Jude Law at The Electric, 

which was a fantastic stylistic film by itself, however 

complimented with the cinema’s home-made cake, 

watching our glasses of traditional Parisian green 

Absinthe pour from an antique silver fountain and the 

gloriously comfortable sofa seating within the theatre, 

it became an experience I’d highly recommend to 

any film enthusiast or film studies student. 

http://www.theelectric.co.uk/page.php?page=30 

Ellie Jones

Sincere thanks to all for their contributions. In the next issue we intend to introduce other columns including a Good Deed 

Feed, so if you have anyone you wish to nominate, or indeed any stories you would wish to include, or comments you 

wish to make, please get in touch.

Issue 1 - King Edward VI Sixth Form College, Stourbridge > Home

You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles

Delete template?

Save as template?