N E W S L E T T E R - Radley College
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Radley THE N E W S L E T T E R | Radley College Cricket Club | Transforming D Social | | Geography | Next Steps - Radleians at University |
- Page 2 and 3: Radley Colleg Could there be a more
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- Page 6 and 7: RADLEY ACHIEVEMENTS ACADEMIC Radle
- Page 8 and 9: season, winning every match against
- Page 10 and 11: Next teps S Radleians at University
- Page 12: Ed Stuart Bourne (Fifth Form) SWANB
<strong>Radley</strong><br />
THE<br />
N E W S L E T T E R<br />
| <strong>Radley</strong> <strong>College</strong> Cricket Club | Transforming D Social |<br />
| Geography | Next Steps - Radleians at University |
<strong>Radley</strong> Colleg<br />
Could there be a more opportune time to write about <strong>Radley</strong> cricket? For a short spell,<br />
from July to that ticker-tape August Sunday at the Oval, Radleians seemed to bestride the<br />
cricketing world: three current members of the 1 st XI – Alex Hearne (Dragon, J Social),<br />
Nick Gubbins (Elstree, H Social) and Wilf Marriott (Farleigh, G Social) - were selected for<br />
the England Under 15 side, Jamie Dalrymple (Ashfold, H Social) captained the England<br />
Lions against Australia and Andrew Strauss (Caldicott, B Social) led England to the<br />
Ashes. Strauss scored important runs, of course, but when the analysts ran their rule over<br />
England’s victory they chose to focus on the question of leadership. Michael Henderson<br />
reminded his Telegraph readers of the quiet authority of the England captain in rescuing<br />
his side from the hiatus of Kevin Pietersen’s resignation and in weathering some piercing<br />
criticism after the Headingley rout. “One could say”, he wrote, “that the Ashes were won on<br />
the playing fields of <strong>Radley</strong>.”<br />
The only sadness in all this euphoria<br />
was that just ten days before Australia<br />
succumbed, so too did one of the pillars<br />
of <strong>Radley</strong> cricket for nearly 60 years. Bert<br />
Robinson, once of Northamptonshire and<br />
cricket professional at <strong>Radley</strong> 1949-2008,<br />
a dear man and a coach who influenced<br />
so many from Dexter onwards, died<br />
peacefully at the age of 92 before he could<br />
see his most recent star in his finest hour.<br />
Right: Philip Hollis Photography<br />
Front cover: Andrew Strauss - Getty Imiages<br />
2 THE RADLEIAN NEWSLETTER
Cricket Club<br />
Many dream of winning the Ashes but<br />
few are chosen, and I can write in all<br />
honesty that, while we are proud to the n th<br />
degree of our internationals, we take equal<br />
delight in seeing all 19 of our school XIs<br />
strut their Saturday stuff in the summer<br />
term against our traditional foes. Good<br />
cricket on good surfaces for all our boys<br />
is overwhelmingly our goal, and I am<br />
hugely fortunate in having colleagues,<br />
lovers of the game, who will coach and<br />
cajole these teams. This summer term 30<br />
members of Common Room looked after<br />
these 19 sides, led in expertise by our<br />
outstanding professional Andy Wagner,<br />
now in his 25 th year here. 119 matches<br />
were won of 176 played, and in addition,<br />
a dozen 6 th formers turned out for the<br />
<strong>Radley</strong> Village sides in the Oxfordshire<br />
League. I can’t promise match cricket all of<br />
the time for all the boys, but I can try.<br />
Our fixture card is very strong – Eton,<br />
Tonbridge and Harrow are always<br />
powerful opponents – but we have set<br />
ourselves the target of playing the sharpest<br />
cricket on the best pitches on our circuit,<br />
and Adam King’s squares from Bigside to<br />
Death Row are exceptional. Increasingly,<br />
school matches are played as limited overs<br />
games (50 or 55 overs per side for the 1 st<br />
and 2 nd XIs, 30-35 overs per side for other<br />
teams), and this has quickened the pulse of<br />
every player. There is nowhere to hide in a<br />
game where the safety of a draw no longer<br />
exists, but we have found that traditional<br />
batting and bowling skills are still the key.<br />
The 1 st XI has the toughest fixture list<br />
of all, and the step up from Colts 1 is<br />
considerable as many school 1 st XIs are<br />
bolstered by 6 th form sports scholars.<br />
None of the <strong>Radley</strong> sports clubs have a<br />
recruitment programme, and we enjoy<br />
coaching schoolboy cricketers and giving<br />
them the chance to play and succeed in<br />
the top side. Our approach throughout<br />
the club reflects this. In matches all the<br />
decision making is left to the captains and<br />
players, and it has been a joy to see recent<br />
captains such as Henry Mills (Harrodian, E<br />
Social), George Coles (Woodcote House, G<br />
Social), Jos North (Ludgrove, B Social) and<br />
Hector Freyne (Summer Fields, J Social)<br />
learn to think so clearly under pressure.<br />
To improve the technique of our 1 st XI<br />
hopefuls we have, on Sunday mornings<br />
over the last two winters, introduced an<br />
Academy squad for our best 18-20 boys<br />
from the Remove to 6.2, to develop their<br />
skills and understanding of the game. Last<br />
year we welcomed guest coaches such as<br />
Toby Radford (Middlesex 1 st team coach),<br />
and this winter’s programme began with<br />
the Hampshire spin bowling coach, Raj<br />
Maru.<br />
Some of our current high fliers may play<br />
for England and win the Ashes – I hope<br />
they do – but above all we will keep<br />
offering the best cricket to all Radleians.<br />
Running our sides is not about the talent<br />
we could buy in but about what we can<br />
do for those who choose to come here; as<br />
John Claughton always said, “You dance<br />
with the girl what brung you”.<br />
John Beasley<br />
Head of Cricket<br />
THE RADLEIAN NEWSLETTER 3<br />
THE RADLEIAN NEWSLETTER 3
D Social Tr
ansformed<br />
The opening of the new J and K Socials in 2008<br />
established a new benchmark for boarding<br />
accommodation at <strong>Radley</strong>. The next stage in<br />
transforming the socials got under way even before J<br />
and K were complete; in the summer of 2008 parts of<br />
A Social were upgraded. And in July and August 2009<br />
attention turned to reform and improvement on a much<br />
more ambitious scale as F Social’s entire ground floor<br />
was reconfigured to create new social halls and new<br />
studies, and to remove an albeit useful but long-running<br />
eyesore, the F Social changing room. The rest of F will<br />
be refurbished in a couple of years’ time. The second<br />
element to the summer’s programme in 2009 was the<br />
transformation of most of D Social; curvy corridors<br />
and subtle colour schemes deliberately echoing those<br />
in J and K reflect also a fundamental principle, to try<br />
as far as possible – within the constraints of buildings<br />
constructed often over a century ago – to match the look<br />
and the quality of the new socials.<br />
Over the next three summers all the other old socials<br />
will get the same treatment; it involves unglamorous<br />
but essential work in modernising the utilities to make<br />
<strong>Radley</strong> greener in its energy, and remarkable efficiency<br />
from <strong>Radley</strong>’s own maintenance teams as well as from<br />
the outside contractors, who have to work to extremely<br />
tight time schedules – as Gaudy ends, so they start, and<br />
as the new boys arrive in September so the finishing<br />
touches are applied. By September 2012 <strong>Radley</strong>, then,<br />
will have completed the latest chapter in ensuring<br />
that our accommodation is always at the forefront of<br />
boarding provision in schools.<br />
THE RADLEIAN NEWSLETTER 5
RADLEY ACHIEVEMENTS<br />
ACADEMIC<br />
<strong>Radley</strong> joined Eton, Winchester and St<br />
Paul’s in declining to publish exam results<br />
in August, preferring to wait until all<br />
remarks and appeals had been dealt with.<br />
Nevertheless it is clear that the 2009 A level<br />
cohort was within a whisker of 2008’s<br />
record of 90.5% A/B before any remarks.<br />
The UCAS points per candidate (433) was<br />
the best ever, and more boys (45) than ever<br />
before got four A grades. 65% of grades<br />
recorded were A grade.<br />
At GCSE this was a superb year with<br />
c.86% of all grades being A* or A at<br />
the outset, and with every prospect of<br />
higher figures still once some strange<br />
departmental results are appealed. Nearly<br />
half the cohort (62 boys) got 10 A*s or<br />
As. The results are the more meritorious<br />
because Maths and Sciences entered the<br />
demanding IGCSEs. Significant numbers of<br />
boys in the 5th Form took AS levels early in<br />
French and Maths and achieved A grades.<br />
Physics Olympiad silver medal was<br />
awarded to Sam Gundle (Dragon, j);<br />
William Handy (Cheltenham, d) and Rory<br />
Robinson (Twyford, f) gained silver medals<br />
in the Physics Olympiad AS paper.<br />
This year’s Declamations competition<br />
was judged by Jonathan Smith, teacher and<br />
novelist. The standard of the five years’<br />
competition was very high, living up to<br />
previous years. The winners were: Hugh<br />
Petit (Cothill, k) in 6.2 reading ‘Prayer<br />
before Birth’; Joshua Rencher (Abingdon,<br />
d) in 6.1 recounting Dracula’s arrival<br />
in Whitby Bay; Sam Nugée (The Hall<br />
School, Wimbledon, h) and Ed Dillon-<br />
Robinson (Cumnor House, e), who read<br />
‘Greensleeves’ and ‘Porphyria’s Lover’<br />
respectively, winning the 5th Form; Tommy<br />
Siman (Abingdon Prep, h) winning the<br />
Remove competition with ‘An Otter’ and<br />
Henry McPherson (Malvern, d) winning in<br />
the Shells with an extract from ‘Hamlet’.<br />
Sir Andrew Motion OR<br />
‘From Achilles to Alexander: the Classical<br />
World and the World of Metal’ in Heavy<br />
Metal Music in Britain. Dr Simon Thorn’s<br />
work done on his sabbatical at Oxford on<br />
the neurophysiology of dyslexia is soon to<br />
be published. Harry Crump gained a 1st<br />
in his Open University English Literature<br />
degree.<br />
<strong>Radley</strong> continues to attract<br />
distinguished visiting speakers to talk to<br />
6.2: parents like Rory Tapner OR, Hector<br />
Sants of the FSA (in the week of the<br />
collapse of Lehman Brothers), Dick Powell,<br />
John Whittingdale MP, Charles Crawford<br />
and David Richards spoke universally well<br />
on their expertises. The 6.2 Conference<br />
with St Helen’s (our 12th) was provocative<br />
and compelling on ‘The Forgiveness<br />
Project’, the presence of Brighton<br />
Bomber Patrick McGee being especially<br />
controversial. <strong>Radley</strong>’s History, Economics,<br />
Politics, Perplexed, Literary, Classical<br />
and other subject-based societies all had<br />
numerous visiting speakers throughout the<br />
year.<br />
At the ESU Public Speaking<br />
Competition in Oxford, Archie Manners<br />
was adjudged ‘Best Overall Speaker’; Alex<br />
Donger (Dragon, j) and Rob Crawford<br />
(British School, Warsaw, h) narrowly failed<br />
to qualify for ESU finals.<br />
ACTIVITIES<br />
The Wednesday Afternoon Activities<br />
programme continued to organise 5th<br />
Form boys to teach in primary schools, and<br />
concert parties to entertain residents in<br />
homes across Oxfordshire. Instant Muscle,<br />
and other community schemes, continued<br />
to help local villagers.<br />
It has been another year of charitable<br />
activity by both dons and boys. Over<br />
£15,000 has been raised by boys and dons<br />
for a range of charities, with two major<br />
recipients being <strong>Radley</strong> Village Church’s<br />
‘Beetle Fund’ and Multiple Sclerosis,<br />
through a large number of different<br />
fund-raising events from Chinese lantern<br />
launches, auctions, concerts to a mystery<br />
art exhibition and a well- supported 24<br />
hour ‘ergo’ relay on rowing machines.<br />
The D of E boys had a notable year:<br />
12 boys – Humphrey Maddan (Aldro, c),<br />
Alex Welch (Dragon, a), Freddie Bolton<br />
(Summer Fields, g), Max Blanshard<br />
The Earl of Wessex is shown a magic trick whilst visiting a D of E exhibition<br />
Creative Writing under Christopher<br />
Ellott’s leadership is flourishing; visits,<br />
readings and workshops from poets<br />
including Sir Andrew Motion OR (on<br />
the last night of his Laureateship), Greg<br />
Leadbetter, John Whitworth, Costa Award<br />
winner Jean Sprackland, and James Harpur<br />
have stimulated the boys to write; ‘Today<br />
I am going to rest’ is the latest <strong>Radley</strong><br />
<strong>College</strong> creative writing Anthology.<br />
<strong>Radley</strong>’s own dons give a lead in writing<br />
and research. Iain Campbell has published<br />
6 THE RADLEIAN NEWSLETTER
& ACTIVITIES IN 2008/9<br />
Mann (Bilton Grange, d) and Angus Lambert<br />
(Maidwell Hall, b) had work exhibited at the<br />
Mary Hare School near Newbury. J and K<br />
Socials’ public spaces have been filled with<br />
imaginative artwork by Shells.<br />
The St John’s Smith Square Concert<br />
(Cottesmore, b), Will Haldane (Ludgrove,<br />
b), Will Storey (Cranleigh Prep, d),<br />
Barney Hunter (Farleigh, c), Will Mitchell<br />
(Dragon, d), George Stinton (Sandroyd,<br />
d), James Lucas (Caldicott, g), James<br />
Chadwick (Cothill, h) and Noah Assheton<br />
(Cothill, h)– were awarded their Gold. 24<br />
boys attained their Bronze Award. The<br />
Earl of Wessex visited <strong>Radley</strong> in October<br />
and spoke to all 30 boys manning a D of E<br />
exhibition, before unveiling a plaque to<br />
open the new D of E Centre in the Careers<br />
Library.<br />
Tom Stewart (Maidwell Hall, f),<br />
Jonathan Quicke (Summer Fields, b) and<br />
Charlie Palmer (Cottesmore, b) won Army<br />
Scholarships.<br />
Radleians continue to go out to<br />
Romania and Kerala in their summer<br />
holidays in large numbers to teach and to<br />
build houses.<br />
It has once again – despite the credit<br />
crunch – been a year of many expeditions:<br />
all 136 Shells marked the 65th Anniversary<br />
of D Day with an excellent visit in<br />
April; the Rowers went to Portugal; Art<br />
Historians and Artists to Italy; Linguists to<br />
France. But we are conscious of the need to<br />
rein back on an understandable enthusiasm<br />
to visit attractive but expensive locations.<br />
ARTS<br />
A strong year for Drama was marked by<br />
an outstanding Richard III, the <strong>College</strong> Play<br />
in November, in which Hugo Walker (The<br />
Elms, b) gave a towering performance. The<br />
whole ensemble, skilfully directed by Robert<br />
Lowe, and beautifully lit and stage managed<br />
(Matt Barker) and costumed (Lianne Oakley-<br />
Rowland) created a remarkable production.<br />
Three boys had great success and training<br />
for the National Youth Music Theatre: Tom<br />
Milligan (Caldicott, k) played a major role<br />
in the Hired Man in August and appeared<br />
alongside Owen Petty (Elstree, c) in a new<br />
musical by Mark Ravenhill in London. Ben<br />
Sheen (Westminster Abbey Choir School, c)<br />
worked on The Hired Man as a technician,<br />
George May’s Remove Play, The Trial, was<br />
a taut ensemble piece of physical theatre<br />
and the Shell Play, Tom Brown’s Schooldays<br />
(co-directed by Ben Hatt (Lockers Park, h)<br />
and Robert Lowe), was a real company show<br />
highlighting narrative techniques. The Dons’<br />
Play, The Happiest Days of Your Life, was<br />
thoroughly professional, highly entertaining,<br />
and brought in £1,200 for charity.<br />
The Art Department’s work, showcased all<br />
round <strong>College</strong>, continues to impress visitors<br />
and give meaning to Sewell’s aesthetic vision.<br />
Arthur Laidlaw (Dragon, h), who left last<br />
summer, was commended by AQA for gaining<br />
100% in both AS and A2 exams. Seb Inglis-<br />
Jones’s (Dulwich Prep, e) magnificent drawing<br />
of an old truck in a field has been exhibited in<br />
Oxfordshire’s Future Artists at the North Wall,<br />
and in the Oxford Town Hall Gallery. Ollie<br />
The sheer amount and quality of Music this<br />
year has been remarkable; it has culminated<br />
this summer in a sequence of seven individual<br />
Leavers’ Concerts which have embraced<br />
every instrument, and ranged from countertenor<br />
aria and show songs to Shakespearean<br />
soliloquy and stand-up comedy. Since<br />
September the Chapel Choir, apart from<br />
maintaining a very high standard each Sunday,<br />
has sung in New <strong>College</strong> and Salisbury<br />
Cathedral; there was a concert given by over<br />
130 musicians to 500 in the audience at St<br />
John’s, Smith Square of an excellent standard; a<br />
splendid Duruflé Requiem on Remembrance<br />
Sunday; Christmas and scholars’ concerts;<br />
a rousing Carmen in March; a concert<br />
performance of the next big dramatic treat,<br />
Les Miserables; regular coffee concerts; five<br />
big instrumental competitions; and the Piano<br />
Extravaganza. Whilst invidious to praise some<br />
above others, there is no doubt <strong>Radley</strong> will<br />
miss the singing of Ben Sheen (Westminster<br />
Abbey Choir School, c), the horn playing<br />
of Andrew Savill (King’s Hall, g), the violin<br />
of Arthur Sawbridge (Hall Grove, e), Myles<br />
Watkiss (KCS Wimbledon, h) and Jonathan<br />
Wong (Dragon, a), the saxophony of Charles<br />
Cutteridge (Highgate Junior, d), the jazz piano<br />
and sax of Henry Mills (Harrodian, e), and<br />
the percussion and showmanship of Freddie<br />
Tapner (Ludgrove, f) all 6.2 leavers all this<br />
summer.<br />
Richard III<br />
THE RADLEIAN NEWSLETTER 7<br />
THE RADLEIAN NEWSLETTER 7
season, winning every match against<br />
Wellington and Abingdon; and winning<br />
every senior match v. Eton. The 1st VIII<br />
came 2nd in the ISL, the top 16 schools in<br />
Southern England. They won the RHWM<br />
League confortably. Both 1st and 2nd pairs<br />
reached the semis of the St George’s Pairs,<br />
and the 1st IV have reached the Glanvill<br />
Cup regional final.<br />
The Rowers in Portugal<br />
SPORT<br />
On the rugby pitches <strong>Radley</strong> had a really<br />
good season, the product of talented boys<br />
and skilled coaching from 42 dons. 14/15<br />
matches were won v. Oundle; all matches<br />
were won (one drawn) against Abingdon;<br />
all but one won v. St Edward’s; 13/17 against<br />
Marlborough. The 1st XV under Jack Hibbs<br />
won most of their games, the wins away<br />
against strong Warwick (8-7), Oundle<br />
(43-7) and Marlborough (12-7) being the<br />
highlight. The bottom three years in the<br />
school were especially impressive: Colts<br />
1st XV was unbeaten, JC 1st XV lost but<br />
two games, and JC2, 4, 5 and 6 were all<br />
unbeaten.<br />
On the river a slow start to the<br />
oarsmen’s season accelerated dramatically<br />
at the National Schools’ Rowing Regatta<br />
where the 1st VIII came 4th, 16.1 4th, 16.2<br />
won silver, 15.1 bronze, 15.2 gold, 15.3 were<br />
4th, 14.1 won silver and 14.2 won silver.<br />
This was a very strong team performance.<br />
A competitive and enjoyable inter-social<br />
rowing regatta in June showed the Boat<br />
Club in good spirits and victories at<br />
Marlow (J16 coxed 4 and 2nd VIII) and<br />
Reading J16.1 confirmed this.<br />
Junior Colts where 20/22 matches were<br />
won. Our strength in depth in the club<br />
is seen by unbeaten Senior 2nd, 4th and<br />
5th XIs and unbeaten JC2, 3 and 4 XIs. A<br />
number of junior players were selected for<br />
Oxfordshire; Hamish Miller (King’s Hall,<br />
a) (Captain), Tom Beasley (Abingdon Prep,<br />
b), Angus Lowe (Cheltenham, e), Charlie<br />
Austen (Cothill, e) for U15 and James<br />
Murphy (Dragon, b) for U16.<br />
The beautiful new Real Tennis court<br />
has already brought dividends; <strong>Radley</strong><br />
won the National Championships, the<br />
Senior Team and the Senior Pair, Tom<br />
Buckley (Moulsford, b) and George Hackett<br />
(Downsend, h), triumphing. Ed Lyle<br />
(Sandroyd, g) and Joe Manners (Maidwell<br />
Hall, h) won the 2nd pair Championship.<br />
The Tennis Club had an excellent<br />
The winners of the Senior Trophy in the National Polo Championships<br />
In Cricket, the club won seven in<br />
every ten games with three sides still<br />
unbeaten. A very young 1st XI - with<br />
four Removes - has been superbly led by<br />
Henry Mills (Harrodian, e), and has had<br />
mixed results but not lacked for nail-biting<br />
finishes, and the win at Wellington was<br />
especially pleasing. Three Remove boys<br />
(Wilf Marriott (Farleigh, g), Alex Hearne<br />
(Dragon, j) and Nick Gubbins (Elstree,<br />
h)) were chosen for the England U15<br />
Cricket team in the summer holidays, an<br />
extraordinary achievement for one school.<br />
Polo: in the last week of the summer<br />
term <strong>Radley</strong> won the senior trophy in the<br />
National Schools’ Polo Championships and<br />
were crowned National Champions. The<br />
captain, Josh Nimmo (Arnold Lodge, d),<br />
was awarded the trophy for best player.<br />
Finally, the summer holidays saw mixed<br />
fortunes for Old Radleians. Andrew Strauss<br />
captained England to the Ashes victory.<br />
Michael Henderson in the Daily Telegraph<br />
wrote that the Ashes were Strauss’s<br />
Waterloo, “You might say that the Ashes<br />
were won on the playing fields of <strong>Radley</strong>”.<br />
Lt Col Rupert Thornloe became one of only<br />
eight British commanding officers killed<br />
on active duty since 1948 when he died in<br />
Afghanistan in late June; <strong>Radley</strong> has the<br />
sad distinction of having had two of these<br />
officers, Rupert Thornloe and David Blair,<br />
more than any other school.<br />
Hockey and Soccer suffered badly from<br />
the cold snap in the Lent Term; many<br />
fixtures in the first half of term were lost to<br />
snow and ice. Although there was a young<br />
and inexperienced 1st XI, the Hockey Club<br />
had a good season with 65% of matches<br />
won. The outstanding group was that of<br />
8 THE RADLEIAN NEWSLETTER
GEOGRAPHY<br />
The Geography Department at <strong>Radley</strong> has forged strong links with prep schools under the<br />
leadership of John Harris, Head of Geography. It has also pioneered many initiatives for<br />
the innovative use of new technology.<br />
On a brief tour of the Geography<br />
Department in Queen’s Court, you may<br />
encounter a group of students clustered<br />
in front of two newly installed plasma<br />
monitors. They could be discussing an<br />
animated map of the worldwide spread of<br />
swine flu, the latest earthquake or other<br />
breaking “geo-news”. You will see photos of<br />
field trips to Lulworth, Studland, the Alps,<br />
Birmingham and the Gower. Next comes a<br />
monitor showing live <strong>Radley</strong> weather data<br />
- pressure seems to be rising and a sunny<br />
day is in prospect for the cricket and tennis<br />
matches. And you have only scratched the<br />
surface of what geography has to offer,<br />
both within the department and beyond.<br />
All Shell (Year 9) students study geography<br />
and it is one of the most popular choices<br />
at both GCSE, with over 80 students per<br />
year, and at A level with over 30 students.<br />
This surge in popularity is all the more<br />
pleasing at a time of national decline in<br />
the numbers opting for the subject. The<br />
excellent exam results at both levels are<br />
one reason why Radleians choose to study<br />
geography –over 80% score A* and A at<br />
GCSE and 90% A/B at A level. Above all<br />
they choose geography because it addresses<br />
crucial and relevant issues which affect us<br />
all: the changing environment, pressure<br />
on resources, the challenge of global<br />
disparities and much more. Geography is<br />
an excellent bridge between the Arts and<br />
Sciences and many of our students go on<br />
to study it at university. Geographers are<br />
highly valued in the workplace for their<br />
key skills: literacy, numeracy, ICT and<br />
teamwork.<br />
Geography has embraced the information<br />
technology revolution of the last 20 years.<br />
The department has aimed to be in the<br />
vanguard, especially in the application<br />
of ICT for the benefit of both staff and<br />
students. Geography has its own computer<br />
suite and each classroom has a PC and<br />
digital projector. The department runs its<br />
own website geography.radley.org.uk which<br />
features live weather maps, satellite images,<br />
tropical cyclones, today’s earthquakes,<br />
volcanic eruptions and a whole host of<br />
educational links and teaching resources<br />
which are freely shared worldwide. The<br />
website was awarded a 4* rating by<br />
Schoolzone for its educational value and<br />
usefulness.<br />
The <strong>Radley</strong> Geography Department has<br />
conceived and coordinated a range of<br />
online initiatives including collaborative<br />
internet projects such as MetLink,<br />
Raincatch and Cloudwatch which share<br />
data and teaching resources with schools<br />
worldwide. A recent visit to <strong>Radley</strong> by<br />
Andy Griggs, Head of Geography at<br />
Peterhouse School, Zimbabwe, was one<br />
of many examples where such contacts<br />
have led to strong and ongoing bonds of<br />
friendship.<br />
The <strong>Radley</strong> automatic weather station<br />
constantly uploads live data to the<br />
geography website. This proves particularly<br />
useful for those planning summer sports<br />
and outdoor activities. The recently<br />
opened <strong>Radley</strong> Community shop uses<br />
the daily temperature data to investigate<br />
and regulate energy consumption and so<br />
minimize the carbon footprint.<br />
We have had over ten years’ experience<br />
of using video, data logging and GIS<br />
(Geographical Information Systems).<br />
Students have used GIS to plot local<br />
land use and to investigate the origins<br />
and modes of travel of shoppers. Photos<br />
and field trip videos allow students to<br />
illustrate their coursework and to use<br />
digital media in many ways. The Shells,<br />
for example, produce their own videos of<br />
rock weathering, based on lab and field<br />
experiments - the best efforts are uploaded<br />
to YouTube.<br />
The advent of Google Maps and<br />
Google Earth has revolutionised digital<br />
mapping and allows us all to be expert<br />
cartographers. <strong>Radley</strong> students can<br />
upload fieldwork data to Google Maps<br />
and produce attractive and informative<br />
PowerPoint presentations.<br />
The Geography Department runs<br />
geography ICT training for other schools<br />
and the annual prep school training days<br />
are always well attended. Recent training<br />
has included the design of web pages,<br />
video production, setting up a geography<br />
weblog, GIS workshops and customising<br />
Google Maps and Google Earth to enhance<br />
teaching and learning.<br />
And what of the future? Geography is<br />
undergoing constant change. The Remove<br />
(Year 10) students have recently embarked<br />
on the new IGCSE Geography specification<br />
which is both exciting and challenging.<br />
Changes have already taken place at A<br />
level and the Common Entrance course is<br />
also being updated. Meanwhile the <strong>Radley</strong><br />
geography staff are determined to continue<br />
pushing the frontiers into new and exciting<br />
territory.<br />
THE RADLEIAN NEWSLETTER 9
Next<br />
teps<br />
S<br />
Radleians at<br />
University<br />
Ed Martineau (ex Senior Prefect), finished Cambridge<br />
this year and is now destined for Bristol Old Vic.<br />
Harvard University<br />
The recession has led to substantial increases<br />
in university applications in both the USA<br />
and the UK (applications were up 10.4%<br />
in the 2008 round, 8.8% in 2009): higher<br />
education is seen both as a refuge from the<br />
ravaged job-market, and as an investment<br />
for the post-recession future. Inevitably<br />
it is the most competitive and popular<br />
courses at top universities which have seen<br />
the biggest increases in applications (Law,<br />
Medicine, Economics, English, History).<br />
The more difficult it becomes for Radleians<br />
to get an offer or place from their firstchoice<br />
university, the more vital it is for us<br />
to encourage them to research and prepare<br />
the application thoroughly, and to adopt<br />
the right strategy across the five choices<br />
available. So far, numbers of Radleians<br />
going to top UK universities have remained<br />
constant for a number of years: a major<br />
achievement in the circumstances.<br />
Ideally a student will identify a subject or<br />
combination of subjects, and then a course,<br />
which corresponds with his interests and<br />
ambitions. It is then a question of identifying<br />
the five best such courses available at UK<br />
universities. A much more likely scenario<br />
however is that a student (or his parents)<br />
identifies a small group of acceptable<br />
universities, and is flexible enough to study<br />
almost any course in order to get a place<br />
at one of them. In extremis this can lead<br />
(indeed has led) to a student applying to<br />
five different courses at the same (highly<br />
fashionable) university. As it happened,<br />
the strategy worked, although the course<br />
for which he was accepted was somewhat<br />
esoteric: a desirable university knows how<br />
to make the most of its status, and in such<br />
circumstances will only make one offer, and<br />
that for the least popular course. In practice,<br />
most applicants steer a sensible middle<br />
course between these extremes: they identify<br />
their top one or two universities, choose two<br />
or three other less competitive destinations;<br />
they are quite clear about the course they<br />
want, but are prepared to be flexible up<br />
to a point (how much difference is there<br />
between Politics and International Relations?<br />
History and Modern History? Finance and<br />
Accounting?).<br />
So what are the most desirable UK<br />
universities? Everyone knows Oxford<br />
and Cambridge of course, and most have<br />
heard of the Russell Group (a notional<br />
top 20 group of the next best). In recent<br />
years, however, a breakdown of applicant<br />
numbers (from <strong>Radley</strong> and other leading<br />
independent schools) suggests that Bristol,<br />
Durham and Edinburgh have broken away<br />
from the rest of the pack; following them<br />
the major London colleges (KCL, UCL,<br />
Imperial); then Exeter heading a group of<br />
very good but more accessible institutions<br />
including Newcastle, Leeds and Manchester.<br />
Some really excellent universities (notably<br />
York and Warwick) have been consistently<br />
undervalued by Radleians in the past,<br />
Charlie Barker and Jim Summerly chat to some recent ORs studying at Durham<br />
10 THE RADLEIAN NEWSLETTER
The University of Oxford<br />
though we try to press their cases. Perhaps<br />
this is on the grounds of their architectural<br />
mediocrity, but actually few universities will<br />
provide as elegant a physical environment<br />
as <strong>Radley</strong>, and there are more important<br />
criteria to consider. It makes better sense to<br />
target specific courses which have a worldwide<br />
reputation, irrespective of their perhaps<br />
drab provincial setting. Estate Management<br />
at Reading, French at Aston, Medicine at<br />
Leicester: these are renowned courses with<br />
high rates of graduate employment.<br />
What does <strong>Radley</strong> do, through its Form<br />
Masters, Heads of Department, Director<br />
of University Entrance and its vast pool of<br />
accumulated knowledge, to maximise our<br />
sixth-formers’ chances of getting to their<br />
first-choice university? We show them where<br />
they can get the information they need (links<br />
are on the college Intranet); we ensure that<br />
the Personal Statement is course-oriented,<br />
non-derivative, individual and striking<br />
(particularly important for Humanities/Arts<br />
- based courses).<br />
And we manage expectations: steer them<br />
away from unrealistic choices; and help them<br />
find the course (maybe an odd combination<br />
of subjects) at their preferred university<br />
which gives them the best chance of success.<br />
We encourage them to consider alternatives:<br />
increasing numbers apply successfully to<br />
Trinity <strong>College</strong>, Dublin (which is outside<br />
the UCAS system); and a small but growing<br />
number of boys apply to universities<br />
in the USA. This is a time-consuming<br />
and expensive process, but the logic is<br />
indisputable: there are more universities<br />
in the USA (more than 3,000), therefore<br />
there are more very good universities. The<br />
THES world league table is dominated by<br />
American universities, some of which are<br />
little-known in the UK. For those prepared<br />
to invest more money in their university<br />
education, and more time in the application<br />
process; for those who are unsure as to what<br />
subjects to specialise in (‘concentration’ or<br />
choosing a ‘major’ are usually delayed until<br />
the third year at American universities); and<br />
for those prepared to live abroad for four<br />
years, the American student experience is<br />
particularly rewarding.<br />
for which complete statistics are available<br />
(2007); of <strong>Radley</strong> leavers going to UK<br />
universities, 109 out of 121 went to Russell<br />
Group universities.<br />
This is certainly cause for satisfaction and<br />
optimism that <strong>Radley</strong> does and will continue<br />
to prepare its students to achieve highly in<br />
terms of university entrance.<br />
Jon Nash<br />
Formerly Director of University Entrance<br />
Durham University<br />
Finally, consider the fact that in the last year<br />
The destinations of Radleians over the past five years<br />
Bristol<br />
Leeds<br />
Edinburgh<br />
Oxford<br />
Durham<br />
Newcastle<br />
Cambridge<br />
Nottingham<br />
Exeter<br />
Other<br />
THE RADLEIAN NEWSLETTER 11<br />
THE RADLEIAN NEWSLETTER 11
Ed Stuart Bourne (Fifth Form)<br />
SWANBOURNE HOUSE AND D SOCIAL<br />
Birdman Photography<br />
My first experience of <strong>Radley</strong> was as a<br />
timid 10 year old sitting the Foundation<br />
Award. I was at my local primary school<br />
and intended to join the equally local<br />
Aylesbury Grammar School in the following<br />
September. Since I obviously knew best, I<br />
wondered why I was sitting this scholarship<br />
when I had already passed my 11+. My<br />
parents, however, insisted, and so I went to<br />
<strong>Radley</strong> on a December morning, observing<br />
all the towering boys and their strange<br />
uniforms. I sat a few exams and returned<br />
home, content that I wouldn’t have to do<br />
anything like this again and sure that I<br />
would definitely never be returning to<br />
<strong>Radley</strong>.<br />
I was shocked, therefore, when my parents<br />
informed me on my coming home from<br />
school a few weeks later that I had won a<br />
place at <strong>Radley</strong> starting in September 2007<br />
and would be attending Swanbourne House,<br />
a prep school at the end of the year.<br />
I prepared as much as I could for the prep<br />
school experience, learning some French<br />
and Latin. It was still a big shock when I<br />
joined, but within weeks I felt at home.<br />
The two years at Swanbourne passed<br />
quickly and before long I was on D Social’s<br />
doorstep, dressed awkwardly in a suit and a<br />
gown. It was a huge step up, but one that I<br />
was well-prepared for, I believe, by my two<br />
years at Swanbourne.<br />
I remember thinking on one of my first<br />
days at <strong>Radley</strong> that it was a curious place,<br />
nice to visit, but not one that I would<br />
want to stay at. There were so many new<br />
concepts and customs to get used to.<br />
I’m going to fast forward now to the present<br />
day. As a current fifth former, I believe that<br />
I’m a very different person to the one who<br />
stepped into D Social in early September<br />
2007. The range of opportunities that I<br />
radleians<br />
have had is staggering. I’ll be heading the<br />
D Social team for the Shells & Removes<br />
Debating competition next week; later<br />
today, I’ll be down at the river, rowing; in<br />
a couple of weeks I will be running around<br />
somewhere in Oxfordshire with a gun, as<br />
part of CCF Field Weekend. One moment I<br />
could be learning Ancient Greek, the next,<br />
singing my heart out in Chapel.<br />
Ah yes - the Chapel. We’re often told that<br />
it’s the first place the Old Radleians ask to<br />
go on visiting <strong>Radley</strong> (who can forget such<br />
hearty singing?!?), and I would certainly<br />
agree that it’s an integral part of <strong>College</strong> life.<br />
I got confirmed in the <strong>Radley</strong> Chapel a few<br />
months ago and since then I have realised<br />
what a wealth of opportunities there are<br />
for Christians at <strong>Radley</strong> - from Saint’s Day<br />
services at 8am to Christian forum on<br />
Tuesday night, I can wholeheartedly thank<br />
<strong>Radley</strong> for allowing me to discover a lot<br />
more about the Christian faith and decide<br />
what a lot of my views are.<br />
Most of all, <strong>Radley</strong> has given me the<br />
confidence to try new things. Of course<br />
the teaching is great and there are lots of<br />
opportunities, but I think the best thing<br />
about <strong>Radley</strong> is its involvement in turning<br />
you from a boy to a man and the way your<br />
character is shaped along the way by the<br />
experiences you have.<br />
Victor Culebras (6.2)<br />
BRITISH COUNCIL SCHOOL, MADRID<br />
AND A SOCIAL<br />
It was around four years ago when, on an<br />
ordinary weekend, the Oratory School<br />
were facing <strong>Radley</strong> <strong>College</strong> at rugby. Given<br />
that I was a member of the Oratory at<br />
the time, I arrived to the <strong>Radley</strong> Campus<br />
with the mere intention of beating their<br />
team. Sadly for me, we lost; in fact we got<br />
absolutely destroyed. Surprisingly, none<br />
of the Radleians showed any signs of<br />
arrogance or disdain towards us, instead,<br />
they showed amazing sportsmanship and<br />
extreme politeness which made me want<br />
to spend the rest of my academic life in a<br />
place like <strong>Radley</strong>. After Oratory, I did my<br />
IGCSEs in Spain and, in the summer of<br />
2008, this wonderful memory appeared in<br />
my mind which made me want to become<br />
a Radleian.<br />
When I arrived at <strong>Radley</strong>, the college<br />
fulfilled my expectations - I was impressed<br />
by the welcoming atmosphere, the<br />
companionship between the students,<br />
the professionalism of the dons and staff<br />
and many other aspects that make this<br />
<strong>College</strong> such a special place. It did not take<br />
me long to establish great relationships<br />
with my fellow students who have always<br />
showed a friendly attitude. Since the very<br />
first day, <strong>Radley</strong> felt like home.<br />
I have now been a Radleian for almost<br />
a year, and this experience has helped<br />
me immensely in the improvement of<br />
both academic and personal aspects. In<br />
the campus we are taught everything<br />
can be achieved with determination and<br />
that perseverance is the basis of every<br />
achievement. The 6.1 has been a reasonably<br />
challenging year with some A-level exams at<br />
the end of the summer term. Taking French<br />
and Maths modules early has not been an<br />
easy task; however, with the help of my<br />
friends and dons I will hopefully achieve the<br />
results I want.<br />
Sport has always played an important role<br />
in my life. When I came to <strong>Radley</strong>, I was<br />
terribly concerned by the possibility that<br />
the academic work would leave me no time<br />
for sport. However, I was proved wrong as<br />
I found myself doing more exercise than<br />
when I was at my last school. In the first<br />
term I really enjoyed the rugby, a game at<br />
which I had not played much and that I<br />
found very amusing and stimulating. In the<br />
summer, I joined the tennis club and was<br />
struck by the high level of some Radleians;<br />
being around such good players has greatly<br />
helped me to improve in this game.<br />
My time at <strong>Radley</strong> so far has been an<br />
amazing experience which is hard to<br />
describe with words. I expect no less from<br />
6.2, which appears to me as an academically<br />
challenging year in which hard work will<br />
be the key for success. As an Oxbridge<br />
candidate, I will have to start working<br />
from the very first moment of the term in<br />
order to achieve such a difficult goal. The<br />
applications for Oxford and Cambridge start<br />
in October so I must be prepared to get the<br />
best out of myself.<br />
There is no doubt that this year will involve<br />
a lot of work, however, I am certain that I<br />
will enjoy every moment of my future time<br />
at <strong>Radley</strong>.<br />
12 THE RADLEY NEWSLETTER Website: www.radley.org.uk . Admissions enquiries: 01235 543174 . admissions@radley.org.uk