Off site, but online
Headmaster’s Routh Assembly Address
Monday 16th March 2020
Excerpt from Ready Player One
“My avatar’s eyes slid open, and I was back in my World History classroom. The seats around me were now filled with other students, and our teacher, Mr Avenovich, was materializing at the front of the classroom. Mr A’s avatar looked like a portly, bearded college professor. When he spoke, he somehow always managed to sound like he was reading a passage from Dickens. I liked him. He was a good teacher.
Of course, we didn’t know who Mr Avenovich really was or where he lived. We didn’t know his real name, or even if “he” was really a man. For all we knew, he could have been a small Inuit woman living in Anchorage, Alaska, who had adopted this appearance and voice to make her students more receptive to her lessons.
During our world history lesson that morning, Mr. Avenovich loaded up a standalone simulation so that our class could witness the discovery of King Tut's tomb by archaeologists in Egypt in AD 1922. The day before, we visited the same spot in 1334 BC and had seen Tutankhamen's empire in all its glory. In my next class, biology, we travelled through a human heart and watched it pumping from the inside. In art class, we toured the Louvre while all of our avatars wore silly berets. In my astronomy class, we visited each of Jupiter's moons. As our teacher spoke to us, Jupiter loomed behind her, filling half the sky, it's Great Red Spot, turning slowly just over her left shoulder.”
Good morning
The reading is obviously Science Fiction. However, most sci-fi is usually the fantasy of today being borrowed from the reality of tomorrow. The prospect of schools and teachers disappearing, to be replaced by virtual classrooms, avatar pupils and AI robot tutors has long been fantasized about, often in a dystopian way. For many though, it is already a reality. The virtual classroom bit, at least. That’s how distance learning currently happens in Outback Australia. Thankfully doing away with human teachers has yet to eventuate. Which is a relief to us, if not to you.
Actually, joking aside, I am fairly confident that it is a relief to you too. Whatever you may feel about the odd teacher (or even the Odd teacher) I think most of you would still prefer to be taught by a real person rather than a computer programme. No matter how smart Alexa or Siri or Google may seem, none of them can yet know or care for you the way the people behind me do.
And all of that may soon be put to the test. Last Thursday, the Prime Minister announced that schools in the UK would not be closed. For now. Which is good news to us, if it means that we can get through until the Easter Break. Especially for those of you facing public examinations next term, knowing now that you will be able to cover all content and finish your coursework by then.
However, it still remains highly possible that UK schools will close at some stage in the coming months. The spread of the virus is predicted to last for the next 16 weeks in Britain, during which time, one of two things may well happen. The first is that cases of COVID-19 will occur amongst pupils or staff at Bromsgrove School. In which case, it is most likely that Public Health England will require us to close for a while.
Second, equally likely, is the possibility that the Government will order all UK schools to close to slow the spread of the disease.
That may be a cause of some anxiety, but I want to reassure you this morning that you have no need to be concerned. Partly because those measures would be taken with your best interests in mind. But mainly because we have been planning for just such a closure for weeks now and I can tell you that the School is very well-prepared. After ensuring your health, our biggest priority to ensure that your education is not interrupted.
To that end, we have tested, purchased and installed an online learning platform that we will switch on immediately if the School is ordered to close. It is software called Zoom, which may be familiar to some of you. If so, you will know that it is easy to use, accessible in all countries and much more stable than Skype, Facetime or other free videoconferencing applications. Your teachers are all currently training with it and are working hard in preparation to keep delivering their courses online if we do have to close.
You, too, will receive some training on the technical requirements for getting online and attending your normal classes, all of which will be taught by your usual teachers. It is important for your continued education that you are in those lessons and engaged. However, if you get sick and miss a few days, or if you are overseas and the time zones are difficult to adjust to, key lessons will be recorded and available online for you to review.
I won’t go into any greater detail this morning, as you will all get some more in-depth training soon. However, I do want to take this opportunity to say something to you about the conduct that will be expected in these virtual classrooms. You live much of your life online and we all know that the realm of social media is a much more casual and unregulated place than the order and decorum of your world here at School. That’s fine, I have no illusions that I am ever going to eradicate text-speak, wipe out emojis, banish gutless trolling or clean up the internet in general.
However, I want to be very clear that you will need to leave any impetuous, undisciplined or overly familiar behaviour at the virtual door when you enter a virtual classroom. Don’t mistake a lack of walls for a lack of rules.
Your teachers will still be your teachers and you should respect and support them as usual. Perhaps even more so actually, given that it is harder to run an online lesson with the whole class beaming into a small laptop screen than to have them sitting in front of you. You will all have a responsibility to be helpful and responsible.
There is no doubt that many of you are very talented when it comes to the digital world, but there is no excuse for you to use that ability to undermine an online lesson. Nor should you let the novelty of being taught remotely cause you to lose your manners or moral compass. Most of the disciplinary issues that we deal with these days seem to stem from occasions when someone foolishly thinks their online behaviour is anonymous. It never is.
Neither should you forget the reason why this is all happening in the first place. In many schools, if closure comes, that will be it. Game over. Which, for a fleeting moment, may all sound very exciting. A big long extended holiday – hooray. However, give it a moment’s more thought and you will see the truth.
The only reason we have gone to all this trouble and expense is for YOU. Teachers who will have their own challenges to deal with during a closure, children at home, perhaps illness in their own family, will be preparing lessons and coming online each day for YOU. Not for themselves. They get paid anyway. They will be there for you and I expect each and every one of you to respect that. You may think it funny now, but the worst sanction that we will impose when we are teaching online will be to block you from attending lessons if you are disruptive. That would be your loss.
There will be greater detail to come about the etiquette we will expect when you are online. Unlike some schools, we won’t require you to appear in uniform, but there will be a dress code. The technology we are using allows for lots of interaction, but we will expect you not to dominate a session. You will be expected to set up your video in a neutral part of your house and not to allow distractions to interrupt what others are seeing. All this and more will be covered later.
For now though, please let me stress my overarching expectation that you will act with maturity and will be ever conscious that this whole system will be activated for one reason only – YOUR benefit. I know you will respect that and that good grace and humility will continue to exist in the virtual world, as it does here each day in the real one.
Let me make one final observation about the current situation. It is, in part, why I feel so confident that you will act responsibly and make the most of the challenges if we do have to switch to online learning for a while.
On Saturday night, I was deeply moved by the Cultures Connect Concert. Gathered in Routh were over 200 of the people who probably have the most to be worried and stressed about right now. Boarders who may not have seen their families since Christmas, may not see them for some months more. Those amongst you whose countries may be having a much worse time than Britain right now. Seniors who are stressed about the uncertainty that surrounds their all-important public examinations next term. I would not have been surprised if the performances had been a bit muted and overshadowed by those concerns.
Yet instead, it was an evening of remarkable positivity. Not just incredible energy, talent, and dedication, but also of comradery. The respect and encouragement that you showed for one another, whether as performers or audience, was a very powerful expression of the great strength of this School. In the face of adversity, you were upbeat and there for each other.
I can’t tell you how proud I felt and how certain I was that we will all get through this challenge just fine. So, to the organiser Dasha and all in her Committee: Leena, Anastasia, Vlada, Artem, Julius, Tom, Ella, Tatiana, Max, Eva, Radu, Artem, Masha, Anna, Julia, Mulan and Vivi, my admiration and sincere thanks.
Presentations
Senior House Drama
A capacity crowd in Cobham were treated to a wonderful evening of storytelling and imagination with the Senior House Drama competition last week. I have to say that the standards just keep getting higher every year and all who participated with such professionalism deserve high praise. The adjudicator, Mr. Richard Goulding, who is an accomplished actor and director himself, was dazzled by the efficiency and high standard of the performances. He rightly made the point that to perform on a stage in front of your peers is one of the bravest and most daunting things a person can do and I echo his congratulations to you all. He had the unenviable task of trying to make awards and I now invite those winners forward in the following groups:
2020 Performing Arts Award: Will Edwards
Special Award for Best Supporting Actor: Polly Dakin
Best Actor: James Beattie
Best Actor(runners up):James Bradley & Phoebe Fletcher
Best Director: Oleksii Moskaleskyi
Best Play: Lupton House for “The History Boys”
Best Play (Runner Up): Elmshurst House for “The Comedy About A Bank Robbery”
Netball
On Saturday our 1st and U14 teams competed in the National Schools’ Netball Finals. The U14’s played with superb team spirit and determination, their hard work placing them in the top 12 schools in the country.
The 1st’s came top in their pool but unfortunately were narrowly defeated in their semi-final. However, they picked themselves up and played with brilliantly in the play off, beating Canford School 13-8 to secure the Bronze medal. As the final was contested by two Sixth Form Colleges, Bromsgrove also remains the top school in the country. I am pleased to invite the 1st team forward to receive another set of medals.
Review
Cross Country
It was a pleasure to host the league match at home on Saturday afternoon and good to see so many of our runners competing for the School.
Golf
The School team defeated Clifton College 2-1 in the Midlands’ Final to progress to the National Finals at Formby in April. Despite a strengthening wind and the odd hail shower, Lili-Rose Hunt and James Humphries both secured good wins.
Hockey
In mid-week matches against King Edwards School Birmingham the U14B’s drew 0-0, the U14A’s won 2-1.
Unfortunately, the 1st XI’s run in the National Cup came to an end at Kingswood School, where we lost 4-1.
The U15’s also lost narrowly 3-2 against Bristol Grammar School. However, there were good results in the block fixture against Uppingham School with wins for the U16A, U15C, U14A and U14D teams and three draws for the 1st XI, 2nd XI and U15B teams.
Netball
The senior team’s success continues, with a convincing win 55-35 away at Sedbergh School in the semi-final of the Sisters’ in Sport Cup, and we look forward to supporting them when they contest the final here in our own Arena on Tuesday 24th.
There were a reduced number of fixtures due to the Nationals finals played against Uppingham but good wins were registered for the 2nds, 3rds, U16B and U15As.
Rugby
There were good performances for our teams at the Uppingham 7’s, with our U18 side reaching the final before losing a close match against Oakham. The U16’s won the plate beating Bedford and on Wednesday they also reaching the plate final at the Stowe 7’s losing against Bishop Stortford School.
Swimming
Finally, last Friday our swimmers competed at the Olympic Pool in the Bath and Otter relays, with the girls being placed 13th overall out of 70 schools and the boys 18th overall out of 80 schools. Very pleasing results an all swimmers enjoyed the added bonus of watching Tom Daley train in the diving pit.
Preview
AOE Grades are published today and you will be able to discuss these with your tutors this afternoon.
Tomorrow evening we have the LV1 and IB1 Parents' Evening here in the Arena.
I would like to announce that the new issue of Two Zero One is out, with the theme of Great Expectations. I also offer my congratulations to Vivi and her team for an excellent publication, with high standards throughout.
As the Editorial Team prepares to hand over next year, the current edition contains details of a competition for a new cover designer. If you have questions, they can be emailed to the new Editor, Laetitia de Belgique.
The motion for this Friday's debate is “This House believes feminism causes more harm than good.” We have pupils and a teacher debating, all welcome and encouraged to come and watch. Dr Whitbread’s classroom at 1:20.
Please now stand as we say the Grace together.