Headmaster's blog: Pleasure with a purpose

Val d'Isere

Mr Hooke explains how Harrodian ensures its Christmas trips and sporting tours are educational as well as enjoyable

Extracurricular trips have always been a popular and special part of life at Harrodian. And the annual skiing trip that brings 36 Sixth Formers of mixed skiing abilities to the slopes of Val d’Isère in December has long been an established institution in the school Christmas calendar. At alumni reunions, Old Harrodians often cite the trip as a cherished, schooldays highlight. For my own part, after twenty years of unbroken attendance, I can honestly say that Christmas simply wouldn’t feel the same without it.

Forays beyond the classroom often catalyse an unexpected and positive leap forward, particularly for those who struggle with the confines of classroom learning.

 

Trips like these provide huge and lasting pleasure to many (especially when the snow is as plentiful as it was in the Alps this year) and their educational impact is often significant too.  At Harrodian we are, as the Vision/Spirit section of this website puts it, ‘committed to educating the whole child academically, physically, socially, culturally and morally, in and beyond the classroom.  On their return from trips I make a point of asking teachers who the 'surprise star’ was. In my experience, these forays beyond the classroom often catalyse an unexpected and positive leap forward, particularly for those pupils who might sometimes struggle with the confines and continuity of classroom learning.

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If you’re going to progress at skiing you have to take its physical and psychological challenges seriously.

Ben Proudfoot, Head of Harrodian Sport

Progress doesn’t happen by accident of course. Our Head of Sport, Ben Proudfoot, who leads the Val d’Isère trip every year, plans every detail to ensure that its educational value is maximised. There’s little room for slacking. Students are required to be out of bed early in order to breakfast by 8.00 am and be on the slopes by 9.00.  Six hours of tuition and practice are followed by communal eating and group ‘aprés ski’ activities. There’s even a bit of public speaking involved as group members take turns around the dinner table to reflect on the progress they’ve made and challenges they are still to face.  ‘If you’re going to progress at skiing you have to take its physical and psychological challenges seriously,’ explains Mr Proudfoot. ‘To do that you need to be organised, to eat good food and get enough rest. The programme is about encouraging good timekeeping and building the self-reliance and confidence you need to progress.’

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A similar rigorous, nurturing mindset underpins our sports tours, such as the recent trip to Manchester our 15-18-year-old rugby players undertook at the end of the autumn term. Scheduled to coincide with the run up to the spring playing season, the tour allowed students to sharpen up rusty skills through practice sessions led by top professional coaches at Sale Sharks training ground.  This was followed by matches for our senior and U-16 sides at Stockport Grammar School (SGS).  

So how did the teams get on? Alastair Lydon, Harrodian First Team Rugby Coach and SGS old boy, believes the match results on tour are a bit of a red herring. ‘We lost one game and won the other but the real focus of a tour for us is developing new relationships and an individual and team ethos in a context which the boys really enjoy.

The real focus of a tour for us is developing new relationships and an individual and team ethos in a context which the boys really enjoy

Alastair Lydon, Head of Harrodian Rugby

As with many tours, the group included boys drawn from three different year groups so the first priority was to foster the togetherness across age boundaries which is a Harrodian trademark. According to Mr Lydon, this ambition was more than fulfilled during the three days the rugby players spent in Manchester. ‘It was a huge success and it was great seeing the boys grow into a tight-knit group,’ he says. ‘We already have a team whose members clearly love playing with and for each other and who all share a desire to be part of something that’s both meaningful and enjoyable for them.’

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Of course, things sometimes can go wrong on trips and tours.  Miss Kinsella, Head of Hockey and her team of 14s/15s had more than their fair share of bad luck on the pre-Christmas hockey tour to Rotterdam. First of all, the team kit was lost by the airline in transit, preventing them from training and, when the baggage did show up, heavy snow forced a match cancellation.

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In my experience, such adversity usually reveals extra depths of patience and resilience within Harrodian pupils and new resourcefulness from their teachers.  According to hockey tourists, Darcy and Emma, the snow cloud’s silver lining was highly enjoyable trips to a skating rink and a winter market, as well as a taste of indoor hockey. ‘It was a bit of an emotional roller coaster,’ says Emma. ‘But in the end, the tour was great fun.’

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