Mr Holder, (pictured below) has plenty to keep him busy in the month of May. Aside from his duties as a Teacher of Business and Head of Year for the 14s, he is also responsible for supervising Harrodian’s Duke of Edinburgh (DofE) Award scheme and, as many parents with teenage children will already know, May is the month when the DofE action really begins to hot up. ‘We had 59 Bronzes doing their Practice Expedition in Surrey on the 12th May, 27 Silvers in the New Forest and seven canoeing on the Thames on the 19th,' he says. ‘And this weekend the Golds are off to the Brecon Beacons for their expedition.’
All this practice will come to fruition when the three groups embark on their Qualifying Expeditions on three successive weeks later this summer: Silvers on the Sussex coast or continuing their canoe journey on the Thames on the weekend of the 23rd June, Bronzes in the Surrey Hills on the 30th June and Golds either in Snowdonia or the Lake District from the 9th-13th July.
‘Over the years I’ve been so impressed with the way that Harrodians throw themselves into the Duke of Edinburgh Award and just go for it. When it comes to the expeditions, they love being in the natural environment as much as they relish each other’s company.
Mr Holder, Duke of Edinburgh Award Co-ordinator
The DofE celebrated its 60th anniversary in 2016, yet the award is as relevant today as it was in 1956. Mr Holder highlights the character-building qualities of expeditions which grow longer and more demanding as candidates graduate from Bronze to Gold. ‘If you’re capable of looking after yourself and others, carrying all your food and kit and navigating to where you’re meant to be – often in demanding conditions – for four days and three nights, as you need to do for the Gold, that’s a serious test,’ he says. ‘DofE requires self-discipline, organisation, commitment and plenty of grit.’
While the expeditions, which at Harrodian are organised in partnership with Activ Adventures, are a DofE trademark, the personal and social values that the scheme promotes are just as important. At Bronze, Silver and Gold levels, participants are required to volunteer their time in ways that ‘make a difference to other people’s lives’. The choices of activity vary, from the reading buddies programme at Harrodian through assisting in a local charity shop, to coaching sport to younger people, but the results are often similar: a great shared experience and an increased appreciation of the value of contributing.
The ‘Skill’ and ‘Physical’ elements of the Award are also of huge significance. ‘Being rewarded for both learning a skill and completing a physical activity provides pupils with extra encouragement to stick at something or to start something from scratch – from karate to life drawing – and this can really make a difference to their personal and social development,’ says Mr Holder. ‘It’s an award with holistic aims that fits well in a school where “educating the whole child” is a key value.’
It’s an award with holistic aims that fits well in a school where educating the whole child is a key value
Mr Holder, Duke of Edinburgh Co-ordinator
Harrodian may owe its excellent DofE take-up rate as much to pupils’ understanding of the considerable value of Bronze, Silver and Gold awards in assisting applications for further education and employment as it does to their desire for an holistic education. But in Mr Holder’s experience, whatever their initial motives may be in taking part, pupils soon begin enjoying the Duke of Edinburgh experience for its own sake. ‘Over the years I’ve been so impressed with the way that Harrodians throw themselves into the Duke of Edinburgh Award and just go for it,’ he enthuses. ‘And when it comes to the expeditions, they love being in the natural environment as much as they relish each other’s company. This year has provided the extra excitement of running our first canoeing expeditions too. I‘m really looking forward to seeing all three groups progress in the remainder of their awards.’