newsletter - Stephen Perse Foundation · 2016-12-10 · behind their backs and, rather comically, we saw Roderigo lose much of his money through the various tricks of his comrades

newsletterIssue No 8 | 2014-15 | Friday 30 January 2015

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Dear Parents,

In some ways the midpoint of the academic year is very much a turning point. For the Upper Sixth students who have applied to university, their focus is very much on achieving the goal and a new beginning later in the year. We have received a very strong set of offers for our students so far and yet are conscious that it is an exciting albeit a pressurised time. Mock exams for IB students in January and for A2 students in March serve to benchmark progress tests and clarify the tasks and challenges ahead.

For the Lower Sixth students, their focus too must be very much directed at the academic challenges ahead. However, while the short term aim must be on performing as well as possible in this year’s exams, there are some productive steps students can take with regard to their own future university applications. This may seem distant for some, but time invested now pays dividends. If applying for fields such as Medicine, Veterinary Medicine, Dentistry and, to a lesser extent, some other disciplines, some voluntary work or specific work experience will help.

For all subjects, students should be thinking about what they will do and what they will read to help create their own distinctive profile and interests. Fundamentally, they must ask themselves, what will make their applications stand out and demonstrate real commitment. We very much appreciate that this can be a daunting process, so encourage students to discuss their specific interests with teachers and tutors. Reading lists may help, but nothing beats a sense of developing and expanding the interests of the individual student rather than simply providing generic support. Similarly, iTunes U courses and closer to home, the Cambridge Science Festival, offer excellent opportunities for students to develop their interests, both within and around the curriculum.

For some students, the path ahead will be clear but for many this will not be the case. Events such as this week’s excellent “Inspire Me” workshop at the College exploring Forensic Linguistics provided a fascinating insight into this field, provoking some excellent comment from students. We are very grateful to Dr Luna Filipovic and Elsbeth Wilson for their work with this event.

Half term too, marks selection of a new Student President Team at the College. I would very much like to thank Cecily and the Vice Presidents for their splendid efforts and look forward to working with the new team in the months ahead.

With kind regards

Stuart JackDirector of 6th Form

Introduction - Director of 6th Form



DramSoc Theatre Trip6th Form Student Abi Smith reviews the DramSoc Theatre Trip to see Frantic Assembly’s Othello at The Lyric Theatre, Hammersmith:

On a crisp Friday evening, the 6th Form Drama Society boarded the train to King Cross Station. Our purpose? To see a modern production of Othello set in a pub in modern day Northern England.

The opening was stark and entertaining. A long sequence of physical theatre set to the backdrop of booming music. The characters danced, fought and threw each other in the air all in the pursuit of outlining their relationships with one another. We saw Desdemona and Othello sneak into the ladies toilets, Iago looking menacingly at everyone behind their backs and, rather comically, we saw Roderigo lose much of his money through the various tricks of his comrades. Whilst the parts of the play involving physical theatre were lively and engaging there were definitely aspects of the play that did not translate well into a modern setting. As one of the Drama Society’s members pointed out, it lacked the power relations of the army as well as any real development of Othello and Desdemona’s love. I found Iago to be too thug-like without the complexities and sensitivities that can make him so endearing to an audience. His malignancy lacked cunning or intellect, which prevented the audience engaging fully with his actions.

However, the production mastered certain elements of the play that are so easily overlooked. The highlight of the play was Desdemona’s fiery and independent character. She was not passive as is so often the case, but stood up to Othello’s jealous attacks on her, making their storyline more believable and her death more poignant.

As we filed out of the theatre the reviews were mixed. Some liked Iago, others liked Othello. There was general consensus that the strangling of Desdemona continued for an almost comical period of time but we failed to agree on whether the physical theatre enhanced the plot or distracted from Shakespeare’s carefully crafted verses.

Overall, it was a production that evoked debate amongst us and made for a very lively train journey back to Cambridge!



Sixth Form students studying both Economics and Geography for A Level and IB got the opportunity to attended a conference, with students from a multitude of other schools, run by the IEA at the beginning of this month. IEA stands for the Institute of Economic Affairs and are an association who aims to improve understanding of economics in general, whilst also having the intention of solving both economic and social affairs through their work.

Three professionals in their field came to speak to us about a specific topic areas. Firstly, on the topic of Foreign Aid (by Professor Philip Booth), in which we discussed as to what extent Aid could be both help and hindrance to economic growth. Secondly, concerning Minimum Wage and Living Wage (by Ryan Bourne) and as to if these wages are actually satisfactory in allowing people to live, whilst trying to contend with an ever increasing rise in price of the cost of essentials. Finally, there was a talk on the History of Globalisation (by Dr. Steve Davies), giving us further insight into the origins of the movement of people, goods, services and information around the world.

Overall, this was an extremely beneficial day, giving us a greater understanding of these areas, whilst also allowing us to deliberate ideas and spark debate over the issues raised. This enabled us to form our own opinions on the economic and geographical affairs themselves, a crucial part of studying both of these subjects in my opinion.

by Immy Holder, 6th form student

IEA Conference

Lower Sixth students studying A Level RS and IB Philosophy spent an enjoyable day in Cambridge on Friday 6 February, attending a lecture series by acclaimed philosopher Peter Vardy. The series of four lectures and a debate centred around issues of sanctity of life, a topic fundamental to both AS level and IB courses, and was fascinating in its open exploration of controversial issues. Dr Peter Vardy, an eminent philosopher and the author of ‘The Puzzle of...’ book series, lectured on genetic engineering as well as giving an introduction to why sanctity of life matters to ethical debate. His rapid, fluent style, often punctuated with clever Harry Potter quotes, conveyed with skill some of philosophy’s most serious issues and provided interesting and relevant examples for our upcoming exams. It was especially entertaining to hear Peter Vardy speak, considering his book The Puzzle of Evil is one of our supporting texts! A Buddhist’s perspective on life after death, and how reincarnation affects understanding of the self, shed new light on the topic with Dr David Webster giving a detailed explanation of what can easily seem a jargon filled area of religious philosophy. Charlotte Vardy also lectured on the topical issue of euthanasia, examining well-known cases for what values they demonstrated, ending in a debate on whether the students attending this lecture would vote for the Assisted Dying Bill currently in the House of Lords. After a lively and varied round of students stating arguments for or against this Bill, the majority voted that they would allow Assisted Dying. In all, the trip brought to life for us a subject area we are currently studying in the classroom, and introduced new ideas and examples that I look forward to discussing in class.

by Frances White , 6th form student

Lower Sixth Philosophy trip to Peter Vardy Lectures



On Wednesday 11 February, eight sixth form students studying French took part in the Eastern Region French Debates hosted by The Perse.

Lower Sixth motions centred around youth culture and concerns, while the Upper Sixth debated immigration in France, surrogate mothers and the important philosophical question ‘Should we always tell the truth?’

The standard of the debate was high, with a competitive yet friendly atmosphere.

Well done to all who took part, and also to the large group of supporters who came along to listen and applaud their friends.

Vivent les joutes oratoires françaises!



Over 90 people - students from across year groups 9 to Upper 6th, and parents, took part in our ‘Inspire Me Crime’ workshop and talk this week.

Speaker and SPF parent, Dr Luna Filipovic, a forensic psycholinguist, supported by alumna and PhD student Elspeth Wilson (neé Pullinger, who left SPF in 2006), led the event at our new 6th form college building, also giving students from across the school the chance to visit our 6th form and work with different year groups.

Forensic linguistics, the use of language in legal cases, is a hot topic. Companies including Apple and Amazon win or lose huge intellectual property cases based on language used in contracts; immigration case outcomes can be influenced simply by the translator assigned to a case; murder cases and major terrorism can be solved with the help of techniques used in this field. The event aimed to stretch students to think in more directions when considering language and law-related careers.

Our students split out into small breakout groups with our teaching staff, to establish answers to real cases - which emergency calls were real or fake, and was a suicide note true or forged were just two examples. Students were encouraged to use detection, evidence, and give the full explanation behind their thinking before the real answers were revealed.

Dr Filipovic then gave more evidence behind what helps prove cases using this science of forensic psycholinguistics and the different avenues that could be pursued career-wise. Some fantastic examples were given, including a forensic analysis of comedy character Vicky Pollard vs Tony Blair!

Students attending the event will be sent the case study materials, supporting articles and further links to courses and information on this area of study and work, and a feedback form. Please ensure feedback forms are completed on Google by half term: click here to go to the form.

Inspire Me: Crime

Above: Alumna Elspeth Wilson (left) with Dr Luna Filipovic (right)



Come and enjoy an evening of riotous comedy on Friday 27 February directed and performed by our extremely talented sixth form Drama Enrichment group. The Physicists is a crazy black comedy set in a psychiatric hospital where nothing is at it seems - a physicist claiming to be Albert Einstein has just murdered a nurse whilst a few weeks ago another scientist claiming to be Sir Isaac Newton also murdered a nurse. Are they criminals or just mad?

In A Servant to Two Masters Truffaldino needs to make some money, fast. He gets a job as a servant and then realises he can earn double the money by working for two different masters at once. What can possibly go wrong? Expect disguises, mistaken identity, slapstick and a touch of romance.

Tickets available from the 6th Form College reception or email Ms Barrell on [email protected].

Tickets £5.00 for adults and £2.50 for students.

The Sixth Form Play - a double bill!

Please note: A Servant to Two Masters contains a small amount of bad language and might therefore

not be suitable for younger audiences.

A Servant to Two Masters - here is a little taster filmed in rehearsal last weekend (click on the image)



Inspire MeWe have another exciting Inspire Me event coming up - Inspire Me: Third Sector on Wednesday 11 March with Dame Fiona Reynolds DBE 7.30-9.00pm at the Senior School. Hear inspiring stories about working in the charitable sector, with a guest presentation on our history of fundraising for Barnardo’s and why it is so important. More information on this event can be found here.

If you would like to reserve places, please use the SchoolPost reply form or email Melissa Santiago-Val.

Our next meeting will be on Monday, 2nd March 2015, at 8pm (contact Julia Payne on 01223 510546). We will discuss ‘Alan Turing: The Enigma’ by Alan Hodges and ‘The Accidental’ by Ali Smith.

We always have a lively discussion and are keen to welcome new members. If you are interested in finding out more, please contact Martha Crouch for details (07768311015 or email [email protected])

Book Club

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newsletter - Stephen Perse Foundation · 2016-12-10 · behind their backs and, rather comically, we saw Roderigo lose much of his money through the various tricks of his comrades