Rhubarb October 2022

ST EDWARD’S

(yes), would there be an anti-movement from the boys (none detected).

Were the pastoral needs of girls different from boys? (The answer is ‘Yes.’) Did boys and girls learn and respond to teaching in the same ways? (Answer – There are different learning styles not based on gender.) The curriculum? Food? Drama, music and sport? (The first two were obvious. Sport was more problematic.We needed to rapidly develop a whole-school sporting culture for both boys and girls.) The go-ahead was given, financial resources were made available, Oakthorpe was extended, Mac’s was chosen for conversion to a girls’ House. Simultaneously, staged improvements were being made to the other Houses as we tried to achieve a consistent quality of provision over the estate.There were hair-raising moments as the beginning of term approached in September 1997 – would the Houses be ready (nearly!), would the recruited girls turn up

Was it a success? The short answer is that full co-education has simply transformed the School. Starting in 1983 with two dozen girls and a pupil body of 583, in a school of eight Houses, St Edwards’ has greatly increased in size, the boy/girl split is 59% boys – 41% girls with nearly equal numbers in the Sixth Form, and there are now13 Houses.The range of opportunities for pupil development has greatly increased. It worked, thanks to the cumulative work of successive Wardens, Bursars and Governors, Registrars, the academic and pastoral expertise in the Common Room, support services and the pupils themselves, who are, as ever, our best advert.

FEATURE

Australian Co-Ed Hockey Tour 1999

Teddies today T oday we have 325 girls at Teddies, with 47% of our Sixth Form being girls, and we have 55 female teachers in the Common Room. In 2019 Cooper Lodge was opened – the first co-ed house established where Sixth Form girls live alongside boys of all years. Since then Sing’s and Apsley have also welcomed girls to their Sixth Form and this co-ed model has proven popular with both boys and girls and their parents. The following extracts are taken from the interview with theWarden, Alastair Chirnside, and new Sub-Warden, Clare Hamilton, that appears in the autumn issue of The Chronicle 2022.

How important is co-education to the fundamental purpose of education? Alastair Chirnside,Warden: “Education is about preparing children for the world in which they will be adults, so that they can play a full part in society and so that they can lead happy and fulfilling lives – so co-education is fundamentally important. It gives children more points of social reference, and it leads to greater emotional intelligence. Co-education makes children’s experience of school more rounded, more complete.The purpose of education can be achieved without it, but there’s no doubt that it’s more easily achieved – and more likely to be successfully achieved – when boys and girls are educated together.” Clare Hamilton, Sub-Warden: “School isn’t just about successfully acquiring a body of knowledge and sitting exams. It’s about growing up, trying new things, learning from mistakes, broadening your experience and understanding of the world and forming lasting friendships. Boarding in a co-educational environment makes your experience so much the richer.”

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