T3 HORIZONS 2017

Senior Prep Report
“The capacity to learn is a gift; the ability
to learn is a skill; the willingness to
learn is a choice.” – Brian Herbert
It’s a scary thought that 2017 is coming
to an end. Christmas paraphernalia has
already begun cluttering the shelves of
stores, businesses are starting to wrap
up end of year goals, and schools such
as ours, begin to wind down as we finalise
another year that has flown by.
Much has changed on the academic
front, and we are starting to see the
positive impact that P4C, STEAM and
the two Academic Semesters has had
on our boys this year. A shift in culture
and mindset, as well as an understanding
of what education really looks like
in the 21st Century, bodes well whereby
our teaching pedagogies align with
the way in which our boys learn.
Teaching and learning continues to
change, and what an exciting place our
scool is to be in and be a part of at
this time. The word “Digital Natives”
springs to mind - Education author Jay
Cross said “education is moving from
the individual to the individual and his
contacts”. This rings true, whereby
boys are tasked daily to check Google
Classroom, to upload projects and
documents to Google Drive, and turn
in assignments on given due dates.
Content has shifted from “what I know
to what WE know”. Sharing, collaboration
and communication have become
fundamentally important in the classroom
environment.
We have to understand that the landscape
of education is changing at such
a pace that the illiterate of the 21st
century will not be those that cannot
read or write, the illiterate will be
those who cannot learn, unlearn and
relearn. Tony Wagner says that “there
is no competitive advantage today in
knowing more than the person next to
you. The world doesn’t care what you
know. What the world cares about is
what you can do with what you know.”
I sent a newsletter out a few months
back, which touched on something we
like to call the softer skills, with some
of these being empathy, grit, resilience,
communication and collaboration. I
feel we will do our boys a disservice if
these are not taught and role-modeled
everyday. Angela Duckworth, an academic
and psychologist writes on grit
and resilience and how regular individuals
who exercise selfcontrol and perseverance
can reach as high as those
who are naturally talented—that your
mindset is as important as your mind.
As a primary school, and a foundation
for learning, I strongly believe that the
softer skills outweigh a mark or average
on a report card. We need to continue
asking ourselves what we (both
teacher and parent) want our boys to
“look like” when they leave The Ridge
School. If we’re just focused on one,
two or all three core pillars (Academics,
Sport and Music) that make up our
school, then we are doing our boys
a disservice, and they will leave here
with a very narrow minded approach
as to what real life is about.
Within the next 15 to 20 years, this
will undoubtedly have changed. Your
son, or sons will have graduated, and
the story of what schools will become
has already been written. The Ridge
School will certainly be one of these
establishments. It will be a place where
teachers, parents and students come
together to learn about the world, a
place rich with technology that lets
our boys dream big and where we create
the fuel for those dreams. A place
where learning is fun, where it’s not
necessarily so much about competing
against one another as it is about
working together to solve the really
big problems we’ll face together in the
years to come.
Gareth Dry, principal at Riverview
Preparatory School in Melane, Mpumalanga
says it best:
“We are in the middle of another revolution
– a revolution of thought. The
future of our country and the world
depends on the work we do today in
our classroom. Are we going to continue
to educate children by date of
manufacture, or are we going to encourage
flexibility, individual thought
and opportunities for growth at different
rates?”
I am excited for what lies ahead of us
in the coming years, and what we as
a school, in partnership with parents,
can achieve.
May I take this opportunity to thank
you all for your support. As education
evolves and continues to change, The
Ridge School will continue to remain
at the forefront of teaching and learning.
On behalf of the staff, enjoy a well-deserved
and safe holiday. I have included
a link below called the “WestJet
Christmas Miracle”, where, some of
the softer skills of what I have mentioned
earlier apply.
https://www.youtube.com/
watch?v=zIEIvi2MuEk
Nicholas Diana
Deputy Head: SP Academics
The Ridge School 6 Horizons Term 3 2017