Dear Parents and Guardians
This is the final newsletter for the term, and I want to use this opportunity to thank everyone for the past ten weeks as we battled the third wave of Covid and tried to get as much done for our boys as possible.
Next term starts on Tuesday 5 October, and we ask parents to ensure that their son(s) are appropriately dressed, groomed and ready for the last term that lies ahead. This term is one where we say farewell to our Grade 12s and their parents and wish them all the best for their final exams and their last few weeks of their school careers. It is also the term of final exams for all boys, Epic, OD Community Week and many other activities and we hope we can provide a good end to another challenging year for our boys.
I would like to thank our staff, teaching and support, for their efforts this past term and for keeping our school going as well as they do. I thank our parents who have been so supportive in these times and I thank our boys who continue to do their very best.
The OD Community Week is an initiative that we support as a wonderful opportunity for engagement with the ODs and the College as well as a means of raising funds for a deserving cause – that of supporting one of our boys in their tertiary studies. Please try to support this week in which our own PAs play a big part, as we connect as a community united in the Bishops name.
Covid-19
The numbers of infections are declining and for that we are eternally grateful. There is still need for vigilance though as we are not out of the grip of this pandemic and we ask that people remain cautious as they enjoy a much-needed school holiday.
Academic News
Our Grade 12s finished their Mock Matric exams and we are hoping for the best for them for their results and for their preparations for the finals.
Our Mathematics Department continues to impress with the results of their participation in various Olympiads and competitions. These are quite remarkable achievements, and we congratulate the boys and their teachers on their efforts!
The annual prize giving for Grade 12 boys will take place on the same day as Valedictory, Friday 15 October, and will be an open-air event for Grade 12s and their parents. More details will follow shortly.
The Grade 8 – 11 prize giving will be held in February 2022 to enable us to fully assess the academic year and recognize the top achievers.
School News
We are pleased to announce the names of the teachers who will be taking up their new positions at the College in 2022.
The staff members were asked to introduce themselves:
Ms Claire Malan: Mathematics
After spending the first 12 years of my life moving between the Eastern Cape, Free State and Western Cape, my family settled in Port Elizabeth where I attended Alexander Road High School. At the end of my Grade 12 year, I decided to take a year off to explore my passions and investigate what would bring meaning and a sense of purpose to my life. After my year abroad, I began my Tertiary Education at NMMU majoring in Mathematics and Psychology. I then completed my PGCE and began teaching at Pearson High School in Port Elizabeth where I studied part-time to complete my Honours degree in Psychology.
I relocated with my husband to Cape Town and began teaching at Herzlia High School. After some time at Herzlia, I accepted a post at Cedar House in Kenilworth. I have taught Grade 8 - 12 Mathematics and Advanced Programme Mathematics. I have also marked Mathematics Paper 1 for both the DBE and IEB for several years and have been involved in many workshops discussing Singapore Mathematics and more progressive methods of instruction.
Ms Victoria Nkosi: Mathematical Literacy
I grew up in Pretoria and completed my high school education at Bokgoni Technical Secondary School.
I received my BEd degree through the University of South Africa specialising in Mathematics Education, English and Psychology. I hope to obtain my honours degree in Mathematics soon. I will be teaching Mathematics and Mathematical literacy.
I have been at Bishops since 2019 as a Maths intern and living in White House since 2020. I managed the Chess Society, am involved in coaching the 6th Cricket team and help with Maths support.
I have so enjoyed my time at Bishops, especially being part of a boarding house and am very excited to start the next chapter of my teaching life at the school.
Ms Clea Schultz-Mofokeng: English
I come from a family of teachers, and have taught in Pretoria, Johannesburg, Pietermaritzburg and now Cape Town. I have a Masters Degree in South African literature from the University of the Witwatersrand, but my current research interests are focused on teaching, and how to improve teaching practice in our South African context. I enjoy reading novels and the latest biographies, politics and literary nonfiction, and I try to keep up to date with current affairs and social movements so that I can discuss them with my students and come to a new understanding collectively. I look forward to joining the Bishops community and to finding ways to make a contribution.
Mr Wandile Nzuza: History/English
I am Wandile Nzuza, the last-born son of Sibongile Nzuza, the pillar upon which I stand. I was raised the last born of five children, being fostered into an environment of compromise and collaboration from early on. I attended boarding school from a young age, eventually ending my career at St Stithians Boys' College in Johannesburg, Gauteng after having moving school a few times. It is in this time between schools that I would find stability in literature, exposing myself to a range of novels from 1800s literature into the 21st century. It was also in this time that an attitude of activism and an interest in human rights was fostered in me as I was exposed to a diverse array of people, having shared the classroom with students from rural areas, townships, the city etc. and seeing the disparity in the society we live in. Education for me then became a means to empowering others to realise their potential.
I consider myself an allrounder and balanced person, with my interests and passions lying in rugby (and most sports in general), music (having sung in the choir since primary school and being self-taught in guitar) and the arts in general. I consider myself a passionate individual, one who finds life anywhere, if not everywhere, I go. I tend to live by the quote, 'Those who were dancing were thought crazy by those who couldn't hear the music.'
Science: process still under way
Transformation
We have engaged the services of an expert to analyse our libraries across the three campuses and to help us transform these spaces, if needed, to reflect the needs of the school community, to recognize SA and African authors and to encourage our own boys to pursue their interests in writing. We hope to have this exercise completed by the end of the year.
Our revised Diversity and Transformation Policy has been shared amongst the boys and staff for comment and I share it with this newsletter for parents to read and comment. This policy was drawn up by the Transformation Committee of Council and will seek to be the overarching policy to which all other policies will refer. If you have comment, please feel free to submit your thoughts to principal@bishops.org.za by the end of the first week of the fourth term, Friday 9 October.
Final thoughts
Our Grade 12 boys are going to be enjoying a social gathering, in line with full Covid protocols, as their farewell function for the year. This will take place in the form of House-specific dinners, with partners but with limited numbers, and we thank the team of parents and staff that have worked tirelessly to make sure our boys have this opportunity. In particular, I want to thank Mrs Marycke Roche and Mrs Trudy Hoefnagels who coordinated the team of parents. Thank you all for giving our boys this wonderful opportunity at the end of a tough year for them.
I also attach an article written by Professor Richard van Zyl Smit on vaping which is a habit we are seeing more of in schools, not just our own. In this article, he tries to dispel some of the myths around vaping and we ask that you read it to give you more information. This is obviously a practise we discourage strongly amongst our boys and we are looking at how we can help them make better decisions about their health.
I hope you are able to enjoy a brief break with your son as he rests in preparation for the final term. The final assembly for the term has been taken by Mr Westwood as I am away in Pretoria at a “farewell” function at my previous school.
Enjoy the holidays.
Kind regards
Antony Reeler
Principal
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