The Times: Go straight to the head of the class
An interesting article from The Times. I left my independent school in year 4 (currently year 10), and so never had an opportunity to be considered fro Head Girl, or one of the many other year 11 leadership roles.
Being chosen as a school’s lead boy or girl carries with it both honour and obligation.
The role of a school’s head boy and girl runs deeper than simply representing a year group. Schools establish these positions to show their pupils what life is like in the outside world, a place where people management is as important as learning to make the best use of your time.
The process behind choosing a head boy or girl will often reflect the core credentials of each school. Most will pick students whose own attributes also reflect the ethos of their place of learning, before gently cultivating them into the leaders of tomorrow.
At St Margaret’s School for Girls in Aberdeen, a head girl should possess a few key attributes. Loyalty, positivity and integrity are at the top of the list, as is the ability to show compassion and sensitivity towards younger pupils.
Susan Lynch, the school’s deputy head, says: “The head girl is a role model for pupils and is there to represent the school, acting as an ambassador on a daily basis.
“Building relationships with the prefect body, peers, younger pupils, staff and members of the wider school community is key to the role; younger pupils especially regard their head girl as someone to look up to and the position is one to which they, too, aspire.”
Since a school’s head boy or girl will carry out a greater share of daily tasks compared with their classmates, time management is a skill at which they will become a dab hand. On any day they may have to organise prefect duties or conduct a tour for prospective parents and pupils — on top of their own coursework and having a social life.
“All head girls past and present regard their appointment as a privilege and find the role to be exceptionally rewarding,” says Lynch. “It does entail hard work and commitment alongside conflicting academic priorities, but careful forward planning and support from senior staff, as well as good teamwork and delegation among the head girl team and prefect body, allows for a manageable remit.”
Other schools share the load of head pupil responsibilities by building teams. This helps foster relationships between students, who can rely on each other for guidance or step in when a change of plan is necessary.
Pupils at St Leonards in St Andrews, Fife, have this down to a fine art. Michael Carslaw, the school’s headmaster, says: “The head boy and head girl are supported by their deputies, as well as a strong team of prefects and senior prefects. These leadership roles are aspirational for pupils in the younger years, and carry with them a great deal of responsibility.”
A new head boy and girl at the school, known as office bearers, are chosen before the crucial run-up to exam time. “Each year, new office bearers are selected during spring term through an interview process with the headmaster,” explains Carslaw.
“This changeover is scheduled specifically to enable students in year 13 to pass on the baton to the year 12s coming up, and allow them to focus exclusively on their studies as they enter the revision and exam period for the international baccalaureate diploma.”
It is a similar story at Merchiston Castle School in Edinburgh. Just a year before boys leave for university, exams and coursework are the priority. Philip Rossiter, fifth form housemaster, says: “To ensure the pupil’s academic work is his top priority and remains so throughout the year, the captain of school is assisted by two vice captains and mentored by the head and deputies, along with his housemaster and academic tutor.”
There is also room to tweak responsibilities to each incoming head boy. “The captain of school leads both his year group and the pupil body as a whole,” continues Rossiter. “His duties can be adjusted to suit his particular skills, but they usually involve speaking at a wide variety of events to current pupils and parents and prospective pupils and parents, attending meetings, visiting the different age groups within the school, and representing their views in a variety of meetings.”
Like at St Leonards, pupils at Albyn School in Aberdeen who are keen to step into the shoes of last year’s student leaders will be interviewed by the headmaster. Unlike at St Leonards, they will also be assessed by their peers — something that allows an appointment of someone respected equally among staff and classmates.
“Gaining the position of head boy and head girl involves rather an extensive process of being put forward and voted for by their fellow students, the previous year’s head pupil positions and staff,” says Ian Long, the school’s headmaster.
“We do this to ensure the fairest voting system is used to select a head boy and a head girl who will be good all-round students who work well with others in supporting not only those who may struggle slightly but also push those who just need a little encouragement.
“It has been commented by former head boys and girls that achieving this position at school better prepared them for leaving school due to the organisational, motivational and team-building skills gained.”