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Renowned scientist and medic Lord Winston inaugurated a new lecture series for younger boys at Queen Elizabeth’s School.

Boys from Years 7-10 packed the Shearly Hall with their teachers to hear The Right Honourable Professor The Lord Winston deliver the first of what will be a series of termly enrichment lectures, which will feature a range of speakers. A parallel programme has also been developed for the senior years. The initiative is being led by QE’s Head of Academic Enrichment, Nisha Mayer.

Lord Winston’s lecture covered many themes in Science, with reference to his own achievements and career. Lord Winston spoke without notes or visual aids in a natural conversational style; he thoroughly engaged the boys, making the lecture interactive and asking them many questions.

Headmaster Neil Enright said: “What an excellent inaugural guest he was! Lord Winston delivered a fascinating and inspiring lecture; we were honoured to welcome him here.”

Born in London, Robert Winston graduated from The London Hospital Medical School in 1964 and is well known as an expert in human fertility and as a scientist, writer, broadcaster and politician. His father died as a result of medical negligence when Robert was just nine, which formed part of his motivation for his eventual choice of career.

The holder of innumerable awards, including the Faraday Medal from the Royal Society, he has written many books, for both adults and children.

His lecture at QE included the following:

•             It is important that scientific research is done for its own sake, as we never know where it will lead. For example, the science behind lasers was discovered by Albert Einstein in the early 1900s, but lasers as we know them were not developed until the 1960s. Applications of lasers that we are now very familiar with, including spectroscopy, laser surgery and barcode technology, were not really developed until the 1990s, demonstrating how there can be unpredictable benefits to scientific research;

•             However, there will also always be negative side effects of scientific developments. Lord Winston discussed the benefits of aeroplane technology to society, and then asked the audience to name an unintended negative social consequence. The boys listed disbenefits including pollution, climate change and accidents. But Lord Winston broadened their thinking to encompass the spread of infectious disease, such as aeroplanes being responsible for Ebola cases breaking out around the world;

•             Lord Winston then talked about his pioneering work on embryos and in particular the diagnosis of genetically inherited diseases. He led the IVF team that pioneered pre-implantation genetic diagnosis, which identifies defects in human embryos. He remarked that everyone in the hall had at one time been invisible to the naked eye. He got the boys to rub their hands together and on their blazers, and then clap. He said that the invisible skin particles that as a result had flown up into the air – and then been breathed in by the boy sitting next to them! – were actually larger than a three-day-old, eight-cell embryo, the sort that Lord Winston had worked on. At this stage, the embryos’ cells are undifferentiated, that is ‘stem cells’.

Lord Winston asked the audience to name a genetic disorder; one Year 9 pupil named Huntington’s Chorea. There are about 7,000 known genetic disorders, said Lord Winston, most of them quite rare. We all inherit many dozen genetic mutations from our parents, but most of them do not manifest themselves.

•             Lord Winston said that each boy in the hall had a brain of exactly the same size and shape as Einstein – we know this because his brain was removed and analysed after his death! – so each boy had the potential to contribute something great to society.

Lord Winston commented privately to the Headmaster afterwards on how impressive the boys were, praising them for answering questions eagerly and in a knowledgeable way.

QE boys enjoyed both individual and team success in national competitions for some of the country’s most accomplished young mathematicians.

Four boys took part in the UK Mathematics Trust’s Team Maths Challenge national final in the summer and came fifth out of 88 finalists. Their score of 209 points out of 238 was the second-highest ever achieved by QE. The competition is open to pupils in Year 8 and 9 (and these boys are now in Years 9 and 10 respectively).

Team captain Nico Puthu, and fellow pupils Benjamin Suen, Edward Hu and Drew Sellis had won their place in the national final at the Royal Horticultural Halls (Lindley Hall) in central London after achieving second place in their regional heat in March and being ranked as high-scoring runners-up.

The event consisted of five rounds, including the Poster Round, which is added for the national final but is a separate competition and does not count towards the main event. The four activity rounds were: the Group Circus, which involved working on practical mathematical problems; a Relay Race, which was a combination of speed across the room and speed at solving maths problems; a Crossnumber (similar to a crossword); and the Shuttle, which was a series of mini-relays against the clock. The Poster Round had a theme of colouring and included questions on The Four-Colour Problem, The Five-Colour Problem and the Petersen Graph.

The UKMT competitions for individuals also saw strong QE representation: 11 QE boys from Years 7 and 8 (now Years 8 and 9 respectively) took part in the Junior Olympiad in the summer, with a further 114 qualifying for the Junior Kangaroo. These are the follow-on rounds from the Junior Challenge: only around 1,200 students qualify for the Olympiad from the 250,000 who sit the Challenge, while the Kangaroo (which was introduced at junior level for the first time this year) is by invitation only and is sat by several thousand strong candidates who missed out on qualifying for the Olympiad.

The Olympiad consisted of a two-hour paper of in-depth mathematical problems: Section A requires answers only, whereas full written solutions are required for Section B.

James Tan, of Year 7, achieved a certificate of distinction (awarded to the highest-scoring 25% of candidates) and a gold medal. Two of the Team Challenge competitors also performed extremely well in the Olympiad, with Edward Hu, of Year 8, gaining a certificate of distinction and a silver medal, while Drew Sellis, also of Year 8, won a bronze medal. Other boys who excelled were: Shai Kuganesan, of Year 8, who achieved a certificate of distinction and silver, and Sunay Challa, of Year 7, who won bronze. Medals are given to the top 210 scorers but, unlike certificates, are awarded only to those scoring at least five in Section B of the competition. There are 30 gold medals, 60 silver and 120 bronze.

Assistant Head of Mathematics Wendy Fung said: “Simply to reach the Olympiad is a considerable achievement, so any boys gaining certificates of distinction or winning medals have done tremendously well.”

The Junior Kangaroo was a one-hour multiple-choice paper, with 25 questions, sat in School, and is thus similar in form to the Junior Challenge question paper, but is more challenging.  Twenty-four QE boys achieved a merit certificate; the remaining boys were awarded participation certificates.  Tanishq Mehta, of Year 7, Dhru Patel, of Year 8, and Vincent Tang, of Year 8, were the joint-top scorers, with 118 points each.

Miss Fung congratulated all the QE participants from the Team Challenge, Olympiad and Kangaroo.

QE beat the highly regarded rugby team of a Lincolnshire grammar school in a special match at Saracens’ 10,000-seat home ground, Allianz Park.

The match was arranged by last year’s Mayor of Barnet, Councillor Hugh Rayner, and took place in front of a crowd that included QE Headmaster Neil Enright and the Chairman of Governors, Barrie Martin.

Councillor Rayner explained to the Barnet & Whetstone Press how the match had come about: “As mayor last year I visited both the Saracens and QE Boys on a regular basis. And when I discovered that the head master of my old school in Grantham, Mr Hedley, knew the headmaster of QE Boys in Barnet, Mr Enright, it seemed like a good idea to organise something.

“It gave the boys the opportunity to play rugby at an international standard ground and for the staff, governors and old boys from each school to meet up.”

The close-fought game saw the QE First XV, captained by Year 13 boy Callum Cuddeford (pictured below right with Councillor Rayner), hold on to clinch a narrow 17-15 victory against the Lincolnshire visitors at the large modern stadium in Mill Hill.

Jonathan Morgan, the PE teacher at QE who helped organise the day, said: “What a fantastic occasion – with a fantastic result! King’s Grantham is ranked higher than QE and has numerous county players so the boys were up against it. We performed really well on the day, going 17-0 ahead through tries from Sabesan Thayaparan, of Year 12,  and Thomas Archbold, of Year 13, who were among the day’s stand-out players. We let our concentration slip a little, but managed to hang on to get a brilliant result. I am very proud of the entire 22-man squad.”

At a special reception after the match in the Saracen’s Players’ Lounge, all the players received a medal, given by Jags Trophies, of Friern Barnet, in the executive box overlooking the pitch. The QE boys also received a winners’ shield. Captain Callum, who was Man of the Match, was awarded a rugby ball signed by England star Sam Burgess that was donated by rugby merchandise company Canterbury of New Zealand (part of the Pentland Group, based at Finchley).

“Councillor Rayner did much to organise the hospitality, and the boys appreciated tucking into their food after the game,” added Mr Morgan.

The intention is for the fixture to become an annual event from now on, and to raise money for charity in future years.

QE has had a prestigious national award for excellence in Geography renewed for a further three years.

The Secondary Geography Quality Mark (SGQM) is awarded by the Geographical Association to a small number of schools across the country.

The award process encourages and supports schools to reflect on their work and strive for the highest quality in their teaching. All award-winners undergo a rigorous moderation process, which includes examining how they are embracing new and innovative approaches to teaching Geography.

Congratulating the 46 award-winners, Alan Kinder, Chief Executive of the association, said: “There has never been a more important time for all children and young people to study Geography. Growing up in the 21st century means living in an increasingly interconnected world, one facing a growing number of global challenges such as climate change and the need to live our lives sustainably. Geography not only fascinates and inspires young people, it provides them with the knowledge and understanding they need to live in the modern world.”

Headmaster Neil Enright, who is himself a Geographer, said: “I congratulate my colleagues in the Geography department for their sustained commitment to excellence in ensuring the highest standards of teaching and learning.”

The SGQM, now into its ninth year, recognises student attainment, progress and achievement in areas such as geographical knowledge, understanding, values, skills and concepts. It sets expectations about the quality of teaching in Geography. It aims to promote effective subject leadership and management, helping subject leaders raise the standards of Geography in their schools.

In his detailed feedback to QE’s Geography department, moderator Alan Parkinson wrote: “Many thanks for your well organised and detailed submission, which we enjoyed reading. It brought us up to date with the work you have been doing since the previous submission, and we were pleased to hear that the excellent exam results we commented on last time are continuing, and that Geography remains a popular option subject with a strong uptake. You are clearly providing a wide range of opportunities for students to experience Geography beyond the classroom, and a number of exciting fieldwork experiences, which you plan to develop further.”

He highlighted QE’s increasing connections with Ampomfi Junior High School in Ghana and its work on teachers’ Continuing Professional Development (CPD).

QE was previously given the SGQM award at a ceremony in 2012. It will now be among award recipients who will be acknowledged at the Geographical Association’s 2016 annual conference at the University of Derby in April 2016.

Sebastian Feszczur-Hatchett (OE 2007–2014) was a regional finalist in awards run by the Year in Industry scheme, having secured a placement at global consumer products company Procter & Gamble. He is starting his Chemical Engineering degree course at Leeds University this autumn.

Sebastian, an outstanding QE First XI cricketer who also achieved senior Middlesex selection, was one of six pupils – a School record – to be awarded Arkwright Engineering scholarships while in Year 12.

After leaving School last summer, he went on to take up his Year in Industry scheme placement at Procter & Gamble’s Innovation Centre in Newcastle. The centre focuses on the development of dry laundry and dishwashing detergents for all parts of the world.

The Year in Industry scheme is run by the Engineering Development Trust to encourage students into the STEM subjects (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) by offering pre-university and undergraduate gap year placements. Successful applicants receive paid employment as well as training and support throughout their placement. Sebastian successfully completed a detailed application process to match him with the most suitable employer.

“The aim of my project over this last year was to improve the understanding of powder solubility in order to support the design of new products for the consumer in China,” he says. “I firstly developed an experimental method to measure the rate of dissolution of a powder so that samples could be compared. Then I made a model to predict the dissolution of a finished product (i.e. what you would buy from a shop), based on the chemistry of the powder. My work is expected to save P&G up to $210,000 annually as new products can be developed quicker and as variations in performance can be predicted from the model without samples having to be manufactured.”

For the Year in Industry Contribution to the Business Awards North East regional final, hosted by equipment maker Caterpillar at Peterlee, Sebastian gave a presentation and answered questions about his project, although hampered somewhat by the fact that most of his work was confidential.

“I have really enjoyed my experience this year and am proud of what I have accomplished. I would highly recommend the Year in Industry scheme to any aspiring engineer or scientist.

“I hope the skills I have learnt this year will stand me in good stead. My long-term career ambition is to work on the development of cleaner and more environmentally-friendly fuels,” he adds.

Year 8 pupil Guy Flint has been announced as the winner of this year’s QE Big Read competition.

For the annual Big Read competition, organised by English teacher Panayiota Menelaou, pupils are challenged to have a photograph taken of themselves during the summer holidays reading a book in the most unusual location they can think of. The winning picture of Guy shows him devouring The London Eye Mystery (a children’s mystery novel published in 2007) while sitting in the cable car going up to the peak at Funchal on the island of Madeira. He wins a book token as his prize.

Congratulating him, Headmaster Neil Enright said the competition was an example of the creative ways in which the School seeks to encourage reading. The opening of The Queen’s Library and the continuing investment in building up its collections further demonstrate QE’s commitment to literature, the Headmaster added.

The importance of reading has risen to the top of the political agenda recently following Schools Minister Nick Gibbs’ idea to get 100 great works of English literature published at low cost so they could be distributed to schools. As part of an article in The Times on the somewhat mixed reception that the idea has received, Mr Enright was asked to name his favourite reading suitable for schools.

Mr Enright said: “There is of course a debate to be had about exactly which books should be on the Government’s list, but the renewed emphasis on the importance of reading is surely welcome. Not only does reading high-quality literature develop pupils’ linguistic abilities, but it also exposes them to the works of great intellects and gives them a grounding in the best that our culture has to offer.”

Mr Enright gave The Times his own suggestions for boys to read at school, including on his list only titles that are out-of-print and therefore cheaper to publish. These were:

• Flatland, by Edwin Abbott Abbott
• Oliver Twist, by Charles Dickens
• The Hound of the Baskervilles, by Arthur Conan Doyle
• Brave New World, by Aldous Huxley
• The Turn of the Screw, by Henry James
• 1984, by George Orwell
• The Grapes of Wrath, by John Steinbeck
• The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, by Robert Louis Stevenson
• War and Peace, by Tolstoy
• A Journey to the Centre of the Earth, by Jules Verne.