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Thirty Year 12 boys joined 30 girls from Henrietta Barnett School to work on the Extended Project Qualification.

During an initial one-day symposium, the students were placed into groups of four, comprising two boys and two girls, according to whether their subject interest was science or humanities-based. Each student brought an academic article or text of interest for consideration by their group. The teams then had to agree a research question for collaborative work before presenting their findings to their peers and staff at the second stage of the event some weeks later.

“This event built successfully on previous collaborations between the two schools,” said Dr Sarah Westcott, Head of Pupil Progression at QE. “The aim was to get our boys and Henrietta Barnett students, who are normally used to the single-sex environment, working together to research, analyse and then present their ideas on a number of high-level academic topics. Events of this kind are key to ensuring that students develop the research skills and analysis techniques necessary throughout their A-level studies as well as preparing them for the mixed environment of higher education.”

Research questions at the QE/HBS collaboration event ranged from The hygiene hypothesis – are humans too clean? to an analysis of whether the methods China has used to enjoy worldwide economic success could be replicated in African countries.

“The presentations were of a particularly high standard, with students enthusiastically delivering their analysis on their chosen research topic,” added Dr Westcott, who oversaw Science topics. Tahmer Mahmoud, Head of History and Academic Enrichment at QE, oversaw pupils studying an arts or humanities topic for the EPQ.

• The EPQ is a qualification equivalent to an AS Level which aims to help students pursue their interests by exploring topics in depth.

Ben Pugh (OE 2002-2009) played a significant role as his team “stormed” to the final of the BBC quiz show, University Challenge. Pembroke College, Cambridge, made an unusually slow start in their semi-final against UCL and trailed in the early stages, before pulling level and finally winning 185 points to 125.

The show’s host, Jeremy Paxman, praised Pembroke as the only semi-final team who had not lost a match in the competition so far, describing their win as “another storming performance”.

Ben’s speed on the buzzer was crucial as he answered a number of starter questions to help his team to victory. His range of knowledge enabled him to answer questions on Shakespeare, chess, classical music, geography and Home Secretaries among other topics.

Ben, who is reading German and Russian at Cambridge, played a full part in School life during his time at QE and achieved top grades in his A-levels.

Sixth-Formers, staff and visitors were treated to an exposition of the effects of music on the brain by leading neuropsychologist and musician Dr Catherine Loveday.

During the open lecture, Lost in Music, in QE’s Shearly Hall, Dr Loveday, of the University of Westminster, endeavoured to unravel the mystery of music’s power, accompanied by professional pianist Anna Tilbrook, soprano Joanne McGahon and guitarist Darren Loveday.

Dr Loveday described music as “fundamental, universal and ubiquitous”. She referred to a 2004 study which documented more than 100 different feelings evoked in people by music. She outlined how physical changes to the body and brain underlie these emotional responses to music. Dr Loveday also referred to evidence that music can lower blood pressure, ease stress and reduce pain.

“Laughter, screaming and crying – they’re all basically a form of music and we’re innately primed by it,” said Dr Loveday. “We have these primal, direct responses, but then, as we learn the language of music more, our appreciation deepens. We become able to use sounds in more complex ways…matched by the complexity of our emotional responses.”

A lecture by Dr Loveday on the same theme, at the University of Westminster, was described in The Psychologist magazine as “a delightful neuroscience and music mash-up”.

Year 9 students listened to the dignified account of one woman’s experiences in Auschwitz, at a talk organised through the Holocaust Educational Trust.

Mrs Freda Wineman, who grew up a French Jew, gave a harrowing account of how her family was rounded-up and deported to the concentration camp. On arrival, her mother and younger brother, Marcel, were sent straight to the gas chambers, whilst she was allotted to a forced labour gang. Her head was shaved and her arm tattooed and she was set to digging ditches. 

She spoke of the touches of humanity and defiance that kept her spirit from being broken. She remembered, too, the Hungarian women who gave her their bread and tried to smuggle clothes to those prisoners working outside the camp in freezing conditions.

The talk was organised by History teacher Helen MacGregor, who said: “Mrs Wineman told the boys that she continues to relive her distressing experiences due to her unwavering sense of determination to bear witness to injustice and to prevent such evil ever happening again.

“It was a special day for Year 9 as they gained a valuable insight into one of the most horrific episodes in history and an understanding of human nature. The boys appreciated that they are the last generation to be able to hear the first-hand accounts of survivors of the Holocaust.”

This year’s Year 7 Music Scholars have been named after succeeding in a highly competitive short-listing process and then performing strongly in a special concert.

The five scholars – Alfie Clarke, Haran Jeyendran, Showgo Kimura, Andy Lau and Karnan Sembian – were among 12 boys who were short-listed for the concert. Each performed before an independent, external adjudicator, Simon Walton, Acting Director of Music at University College School, Hampstead. Mr Williams commended the boys on their high level of preparation and skill.

The concert programme included music from a wide range of genres, including Indian classical music, unaccompanied Bach on the cello and jazz by Oscar Peterson on the piano.

Headmaster Neil Enright presented certificates to the scholarship winners. “It is very pleasing to see the depth and breadth of musical talent at QE, and to know that we provide an environment in which such talent is nurtured,” he said. “Although, we encourage all our boys to excel at, and to enjoy, a broad range of disciplines, Music has always had a special place in the life of the School.”

A brief résumé of the five new scholars follows:

• Alfie Clarke has been learning the classical guitar since Year 2 and at his last school performed both as soloist and as part of various ensembles
• Haran Jeyendran has been learning the miruthangam (a percussion instrument) since the age of four. He also learns Carnatic singing, the electronic keyboard and the alto saxophone. Haran is a member of the QE Junior Indian Music Ensemble
• Showgo Kimura started playing the violin at the age of seven. He passed Grade 5 Music Theory with Merit last autumn and is currently preparing for Grade 6 practical. He is a member of the Junior String Orchestra and Choir
• Andy Lau also started violin lessons when he was seven years old. He is a member of the Finchley String Orchestra and took part in the Barnet One Voice concert at the Royal Albert Hall in 2010. Andy is a member of the QE Junior String Orchestra
• Karnan Sembian has been learning the miruthangam since 2007 at Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan. Karnan has performed in a large number of concerts organised by QE.

Music Scholars receive financial support which can be used to reduce the cost of music tuition or to upgrade an instrument.

The other finalists were: Abbas Adejonwo; Abbeykeith Kugasenan Chettiar; Ricky Eatough; Shiran Gnanraj; Ghavin Kuganesan; Dillon Shah and Joshua Wong.

Boys from Year 9 had the opportunity to explore the development of aerial warfare and military equipment when they visited the Imperial War Museum’s site at Duxford in Cambridgeshire.

The site houses the American Air Museum, as well as a 1940s Operation Room and a host of planes and land-based military equipment. The trip was organised by History teacher Helen MacGregor, who said: “The boys particularly enjoyed tracing the development of military planes. The splendid sunshine made it possible for them to picnic outside and watch the various planes taking off and landing at the airfield.”

In addition to the permanent exhibitions of World War I, WWII and the Cold War, Duxford is also home to more modern commercial planes, including Concorde. The museum sets out the different conservation techniques required to preserve planes from different eras.