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Calderglen High School
October Newsletter
We have had a flying start to this session with lots of activity and very
settled and interesting learning experiences for pupils. It is a pleasure
to report considerable success and improvements in national
examinations. The introduction of National Courses last session and
new Higher courses this session has been a real challenge for staff and
pupils but hard work and professionalism have resulted in strong
performances from pupils. We have learned a lot from last session’s
implementation and are adjusting courses in the Broad General
Education and in S4 as we progress. As ever, we are making every
effort to communicate with parents about the new qualifications and
already this session we have issued a Senior Phase newsletter and had
a very successful Senior Phase series of workshops for parents.
Our S1 pupils have had an excellent start and have settled quickly and
well. I wish to say a particular welcome to all new S1 parents. We are
pleased to see the number of clubs which our S1 are joining and their
enthusiasm for becoming fully involved in school life. There have been
a number of trips and activities for pupils in the Broad General
education.
As you can see from these photos our Remembrance
Garden has been officially opened and the WW1
Commemoration event has been a great source of
learning for pupils across all stages in the school and has
offered some sharing of learning between primary
schools, community groups and Calderglen High.
I wish you all a refreshing October holiday and would
remind you that I shall be only too happy to hear from
you about any matters relating to school life or as to
how we can better support your child.
Liz White Head Teacher
Page 2: Celebrating Achievement
Calderglen High School
High Common Road
G74 2LP
Page 3: Commonwealth Games
Page 4: Celebrating Achievement
Pages 5: Fundraising
Page 6-10: Celebrating Achievement
 01355 588620
Page 11-13: General Information
Page 1
Celebrating Achievement
Calderglen High School 2014 SQA Examinations – The Results
We have been extremely pleased with our results this year
across all examination levels. In S5 & S6 we have shown
improvement in all of our statistics for Higher and
Intermediate examinations. Some key improvements have
been:
5 Higher = Improvement from 13% last session to 21% this
session. This includes the success of our Personal
Development course which allowed 73 S5 pupils to gain an
additional award, taking 28 pupils to 6 Highers.
3 Higher = improvement from 33% last session to 36% this
session
1 Higher = improvement from 54% - 56%
The areas we targeted from last session have all shown improvements thanks to the hard work and dedication
of our staff. Our strategies to give pupils more responsibility for learning and to engage parents further have
paid off with the highest number ever of pupils achieving passes in 5 & 3 Highers. These results have exceeded
expectations. We are delighted at how well our pupils have performed in the new National exams. The results
have shown that we have managed to raise the bar in attainment levels across almost all subject areas for
pupils. More pupils have gained awards at National 5 level than previously had done at Credit level.
One of our many success stories is exemplified by the achievements of Amy Boslam. She applied to the University of Cambridge this year to study Mathematics. The competition for a
place at Cambridge is so intense that there are 6 applicants for every place. Amy was asked
to achieve four Advanced Highers all with an A pass.
She excelled with straight As in Advanced Higher Mathematics, Advanced Higher Applied
Mathematics, Advanced Higher Physics and Advanced Higher Chemistry.
Calderglen is quite rightly proud of Amy’s outstanding achievement.
Merits
Recognising very good behaviour and celebrating success is an essential part of our school life. One way Calderglen High does this is by awarding Merits to pupils. Teachers are able to award Merits to pupils in a range of areas as a way of recognising positive behavior. Essentially, Merits enable us to capture the ‘well done’ conversations that occur in class on a day to day basis.
We feel that parents should know when Merits are issued and we try to communicate this through Parent Mail.
This means that if your child is given a Merit you will receive a Parent Mail indicating this. Parent Mail allows us
to send out a general email stating that your child has been successful in gaining a Merit but you need to click on
the school website link to find out which teacher/subject has issued the Merit.
The Merit System was very popular with pupils and parents last session and we hope that this continues this
year. Recent responses in our parental questionnaire highlighted that some subjects issued more merits than
others. While we will continue to encourage subject areas to use Merits to reflect their specialisms eg a Merit in
PE maybe issued to someone who always brings PE kit, we will try to improve the consistency in issuing Merits.
Finally, we are always looking for your help to make the system better and you are able to provide feedback via
the website.
Page 2
Commonwealth Games
Global Citizenship & Commonwealth Class
Following our win as the UK
Commonwealth Class, Calderglen was
again represented during the summer
holidays at the grand finale of the BBC’s
Commonwealth Class Have Your Say.
A group of 6 pupils participated in a live
debate with students from across the
Commonwealth.
Our Partnership with Mountview High in Cape Town has been
strengthened this month with the visit of Glynnis and Firdaus.
They had a fantastic 10 days in South Lanarkshire with a strong
focus on how we are going to be taking forward Rights Respecting School in both schools.
On 25th September Mrs Jill Anderson, Ms Lesley Stewart and
Mrs Jillian Kane, Development Officer for SLC, travelled to
South Africa to extend our plans to become Rights Respecting
Schools and make global citizenship a reality in this partnership. We look forward to reports back from Staff Team Mountview!
Commonwealth Games
English Teacher, Mrs Healy thoroughly enjoyed being
a Clydesider!
Marcus Boyd was very proud to be 1 of 6 Baton
Bearers associated with Calderglen High School
Page 3
Celebrating Achievement
School Captains
Here are our School Captains: Ewan Hamilton,
Lyndsey Murray, Laura Irvine and Stephen
Ripley.
They will be supported by:
Captains for:
Extra-curricular opportunities: Eilidh Dolan
Study: Casey McDonald
Ambassadors for:
Celebrating Achievement
Music: Rebecca Marshall, Gaidhlig : Eilidh
MacDonald and Modern Languages: Simon
Little
Junior House Captains
Above are our S3 Junior House Captains: Torrance: Drew Tipping and Ava Syme Struthers: Eve Bryson and
Noel Thomson Cameron: Taylor White and Hannah Stewart.
They will be eagerly supported by S3 House Prefects: Struthers: Greig Kennedy, Jack Lobban, Seonaid Russell,
Joshua Baird and Yasmin Chow: Torrance: Andrew Murray, Alexandra Morton and Alana Penman, Cameron:
Abby Carmichael and Lewis Heaney
Page 4
Fundraising
Meningitis Now
As you may be aware, our school takes great pride in supporting to
charities. Our focus throughout this
term is for increasing awareness and
funding for Meningitis Now.
Recently six staff members and
thirteen pupils raised £700 at a bag
pack in Tesco. There will be a nonuniform day on 10th October at the
cost of £1 per pupil, to raise money for this charity. There will also
be Meningitis bands on sale and a raffle. Every pupil will be given a
card with information on meningitis.
St Andrew’s Hospice
For over 15 years staff and pupils have been raising
money for St Andrew’s Hospice. This hospice provides
specialist palliative care services and end-of-lifecare - and
is open to all, without distinction of race, gender, or
creed. It is Lanarkshire's only Specialist Hospice and
provides multidisciplinary support for patients, their
families, and carers. On the 21st September over 70
members of staff and pupils took part in the Schools 6K
at Strathclyde Park. This was out highest number of
volunteers to date! This was to help raise money towards
the £60,000 the hospice need annually to keep their
amazing facilities open.
Page 5
Celebrating Achievement
WW1 Centenary Commemoration Open Day
Calderglen High School commemorated the Centenary
Anniversary of The Great War 1914-1918 in great style with
an Open Day to remember. The community event saw
staff, pupils and parents joined by many members of the
local community to mark this poignant occasion.
Special guests included The Gordon Highlanders reenactment group, Lanarkshire Yeomanry, Family History
Society, Low Parks Museum Society as well as the local
Army Cadets in full uniform, whilst the East Kilbride Pipe
Band provided some traditional entertainment. Many local
enthusiasts attended to display their own personal
memorabilia collection to add to the many interdisciplinary
displays of pupil work. Poppy Scotland also attended as the
schools' chosen charity.
Relics of the past!
Michael McCann MP and Linda Fabiani MSP were joined by
many local Councillors and Education Officials to witness
the proceedings which centred on the opening of a
stunning Remembrance Garden complete with a bespoke
monument, based on designs by pupils.
Sixty white crosses bear the names of The East Kilbride Fallen courtesy of the Technical Department!
Sam Leggat and Ross Hutton are put through
their paces by The Gordon Highlanders
Local Army cadets support the event in great numbers!
Page 6
Celebrating Achievement
Ocean Youth Trust
24 pupils and staff from Calderglen High spent 5 days with
the Ocean Youth Trust Scotland as part of their Silver Duke
of Edinburgh Award. They sailed from Oban on the 25th
August and took two separate routes, finishing up at James
Watt Dock, Greenock on Sunday 31st August.
The pupils sailed in two boats; Alba Explorer and the
sister boat, Alba Endeavour. These are 72 foot,
ocean going boats which had previously sailed twice
around the world with the BT Challenge initiative.
The pupils formed part of the crew and were supervised by
6 training crew on each boat. They were responsible for
navigation, communicating with the coast guard, cooking,
cleaning and most importantly, being part of a team, looking out for one another and working together to learn sailing craft. Finishing up the week at Greenock, all crew members received a crew competence certificate.
Staff were highly impressed with the pupils as they
set about their tasks and commented on how quickly
and efficiently the Calderglen pupils learned their individual skills and bonded into efficient teams. This
was truly a fantastic experience which they will never
forget.
Page 7
Celebrating Achievement
Geography Higher Field Trip
The Higher Geography pupils, along with Miss Williamson, Mrs McKinnon, Mr Campbell and Miss Webb, had
a fantastic experience on their field trip to Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park on Friday 3rd
October.
As it was very heavy rain when we arrived, we were given a presentation by the ranger on the diverse land
uses in the park, and conflicts and solutions relating to these. The weather improved after lunch and the
pupils were able to enjoy the stunning scenery. Some did a field sketch at the top of Craigie Fort while others
did tourist questionnaires and environmental surveys. All the information gathered is vital for the assignment
in the new Higher Geography.
The rangers commended the pupils on their excellent application, attitude and behaviour. They were a credit
to the school.
Auschwitz
English teacher, Miss Innes and S6 pupils, Euan Hamilton & Rebecca Marshall spent Tuesday of this week in Auschwitz. Here is their report:
“ Firstly, we visited the Polish town of Oswiecim and stood on the plot of
land which used to house the ‘Great Synagogue.’ We were then taken to
the only surviving synagogue and the Rabbi advised us that there are no
longer any Jewish people living in the town (the Jewish population was
around 60% before the war.) We then visited Auschwitz and passed
through the famous gates engraved with the phrase ‘Arbeit Macht Frei’.
Some of the sights in the museum were extremely harrowing and we all
found this an extremely moving and humbling experience.
In particular, we found the sight of the shoes, human hair and baby
clothes particularly distressing. We also visited Auschwitz-Birkenau and
this is where we realised the scale and magnitude of the tragedy.
We lit candles of remembrance and left them on the iconic railway track.
Page 8
Celebrating Achievement
S3 Physics: Whitelee Windfarm Trip
All S3 pupils who are studying courses leading them to
National 3,4 and 5 Physics had the opportunity to visit
Whitelee Windfarm near Eaglesham. They took part in a
workshop investigating the design of wind turbines and had an
introductory talk bout the facility underneath one of the giant
turbines.
Tennis Success
S4 pupil Alan McNamee is EK Tennis Club's youngest
winner of the men's singles title and completed a hattrick of titles.
The 15-year-old Calderglen High pupil stunned spectators at Torrance House as he claimed the men’s singles
title and the under-16 boys’ trophy. He teamed up with
the man he conquered in the gents’ singles to clinch the
men’s doubles title as well.
Very well done Alan! We are so proud of you!
Page 9
Celebrating Achievement
Edinburgh International Book Festival
43 S3 –S6 pupils to the Edinburgh International Book Festival
last Wednesday. The students attended two events at the
Charlotte Square venue, the first a debate held by the
politically neutral Scottish Youth Parliament which aimed to
persuade new young people to engage with politics and to
register to vote in the upcoming Referendum. Mr Meikle, Mrs
Healy and Mrs Winters were very impressed by the
contribution of our pupils who seemed to teach the
presenters a thing or two about debating!
The second event was a joint reading by cutting
edge teen fiction writers Anne Cassidy and the
highly entertaining Alan Gibbons and again our
students took part by asking intelligent and pertinent questions and many were keen to buy their
books afterwards.
New Librarians
Welcome to our new Librarians
Carsten Doig, Librarian and Liz Rowan, Library
Assistant joined us at the beginning of this
session. We are delighted to have them and they
have already settled in well and are working hard
to make improvements to support our young
people through effective use of the Library and
through further promotion of literacy and study
skills.
Our library is now open to pupils 4 lunchtimes a
week in a supervised capacity.
Page 10
General Information
Religious Observance
Religious observance provides opportunities for the school community to reflect on, and develop, a deeper
understanding of the dignity and worth of each individual and their contribution to the school and wider
communities. In recognition of Scotland’s Christian heritage, schools are encouraged to use the rich
resources of this tradition when planning religious observance. We are fortunate to be supported by an
outstanding Chaplaincy Team who play an integral part in the life of the school (information on the school
website). Our school community contains pupils and staff from faiths other than Christianity or with no faith
commitment. This is taken into account fully in supporting spiritual development. It is of central importance
that all pupils and staff can participate with integrity in forms of religious observance without compromise to
their personal faith stances. information please refer to our school website using this link:
http://www.calderglen.s-lanark.sch.uk/miscellaneous%20information/Religion%20%20270613.pdf
which outlines the most recent Scottish Government advice, including information about parental right to
withdraw.
Administration of Medicines
The school has specific regulations regarding the administration of medicines in school. These regulations adhere to the
guidelines issued to us by South Lanarkshire Council and any member of staff agreeing to administer medicines will be
required to follow the school and the council’s documented procedures. Please check out the General Information and
then Care and Welfare section of our website for details, which contains parental contact forms.
Photographs and Video Recording
There will be occasions when your child may be included in activities which involve them being photographed or filmed
for a variety of purposes. If for any reason you do not wish your child to be included in such photographs please inform
the school in writing.
Celebrating Success
Please let us know about pupils’ achievements or notable contributions to local or national events. This information is
necessary so that we can celebrate achievement both informally in discussions with pupils and formally through our
Awards Ceremonies, our School Prizegiving and by publicising their success within and beyond the school. Please pass
on, or encourage your child to pass on, details of their success to their Tutor Group Teacher, Pupil Support Manager, Depute Head Teacher or via the school website.
Follow Calderglen High On Twitter
As you can see from this newsletter, please use our school website as a way of keeping in touch with what is
going on in the school. We also tweet daily with important information and updates. You can follow (and
encourage others to follow) @calderglenwebma. A few members of staff are using Twitter to remind pupils
of homework deadlines and to promote attendance at Senior Phase Supported study. This is working well!
Page 11
General Information
School Uniform
I would like to take this opportunity to thank pupils and their parents for the overwhelming support of the
school dress code. Staff, visitors to the school, parents and local residents have all commented on how smart
our young people look. This policy has allowed us to ensure higher levels of safety as well as to ensure that all
of our pupils are fully included. It is an important part of our identity and “We are Calderglen” ethos. It is also
clear from feedback from our young people that pride in the uniform is also increasing. Our pupils are
regularly out and about extending their learning and development and it is always remarked upon how smart
they look. Our ties, which were designed in 2006 by pupils, are the envy of many schools for their smart
design.
In recognising the investment by parents in our dress code we will continue to reinforce and promote our
school uniform policy.
Acceptable uniform, as outlined
in
our policy, which can be found
on
our website is:
 Blazer
 White shirt
 School tie
 Black school trousers or skirt.
 Black v-neck jumpers or black zippers/cardigans that allow school ties to be clearly visible at all times.
 Plain black shoes. Laced shoes must have black laces only
This year, in recognition of the full implementation of the Senior Phase we decided to extend the wearing of
As always, as Head Teacher I am available to discuss privately and confidentially any concerns or questions
individual parents may have about their own child.
Attendance and Communication with the School
If your child is absent from school, please phone the school office on 01355 588620. Could you please also ensure
that your child has a letter to give to their tutor teacher explaining the absence. As you would expect, holidays in
term time are discouraged, however, if any pupil is being taken on holiday a letter should be forwarded to myself
explaining how long the absence will be. In line with South Lanarkshire’s procedures any absence will be unauthorised unless evidence is produced which shows that an employer cannot allow a parent leave during the
school holidays.
Contacting the School
Parental contact with the school is vital and there are a number of channels of communication available. These
include email, telephone or scheduled appointment during the school day.
We also have a Comments, Compliments and Complaints section on our school website and this can be accessed
via the General Information Section. We use Parentmail to email information and the vast majority of parents
now receive communications in this manner. If you have any matters you would like to discuss, please contact
me by telephone or email and I would be pleased to meet with you.
It is vitally important that you update us with any changes to all contact details so that we can get in touch when
we require to do so and particularly in case of emergencies.
Page 12
General Information
Parent Council
The Parent Council can be contacted on [email protected]
Meetings take place once a month on a Tuesday evening at 6.45 pm in the school’s conference room. All
parents are part of the parent forum and, as such, can attend meetings or contact the Parent Council with
suggestions, ideas for improvement or to raise any issue. The school welcomes more and more parental
involvement and works in close partnership with the Parent Council to ensure the highest standards for our
young people.
The scheduled dates for this term are:
Tuesday 9th September
Tuesday 21st October
Tuesday 11th November
Tuesday 9th December
Dates For Your Diary
Wednesday 8th October
Thursday 9th of October
Friday 13th October
Friday 13th October
Tuesday 21st October
Monday 27th – Friday 31st October
Thursday 30th October
Thursday 6th November
Tuesday 11th November
Saturday 15th November
Wednesday 19th November
Thursday 20th—23rd November
Monday 27th November
Monday 8th December
Thursday 18th December
Friday 19th December
Senior Phase Information Workshop for Parents
East Kilbride Crime Prevention Panel Awards
Non-uniform day for Meningitis Now
School closes 3pm for October Holiday
UCAS Information Evening for Parents
S1 Learning Away Residential [Broomlee]
Halloween Disco
P7 Open Evening for Parents 7 – 9pm
S1 Parents’ Evening 4.30 -6.30pm
Christmas Fayre
Young Performers’ Evening
S2 Learning Away
S4 Parents’ Evening 4.30 -6.30pm
S5/6 Parents’ Evening 7 – 9pm
Christmas Concert
School closes at 2.30 pm
www.calderglen.s-lanark.sch.uk
@calderglenwebma on Twitter
[email protected]
Page 13