BOARDING Head of Boarding 2016
Oscar Acland has a mission for his role as 2016 Head of Boarding – to strengthen bonds between year groups and to make sure everyone has a chance to have their say.
get their own rooms. We can also use the pool and are so close to the centre of town.’’ Oscar, who comes from Geraldine, loves being a boarder and says as the boys get older, they understand how much they really do enjoy boarding and how they wouldn’t really want to be dayboys. “As boarders at College, we forge bonds and make long-lasting friendships. When you get to Year 11, you realise just how close you have become as a group. You learn to accept each other and understand your differences and like each other in spite of these. Once you’ve been living closely with someone for a while you get quite protective of them. You find you can also open up and be yourself and the others like you for it.’’ “As boarders at College, we forge bonds and make long-lasting friendships.When you get to Year 11, you realise just how close you have become as a group.’’ Oscar Acland
One of the changes he would like is to have more informative talks such as a recent one when Mrs Katrina Darry, who is a parent and sports nutritionist, came and spoke to the boys about nutrition and how to eat sensibly. She had lots of good advice which the boys took seriously, says Oscar. Oscar recently attended a New Zealand Head of Boarding conference where one of the keynote speakers impressed him and gave him insights he has shared with the boarders. He said that schools sometimes have things that they just do, that are like monuments and pillars, are always there and are what has always been done.
“But some things can be changed and boys need to ask questions about them rather than just accepting they are there,’’ says Oscar. “Changes are always possible although sometimes it is necessary just to understand why we do something and then it may not seem as much of an unnecessary chore. An example is Congers which helps us get familiar with songs and hymns so we know what we are doing in Chapel.’’ One of the things Oscar enjoyed at the conference was being able to compare aspects of boarding life with that of other schools. “I realised how fortunate we are with our facilities, the size of our bedrooms and the fact that Year 13s
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Christ’s College Canterbury
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