Mr Nicholds' Reflections
In a school environment, devotion can usually be found in the actions that students and teachers take every day, waking early to prepare for lessons, doing extra training for a sports event, attending seemingly endless rehearsals for a production or concert, or solid revision to do your best in an exam.
Devoted students are not necessarily the brightest in the classroom, but they are the ones who continue to try when a subject gets difficult or they have set backs. They remain committed to their goals, whether that is to get better grades, achieve something specialin sports, or just contributing to school activities every day to make KC a better place.
Resilience is one of our key ASPIRE values at the School and devotion links to this through the discipline and perseverance that follows – and all are qualities that have real value and will stand us in good stead beyond school grounds. As noted, our teachers also demonstrate devotion on an everyday basis. Whether that is in the extra hours that they spend marking, the research and planning of lessons and assignments, or continually providing the support and encouragement for students who might doubt themselves.
It is not just our teaching staff at KC though – our Estates team, our Administration, Marketing and Admissions teams, the Catering staff and all those staff members on the Pastoral side have really important roles to play. Schools themselves are communities built on devotion and KC is no exception. Our clubs, sports teams, performances, and projects succeed because our people work together with commitment and care.
In the end, devotion in school is not about perfection. It is about commitment, showing up, putting in effort, and continuing to learn despite challenges, something every parent knows only too well. These habits prepare students for the future, teaching them that success is rarely instant, but often the result of steady devotion over time.
Important to note though that when we think about devotion then we see this as healthy and balanced. Devotion shouldn’t mean a loss of independent thought, the prioritisation of others such that we neglect ourselves, blind loyalty or fanaticism about something, it is about deepening a person not consuming them.
Jeremy Nicholds, Chair of Governors