Education should be defined by diversity and choice, offering pupils as many open doors as possible, says Ben Vessey, Headmaster of Canford School, Dorset
My educational philosophy stems from an unlikely source, inspired by the words of the American actor Danny Kaye, who said: “Life is a great big canvas; throw all the paint you can at it.”
To my mind these words perfectly sum up in every sense the ethos and approach that sits at the heart of independent education. It is crucial that the educational journey of every child offers as many open doors as possible, so that each pupil can step through, explore and either step back and find another, or even travel further on the chosen path.
Such openings must provide the academic avenues one would expect in a school setting, but also the intellectual, creative, physical, spiritual and moral dimensions that are integral to the high-quality co-curricular programmes on which independent schools strive to deliver and in which they invest heavily. These broader experiences beyond the examined academic programme are fundamental to education, and constitute many of the more exciting shades of paint that one might wish to throw on that canvas that is life. An understanding of how the impact of our learning in one context, is interwoven with what unfolds in other aspects of educational and life experience is vital, too. The passion and discipline from subject-based academic studies form a central pillar to learning, but alongs...