At the end of April, students in Year 9 and Year 10 took part in the British Biology Challenge 2025. The British Biology Challenge is a series of online quizzes with questions that are set on the British school curriculum, but the competition also rewards those students whose knowledge of the subject that has been increased by reading books and magazines, watching natural history programmes, taking notice of the news media for items of biological interest, and are generally aware of our natural flora and fauna. This is the junior version of the British Biology Olympiad which our Year 12 students took part in, earlier in the year.

On Wednesday 18^th June, Mr Seddon presented the finalist students who took part in both parts of the Challenge, with their certificates. As Mr Seddon said, these awards are special and to be valued; Mr Seddon himself still has his Maths Challenge certificates from when he was a student! Congratulations to the following students on their awards: 

Participation – Matthias Tan, Sasha Azubel

Highly commended – Garam (Momo) Lee, Naomi Alpern

Bronze – Natnaree (Suri) Tiraratanakul

Silver – Maneeyada (Leeya) Leelahanaj

Year 10 gave the ‘performance of a lifetime’ in a stunning showcase at the Black Box Theatre last term. It was a golden highlight to end the year, with four contrasting pieces that moved, challenged and entertained a warm and supportive audience.

The evening opened with 4.48 Psychosis by Sarah Kane – a mesmeric and deeply affecting performance that demanded courage and a finely tuned sensitivity to the play’s complexities. The cast’s raw honesty and unity on stage left the audience profoundly moved. This was followed by An Inspector Calls, delivered with intensity and maturity. The cast navigated Priestley’s intricate themes with impressive insight, creating a gripping atmosphere that drew the audience into every twist and revelation.

Laughter soon filled the theatre with Clue by Sandy Rustin, which provided slapstick hilarity and boundless energy. The cast delivered a fast-paced performance that had the audience in stitches. With its intricate set, choreographed stagecraft, and razor-sharp timing, the piece showcased the students’ precision and comic flair.

The final piece, Girls Like That by Evan Placey, explored the pressures young women face in a digital age. Tackling themes of friendship, body image, online shaming, and resilience, the cast delivered a powerful performance that blended humour with poignancy and was courageously honest. Their ability to balance lightness with hard-hitting truths through a slick and dynamic ensemble gave the play enormous impact and left the audience reflecting long after the curtain fell.

For the students, the journey to the stage was as meaningful as the performance itself. As student Anna Cargill explained:
“This exam is like no other because of the collaborative nature. Depending on each other to show up and give maximum effort is what made it so special. After months of rehearsals, we knew we could rely on one another. That safety net gave us the courage to take risks – and with the tireless support of the drama department, we always felt guided.”

Student Lily Grosic reflected:
“Every part of performing was something special, together- we pushed each other, and sometimes it was tough, but we remembered it isn’t just about us individually, but what we delivered as a group- so if one of us wasn’t present, none of us were. Looking at the feedback from the audience, made us happy especially as it exceeded their expectations and not just our cast – but Year 10 drama as a whole- how we were able to bring the audience on this intense emotional journey with us was one of the biggest highs we experienced. So, thank you to my team, our teachers, and all of Year 10 Drama. We’re so lucky to have each other.”

Parents, too, captured the magic of the evening. One described it as “the miracle of theatre – something greater than the sum of its parts. The students were confident, motivated, and united in purpose. They made us think, reflect, laugh, and grow alongside them.” Another shared, “What got me was when you invited them all down to the front at the end. Seeing the whole cohort together was extraordinary – what a brilliant bunch of actors, and what a privilege it must be to work with them.”

Echoing the words above, it was indeed a privilege, and we are incredibly proud of our students: they shone like bright golden stars. The audience left glowing with praise, and we cannot wait to see what these talented young people will create next as Year 11 students with their devised pieces later this term. Watch out for details soon.

My first research paper, “Impact of Screen Time on Attention Spans: Exploring duration, content, and context across various age groups and genders,” was a valuable introduction to academic research. I selected this topic because I believe that screen time is an unavoidable aspect of modern life and wanted to investigate its effects in a structured and evidence-based way.

I felt that this academic research is beneficial because it helps develop critical thinking and clear communication skills. Through this process, I learned how to structure an academic essay effectively and learnt that a simple, well-organised framework is essential for presenting data in a meaningful way. More than anything, this experience pushed me to explore the importance of building arguments that are supported by reliable evidence.

The process began with an extensive review of prior studies to understand how researchers defined and measured attention span. This background work allowed me to refine my focus to three key variables: duration, content and context of screen use, and how these might interact with age and gender.

Data collection relied heavily on self-reported surveys, which became both a strength and a limitation. While the responses gave a wide range of personal insights, they also introduced subjectivity—some participants may have underestimated or overestimated their actual screen use. Because of this, the results were more complex and quite unexpected. 

The highlight of this experience was seeing my paper published in two journals, which affirmed the effort and care that I put into the research. More importantly, the process strengthened my ability to think critically, analyze a set of collected data, and understand the challenges and process of research.”

“For a student of Bayla’s age to have a research paper published in an international academic journal is an exceptional achievement. It reflects not only her intellectual curiosity and perseverance, but also the courage to put her ideas into a wider academic conversation. The process of writing, refining, and submitting research at this level requires real resilience and maturity, and Bayla has demonstrated all of these qualities in abundance. She should feel very proud of this milestone, which sets a wonderful example to her peers about what is possible when you combine creativity, hard work and determination.”- Nicholas Fieldhouse, Head of Year 10

Bayla, 10H, has recently written an academic research paper: “The Impact of Screen Time on Attention Spans: Exploring duration, content, and context across various age groups and genders,” which was published on the Harvard Student Agencies website and also in the International Education and Research Journal (IERJ)