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Principal Paul Hollingum with (from left) pupils Kirsty Ronchetti, Ceri Godde, Harry Wright, Bradley Tupper and Aston McAuley |
Makings of a global citizen… Spanish lessons at age four
First pupils move into £39m C of E academy with an international vision
AS head of a school teaching Chinese from the age of 11 and Spanish to four-year-olds, Paul Hollingum is a man with an ambitious vision for his pupils.
The principal of the newly-opened Church of England St Mary Magdalene Academy, in Lough Road, Holloway, has big plans for the £39 million all-ages school.
He is putting the emphasis on languages and a greater understanding of other cultures.
Mr Hollingum, 59, said: “We want the young people that leave us to be well-rounded, confident of who they are and their place in society and the world. That’s how we’ll use our specialities – humanities and global citizenship.”
A “global citizen” is a person “able to communicate with people around the world”, Mr Hollingum explained.
To that end, pupils in Year 7 at the school are being taught the rudiments of Chinese language and culture. This offer extends to parents, staff and governors.
From their entry year, children as young as four are taught Spanish.
“We chose Spanish because it has a far bigger global impact than some traditional languages like French and German,” Mr Hollingum said. “We will introduce more languages, but certainly everyone takes Spanish until they are 16.”
The school currently has 392 pupils aged four to 11, which will rise to 1,110, with ages up to 19, in five years when it is fully operational
The academy has a link with Number 37 Middle School in Chongqing, China, and Mr Hollingum promises partnerships with schools in Chicago, Australia and Spain will soon follow. Knowledge will be shared through teacher transfers and hi-tech video conferencing.
Mr Hollingum, who has 29 years’ teaching experience in London schools, said: “The international contacts bring our students out of Islington. We want to expose them to how other people live and think, so hopefully they get a better understanding of the world.”
The school has had a landslide of applications for places. Mr Hollingum said: “The response has been fantastic. We had over 690 applications for 180 places, and that’s when there was just a hole in the ground.”
The academy faced criticism during its development from residents concerned about the size of the new building and the school’s attitude towards National Curriculum guidelines.
Mr Hollingum said: “We’re not throwing away the National Curriculum. We believe we’re adding opportunity.
“We can do more because we have a longer week [28 hours instead of the usual 25]. Our intention is to work within the National Curriculum and we will be entering students for key stage 3, GCSE, International Baccalaureates and vocational courses.”
When building work is completed next year the school will house adult education classes, meetings of local groups and pensioners’ lunch clubs as well as providing sports facilities for the community.
Mr Hollingum said: “This is a church school that serves the community. People of all faiths or none can be part of a school that shows love, care and respect to all.”
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