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Head's Speech - Watford Girls

Posted: Tue Oct 11, 2016 12:18 pm
by Hera
What did people who attended think of the new head's speech? The one we heard was quite short, 8 minutes (timed by DD!). She talked about results, that the school was for all types of girls unlike the old head who stressed that the school was for academic girls and others may struggle. She discussed how girls in a single sex school are far more likely to takes scientific subjects and is probably unsurprisingly very pro single sex education. The one thing that grated was when talked about how many more men there are in management positions in the work place stressing that it is important for the girls to work hard and do well finishing this off by saying that the girls would not want to be managed by a man! Imagine a male head saying the same about women. However I spoke to someone who had been to a later speech who seemed to have heard a completely different speech or understood it differently. Overall she came across as nice and caring and wanting the girls to achieve their full potential. What did others think?

Re: Head's Speech - Watford Girls

Posted: Tue Oct 11, 2016 1:49 pm
by mof3
I think
Hera wrote:The one thing that grated was when talked about how many more men there are in management positions in the work place stressing that it is important for the girls to work hard and do well finishing this off by saying that the girls would not want to be managed by a man! Imagine a male head saying the same about women.
I was at the 6.50pm talk and that wasn't quite what she said. She said that it was likely that our girls would be managed by a man, and she wanted them to know that they could be the managers of tomorrow and wanted them to be prepared for that. I found it much more annoying that she failed to introduce herself at the start of the speech so I spent quite a few minutes wondering who she was and whether she was the 'warm up act'. Turned out she was the real deal!
I was quite surprised at how pro single sex education her speech was. Apparently in a co-ed school, the boys don't let the girls near the bunsen burners. My son would challenge that quite vociferously! Slightly OTT. But I liked her, overall.

Re: Head's Speech - Watford Girls

Posted: Tue Oct 11, 2016 2:46 pm
by Middlesexmum
I also liked her. Very different style from Dame Helen Hyde who I also liked very much.

Re: Head's Speech - Watford Girls

Posted: Wed Oct 12, 2016 5:41 pm
by bluesymum
It did seem a bit old fashioned.,,