Twyfordian The - twyford.ealing.sch.uk Twyfordian... · Students’ ambitions for the evening were...

TwyfordianThe March 2017

WelcomeFather John's Easter Reflection24Very truly, I tell you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains just a single grain; but if it dies, it bears much fruit.

John 12:24

There is a risk that the Easter story becomes comfortable because we know the ending.

Seeing new growth in Spring, the birth of lambs and longer light, we can think, “Yes, Easter: new life!” Remember though that Easter overturns ‘normal’ death, breaking through it in God’s power.

It follows that my favourite account of the resurrection is St Mark’s: ‘So they went out and fled from the tomb, for terror and amazement had seized them; and they said nothing

to anyone, for they were afraid.’ I love the realism of the disruption: the mix of fear and hope in this breaking-in of God.

If the end of Jesus’ life is a disruption in the created order, sometimes our own projects, creativity and plans are also frustrated. This feels unnatural; a contradiction of God’s purpose; but in Easter, God has shown greater power to achieve his purpose, seen in the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

Dates for the Diary

I wish you every peace and happiness this Eastertide, with God’s blessing.

The Revd Dr John Seymour (Trust Chaplain)

Year 8 Parents Evening

Thursday 27th April

4:30-8.00pm

Performance Centre

It follows that as much as grief follows loss, God-in-Christ provides hope for new life.

Year 10 Parents Evening

Thursday 4th May

4:30-8.00pm

Performance Centre

PTFA Social

Saturday 10th June

7.30pm

Cafe

School Production - Hairspray

4th-7th July

7.00pm

Performance Centre

PTFA Party

Thursday 13th July

7.00pm

Year 11 Celebration of Acheivement Evening

Thursday 11th May 7.00pm

Performance Centre

1 The Twyfordian |Spring 2017

Contents The Team

3 News & Views

5 School Trips & News

6 English

8 What's on Your Mind

11 Science

12 History Debate

13 Film & Theatre

15 Art

16 Sports

17 House System

News & ViewsRevd John Seymour

Mr BarleyBilaal Darwish-Mohammed 11Y

School Trips & NewsMiss Hobhouse

Anna Mackenzie 10WFreddie Maud 9T

What's On Your Mind?Shaheena Uddin 11YRebecca Heath 11F

Adam Carruthers 12D

History Debate Jemima Swindells 12Y1

Jesse Sharp 9WKate Carruthers 12F2

Film & TheatreTom Rooney 13Y Chris Vialls 13C

EnglishKaela Simi Masek 7R

Joe Briggs 11CElsa Reid 7R

ScienceKatharine Biggs 12C

Holly Pearce 10D Grace Kennedy 10W

Sarah Bell 10WJemima Prior 10TJak Jay Davis 11C

Art and The GalleryGabriel Mackie 13F

Izzy Farr 12F1Olivia Young 12W2Sid Stocking 12F1

HousesHouse Captains

EditorMiss Marshall

Design and Production EditorMiss Taylor

Cover and Back Cover Photos taken by Issac Sunderland

12W1Evie Burgess 8R in the Performing

Arts Showcase.Left to Right: Alfred Ward 11T and

Gregory Smith 11T at the Senior TFG Trip.

6 Battlefield Trip

15 The Gallery

16 Sports Highlights

The Twyfordian |Spring 2017 2

News & ViewsRefugee Welcome Evening

What can I do to help the Refugees displaced through war and conflict?’

This question has been exercising students from William Perkin and Twyford Church of England High Schools since the start of the academic year through their participation in the London Citizens group. On Tuesday 7th March, students fulfilled their ambition to be part of the answer to the problem that governments across Europe are struggling to address in responding to people displaced particularly from Syria and Afghanistan.

The Refugee Welcome evening brought together leaders of voluntary organisations with members of the public and refugees to learn more about life as a refugee and what can be done to help. Speakers included:

• Sara Nathan, the co-founder of Refugees at Home, a charity dedicated to identifying hosts to have refugees as guests on a temporary basis

• Laila Kreaa, one of the leaders of Ahlan wa Sahlan, a group of largely Syrian refugees joining with community volunteers to help others with learning English, employability advice and hosting social activities

• Adrian Abbott, a worker in the Calais Jungle and then in Dunkirk

• Fr Jack Noble, who is presently hosting a refugee in his home

• Tommy Cloherty of Housing Justice

• Councillor Julian Bell, leader of Ealing Council

William Perkin students started the evening by explaining what they had done to learn more about Refugees. A student survey in September had shown that 9 out of 10 students thought this issue important with more than 80% of students wanting to help. This,

despite students significantly underestimating the number of refugees needing help. A trip to the Kindertransport statue at Liverpool street station in the

autumn had pointed up a contrast: in the Second World War, 10,000 unaccompanied children from across Europe had been transported to the UK at Britons’ expense, whereas only 300 or so unaccompanied children had been taken from the Calais Jungle despite more than 1,200 being eligible to enter the UK.

Following Adrian Abbott’s description of life working in the Calais Jungle, Councillor Julian Bell described his own visit. The councillor had been moved by the trauma suffered by children on the camps, manifest in one child he spoke of shaking continuously. Councillor Bell described how he had petitioned the government and committed to taking child and adult refugees into Ealing. He explained that he was prepared to

take still more and was ready to take up to ten child refugees. Following the vote on Tuesday, he said that he would support the High Court challenge in May against the closure of the Dubs scheme. Students presented a Paddington Bear to Julian Bell, to thank him for his work in helping refugees but also to remind him of what still needed to be done.

Adrian Simpson, the father of a member of staff at Twyford CE School, sang a song he had written. This was entitled, ‘It is a far cry from Dunkirk to Calais’, recalling how 338,000 soldiers had been rescued

A student survey in September had shown that 9 out of 10 students thought this issue important with

more than 80% of students wanting to help.


in a grass roots humanitarian effort in which boats were sent from around the UK.

To help visitors think through how they might contribute to support refugees, speakers described how to support the work of their charities. Sara Nathan explained the work of Refugees at Home and how refugees are matched with hosts in the area and the joy that can be brought to both guest and host through hosting. Members of Ahlan wa Sahlan – a name that means ‘Welcome’ in Arabic – described their work and the ways in which volunteers can be involved in helping students to learn English and the practicalities of living in the UK.

More than ninety five people attended the evening from across West London institutions. The atmosphere was

very positive. Participants were inspired and humbled by the generosity and good will of members of the local community towards refugees and were engaged by the attractive character of the refugees and their cheerful resilience. One parent wrote to express their gratitude: “I thought it was a really positive and challenging evening and lovely to have a forum which brought so many different groups together.”

Students’ ambitions for the evening were met with the number of members of the local community who attended the Refugee Welcome evening and the offers of help that were forthcoming to the visiting charity representatives.

The Revd Dr John Seymour (Trust Chaplain)

Sixty five 6th Form students signed up and attended an Employability & Interview

Skills Workshop in January with David Keane from Google UK.

GOOGLE Visits Twyford!

David delivered his presentation looking at the variety of careers within Computer Science and what Google look for in potential employees. Students learnt about the importance of standing out from the crowd and how best to get ahead in interviews. When asked ‘what is the biggest lesson students need to learn about interviews?’ David replied: “Don’t just rely on qualifications and grades, think about what you do outside of the

Employabilty & Interview Skills Workshop

Misery: By Stephen King

Imagine you were trapped in a room, you can’t move,

you can’t scream, you can’t even cry. And outside this room is someone that scares you and hurts you. What wold you

do? That is what acclaimed writer Paul Sheldon of the Misery Chastain novels is facing after an accident lands him in By Bilaal Darwish-Mohammed 11Y

News & Views

classroom that adds value to you as a potential employee. What sets you apart from everyone else”

Mr Barley and all the 6th Form team would like to thank David for giving up his time; the session was extremely valuable.

Mr Barley

Careers Information, Advice & Guidance Officer

the home of Annie Wilkes. But here’s the thing, she’s his number 1 fan. Once finding out what he has done to Misery in his latest book, she forces him to write a new book modifying the story – no matter what it takes.

Stephen King creates a dark yet realistic atmosphere in Misery and this really adds to the whole narrative. You feel as if you are in the position of Paul, with every trail he goes through with his pain,

stress, and fear. This is really portrayed in this Novel very well.

I would highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys the gothic and horror genre as well as the thrill seekers who really want to feel the true push of what the human being can be pushed to. So get ready to enter a world of misery.

Book Review

Students presented a Paddington Bear to Julian Bell


School Trips & News

All Hail MacbethAnna Mackenzie on Year 10's visit to the National Theatre

On Monday 20 February, some of Year 10 had the opportunity to visit the

National Theatre to see the Royal Shakespeare Company’s live performance of Macbeth.

I was privileged to be one of those that went.

Macbeth tells the compelling story of the commander of the Scottish Army who is prophesied to gain power and position by three evil witches. In order to achieve these ends there is murder and betrayal which culminate in the end of Macbeth himself. Macbeth the play, is never mentioned by name in the theatre but called rather ‘The Scottish Play’ as actors believe bad luck will follow use of the name.

Our performance started with a bang – a dramatic war scene

between Macbeth and his enemies. The actors used devices such as slow motion and sound scaping to increase the tension and drama. This interesting adaptation included a

female Banquo (the closest friend of the title character) and the classic image of the three witches

around their cauldron is spun, in Steam Punk* style, with a wizard joining two witches wearing flying goggles and leather jackets with an oil drum as their brewing pot. A very striking effect made with lots of (fake) blood intensified the thrill of a stunning scene in which Lady Macbeth talks to the spirits of the Underworld.

It also intrigued me that the cast used parts of the set as drums, the

sound of which created a tense and foreboding atmosphere.

Amsterdam Trip

The Photography trip to Amsterdam was a great success this year. The Photography students spent the weekend photographing the city and they visited

both Foam Gallery and Stedelijk Museum. They gained inspiration for the up and coming Photography exams. I was extremely proud of the independent projects that they worked on. The photographs taken will be exhibited in our end of year show in June. A big thank you to Miss McClean, Miss Brady and Mr Douglas for accompanying the students and myself on this fantastic weekend.

Miss Hobhouse (Head of Art)

5 The Twyfordian | Spring 2017

As a drama student I am particularly interested in stage and production design. In this adaptation, Macbeth’s castle is represented as a look-out tower made from rusted ladders and oil drums. It also intrigued me that the cast used parts of the set as drums, the sound of which created a tense and foreboding atmosphere. Dark, moody lighting also suggested the evil within Macbeth himself.

I was fortunate enough to be able to make a behind-the-scenes visit where we could see the techniques and materials used to create props for all the plays currently showing at the National Theatre.

I found that watching the play, although still in Shakespeare’s original language, helped me to understand the plot and characters more thoroughly. This is particularly helpful as Macbeth is one of our GCSE English set works.

I would highly recommend this production to anyone with an interest in Shakespeare, particularly if you want to see a gruesome thriller of a show!

Anna Mackenzie

10W

School Trips & News

EnglishTopsy Turvy!

Year 7 held their own masked ball in January in order to explore the upside down traditions of twelfth

night. They changed their identity, they taught the teacher and were allowed out of their seats! Elsa Reid reflects on the experience.

In January, Year 7 had a topsy turvy lesson. As our topic for Q3 and the spring term we looked at Twelfth Night, a renowned play by William Shakespeare about Viola and her twin brother who get shipwrecked in a strange land called Illyria. Both think the other is dead. Viola has to dress up as a boy during this play to get a job in disguise.

During our lesson, we explored the traditions of the celebration of twelfth night and its links to the play. We all

brought in masks that we wore all lesson and drew ones in our books too which were meant to transform us in some way. Like Viola in Twelfth night, we had a disguise to change our appearance.

We then split into groups and completed a challenge set by our teacher. It was a race!

Once every group had found all their answers they had to present them in as memorable way as possible. We had raps, plays and speeches. Overall the lesson was extremely enjoyable and memorable.

Elsa Reid

7R

Year 9 Battlefields Trip

Freddie Maud (9T) described his feelings about the

Battlefields trip. He says it was a “moving and emotional experience yet with a strong

element of enjoyment and fun. We explored one of the most

significant events in the history of the world in a practical way - we visited incredibly moving

and outstanding memorials, and trenches that really allowed us

to feel what the conditions must have been for the soldiers in the

First World War. I would definitely recommend this trip.


Animal HuntingBy Kaela Simi Masek 7R

A lion of death sleeps in the forest

People walk past with nothing besides food

Death they carry; no mercy the tourist

The juice on their bones is nothing but good.

Watching the carefully distantly far

Walking forward with a gunshot, on the floor

Blood on the ground is as sticky as tar

Fear at the corner but death at the door

Distant footsteps come impeccably fast

The animal struggles to close the door

The man thou sees must save him he must

Dragging the animal towards the moor

Thou had been lucky; another shall come

Death shall arise and all shall be done.

On the 23rd of February 2017 Twyford was lucky enough to have three speakers to come

to a talk about journalism and the different types. Diane Coyle has worked as an economist and is now a professor at Manchester University. She was formerly the economics editor at the independent. She came in talking about the importance of responsible economic journalism. Miss Devonshire is now a languages teacher at Twyford before teaching Ms Devonshire was a journalist for several years. She talked about how she became a journalist and what opportunities she and her fellow trainees had. Rory Cellan-Jones is currently the BBC’s technology correspondent. He came in talking about post-truth journalism and the phenomenon of fake news.

Diana Coyle gave a very interesting speech about newspapers and how they write information in different ways to give their political opinion. She gave the example of the Telegraph and the Guardian. They both

gave the same statistic in one of their articles but wrote them in different ways to appeal to their political standpoints. She also dived into the concept of fake news however our second speaker Rory Cellan-Jones mainly covered this topic.

Rory came in and talked about fake news and how it was affecting us as a society. He also questioned us on where we get our news from and whether it’s reliable. He showed us different news articles and how they were made to look professional and real but they weren’t. It was interesting to see that

there were companies out in the world that were focused on making fake news. Furthermore he also slightly talked about the BBC and his role in it.

Our third speaker Miss Devonshire talked about her carrier before coming to Twyford, She told us that journalism is not a ‘nine to five job’ you have to be ready to work at all hours. Miss Devonshire worked for the Waitrose food magazine in do-ing so she has interviewed lots of celebrities and has also travelled to

Saint Lucia. She also showed us some of her work that she has done for Waitrose as well. The amount of time and effort that has gone in to each page is incredible and is definitely not for the faint of heart.

We thank all three of the speakers for coming in and telling us about the world of journalism and educating us on how to be a part of it.

Joe Briggs

11C

Journalism Conference

English

Art Work- Alice Young (12 F1) whose artwork explores the way the media ma-nipulates the way we see ourselves


What’s on Your Mind?

The Elysée (French presidential palace) is currently inhabited by the Socialist president François Hollande. Hollande holds a dismally low approval

rating of 4% and, in a first for French presidents, will not stand for re-election. France’s growth since the 2008 financial crisis is best described as “choppy” and its unemployment rate “stubbornly high”. More than a quarter of youngsters are unemployed. Combine this with the multiple terrorist attacks that have hit France, a huge show down over labour laws and the president casually dishing out state secrets to two journalists, you start to understand the reasons for the his-torically unpopular government.

So the Partie Socialiste (PS) had to find a new leader, and it promptly did a Corbyn and elected Bernoît Hamon. He wants a universal basic income, an even shorter work week and taxes on robots. He faces competition from the left with La France Insoumise (Unsubmissive France), backed by the Communist party, and he also faces competition from the centre with En Marche (EM – On the Move). Chances of a socialist victory at the election are slim (you don’t win elections with 4% approval). In fact, the word ‘annihilation’ is being thrown around.

Les Républicans (LR) are the centre-right party in France’s (splintering) two party system.Republican primary voters have chosen François Fillon, former Prime Minister, to lead their party into 2017 elections on a Thatcherite agenda (France’s government spends the second most amount of money as a proportion of GDP, following only Finland). Unfortunately for the Republicans, Fillon was revealed to have hired his wife when he was a deputy in the legislature for a total of €800,000. And she did no work.

La Front National (FN) is the populist party in French politics. They propose referendums on membership of the Euro (the currency) and the European Union. They also want to stop “islamisation”. Their eloquent leader and presidential candidate, Marine Le Pen, even compared Muslim prayers in the streets to the Nazi occupation of France. FN was formerly a Neo-Nazi party and Marine Le Pen has tried to detoxify

its image. It’s working. Le Pen is expected to come first in the first round of voting for the election. However, a coalition of centrist voters is expected to join together with one candidate to stop her in the second round.

That unifying candidate was thought to be François Fillon, but after his scandal the frontrunner

has changed to Emmanuel Macron. The Former economy

minister, he left the government to create his

new party, En Marche. It is trying to steal

Republican and Socialist voters by promising a strongly socially liberal, internationalist, pro-EU attitude with moder-ate reforms to

France’s economy. As economy minister

he was behind proposals to make it easier

to hire and fire workers in a bid to reduce unemployment, a

move that sparked protests and strikes. The young leader is aided by his resignation

from government, boosting his outsider status, helpful in the international anti-establishment revolt.

Few experts are willing to call the election. At the moment, the odds for the election are split roughly evenly between Macron, Fillon and Le Pen. The Fillon

scandal demonstrates how anything could happen between now and the April election. The drama of the election keeps increasing. Macron was accused of being secretly gay. Fillon and Le Pen’s more pro-Russia foreign policies are controversial. Cultural issues (such as the wearing of the hijab and niqab) are at the fore. This election will also have profound consequences for the future of the EU. But then again, the French have rarely been ones to pass on revolution.

Adam Carruthers 12D

PRÉSIDENT QUI?An overview of who might win the upcoming French Presidential Elections

France’s growth since the 2008 financial crisis is best described as “choppy” and its

unemployment rate “stubbornly high”.

Macron (EM), Benoît Hamon (PS), Marine Le Pen (FN)

Clockwise from top-left , François Fillon (LR), Emmanuel


What’s on Your Mind?Islamophobia

2017. A time when people of all races, ethnicities and religious backgrounds are entitled to the freedom in which to practice their beliefs: in peace, tolerance, and understanding.

Nonetheless, it seems that humanity today is still littered with the same uninformed ignorance that corrupted our society throughout history. But now there is a new target, a new victim to consume. The term “Islamophobia” was brought to fruition during the course of the last 9 years and it's use has been steadily increasing ever since.

Islamophobia - defined as any form of “prejudice, hatred, or bigotry directed against Islam”, is the ongoing reality for over 82% of Muslims every single day. Recent reports show that there have been approximately “6,816 estimated anti-Muslim hate crimes in the UK between March 2015 and April 2016". With Islamophobic hate crimes having almost doubled within the past two years in London alone; the fact that Muslims are finding it increasingly difficult to even practice their basic rights of freedom is of no surprise. What could be the root cause of such an unfortunate phenomenon? In order to answer this question, we must first delve into the crux of the issue, by considering the triggering tragedy of 9/11 and how unfortunate it is that the despicable action of a minority group has tarnished the name of Islam for the rest of the peaceful majority.

The events of September 11th, 2001 shocked the world, appearing on nearly every news outlet, on ev-ery news channel, worldwide. But what the media failed to mention was the 28 Muslims who died in the 9/11 attack along with 3 others who were the victim passengers of two hijacked planes. Sherman A. Jackson – a professor of religion and

American studies - describes how as a result of the tragedy “not only did Muslim Americans die on that day, but they have since suffered psychological and emotional trauma as no other group of Americans have.” Despite it still being over a decade later since that dreadful day, it is clear that Muslims today are still being affected by it's outcomes, forced to bear the consequences of a small group in society. With reports of pigs’ heads being dumped outside of Mosques to headscarves being brutally torn from the heads of women, Islamophobia has grown to become a drastic normality and without a clear, driven solution will remain so for future generations to endure.

It is also apparent from numerous news articles that Caucasian criminals are frequently labelled

as being “lone wolves” or “mentally disturbed individuals” while the same outlet paints a criminal of colour, in most

cases Muslims as being “radical terrorists”. It is truly remarkable that a few twisted words or phrases can provide reporters with the ability to completely distort the perception of an entire group in society, without question. A recent example in which this prejudice has been clearly demonstrated would be the Chapel Hill Shooting which took place in February 2015. Hardly any media coverage took place to report the deaths of the three young promising Muslims who were violently shot in the head by an atheist militant. It was discovered that the man Craig Stephen Hicks, 46, who confessed to committing the crime a few hours after the shooting took place, had an active Facebook profile sharing anti-Muslim links. Despite all the evidence and national outrage, the cruel shooting was merely mocked, with major media outlets like Fox News claiming the intentionally directed hate crime was a sheer parking dispute,

distracting the attention from the act of violence being a clear Islamophobic hate crime.

Another recent more well-known case in the media today is the murder of the British Labour MP Jo Cox. Jo - a successful female MP who is greatly remembered today for her “zest for life” and “beliefs in a better world” was shot and stabbed to death by 52-year-old Tommy Mair who shouted “Britain First” as he attacked. This awful murder rightly swept news articles across the country, but what still baffles me today is that if the word Terrorism is defined as “the unofficial or unauthorized use of violence and intimidation in the pursuit of political aims”, why wasn’t the murderer of Jo Cox regarded as a terrorist in any of the news headlines? A similar case being the attack on British MP, Stephen Timms who was stabbed by a woman who disagreed with his support of the Iraq war. The Guardian had no problem with describing that incident as “the first terrorist attack to injure someone on the U.K mainland since 7 July 2005” as well as The Mirror labelling the attacker as a “woman terrorist” yet not one media outlet referred to the murderer of Jo Cox as a terrorist. Why? Simply because the attacker of Timms was a Muslim while the murderer of Jo Cox was not. It’s now

clearer than ever that the media today plays a significant role in fuelling the growing prejudice driven towards British Muslims.

In addition to this, the recent outcomes of Brexit have also contributed to the steady increase in the rising racism and Islamophobia in our country and it has been reported that religious hate crimes have now increased by more than a third as a result of it. Post-Brexit incidents include Muslims being spat on, abused, and assaulted. And

It’s now clearer than ever that the media today plays a significant role in fuelling

the growing prejudice driven towards British Muslims.

Islam is a religion of peace which encourages the best of morals including modesty, humility,

generosity and kindness.


of course it is of no coincidence that within just the first ten days of President Trump coming into office there has been a total of 867 related incidents including targeted attacks against Muslims. His Islamophobic mannerisms and ignorant hate speech sparking the total number of hate groups in the United States to rise for a second year in a row. Not to mention how his blatant ban of immigrants from seven majority Muslim countries from entering the United States is not only discriminatory but also violates The Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965.

It has also been recently reported that a middle school in Ohio has now allowed students to opt out of lessons on Islam. If we are encouraging the unwillingness to learn about other religions and the ignorance to ignore the ways in which others live their lives, what does this say about the society we live in today? A huge factor fuelling this rising Islamophobia today is due to the lack of understanding of what Islam represents. Islam is a religion of peace which encourages the best of morals including modesty, humility, generosity and kindness. It obligates Muslims to constantly seek knowledge in order to improve themselves and help those around them. By learning about other religions I believe we can understand each other better and work together to truly achieve religious and social harmony.

Shaheena Uddin 11Y

Trump Inauguration

What springs to mind when we hear that word ‘TRUMP’?

Some positives, but mainly very negative. He is now the president of the United States of America, and within his first week of being president he is already stirring up controversy everywhere on the planet. Many view him as a misogynistic bigot.

At times it has been plain comical. On the day of his inauguration he claimed a record attendance, however more people (half a million) went to the D.C women's march. The fact people chose to march in support of women’s rights should have sent the new president a very clear message.

It gets even more comical, Metro newspaper ran with a headline ‘Trump's man makes FOUR ‘false’ claims in 5 minutes’, ‘Alternative facts’ , as his spokesperson claimed.

Does this mean he isn’t to be trusted and if so why did the US vote for him? Quite simply he delivered what the people wanted to hear, like a demigod. But can he actually deliver on these promises is what we look forward to. Surprisingly, the answer may well be yes. The order to build the wall on the border with Mexico has been signed off as well as the suspension of visas for people from a list of predominantly Muslim countries.

What makes that so bad is that America is a nation founded on immigration and the measure is going to affect some very vulnerable

refugees amongst others. Bit by bit it seems like America is rejecting its core values; the American dream only applies to the favoured.

On the day of his inauguration people favoured the D.C women’s march. This is hardly surprising, given Trumps attitude towards women. Some of this attitude has been repulsive; he has been quoted as saying ‘you’re disgusting’ to a lady breast feeding her 4 month old daughter. This attitude even extends to the females in his own family. For example, he said of his own daughter “I’ve said if Ivanka weren’t my daughter, perhaps I’d be dating her”. As regarding the female population in general, it doesn’t get any better, there have been allegations of inappropriate be-haviour around other women and he has been quoted as saying ‘half of them are too ugly for me to touch them’. This behaviour would not be acceptable from anyone let alone the president of the United States.

He is due to go in trial for misappropriating funds from his charities within his own businesses. If this is what he’s doing with charity money who knows what he’ll do with tax payers’ money? And guess what –he has consistently failed to reveal his tax returns despite being publically called out on this during the live presidential debates during the election campaign.

The final icing on the cake is the British public’s response to a proposed state visit by the new American President. Theresa May might have issued an invitation, but 1.4 million of our fellow countrymen plainly do not agree. Notable examples include both me and Sadiq Khan the mayor of London.

Rebecca Heath 11F

What makes that so bad is that America is a nation founded on immigration and the measure is

going to affect some very vulnerable refugees amongst others.

What’s on Your Mind?


A neutron walks into a bar and asks, "How much for a drink?" The bartender replies "For you,

no charge"

This terrible pun kick-started our day at Physics live which was a whole day packed full of lectures from various professors and doctors who have decided to deepen their understanding about the universe.

Physics is perhaps the grandest subject of them all, aiming to understand the very smallest and very largest aspects of the universe, this can be off putting to those who want to be able to explain everything; however, for those more curious it can be extremely fulfilling. This day is per-fect for anyone who is thinking of tak-

ing any science subject in the future or for anyone who wants to just broaden their horizons. Personally, it made me realise that Physics is not just about cars, stars and electricity but it is also about all the small things that make up our entire universe.

Helen Czerski a physicist, oceanographer, broadcaster and all round inspiring woman has travelled the world to research the amazing, fascinating world of bubbles. Her research interests are the optics and acoustics of ocean bubbles, the structure of bubble plumes caused by breaking waves, the influence of ocean bubbles on the atmosphere

and penguins. Helen examplifies how Science has allowed her to explore the world whilst also continuing to develop her understanding of the fascinating world around us. We also had lectures

from Doctor Tom Whyntie (credit for the amazing pun earlier) who completed his PhD at CERN's Large Hadron Collider and Professor Jim Al-Khalili

who appears regularly on television and radio.

So, if any of you get the opportunity to go on this fantastic day I would jump at the chance as it really does open your eyes to the world we live in and beyond.

Physics Live!

Physics is not just about cars, stars and electricity but it is also about all

the small things that make up our entire universe

Katharine Biggs 12C

On Thursday 23rd February, we attended a lecture on Understanding Animal Research

(UAR), along with many sixth formers.

We found the talk extremely surpris-ing to learn about the benefits on animal research, despite the common vision of it as frowned upon. The talk taught us how beneficial animal research has been on our world and how it has saved so many lives. The

talk was held by a speaker from the UAR who was passionate to influence

Understanding Animal Research Lecture

Reptiles and their perception by society and a review of Hownslow urban farm

Reptiles are truly fantastic animals, they occupy the harshest deserts to

the roughest waters and vary in size, shape and colour. They are a wonder of the Animal kingdom and one of the most misunderstood animals in history.

From the Egyptians to the Greeks, reptiles have been feared for centuries, examples are everywhere from Cleopatra using royal pythons as jewellery to show her power, to a snake being used to personify the devil in the Bible. As a reptile enthusiast and handler myself this perception of these intelligent animals upsets me deeply as I know from personal experience that it has been caused by a lack of information and education available on how to safely and properly handle and approach

these animals without you or the animal being hurt. But what is truly upsetting is that these animals are actually very docile when handled properly from a young age and can help nurture a love of animals in anyone including young children.

A perfect example of a place where one can learn to handle reptiles safely and confidently is Hounslow Urban Farm where trained volunteers (such as myself)

will give you the opportunity to handle a wide range of lizards and snakes. We have a: boa constrictor, Thai water dragon, corn snake and leopard gecko to name a few. Whilst handling them we can educate you on their history, di-

etary requirement, hunting tech-niques and habitats to help you to understand these fascinating animals better.

Perhaps the most amazing yet sad fact about Hounslow urban farm is that over 70% of their animals are rescued, due to people being unable to look after these animals anymore. Finally

visit Hounslow urban farm. You won’t regret it.

Jak Jay Davis 11C

(images courtesy of Hounslow urban farm website)

younger generations on the reality of animal research. Before the speech started, we were sceptical (as animal lovers) yet our views changed knowing how cared for the animals are and how necessary it is in our life. Overall the talk was an amazing experience and we would love more of them.

Holly Pearce 10D and Grace Kennedy 10W

Science


Were the Greeks better than the Romans?

The Junior History Scholars recently went to visit Twyford's sister school, William Perkin.

There we had a debate and the motion, that we were opposing, was 'The Greeks were better than the Romans'. In the debate there were a variety of topics covered by both sides including language, politics (heavily discussed), society and cultural influences. The William Perkin scholars made some very good points however the Twyford cohort triumphed as we rebutted and argued our way to victory. In the end, the impartial judge, Mrs Easton, could not decide as she thought we both

fought well. Therefore the tie-breaker was taken to another history teacher who had accompanied us and she wisely agreed with the opposition meaning we had won. My favourite part had to be the rebuttal as we had the chance to openly challenge one another and the members of the floor (remaining members of both sets of History Scholars). I enjoyed the competitive spirit and the almost patriotic sense of each student wishing to represent their school. In the end it was a wonderful experi-ence and I cannot wait to argue with them further alongside my insanely smart friends and co-History Scholars.

The first History Scholars debate took place on January 9th discussing the topic of ‘religion

is the main cause of war.’ We were on the opposition arguing that the religion was not the main cause of war, at least not anymore. With the rise of more political and economic motivations such as anti-communism and oil there are many things in today’s society that cause more wars than religion and while there are still wars and conflicts with religious factors, it is not the main cause of war anymore. Even with

Is Religion the Main Cause of War?terrorist threats, these are far more driven by the want for power than actually fought in the name of the religion they claim they are. The debates from both sides were all of high quality and it was interesting discussion to hold. While there is no doubt we were both nervous about presenting our arguments especially since it was the first debate history scholars had held. However, we made it through and actually ended up winning the debate and had the privilege of witnessing some very strong cases.

On Monday 6th February, eight history scholar students took part in either

proposing or opposing the motion that the invasion of Iraq in 2003 was completely unjustifiable. While the proposing team had the moral upper hand, the opposing team posed a

strong argument according to the political perspectives. The debate focussed more specifically on the UK’s involvement in the invasion; was it a necessary invasion? I was a part of the proposition, arguing the moral and political thoughtlessness of Tony Blair and the abuse of his personal and institutional powers as Prime Minister led to this callous invasion.

The opposition posed a strong argument: we historians have the privilege of hindsight, while politicians are required to act with the knowledge and understanding they have in a moment of crisis. This made the audience question whether the inhumane consequences of the invasion may not have made the initial invasion ‘completely unjustifiable’. However,

'The Invasion of Iraq in 2003 was completely unjustifiable'

By Jemima Swindells 12Y1Year 12 History Scholar

By Jesse Sharp 9WYear 9 History Scholar

By Kate Carruthers 12F2Year 12 History Scholar

due to the coherence and confidence of our argument, we were victorious in proposing the motion. Personally, it led to a deeper understanding into an event is not part of the current curriculum but has a large impact now on our relationship with the Middle East due to the invasion’s inescapable and unintended consequences. Arguing that the invasion was completely unjustified was problematic, as this discriminator weakened our support. However, we focussed on pulling the emotional strings of the audience, which evidently paid off. I look forward to being an audience member in the next debate and hope to see many budding historians there too.

History Debate


The Oscars 2017Awards season is upon us once again, and as we write this (February 24th), the most prestigious of them all - the Oscars - are only two days away. Surprisingly, the nominations are quite devoid of any major controversy, as #OscarsSoWhite was not given a third outing in quite spectacular fashion, though Tom remains permanently offended at a lack of nominations for his beloved Sing Street. Resident film experts Thomas Rooney and Chris Vialls are back in action once again to give you a rundown on the films in contention for the big one - the Best Picture prize.

Hidden Figures is yet another retelling of a real-life story (these

have been popular this year). This time it's the story of Katherine G. Johnson (Taraji P. Henson), a marginalised black physicist and mathematician who helped to bring the US back into the space race after multiple Soviet victories. The movie is not exactly as action-packed as other films

on the list but that certainly does not bring it down. This movie has some great moments from start to finish; I particularly liked the sound track and the choice of actors for this movie. It certainly hits very differing emotions at all points from sadness to hilarity. I hope Hidden Figures is not a movie “Hidden” by other big hits this year like La La Land and Arrival.

This is the big one. 14 Oscar nominations later, you may think that the

tale of Ryan Gosling’s quest to revive jazz and win over Emma Stone has been a little overhyped, and you might be right. Before watching La La Land, ask yourself Barry B. Benson’s iconic question; ya like jazz? If the answer is an absolute no, this is not your movie. But for anyone else, it may just win you over, with its brilliantly-written songs,

amazingly-choreographed song-and-dance sequences, outstanding cinematography - the sequence in the observatory will leave you mesmerised - and very respectable pair of lead performances. It very nearly completely captures the magic of the classic Hollywood musicals it wishes to emulate; I was entranced right from the opening number, and you may well be too.

Lion is the retelling of a real-life story of a young Indian boy growing up in

India who gets separated from his family after getting on an empty train. What comes next is an interesting and at points a very sad story as he lives on the streets of India and eventually is adopted by an Australian couple, and as he grows up tries to find his family once again. The movie feels incredibly authentic; all of the setting of

Australia and India are actually those real places. What I was really impressed with was the director’s bravery to keep half the film in Hindi (with English subtitles provided) which many directors are too scared or too lazy to do. The acting and cinematography is terrific and really adds to the movie’s premise. It also comes to an end gracefully with a bitter-sweet ending to a remarkable story.

Another critical dar-ling.This tells the tale of Lee Chandler, a

slightly nasty janitor who returns to his hometown of Manchester-by-the-Sea in Massachusetts upon the sudden death of his brother Joe, where he finds out that he has to take care of Joe’s slightly troubled teenage son Patrick, which presents a whole series of complications. Manchester by the Sea offers some of the best acting seen in any of the

Best Picture nominees, with the standout being relative newcomer Lucas Hedges with an outstanding breakout performance as Patrick, in my eyes the deserving winner of the Support-ing Actor Oscar. It is a slow burner, taking quite a while to properly get going, but once it does, you better believe it does; it’s a heartbreaking, quite depressing but occasionally brilliant tale.

Film & Theatre

Hidden Figures


Arrival is an exciting albeit confusing movie. The plot is very interestingly in a

non-linear format and the story is told in a nonlinear way (the reason why is made clearer as the movie progresses). The movie is a realistic interpretation of what would happen if aliens came down to earth and how humanity would react. Slowly things take a turn for the worse as world powers fear this is a plot to destroy humanity and prepare to destroy the alien arrivals using mil-itary action. It is up to Louise Banks (Amy Adams) to try and find out why the aliens have actually come to earth and try to prevent a global war against the aliens. I think the movie’s strongest element is the use of its characters and their interactions. They are not some cliché invented objects - they act like real people. I felt the plot is highly original, instead of the traditional humans vs aliens we got a movie about working out what the aliens want and trying to pursue peace with them.

Hacksaw Ridge is an excellent film from start to finish, a masterpiece. However, it’s

not a movie for the faint hearted, as right from the start it shows the horrors and brutality of war, and not just any war, the World War Two Battle for Okinawa in the pacific, which many regard as being one of the war’s most brutal battles. We are told the real-life story of a conscientious objector, Desmond Doss (Andrew Garfield), who objects to using guns which causes problems at first, with many viewing it as a cowardly action. However eventually he is able to become a combat medic and is deployed with his unit to force the Japanese forces off Okinawa. He has to face what many would view as certain death and instead of killing tries to save as many men as he possibly can. The movie itself is breathtaking and certainly nail-biting at points as Desmond moves through enemy lines rescuing the wounded men. The movie very much reminded me of Saving Private Ryan, showing insane brutalities of war but also showing the human image, the soldiers fighting and real emotion. This is probably one of the best movies of 2017.

Considered the most likely to upset awards juggernaut La La Land and take home the top

prize, this movie, in a similar vein to 2014’s Boyhood, chronicles the life of Chiron, a disadvantaged youth growing up in suburban Florida, through three stages; childhood, adolescence and adulthood. It may not seem like much is going on, but Moonlight definitely packs a strong emotional punch at various points, anchored by strong performances from its cast, particularly Naomie Harris as Chiron’s long-suffering mother, though to be honest I didn’t think bookies’ favourite Mahershala Ali was quite as amazing as all the reviewers seem to think he is. Nevertheless, Moonlight remains an emotionally effective, if at times slow, chronicle of a life very much unpredictable.

A big thank you to Tom and Chris who will be leaving school before the next Twyfordian issue. They have been long standing contributors to the magazine (longer than even Ms Marshall). Whoever takes on the film reviews next year will have big shoes to fill!

By Tom Rooney 13Y and Chris Vialls 13C

Film & Theatre


The GalleryA small sample of some of the excellent art and graphics work by out

talented Twyford students

Juxtaposing Sid Stocking talks

about how he has used photography to challenge preconceived notions about teenagers being disengaged from culture.

“My concept was to capture a teen model in a grand location. The stereotypical

portrayal of a teenager is that they wouldn’t choose to visit a gallery in their own time. However my friends and I break this convention and this is shown within my shoot.

By Sid Stocking 12F1

How people are expected to act when they enter a place with societal expectations interests me and that is why I chose the Tate Britain.

I tried to take images that reflected the model’s journey through the gallery. The intention was that her presence was juxtaposed with art.

The overall feeling I have for these photographs is that I have documented her on a journey through the gallery and used artwork as a background rather than an attraction. The model reflects the idea that she is not conforming to what the environment expects and therefore showing the teenage naivety.

Gabriel Mackie 13F Gabriel Mackie 13F

Olivia Young 12W2

Art


Well done to all of the athletes of the month for December, January and February. P.E. department select exceptional students to have shown an incredible attitude and commitment to sports in Twyford.

Athlete of the Month

December

Hannah Saxby 10YScarlett Johnson 10C

Joe McLeman 9TJoseph Lees 9W

January

Florence Kitchen 7WAmy Lambert 8D

Trim Blavo 7FOli Whiteway 7C

February

Tuilelaith Kehoe 9CKaterina Antoniou 9W

Joshua Burns 10DElias Giulivi 8D

Sport HighlightsThere has been plenty going on in sport at Twyford this term, in-cluding interform events every Friday and training for tournaments, matches and friendlies. The P.E. department is delighted all of the amazing performances across all sports teams.

Rugby

• The year 7 boys’ team came second in a Middlesex tournament and beat Ealing Fields and Marleboyne and won a Rugby 7s tournament. The girls’ team won against St.Helens

• The year 8 boys’ team beat Car-dinal Wiseman, Hammersmith Academy, William Ellis, Marleboyne and won a rugby 7s

Netball

Football

• The year 7 team won against William Perkin and Ealing Fields.

• The year 8 team beat William Perkin, Ellen Wilkinson and won the Borough Tournament.

• The year 9s won against Ellen Wilkinson, Greenford High and Acton High.

• The year 10 team beat Greenford, Featherstone and Acton High.

• The Year 11s beat Drayton, Dormers Wells, Featherstone and Cardinal Wiseman.

• The sixth form team beat Ellen Wilkinson and Elthorne

• The year 7 boys’ team won against Elthorne and Wetherby Senior, drew with Drayton Manor.

• The year 8 boys’ team beat Fulham Prep and William Perkin.

• The year 9 boys’ team won against Wetherby Senior.

• The year 10 boys’ team won against Wetherby Football and the B team came second in a tournament.

• The year 11 boys’ team won the U18 Biggs Cup Round 1 against Featherstone.

• The sixth form boys’ team won in the U18 Biggs Cup Round 1 against Vyners.

tournament. The girls’ team beat Greys Court and St. Helens

• The year 9 boys’ team won against Wetherby Senior and Chelsea Academy. The girls’ team won against Grey Court.

• The year 10 boys’ team beat Cardinal Wiseman, Wetherby Senior, Chelsea Academy and

came second in a tournament. The girls’s team beat Burlington Danes, William Ellis and Grey Court.

• The year 11 boys’ team won against Cardinal Wiseman, Burlington Danes, City Academy and St. Benedicts. The girls’ team beat Grey Court and Burlington Danes.

Sports


DurhamSo far this year Durham has been doing extremely well in House events. Our earlier success was

in Enterprise day, which we can confirm we came 2nd in now that all the Enterprise days have been completed, raising a grand total of over £517. At the end of last term, we came 3rd overall in total conduct points and we aim for even higher at the end of this term. Following the KS3 production of A Night before Christmas, with special congratulations to Darcy, Jennifer, Teyana, and Lucy from Durham, we are looking forward to seeing some of you in this year’s production of Hairspray in the Summer term. Many of our interforms have been successful with a shout out to Year 7 for winning both Netball and Football interforms. We are so proud of everyone in Durham who got involved so far and we hope to see the rest of you involved for the rest of the year in any way you can.

TruroAnother term has passed and Truro's enthusiasm has not faded! A successful enterprise day was definitely the

highlight of this winter term, with a tense student vs. teacher match, many romantic lolly pop messages being sent and a busy cake sale, our enterprise was hard to miss.

Despite missing out on an early win for the Truro music team in house music, many students have been getting involved and living up to Truro's high expectations.

Legends of this term goes to Ruby Stimpson and Molly Bradley in 10T for consistent hard working attitudes towards lessons

and a dedication to the concert band, saxophone ensemble and clarinet ensemble.

Moreover, the house team has been particularly impressed with the year 11's involvement in senior TFG at the weekend away.

Sports wise, it is fair to say over the past two terms we have been successfully allowing other houses to win (because of course it would be unfair to let us win all the time). Yet with Rounders interform just round the corner we expect the see the red flag flying high with pride as we, as the underdogs, in the words of Jonah, create a 'Leicester Style revival'. Good luck to those in Year 11 and 13 who are preparing for exams and lets be the house that keeps on giving!

WellsWells house has continued to shine out this term, as always.

With all the enterprise days over, we have finished third in regards to amount of money raised for charity, which is a tremendous achievement. We would again like to thank everyone who took part in our en-terprise day last term helping us to

Below are some updates on what our houses have been up to this term!

raise money for The National Autistic Society.

It was great seeing Wells position second in the final totals of last term and we hope we have kept that up this term, or maybe even reached the top! As a house team we would like to thank everyone who's contributed to our house in some way, whether it's helping at events, attending extra curricular clubs or even being good in lessons gaining positives. You've all helped Wells get to where it is now!

Next term is quite probably the most stressful in the year. We would like to wish everyone the best of luck for their upcoming exams and that you'll all achieve the best you can. Have a wonderful Easter and we'll look forwards to seeing you in the summer term!

YorkIt has been another great term for York this autumn. A few of the successes have been great participation across all conduct areas, the lowest negatives in the entire school

and each of the individual achievements York students have made.

Not to mention our brilliant Dodgeball Enterprise Day where we raised £293 for our chosen charity, Breast Cancer UK. The whole York team would like to thank everyone that either bought a cake from our stand at break time, or attended the Dodgeball at lunch in order to help raise money for a great cause. Thank you for making the day a real success and one to remember.

Another area of York expertise has been the wide range of students participating in the Creative Arts, such as those in the school production Hairspray and our entrants in the PMC and House Music Competition.

In summary, it has been a great continuation of the strong start we made at the beginning of the year. Now we must look to carry on the hard work into the summer term. Keep working hard York!

House System


RiponRipon have been really enjoying this term and have been working hard. They had a suc-cessful enterprise

day where they raised lots of money. Much fun was had at the staff Take Me Out with several teachers scandalously pairing off. We raised a lot of money and we felt like everyone had a lot of fun supporting us and our charity this term!!

FountainsSince we last saw you, we’ve heard really great news from the rest of the team

and your form tutors about the stuff you’ve been getting up to. Our enterprise day was incredibly successful, and we're now leading the table for Enterprise points. House music was also incredibe with Fountains coming second place! Well done to everyone involved. We’ve also seen a huge rise in people reaching their target grades, seen through the effort you all put into your Q1 and Q2 exams. Keep it up and make sure you’re ready for your Q3s, GCSEs or AS exams. Participation has increased significantly and our sports Captain, Rose, has told us that your involvement in Interform has been encouraging (with some spectacular wins for Fountains). And with a positive point for every club you attend, Fountains are speeding ahead. Everyone has done extremely well this term, but here

are some people who have really shone. Fountains stars. Thomas in 9F, went all the way to Wembley to do a firefighter course, where he does loads of cool things like activities with hosepipes and oxygen tanks in his back. Also well done to 8F for ending the term with the highest number of positive points and Hermela Daniel in 7F with the highest number of positive points last term.

Congratulations everyone, keep up the fantastic work.

CanterburyThe purple reign of the Autumn Term has continued as Canterbury

has flourished this Spring Term. Since the last update, Canterbury’s success has continued with no sign of stopping. The House Bake Off saw a team of Canterbury’s baker’s come together from all years to produce a spectacular Winter Wonderland cake, that even Mary Berry and Paul Hollywood would have been proud of! This was enough to claim victory for Canterbury, and crown us Star Bakers in the Twyford Tent.

The icing on the cake of Canterbury’s endeavours this term, most certainly has been the success of our Enterprise Day on Friday 3rd February. The meticulous planning and organisation was well worth it, as the energetic and entertaining day went a treat. Canterbury’s bakers came up with the goods

again, producing delicious cakes that the entire school enjoyed, whilst 7C took part in a Sponsored Silence, which too was a great success. Many thanks to all our baker’s and 7C for actively engaging with the event. A special mention must go to Angelo Agha in 7C who single-handedly raised a massive £230 – very well done!

The day culminated in Twyford’s very own version of ‘Take Me Out’, held in the PC in collaboration with Ripon. Albert Allcock 12C and Oscar Tapper 12C entertained the excited crowds, while the eager teachers lined up awaiting their date. Lucky Mr El-Emam won a date with Miss Simpson, whilst Mrs McGuiness was taken out by Mr Dadson – love really was all around us! Overall, the day raised a superb £1014 for Meadow House Hospice - this is a sum we are hugely proud of as it can make a true difference to the Hospice and to the patients it supports. Thank you to every one who supported the event, particularly Serena Owusu – Canterbury’s Enterprise Captain who ensured the day ran smoothly.

We look forward to the final term of the year, so keep working hard and getting involved - long may Canterbury reign!

House PointsThe current house points totals this

year!

Truro 23,411

Wells 27,452

York 25,021

Fountains 24,799

Ripon 26,879

Durham 25,778

Canterbury 25,644

House System


Printed by Hill & Garwood PrintingThe Twyford Church of England Academies Trust is a charitable company limited by guarantee registered in England & Wales.

Registered number: 07648968 Registered Office: Twyford CofE High School, Twyford Crescent, Acton, London, W3 9PP

What does the PTFA do?

Acts as a vital link between school and parents, helps your children by raising money for the school, puts on exciting events for you and your children, and helps promote and enhance a sense of community.

What does the PTFA give you?

An opportunity to make friends and a real sense of camaraderie. Please get involved, it is fun and rewarding.

PTFA Adult Quiz Night 2017

On the 4th of March the PTFA held a successful Quiz Night with over £1,500 raised for the school!

Many thanks to Richard and his team for setting such an outstanding quiz. A massive thank you to Samantha and Charlotte for cooking the most delicious chicken and vegetable curries and to Vanessa, Declan, Wendy R, Rachel, Nell, Wendy N and Gilly for organis-ing the evening. It was a real success. A quote from a parent “It was one of the best evenings I have had at Twyford. Such a great atmosphere”. Roll on next year!

The Winning Team

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