No.22 - Dubai College

DUBAI COLLEGE eBulletin
A tradition of quality in education
DUBAI COLLEGE
U.A.E.
Summer Term dates: Sunday 22nd April - Thursday 28th June 2012
News Sport House Events
Issue No. 22 5th April 2012
A standing ovation for HAIRSPRAY!
The standing ovation given to the
performers and musicians for
each of their four performances
of this year’s school production
of ‘Hairspray’ was no more than
they deserved. Over two thousand
people saw a production that
will be remembered as one of the
most exciting, colourful and truly
entertaining ever performed at the
College; a fitting testament to the
hard work and commitment that
went into a rehearsal programme
which began last October.
The Drama and Music
Departments would like to thank
everyone connected with the
production for their support.
Headmaster’s Foreword
And so we come to the end of
another long, but highly successful
term. You will see from our
e-bulletin that a great deal of
learning has occurred both in and
outside of the classroom and in
reality it is difficult to separate the
two. It is a real pleasure to watch
students grow in confidence as new
techniques, skills and knowledge
are effectively mastered.
Tragically, some of our students
have had to come to terms with
dealing with sudden bereavement
over the last two weeks. It is heart
wrenching to see our older pupils
having to endure the personal
F1 in Schools
It has been a successful and
exciting year for F1 in Schools
this year and 8 teams entered
the school competition in
March. Team Neutrino (Year 11)
comprising of Anuradha Malik,
Pritika Mehra, Karan Talreja,
Parth Rajwade, Ziyan Kassam and
Arya Narasimhan, came 1st in the
Senior Category, closely followed
by Team Torque (V1 form) The
team members are Sahas Singh,
Simran Dhillon, Suprojit Paul,
Ashwin Gupta, Neill Shurville
and Tushaar Nadkarni. Arjun
Dave, Tom Murphy, Cameron
Mackay, Tom Webster, James
Hoad and Libby Johson make up
Slipstream (Year 9), who were
the winners of the Intermediate
Category with Supernova (Year
8) taking second place. (Rahul
Lopez, Shahmeer Samee, Max
Lovett and Jordan Russell). All
the teams demonstrated a wealth
of enthusiasm and energy and set
very high standards for themselves
in every aspect of the competition,
which was a huge success. The
auditorium was buzzing as Saniya
Mediratta challenged teachers and
pupils alike to test their reaction
times on the track.
All 4 winning teams will compete
in the National Competition
agony of grieving as they embark
on their own independent lives.
Our thoughts are with Harry
Harling’s family and friends at this
awful time.
May I thank all those involved with
DC for their tremendous efforts
this term. Many of our students
will be involved with revision over
the holiday, but I hope everyone
finds time for some rest and
recuperation before the start of the
final crucial term.
Peter Hill
Headmaster
in Abu Dhabi, in the hope
of qualifying for the World
Championships next term. Can
Dubai College do it again for the
fifth year running? We have every
faith in our teams and we wish
them luck!
BA
Maastricht
University
Following the presentation
from Maastricht University,
The Netherlands, earlier this
term we have now received
more information from them.
Maastricht is becoming an
increasingly popular option
from the UK as it is seen as
providing quality along with
reduced costs. The tuition
costs for European Union (EU)
students is 1,713 euros and for
non EU students it is 8,500
euros. It is claimed that living
costs are low when compared to
the UK or USA. Maastricht was
ranked 109th according to the QS
World University table. Further
information about Maastricht and
contact details can be found under
‘Information for Parents’ Letters
for Parents on our website.
DC Masterchef
The finals of this term’s DC
Masterchef competition took
place this week with participants
producing some ‘mouth watering’
culinary delights. On the podium
were runners up Tristan Ebdon
and Ali Chassebi who were pipped
to the post by winners Shivaji
Maru and Giorgia Maccini-Hill.
Music, Charity, Love
This year’s Music, Charity, Love
was a huge success. With over
400 people attending and over 40
performers it was bigger than ever.
A massive 15,900 AED was raised
for the Maria Cristina Foundation,
a charity helping children from
the slums in Dhaka. The guest
of honour for the evening was
Bilkis Akther; a student hosted
by a family in Dubai. Bilkis is
able to live and study in Dubai
with help from funding by the
Maria Cristina Foundation. Bilkis
attended with her sister Carmel
and sang ‘Never Say Never’ and
‘Forever Young’. She then thanked
everyone for their support of the
charity before giving one of the
most special performances of the
evening, singing a Bangladeshi
song unaccompanied.
At the very heart of the evening’s
success was Year 13 student Kate
Burns who also proved to be a
‘rapper’ of some repute! Thanks
go to Captain Higgins and his
fantastic team of caretakers who
helped set up the event on the
day, to Mr. Shuker who donated
the beanbags for the event; to Mr
Zambonini for holding auditions
and organising the sound; to
Mr. Dennis for his help in the
organisation; to the members of
the DC Charities Committee who
made an astounding amount of
food that was sold at the bake
sale, and who were also integral
in the organisation of the event.
Finally, a big thank you goes to the
performers without whom there
would have been no show!
World Food Day
World Food Day this year took
place on the 29th February, and for
the second year running, the event
was combined with International
Day so that students had the
opportunity to wear national dress,
as well as bring in food from their
countries. World Food Day, as well
as being a charitable endeavour, is
a celebration of different cultures,
as well as a chance for students to
try other cuisines and, above all, to
enjoy themselves. With most of the
school dressed in national outfits,
food stalls set up and cultural
music playing in the background,
the canteen area of the school was
transformed for lunchtime. The
contribution of the students and, in
particular, the efforts of those who
brought in food or helped out at
stands was integral to the success
of the event. Although money is
still being counted, so far, around
11,500 dirhams has been raised,
with more still to come. This money
will soon be distributed amongst
the charities of MSF, Dubai Centre
for Special Needs, and the RAEY
School in Ethiopia. The Charity
Committee would like to thank
those students of the school who
participated in the event, and hope
that it was as enjoyable for those
participating as it was for those
who organised it.
Cambridge Choir visits Dubai College
The Music Department was
delighted to welcome the awardwinning choir of Sidney Sussex
College, University of Cambridge
to perform at Dubai College. As
part of a middle-eastern tour the
choir sang at a number of events,
still finding time to join us here
to present a range of music from
their weekly chapel services, as
well as works by Eric Whitaker,
the composer-in-residence for the
College. Students from the choir
also took some time to meet with
6th formers and discuss what life
at Cambridge is like and answer
questions about the entrance
process.
The choir’s director, Dr David
Skinner, presented the College
with a copy of their latest
recording which features the
music of Thomas Weelkes. Our
thanks go to the choir and to Jo
Marsh who organised their visit.
FDC Presents:
Re-live the 80’s and dance the night away to your favourite music
Dress to impress – Don’t stop till you’ve had enough!
8.00pm - 1.00am………………………Donation Dhs250 per ticket
Friends of Dubai College
FDC Year 8 Fun Day
The FDC ran its first Year 8 fun day
on the 22nd March. Postponed
from earlier in the year it was
attended by most of the Year 8
students – approximately 120 in
total. There were a series of events
with the intention of including
as many as possible. The teams
started with a session in the pool
– an obstacle/relay course ending
up with everyone in the pool. We
then fed everyone with burgers (beef
and vegetarian, kindly donated by
Global Foods) hot dogs and ices –
some of them even managed to add
some lettuce and tomato to their
sandwiches!
After the barbeque they were all off
to the field where the teams took
part in the “run across the soapy
tarpaulin with a tray of water” race.
Despite attempts at tightening the
rules it is always amazing to see
what solutions inventive minds
can create! After picking everyone
up it was off to the courtyard for
the doughnut relay. After a slow
start most teams worked out how
to eat a doughnut tied to a piece of
string with their hands behind their
backs – unfortunately, this did mean
not everyone was able to eat it all
as pieces of doughnut were flying
everywhere! The winner of the
inaugural Year 8 fun day was 8DR
– congratulations to them all! They
will keep the cup for the rest of the
year before having to hand it over
next year!
The day would not have been
anywhere as successful without the
support of the school, the parents
and the FDC members who turned
up to help – my thanks to everyone.
Andrew Laven
FDC Chairman
Alumni news
Alumni visitor
A recent visitor to College was
Tanya Pinto. After Tanya left DC
she moved to Perth, Western
Australia. In 1998 Tanya gained a
First Class Honours degree from
Curtin University. In 1999, Tanya
joined The RichardsGroup, a
$1 billion Dallas-based national
advertising agency. Her fasttrack
career has seen her working on such
diverse accounts as Travelocity,
Nokia and Children’s Medical
Center.
Today, Tanya divides her time
between the advertising industry
and Baal Dan, the charity she
founded in 2006. Tanya has almost
single-handedly run Baal Dan
with no staff and while working
full-time. Tanya's reputation as an
innovative and dedicated social
Higher
Education
Clinics
The first Sixth Form Higher
Education (HE) clinics took
place recently. Supporting the
programme were two former
students Donna Anderson and
Nikki Fletcher. Donna who studied
Modern Languages and Nikki
who studied Physiotherapy, gave
some of the Sixth Form students a
valuable insight into the nature of
the courses they studied and the
potential for career choices. We
were also delighted to welcome
Dr. Keith Nicholl, a parent of the
school who addressed students
looking to follow a course of study
in medicine.
The College is very grateful to
Donna, Nikki and Dr. Nicholl for
giving their time so generously.
entrepreneur has received both
local and national attention.
Among her awards and press
are: Curtin University Australia’s
prestigious “John Curtin Medal,”
Harvard University’s Women's
Empowerment Conference and
Convention “Women of the
Year” 2010 and the Sri-Sri Ravi
Shankar Award for dss"Uplifting
Human Values 2007.” She has
delivered speeches at Harvard,
TEDxSMU and been featured on:
NBC 5 Dallas, Voice of America,
Washington, D.C., Tonic Magazine,
and in several other articles.
Tanya’s work in India is
remarkable; her charity now helps
to take care of 2000 children. If
you are interested in finding out
more about her work go to
www.baaldan.com
Alumni visitor
Another alumni visitor this week
was Daniel Smith. Daniel gained
his law degree at Bristol and his
Masters in Commercial Law at the
same institution. Following the
completion of his LLB, he will take
up his position with the firm of
Clyde and Co in the UK.
Tanya with one of her orphaned
babies
Journeys
Alumni member Maria Siddiqui
entertained an audience of Sixth
Formers when she delivered
her ‘journeys’ talk recently.
Maria graduated from Kings
College London and is currently
considering a choice between a
PGCE and a Masters course to
study infectious diseases.
Maria is pictured talking to Year 13
student Sophie Middleton.
Surprise visit
Former Head of Music Mr
Steve Griffiths was a surprise
visitor to the College this week.
Accompanied by his wife Maggie
and daughter Jane, Steve popped
in to bid a fond farewell to Mr
and Mrs Jones and Mr Penson,
with whom he collaborated on a
number of productions in the late
80s and early 90s.
The Alumni
Website
Verbier Ski
Trip
Year 9 History
Competition
Mike Deelman continues to work
very hard on setting up the website
and it is hoped that we can start
inviting people to test things out
by the end of April. Assuming
there are no major issues with
it, it can then be made publicly
accessible to all the alumni shortly
afterwards.
48 students and 4 teachers,
great snow, a fair amount of
sunshine and evenings filled
with activities sums up the
DC ski trip which travelled to
Switzerland over the half term
break. Everyone improved in their
skiing or snowboarding and had
a great time in Verbier where we
stayed at the Les Elfes campus.
Congratulations to the fastest
student through the slalom race
course, Max Lovett, 8DR.
Over the last few weeks the Year
9 History Competition has been
taking place with more than
40 initial entrants. An arduous
preparation period saw students
prepare for the first round of
competition where they gave
a presentation on a significant
historical figure of their choice.
This then enabled a select group of
nine finalists to emerge (pictured).
Each finalist then prepared a
presentation on ‘A Day That
Shook the World’ delivered to a
panel of judges that included Mr
Hill. The standard in the final
and throughout the competition
was outstanding and Mr Hill
commented on the intellectual
rigour and professional presenting
skills of all the pupils that bodes
well for the future. Having stunned
judges with her brilliant analysis
of Gamal Abdel Nasser in the
first round, the eventual winner
was Antara Jaidev, 9MB, who in
the final, eloquently discussed
the controversy surrounding the
‘Birth of Israel in 1948’. Several
of the finalists have been invited
to perform their presentations to
the Sixth Form History Society
and to the GCSE and Advanced
Level History cohorts, such is their
quality.
Mike’s idea is to have a useful and
coherent set of features in place
by the time it is launched and
then progressively add a few more
features, as time allows (and the
demand for them arises).
Y12 & Y13 Art
trip to DIFC
This has been a busy term for
our Art students! The Year 11
trip to the galleries in DIFC was
such a hit that we decided to take
Year 12 and 13 artists there too.
A great time was had by all and
pupils were engrossed in drawing
the spectacular art, but they also
made characterful drawings over
lunch on their restaurant napkins
and enjoyed the impressive
architecture. We can thoroughly
recommend a visit to the Cuadro,
Sawa, Ayyam and XVA galleries in
DIFC to those who are interested.
School
Photographs
The School Class photographs
are now available for viewing
and ordering online. Please go
to www.pret-a-portrait.net
Under ‘View my pictures’ enter
the Sitting ID DCD210312P.
Tragic loss
The recent tragic loss of Jumeirah
College student Harry Harling has
had the most profound impact
upon the Dubai College community,
particularly those students who
knew Harry as a friend. We wish to
extend our deepest sympathies to
Harry's family Nicholas, Beverley
and Rebecca.
Silver Duke of Edinburgh International Award
On Thursday morning, 8th March,
43 students left school and began
their Duke of Edinburgh’s Award
Silver expedition. This took
place in the mountains of Ras Al
Khaimah, where the students had
the exciting task of carrying all
their food and accommodation
on their backs for the next 3
days. They were accompanied
by a few supervising teachers,
but essentially the students were
required to operate independently,
and take responsibility for
coping with the navigation, and
camping challenges that they
faced. Altogether they walked
approximately 50 km through
sandy and rocky desert, up and
down steep hills and through
seemingly perpetual Wadis.
Unsurprisingly, the main ailment
by the end of Day One was sore
feet and blisters, but the students
managed to stay positive and
showed considerable determination
throughout the weekend.
On the final day the students
faced the additional challenge of
a sand storm, and the prospect of
a solar flare that was threatening
to interfere with their compass
bearings!
Despite all of these hardships, all
the students made it back to the
final checkpoint, well within the
expected time, and completed the
expedition. Congratulations are
due to the whole group, and they
are now close to completing the
full Silver Award, and simply need
to finish the Skill, Service and
Physical sections in order to earn
their badge and certificate.
Students set off for Nepal Expedition…
26 of the Sixth Form set off to
the foothills of the Himalayas
on Wednesday, to complete the
expedition section of their Gold
Duke of Edinburgh’s Award.
They will aim to complete a
tough 4-day, 80km trek through
forests and mountains, reaching
an altitude of over 2500metres.
Along the way they will pass
through isolated villages and will
get to learn about the fascinating
culture of the Sherpa people who
live in the Helambu valley.
Additionally, the students will
spend a couple of days at a
primary school on the outskirts
of Kathmandu, working on
the renovation of classrooms,
donating much-needed
school supplies and taking the
opportunity to teach some English.
For many of these students, this
trip represents the culmination
of a 4-year involvement in the
Duke of Edinburgh’s Award, and
we wish them the best of luck
for a successful and inspiring
expedition!
Dubai Desert Classic February 2012
Dubai College was once again
asked to provide the scoring
services for the Dubai Desert
Classic at the Emirates Golf Club.
The team consisted of almost 200
students and staff many of whom
attended the three days of training
sessions the weekend prior to the
event. Our roles involved working
the many scoreboards around
the venue, carrying the mobile
scoreboards that accompany the
matches and watching the golfers
and entering the scores into the
palm computers that our scorers
carry.
On the Sunday it was world
number three Lee Westwood
who led by one shot going into
the final round, but it was he and
Scotland’s Stephen Gallacher that
shared the second place. Both had
their chances to force a playoff,
but missed their respective birdie
putts on the closing hole. Rafael
Cabrera-Bello found an extra
spring in his step when it mattered
most and went on to win the
Omega Dubai Desert Classic by
one shot.
Darren Shan Visit
On Wednesday 7th March, Years
7, 8 and 9 students, and visitors
from 11 other schools in the city,
were both thrilled and chilled to
the bone by the modern master of
horror Darren Shan.
As part of the Emirates Airline
Festival of Literature, Darren
visited the DC Auditorium and
treated us to readings from his
most popular books as well as a
taste of his new Zom-B series.
He spoke about life as a writer,
answered numerous questions
from the audience and stayed
behind for three hours to sign
hundreds of books clutched by avid
fans.
Find him on Twitter to see the
comments he made about his visit
and, if you’re really eagle-eyed,
you might be able to spot a piece
of graffiti he left on his tour of the
school!
Tom Rob Smith visit
GCSE and A Level History
students were fortunate to be the
audience for Tom Rob Smith’s
recent visit to Dubai College. He
inspired all with his recount of
how he became an author and
screen-play writer which included
an interesting bout in Pnomh Penh
penning Cambodia’s first ever
TV soap! However of particular
interest was his explanation of
how he integrated his historical
research on Soviet Russia with
his storylines in his bestselling
novels, Child 44, Secret Speech
and Agent 6. Reading extracts
from his stories alongside factual
recounts and you-tube clips,
Tom showed how he created his
fictional characters and settings
with the authenticity of the period
in question.
Professor
Grayling visit
On Thursday 8th March,
Professor A.C. Grayling visited
the College. Professor Grayling
is Master of New College of
the Humanities, London and
previously was Professor of
Philosophy at Birkbeck College,
University of London. He is also
a Supernumerary Fellow of St
Anne’s College, Oxford, Fellow
of the Royal Society of the Arts
and Royal Society of Literature.
He has written over twenty books
including The Good Book and
Liberty in the Age of Terror,
contributes regular columns to
The Guardian and Times and can
be heard on numerous radio and
TV programmes in the UK.
He was therefore very well
qualified to speak to some of
our Y12 and Y13 students on
the topic of ‘The Importance of
the Humanities’. His hour long
lecture was thought provoking,
learned and well balanced.
Professor Grayling devoted a
considerable amount of his busy
schedule to his visit to DC and
we are very appreciative of this.
We look forward to strengthening
our ties with New College of the
Humanities in the near future.
Last Night of The Proms
presented by one of Britain’s foremost military bands
The Band of Her Majesty’s Royal Marines
Dubai St George’s Society is delighted to have once again secured the services of
The Band of Her Majesty’s Royal Marines to perform during St George’s week.
Make sure you don’t Miss this spectacular event.
The Band will perform under the direction of Capt Richard Harvey MMus BMus(Hons) LRSM AMusTCL RM
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Dubai College Spring Concert 2012
In the final week of what has
been an exceptionally busy term
for the Music Department, the
Annual Spring Concert took
place on Tuesday 3rd April in the
Auditorium. As an important event
in the calendar, this provides a
performance opportunity for most
of the key ensembles within the
college as well as being the final
concert for our Year 13 Musicians.
The evening began with two
rousing performances by the
Beginner Band, showing much
confidence and a marked
improvement in their instrumental
skills. Other highlights of the first
half included the Brass Ensemble,
‘Beauty and the Beast’, performed
by the gigantic Intermediate
Band, a choreographed version
on ‘Earth Song’ by the Junior
Choir, a selection of music theatre
repertoire by the Concert Band and
ending in two pieces by the guitar
group.
Choir and Senior Clarinet Choir.
The penultimate piece on the
programme ‘Paalam’ (‘farewell’
in Tagalog) was written by Year
13 student Charles Barsaga and
performed by himself on the piano
and Laura Worger on the flute.
The concert ended with a dramatic
performance of the Music from
‘Gladiator’ by the Senior Orchestra.
The second half featured
performances from many of the
more experienced ensembles
including the Jazz Band, Senior
Flute Choir, Senior Guitars, Senior
Many thanks to all the students
involved and in particular to those
who have contributed so faithfully
to the music department over the
last seven years.
Staff v Sixth Form Olympics
The final week of term was marked
by a series of sporting contests
of epic proportions. The Sixth
Form challenged the staff (rather
foolishly some might say ) to a
sporting Olympics.
Day 1 Netball - a truly titanic
struggle with the staff clinching
victory by just two points.
Day 2 Badminton – a sporting
cocktail of power, athleticism and
velvet touch ensured a comfortable
win for the staff
Day 3 Volleyball – a never say
die attitude resulted in the sixth
Form’s first victory 2 – 1. All
complaints against the umpiring
were later found to be groundless)
Woolcock dominated the midfield
the staff side looked very much in
control at 2-1. However following
her departure the school scored
a deserved equaliser to take the
game to penalties. At 5-5 it was
sudden death with Saffy Sarwar
stepping up to test the cat like
responses of Patrick (They think
it’s all over ) Flower. And the
rest is history as they say - a staff
victory to round off a week of
sporting dominance!
Better luck next year guys!
(Clearly a moral victory for the
students - The Headmaster)
Bell and Adamson – dynamism and
guile!
Day 4 Basketball – the largest
crowd of the week saw the staff
come back from the dead to win by
six points. ‘Magic’ McIIveen was
the hero turning the game with a
three pointer from at least 65 feet!
Day 4 Football – Given that the
College 1st X1 has been unbeaten
for four seasons and they had
no wish to put that record under
threat it was left to the 2nd
X1 to take on the might of the
staff football team. Whilst Miss
Action from the Badminton - Flower and Agent – power and subtly.
Success across the board for DC teams!
The spring term is traditionally
the busiest of the year for the
co-curricular programme and
this has certainly been the case
for everyone involved in the DC
sporting calendar. Despite the
increased competition from a
growing number of Dubai schools
there is much evidence to suggest
that our teams have had their
most successful year ever with
individuals and teams excelling
across the whole range of the Dubai
Schools’ competitive programme.
In addition the College continues
to welcome overseas visitors and
in the last week of this term and
into the Spring break, DC rugby,
netball, cricket and tennis teams
will compete against schools from
the UK and South Africa.
The prestige we gain as a result of
this unprecedented success adds a
great deal to the growing regional
and international reputation of
Dubai College as an ‘outstanding’
school!
are some of their successes in the
DASSA League:
U18A – winners Div 1
U18C – Winners Div 3
U13 B – runners up Div 2
U15 D – runners up Div 4
U18 E – runners up Div 4
Below are some of our recent
highlights
Netball
This year DC has fielded four sides
in the Dubai Ladies’ Netball League
and an astonishing 17 teams in
the DASSA netball league (Dubai
Schools). In addition to league
success they have also won a
number of weekend tournaments
during the season. Listed below
U13 C –Winners Div 3
U15 A –Winners Div 1
U15B – Winners Div 2
U15E – Winners Div 5
Gabby Guscott – Kittens I
winners divison 3
Emma Britnor – Kittnes II –winners
Kittens winning captains from the Dubai Ladies league
division 4
U15B – Winners Div 2
U15 A –Winners Div 1
Successful tour for Under 16s and 1stXV
Both the Under 16 and 1st XV
rugby sides enjoyed success
on their tour of Malaysia and
Singapore during the half term
break. Both teams played in the
Bintang Tens in Kuala Lumpur ,
the largest youth rugby tournament
in South East Asia. The 1st XV
won the tournament whilst the
Under 16s made the semi - final
stage losing by one try to eventual
winners, the Bintang Rugby Club.
The teams then travelled to
Singapore to play 15 a’ side
matches against UWCSEA (United
World College) enjoying convincing
victories. The final game of the tour
was a 1st XV match against Tanglin
Trust School, last year’s South
East Asian Champions. However
DC proved too strong for the
opposition and ended the tour with
a comfortable win.
Success for Under 13 football team
The U13 boys football team played
in the local qualifying tournament
in this year’s VW Junior Masters
competition. This is a Worldwide
invitational competition which
DC is taking part in for the third
year running. The local event
was played at the Dubai Modern
High School and comprised eight
teams. DC won their group with
wins against Winchester School,
The Desert Rangers Club and a
narrow defeat to Rashid School
(Hatta). In the semi-final DC beat
Regent International School before
losing out to the Jebel Ali Academy
team in the final. However, DC
have qualified to play in the Gulf
Regional Final on May 5th to be
played at the Jebel Ali Centre of
Excellence. The winner from this
competition will represent the Gulf
in the World Finals in Poland later
in the year.
In the younger age group a good
contest saw a rapidly improving DC
team beat their opponents by 35
-15. The Under 14 contest proved
to be a little one sided. A clinical
display from the DC boys gave
them a convincing victory 51 -5.
The Under 16 and Under 18 finals
will be played on the Monday of
our first week back against DESC
and BSAK respectively.
Earlier in the week a combined
DC/DESC Under 15 team beat
Prince Henry’s Grammar School
from Yorkshire 28 -7.
Athletics
After losing the Dubai Schools’
championships for the first time
in eleven years last year both the
girls’ and boys’ teams regained
their titles with some outstanding
individual performances in both
the track and field events.
Rugby
Once again DC rugby teams have
reached each of the age group play
off finals of the Dubai Schools’
League. During the final week of
term, two of the finals were played
at The Sevens. In both the Under
12 and Under 14 age groups DC
played teams from JESS Ranches.
Cricket
DC cricket teams at all age groups
have experienced considerable
success this season producing
performances of the very highest
level. The 1st X1 are currently
playing in the ARCH Trophy, an
international competition that
attracts some of the very best
‘cricket’ schools from the UK
and South Africa. It is therefore
wonderful to report that our 1st
X1 has to date in the competition
beaten Kings School, Grantham,
Bradfield College and Sherborne
School. They will also play games
against Haileybury School, UK ,
Clifton College from Johannesburg
and Benoni School, Durban.
Swimming
Having comfortably retained
the Dubai Schools’ League title
earlier in the term the DC swim
squad confirmed their quality as
the top school in the Gulf when
it competed in the 4th annual
BSME Swimming Championships,
attracting schools from across the
Gulf region.
27 DC Swimmers won 62
Medals between them and set 10
Championship records.
Tennis
In 1987 the first ever DC tennis
team travelled to Wimbledon to
compete in the Thomas Bowl. The
team successfully won their group
to reach the quarter finals where
they narrowly lost to Harrow. This
week we saw the return of tennis
as a competitive sport at DC with
the very first international tennis
competition to be held at the
College. The College was delighted
to welcome Shiplake School from
Henley on Thames. Shiplake’s
team contained several county
representatives. This made the
score line of 8 matches to 1 in DC’s
favour all the more impressive.
Off to the Nou
Camp
Congratulations go to Year 7
student Craig Lough who has
been selected to represent the
Barcelona Soccer School in the
Under 12 Soccer Tournament
to be held at the Nou Camp this
month. Hopefully Craig’s Year 7
Spanish lessons will prove to be
worthwhile.
Rounders
After a splendid season the Girls’
Under 18 rounders team defeated
Jumeirah College in the final of
the final of the Dubai Schools’
League.
The score line was
DC 10 1/2 – JC 6 1/2
(DC had an innings in hand)
House round-up
With just this term’s merits (girls
and boys) to factor into the system,
we seem to be heading into term 3
with all to play for. All of the Senior
events have been completed and
Years 11 to 13 can now concentrate
on their public examinations
(perhaps we could somehow work
the GCSE and A Level results into
the House Programme!). The last
two Senior events, Boys Basketball
and Public Speaking proved fruitful
for Barbarossa who were victorious
in both. With honours evenly
shared through the rest of the
term, Heyerdahl have maintained
a healthy lead with 118 points,
but Barbarossa (109½), Cousteau
(107½) and Chichester (105) have
all to play for and cannot yet be
ruled out of the race.
Battle of the Bands
The last assembly of the term concluded with the final of the Battle of
the Bands between the Channel 4 News Team and Rainhouse. Both
bands ‘rocked’ a packed auditorium. However Mr Tate’s ‘Clapometer’
gave victory to Channel 4 News Team by the smallest of margins.
Congratulations go to both bands. Pictured is the winning band playing
‘Teachers Pet’
Request for
absence
If it is necessary for your child
to be away from school, please
ensure that you allow sufficient
time to send an email or letter
to the Headmaster requesting
permission for this absence. If
permission is not sought, the
absence will be recorded as
unauthorised on the student’s
records.to the Headmaster
requesting permission for this
absence. If permission is not
sought, absence will be recorded.
Notice of
student
withdrawal
Please note that a full term’s notice
in writing is required for student
withdrawal otherwise a term’s fees
will be charged in lieu of notice.
Change of
contact details
Please ensure that the school
office are advised of any change in
contact details.
SPRING HOLIDAY 2012
THE SCHOOL OFFICE WILL BE OPEN FROM 9 a.m. – 1 p.m.
ON THE FOLLOWING DAYS
April
6th
7th
8th
9th
10th
11th
12th
13th
14th
15th
16th
17th
18th
19th
20th
21st
Friday
Saturday
Sunday
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Saturday
Sunday
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Saturday
Good Friday - CLOSED
CLOSED
Easter Sunday - CLOSED
OPEN
OPEN
OPEN
CLOSED
CLOSED
CLOSED
CLOSED
OPEN
OPEN
OPEN
OPEN
CLOSED
CLOSED