On Wednesday 9 February 2022, Haberdashers’ Boys’ School and Haberdashers’ Girls’ School came together for our first collaborative Aske Level prize giving ceremony.
Over the last year, Sixth Form students across both schools created an independent project to deepen their learning experiences. With titles ranging from “Should gene drive technology be used to eradicate malaria?” to “Parallel autobiographies in The Rabbit Catcher and Wuthering Heights – Sylvia Plath and Ted Hughes.” the curiosity and ambition shown by students knew no limits as a vast variety of subjects and topics were explored so diligently.
Headmistress Mrs Rose Hardy said: “The sheer breadth of projects submitted was very impressive. The idea of cultivating many interests as a way of deepening the capacity for learning and becoming more well-rounded is inspiring. Our students have inspired me with all they have achieved with their projects.”
Mr Gus Lock, Headmaster at Habs Boys, agreed: “The projects and presentations were nothing short of humbling. Our students have worked incredibly hard, overcoming challenges and difficulties with perseverance and resilience. More than this, they have been motivated by, and in turn fed, their innate love for learning to discover and explore areas which truly inspire them. Perhaps most impressive of all was the intellectual and emotional courage on display, whether defending their arguments or sharing experiences with amazing honesty. It was a privilege to share this with them.”
This year’s winners included Edan (U6S1) who took first prize in the Humanities and Social Sciences category. The Sixth Former said: “The Aske Level gave me the perfect opportunity to further explore development economics and, in particular, Gerschenkron’s theory of economic backwardness. The data gathering and quantitative analysis involved complimented my A Levels perfectly. The project has also played a significant role in my decision to study economics at university.”
Sarina (U6DHH) won the STEM prize while the Creative prize was shared between Neeve (U6RS) and Oluwademilade (U6M2).
Neeve, whose project was shown through a screening at the prize giving ceremony, commented: “Using my knowledge of fundamental truths, I created a short film depicting the daily life of my Nonna, highlighting the extent of her loneliness. While the film is incredibly personal to me, it also allows the audience to relate to the experiences shown in the film, empathising due to the recent pandemic. I was honoured to be awarded joint first place and it was so special to see my work bringing members of the audience to tears as they connected with the film. It was, overall, an incredible and emotional experience to share my work, one I would not have had without participating in the Aske Level.”
Oluwademilade, the second winner of the Creative prize, performed a monologue of his own creation at the prize giving. He said: “The Aske Level facilitated my pooling together of all aspects I enjoy from my A Levels. The project’s flexibility was its greatest strength, allowing me to ask and answer my project question ‘why do we tell stories?’ in a medium that best suited me: drama. Winning the prize was a true honour and performing for so many people was surreal! With the themes my monologue tackles, I am extremely grateful for the opportunity to share it with the audience that attended the prize giving ceremony.
The schools would like to thank all those involved in organising such a successful inaugural Aske Level. Congratulations to all the prize winners and well done to all those involved!
Click here to watch Neeve’s video.
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