THE WYKEHAM JOURNAL 2020
‘ I didn ’ t even consider looking at schools like Winchester because I thought I wouldn ’ t be able to go there . But the bursary system made it possible .’
Lincoln College Crest but of race as well . He found an environment where all were welcomed , and which encouraged intellectual debate , exchange of ideas and challenge ; and he flourished . ‘ It was uplifting ,’ he says . ‘ There were adults everywhere ready to engage . At lunch a different don would come and sit by you every day and chat about anything .’
At his former school , he explains , ‘ in Further Maths it was only me and one other student who took the GCSE , and we were given a textbook and told to teach ourselves a lot of the time . So , when I arrived at Winchester , one of the very important things for me was that I was with like-minded people , and the teaching could stretch me in ways in which I hadn ’ t been stretched before . And the teaching doesn ’ t just stick to the syllabus or what you need to pass exams . It ’ s a lot freer . We could engage and be passionate about the subject . It was very different from what I was used to .’
Div , the daily general studies lesson taught to every pupil every day , was also a revelation : ‘ Div showed me I could learn outside my four subjects . It let me meet people studying things other than Maths , Further Maths , Physics and Chemistry . It taught me that it ’ s OK to challenge and question , but it also taught me to understand the viewpoint of others and hear their arguments . It definitely helped me a lot in how I developed as a person .’
One key turning point was an offer from a Physics don to set up a problemsolving session once a week . Oliver and a handful of friends went along , and he soon found himself entering the British Physics Olympiad contest .
‘ I heard about the Physics Olympiad and thought it would be very interesting , so I took part in the first round . It was about applying the knowledge we had to problem-solving . And I achieved a top gold in the First Round , which was the top 200 students in the country . Because of that , I qualified to take part in Round Two and got as far as silver , which is the top
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