SPEECH DAY
SPEECH DAY
Speech Day took place on 14 October 2016 and marked the final official school day for the Class of 2016 . The guest of honour was Mr Tim Jarvis , Senior Master Pastoral and Counsellor at Michaelhouse .
Address by the Headmaster , Mr CJ Luman
The Headmaster addressed the audience on the outstanding success and achievements collectively , and encouraged the Sixth Formers to put in a final big push for their NSC final examinatinations .
His core message focussed on finding and pursuing ones ’ s passion . Mr Luman described it as an emotional word defined in the dictionary as , ‘ Any powerful or compelling emotion or feeling – such as love or hate – a strong feeling about a subject or person , usually of intense desire and attraction .’ He described passion as a force , both controllable and uncontrollable , which infuses our lives with meaning , joy and anger .
“ Passion catches our attention , brings commitment and determination , but one thing can be sure – it causes us to act . However , if passion is guided by the wrong motives it can be quite dangerous . But when guided by the desire to help people lead bigger , richer , fuller lives , passion has the potential to help create a better world .
Passion is the fire that burns within us . It enables us to go places others are afraid to go , to try things others are afraid to do , and to be the kind of people others are afraid to be . Passion creates the energy and drive required to do what others think is impossible . Finding your passion unlocks prosperity and abundance .
As teachers we hope that everything you have learned at College both in and out of the classroom will be life lessons , but most importantly we hope that you have learnt how to pursue your passion .”
Mr Luman encouraged the Sixth Formers to try new things , embrace opportunities and to experience life . He concluded his address with Robert Frost ’ s well-known poem , ‘ The Road not Taken ’.
Address by the Guest of Honour , Mr Tim Jarvis
Mrs Debbie Martin ( Deputy Headmaster : Academics ) is pictured here with the guest speaker , Mr Tim Jarvis .
Tim Jarvis , Senior Master Pastoral and Counsellor from Michaelhouse addressed the audience on Michael Curian ’ s concept of ‘ boy energy ’. He emphasised that we live in an ever-changing world and highlighted that currently South Africa is in a state of flux . Although he identified the Sixth Former ’ s future as uncertain , he focussed on two key points which would stand them in good stead . These were his wish for them to be educated , and to seriously consider what it means to be a man .
The need for education , he believes is more than that of mere training . Training exists in the workplace and comes with experience , whereas education should occur at school and university level .
Mr Jarvis discussed the views of various scholars , and focussed on the importance of obtaining a general degree , such as a BA , as the skills obtained during this period of study transverse a variety of fields , and the degree is not limiting . He quoted Professor Jonathan Jansen who said , “ A good BA would have given you the foundation of learning across disciplines like sociology , psychology , politics , anthropology and languages . A good BA would have given you access to critical thinking skills , appreciation of literature , understanding of cultures , the uses of power , the mysteries of the mind , the organisation of societies , the complexities of leadership , the art of communication and the problem of change . A good BA would have taught you something about the human condition , and so something about yourself . In short , a good BA degree would have given you a solid education that forms the basis for workplace training .”
Mr Jarvis emphasised that if one would not be attending university then one should take a course , read a book , watch a play , have a conversation , study a biography , meet people who are different from oneself , take any opportunity to travel . He quoted Warren Buffet , one of the world ’ s most successful business men who , when asked what the ingredients of his success were , replied “ As a child and even today , I read voraciously , I read everything in sight ”. The key point of his message was that whilst not everyone would have the opportunity to attend a university , he encouraged the boys to seize every opportunity to be ‘ men of understanding , thought and culture ’.
The second point he made was for the Sixth Formers to consider what it means to be a man . “ Today it seems that his journey to manhood is fraught with difficulty and danger . Steve Biddulph , a family therapist , in his book , ‘ Manhood ’, says many men struggle with close relationships – 40 % of marriages break down and divorces are initiated by women four out of five times . South Africa has one of the highest rates of father absence in the world ( Stats SA , 2011 ). Internationally , one in three women experiences violence at the hands of a male partner ( State of the World ’ s Fathers report , 2015 ), and rates of domestic violence are very high in SA . We know too about the high incidence of rape in our country ”, he said . Mr Jarvis emphasised that men are emotional beings , and are not second rate to women in this regard . He believes that the problem is society which teaches young men , from an early age , that emotions are not manly . He pointed out that one does not have to look very hard to see how damaging this is .
He went on to quote Joe Ehrmann ( former NFL player ) who identifies three common myths about masculinity . “ Firstly , to be a man , you must have athletic ability . You must be good at sport and / or being physically strong . The bigger and stronger you are the more of a man you are . Any cover of Men ’ s Health will tell that story ; secondly , you must be an economic success . You must compete and dominate in the boardroom and in business . Money and wealth is a sign that you are a successful man . Thirdly , the message seems to be , that being a man involves sexual conquest .” Joe Ehrman then points out that to be a man , “ One , it ’ s your capacity to love and to be loved . Masculinity ought to be defined in terms of relationships . Second thing , it ought to be defined by commitment to a cause . In terms of relationships you are going to need other people in your life and if you are going to be good at getting on with other people you are going to have to become skilled at understanding other people ’ s emotions and understanding and expressing your own ”. This statement was supported by Professor Jansen in his article , ‘ Perils of a Macho Culture ’, where he encouraged fathers to do the following : “ First , teach your boys to cry from an early age . Learning to express emotion in a safe and positive way , rather than through aggression and retaliation , goes a long way to healing the woundedness of men in our society . He goes on to say , “ reprimand bad male behaviour in public so your children know there is right and wrong .” Mr Jarvis pointed out that part of being a man was for men to hold others accountable for their actions .
Thus the guest speaker ’ s key message was for the boys to be significant , rather than successful . “ Mother Teresa once said that if you want to change the world , go home and love your family . It is a good place to start being
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