Pupil leadership: Prep School captains discuss their roles

Just before the half-term holidays, the Prep School announced which Lower Prep pupils would be taking up the various positions of responsibility offered to them, from House Captain to House Vice Captain, Form Captain, School Council member, Playground Leaders and Librarians. The purpose of giving pupils the opportunity to hold such positions of responsibility is to allow them to experience some measure of the challenges of being a leader of having to set an admirable example while representing their friends and classmates in different forums for discussion about school policy and future decision-making. We believe that this serves as an important testing ground for their leadership skills which will hopefully serve them well in their academic and professional lives. Two of our year 5 pupils, Clara and Phoebe, were chosen by their peers to be House Captain of Lynedoch and Vice-Captain of Hopetoun respectively. They explain how they feel about taking on these positions of responsibility and what they hope to achieve with them. Clara: My old school didn’t have responsibility positions for pupils, so when I did my speech for School Council last year I was worried that I wouldn’t get it, because this was my first time trying out for something like this, and maybe I wasn’t ready for it yet. When they read my name out in the Black Box I almost forgot it was me who was going for the position! I was really proud and happy to be accepted into the council and I think that’s what encouraged me to try out for House Captain. Phoebe: I was a little bit nervous when it was time for us to give our speeches laying out why we all thought we would make good House Captains. I think I could have prepared mine a little better, so after I finished it, I thought that I wouldn’t get offered a position at all. I’m really glad and grateful that my friends and classmates listened to me and supported me by voting, it made me feel really proud of myself for choosing to go for the position. Clara: For me, I’m really looking forward to helping with the organisation of the house events and working with everyone else in the house. We’ve already been busy with the football teams and I’m sure there’s a lot more to do in the new year. I think the most important part of being a House Captain is to always encourage other members of your house to do the best that they can. Because if you encourage them, you give them the courage to think that they can do anything that they want to do. This is how you end up having a happier house.

Phoebe: It’s also really important to help people think about the five Wellington Values by showing them a good example, especially responsibility and integrity, because you need to show your housemates how to do the right thing when they’re doing something wrong, even when it’s your friends who are doing it. As House Captains and Vice-Captains we also need to show courage, like when we’re giving speeches and speaking our minds about what should be done at school. Showing kindness and respect is always important too, because otherwise you can’t enjoy school and can’t learn so well. Clara: It’s a lot to take on, because the teachers are expecting more from us and we need to always be setting a good example, but all of us House Captains and Vice-Captains are very excited about helping to bring the houses together and encouraging everyone to do their best and get along well together. Phoebe: It’s going to be a lot of fun and I think it’s always good to try new things out whenever you can. Wellington is really great for letting you do that. Even if you don’t get into a sports team or the musical the first time you try, you might get in the next year. For me, I didn’t get into School Council last year but this year I got the Vice-Captain role, so it’s always worth it to keep trying if you feel like you’re going for something important. Our Prep School House Captains and Vice-Captains have now had a few weeks to settle into their roles and have taken to it with great enthusiasm while living up to the exemplary standards expected of them. We look forward to seeing them leading more house events and competitions while involving themselves in more whole-school events as 2018 rapidly approaches.