#BalanceforBetter

BY RIMA 7V

International Women’s Day is a universal day celebrating the achievements and successes of women while accelerating gender balance. This ties in well with the 2019 theme which is #BalanceforBetter as the official website states “a balanced world is a better world’.

Schools also continue to raise awareness for gender balance. Alperton Community School are having special assemblies, as they do every year. As a school community they believe that whilst some steps to move forward have been taken, International Women's Day is still necessary since there are still many places where women are disadvantaged due to their gender and they are limited because of this.

Jennifer, a student at Alperton Community School, said “I think it recognises women’s strength and what they have achieved in the past, so I believe it's good to have International Women's Day”.

MP Thangam Debbonaire told BBC news that “International Women's Day is a sign we have not yet achieved gender equality and an opportunity to look at how far we have come, celebrate our achievements and plan for future success".

Women have been treated differently in society and the three necessities thought by stereotypes are to cook, clean and take care of the children. According to the Institute for Fiscal Studies, over the past 40 years, the UK has seen an almost constant rise in the proportion of women in employment. The employment rate of women aged 24-25 is up from 57% in 1975 to a record high of 78% in 2017.The drastic rise can be considered to be due to women choosing to put their career and education before having a child, whereas before women were shamed for not having children and were almost pressured. This still happens today, but as women come together to combat this it is easier to not adhere to everything society expects of you because of your gender.

International Women’s Day is annually acknowledged on 8^th March and first occurred 1911. At Alperton Community School we will continue to recognise the contributions and successes of women on this day and every day. Look out for the digital displays which will showcase women who have achieved well in particular subject areas.

Stretch to Succeed

By TIRTH 7Q

On the 27th of February 2019 the highest achieving students in year 7 and 8 at Alperton Community School were given the opportunity to attend the ‘Most Able Fair’. This fair was to stretch students’ ability and to unlock their potential.

Most able students are usually identified through their CATs score if it is above 115 or if they achieve a level 5 in English or Maths at key stage 2, which is the end of primary school. In the Most Able Fair the students are provide with opportunities such as taking part in BBC Young Reporter and other extracurricular activities. Students were also given a few revision books to extend their learning from the classroom and to challenge their young minds. 

The Y7 & 8 Most Able Fair was well attended

Neel (7L) said “the fair was helpful and I got a lot of useful advice” and Shreya (7P) felt that “the revision books will really help me for my core subjects”. However, some students said that they felt they should get more stretch work in class instead of extra work. 

Students are given free resources.

Ms. Banerjee and Mr. Merghani organised the. There were a lot of sixth form students and teachers who volunteered their time and were great at answering questions students had.

Great atmosphere with lots of questions answered.

Even though people who did not get to go to the Most Able Fair might feel a little left out, it also gives them the motivation to work harder to improve their grades and hopefully be invited next year.

The other two fairs took place on Tuesday 25^th of February for year 9 and 10 and Friday 1^st March.

Welcome Year 6

BY FARHAN 7V

Alperton Community School opened its doors to the year 6 students and their parents who have been offered a place to join our school community in September 2019. Year 6 students across the country were told on Friday which school they had been given a place for. To help with that transition Ms. Manderson set up a welcome day on Monday 4^th March.

The event was very well attended and students and their parents got to meet lots of teachers and find out more about what the school can offer them. This is a great thing because it means that students will be less nervous about having lots of different teachers when they come as they would have seen so many of their friendly faces already. Lots of the year 6 students left feeling a lot happier about the choice they have made in choosing Alperton as their preferred secondary school.

As a year 7 student I want to let you know that if you are feeling nervous about starting a new school – and a very big school – trust me, it is not as hard as you think it will be. I know this because I am experiencing it now. If you are ever struggling you can ask a teacher as they are always there to help and support you. This school does not tolerate bullying or fighting and it is a very safe place for us to be. It has a strong safeguarding team so we know we are always going to be well looked after.

This school has twelve forms and you are put into a class with other children who you do your lessons with for most subjects, but for some subjects there are sets. In form time you are with a teacher that will teach you PSHE. You will get your own form tutor who you can rely on and also a pastoral manager who is in charge of the whole year group. You will adapt to the system of the school in no time. The school ensures our safety first and then our education.

However, the education levels are still excellent. We are amongst the top 1% in the country of progression at maths. The schools education is very good as the teachers are qualified to do the job correctly. They explain the work very well and if you don't understand they will explain it to you again because they want to see you succeed.

The school also has lots of sports equipment that you can use during PE, break and lunch. They even have lots of clubs you can join for free.

We look forward to welcoming you again when you join the school in September. Good luck for the rest of year 6.

What are the odds?

BY TARIQ 7P

With just over two months left before the season draws to a close, the top three clubs are battling it out. With only one point between Manchester City and Liverpool it becomes ever more difficult to predict the champions of the English Premiere League 2019. Will Manchester City win their fourth title in a decade? Or will Liverpool finally have a chance of lifting the cup?

This season some results have been staggering and unpredictable, whilst others make a lot of sense. Here we outline the rivalry and the shift of positions in the league table of one of the most interesting cups that brings unrivalled entertainment.

This season has been a bit of a rollercoaster providing some great thrills! There was the unpredictable news with Jose Mourinho's sudden sacking from Manchester United and now their continuing streak of wins and draws since, to transfer news of world class players and rumours to the sacking of Chelsea's Maurizio Sarri.

The winners have been announced for the Carabao Cup as Manchester City stormed into victory after Raheem Sterling’s penalty skipped past the gloves of the Spaniard Kepa Arrizabalaga. In fact, the Spaniard would not make way for his substitute, Willy Caballero, and Sarri stormed into fury due to his player’s stubborn personality. 

As we enter game week 30, the league table hosts Manchester City as first place with 71 points with Liverpool pursing closely behind with 70. Tottenham, Manchester United and Arsenal are currently neck and neck, with an energising game to be hosted on Sunday at the Emirates with Manchester United visiting Arsenal. Be prepared to clench your fists for this tense game! 

However, the most jaw-dropping result of the season was in February’s fixture with Manchester City vs Chelsea. The visitors were demolished 6-0. The top scorer of the season is also very tight, with as little as one goal separating Sergio Aguero from Liverpool’s Pharaoh Mohamed Salah. 

When asked their view of their team, a Manchester United fan said of them “They are one of the greatest teams in the world!” He continues, “there is a chance of winning the UEFA Champions League and I think that tonight we will beat PSG 3-0 to advance to the next round.” A Liverpool supporter said of his team “we have a powerful team and good chance to win the Premiership, yet are players aren’t playing at 110% every match. This is founded as we drew to Man Utd. and Everton, our derby rival.”

What are the odds? Who do you think will be relegated? More importantly, who do YOU think will win? Comment below.

Poppy Display and Remembrance Day

BY TISHA 7W

We celebrate Remembrance Day for any soldier in the world who has fought in any war. A two minute silence takes place at the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month. This day and time is significant because it marks the end of World War 1 when the armistice was signed between allies of WW1 and Germany. This year marks 100 years since this was signed. As a school we felt it was important to come together as a community and mark this occasion, so we had a two minute silence on the Friday 9th November.

However, to mark this historic occasion, the history and textiles department worked together to combine the artistic element of our display and to highlight the significance of past events. All students and staff were given the opportunity to design their own poppy however they chose to. This gave everyone the chance to represent their own poppy for what reasons they thought Remembrance Day was special to them. It helped to highlight different backgrounds and by putting them up together it shows we’re one big community who respect each others values and differences.

The Poppy Club was set up by Ms. Cathcart and Ms. Thompson who ran it for three weeks during lunchtimes. Students were encouraged to drop in to design their poppy and some students took the poppy templates home over the half term so they had more time to be creative and think about their ideas. Once the poppies were created a group of students, with the help of teachers, threaded the poppies with fishing line. The teachers hung them up the day before our Remembrance commemorations. The stunning display was proudly hung over from the level 3 corridors and dangled all the way down into the canteen. Many of the students were in awe when they came into school the next day. Some students began to share their stories with me about their family experiences with different cultures and wars over time.

 

As well as this, an Asian-Indian Major came to our school and had assemblies with year 7, 8 and 9. He spoke about how it was not just British soldiers who fought in the war, but soldiers from other countries in the commonwealth too. Eight million men were recruited or conscripted to the armed forces, but half of these were from outside of the UK. These included people from:

• the Indian sub-continent (India, Pakistan and Bangladesh)
• Africa (South Africa, Nigeria, Ghana, Sierra Leone, Kenya, Uganda and Malawi)
• the Caribbean
• Canada
• Australia
• New Zealand

Britain might have lost the war if it wasn’t for the help of all these people from different countries and backgrounds. The students and staff from our school and wider community have many links with many of these countries which is another reason why we all need to understand the importance of Remembrance Day.

We felt really lucky and special to have the talk by Major Gogna. Most of us were shocked to find out that people from lots of other countries fought in World War 1 as this is not something that is usually talked about. Wouldn’t it be fantastic if everyone knew about this at a younger age? The media should also be highlighting how many different countries helped in WW1.

For me, Remembrance day is about remembering all the soldiers and civilians whose actions have given us the opportunity of freedom today.

A very special thank you to Ms. Cathcart and Ms. Thompson for leading on the poppy display project.

KWT: Keep Wembley Tidy

BY MUZAINA 9V

Sunday 6^th May was a beautiful and sunny day; a perfect day to get involved with the KWT (Keep Wembley Tidy) team who invited us to help make Wembley a better place. ACS students worked with the KWT team to help keep our area clean by participating in the local litter picking campaign.

At 9:50AM the students and the KWT members met at the front of the Ealing Road library. Students were accompanied by Ms. Paoletti and the KWT members. They walked all the way up to the One Tree Hill park picking up all the litter in their path, trying to make Alperton a better place. In pairs they were given a garbage bag and a garbage stick to collect as much as they could. After that they all met up in front of the library with their garbage bags full of discarded rubbish, which would have otherwise had a negative impact on the environment and the people who live in the local area.

Students worked hard in the heat for a whole hour. It was also a great way for the students to meet new people and the KWT members and they all had a great time.

Thank you to the KWT team for holding such a great event which will have a positive impact on the environment and community. It also gave the students at Alperton Community School a chance to experience something new.  

If you want to be a part of future events, then please join the Eco Committee Club held by Ms. Paoletti. Just a little of your time could make a huge difference to your local surroundings and show that you really do love where you live.