International partnership helps Truro School boarders

Kellett School, The British International School in Hong Kong, recently opened its doors to two stranded Truro School boarding students who were unable to return to the UK.

Jack Wong and Stephanie Choi are A-Level Chemistry students who arrived home to Hong Kong for their Christmas holidays in December 2020, but were unable to fly back to the UK in January 2021 to resume their schooling due to Covid-19. Remote learning on Teams allowed Jack and Steph to experience every theory lesson to the same standard as their peers, but needed to complete experiments as part of their final assessments.

With no return to the UK in sight, Head of Chemistry at Truro School, Dr Anna Brogden, reached out to Kellett School Principal & CEO Mark Steed, having previously worked with Mark when he was Principal of Berkhamsted School, to help her students complete their studies.

Dr Brogden said: “I knew he was someone who could be absolutely relied upon to support and champion the education of all students, facing any challenges head on. I was delighted when he agreed to help.”

Kellett Senior School Chemistry teacher Mr Ed Wawn was happy to help, and accommodated Jack and Stephanie through three core practical sessions. “The students really enjoyed being back in a science lab and actually being able to discuss chemistry face-to-face, something that they had not experienced since before Christmas.”

Dr Brogden added: “I am incredibly grateful to Kellett School, to Mark and to Ed, for providing an invaluable and unique solution to the educational problems we faced when our international boarders were unable to return to the UK to complete their A-level studies. I am really proud of what we have achieved working together to enable the best educational outcomes for two students, who otherwise would have been unfairly disadvantaged by the global pandemic through no fault of their own.”

After spending a few afternoons in Kellett’s science labs, Jack and Stephanie were able to complete their practical work and are well on their way to fulfilling all of their Chemistry A-level requirements.