6.1 Form Summer Reading Challenge Helping you get in shape for your A-Levels and university applications
• Have fun exploring your chosen A-Level subjects by reading around the topics you find most interesting and exciting • Use the summer productively. Reading takes a fair amount of time, so using these nine weeks of downtime is easier than trying to fit it around the Radley schedule. • Start reading books and articles to include in your personal statements and for discussion in your university interviews (you don’t want to leave it until the last minute!) • Develop a sense of the scale of information available in your areas of study and get better at finding relevant material • Share your experience with others in your year by sending us feedback and reviews
Why?
“This is a tremendous chance to make yourself more intelligent. Science has proven that more reading does exactly that. So, which sensible person would turn down the opportunity to be more effective and successful? Even if you aren't naturally inclined towards reading, or find it a bit tough, if you do it you will be a more interesting person - informed, witty and erudite at parties, job interviews and so on. You will impress people if you have read widely. Most of all, you will have a richer experience of life. There is a negative side to a lack of reading. It is best put by General Jim Mattis, US Marine General and former US Secretary of State for Defence: 'If you haven't read hundreds of books, you are functionally illiterate, and you will be incompetent, because your personal experiences alone aren't broad enough to sustain you.' (Jim Mattis, Call Sign Chaos: Learning to Lead, 2019) In a world where emotion and irrationality often seem to trump common sense and reason, the well-read person is in a strong position to lead the field. Embrace this challenge. Developing a strong habit of regular reading is one of the most important things you can do. So don't delay...”
Mr Rathbone Academic Director
Message from Mr Sheldrake Director of University Entrance
“In my role as Director of University Entrance, I see too many boys trying to develop a sense of academic curiosity overnight when they come to write their UCAS Personal Statement. This is difficult to do and not very satisfying. Start your journey into the life of the mind now. Do not worry about whether a book is going to help you do well in your exams. It may do, but you need to acquire the habit of intellectual discovery beyond and above whatever happens to be top of your to-do list at the time. You have more distractions available to you than any previous generation. Some will throw their hands up in despair at their addictions to their phones etc. preventing them from reading. All the more reason for you to develop some reading will-power at this crucial moment in your life.”
The Challenge You can achieve three levels: Gold: Silver: Bronze:
Complete all six categories Complete five categories Complete four categories
The six categories are: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.
Grasping the basics From the horse’s mouth A new perspective It may never happen Serious nitty-gritty Read and go
The Categories Explained The books and articles suggested here are merely examples. They won’t necessarily match your own A-Level subjects or areas of interest. If so, find titles which suit you better. The Librarians will be happy to help you choose for each category.
1.
Grasping the basics: read something fundamental to your field of study. Examples might be: • Political theory: an introduction by A. Haywood • Art History: the key concepts by J. Harris • Journey through genius: the great theorems of mathematics by W. Dunham
2.
From the horse’s mouth: read something written by a person who’s important in your field of study. Examples might be: • Adventures of a young naturalist: the zoo quest expeditions by D. Attenborough • On directing: interviews with directors by G. Giannachi et al • Letters from Robben Island: a selection of Ahmed Kathrada's prison correspondence
3.
A new perspective: read something with a viewpoint that’s unfamiliar or different to yours. Examples might be: • Package Design in Japan by Shigeru Akizuki et al • Banker to the poor: micro-lending and the battle against world poverty by M. Yunus and A. Jolis • Invisible women: exposing data bias in a world designed for men by C. Criado-Perez
“For many of you wishing to go to university, or just wanting to excel in your A Level course, further reading will form a big part of this. But as you graduate from 6.1 to 6.2, most of you won’t have given further reading enough thought. Fortunately, you also have nine weeks to make up for this and get ahead of the competition. Although the phrase “6.1 summer” doesn’t conjure up images of book pages, I'm sure you are all keen to change this. All of you, hopefully, can read. Some of you might even be interested in something. Even better. Given that most of you will write a personal statement, and some may get interviewed by universities, knowing what you are talking about is essential. I can attest to this personally; the summer period set me off on a whirlwind of intellectual discovery that led to me reading wider and sparking greater curiosity and enjoyment for my subjects. I also got a tan. The extra reading ensured that I could give my personal statement a solid backing and feel confident in academic discussion. For example, I had always liked history but largely confined myself to watching ‘Saving Private Ryan’ on repeat. By reading beyond the confines of Netflix, I found access to concepts that put me on a much stronger footing for my post-summer return to the red brick utopia that is Radley.
Some of you may be unsure as to where to start; the library is always a good place and has plenty of shelves to explore. Alternatively, try finding a specific subject niche and politely interrogate your dons for any solid reading recommendations. If you ask nicely, some may even lend you their own copies. Don’t worry about knowing everything about a subject, because whatever avenue you explore will act as a great microcosm for academic study of some kind. Push yourself to read at a higher level to ease the transition from textbook to actual book. So, ask your Dons for some cheeky recommendations, work on your sunburn, and read something of quality this summer. You certainly won’t regret it.”
Jack Jacobs Academic Prefect, 2021-2
Message from Miss Mühlberg Librarian “We very much hope you’ll enjoy this challenge. Although it is clearly academic in nature, it is designed to allow you free rein to choose according to your own special interests. We really hope it will rekindle and fuel a genuine love for your subject(s) and help you take charge of your own learning and understanding. Please feel free to make full use of the library to supply you with material to complete the various categories. Do aim for Gold! My colleagues and I will be more than happy to help you find and access the books and articles that will work best for you and your individual topic choices. There’s a vast amount of knowledge at your fingertips right here at Radley, much of it accessible from home, too. For more information, please read the search tips at the end of this leaflet. Best of luck!”
The Categories …continued 4.
It may never happen: read a fictional account (a novel, play, poetry, or short-stories) of something related to your field of study. Examples might be: • • • • •
5.
I, Robot by I. Asimov (novel, sci-fi, artificial intelligence) Going to Meet the Man by J. Baldwin (short-stories, US Civil Rights) The History Boys by A. Bennett (play, lewd Oxbridge prep comedy) Candide by Voltaire (17th century French satire) The Bees by C. A. Duffy (mixed bag poetry collection)
Serious nitty-gritty: read about something very specific to your field of study, ideally from a subject-related publication, such as an academic journal, a special-interest magazine or newspaper. Examples might be: • An article from BBC Sky at Night magazine about celestial targets for serious star gazing • An article on fractals from Maths Horizons journal • An article from The Economist about fuel prices in India
6.
Read and go: read about something you can explore in person. Examples might be: • A book/article about a composer or piece of classical music and hear it performed live • A book/article about marine ecology and visit a marine wildlife centre • A book/article about Roman mosaics and look at one at an archaeological site • A book/article about a manufacturing process and tour a related factory
Finding the right reading material 1.
Academic reading lists available on the Library catalogue: https://ws.radley.org.uk/oliver/home/browse/readingLists • You can also search for specific books on that page (try limiting by title, author, or subject).
2.
Reading lists that are connected to recent talks at Radley. Many of these will also relate to subjects you study: https://radleycollege.sharepoint.com/sites/Acad_Lib/SitePages/ Latest-Displays.aspx
3.
Radley’s academic databases, online newspapers and magazines, and eBooks: much of this is accessible to you at home as well as at Radley: https://radleycollege.sharepoint.com/sites/Acad_Lib/SitePages/ Library-Resources.aspx • If there are special login requirements, it will say below the database logo. Just follow the instructions. • If you are asked to sign in via ‘EZProxy’, please use the username you’d need to sign in to the College computers (i.e. the shorter code made up from your name, NOT your long email address). The password will be your regular 365 password.
4. Recommendations: many Radley dons have posters with reading suggestions in their classrooms or on their doors. Please click the flickr icon below to see some examples. If your favourite dons don’t appear there, why not ask them yourself ?
Tell us how you got on If you tackled this challenge, we’d love to hear from you via this survey: https://forms.office.com/r/6gzXkB92WR This survey will ask you what you’ve read for the categories you completed, and there’s room for one proper review. Please use the review field (No.7) to recommend your favourite book or article you read as part of this challenge. We’ll put together a further reading display of all your suggestions when you return in September. This will help inspire others who may have an interest in similar subjects. As the Dalai Lama says:
“Share your knowledge. It is a way to achieve immortality.”
Happy holidays and happy reading!