www.abingdon.org.uk 3 Abingdon News John Locke Congratulations to Gordon, who has been named global finalist in the John Locke Institute’s essay competition (Law category) for his essay ‘Suppose you were contemplating, in violation of the rules of this competition, submitting an essay written for you by AI. What would be the difference between such an act and ordinary attempted theft?’. Gordon was invited to a weekend of lectures and college dinners, culminating in a presentation at the Sheldonian and a reception at the Ashmolean Museum. MFL Society dinner Capsize and rescue training Introduction to Paddlesports got off to a great start in September with some capsize and rescue training. Xavi, an experienced 4th Year paddler, was happy to demonstrate being a capsized casualty so that everyone could practise their rescuing skills. Congratulations to Zach and Jay, who have been awarded a prestigious Army Scholarship, guaranteeing them a place at the Royal Military Academy, Sandhurst. Both students competed against over 100 different candidates in a rigorous selection process involving an interview, essay and 2 day assessment testing physical fitness, problem-solving, leadership, and team-building skills. This makes 7 army scholarships awarded to students from Abingdon CCF in as many years. Both Zach and Jay talk about the opportunity the CCF has given them to practise leadership and communication skills, responsibility and time management. Sandhurst in sight Be More Griffen This year’s Be More Griffen campaign was launched in Lower School in September. The 1st Years spent the morning in a series of lessons designed to help them develop key study skills including how to respond to feedback, how to get organised with homework, and how to set meaningful goals. They were then joined by the 2nd Years in the afternoon for a talk from paralympian Talan Skeels Piggins who told the truly inspiring story of how he overcame a motor accident that left him paralysed from the chest down to compete in the 2010 Winter Olympics in a sit-ski and to become the first paraplegic to compete against able-bodied racers in solo motorcycle racing.
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