The Pastoral aspect of our ethos aims to educate the whole person and build the emotional intelligence so vital for academic learning. It deals with the well-being of the girls by establishing boundaries, exploring attitudes and reinforcing values. The goal is to prepare the girls for a life in which they will be good citizens, make a contribution and take responsibility for their decisions. We want them to become leaders who are confident, resilient and mindful of their social responsibilities. We want good communication skills, the ability to resolve conflict and strong values to be part of their everyday lives.
Herschel is an Anglican School that provides our girls with spiritual guidance based on a strong value system. Pupils of all religious denominations, however, are warmly welcomed into an inclusive and caring environment where each girl can explore and develop her own spirituality. Pupils are also encouraged to develop an understanding of other cultures and religious groups.
There is a full-time ordained priest as Chaplain, who prepares pupils wishing to be confirmed and offers guidance in spiritual, moral and ethical issues. Religious instruction in the Anglican faith is provided and all pupils are expected to attend these lessons and chapel services are compulsory.
Learning to make a difference, is what we believe we give our girls here at Herschel. We hope that they will, through active involvement, learn that community service will not only make a difference to others’ lives, but also to their own. Service impacts people in various ways; it betters the lives of others while inspiring personal growth and it is a marvellous way to connect with one another and the greater community. Interacting with people from vastly different backgrounds helps our girls to learn patience, empathy and perspective. In the end, there is always a shared sense of fulfilment.
These are a number of activities the Herschel girls are involved in and organisations which we support:
Pupils from Thandokhulu High School attend formal History, Consumer Studies Physical Science and Computer Literacy lessons.
Learners from Kewtown Primary School in Athlone join Herschel volunteers for weekly Outreach Drama and Art lessons.
Grade 11 and 12 pupils from Langa High School and Herschel work together through old Mathematics examination papers once a week.
Catering, Drama and ICT peer tutoring sessions are very popular.
S.M.I.L.E. (St Mary’s Interactive Learning Experience) is a literacy and English programme run by Herschel girls in Grade 10 and higher for two primary schools.
JUMP HI (Junior Undiscovered Maths Prodigies – Herschel Initiative). This numeracy programme, involving primary schools from Athlone and Kewtown, is also run by our girls and is made possible by grants from the Ackerman Foundation.
Our Interact Club is run under the auspices of the Claremont Rotary Club.
Members of The Red Nose Chicken Club dress as clowns to entertain patients in children’s hospitals.
Habitat for Humanity, Stop Hunger Now and Reach for a Dream are part of our service programme.
Every year, Herschel hosts a Christmas party for about 120 children in the paediatric unit at Victoria Hospital.
Several social clubs, like Big Sisters and Helping Hands foster interaction between our girls and pupils from disadvantaged schools, making a difference to all parties involved.