CHALLENGING THOUGHTS & TASTES

With the respect for the individual, central to Hilton College’s philosophy, comes the awareness of responsibilities: to others, to school, to family and to the society which one will grow to serve. Hilton boys learn early that they are part of a greater whole, that they live within a multi-cultural society and that they share a common humanity. The emphasis on trust, the nurturing of selfdiscipline and the healthy respect for others within the school render redundant archaic practices such as initiation and fagging.

Closely allied to this is the school’s commitment to transformation. There are compelling reasons for Hilton College to align itself with the broad based societal transformation that is everywhere evident so as to ensure that we produce graduates who are both attuned to and part of South Africa’s rich diversity, and networked with some of the key decision makers they will be required to work with during their careers. Hilton College must be seen as a centre of educational excellence, led by governors, management and staff whose composition and approach is free of racial and gender bias, and which develops young men of all races to go on to serve as confident, competent leaders in all walks of life.

Another area in which the school has developed a reputation for excellence, is in the field of academics. Within the community, academic effort and achievement are acknowledged, rewarded and highly prized. We believe that there is no substitute for the acquisition of essential higherorder skills like knowledge application, analysis, synthesis and evaluation. Challenging pupils to think is one of the school’s over-arching aims.

Every attempt is made to balance the requirements of a pupil-centred education with the Aristotelian idea that, "the object of education is to cause us to like what we ought to", the aim of which must be to challenge the tastes of the young. Consequently, the school is meeting the challenges posed by new Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) by providing outstanding facilities. The main focus of our approach to ICT is, however, not the technology itself, but rather the contribution it can make to the development of cognitive and academic skills. All departments are engaged in finding sources of information and software applications which can improve the way their subjects are learned. This means that the technology is used in context, and as a means to developing other more fundamental skills such as problem solving and information management. With academic excellence as a hallmark of the school, every boy is encouraged to excel in his preferred fields of interest, in preparation for leadership and life.

Estate and Real World