Five Year 11 students from Mark Rutherford School are celebrating their success in an international essay writing competition run by the Royal Commonwealth Society (RCS).
More than 11,000 young people from across the Commonwealth entered the Queen’s Commonwealth Essay competition run by the RCS, which has a rich history of promoting literacy, expression and creativity by celebrating the excellence and imagination of young people.
Four Mark Rutherford students successfully secured a Bronze Award, whilst one student, Aaliah, was one of only fifty students in all of Europe to achieve a Silver Award.
The international schools’ writing contest used the theme of ‘A Connected Commonwealth’ to encourage students to consider how they can work to use cultural, technological and environmental connections for positive change across the Commonwealth.
Topics invited young people to consider the potential of the Commonwealth in strengthening the vast and varied links between citizens.
Of her achievement, Aaliah said, “I wrote at length about Islamaphobia, how it has increased rapidly and how people judge us by our appearances.
“I think it is unacceptable how society allows people to be treated in a disrespectful manner through common misconceptions and fear of things that are not understood.
“In particular, I focused on how the actions of a few can lead to negative stereotypes of the majority. The Commonwealth is about uniting everyone together and treating everyone equally.
“I think it is important that our generation ensures that this happens and that difference is no longer feared, but embraced”.
