Together, The Student Magazine | Issue 22

Eight issues in, Aiglon’s student magazine is printed proof of the power of teamwork.

Once a term, Aiglon student magazine The Nest lands in everyone’s inbox – an exciting and stressful time for editors Rachel (Clairmont, 2024) and Annabelle (Le Trient, 2025).

“It’s nail-biting, waiting to hear what people think of the issue,” says Annabelle. “But, generally, they seem to like it!”

“The Nest grew out of the English department two years ago,” says English teacher Mrs Katherine Duckling, who has a “hands off, facilitation role” on the magazine. “But previous student publications have only lasted two or three issues. We’re on issue eight! I think the students would say it covers things they care about. I’d say it’s about student leadership.”

Broadly, Rachel looks after the words and Annabelle the design, with a team of 10 or so students from Years 9 to 13 contributing articles. At the start of term, there’s a brainstorm meeting to decide the theme, such as ‘culture’ or ‘new beginnings’ (for Aiglon’s 75th anniversary). “Everyone enjoys the kick-off meeting and contributing ideas,” says Mrs Duckling, “but then there’s actually producing the material.”

“We do have to chase people for deadlines,” agrees Annabelle. “We’ve learned we have to communicate clearly about what we expect, and emphasise that we’re all working together on this.” “We try for it not to be a mad scramble at the end!” adds Mrs Duckling.

As well as proof-reading and keeping things on track, Mrs Duckling is also the liaison with the ‘censorship board’ – the School Council – who check the content is appropriate. “We don’t want to single anybody out or cover disciplinary issues. Sometimes things get by me, because it’s in student code, but generally we have a strong team who are kind and respectful, so there are usually only minor changes.”

“One of my favourite articles was when we critiqued Valentino’s new collection according to Aiglon’s dress code, as if we were teachers,” remembers Annabelle. “Skirt lengths featured strongly, for example! We have a Gmail group chat where we collect material for our regular column, ‘Overheard at Aiglon’. Things like ‘I cheated on my maths test and I still failed’ or ‘Is Mexican not a language then?’ or ‘I’d rather sacrifice my Louis Vuitton than my hair to the rain!’”

“The students have a great sense of humour that we don’t always get to appreciate in the classroom,” says Mrs Duckling. She brings skills from her background in television and as a copywriter to encourage journalism and research, as well as opinion pieces. “They’ve written features about burnout and technology use, and I try to encourage stats and referencing.”

The Nest also has a spoof agony aunt column, with problems like ‘How can I get a girlfriend?’ or ‘How can I grow taller?’ The sometimes-joking tone doesn’t mean they can’t tackle difficult issues, however. “Another of my favourite pieces,” says Annabelle, “was when Rachel wrote about banter culture, and how it can normalise perceptions that are actually sexist or racist – how it’s a difficult, challenging area. Coming from a student, it was very powerful. The Nest gives a platform to student voices and celebrates us being together in this unique place.”

Originally published in the Aiglon Magazine, Issue 22.

Words by Megan Welford
Photography by Joe McGorty