In school
Start of term nerves OR Houseman has some sympathy for the nervous new boy
Old boys and parents of a certain generation almost inevitably have one thing in common: they were not happy at school. Life at boarding school forty years ago was clearly uncomfortable, and communication with home rare and perfunctory. Some argue that the regime provided them with the resilience to cope with anything they might face in future life: others continue to regard it as a barbaric and unjustifiable system which left them emotionally scarred and thus unable to cope with future challenges. Many talk of the particular outlet which provided them with sanctuary and inspiration: a sporting or cultural passion which has remained with them, or a particularly inspiring subject teacher. Debate about the concept of boarding, the spartan conditions of any particular institution in the past, or the inhumane treatment of younger boys by older boys continues, and opinions diverge wildly. Whether general views on boarding experiences are positive or negative, however, one idea seems to appear consistently: nobody expected school to be enjoyable, and those running schools felt no particular obligation to make the experience enjoyable. Whether a schoolboy was happy or unhappy was an irrelevant question: unhappy was the expectation, and moments of happiness a pleasant relief when found; but there was no particular cause for surprise if such moments did not appear. With the possible exception of the fees, has any other aspect of boarding school life changed so much in recent decades? The expectation now is that pupils should feel happy all the time. A moment of unhappiness is a cause for complaint and quite possibly blame. Pupils are asked to complete surveys about their welfare, their mood, their teachers. Above all, the youngest boys must feel comfortable and at home, they must not be made to feel less important than older boys, and they must not be nervous about coming to an unfamiliar place at the start of
their school career. Many schools have therefore introduced a series of events for boys in their final year at prep school to visit the school, spend time in their houses, and get to know each other and the older boys. This summer a senior colleague left his house after twelve years in the post. He told me that he had resisted the headmaster’s suggestion that he invite next year’s intake and parents to a summer social event familiarising them with the house. His resistance, and indeed tenure in his house, lasted until the headmaster’s suggestion became the headmaster’s instruction. He told me about their conversation at the end of the previous academic year: “An interesting idea, headmaster, but I don’t think that would work for my house.” “Everybody else is doing it. Mr N has invited all the prospective parents to a barbecue in the house garden, and asked the junior boys in the house to arrange a series of activities to get to know next year’s new boys.”
Autumn 2017
CCR Vol54 no3 Autumn 2017.indd 13
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