I have carried out a study and observation of 2 schoolboys I know very well, both age 10 at the time, close friends since the age of 3 with similar intelligence, interests and hobbies.

When it became the time to move from primary to secondary school, because of the area they both lived which was middle class and a pleasant area, both were allocated different and low performing schools not of their preference. Both confirmed 4 choices but none were given.

One child accepted the place at the given school without appeal but the other child went through the appeal process for the 4 chosen schools requested. State schools and Private schools. The child then pursued the nearby independant school and after passing the interview process and entrance exam was offered a place.

We are now 1.5 years on and I have been observing the boys during that period. Both boys are in year 8.

Sadly the friendship slowly diminished to the point that the boys no longer keep in contact as they had little in common.

Boy 1 is in a state school class of 31. He has several friends who find it hard to concentrate and he has little interest in school. He does not pursue any activities after school and gets homework roughly 3 times a week. His school day commences at 08.50 and ends at 15.00. His uniform is unkept as the school does not have a strict dress code or rules regarding hairstyles or accessories worn. He wears his hair long and has it tied back for school. He has roughly 4 supply teachers each week as several staff members on are sick leave with stress related illnesses. There are always Teaching Jobs available on the school website. He has little confidence and little respect for the teachers and other adults. At lunchtime he goes to the shop next door and buys sweets as the lunches are not to his taste. He has no interest in sport and prefers to hang out in the town with his pals. He has no aspirations or knowledge about what he would like to do in the future apart from leave school.

Boy 2 attends an independant school and is in a class of 20 pupils. He has lots of friends, both boys and girls. He is polite, articulate, well mannered, respectful, competitive and happy. He excels at every subject. He is in the rugby, football, athletics and cricket top teams and performs extremely well in all. He has represented the school in the national athletics meetings.

He is immaculately presented with shirt and tie, blazer and smart black shoes and takes great pride in his appearance with a neat smart haircut.

His day begins at 08.30 and ends at 16.20. After this he does sporting activities 3 days a week for an extra hour a day. He has homework 4 times a week for 1 hour per day.

The school restaurant provides an excellent choice of healthy supervised lunches and a 3 course meal daily. Pupils are not allowed to pass the school gates at any time. The school has a zero tolerance on bad behaviour but all the children are generally extremely well behaved. There are very rarely any teaching jobs available other than maternity cover.

Boy 2 spends all his free time commiting himself to his passion of football and athletics. He has absolutely no desire to hang around the town. His desire is to go to university and get a degree.

The comparison between both boys is vast. They now have little in common which is very sad shame but clear to see that the independant school offers the child so much more. Respect, ethics, achievement, friendships,leadership, positive attitude, balanced diet, exercise and above all, confidence and happiness.

Technorati Tags: , , ,