At the chalkface Class wars
“Class war, apartheid mentality?” All gone, according to
Anthony Seldon, head of terrifically expensive and exclusive Wellington College. Eh? We’ve moved on. Ah. He wants to help state school teachers, train us up. Why? Independent teachers are superior. Ah. And we’re all in this together. That “class warrior” stuff is vulgar and unseemly and so “last century”. Me too. I remember it well. Let us cut back to my little village of Chalfont St Peter in 1954.. I’m playing football
on Gold Hill Common with my chums Titch and Jimmy and Bucket. Silver birch trees are our goal posts. We play ‘til dusk. I’m Stanley Mathews and Titch is Gil Merrick. We’re about 10 and probably working class and definitely best friends. Days of heaven. Could it ever end? Not half. Wallop! At a stroke. Wha’appen? The 11-plus exam happened. It rather did for us all. I
passed. They didn’t. I left my blubbing chums forever. I felt wretched. My dad didn’t. He ran round the lawn thanking God that I would never be a plumber. Clot. I was off to grammar school, off forever with the middle classes. I got lots of exams and lost lots of chums. Some chased me over Gold Hill and beat me up for being posh and betraying them. I didn’t quite belong anywhere. I was a “wide boy” in the
grammar school and Fotherington Thomas out of it. I’m still upper working lower middle class. What a palaver. Well, thank goodness, that
class stuff’s all gone... well, wait a minute. Let us cut to my 10th year class. A very rich mix indeed. All God’s children. But classless? Let’s zoom in. There’s upper, working, lower, middle, under, squashed, squeezed, displaced and exiled classes. The defining lines are more subtle, deceptive, blurred – but just as brutal as in 1954. The Jesuits famously could
predict the future of a child
after seven years. Well, in my darker moments, I think
I can too. I must resist these pernicious, self-fulfilling prophecies, but it’s not easy. Basil Bernstein’s restricted and elaborate language codes still seem to pertain. I can spot grades at a glance. Exam boards order me to do so. It is, of course, the middle class literacies that are
rewarded. I’m not sure how you can
teach at all, without an awareness of all this. I’m not sure if this linguistic richness exists in the independent classroom. It could be I’m not sure how headmaster Seldon can help us. We seem to be teetering towards the condescending here. Or feudal. Dear me. I sometimes wish I could go back to Gold Hill Common with my chums before the darkness fell.
• Ian Whitwham is a former secondary school teacher.
Film-tastic: The Oaks School receives its award from actors Dougray Scott and Gugu Mbatha Raw and a scene from Rainman, which features in the autism film season
Stars come out for film award by Daniel White
Hollywood stars were on show to present a special school with a national award for its film club provision. The Oaks School in County
Durham beat off competition from 7,000 UK schools to win the Film Club of the Year Award. The school runs two weekly
clubs and regularly screens mov- ies as well as including films in all areas of the curriculum. The award is run by national
charity FILMCLUB, which is a free service helping state schools to
set up extra-curricular film clubs. It was launched in 2008 and now has 7,000 members. It is supported with funding from the Department for Education. Pupils at The Oaks School are
also able to uploaded their reviews onto the FILMCLUB website, aid- ing them with ICT and literacy skills. The award was presented by
actors Dougray Scott and Gugu Mbatha Raw at the Odeon cinema in London’s Leicester Square as part of the recent First Light Film Awards. Among the many examples of
how The Oak School uses film is one 13-year-old, severely autistic
student who would not attend any lessons unless two staff members were present. However, through the use of films his self-esteem has risen and he now attends lessons unaccompanied and joins in with the group. Victoria Dobson, co-ordinator
of the film club at the school, said: “This is one of many exam- ples showing that film clubs are extremely beneficial for children with learning difficulties in terms of increasing their confidence and communication skills, boosting their independence and self-esteem, and integrating those who find it hard to take part in other activities.”
The award comes as
FILMCLUB this month launches a season of films to increase under- standing and awareness of autism. It coincides with Autism Awareness Month and aims to educate people about the condition through film. Films involved include the doc-
umentary A is for Autism, and the film Rainman starring Tom Cruise and Dustin Hoffman. It follows feedback from
FILMCLUB members who say watching, discussing and reviewing a range of films increases a child’s empathy and tolerance. For more information visit,
www.filmclub.org
News
Comenius Week 2011 2-9 May
Join the celebration
Are you currently involved in a Comenius Partnership or hosting a Comenius Assistant? It’s time to celebrate your European collaboration.
Join schools and colleges all over Europe in celebrating Comenius Week 2011, from 2-9 May.
Simply plan an activity or event to take place during the week around the theme Celebrating the Languages and Cultures of Europe.
Share your event or activity online and with the British Council and you could win a Flip video camera for your project. The British Council could also join you on the day of your celebrations!
You can… introduce the whole school to your partner’s language invite the local community to an exhibition of your Comenius project activities ask your Comenius Assistant to plan a culture immersion week collaborate online with eTwinning …or celebrate your own way
Get involved now
www.britishcouncil.org/comenius-week-2011
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SecEd • April 7 2011
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