How the Other Half Learns - Exchanging Schools in England
15 Apr five's blog | Email this page | 10973 reads
how the other half learns (1/3)
20.00–21.00
Beginning tonight on Five is a new documentary series in which pupils from vastly different backgrounds embark on a unique school exchange. Three GCSE students from an inner city comprehensive and three from a privileged independent school will visit each other for two weeks, sampling an entirely new learning culture and way of life. In the first edition, three students from a comprehensive school in North London head to Wells Cathedral School to begin a twoweek stay.
The two schools taking part in this unusual experiment are Wells Cathedral School and Preston Manor High School in Wembley, North London. Wells School traces its history back 900 years and parents can pay up to £28,000 a year for its tuition. Barely 100 miles away, Preston Manor is a state school a quarter of the size with triple the number of students.
The six participants are Wells students Tom, Jeremy and Libby, and Preston Manor pupils Mustafa, Michelle and Moeed. For each it is an exciting but nerve-wrecking prospect. Tom worries about being surrounded by chavs, while Moeed imagines that the Wells visitors expect them to be “criminals” or “vandals”.
In this first edition, the three Preston Manor pupils head to Wells to meet their exchange partners. For these kids from the multicultural North London, the medieval buildings and cobbled streets of Wells will come as a shock. The Wells students, meanwhile, worry about how they will be perceived: “What am I supposed to say that’s not going to make me look posh and stuck up?” Tom asks.
The meeting goes well and the Preston Manor kids are shown their homes for the next fortnight. Mustafa and Moeed are sharing rooms in two different boarding houses, while Michelle will be a day student and will stay with Libby’s family. The London students are then fitted with their uniforms, although their insistence on wearing trainers and hats and knotting their ties short do not impress the staff. Next, they meet Wells head teacher Mrs Cairncross, who encourages them to follow the school motto and “be yourselves”.
As the comprehensive kids start classes, they find themselves adjusting to a 24-hour school day in which everything is regulated. But there are some surprises: they all agree the classes are not too different from their own, and are perhaps even easier: “The lessons so far have been actually kind of kindergarten-ish,” Mustafa says.
As the students settle in, we learn more about them as Mrs Caincross looks over their school reports. Livewire Mustafa is expected to adjust well to the “alien environment” of Wells. Workshy Moeed, meanwhile, is easily distracted in class, and his parents hope that his stay at Wells will give him a “push” in the right direction. Finally, A-grade student Michelle has the opposite problem: she never seems to stop working. The staff hope that she will become more involved in the social activities at Wells.
The Preston Manor pupils’ first week goes well, and Mustafa is struck by how “down-to-Earth” the Wells students are. But Moeed fails to impress with his poor time-keeping, and he has his own interpretation of the unsupervised evening study time: “It’s called private study,” he says, “which in other words means: play Playstation!” When he fails to turn up for his compulsory activity on Saturday afternoon, his housemaster, Mr Gowan, gives him detention. “I’m getting fed up of that old granddad!” Moeed says. With another week still to go, will Moeed last the course?
omg my exams r cumin up and i jus wanted 2 no wot u got 4 tripple science!!! im so sik of it. i have it 6 tyms a week! and im so gna flop big tym. o yh and i see dat asian guy all da tym on da bus..he has grown lolz. i only saw 1 episode but wen i saw u i was like *sigh* typical norf weezee guy lolz
reply bck!!!
p.s wembley high rulez lol wooo
17 May 08 at 10:35 pm
hey manz
long time no chat
just wanted to say does moeed , jez and mustafa hav myspace n stuff?
holler
xel
9 Apr 08 at 8:52 pm
I know it has been a long time since I last commented, but i'd like to take back what I wrote, the first comment on this messageboard.
It was an unnecessary.
Hope ur all good.
Moeed
22 Feb 08 at 9:44 pm
I'd just like to well done to all of you guys- I'm at a public school and, if I'm honest, I don't think I would adapt to such a radical change as well as you guys did!
In response to Ami's post sometime ago, music GCSE is a piece of cake, a non-musical person could almost sit the listening exam and pass it if you had revised the info enough- I don't know about your school but the teachers at mine practically wrote my compositions for me. Really its easy
Neshie xx
26 Dec 07 at 10:55 pm
Wz Yur Add??
PagalzZ
Xx]..x
13 Dec 07 at 11:19 am
Sup people ?
and yeh fankoo forr eplying back Moeed and Mustafa ^^
adding ya on myspace
Much Love
xox
1 Nov 07 at 1:21 pm
im moeeds brother freind (nile)
18 Sep 07 at 9:28 pm
Yeah you mind if i add ya on myspace? whats your bebo btw?
Nice hearing from ya
xia
xxx
6 Sep 07 at 12:46 pm
Hey Xia,
Hope ur well...my myspace ad is..www.myspace.com/moeedmajeed
I also have a bebo add with all of my Wells mates on it.
tc
Moeed
3 Jul 07 at 11:17 am
Wdup Xia,
howz it goin... its me MUSTAFA
, hope ur kl
yh i got myspace.... its www.myspace.com/mustafug
Take care
Peace
19 Jun 07 at 9:21 pm
Anna did Jez add you on msn then?
and does anyone know whats happening with Tom and the other girl?
peace
x
15 Jun 07 at 1:23 pm
heys
just wondering what you guys n girls r up2?
n how comes Tom doesnt seem to comment here?
p.s jez ur fit
n yeah Moeed n Mustafa r sexy
any of u guys n girls got msn / myspace etc?
14 Jun 07 at 9:37 pm
hi
erm does any 1 noe whether a repeat will b shown of da programme coz i kinda missed da final episode
thanks
14 Jun 07 at 9:36 pm
l
10 Jun 07 at 2:21 pm
HI Jezza hope your exams are goin well im mel by the way i live in Devon in a place called cullompton youve probably never heard of it!!!
im in year 9 and my nan lives near wells cathedral school she lives up the little alleyway called orchard lea i think by stobberry primary school do you know it?
i thought this series was great did you learn anything new while you were in London? and ive seen tom in the news paper about recieving the clubman of the year award and ive seen him train hes awesome maybe when im up my nans again which should be soon because i left my phone there maybe we could meet up sometime when your not busy what do you think?
Write back
Luvz Ya MeL
xXXx
6 Jun 07 at 9:18 am
Hey Jezz - I lost my internet connection for a couple of weeks - it's good to be back!
Anyway, I know this makes it sound as if just because we share the same interests we were made to be together, but I honestly don't mean it like that - I'm just interested....
I want to be an actress too - where are you interested in studying? Like which drama centre/school etc..?
I'm considering Morley, but I'm not yet sure
plz reply - love you (and ur hair!)
1 Jun 07 at 2:00 pm
hey! any1 got bebo now were on the topic of hi5 and myspace...danke!
29 May 07 at 6:27 pm
Sup,
how u doin ?
yh i got hi5 and myspace:
www.myspace.com/mustafug
http://mustafug.hi5.com
take care
pz
29 May 07 at 2:11 am
Hey Mustafa,
Just wanna know do u have hi5 by any chance and can i have the link?
Thankz x
28 May 07 at 2:39 pm
Sup,
how all of yall doin ? sorry i havent replied in a while, bn swamped in wit work and stuff.
I wouldnt change nothing at all to do with preston manor. We had our final day this Friday and it showed me how much i love my school and suprisingly i sheded a few tears... okay mayb quite a lot, hahahahah, lol, some emotional stuff. PRESTON MANOR I LOVE U !!!!!!
take care people
Mustafa
26 May 07 at 11:22 pm
hiya
jezz and mustafa if there was one thing u could change bout ur schools wot would it be???
xx
26 May 07 at 6:23 pm
heya um some ppl only take 2 a levels but mostly it's about 3, tho a couple of my friends took 4/5 alevels, but usually schools get u to take 4 AS and 3 A2 coz most 'good' uni's want 3 a levels and an extra AS is good insurance. i think really it depends on ur school how many they allow u to take. I heard history was gd but quite detailed... bt that doesn't matter if u enjoy doing it then totally go for it.
24 May 07 at 10:50 pm
Hey, lol Jane just wanted 2 ask how many a-levels is it normal 2 take?? Also, do you no if the History a-level is gd..cos it is currently my fav subject.
thnx
xx
23 May 07 at 9:21 pm
this is random but...GO AC MILAN!!.. and gerrard
xx
23 May 07 at 8:22 pm
Hey I wanna say thought the show was really good, it could of been tacky bt wasn't!!
Mustafa, I think it's cool you're doin persian A level, i saw that bit where you go to a Persian restaurant, whats persian food like? Is it a bit like turkish?? Did they have halal food at Wells?
Jezz, i've been there 2!!! when strangers come up bluntly sayin they like u and i totally agree w/ u what do u say? when i tried my local school ppl came up sayin i was buff and i was like 'oh-kay' what r you suppose to say? i didnt even know what they were talking about! Where do you come from(when ur not boarding)? i'm thinkin Oxfordshire, counties way??? Am i close? If you wanna do Drama at uni Royal Holloway's pretty gd. but if you really wanna do it (seriously jus acting) youre better off not goin to uni, go to a stage school instead like RADA or central school of speech and drama, my friend goes there.
I jus did an a level exam yesterday arhhh, nearly all over! I see people r talkin about a levels.. This goes to everyone…
whatever you do don't do maths! it's the most boring subject (so I've heard) unless ur plannin on doin maths @ uni. If you're doin sciences u can get around it. English is a good choice. Be wary of choosing a levels like music, art, drama unless ur sure that u wanna go do something arty in the future. Art subjects go well together, if u do art at a level u will prob. need to do an extra yr before getting into art school. But art’s a great subject you meet the best ppl doing art (take it from me). If you do change your degree plans though certain uni’s will not count art and drama as a levels because they’re practical based.
Above all I’d say take ur time next year deciding what you want to do, don’t be rushed into anything, too many ppl are pushed to do things, better to change your mind before uni than spend 3 years of time and money…
Feel free, if anyone wants to ask whatever about university I probably know more by now than the ppl working at UCAS!!
I g2g I’ve been jabbering far far 2 long. x
23 May 07 at 8:07 pm
ello veena...i think i hav to disagree, zac efron is gd lookin!lol
high school musical is kinda cliched but its still y i luv it so much! i dunno y but i think ii just luv cheesy completely prdictable films? maybe its just me...infact, i think it is just me! ;P but anywayz...back to shakespeare...as ive just finished doin the tempest in the sats...yes i kno im in yr 9! but anywai after doin a yr of preperation for it, i think ive been pu off shakespeare for lyf!
hey! soooooooo sidetracked people...ermmm think of sumthin to get bak to the topic of how cool jezz is! lol (its tru...dont be so modset!)
ciao for now (see cheesy but i luv it) ;P
23 May 07 at 2:46 pm
Lol. wel its good to know that im not the only one. But hey, i also have a very cliched taste, just fun stuff yaknow! I like watching those funny teenage movies that come on every once and a while.
Haha, nice talkin about it! but were seriously takin the 'limelight' away. dunno how to put it.
Good hearing from all you guys!
22 May 07 at 8:04 pm
soz i dnt think u understood veena (thnx 4 answering tho
)
basically u hav 2 guess y!! lol
i also agree wiv graceey..shakespeare's plays r kinda kl i always loved acting them out in skl and learning about them. also, i'm kinda addicted 2 dr who and my fav episode woz the one wiv shakespear
xx
22 May 07 at 7:47 pm
hiya
u know im gonna hav 2 agree with with graceey and say to ami, high school musical is the most cliched load of rubbish ever to be seen, and zac effron isn't even that gd lookin, although i don't blame u as my friend is exactly like u too. i think as u really start to look at shakespeare's play u begin to appreciate how clever they are, i mean there r so many hidden meanings it really is unbelievable ok im now beginning to sound like a freak.
xx( ps meli i would say psyco)
22 May 07 at 7:40 pm
awwwwwwww thanx...at least i dont think im weird babblin on bout classical music...ahem did i sai classical? i meant rnb hehe lol
yh i personally think shkespeares a bit more overrated for me...i mean...'what light beyond thy window breaks' wat is with that?
but...go ahead were all different and i wuld really luv to hav an acting career lyk on film or tv or sumthin...it just looks sooo much fun...onli thing is, whether i can audition without pukin or sing without goin all weird and completely breakin down in front of simon cowell or sumin! i mean...wat if i completely fail and hav to go homw wit nothin...then wat??? okay panic ova! i hav to agree i do think ur slightly mental for likin shakespeare, but then i absolutely luv ovarly cheesy stuff...lyk high school musical, we hav differnt things...hey! heres a question, to anyone really.WHATS BETTA, CHEESY STUFF AKA. HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL OR THE WONDERFUL AND ABOSOLUTELY COOL CLASSICAL STUFF AKA. SHAKESPERE??
ciao ;P
ps. aim for the moon, ull land amongst the stars...
22 May 07 at 6:37 pm
Post new comment