Exchange at Wrekin College
Mark Barocas

“BA-743, this is your final boarding call!” Hearing that announcement triggered off an immediate sensation, goose bumps ran down my arms. It was 7o’clock on Saturday night and I was about to depart JHB international airport and board a plane headed for England. I would be spending the next three months in England by myself as a mature, independent young teenager, was it possible? I boarded the plane, nerves all over the place, it was time to go. Sitting next to my buddy chief and an incredible Belgian engineer, the adventure began.

We arrived at London-Heathrow and were enthusiastically met by the master in charge of exchange at Wrekin, Mr. de Weirman. We headed up towards Birmingham that morning; the school was positioned in a small town called Wellington, the closest main town being Birmingham. We arrived at the school on a Sunday and all the boys were out due to the fact that it was still the weekend. The school was not full time boarding in fact the majority were day pupils. We were met by our new housemaster, a delightfully entertaining man and he took us down into town for a meal and we just got to know each other. This is pretty much how the whole experience began.

I am not going to write about every detail, day to day but rather compare Wrekin to Hilton College. The comparison is not to slate either school or compliment either but rather to just show you a completely different way of education and schooling.

The first main difference I’m going to look at is co-educational schooling. Wrekin had approximately 550 pupils, of which 250 are girls and the rest boys. There were two girls’ houses and three boys’ houses. Having girls in your class, initially was just incredible, it brought a whole new dimension to class, for a while class was the next best thing. A few weeks into the term, one realizes that you need to work and girls become the most incredibly disciplined people to work with in the classroom. They increase the maturity level in the classroom by quite a proportion and boys become relatively aware of this and feel obliged to complete their work. At Hilton we driven on ones own accord to work, we don’t always feel pressured into it. Outside the classroom it was rather enjoyable having girls around. It not only broadened your social horizons but you became more socially reliable and confident, which is a good thing. One's communication skills increased and expressing yourself wasn’t a big issue anymore. So on the whole having girls was not a big excitement it just contributed to ones people skills.

The next difference was the attitude kids displayed and the atmosphere in the classroom. The level of discipline maintained in the classroom was often of a fairly poor standard. The boys were given the work and it was up to them to do it. There was no punishment issued for work handed in late or work not done. Boys and girls would bring cell phones to class and the teachers would be oblivious to the fact that students were playing on the phones during class however it all added up in the end, if you did not complete your work, you would suffer in the exams and not do well. The main marks the pupils wanted were their exam results, all that is counted and used in the British academic systems are the pupils’ exam results and that’s all they strive to achieve, is top exam results. The one thing that was great about the atmosphere of the classroom was the pupil/teacher relationships. The teachers came across as very friendly and you just felt more comfortable approaching them for work or just general conversation. This did sometimes lead to over friendliness in the classroom but was not a serious issue. In terms of Hilton, we are required to hand in projects and complete work on time. This giving us the chance to do well in exams, knowing that we have done the work before and gone over it.

This leads me on to the next topic, freedom. The quantity of freedom the pupils receive is a fair amount. Pupils are pretty much allowed to do what needs to be done as long as it is within reason. In terms of signing out, all you do is give your housemaster a call on his mobile and ask permission or just send him a “sms”. All pupils in the house are required to have their housemaster’s cell phone number. Pupils may go down into town to pick up food, cloths and newspapers, what ever they need. You would not get punished for being late for class. The only form of discipline in terms of academics was detention and this was issued for slacking off completely during class time. It basically boiled down to how dedicated the pupil was. This can be good in that it teaches the pupil independence and gives him the ability to take care of himself. At Hilton we are in more of a disciplined environment, we do not receive as much freedom. We have to sign out on paper and so the housemaster doesn’t have a personal account as to your where about. All this helps us create a sense of self-discipline and makes us get tings done.

The last topic was their sport and tradition. Their sport lacked depth and was not compulsory. Boys were not required to do any form of sport, they were given options and have the choice as to what they would like to do, otherwise they do not participate in anything at all. Sport matches and events were held on Saturdays and Wednesdays. Most games were played at the same time and it was not compulsory to watch any team or any sport. No war cries were done at inter-school events. The boys didn’t have any sort of traditions for their sports nor school life and sport was considered as an extra activity they felt they were being forced to take part in. Hilton boys love their sport and it creates the most incredible bonds between the boys. Tradition is also big at Hilton and it provides a sense of togetherness amongst the boys.

This basically sums up what the atmosphere was like and how the schools were different in what they did and how they went about it.

Whilst I was there I was fortunate enough to go and watch the springboks play at Twikenham and win and watch Liverpool play at Anfield and also win. Both of which were incredible experiences and events I will never forget.

I was privileged enough to be chosen to go on exchange and experience a whole new culture and lifestyle. Meet new people, experience different political systems and laws. Coming back to Hilton made me realize that it is different and it made me perceive things through a new light and appreciate those little things we take for granted. I hope I can make a difference and try getting boys to appreciate those things. I encourage all younger boys to get involved in the programme and make it a goal of theirs. I am greatly thankful to all those people who made it possible and such a great success. I will never forget the experience.