|
Games are of course an activity, but they are of such importance that we have created a special section for them. Most English prep schools continue to place a considerable emphasis on physical activity and sport, or games as they are commonly called. The greatest emphasis is placed on the major team sports, football, rugby, and cricket. Many non-team sports are also encouraged. At some schools the emphasis is on physical fitness. The headmaster at Hill House in London , for example, believes that "there is. no point in teaching a boy to read and write until he can swim. If a boy is physicall fit, he is never ill. You need to tire any normal boy a bit if you want him to sit down and work at English, French, mathematics and science . " Many schbols are convinced that sports are an important character-building experience and that success and discipline on the sports field can improve a child's to confidence in approaching academics and other challenges. Often games are seenas building leadership skills. AsTwford explains, games are taught so that the children "may appreciate the importance of a healthy body, ... learn to serve his side or school team, and be taught the lesson of leadership ..." rather than for "the doubtful blessings of athletic reputation." As a result, pysical education is part of the curiculum. Many schools prepare a physical fitness profile that a child takes to his or her Public School. The profile records aptitude and achievements in games and sports as well as other physical activities such as skiing trips, camping, and outward bound expeditions.
The British public school can be not be easily defines. General speaking the schools are independent of the state educational ststem, have a "liberal" curriculum, financed through fees, and are boarding institutions. Another important characteristic is a considerable emphasis on games (sports). This is somewhat less stressed today, but before World War II almost all public schools gave great emphasis to games. In fact this was one way in which schools first achieved public school status, when they were recognized by other schools in games fixtures. Sports competitions between schools were not common in the 19th century, except at British public schools. The only exception here was in America where in the late 19th century school sports were adopted as part of the educational program. Games at the public schools may at first been seen as recreation, but soon became an important part of the educational and character building program of the schools. Participation was required. Games were seen as a character building experience. Major sports evolved from the public schools, including soccer and rugby football.
Many schools continue to give great attention to games, but in recent years the balance at most schools have shifted away from "games worship" that was not uncommon at older schools. Most schools now stress that it is the sport of ~the game that is important and not the winning or losing that is important. One headmaster stressed that the best game played all year was one his school lost but the boys nearly bested a much larger team. Not only do many schools place less emphasis on winning, but many also take a much broader approach to sports. Some schools say they are particularly interested in encouraging a non-atthaletic child who in particular benefit from hard-earned succeses. The headmaster at Marsh Court expressed an increasinly common approach at modern schools, "We want every boy to take part in the official games, however, his performance at a particular game does not affect his standing in the school. We also try to provide at least 1 day a week an alternative range of other energetic activities from fencing to clay pigeon shooting that will give a boy an opportunity to excell." Northcliffe tells parents .that while games continue to be an important part of the curriculum, "it is firmly believed at Northcliffe that they should be played for enjoyment. Consequently, if a child genuinely dislikes a game, then an alternative form of amusement and outdoor pursuit will be found." These views on games are striking departure from prevailing attitudes a generation ago. While games worship has declined, many schools contuinue to view sports as an important character building experience. Strod Schools tells parents, for example, that the school is well know for its tradition which "refuses to let the elements to play much of a part in our outdoor activities . " Surely this is a major commitment in a country with weather like England. Strod explains that there is never a need to call to determine if Sports Day or other event is cancelled because of inclement weather, for however bad the weather, the show "always goes on."
Games at all but the most "progressive" prepratory schools continue to be largely about competition. All the important sports at prep school are team sports stressing competition and at many schools a great emphasis is on wining. Some schools have been accused of "games worship. " Many parents also place great emphasis on sports. One headmaster overheard a parent remark during a rugby match, "Rugby round here is a matter of life and death. " Some schools continue to place great emphasis on sports while others have attempted to balance the sports program by rewarding success at academics, music, art, and other activities. Some schools, such as Moffats, have taken care to ensure that "success at games either for the individual or the school is not allowed to assume too great an importance and those who show no aptitude for ball games are often allowed to take exercise in another way ... " St. Richard's insists that "no particular stress" is placed on sports and other competitions to the "exclussion of everything else. Effort and progress receive more praise than easy achievement."
Games were considered such a important part of the public school program that games were a required part of the program. Many if not most boys enjoyed this part of the program. It certainly allowed the non-academically inclined to shine, as considerable status was awarded to the boys who did well in games. There is still considerable status assigned to sportsmen, but many schools now promote a more diverse program. Many schools now assign much more importance to academic success than in the past. Other schools promote the arts, especially music. Here each school has its own individual character. There are schools with programs aimed at gifted and less cleather children. Some schools place a greater emphasis on games than others. Here the headmaster's own personal interest can be an important factor, especially at small prep schools. schools Schools tend to be much more willing to make allouances for indivisual differences. Some schools we visited took care to deal with the boys who were hoplessly inept in games. One school we visited put a boy in charge of the dogs during the games period.
All schools strongly incourage sportsmanship. This is of course an element of the public school ethos. The children are incouraged to attend matches and route for their school and house teams. Masters help to develop team spirit and to teach team members to incourage each other even after making costly mistakes. The children are carefully show how to host visiting teams and they are usually required to use their manners on such visitors. Being normal children (aka people) , there is often a frank discussion after the visitors have left.
The headmaster and staff almost always are careful to set an example of sportmanship for the children. The importance of games to some staff, especially the older ones, there are occasional lapses. We even recall press reports of a very gentlemanly Headmaster we knew being involved in a fist fight on the games field.
The authors believe that at many preparatory schools, success at no school activity is acorded the same status as success at sport. This is not a understanable boyish tendency on the part of boys. It is also a strongly supported value system emphasized by many headmasters and senior masters. Academics has increased in importance at most schools in recent years, but the aura of games is still very important. This is especially true at boarding schools and can be easily observes by the time devoted to games instruction, which can easily exceed 7-8 hours weekly at many schools. The emhasis on sports can also be observed at any prize giving day when awards for sports usually account for two-thirds or more of the prizes given.
Most schools, especially the boarding schools, give considerable attention to sports. Some schools focus primarily on a specific sport, often reflecting the interest of the Headmaster or the tradition of the tradition of the school. Other schools endevor to develop atletic abilities over a wide range of sports. Perrott Hill explains, "Rather than specialize and gain a reputation in one game, we prefer to play as great a variety as possible." Some schools may regularly schedule a variety of outdoor pursuits such as scouting or camping games to prevent staleness which may result from theordinary routein of seasonal games.
Many schools still strongly encourage the children, especially the boys, to participate in games. While there is a strong commimentment to gamesmanship there is also a strong belief in participation. Thus the games program does not exist just for the top atletes as is so often the case at American schools. Most boys participate enthusistically, but many have only limited talent and others have little interest. Many schools now make much greater allouances for such individuals. While they make take care to ensure see that everyone competes in those sports to which he or her is suited, special provision are made for those children which are simply unsuited for competitive games and their efforts can become a cause of redicule. We recall being shown around Aymestrey in Worcester by a charming little chap who was excused from games, but used the times to care and help train the school dogs, two exuberent setters.
The schools' games program is structured differently on the basis of gender. The boys and girls for the most part play different games and the importance of each program is usually different, although this varies from school to school.
Several schools also pursue a variety of other sporting activities depending on local circumstances. At Pinewood, for eample, beagling is a poular activity and the school belongs to the Royal Military College of Science pack.
Many schools devote large parts of the afternoon to sports at least three times a week. The children change into sports gear for the majior sports, but deoending in just what was olanned they may just put on sneakers. This often means practices for those children skilled enough to make the various teams and matches with other schools. Matches are planned bduring the school week and especially on saturday afternoons. The other children both engaged in practices for the major sports and a more recreationally sports for those less athletically gifted. Sometimes special provision was made for the boys hoplessly unsuited for sports. The prep schools are small schools and individual differences can be accomodated in away that was not the case in earlier years. Often the English weather refuses to cooperate with the time schedule and most schools make full use of gymnasiums or sport halls. Some schools give particularly intense emphasis to athletics and have developed particularly strong sports traditions, but sport is important in almost all prep schools. It is no accident that the AHSP was created at a meeting to regulate the size of cricket balls used at prep school matches.
Many boys' recollections of their prep schools is associated with sports. One boy at Bramcote reported, "When I came here I didn't even know how many balls in an over. The first match I scored the other scorer knew what to do better than I did. I still cannot score perfectly but once I did everything right." Rupert, 10. Another Bramcote boy remembers how, "It was ace when Mr. Shaw bought some special school bags with the school crest printed on them ... When I was playing games on a Thursday, I suddenly saw a small, round, hard cricket
ball coming towards me. I stuck out my hand to take the catch and the ball broke my finger, I did not take kindly to this but it is just one of those things." Hugh, 12
Quite a range of different sports are played at prep schools. They do not always play the same sports or at the same time. Considerable differences exist among prep schools with both the sports played and the duration of the season. This causes some difficulty in scheduling matches. The schools have traditionally stressed cricket and rugby reflecting the major games played at the public schools. In recent years soccer, which has a working-class image in England, has been added because of the emense popularity of the sport. All of these major prep schools are almost exclusively played by the boys and the girls are not permitted to play on the boys teams. Field hockey which was forermly a major sport for both boys and. girls, has declined in importance for the boys. It is often, however, the principal sport played by the girls. Besides these major sports, prep schools offer a wide range of other sports. The boys may play basketball, golf, handball, karate, shooting (usually BBs or air pellets) , and squash. The girls may learn balet and other dance, horse-back riding, net ball and rounders. Both boys and girls may be introduced to athletics, canoing, crew, cross country, gymnastics, sailing, swimming, tennis, and skiing. Interestingly, the girls are incouraged to compete. At none of the schools we visited did the girls serve as cheerleaders to boys' competitions. Unorganized cheering was generally regarded ais the responsibility of the entire school community from headmaster to the children and parents.
The commitment to sport is a substantial part of a schools expenses. Many schools have added built gymnasiums and swiming pools that can be operated year round. The principal sports require that extensive playing fields and field house be maintained and an impressive assortment of equipment from balls and bats to wickets be purchased. Some schools also have specialized facilities such as a squash or handball court. The children are required to purchase a wide asortment od uniform items including books and gym shoes. The teaching staff is required to devote considerable time to coaching and specialists are brought in to handle sports such as golf and tennis if the masters are not qualified. These are considerable expenses at schools which generally have only 100-150 children, and in some cases less. Such expenditures, however, at even the least well endowed school are considered necessary because in the English mind success in sport is an essential part of being a gentleman--the goal of a public school education.
Sport in England is far more than a simple athletic activity. Cricket, for example, is a hallowed British tradition and matches are as much social events as athletic encounters. Schools located in' the country frequently have lovely grounds with beautifully tended shrubbery, surrounding immaculately kept cricket pitches. Matches are carefully arranged. Sometimes the process is more complicated than fixtures for a professional team. The schools are normally limited to local schools to avoid long drives. Headmasters want to play schools they feel are on the same social level. Rarely will they play state schools and if they do they will be carefully selected schools. As considerable prestige is associated with winning, the schools may avoid playing much larger schools and try to find, if possible, schools with which their children can compete on equitable terms. The matches are often looked forwarded to by both the boys and staff. The sportsmanship the boys are encouraged to show also shows up in the staff common room. As the rival masters sip the inevitable cup of tea or sociable sherry, and discuss their teams. The children also seem to enjoy the rivalry.
The children usually travel in their school uniforms complete with blazers and ties, but now less. commonly caps. To the unschooled American eye, they look more like they are preparing for a formal party, rather than an athletic event. Cricket matches are always interrupted at the halfway point with the necessary tea to give the boys a chance to meet each other and practice the art of being good hosts and guests. Inevitably they, display there very best manners--although at times they are secerely tempted to speak their minds. After their opponents leave, however, the boys speak more frankly among themselves. At one school where the boys wore comfortable, but casual looking cord shorts, they had hosted a group more elegantly togged out in caps, ties, blazers, and long trousers. "Thank God, they're gone!" remarked Philip as the visitors pulled out the gate. "A right load of snobs," agreed his mate Matthew." They won't even talk to you." Of course the fact that they had thoroughly drubbed their guests, might have discouraged conversation.
We were impressed by the interest most of the teachers showed in the children themselves and not on winning as a goal in itself. A few coaches and headmasters, however, do seem to place inordinate importance on winning. The boys at one school in Shopshiré, for example, appeared to be distinctly worried about losing a game because of the headmaster's reaction. Happily that was an exception to the more constructive attitude that is now much more prevalent. Even so, there are some parents who want a school which places heavy emphasis on winning and competition and one of the functions served by private schools is to offer just such choices to parents. A school's athletic record is a selling point for some parents, especially a sports-oriented father, and headmasters have to give some attention to such matters.
Quite a number of headmasters and the masters are keen gamesmen in their own right. Almost all headmasters attended preparatory and public schools as boys and many developed considerable skill, or at least and belief in the characyer-building impact of games. Combined with their understandable interest in seeing their school and boys succeed in competitions with other schools, they continue to place great empasis on games. Some headmasters, of course, are more consumed with games than others. One headmaster in particular vomes to mind at a fine traditionally-oriented school in Shopshire which achieves excellent results. The headmaster's abiding interest is games. When test matches or other important games are being televised, he withdraws to his study with a glass of sherry and his wife and other teachers, let alone the children, know he is not to be interupted. He also takes the school matches very seriously and can always be observed paving the sidelines vigorosly encouraging his side. On one occasion at a hotly contested match being played in the rain, he took exception to a call by the umpires and got into a sharp altercation with a master from a visiting school with quickly degenerated into a vigorous wrestling match in the middle of a muddy rugby field to the delight of the children who as always were required to watch the match.
Prep schools in previous years reflected the class divisiveness in British life that even extended to sport. Both prep schools and Public Schools put great emphasis on rugby football and often did not field soccer football teams as it was considered a working-class sport. At the Norwich School, in the 1950s we were not even allowed to kick a ball, a rule designed to discourage our interest in football. I can remember being caned once for kicking a ball at the Norwich School, a punishment that as an avid soccer fan I still resent to this day. As in much of British life, such social chasms have narrowed in recent years. We suspect the emense popularity of football was another factor. Almost all prep schools, including my former school, now play soccer as a major sport along with rugby and cricket. Given the considerable attention given to soccer in modern prep schools, most of the children would be quite surprised to find that many of theIr fathers were punished or at least discouraged from playing soccer.
