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The Chavagnes International College is not really a French school, but it is located near Nantes in France. The school was founded by Ferdi McDermott, about 2005. It is an ultra-traditional English boarding school. A TV documentary reports that the school features among other somewhat oddities Morris dancing, old-fashioned chivalry, Gregorian chanting and how to skin and cook a rabbit as part of the curriculum. Ferdi is critical of the modern English educational system, including trends at private schools. He has reinstituted aspects once common at British schools, includuing boy scout war games, boxing and hunting. Chavagnes is a Catholic boarding school for boys aged 9 to 18. Ferdi has attempted to create a medieval-style community and classes taught in a rigorously traditional manner. There is no television or private access to the internet. The school program includes daily mass, prayers sung in Latin before and after each meal. The boys make a mandatory weekly confession. [Source: "The dangerous school for boys," British Channel 4, June 18, 2007.] A British reader provides his assessment of the school.
Having watched the programme I believe the owner is mad. He is quite
fanatical about strict and very traditional Catholisism but was rejected
when he applied to become a monk. The Headteacher only receives �6000 per
year and most of the few staff are on subsistence pay, one couple mentioned
�600 per mth for them both. They have some graduate teachers but none have
attended teacher training college. The owber has no educational background
other than his own time at boarding school and as a Sunday School teacher.
Currently there are 30 full boarders but they need 50 to break even. The
French government refuse to fund them due to the rather odd curriculum.
Parents have withdrawn boys due to poor academic standards though the
programme did mention one boy managed to enter Oxford last year.
The programme over concentrated on a scene involving the owner and several
boys killing and gutting two rabbits whilst another begged to pay for the
live rabbits to save them. (Reminiscent of a scene from the film made about
Summerhill), and that took away from the main theme about the school. The
owner has a delusion about creating "a school for catholic heros". Fees are
just £ 9000 per year. Uniform is as per the images on the C4 website. There is a baseball cap as when one of the boys had to travel home after being
expelled he was wearing one as well as the rest of hi uniform entering the
airport. The quasi Scouting activity had the boys in jeans withdark green
long sleeved shirts (Similar to UK Scout Assoc old shirts) with a red badge
possibly a heart with a cross protruding, on the left breat pocket. No
necker or headgear. The scene showing them playing football made it appear
there was no official PE or games kit as the boys were in a variety of
shorts and shirts.
The school has its own Monk (a Canadian). Only catholisism is taught;
something a couple of the boys were not happy about. They also appointed a
Boy Bishop and showed part of the feast (including pigs head) prior to
Christmas. The programme mentined that the school was founded in France as
the owner (or rather his parents) could not afford a place of suitable size
in the UK. It was apparent however tht the buildings and grounds were
mostly derelict and that the school was really struggling to survive
financially and physically. It is worth highlighting that the EXTREMELY
basic dormatory and ablutions would never be accepted in the UK. One new
boy commented, after seeing bats flying about the room, that it was "a cross
between hogwarts and Colditz". Boys are not allowed personal music during
the week and even at weekends are not allowed to listen to rock or pop etc
or to use headphones.
Several of the boys were featured as well as staff and a couple of parents
but the focus was mainly on the owner. Why even a particularly devout
parent would send their child there is very hard to fathom as even allowing
for the stated claim of a particularly caring environment with close links
between the boys & staff and the emphasis on the religious element there are
schools in the UK which would be able to provide much better conditions and
results (both state and private).
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