Dramatic events at school

[80sChav]

Re: Dramatic events at school

We never had much really to be honest that was Dramatic as such in such a sense At my first Secondary was Vandalism very very rife and often our Form-room had many Windows smashed and broken as did many, many other rooms throughout School

Not as it was rough as a School in itself but it was a case of "always look after your own back" etc etc there and this probably was linked to people who'd left bearing grudges against the place

80sChav

[Donald the Great]

Re: Dramatic events at school

The most dramatic event at my boarding school was when my house and one in the girl's section was menaced by a prowler. It began like any other empty day at the school when someone peered thru the window of our shower room. One boy cried out "there is someone out there". Our administrator immediately tore outside but by the time he had arrived at the spot the peeker had gone. This same incident went on for several nites. The police were called in but nothing was found. At the time Sydney was gripped with terror by The Kingsgrove Slasher who had the odd habit of breaking into homes and slashing the occupants clothes and bed sheets while they were out. Naturally this put people in a panic as what would happen if the resident was at home when the Slasher broke in. Whether or not our prowler was The Kingsgrove Slasher or not it certainly put the creeps into us boys all those years ago. The Kingsgrove Slasher was identified as David Joseph Scanlon, 59 and he was sentenced to 18 years in prison.



The Kingsgrove Slasher-David Joseph Scanlon.

[Donald the Great]

Re: Dramatic events at school

One of the most exciting things that ever happened at my boarding school during my 9 years as an inmate was a visit by a dozen crew members of the USS Enterprise. From the captain down we were given a talk about the massive aircraft carrying fleet leader. A week later my form and two others were given the priviledge of an invitation to inspect and tour the Enterprise while she was docked in Sydney Harbor. That was definitely the loftiest occasion I can recall during my school days.

[George 1978]

Re: Dramatic events at school

For an inner-city comprehensive, there were quite a few:

A young lad in the second year (Year 8) died of leukaemia in 1989 - never knew him personally, and I suppose that I did feel a bit guilty about that in hindsight. He was pictured minus his hair although he was very positive about illness while he was still around. One of the Deputy Heads had announced his death in the morning assembly, and for nearly two weeks, tributes were published in the local newspaper classifieds. Not long after, the school decided to launch an annual award in the lad's name, and it was announced at the school's annual evening that they had each year. I actually won that award in 1991, and I went on stage and shook hands with a well-known councillor and other dignitaries who had attended - it was a proud moment.

In the final week of term Just before Christmas 1990, someone from the same year as me (but not the same class) had been killed after running across the main road outside our school. He had planned to get some Christmas cards for his class and was presumably so excited about Christmas that he wasn't concentrating on what he was doing, and a car hit him as he tried to make it across the road. Kids, teachers, domestic staff and members of the public surrounded the school, one of them told us to "go home - there's nothing to see - the show's over". In the local evening paper, it had been announced that he was dead - it even made the news bulletins on the local radio stations as well. We knew that he used to contribute to the community newsletter that the school published with his drawings, as he was a good artist. Obviously, that wasn't going to happen anymore.

The road incident nearly happened to a girl in my class when she was coming from and end of term disco - rumour had it that she was listening to a Walkman and wasn't paying attention to the sound of the traffic when she was crossing the road, although she was alright in the end - just a few bruises, I think - and it was almost forgotten about after Christmas.

The number of fights in the classroom, playground and out of school happened so often that I wouldn't have been surprised that out school had it own "Fight Arranger" in residence, just like soaps and dramas have in the credits at the end of the violent episodes.

I had to be taken home by a teacher who happened to be on his free period after I was injured travelling downstairs from a History lesson to a PSE lesson on a Monday morning. Someone had pushed me when I was midflight and was taking my time, but there was so many kids on the stairs that one of them pushed me from behind, I had lost my balance and I ended up in pain with several bruises to my legs and knees. Made an appointment with my GP on the Tuesday, telling him exactly what happened, and I think that I was off for the rest of the week.

There was the time when I was attacked on the way home from school, but as the perpetrator was someone from another school, that didn't really count. Still, it made me too scared to go to school, and it was the last time I went to school in a "mainstream" perspective. I was in Year 11, and it was February 1994 so there was three months to go before I would have left anyway.

The school in question closed down in July 1995 when it had merged with a neighbouring school. The number of pupils on the school roll were going down and down each year, but I believe that it was mostly because parents didn't want their kids to attend that school, rather than the fact that the near-by school was taking the pupils away from the one that I had gone to. I felt sorry for the staff and some the pupils, mind you.

I would never want to go back to those days of school.

[zabadak]

Re: Dramatic events at school

Some oiks at our school decided to strike against having to wear a uniform. After school, most of them wore jeans so it was all bout ****, really...

[Richard1978]

Re: Dramatic events at school

Talking of strikes some girls decided it was a good idea to have a half hearted one as an April Fools day prank.

All that happened was they hung around the school tennis courts until the teacher who was taking us for French fetched them back to the classroom.

As this teacher was one of the worst to be on the wrong side of the joke was on them.

[zabadak]

Re: Dramatic events at school

One of our teachers got into trouble for extra-curricular activities with a girl I didn't know...

[staffslad]

Re: Dramatic events at school

I remember in my last year at secondary school--1977-78--there was some kind of industrial action by the teachers. A strike or work to rule or something. A few days later I heard in the playground that the older kids were none too pleased about it and there were rumours that something was going to happen. Perhaps a walk-out or something like that. Well you know what school was like: rumours and rumours of rumours, and I didn't take it seriously. In the lunchtime I popped into town for something or other on my own. When I got back to school it seemed very quiet, with not many kids around. I went to my classroom. The form teacher was there and most of the girls, but not a single boy. It turned out that about half the school--mostly boys--had walked to another secondary school about 1-1.5 miles away and were trying to get their kids to join them. That afternoon there were no lessons. The headmaster came into the room and told us to stay in the classroom with our form teacher until home time, so we just chatted. The next day there were consequences with the ringleaders being disciplined. Several, including one from my class, were expelled.

[deeks]

Re: Dramatic events at school

At high school one of our teachers went off the rails and my mate was in his class.He took the class to the school library and sat and meditated with some sort of scary statue thing!This was the guy who had a pet brick,he was an English teacher,and basically had his entire mental breakdown if front of half the school

Yeah, we had an english teacher like that...

[havasack]

Re: Dramatic events at school

Girl collapsed drunk in final assembly.
Lad broke leg in Rugby game, the same ambulance crew came back an hour or so later for a broken arm in a football match.
Toilets exploded with the old bicarb and fairly liquid thing. (31yrs later I now feel safe in owning up)
Kid hanged himself in toilets (didn't happen but it was all the talk for a day)
Girl left history exam to give birth.

[Richard1978]

Re: Dramatic events at school

I've not heard that for 25 years!

I could remember the 1st line or 2 still.

IIRC there were a series of them, all with a group of men breaking into song.

[mark1970]

Re: Dramatic events at school

[Trickyvee]

Re: Dramatic events at school

Don't remember the greenall whitley ad, but that is class! I'd have laughed too.

[Richard1978]

Re: Dramatic events at school

That's something I've not heard for years!

If I was there I probably would to be taken out too for laughing like a drain!

[mark1970]

Re: Dramatic events at school

About twenty minutes into my geography O Level another boy got up and and started to sing "I wish I was in Greenhall Whitley land..." from the then current beer advert. Needless to say he was escorted promptly from the exam hall.