Oswestry School - oldest school in the North of England

Oswestry School — special approach to children

My meeting with Sarah, a representative of the British private school Oswestry, was especially interesting. Sarah has been working in the international department of the school since 2010. But she had studied the school well over the previous 12 years, as her own four children graduated one at a time from Oswestry School and went to different universities. Therefore, Sarah could talk about the school from the side of students´ parents.

S: When my older children were in high school, I realized that they all need a different approach to learning. I started looking for a school that would help all my children discover their talents and achieve better results. Oswestry is one of the oldest private boarding schools in Great Britain, with a history of over 600 years, on the border of England and Wales. You will not find this school in the ranking table, but you will find the very best parent reviews.
Imagine when my 2 daughters were very talented and always studied with the same A-A *. After leaving school, one graduated from Cambridge and is now completing work on her doctoral dissertation, the second is studying Russian in Bristol. At the same time, my son was a real difficult teenager, very sociable, very popular with friends, and at the same time, lazy, like many teenagers, and did not want to study at all. If the first two daughters did not need anything special and they would still study perfectly well, then he needed a school that can motivate children in learning, show him that he can achieve a lot if he works. In the end, he studied Mandarin and works in China for an online marketing company. He occupies a high position because he is very sociable and knows his job very well. In addition, I have another daughter who is very hardworking but completely non-academic. No matter how much she did it, it was difficult for her to get high marks. This is a real test for the child and family, especially since her twin sister easily received top marks. I understood that it was difficult for her to cope with a large number of subjects and that her performance would only improve in high school if she could start a specialization. But not all schools accept A-level with high school grades C, almost everyone wants to see A or B. That is why Oswestry will never appear in the rating table because this is a school in which the main thing is not the results, but the fate of the children. Of course, if a school is highly ranked in terms of graduate performance, this can only be achieved by carefully selecting the best students. But many parents now understand that the main thing is not the results that are published in the ratings. The main thing is that the child is comfortable with learning. It's great if your child is easy to learn and at the same time persistently learns. But, as a parent, you understand that you cannot write off a child at the age of 16 who makes every effort to study, just because he does not keep up with the best. My daughter graduated from high school with all C grades, and I needed a school that would give her a chance and helps her develop. The Oswestry School engages these students in extracurricular activities, social projects, and this has helped her not to lose confidence. She finished A-level with grades B, C, D, but for her, it was the highest result. She wanted to study criminal law, and the director gave her the best references, phoned the university himself to convince the admissions office that she would be an excellent student. And she does an excellent job at the university, for two years now she has been doing well in all subjects, because she is interested in studying.
For me, as a parent, this is the most important thing, not the results that are easy to get, but the fact that the school supports all its students and helps them to achieve the best.

L: How did you find this school?
S: In recent years, British families have become more selective in what they want from a school. We are already being taught that a ranking table is a great tool for choosing a school if you have very smart kids. But we want all children to have a chance for higher education and a successful career. Of course, if the child is lazy, then this is a different story. But everyone who wants to learn should be encouraged. In order for 50% of graduates to graduate with A grades, it is necessary to admit only students who graduated from high school with A. But, as it often turns out, diligent and diligent students can achieve more in life than excellent students, for whom everything was always easy. I had to move with my children from London to Oswestry when it became clear that in London I could not give them what they deserve. My husband still works in London and spends a lot of time on the road, but then we decided to move because of the children.

L: Tell me if there are many children from Russian-speaking countries in the school.
S: Very little. A boy from Russia is studying with us now, in the past few years there have been a couple of students from Kazakhstan and Ukraine. By the way, the Ukrainian student studied very well and was the head of the class. I remember how hard it was with him at first, he was a real rebel, but then he got involved in the life of the school and achieved great results. He graduated from high school with one A and entered Manchester to study politics

L: Sarah, we had a very emotional interview, but tell me more about school, campus, infrastructure.
S: 425 school students aged 8-18 years old, of which 135 live in a boarding house in 4 school residences. We accept boarding from 12 years old. Most of the rooms are for two, the amenities are on the floor - this is not a hotel, but a school. We have single rooms that we only provide to graduates. Many parents say that their children do not want to share a room with other students, but this is wrong. To integrate a child in society, he must share a room and communicate with other children, not on the Internet, but live, be able to adapt and listen to others. I believe that it is not correct if the child retires in the room after class. He came to the boarding school to study and live actively.

L: What percentage of international students do you have?
S: Very high. Among 135 students of the boarding school, there are more than 100 foreigners. We have students of 22 nationalities.
When I got to know the school, the infrastructure of the school was not the best, the residences are rather outdated. But the school has changed a lot. It received the status of a non-profit organization and all the money earned by the school is returned to the development of infrastructure. It is now a small but charming campus on the outskirts of Ovestry. It's a cute and old-fashioned city, probably very slow, especially after London. But this is a very safe city, I go to the bank and leave the keys in the ignition, I am not worried about the safety of my children. Parents are very calm and comfortable if their children find themselves in such a small town.

L: If the school is not selective, can anyone enroll here?
S: We do not look at academic results, but we look to see if the child has a desire to learn and integrate into school life. Since the task of the school is to help the child achieve results.

L: And if this is a difficult teenager and he does not want to study, then can the school help such a child.
S: Of course. Most often, the child is simply scared - now all information is very open, our life is discussed on social networks. We live as in the palm of our hand - and it is very easy to be disappointed in ourselves and our capabilities. Imagine the feelings of a teenager who sees university admission requirements that seem completely unrealistic to him, especially if the child accidentally falls behind. A good teacher will be able to find an approach to such a child and help him to believe in himself. This is precisely the task of the school. Parents often fail to find an approach to their child, because the child feels guilty if something goes wrong. Here the child is surrounded by peers, everything is much clearer, and the child relaxes, it is easier for him to be himself.

L: But as it seems to you, if the parents gave the problem child to the school, they then lost the child in their life, or got it back.
S: I believe that the boarding school is suitable for absolutely everyone. Here they learn to live as a big family and help each other. And when the child returns home, even on the first holidays, he manages to appreciate what his parents did for him by sending him to school.