daska wrote:...there are aspects of the junior schools that still need addressing such as the curtsey.
Just for clarification, do you also feel junior school boys taking their hats off is an issue worth addressing? I think the reason why the curtsey remains at St James is due to old English tradition, and is not an act of submissiveness per se.
As some have noticed, although I disapprove of many things the SES practise, I don't think St James is pure evil. I'm supportive of corporal punishment. I think the lack of reliance on IT is great: I know several pupils who have gone on to study Computer Science at degree level without any difficulties and actually think the introduction of a wireless network was a step in the wrong direction. In my eyes, classics are more relevant now, when transferrable skills such as logical thinking are in demand, than they'll ever be. I agree there isn't enough for pupils interested in modern languages, but I think this is partly due to the small school size and the consequent lack of demand. Overemphasis on Mozart and Shakespeare is disliked by many, including me, but that's a difference of opinion: St James doesn't hide the existence of these preferences. There's only a limited amount of time in a school day: the things that might replace subjects like geography are well worthwhile. Few schools of a similar size can match the range of extra-curricular activities offered (cadets, Duke of Edinburgh, climbing, sailing, debating, etc).
On the spiritual side of things, St James is hardly a recruiting ground for the SES. Many of the 6th Formers that do go on to join the SES do so because either their family is closely associated with the SES, or they want the opportunity to teach abroad in an SES school. Many ex-pupils think the underlying principles which govern the way the school is run have not changed, and so teachers still have the potential to reproduce the monstrosities produced in past times. This cannot be further from the truth. With the rapid influx of pupils from the local, non-SES community, the senior boys school will always be questioned whenever parents think something is wrong. It also means the philosophy will always be considered critically and, not surprisingly, result in heated discussions. At the end of the day, St James is an independent school and if parents don't like what's offered, they won't send their children there. Of course, if they happen to be in the SES then the story is different in many ways. I speak mainly of the current boys schools; the pace of change in the girls schools may be slower. I do not think St James can be seriously accused of false advertising: the schools' website seems to agree with the aims of the schools. Whether those aims are achieved is another matter.