Samantha Wharton is the personnel manager of a department store.

`I was at a big comprehensive nearly 2000 students. Because it was so big there was a wide choice of subjects and I liked that. I suppose it was a bit impersonal sometimes. I often wished it had been smaller, but the teaching was very good and there were lots of extra activities. I played in the school orchestra - not very well - and helped to produce the school newspaper. I think comprehensives could be improved. A lot of my friends left at 16, and they now regret leaving so early. Some of them would have done very well academically, if they had been encouraged enough. Still, maybe things are different now.'

William Bunter is a civil servant. He's a senior official in the Foreign Office.

`I went to Eton, actually. I suppose I had a very privileged education. Academic standards were very high and I was able to go on to Oxford. The thing I remember most is the comradeship. The friendships I made there have lasted through my life. Sports were very important for me - I believe that team games teach people to work together, and we played every afternoon. There's been a lot of bad publicity about corporal punishment in schools. I was often beaten but it didn't do me any harm. Maybe young people would be better behaved these days if there were more discipline in schools. My only regret about boarding-school is that I didn't get to know my parents very well. I didn't see much of them after the age of eight. I've thought a lot about the problems, but I'd like to send both of my sons to Eton. I've already reserved their places.'

Дата добавления: 2015-10-02