Secondary schools have always been fertile ground for films and TV shows. From coming of age comedies to musicals and even hard-hitting dramas and documentaries, they have provided us with a full range of emotions.
Here, we look at six of the most iconic moments over the past few decades.
In Dead Poets Society, Robin Williams plays unconventional and inspirational English teacher John Keating, who instils a love of poetry in his students. Keating is sacked after being blamed for the suicide of a student. In the moving final scene his class react to his sacking with an act of defiance in front of the headteacher. They stand on their desks declaring “O Captain, My Captain” – a reference to a poem by Walt Whitman when mourning the loss of President Abraham Lincoln.
Musharraf finds his voice - Educating Yorkshire (2013)
Channel 4's Educating Yorkshire provided a candid look at what it's like to grow up and work in a secondary school in the heart of a diverse northern community. In series one, English teacher Mr Burton, inspired by the film The King's Speech, helped his student Musharraf to overcome his lifelong stammer ahead of his English oral examination. The episode culminated in the 16-year-old giving a speech in front of his entire year group at an end-of-term assembly which became one of the most iconic TV moments of 2013.
The Breakfast Club finds five secondary school students from varying social classes thrown together to spend a fateful Saturday in detention. The cast features your typical secondary school archetypes - popular girl (Molly Ringwald), athlete (Emilio Estevez), rebel (Judd Nelson), outcast (Ally Sheedy), geek (Anthony Michael Hall) – who apparently have nothing in common. However, as the day progresses, the five students break down barriers and begin to form friendships. In the most poignant scene, the group confesses to why they have each ended up in detention. They talk openly about the pressure they feel from their parents to get good grades or act in a certain manner and how their friendship circles impact who they talk to and the way they treat their fellow students.
Following your dreams - High School Musical (2006)
Popular secondary school athlete Troy Bolton (Zac Efron) and an academically gifted student Gabriella Montez (Vanessa Hudgens) each secure a role in their high school musical. As an unlikely friendship develops between the two students, it threatens to unsettle East High’s social order. With their existing commitments to the basketball championship and academic studies and their social groups conspiring against them, it seems the two are destined to not perform in the musical. However, Troy and Gabriella stay true to themselves and take the lead roles, inspiring students to celebrate the things they are passionate about in life and be accepting of others.
Kes charts the story of a timid 15-year-old boy, Billy Casper, who is faced with abuse at school and at home. As a form of escapism, Billy takes an interest in falconry and finds solace in training a kestrel on a nearby farm. In a classic piece of British cinema, Billy is forced to play the role of goalkeeper in a P.E. lesson with his permanently angry teacher, Mr Sugden. The teacher is captain, referee, and, unfortunately for the students, judge and jury as the game becomes more about his terror tactics than teaching his students anything about sport, teamwork or fitness.
Role reversal - Grease (1978)
Exchange student Sandy (Olivia Newton-John) and leather-clad Danny (John Travolta) have a summer romance not knowing they will be attending Rydell High together at the start of their final year. They attempt to rekindle their relationship but back at school, their lives are very different. Danny is a rebel and the leader of a gang of greasers known as the T-Birds and Sandy is a shy, model student who is taken under the wing of The Pink Ladies – an outgoing and outspoken group of girls who are dating members of the T-Birds. In the final scene of the film and in an attempt to win each other back, we see a role reversal from both lead characters. Danny turns up at the school’s graduation carnival sporting a Rydell High letterman sweater in an attempt to look more academic, much to the amusement of his fellow T-Birds, whilst Sandy is transformed into a full-fledged T-Bird wearing a leather jacket.
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