City of London School

Katherine Saunt

Head of Second Form

What were your expectations of the One Day Film School and did it meet or exceed these?

I had heard lots of good things about the One Day Film School as we have used them in the 6th Form for many years. I was slightly wary that it would be quite time consuming for the teachers, but in fact, the boys got on with the tasks themselves and far exceeded my (already high) expectations.

Was it different from other remote/online screen-based learning – if so, how?

Yes it was different – a real opportunity for the pupils to work closely together in teams despite their physical distance. They were also able to work on their creative skills and enjoyed the independence given to them.

How enthusiastic were pupils – did they do anything special?

The year group absolutely loved this task. Every group produced a film, and most importantly had enjoyed shooting it, editing it and the whole process. There were a number of excellent films at the end of it!

Did you screen their films, and what was the reaction?

Yes they did class presentations and screenings with feedback from their peers. We also screened them to the teachers and had an award ceremony.

What would you say to someone considering ODFS but wary of more screen-based activity?

Yes – each form group watched all of their films and then voted on their favourite. The boys were really complimentary about each other’s work.

About City of London School

The City of London School, also known as CLS and City, is an independent day school for boys in the City of London, England, on the banks of the River Thames next to the Millennium Bridge, opposite Tate Modern. It is a partner school of the City of London School for Girls and the City of London Freemen’s School. All three schools receive funding from the City’s Cash. It is a member of the Headmasters’ and Headmistresses’ Conference (HMC). It is one of the most academically selective and successful schools in the country.

The school was founded by a private Act of Parliament in 1834, following a bequest of land in 1442 for poor children in the City of London. The original school was established at Milk Street, moving to the Victoria Embankment in 1879 and its present site on Queen Victoria Street in 1986.

Former pupils, known as Old Citizens, who have attained eminence in various fields are prime minister H. H. Asquith, First World War hero Theodore Bayley Hardy, Nobel Prize–winning scientists Frederick Gowland Hopkins and Peter Higgs, Justice of the Supreme Court Lawrence Collins, Historian John Robert Seeley, England cricket captain Mike Brearley, British chemist and entrepreneur William Henry Perkin, Booker Prize-winning authors Kingsley Amis and Julian Barnes, Hollywood film director Michael Apted, and actor Daniel Radcliffe.

The school provides day education to about 900 boys aged 10 to 18 and employs approximately 100 teaching staff and around another 100 non-teaching staff. The majority of pupils enter at 11, some at 13 and some at 16 into the Sixth form. There is a small intake at 10 into Old Grammar, a year group consisting of two classes equivalent to primary school Year 6. Admissions are based on an entrance examination and an interview.