Dover Grammar School for Girls

I left with 5 good grade a levels in 2001, so a while ago! From what I knew from siblings and friends at other schools, and my mum who taught at another one, I know full well I would not have done anywhere near as well academically if I’d have gone anywhere else. Yes, they push you there. There’s a lot of pressure. There’s a lot of homework. It’s a selective school which repeatedly gets the best gsce and a level results in town and it doesn’t do that by letting pupils slack off. I’ve gone on to get 2 degrees and a masters and they were nothing like the workload of gcse and a level. Nor was there anything like the pressure and deadlines of school. So this school more than prepares you for future education. But you know what, I realised I liked the pressure. I work well under pressure and I like having goals. I was far more motivated in school than I was in uni even though I was doing a subject I loved at uni. I really think if you’re not prepared for a certain degree of pressure, grammar school may not be for you. I actually wasn’t at all prepared for it coming from the primary I did, but it actually suited me well and by year 8 I was very settled there. I also felt that I learned way more from a levels than from uni. I did French and German at a level and even though I’ve never had much chance to use it, I still remember more of it than I do of many of my degree units. I have had severe mental health issues at later points in my life, but the pressure of school did not cause this. I was happy at dggs. I’ve seen people complaining about things on here like uniform bring strict and not being able to go to the toilet during lessons. Uniforms are usually strict, I didn’t like the uniform but I accepted that those were the rules, just as they are in many jobs. And when I was in school no one went to the toilet in lessons, you went in break! (Primary school was different, often over a third of the class would be messing around in the toilets during class time, but that’s because the school was terrible, we were left to teach ourselves 90% of the time, and the teachers rarely looked up from their newspapers to even notice that 10-15 kids were missing) I’m actually a trained psychologist who has worked with children and teenagers, and I’m glad that mental health and well-being is more talked about now, that’s a good thing. But saying that things like having to wear uniform or only go to the toilet in breaks are bad for mental health etc Is ridiculous. In many work places you can only use the loo on breaks, and yes I’ve had jobs where you can’t just excuse yourself whenever you need to go. Do the teachers walk out mid class to pee? No, they go at break! Anyway back to dggs. The teachers were mixed in terms of how nice / approachable they were. Some were great and would probably have been my friends if they weren’t my teachers. Others were pretty mean. But to be honest, the teacher who was the meanest, people very rarely got upset by her because the entire student body thought she was an absolute joke. Everyone knew she was horrible and we all had a common enemy! Yes, you could get in trouble for the smallest thing. No, We weren’t allowed phones during school time including breaks. But guess what, the general behaviour in the school was pretty much impeccable, lessons never had to be interrupted due to students messing around, attendance was good and teachers didn’t have to keep repeating things because people had missed it. There was generally a pride in the school. And that’s not the experience my brother had at another local school, or the one my mum had as a teacher at a different one. Extra curricular wise there was plenty too, I was in 4 school music groups, did school plays, was on the trampoline team, took part in dance competitions, and was one of the students who got the duke of Edinburgh award running there, among other things. Starting music at the school has stuck with me and I still participate in ensembles, write, record and perform music to this day, Of course I didn’t love every minute of it. There were subjects I didn’t like, but sixth form was better in that regard. I wasn’t massively keen on the one option for school bus there and home ( no public transport available), where if the morning bus was late you’d get yelled at as if it was your fault, and if the afternoon bus was late in winter you’d be soaked and freezing by the time if arrived. There was some bullying I’ll admit. I was very academic, into the arts, and not interested in boys, fashion etc. I n was never interested in discos and parties. so I was never in the popular group. But I did have a small group of good friends. Also having to change back into full uniform after PE last lesson just to get the bus home, and not having the lesson finish even a couple of minutes before the end of school to allow for changing, was pretty stupid. The physical spaces I believe have changed a lot since I was there, and I’m sure pretty much the whole staff will be different now. But I will never forget my time at dggs. It definitely set me up well for the rest of my life, not just academically but in terms of being resilient, discovering my love for the performing arts, understanding how people should treat each other, and learning that I was far more capable than I thought. Would I go back and do it again? Probably not , mainly because I wouldn’t want to be a teenager again. But if I was 11 again and had to pick a secondary school, would i pick dggs again? Yes, Without a doubt,

The school is overrated, it’s not necessarily bad but just not as good or perfect as they make out to be. I was there for five years and found my experience very mixed. When I most needed help it wasn’t given. They should have and could have done more. As a whole it won’t see past academic potential and universities, viewing students as statistics not people. That being said there are good teachers who work very hard and are amazing at their job. I’ve met great people there, who I know will always be there for me. They offer lots of opportunities, but brainwash you into your grades and typical grammar standards. However no school is perfect and all schools put unhealthy amounts of pressure on students. Would I recommend it to someone? Yes but only if they feel they can deal with the emotional stress and toll it requires.

The girls are carbon copies of each other, the teachers make it hard for students with mental health issues to work and pick favourites. You're shoved in a box with no self expression. Jenny is great though.

I was bullied relentlessly for two years and was told by the school that it was my fault. Left afterwards. But when I was there, it was terrible. They care more about academics than the actual students health

not a great school, the uniform rules are far to strict and limit self expression and growth

Amazing school! If you are struggling with your work teachers will help. Fair amount of homework not too much not too little. Teachers are lovely and kind. Great education and support. If you down people there will comfort you :)

Amazing school give great education. ?

Bit shit . Don’t like it. Strange. Annoying. Rubbish. Crappy.