For those who want to learn, Rugby School is an institution that offers the very best of British education. By a streaming system, students are put into classes with others of similar academic ability to them, allowing everyone to work at their most suited pace. With a typical class-size of around 20 students, there is some scope for personal attention from the very well qualified teaching staff. Rugby School pushes each student to achieve their full potential, via an advanced curriculum, a structed disciplinary system, and a wide range of prizes and incentives. This has both pros and cons. Positively, it ensures students will excel. This is counter-balanced, however, by the risk of creating an excessively pressured and competitive environment, which can can leave self-motivated students very stressed and less able students feeling inadequate. The humanities departments (History and English in particular) are characterised by fantastic teachers with a passion and profound knowledge of their subjects. The depth of udnerstanding which the students are offered is without fault. It was in these subjects in particular that the most able students excelled to great levels and the less able students still felt stimulated and content with their learning. The school's languages facilities are excellent; however many of the teaching staff, though extremely well qualified and intelligent, are non-native speakers, which leaves students learning languages without authenticity of speech or pronunciation. As a bilingual and multi-cultural student, I also felt the lacuna in teaching of culture ought to accompany the instruction in the language. The science schools are arguably unrivalled in any school in the world. Having undergone recent rennovation they are phenomenal. I would also say that science teaching at Rugby is far and beyond that anywhere else: when I left Rugby School to study at another institution I found myself several years ahead of my contemporaries in terms of knowledge and skills. The study of the arts is also extremely advanced at Rugby School, thanks in great part to fantastic facilities, but also to some passionate and skilled teachers. In particular the teaching of Theatre and of Art are arguably without much competition in the nation's schools. My one great criticism of the teaching at Rugby School would be its exam-centricity. However within a national education system as that in the UK (GCSEs, AS levels, A levels), in order to ensure students can go on to achieve their university and career goals, good schools have no option but to ensure their students come out on top in terms of grades. The competition in the UK for university places is fierce, and Rugby School does well to engage with this with full vigour.