Ex-Oswestry headteacher in row over 'pampered' pupils
A former Shropshire headmaster has caused a social media storm after describing some of today’s school-leavers as “mollycoddled, entitled and spoiled”.
Douglas Robb, the former headteacher of Oswestry School, sparked controversy after a blog in which he said pupils “had been encouraged by governments to believe that they deserve ‘more’ than their parents and grandparents had”.
Mr Robb was headteacher of Oswestry School for four years until 2014, until taking the job at Gresham School in Norfolk, whose past pupils include actress Olivia Coleman and composter Benjamin Britten.
The blog on the school’s website included job interview advice, but Mr Robb also admitted he worried some youngsters look down their noses at certain vocations.
In the blog, he said: “Among this generation there is an underlying sense of entitlement. I don’t blame them.
“They have been advertised to since birth; they have had credit and loans on a plate; they have been overly molly-coddled; and they have been overwhelmed by a strange combination of fictional sit-com characters, reality TV and social media stars, who paint a picture of perfection to be achieved.
“They have even been encouraged by governments to believe that they deserve ‘more’ than their parents and grandparents had.”
His comments prompted a backlash from students.
One former student, Rebecca Lawrence called his comments negative and worthless.
She said: “Negative stereotypes of millennials are two-a-penny and you don’t have to look far to find the source. It’s disheartening for anyone to hear.
"Maybe children at his school are privileged and so are more entitled but he shouldn’t generalise our generation from a few.”
Other people joined in the row on social media, by Mr Robb defended his arguments, saying students shouldn’t leave school thinking that a one-in-a-million-job will present itself straight away.
