Talk:St Albans High School for Girls

Stephen Hawking?

I find it VERY hard to believe that Mr. Hawking went to St. Albans, but i guess i'll ask first before removing. Of course, i'm a 19 year old dude, so what do i know about all female private schools? Orangemango (talk) 21:24, 13 May 2008 (UTC)

I agree that it seems unlikely, however it is referenced from muliple reliable sources. ((1995) Stephen Hawking A Biography. Greenwood Press.) There is also [1] or [2] [3] or [4] The important detail seems to be that then, unlike now, boys were also educated at the school upto a certain age.

Cheers •CHILLDOUBT• 06:58, 14 May 2008 (UTC)

I agree. I actually attend this school and many people mix it up with two other schools; St Albans School (which is a boys' school) and St Albans Girls School. They are three completely different schools. On the internet sources I have seen, all have said Stephen Hawking attended St. Albans School, which is a boys' school, which would make a lot more sense. I know for a fact that Stephen Hawking attended St. Albans School beacause the school have said so themselves. Elle99 (talk) 18:34, 5 November 2008 (UTC)

There's no mixup here. Hawking did go to St Albans Boys, but for a time before then, he attended the High School:

"Stephen attended St Albans High School for Girls (which took boys up to the age of 10). When he was older he attended St Albans school but his father wanted him to take the scholarship examination to go to Westminster public school. However Stephen was ill at the time of the examinations and remained at St Albans school which he had attended from the age of 11" [5]

"...Hawking went to the High School for Girls (yes, the school was supposed to be for girls) at St. Albans at the age of 8. Later, he switched to St. Albans School by passing the eleven-plus examination." [6]

"After the birth of Hawking, his parents, Frank Hawking, a research biologist, and Isobel moved back to London to raise their family. In 1950, at the age of 8, Hawking moved with his family to Hertfordshire where he began studying at the St Alban's High School for Girls until 1953. When Hawking turned 11, he was transferred to the St. Albans School until his graduation." [7]

During his time at the St. Albans High School for Girls, between the years 1950 to 1953 (as back in those days girls and boys studied together until the age of 10 after which they were separated), Stephen Hawking was a relatively good student, however he wasn't an exceptional one. [8]

There's also Stephen Hawking A Biography. Greenwood Press. 1995 which references this.

Finally (though I am sure there are others) "Stephen spent his first months in St Abans at the high school for Girls, which took in young boys at its Michael house..." Stephen Hawking: A Biography By Kristine Larsen Published by Greenwood Publishing Group, 2005 A cached couple of pages of this book containing this info can be found here: [9]

Cheers •CHILLDOUBT• 19:29, 5 November 2008 (UTC)

Severe Improvement

The article needs to be radically improved. It seems as though it has been written by someone whom knows of the school and has a bias POV. I hope that I've removed all or most of the POV statements [Or at least tagged them], apologies if I have missed any. Adding citations would be an excellent start. Scarian^Talk 00:29, 12 July 2007 (UTC)

• I agree that this needed a major revision. My main source for much of the verifying and expanded info has been the last ISI report, which is about as objective and independent as you can get. I have removed a lot of WP:POV and WP:ADVERT text to try and Wikify this article. Stephen Hawking's attendace at the school is a surprise addition (found from a biography) - I have added this in too as this is a very notable (and unusual) alumni ! Its supported from a number of internet sources, but I thought the bio was prob the most reliable source. Cheers •CHILLDOUBT• 21:01, 14 October 2007 (UTC)

Added Class + importance now article is revised •CHILLDOUBT• 21:07, 14 October 2007 (UTC)

Also removed infobox requirement, as the article now contains one. •CHILLDOUBT• 21:07, 14 October 2007 (UTC)