Edited by Jazz D (Year 12)

Bells…Never have I thought such a simple sound would cause such commotion throughout WCC! The school year began with the familiar sound of bells gone, with no return in sight. Students expressed their concerns through the SRC, who resolutely strived to have the bells back – and oh, did they come back! 

The classic “Pink Panther” theme greeted students across the college as they scurried to English, Maths, Art, and Science. Some welcomed the bell as a breath of fresh air, some found the sound utterly annoying, while others were simply confused.  

With the recent launch of We Are, one of the features on the site was a poll, which asked 1 simple yet topical question: What do you think of the new bell?  

The options to choose from were: ‘Love it – never change it again’, ‘Hate bells’, ‘Hate it’, and ‘It’s okay’…  

Within minutes of the launch, students began to make their views on the new bell known. That was until the voting was entirely skewed. . .Rumour has it a technologically savvy Year 10 student employed his skill to great effect and cast a ‘python bot’ upon the poll. The We Are Editorial Team has refused to publicly comment as of yet, but warned the student that disciplinary action may take place…  

In search of true authentic opinions on the new bell I thus turned my search to the playground and classroom where I interviewed several of my peers.  

“I think it’s fine, I like that it’s different to the normal bell.” Said Eliza M, “It was surprising at first, but it’s alright.”   

Maya Y found the bell okay, but would prefer something else. “I like the bell, but I think I’d like a more traditional bell instead.”   

Another student, Darlene K, expressed her dislike for the bell- yet did not go as far to say she hates bells in general.  

Those who did hate bells, according to the skewed data of the poll, amounted to 30 votes. How sure can we be these are 30 real people? My bet is that Dr Marsh may have voted more than once…   

Finally, Ashley T said that “Maybe they should change it each week? Do a vote for it on WE ARE?” An interesting thought that would reduce the dullness that accompanies any bell in the long term.  

Whatever the case and whatever the opinions of students across WCC, the new bell and now this very platform is evidence that student voice is not a superficial notion but a living, breathing, reality.