British schoolchildren have a history of direct action and challenging authority, according to a recent article. This challenges the perception that British students have been historically meek or compliant.
Historical examples include troops being called to Marlborough College to dislodge rebellious pupils. Winchester College also experienced several rebellions in the late 1700s.
Defiance was not limited to privileged institutions. Schoolchildren's strikes in 1889 began in the Scottish lowlands and spread to Tyneside, London, Bristol, and Cardiff. In 1911, a strike starting at Bigyn school in Llanelli grew into a wave of protest reaching approximately 60 towns across England and Wales.
The 1914 Burston school strike, which involved schoolchildren and their families, lasted for 25 years, making it the longest-running strike in British history. The National Union of School Students in the 1970s also challenged educational authority.