ABSTRACT
For all those involved in a school merger the concept of ‘status passage’ (Van Gennep 1960; Turner 1969; Glaser and Strauss 1971; Measor and Woods 1984) is relevant. In a status passage there are several phases: a separation from the old order, a period of transition and then a phase of incorporation into the new order. With each stage of the passage there is some change in status, which will require a reappraisal of ‘self’ in the Meadian (1934) sense of the term. This study is concerned with the status passages of fourth year pupils during the transitional phase of the merger of three schools, and the way in which they adapted to the amalgamation.
