Robots, a barbershop and bagpipes: a Sydney school reinvents its tough past and what it means to love learning

Granville Boys high school robotics team won the First Lego League national robotics competition and will be heading to the US to represent Australia. Photograph: Dean Sewell/The Guardian

The principal at Granville Boys high school is sick of talking about its one-time reputation for being a difficult, violent school.

Noel Dixon, who has been principal at the western Sydney school for just over four years, instead wants to talk about the success of their robotics team, their barbershop program or their bagpipe band.