What were your parents views on education?

[Blandmum]

Following on from the state vs private education threads.

Were your parents keen for you do have a 'good' education?

To my mind this is the single most impostant thing in making kids do well (whatever 'well' is for them IYSWIM)

My parents were driven to make sure my brother and I had all the chances they never had, and encouraged us as much as they could. We both did fine.

What was your family view on education?

[TheHighwayCod]

its Good Thing

[motherinferior]

My parents only really judged my sister and me on two things: how thin/beautiful we were, and how well we did academically.

It kind of f*cked with our heads, but I am quite well-educated.

[Blandmum]

While they encouraged us both, my Mother never really forgave me for having done 'better' than my brother.

[7up]

i only remember my mum always saying "you can only do your best", did ok spose

[Itsthawooluff]

I needed one as I've got "buggerallelse" going for me.

[LadyMuck]

My parents insisted that I left school at 16 and started to pay my way. To put this in context I had taken all of my O levels at the age of 14 or 15, and was halfway through A levels at this point (as well as sitting the 4th term entrance exam for Oxford - Cambridge wouldn't let me apply as I was too young).

It took several meetings with the school for my parents to be persuaded that I should be allowed to continue. Their view was that if I was that clever then I didn't still need to be at school (they had both left school at 14). I had to get an evening/weekend job (selling double glazing)in order to support myself. At one point I ate my meals at a friends house as I couldn't affford both rent and food.

I got a place at Oxford, and my parents refused to sign the grant application form. This was in the days when tuition was paid, and you could get a grant (and I would have been entitled to a full grant). I managed to get some support from a teacher, a charity, and then by working at weekends throughout my degree.

Their only contribution throughout my years at university was a visit when they left me: a bag of baking potatoes, 4 jars of pickled cockles and 4 bottles of Panda fizzy pop. (As you can tell this left an impact!).

The icing on the cakes was that they decided to put my brother into a private secondary school. He struggled to get in - didn't pass the entrance exam and got in when a place later came up. He struggled all the way through - came out with 3 GCSE at A-C. They funded him until his twenties, and in the end he has been working with dad for the past 8 years. I reckon they must have spent around £30k on his education.

[TheBlonde]

Mine were too busy worrying about being skint to bother about our education
They thought it was important but they weren't in a position to do anything to change it

[Lilymaid]

Father very supportive, mother thought that higher education was wasted on a girl. I went to university, my brother left after O Levels.

[TheHighwayCod]

i ahve no idea
god you lo THINK too much

[Mercy]

But COd, I thought that teachers say that the level of support for education/the school shown by parents is a fundamental aspect of how well children do at school (to the best of each child's ability that is).

[snorkle]

Message withdrawn