White British pupils underperforming because of parents

There isnt much home work from school, for this 3 weeks Easter holiday we werent given any home work(primary). In the garden until dark, well, its dark and cold for half the year and the rest of the time was mostly raining so even for anyone who has a garden its felt incredibly lucky for any dry/sunny day.

Regarding to hot housing: why people ask their child to study for 30 mins a day is called hot housing. Its a good routine I'd say. Similar to playing an instrument, we have to practise almost everyday and drawing, you have to draw every so often. Mu daughter isnt interested in academic yet(8 yrs old) even I find we need to drop the extra curr activities alittle. If she was an year 6 then def I will ask her to do some reading, some maths, read some science fun books 30mins each day and why it becomes hot housing. You dont want your child to do it then its your choice, dont make people feel bad when they are helping their children. Working ethics is very important. You cant be having fun (lazy) all the time. When you grow up and if you are well then go to work dont be having fun, sitting tight in front of the tv, 1 hand is a bag of crisp the other hand a lager and complaining about low benefit.

Surely, the biggest difficulty us the term 'working class'?
WC in traditional terms, as in people that laboured, has gone. In the Victorian times, many WC people went home and in their evenings, tended their allotments, went to choir practice, art class, debating society, evening classes of all types- the evidence is all around me in the city I live in- all closed down, but the 'institute' buildings are still here, the society buildings, the community gardens and allotments, bowling greens etc. People had a life outside work, one that was rich, fulfilling and rewarding.
Life was still hard then. There wasn't a welfare state- if you had a work related injury, that was your livelihood gone (though you may have had a payout from employer).
The twentieth century, with the welfare state, universal education, two world wars, rise of 'labour-saving' technology changed life in Britain. There isn't a WC any more (well, a v few left). And people have forgotten how to work.

Kids play all over the world,there is no set pattearn. You can make a game out of anything.

Hot-housed city kids (where they tend to live) probably don't play nearly as much as they should.

I agree with the reading but think fast recall of tables are also crucial by the end of primary- however much time it takes up outside of school.

I totally agree, and anyone who thinks otherwise is a bit hard of thinking.

I would therefore prefer to do things which have been shown to have benefit (like encouraging reading for pleasure).
Yes! I hated my DC having homework in primary just when I wanted them out playing in the garden until dark.

I'd define hot-housing as anything beyond an age-specific time limit per night of core academic revision or activities that are not child-led.

I'm afraid I don't have any experience as a white WC person trying to stretch my child, but I'm sure that must be incredibly frustrating. That said, I don't agree with your comment about a 'mythical childhood'. Playing is learning. We live in London and it makes me terribly sad that my kids aren't outside disecting insects like I was at their age.

That makes a lot of sense Blaeberry.

A previous study found the worse performers were white working class boys in coastal towns. These are often places with very high unemployment. The kids and parents just don't see any point to education - it serves no purpose as they will be unemployed anyway. Sure, some can and do move away but such mobility may not be common.

Oh, and I am not keen on homework in primary school - because a very large international review found little benefit. I would therefore prefer to do things which have been shown to have benefit (like encouraging reading for pleasure).

Very true cory.

As a nation we lambast white pushy parents in the media,on here,outside the school gate, in some schools too. We cite hot housing,sharp elbowed middle classes,tiger parenting,pushy parents,helicopter parenting,mental health issues etc,etc. Tutoring or extra work of any kind is seen as the work of the devil.

I think a lot of this is borne of the question: does hot housing really work? rather than merely dismissing it out of hand as silly. Obviously some elements do, otherwise the 'Asian model' wouldn't be so successful. But which parts don't work?

MrsGuy - I agree with 100%. Asking DC to pursue academic subjects that are excruciatingly badly taught and in which they have no interest (eg MFL) is all wrong. But then, hasn't school become a means by which we keep youth of the streets and make their parents responsible for them for longer? As opposed to a place that prepares them for real life?

I hate to see boys (particularly) who are not academic being expected to sit still all day and do subjects they are not good at, have no interest in, and ultimately are completely pointless for them, and so even if they try, they are constantly 'failing'

One of the big problems I think is that kids are "forced" up through school according to their age rather than ability. So, yes, kids who can't read or write properly are expected to do languages or humanities or evaluate a poem. Kids who can't do maths are expected to do physics and chemistry and move onto equations etc when they can't even do basic times tables. They're being set up to fail. There should be a method of holding kids back and doing, redoing, the basics until they're at least basically literate and numerate, and doing practical skills alongside. It's far too academic for the non academics - a classic fail of the comp "one size fits all" approach which fails the kids at the top and the bottom of the spectrum.

WC kids did better when they were able to leave at 15/16 and get a job.
I hate to see boys (particularly) who are not academic being expected to sit still all day and do subjects they are not good at, have no interest in, and ultimately are completely pointless for them, and so even if they try, they are constantly 'failing'/
Write a Shakesperean soliloquy. Describe the contents of your pencil case in Spanish.
I would love to see kids do a couple of hour of sport every morning, and then some lessons in relevant practical useful subjects in the afternoon, with the next sport depending o the effort they put in in the afternoon.

Interesting that the headline is White British Children Falling Behind when what the actual figures show is that children of Caribbean descent and travellers are still right at the bottom of the chart (just preceded by Pakistani children).

Not saying there isn't a genuine problem with educational aspirations in part of the White British population; I think there is and that we need to address it. Personally I suspect it is strongly linked to the "othering" of the working class which is such a prevalent phenomenon in British public discourse.

Otoh the way these articles are written it would seem as if they think the natural state of affairs would be to have White British Children at the top- and that would seem odd to me, given that immigrants are probably on the whole a natural selection of the more energetic and can-do type of person.

It's bugger incidentally, not buggar (which is how you've now spelt it twice), just in case that comes up in your DD's holiday Spag :)

Also, the parents' background is obviously v important- one would imagine that families who make it to the uk are 'strivers' (hate that word) who put all their resources behind their kids, rather than into drink and ciggies. A good few of those white Brits have zero support/parents who don't give a damn.

WashedIris you give the strong impression that you don't trust teachers!

Would say the Irish thing is down to good oul' Catholic schooling. Same thing happens in NI- poor Catholic kids always do miles better than poor Protestants, who tend to frequent shitty state schools.

Eric you a master of generalization. Historically plenty of working class families put a value on education and the grammar system allowed them to realize their ambitions. I could give a zillion examples.

Also, the parents at London independents are extremely unrepresentative of the parent population as a whole. The culture sounds horrendous and completely alien to a lot of the rest of us.

Iris have you read today's education report about stressed 6 year old's? These are remarkably unimportant tests surely? And why is your DD doing bugger all for 12 days?