to ask if you use state or private education

[manicinsomniac]

Sorry, I know it's a little rude and personal but I only ask because I think that only 7-8% of the children in the UK are privately educated yet on mumsnet it seems to be massively higher than that which I find interesting.

So, if I'm not being too unreasonable to ask, do/did/will you use private or state education for your child/ren?

Not really. Half my year went to Oxbridge, they didn't need her particularly it was just a very good Headmistress who made sure the girl's circumstances didn't hinder her education.

(I thought you might have .)

I love my children. I have high expectations of them academically. I am sending them to state schools. None of these statements are contradictory.

Ha yeah my grammar with a hangover is hideous

Which school is that Chubsasaurus? 50% Oxbridge uptake is pretty impressive. Even my highly selective, one of the top in the country sixth forms couldn't manage that.

Do you have children yet, chubsasaurus?

My state educated daughter does Latin too.

I learnt the subjunctive in A Level French at my state comp. Where I must admit they didn't teach Politics A Level: would that we could all be so fortunate!

It might have been a slight exaggeration, sorry, it was a long time ago. I wouldn't like to say but of a year of around 70 I think 25-30 went (or were offered places).

I don't know why this has turned into a fight. I don't judge anyone over their choices for their DCs, I just know private worked for me so it's the decision I will make for mine.

Doubling the amount is more than a slight exaggeration!

I did the subjunctive at A level too but it was so long ago that I have forgotten it .

Sorry misread that as 25-30%

Home ed - so private in a way I guess

No, you aren't judging but you are making sweeping and unfounded generalisations.

You might want to check out a few state schools for yourself. Our local secondary is a sports college and has a swimming pool and indoor astro pitches. And an equestrian club.

Sending your child to private school basically is judging the state sector and everyone who uses it.

L~ots of state schools do teach Latin.

Lots of private schools don't.

Your point is???

No, it's judging the state schools in your area

Surely that depends on the reasons for sending them to pirvate school. If it's because you dont want your child mixing with children from state school I agree, if it's because they are the best school to meet the needs of your child thats different.

mine, Seeker?

True Joan.
Especially if you haven't actually seen any state schools.
Where I live we have reverse private school snobbery.
All the rich, posh, educated parents send their kids to the local ( outstanding) primary and the aspirationals go private! It's quite funny! The private carpark is full of blinged private plates and the state full of landrovers.

Having started out at private and ended up at a sink comp myself, leaving with no qualifications I want better for my DC's.

Better could be a good state school if there were any where I live but there aren't so private it is. I am however trying to choose a private school that has the most diverse student background around though, ethnically and class wise.

My dd1 and ds were both at catholic state primary until christmas (y5 and u2)
both then removed, dd now goes private and ds will join her in sept as they don't take until after 7th birthday. Until then he will stay at home, with no formal learning, just playing and normal household tasks with chatter. He is learning FAR more doing this at home than he learned at school.

I deeply regret entrusting their education with that school for so long and dd2 will be at home until she is 7 then private all the way. No comparison for me unfortunately. My 10 yr old is a proper girl, she does not have pressure anymore to fit in by having boyfriends, mobile phones and facebook. She plays with dolls, knits and sews......

I don't expect fantastic results from them because I'm paying, just enjoyed childhood and natural development.

I went to a state school. It was frustrating being in mixed-ability classes for several subjects, where the work was far too easy and you felt you were learning nothing. I would have preferred to have learned alongside other students at the same level, whatever that level was.

Many private schools seem to push the brighter students more. Some state schools also achieve this but others concentrate only on the mid-to-low ability students. After all the brightest pupils will gain good results already (but may not reach their potential for excellent/outstanding results). In an ideal school students should be enabled to reach their potential (at whatever level) but I do not see this happening in the state sector as often as in private education.

Regarding grammar schools/secondary moderns, I think selection at 11 will in most cases put children in the most appropriate school. There will of course be some students on the "borderline" in which case there could be another test at 14 to assess whether those few were still in the most appropriate school.

Ds was entirely state educated. Dd was private for the last 5 years of secondary. Both went on to get good degrees from good universities.

Private x 2. I never considered going private, didn't believe in it, until... I visited what I thought was my local state primary. It was lovely. At the end of the tour, I told the head my home address and she shook her head a lot and told me I had a snowball's chance in hell of getting my dd in.

I visited the other school she advised I would probably get given. It was grim. Then, as I toured the (miniscule) playground I listened to a group of children, probably about 7-9 yrs of age singing a song they had made up all about "Eating Babies." As I was pregnant with no 2 at the time, and a bit hormonal, I actually had nightmares about it.

I find that most of the parents I come into contact with would happily use state if they trusted the state to provide a decent, rounded education. I envy those who have the option of great local schools. Like most, if it was there, I would use it and save my cash for a car that goes reliably and an occasional nice holiday. And a decent haircut. Oh and the list goes on..

It is a decision we made after viewing the state schools in our particular area, not in any other area.

Why do people who choose privare always feel the need to justify their choice by saying how crap state schools are?

If you want to keep your child in a little bubble of privilege that's your prerogative, but don;t denigrate the choices others make in the process.

I do;t happen to agree that state schools are crap, but if I did, and was (like most people) not in a position to privately educate, many of the comments on here would be soul destroying.