AIBU to think that this school's motto is a bit of a joke?

[KentExpecting]

Local secondary school. Fairly new motto: "Excellence in Everything" - in huge letters on banners on and around the school, in newspaper ads, etc.

AIBU to think this is a bit of a joke given that...

• this school 'requires improvement' according to Ofsted
• only 41% of its pupils get 5 GCSEs at A-C inc Maths and English
• only 24% of 'disadvantaged pupils' (free school meals / looked after by council) get 5 GCSEs at A-C inc Maths and English
• average score per A Level entry is D
• they don't have any kind of handle on absences - over 10% of pupils are absent at least 15% of the time (vs England average of 6.5%)

And before Mr Cameron has any ideas about turning them into an Academy to improve them -they are an academy. And I remember that when they converted to academy-status 3 or 4 years ago, there was a lot of talk about how that was going to make them even more excellent...

I despair.

Hakluyt... You're making me cry!

"I passed a school yesterday with a sign saying "All our pupils excel at and enjoy learning and life."

Snappy :o

Just a load or meaningless words. The proof is in the pudding would be more adequate!
I bet all this slogan crap is another annoying American idea.
Does anyone remember 'Scumbag College' from the young ones?

barbarianmum what was it?

Mine was ex spinis uvas. From thorns grapes. I do like wine.

Worst one I've seen - "Learning to Improve." Not overly aspirational.

I'm having trouble with that making sense. I get the bit about excelling at and enjoying learning but 'and life' tacked on the end isn't right grammatically is it?

Sanity - do not feed the parrots in Latin is non cibos psittacorum

Love dd3's school's SIC ITUR AD ASTRA ("Thus you shall go to the Stars").

My son's primary school adopted the motto Per Ardua Ad Astra in 1913 - five years before the RAF did. And it is not a quotation from any Latin author. We have to assume that somebody concerned with choosing the motto for the RAF had been there or had a son (it was single-sex at the time) who had been there.

Dd's is quod potes tenta - strive to your utmost apparently. Seems ok to me.

Mine was dum cresco spero - while I grow, I hope. Bit more enigmatic.

Ooh. Does that mean your uvula is a little grape, FastWindow?

echt Where are you getting Coeli from? The dog's bollocks would be testes canis.

I was at two grammar schools because the family moved when I was 13. The first had the motto Fear God, honour the King and I have forgotten the motto of the second because I loathed the place from Day One until I went under the wire left.

My school's motto was "let there be light." It was a school for the blind. (Grin)

A slightly challenged school near us has a big board outside and in mid green medium sized letters against a dark green background says "on our way to" and underneath in huge white letters says "OUTSTANDING".

We always admire their chutzpah!

My school motto - all girls comp, ex-grammar - was Semper Fidelis, ie Always Faithful . Dull and unaspirational.

Sonorous Bip When you say Dull and unaspirational do you mean the school or the motto or both?

Ours was "Non verba sed facta" - not words, but deeds.

In other words, STFU

My uvula is frequently introduced to grape, certainly bird

"On our way to OUTSTANDING" - that's amazing! It's all in the small print...