To think the gap between private and state education is growing wider due to COVID 19?

[katedan]

Especially at years 10 and 12, there is lots of talk of grade boundaries will make up for the current situation and the children getting less education but kids in private schools are receiving virtual lessons all day so apart from the location there is not much difference. Children in the state sector are getting a mix of lessons and work set. My worry is next year private school pupils will significantly outstrip the state schools and due the fact that they will not get much off what they would have received percentage wise if this had not happened the grade boundaries will still give the top 10% an A etc it is just that the top 10% could be mainly private school kids.

I don't imagine any exception will be made to allow for the difference in the quality of education currently being delivered. I know if you are paying 5k a term still you would expect your child to still receive a good quality education but surely all children should be entitled to an education at the moment and should not be disadvantaged by the fact state schools are not providing 6 hours a day of education.

All the private schools I know are doing registration and every lesson. My kid has 5 maths lessons a week in school - he has been given work now which barely equates to 2. Yanbu.

I think one of the big gaps a private school can fill is equipment. I work in one as a HLTA, educated completely in state myself and have also worked in state schools.

We were able to send our children home with brand new exercise books for each subject, plus a big art sketch book each. We also had the funds to invest in work books full of tasks and exercises for science and maths to send home to be worked on as each family pleased, a bonus as such.
Parents were asked if child would have access to a laptop or iPad throughout the day for learning. Those without have been loaned one (and signed for it, breakage will result in a bill and the school have more right to chase it than they would at a state school).

It’s not fair. I certainly never had the life that many others of the children at my school have. They are being taught a full timetable each day - and as someone said upthread it’s largely to do with the fees - don’t provide they won’t want to pay or come back.

However, there are still some children who have not engaged with the program at all. I’m in constant contact with my class teacher and she says there’s about 4 in my class who haven’t logged in once or submitted any work. One of them is a child who is normally at school by 7am and picked up at 6, and even then it’s by a nanny, so I suspect mum and dad are working all hours and just haven’t had the time. One of them comes from a family with a few children at our school and have money to burn to put it simply. They’ve never really engaged, done homework, they miss a lot of school for holidays, don’t take part in extra events......the money doesn’t necessarily equal parent involvement and support, which I think most of us can agree is vital to home and distant learning, especially for lower primary years.

One thing I really hope for is that Ofsted bloody back off for the next couple of years and let schools focus back on what they need to do. Because for so many schools, many won’t reach their targets, due to a multitude of reasons we can all work out. And Ofsted will just come down like a ton of bricks. We all know how Head teachers seem to vanish when “progress isn’t satisfactory” as they are forced out, and people loose their jobs due to students making great progress but still not meeting national targets. It’s a sad situation.

YANBU. DD is year 8, in a state grammar. She gets a little set each week, but only about 2 hours worth, maximum. Her friend in year 8 private has to log on for every lesson as normal, in her uniform, from 8.45 to 3.30 every day.

My 2 DSs, also at state grammar, are getting nothing at all as they are in y11 and y13, so they spend every day vegging out and playing computer games. They do sometimes go for walks/bike rides, but not every day. I worry that the y11 in particular will have forgotten so much when he goes back for his a levels.

Ds is at private school the work being set (which has reduced since the first two weeks) appears to be less than his friends of the same age at state school.

And having had a few conversations with his tutor his disengagement with his school work is an issue with quite a number of children

I think his school is being more realistic compared to some I know in what all children will do at home (as some will just get on with it others need the structure of being at school) and how much parents can support them. I think they are just trying to keep children engaged on some level than working through what was he planned curriculum

It’s a few months not a whole year and for most children the education missed will have little impact. I think the bigger issue is that children are missing out on the structure of school and for some the safety and nurturing school provides

Yep I don’t think this is a private school thing. My kids are at state and we both work but every day are coaching them on maths/ English and music. I’m well educated and can help with most subjects - when I have time! We have three computers in the house plus an iPad.

My heart is breaking for kids in deprived homes. Many won’t even be able to log in. Many parents unable to help.

The inequalities in this country are about to get a whole heap worse and we are going to see decades of austerity. I would rather have lived with the effects of the Virus and I don’t say that lightly

In my local area, from discussions I've had, I think there is going to be both a divide between haves and have-nots, and a further divide between private and state. For example, the state secondary has provided a full range of lessons and DC is saying he is working harder than if he was attended school. This works for him as he is academic, motivated and has access both to a computer and a big sister who can help him with complicated maths. However, they are providing no work for year 11s. The local private schools are providing full timetable for year 11s. When this year group starts in September, the private school kids will have an advantage.

Bump