..to think that state educated kids are going to find themselves at a huge disadvantage in public exams?

[SpiderPlantSally]

Every privately-educated Year 10 or Year 12 child I know - this amounts to six different fee-paying schools - is having a like-for-like learning experience at home with live online teaching, following their usual timetable.

Every state-educated child I know of the same ages (also five or six different schools) is being set written work, with very little or no live teaching. At DD's school there one hour of live Maths for the whole Year 10 cohort each week, and a contact session for the other subjects once per week, when the teachers are available for email contact or chat. That's it. Otherwise lone book work.

AIBU unreasonable to think that state school pupils will be at a huge disadvantage when applying for selective 6th forms and universities in the autumn? Surely the private school pupils will absolutely clean up on the top grades in next summer's GCSEs and A-levels?

[Fifthtimelucky]

Here's a link if anyone is interested

coronavirustutoring.co.uk

[AquarianSquirrel]

If what you say is true (that private schools are receiving the same schooling as before but at a distance), then yes, state school kids will be at a disadvantage. When you pay for a service, you expect a better service so it's understandable that they will still be getting similar schooling to before.

Not sure how this can be rectified? I'm wondering what private teachers do with their own kids whilst still giving this level of teaching? Nannies? Is this the issue that they are still recieving full pay from parents, whereas the state funding and therefore teachers are not always available for different areas?

[CatherineOfAragonsPomegranate]

I think the disparity in quality of provision is disgusting and I hope there is an official review or investigation after the country gains some normality. Many children already at a disadvantage are now at an even greater one.

DS has had nothing but platitudes about mental health and an A4 page of education links (khan academy etc; essentially the things you already knew and used anyway). Fortunately, his dad pays for tutoring by skype. My nephew at primary has only got worksheets.

DS also goes to a fee paying music school.
With a small team and a restricted budget they have managed to put together and co-ordinate online lessons and even ensembles fgs.

What is the difference? One is paying.

So basically we see the benefits of money to education starkly written and outlined for all to see.

2 tier education system in this country and inequality writ large.

[AquarianSquirrel]

@CovidicusRex Is this in large part due to smaller class sizes, more money for tutoring and other things like more money for resources to facilitate learning at home? Also perhaps more parental pressure to achieve because parents are paying for their education? As a complete aside, I wonder if this also applies to US universities because parents often have to fund their higher/further education?

[Howaboutanewname]

Link is interesting. As parents be aware that safeguarding training is not the same as a DBS check which is a minimum requirement of anyone working with children.

[PuntoEBasta]

93% of the cohort is at a state school. It is hard to see how the 7% will shift the curve so significantly that students who would have normally passed suddenly won’t.

Agreed - and the 7% is probably reduced even further once you account for the iGCSE candidates from private schools whose performance will be measured separately.

[UpperLowercaseSymbolNumber]

I agree OP. This is going to be life changing for some kids.

At a younger age there is also selection at 11. The local prep schools are full on day timetables, loads of zoom/teams lessons and individualised support. Local state schools are all worksheets only, some referring to Oak National Academy. No individual reach out or support. I say this not as “teacher bashing” but merely reporting the difference.

So for those kids trying for the local state grammars (ultra competitive) or for the selective private schools (also very competitive) there will be a BIG gap in teaching received for almost half a year. That’s a lot.

[user1487194234]

Well they already are but certainly our state school is doing virtually nothing
Won't do online teaching,when the whole world is doing online whatevers.

I have done 6 online calls today,don't really like it but it is my job and I HAVE to do it.Can't imagine saying ,sorry not doing on line !
It would be like ,ok no pay!

I am getting private tutoring for my DC ,as don't want them disadvantaged against private schools kids when competing for Uni places

[W00t]

@EdithPeston yes, we have places for external students joining us at 6th form. However, usually we have pupils transfer elsewhere, often for a change of scene or to "be treated more like a grownup"
If all our pupils that get the grades to stay on decide they'd rather stay with what they know for some consistency and continuation of support... we'll have fewer than five places available for external students.
Some may still choose to go elsewhere, but many have been shaken by this pandemic, they want familiarity around them, they want their established friendship groups back together. I've a feeling many more than usual will stay, rather than making a leap.

[modgepodge]

@AquarianSquirrel

If what you say is true (that private schools are receiving the same schooling as before but at a distance), then yes, state school kids will be at a disadvantage. When you pay for a service, you expect a better service so it's understandable that they will still be getting similar schooling to before.

Not sure how this can be rectified? I'm wondering what private teachers do with their own kids whilst still giving this level of teaching? Nannies? Is this the issue that they are still recieving full pay from parents, whereas the state funding and therefore teachers are not always available for different areas?

There’s no difference in the teachers’ situations. I work in a prep, I have a 1 year old so have done very few live lessons (colleagues with older/no children have done live lessons). However I have been setting work for my classes on their normal timetable, marking, giving feedback and contacting children/parents who haven’t done the work. We have carried on teaching new content.

Friends who work in state schools have been on a rota to cover key workers/vulnerable kids (we haven’t had any request care so we’ve been closed throughout). The days they’re not in, they are setting worksheets/powerpoints, but nothing is marked. Quite honestly I don’t think they are working as many hours as I am. But, the government suspended the curriculum and said no marking, so they’re not doing anything wrong.

This is why schools need to get back!

[ProsperTheBear]

private schools offering a much better education, what else is new? They have the resources, there's no secret behind it.

Parents of state school scream at the idea of buying even a book, things have to change, we need to start paying to improve our schools, and I mean paying directly, not pay more tax that will end up somewhere else.

[Roomba]

DS1 is in Y9. His state school has provided 3 or 4 hours of online lessons daily plus plenty work on top. He's done more work, of higher quality, over the last couple of months than he usually would! Probably due to
the distractions of school life not being there (he has ADHD and finds focusing hard). The school expect students to keep up, take lesson registers and contact parents if students aren't attending/submitting work.

Then again, it is a grammar school which gets a lot of extra funding from various sources. The head applies for every UK, EU and international grant there is going, by the look of it! And many more well off parents and alumni donate generously so students can be provided with laptops, books, subscriptions and so on if needed (I have to reassure myself we're not the only family on UC there, sometimes).

DS's best friend is at a 'good' state school, but has had barely any work in comparison. His school is only doing online lessons with Y10 and Y12 to ensure they aren't shafted next year. What about the other year groups who will be left behind?

[Taciturn]

I don't think the issue is private v state education - as some on here have pointed out, their state schools are providing online lessons. It is more one of affluence v poverty. How can a school provide online lessons if not all children in the class have access to a computer? Or data, even? Even without the online facilities, children from affluent homes will have parental support not always available to those in poorer situations. I though that one of the reasons children in YR and Yr1 were going back to school was because of the widening difference that would occur over this lock-down period. I heard a couple of weeks ago that we had lost 10 years in narrowing of this gap, in six short weeks (I don't know of the source, but probably easy to find). The teaching unions are making the re-opening of school terribly difficult, but it is the poorest in society who benefit most from this. Middle class tiger parents will be making hay, on the other hand...

[NeverTwerkNaked]

Yanbu. The gap will be widening tremendously and i can't believe there isn't more of an outcry about it.

[worldsworststepfordwife]

I’m less arsed about the private schools I would expect anything else from them it’s the massive difference between the state schools that’s the problem

[NeverTwerkNaked]

@Taciturn and yes I agree. I am paying for tutoring for one child and have switched the other child to private school because their school aren't doing any teaching it is just worksheets. But that isn't an option for many of my friends children.

[zoemum2006]

Both of my state school going daughters are doing very well. DD13 goes to grammar school and they set her loads of word. She doesn't have Zoom lessons but it's easy to watch a video on You Tube, there's loads.

DD9 is sitting her 11+ in September so we have maintained a good standard and she has her 11+ group tutoring sessions via Zoom.

It's down to how motivated you are. Academic families can continue working at a very high standards (state school or private).

The difficulty in this is children from disadvantaged families who lack resources or an academic background.

[Needamanicure]

I agree.

The local independent school is providing online classes with my friends son having 5-6 hours a day of lessons.

My son is given a weekly email of work that takes about an hour. He is also told to watch BBC bitesize programmes. I am WFH and trying to help with more but in free time teaching lifeskills. The teachers are not in and have around 10 KW's children in so work on a rolling rota working 1 week out of 3. The email that they send out is generic to a year group and probably takes 30 mins to put together. I have therefore checked the national curriculum and added some (not lots) of work to help. On contacting the school the response is don't worry they are all in the same boat (NO they are NOT - another maintained school has a much better provision for their year 6's). They are also debating still whether to let yr 6's return since they feel unsafe although other schools in the area are going to return.

My older secondary school son has more work and his school have been great, so I don't feel so worried about him.

So some will be at a massive disadvantage and others a bit of a disadvantage - what's new!

[BlueGreenYellowRed]

Exams could very well be cancelled again next year anyway, especially if there's a second lockdown during winter.

[Needamanicure]

Roomba - yes you are seeing what I am seeing - a massive difference in provision from one school to another.

[GrumpyHoonMain]

I think rather than the type of school, it depends on the type of parents you have. I have DNs who are in dodgy academies whose parents have basically filled the gap left by teachers and are probably now able to apply to take GCSEs early if they want. In one case my DC actually wants to pull her kids out of school and home educate as her son has improved significantly.

[zoemum2006]

@Needamanicure

Have a look at Twinkl (it's free while schools are closed and there is an absolute ton of great work on there to do grouped by year.

[mumsneedwine]

State school teacher doing live lessons for all years 9,10 and 12. Occasional catch ups with 7 & 8 to see how they are coping.
My state school educated kids. One 2nd year medical school, one awaiting results to start vet school. Amazingly state schools can and do provide a good education.
All comprehensives.

[Francina670]

Totally agree and I find it very worrying. I do not trust this government to come up with any sort of plan to try and make things a bit fairer either. They are more than happy to have the privileged elite benefitting from everything over and over again.

[LaurieMarlow]

I'm wondering what private teachers do with their own kids whilst still giving this level of teaching? Nannies?

Hardly. Same as the rest of the working population I expect, parked in front of screen. Left to their own devices.