Fed up with the usual A level coverage

[SeriouslynotFred]

The usual Benjamin or Sophia opening envelope at grammar school with screams and a "I got 4 A stars. I'm going to blah de blah now". Well done, but seriously lots of it's down to lucky genes, tutors, family pushing. Privilege.

I also want to see the children who struggled but achieved despite background, slogged away from difficult start in life, no tutoring to take 11+ or private school and managed against odds for a group of Cs or Diploma and will do a useful plumbing, electrical, teaching, as well, rather than bloody fashion at London or maths.

Where's the range a d diversity in these stories. Bore feast.

Can't imagine what channel you're watching! I didn't see any of what you describe. Quite the contrary!

The BBC were in Burnley I think this morning and talked to people who were doing medicine, one who'd done t levels and was going into occupational health, a whole range. I'm a teacher. Please don't piss all over the achievements of those kids who have worked really bloody hard. You have no idea what their background is or what help they have or haven't had it what troubles they may have had along the way.

I actually haven’t seen as much interest in A level results this year

I think it’s about the media you’re consuming to be honest. The Guardian had quite diverse coverage today - a piece about a college in Luton that does BTecs as well as A Levels with the head saying why BTecs are important, an article breaking down the results by region and type of school, an article by a teacher at a central London state school about the uneven playing field her pupils face.

There are 163 Grammar schools in the whole of England so I really can't imagine it's Grammar school kids ,getting all these great Grades .

I went to a bog standard Scottish comprehensive where loads of people got 5As at Higher, which was as good as it got in those days. No one was getting tutored or was particularly privileged. I wasn't aware of anyone with overly pushy parents. It was just teenagers working hard.

Schools aren’t going to make their students tell everyone about what they’ve been through.

Also you are making massive assumptions.

The coverage I saw had a whole range of stories and achievements. Maybe you just need to mix up where you get your news. And I also agree with pp - you've no idea about any of those kids being interviewed. Even posh kids with good grades experience bereavement, mental and physical health issues and so on that make their achievements even more remarkable and worthy of celebration.

C4 news had a whole segment about the differences in outcomes depending where you live,your background etc

You have forgotten that the press always show at least one young woman who is Muslim. Even possibly the Daily Mail.

I went to grammar school, and then Oxford (AAAB - before A* existed). I was the first person in my family to go to university. I got free school meals. Grammar school does not necessarily equate to private tutoring, pushy parents and privilege.

I do the A-level coverage for my local paper. We are beholden to the schools who provide us either with a press release, or we attend on the day

and there are a number of kids waiting to speak to us. We do try our best to get a diverse bunch and I always ask for those kids who might have got good grades against the odds, but it’s largely out of our control. It’s also probably not reasonable to expect an 18-year-old to talk about how they passed their exams despite being in care or having an alcoholic parent or whatever. We’d be very wary of doing those stories because they stay online forever.

This.

I would say that’s a fairly good picture of the demographic though. Grammar schools where I live are notoriously full of middle class sharp elbowed offspring. Free school meals is an exception rather than a rule I would’ve thought. Well done you, but let’s not obfuscate the reality of routes to privilege.

Same here. Most of my family still live on a council estate. And undoubtedly now my children will be punished because I had a good education and earn well. Messed up.

I’ve just been listening on the radio to a group of kids who had all done BTECs in the local college. That was really interesting. Many of them struggled in exams so enjoyed the higher coursework element.

DD did BTECs, and did brilliantly (after a disappointing set of teacher-assessed GCSE grades). I don’t recall there being any journalistic interest though (and she’d definitely have put herself forward - drama was her highest GCSE grade ).

I don’t think there is as much bias as OP imagines. Most schools have at least a handful of brilliant pupils. Naturally they’re proud of them, and happy to be represented by them. But it doesn’t follow that they’re not proud of their other students who overcome adversity and achieve solid results.

You can say it's down to privilege, tutors, private school...anything you want. But those kids did their work and they got their A stars and do deserve some recognition. What do you expect from them? Do you think that Benjamin and Sophia should have cut all their lessons, shagged and smoked weed behind the bike sheds?

One day you might want Benjamin and Sophia to be your doctor and chop you up to save you. Or, society might want Benjamin and Sophia to pay ££££££ in taxes.

TBH, if I were Benjamin or Sophia, I would hot foot it off to America. Where, when you do well, they say "well done". Not "bore off you privileged cunt".

Fair comment. Might be why our local station do the same old same old.

Almost 30% at A or A*

My dd left school two years ago with just three GCSE's.
More determined than ever she moved sixth form and has passed an additional gcse. Passed three Btecs ( 2 extended) and got fabulous results today with first choice university confirmed. She has struggled and overcome it this last two years

why so bitter and judgey? they don't tend to ask the back story, so you're just assuming Benjamin and Sophia from the local grammar have had and were born with all of life's riches. Benjamin's parents might have died in a car crash and Sophia's step dad might have been abusing her since she turned 12. You have no idea. Money, genes, right postcode don't mean life is a bed of roses.

Major UK school that outperforms Eton for Oxbridge entrants breaks incredible A-level record | Daily Mail Online

Here's some diversity for you OP - state school in London with 50 kids into Oxbridge. TBH, I'm not sure how diverse the school is, if 349 pupils get solely A/A*. Looks like all the kids are academic and thriving. There must be something rather fantastic going on inside.

So anyone who doesn't get A or A* is due to smoking weed or shaking. Goodness you stereotype more than I did. Poor effort not everyone does those things from poorer backgrounds!

No, you mashed up my words and completely changed the meaning.