Those of you in favour of grammar schools, come and tell me what to say to my Ds...

[seeker]

He woke up crying in the night because the reality had just hit him that he won't be going to school with his close friends in September because he failed the 11+ in September. "I can't be very bright, can I mum, or I would have passed" " no, it was just one of those things-you're going to a good school, you'll be fine" "I know- but if i was clever I'd be going to school with X and Y" "You are clever- look at your SATs-you'll be in the top set at the high school because of those" " it's not SATS that are important, though, it's the 11+"

Do you want to have more kids feeling like that? Then campaign for more grammar schools,

If he is going to be fine, why are you keeping this thread going?

Perhaps you are not so sure that he is going to be fine - unless you expand your horizons.

If your son will be fine, then all the others going to his school will be fine, so why the need to combine the two schools?

If everyones going to be fine, what's the reason for wanting to cause so much disruption?

Might he not be bullied about the pony?

Doesn't it cost thousands a year to keep a pony?

Seeker thinks and has stated repeatedly that her son will do fine at the school he has been allocated and she thinks it is a good school.

Although she originally posted in personal terms, her point is actually not a personal one but a wider political one.

But, seeker has yet to address the comments of what shr would do were she living in a town with a comprehensive. A large, rough comprehensive with low aspirations, violence, teenage pregnancy, disengaged teachers and pupils, no PTA to speak of and poor facilities.

Because seeker is against private schools and coaching and moving house (boat) so her son (and daughter for that matter) would end up attending such a sink school.

Given the number of threads seeker has started about grammars -even though her son is going to do fine - imagine how many threads she would start about sink comprehensives.

Our guinea pigs cost a fortune :(

You mean if she lived in my town?

Perhaps her children would pull everyone else up by their bootstraps.

These threads are always about seekers own personal situation.

Greythorne - your post is worthy of a thread in itself. There are some excellent comprehensives and some appalling ones. Why is that? Location seems to be one part of it. In other cases good leadership can turn a poorish one round.

A former secondary mod, stuck in the middle of a sink estate, renamed XXX comprehensive won't make it comprehensive. Will turning such schools into Academies make them good? It seems to be the way they are going now.

You can only be so hypothetical.

The OP is personal, so that is the basis for the thread.

But to be hypothetical....

What would an affluent person who is against selective state education, and against any kind of private education, do if they lived in an area with only sink comprehensives? Would they put their principles first, or the needs of their child first?

I bet they would make sure that they were in an area with good comprehensives - or they would be like Dianne Abbott and make loud justifications about why they weren't compromising their principles by going private.

Ask Dianne Abbott.

Good comprehensives are good because of good leadership, good funding (partly through PTAs) and a good intake of engaged children and parents.

I too would be interested to know what Seeker would do if her opinion of the school her children had been offered a place at wasn't good.

oh you beat me to it by 2 seconds,

It shows how well known a hypocrite she is.

I'm sure the suffering caused by missing out on the 11+ would pale into insignificance compared to attending a sink school (especially if pony owning).

Failing 11+ is just an indicator of where a child's ability might lie. Academic achievement is fine, so are vocational achievements. Train drivers and tube drivers earn double the average wage, and as for professional footballers! The all should have prizes mentality about school is just bollox.

Xenia you know full well seeker is opposed to private education, so your idiotic posts about eArnig an extra 5k can only be designed to irritate and annoy. So now belt up would be a terribly good idea, yes?

She's also opposed to state selective eduction.

Yes, but is she opposed enough to send her child to a sink school if that's what her LA offered her?

Dunno! Am not her. I can just see Xenia being deliberately offensive as usual.

good advice to raise family income
ESP if housewife
and it solves problem of failing 11+

I don't think that Xenia is being deliberately offensive - she gives the same answer to any education problem - in fact any problem at all - earn pots of money and pay for private education. She just ignores the fact that a lot of people don't want to, and wouldn't even if they had the money.

common is telling someone to belt up
at least Xenia can string a coherent sentence
and yes women should work and support family

As seeker is to grammar schools, so scottishmummy is to SAHMs.

Come on, scottishmummy, bring out your usual chestnut about 'the precious moments brugade' and it will be a full house for you on a thread that ain't even about SAHMs.

Good work.