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,

as you greythorne as compere of quips and mn observations
if you'd read thread and kept up (I'll type slow so you can fink)
let me spell it out this all ponies and mc handwringing not single precious mama in sight

Oh for goodness sake.

You may think selective education is fantastic,and you are entitled to your opinion and also if you want to come and live in Kent and experience it.

The issue of sink comprehensives is a red herring here,except in that that is one issue a child who passes the 11+won't be faced with.Children who fail may though,just like anywhere else.

"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 would put the needs of my child first,and do what I could to get them into the best school possible.This would include private if I had to,but not pretending to a faith I didn't have if that was an option in the area.I know this isn't about me,but seeker isn't the only person who is against selective education.Do I gain or lose hypocrite points because my DC didn't take the 11+? If it was because they aren't academic and wouldn't have passed? If I went to a selective school myself?
(Oh and I am middle class,allergic to poniesand work part time,if that helps?)

Is money the issue here about private ed though scottishmummy? I didn't think that was it.

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.

interesting point.

when labour first started academies quite a few were in deprived inner city areas of bristol.

I think the 1s was bristol city academy where kids got bribed with money for passing gcses.

I used to pass a really rough secondry sink school in special measures on way to work was slapbang in middle of housing estate.

it was knocked down one summer and build up as shiney new school
The unifrom was posh blazers.

have the results improved not really
do people activly seek and choose that school know as the demographics of that area and the problems there stil sadly remain.

since then every crap school has been changed into academy

monks parks-now the orchard-still no one would wish their kids to go there.

filton high -on news as kid stabbed now abbeywood academy

whitfeild -now bristol metrapolition-
They all have aspirational posh names, some have shiny new buildings.

but since co-alition came to power

acedemies not just in deprived areas they now attracting the middle class from the suberbs and they have some selection

colston girls was private-turned state academy-high demand as did well when private.

bristol catherdral-highy sought after academy must show aptidtude for music think there was 800aplications for 200places last year

the good keep getting better and more oversubscribed
the bad stay same depite new name and investment.

most in cities would be estatic to be offered kind of comprehensive seekers sons going to.

As my nana always used to say always people worse off.

private when have more than 1 childs justs not doable we have 3.

thankfully dont have to consider secondrys for another 3years but fills me with dread now. really should start attending church more often soon as the top state secondry requires baptism and 3years regular church attendance,

1. I have never, and would never, accuse anyone of being 'common'.
2. 'belt up would be a terribly good idea' is a quotation.
3. I'm fairly confident in my ability to string a sentence together.

Cheers.

I can't believe scottishmummy typed slow and still didn't manage to make sense.

in did try type slowly to allow hard of thinking to catch up
alas, I see has not worked
ach well

of all the 994 posts belt up was one you chose
how v curious
was it cause you could spell it

I see you have difficulty typing and object to full stops, capital letters and grammar.
"let me spell it out this all ponies and mc handwringing not single precious mama in sight" is a triumph in spelling it out.

scottishmummy

It is a total non sequitur to say, women should work and support their families on a thread with nearly 1000 posts about schools. Nobody except you and Xenia are talking about mummies needing to work. And even Xenia said that seeker or her DP should get a weekend job to fund private education.

glad we concur
I knew you come round

oh you miss marple you
you've got it nailed
how dare I express spontaneous pov

AFAIC you have lost the right to claim a principled stand against anything the moment you reveal that your principles are actually merely preferences and can change with the wind.

House boat? is that for real? Doesn't that make it incredibly easy to move? You could go round the coast, and up and down navigable rivers, searching for school nirvana, like Swandown:two men in a pedalo but with more dashed principles and hand-wringing.

I don't think scottishmummy thinks women should work and support their families, does she? A lot of SAHMs would say that is what they are doing. I think she actually means you shouldn't work unless you get paid for it, doesn't she?

Time for me to go to bed.

Please can someone start a new thread if we hit 1000.

Goodnight.

Yes, I am Miss Marple.... well deducted, Sherlock.

thourght I copy and paste seeker

Or, what would be the advantage in combining the two schools?"

An end to the process of selection at 10. An opportunity for "late bloomers" to move into the top sets. An opportunity for the "early bloomers" to move down without the hideous process of moving schools. A bigger social and economic mix at the school.

you are supporting idea for large comprehensive.
you sons going to a good comprehensive.
yet you want grammer as feel comprehensive system wont be best for for him as hes exceptionally bright and needs stretching,

Greythorne- his scores were too low. And no I don't regret not tutoring. I don't think it would have made any difference. He scored highly on a couple of practice tests at home and the familiarisation test in exam conditions the day before. Whatever Happened to him on the day would probably have happened regardless of tutoring. If he had failed by a mark or two I might feel differently.

yet he failed the test not by few marks you imply he failed by quite a bit and said even if I had coached he may not have past/made a difference.

This implies to me that maybe he shoulden't have sat 11+in 1st place as you diden,t think he would pass, that,s whats confusing me?

I imagine all the grammer school parents would be against a merger.

just cost of uniform and price paid in tutoring to get them in, no matter when they did it a few years would be disadvantaged.

wonder if they did any studies od schools merging in early days of grammers being scrapped? my comp was the old grammer and in my opinion crap.

also rather random question for seeker she doesnt have to answer.

but why live on a boat? can it be moved?
are you close to border of 2las?
where does the pony live?had to chuckle at pony comment as know no state pupils with pony,s

you say you achingly middle class yet only the middle classes got the grammer places yet its not class that gets them in its if they pass the test or not which i think is fairer than farcical state catchment areas.

Do houseboats move - do they have vestigal sails like those static caravans, which have vestigal wheels but go absolutely nowhere? (Sorry, digressing.)

There is a sensible debate to be had about what sort of education system we want and need for the future. Not one which is being had by the present Government with their mish-mash of Academies, Free schools, lack of planning for school places in areas of high population growth, cancelling of school building programmes etc..

House boat? is that for real? Doesn't that make it incredibly easy to move? You could go round the coast, and up and down navigable rivers, searching for school nirvana, like Swandown:two men in a pedalo but with more dashed principles and hand-wringing.

This post made me laugh and nearly choke on my coffee

love the idea of a school nirvana!

when say housebout is it a large canal barge?
its bit out of norm.
as its moving vehicle could give any postcode variable.

My grammar school and that of my brother turned comprehensive when we were in our first and second years of O levels. It was all rushed through on the cheap and was a disaster. They eventually reorganised again, putting up some decent money that time and planning it properly, and it worked well, and now what was my old school, (if you can really call it that), is a well regarded comprehensive.

Both my school a girl's grammar and my brother's - the corresponding boys grammar - were neither of them anything to write home about, and neither of us were too sorry to see their demise.

xenia groan, we all know you earn loads of dosh and that your DC's are all terrifically clever and successful. I just don't think you understand that some people don't want to send their DC's to private school. My DH and I choose not to. We chose to send them to the local comp and sixth form college. We are pocketing the 100's of thousands of pounds that it is saving us. We are funding our DC's through Uni, will help them with house deposits and my DH is looking forward to a early retirement. We are happy with our choice as are our children. Nothing at their schools has prevented them from doing well at school.

Telling seeker she or her DH should work weekends etc is a bit , she said, in her opening thread that her son will be ok at the local school.

Xenia - you talk a lot about how failure is good for you. How about you tell us about your mistakes and failures, so that we can get a better picture of what made superwoman? Or do we have to buy the book?

What you do need to remember here is that Xenia has got an island. HTH.