tell me about a 'privileged' education

[Frostycake]

If you attended a grammar or private school or if you teach in one (or taught in one), tell me what I may have missed by having a comprehensive education in the 1980s.

I sometimes see glimpses of the education I could have had if circumstances had been different for my parents (the recent TV series on Harrow, meeting and working with people who went to Oxford, Cambridge, Malvern College etc.) and I often wonder what it is I missed out on apart from the obvious opportunities and overflowing confidence and maturity this type of education seems to instill in pupils.

Come and talk to me about the detail as I'm bursting with curiosity.

I agree. Certainly fees make a school selective

I have told you before about 'Selective Modern schools' !..

Seriously though if you have 3 schools, 1 grammar 1 academic private school 1 other private . The non academic private would become a 'Modern' (because it has had its high ability pupils taken from it ) HA HA HA.

What do you call a 'Pretty' academic girl.

A Glam'mar school Girl.......

It can depend on if the "non academic private school" has other things to offer. Certainly the school could get some very intelligent pupils if it had something that made a difference to prospective students/their parents when they visited etc.

Doesn't work like that, smoke.

Yoyo- what it would have is an absence of what a late lamented poster called "the dregs"...........

You couldn't have a catchment area in which the only state option was a grammar!

Sorry only just read a few comments from the last page! I think there will be selection if any school has fees (due to affordibility).

Dont think I Missed out on anything, moved from private to a good secondary.
If the children and the parents care, then you get good results.

Lots of people went to Oxford Cambridge Bristol Birmingham , good unis.

Went on French exchange and skiing.

Can't see where I missed out to be honest op.

yoyo was initially a bit sniffy about schools like DD's. I figured that it was for girls who didn't get into the more selective schools.

And of course those girls do attend.

But there are also girls who, like DD, could get a place at the selective schools but don't want to go, for a number of reasons; location, siblings, boarding, bursary etc. Or like DD, because they liked the cut of the school.

"DD was sold on her school the second she walked in. And I was over ruled.

I've come to see how incredibly successful it is though. How it does something quite extraordinary with a mixed ability cohort."

Word Factory you have just described DS's school. There are schools that get better academic results but this school goes the extra mile to really help children excel at their strengths. It attracts some truely exceptional students that end up pushing their parents to let them go there. It is willing to alter its style of teaching in a way that some very established accademic schools will not do. The established accademic schools I have experience of are less likely to alter from their "tried and tested get all the children A*" for those children that are "square peg into a round hole".

My DD attends such a school which is not academically selective. She could have gone to a very pushy push selective academic school. We asked her and she preferred this school. The school is renowned for its pastoral care, it's catering and being able to get the best out of each and every students. I prefer a school. Where the teachers do care for the children under their care rather than use them as exam fodder. Although getting good results is preferable. I think being able to use what she has learnt is very important too.

We did have an exam and quite a long Skype interview. Although we know that non academic girls are accepted tOo. Anyway who is to say a girl at 11 under the right conditions will not flourish at 18

And plenty of the very academic schools do not see the children as exam fodder, have wonderful music and sport and get the best out of the bright children in their care, in the private sector. It is not one or the other. You can cater for the brightest children and still give them a good rounded education,. In fact if the children are all very bright you don't need to worry quite so much about grades and can teach beyond the curriculum and give them them lots of sport and music too.

I know top league table schools that have destroyed exceptionally bright children (they were at the very top of their year and above at these top schools, top scholarship students). Other schools took them in and allowed more deviation from curriculum so they happily fulfilled their potential. I know amazing music scholarship musicians that have been thwarted by other more academic schools that restricted the large number of instuments they could play due to timetabling restraints; ridiculous when these children are exceptional.

Most of the children are my children's schools have been fine. It's usually parents of children whose children cannot get the children into the more academic schools who say they are awful schools. We always found any pressure was just in particular children who are just made that may . Many are as laid back as my lot.
My music scholarship sons do their music and studies but don't want to do music as a career which is their choice and probably wise as it's pretty badly paid. Nice to have as a hobby. I sing and play just about every day and adore it but it's always going to be a hobby.