So as an "ignorant" expat am I wrong to leave dd in a school where she is "happy"?

[Portofino]

I've been reading all the threads about the school placements, and whether private is better than state, local vs good ofsted report etc. I wonder whether I should be having similar anxieties or whether this a UK neurosis?

Basically we moved to Belgium when dd was 2. At 2.5 she started at the french speaking maternelle (kindergarten) of our local school. It is an annexe to the "big" school that takes them til age 5. 2 classrooms, maybe 40 children in total. Staff are great, and dd has always been very happy there.

In September she will start the 3rd maternelle (reception level I guess) at 5.5. We've moved house since, but the "new" local school is dutch speaking, so in agreement with dh that moving language at this stage is not an option.

So there is NO Ofsted here - no online reveiws of schools that I know of! The only private schools are for expats, that we can't afford. The only other feasible choice is a Catholic school and we are not catholic. Is it wrong and too relaxed of me to let dd go to this school about which i know nothing really without getting in a big panic?

There is a healthy mix of kids from different backgrounds, from the local council estate (lots of turkish immigrants)to the expats who work at Nato.

I really don't know if i should be working myself into a tizzy about this, or whether dd'll just be fine.

She will be just fine. I grew up in Holland (am Dutch) and lived in Germany for part of my childhood. I went to nursery, primary and secondary schools in both The Netherlands and Germany (we moved between the countries a lot)
No Ofsted in either country, no league tables, you just went to your nearest school with the other local children. (religious schools being an exception)
It was fine. It was more than fine.
I am in awe of the British anxiety regarding schools. Mind you, I am lucky my local schools are good, and the dc happy there.

Thanks for your view hippi . I'm just conscious that dd has to go to the "big school" in September (didn't say that in OP). At the annexe it was just like nursery and as long as she was happy etc etc. Next year the "proper" stuff starts. Their teacher is going with them, which should help.

My babysitter tells me they will be tested? To see if they should start Primaire early?

I have to say that even without league tables and ofsted, I would always look at the "end product" of a school. So either by looking at which schools the children then go onto, or which uni courses they go onto etc. Now that of course won't tell me the extent to which the school contributed, but it does at least inform me as to whether it is likely to share my aspirations for my dcs.

You are very sensible. Happiness, enjoying everyday life, getting along with other kids - surely that is what school is about when they are young? The attitude towards education is unbearable in this country. All the angst! It's become a consumer activity, looking at schools - nobody wants the 'Value' range, they all want 'Finest' .

I have no clue to "end product"! I know that in Belgium, you follow a curriculum and if you don't "pass" you stay back a year. I think that is more for secondary school though. I have asked at the school, and chatted to dd's friends parents (as much as my french allows me too ) Their dcs will all stay there. That is the only recommendation I have to go on!

Thanks MrsMattie. You are SO right! I went to my local school (tis now a sink estate ) and I ended up in Grammar School. God, everyone went to their local school. Why DOES everyone get in such a state these days? I feel like I should too, or I don't care enough......

PS Lady Muck, in Belgium nearly everyone does further education of one kind or another! If you pass your school leaving certificate you are guaranteed a place to do "something". I think Medecine is about the only course where there is serious competition.

I personally don't have a degree and was viewed with much suspicion when job seeking here. In fact, even with 20 years of work experience and a good cv, some companies were not prepared to interview me!

Follow your instincts. If your dd is happy and you are happy with her development then trust yourself and ignore the hyper competitive parenting that drives so many in this country. Your dd will be bilingual, has been immersed in another culture and just because you don't join in with the madness does not mean in the slightest that you don't care. Your dd has far more chance of achieving her potential if she is happy and well adjusted - that does not require huge sums of money spending despite what some may believe.

Thanks Tavvy. DD is very happy at school and I'm keen that it stays that way. I know we have other issues to deal with over the 2 languages, and the extra effort that that will take up. (i.e. making sure she doesn't fall behind her peers in french).

And I need to make sure she can still read and write in english, and i'd like her to learn some british history in an ideal world Yeah, I don't need to be stressing about schools as well. Even the Royal Family go to state school here you know. Bet you have to queue for a week to sign up your 2 yo at THAT school....

Another Dutchie here and agree with Hippo, in Holland you go the the nearest or related to your religion school. No postcode lottery and no wanted the 'finest' (love that one MrsMattie) for your DC as strangely it is not a big deal in Holland as nearly all education is of the finest range IYSWIM!

If there is little difference in outcomes, then of course there is no reason to worry. Rejoice in your good fortune. Many people don't have such good fortune - one of my nearest secondary schools had only 17% of pupils attaining 5 A-C GCSEs, so 83% of pupils are unlikely to get any sort of chance at tertiary education. The best state school locally is CofE so for example Asians need not apply.

I assume if the vast majority of the workforce is educated to the degree level then there must be less poverty in Belgium.

There certainly is poverty here, though as an expat I am to say i don't know how the system works. They don't write about it in the expat books and the only people I know work!

I'm not saying thre is little difference in outcomes. I honestly don't know, seem to have no way of finding out. Should i assume that it it all good?

The education here is very much split between the academic and the vocational though. But it is compulsory til 18 so nearly all should have a certificate in something by the time they have finished their education. Be it advanced Law or Plumbing.

When you say 83% of children are excluded from further education, I KNOW that is not the case here. Though I rather hope that is why I have to pay 50%+ tax on my mediocre income.

I said 83% of children from just one school are effectively excluded from higher education. Across the UK I think that 44% or so go onto higher education. In my case there are huge differences between local schools as to whether 17% of children get 5 A-Cs or even 100% attain that standard.

I'm surprised if you can't find out where children from your school go to for their next stage of education? That was more the nature of the outcome that I meant, rather than whether they hit a particular milestone or not. If the whole system is entirely comprehensive throughout it may not matter of course - and I certainly know nothing about the Belgian system. But in London admission to secondary schools is a complex business where feeder schools, 11+ and religion all play a factor. If you escape that complexity then you are indeed fortunate.

I have NO idea about secondary schools here at all. My dd doesn't start Primary level for another year, so I figured i have 6 years to find out. There are no catchments here. You apply to whatever school you want. Some are more popular than others but they keep changing the rules...

I think your dd is really lucky just from what you've written here. You obviously care a great deal not just about her education but her health and happiness without which a child will never achieve their full potential.
Other countries education systems are always a nightmare to navigate if you stray from the international school system. When I worked abroad I spent ages trying to figure it out and understand but never did. Luckily for me I was not trying to guide a child through it - merely was curious as I'm interested in the anthropology of childhood and education.