State school kids do better at university

[clemetteattlee]

here

It's a shame. When I was 15 without the internet I researched of my own initiative universities - I decided Iwanted to take scholarship exams and was working out which ones had them, sent off by post etc. So surely these days a clever boy of 14 can go on line and type in what A levels he needs to do XYZ but I suppose our point is that most teenagers are not as I was and most do what the school suggests. Many children like a subject because they like the subject or they go to XYZ place because their friend is.

I hope my son's school wouldn't ban traditioal "violent" books on PC grounds. I picked a boys; school because I want them educated amongst boys when the boy is normal (rather than a naught abberation as he can become in an all female, 100% female teachers, lots of girls in the class mixed state primary set up and that means boys have more freedom to be violent if they want.

May be it all just comes down to rugby in your primary school and accent, knowing the national anthem, traditional good education etc etc - Anyway most children go to state schools and plenty do fine but I still think there are things which will cost nothing the state sector could introduce.

I teach in a fab state school. I went to state school. I earn a good wage. I consider my self very very successful. Why? Because I am happy, I enjoy my life, I have a life!
As a northerner though my accent must put me in the lowest of the low for Xenia who seems to think they are so important.... Sorry but I am actually quite angry that accent is something that someone has highlighted in this thread. Xenia are you one of the people who complains about the regional accents on the BBC these day?

There was a time when you couldn't get a job in broadcasting unless you had a regional accent or estuary English so it goes both ways and presumably in some left wing councils and some other jobs if you have received pronunciation or whatever it's called that could be held against you. It's an interesting issue.

I'm glad I raised accents because I picked one thing to try to illustrate that great GCSEs might not be the only thing that helps the private pupils do better later after they graduate.

I could as easily have picked on weight. Fat people earn less and the lower your class the fatter you tend to be in the UK.

Also looks - good looking people earn more too and tall men etc etc. So if we starve comp pupils and make them wear the clothes children wear at Rugby school in school holidays and give them elocution lessons and stretch them on racks to make them taller you might find that gets them as good prospects as putting loads more mone into state schools. Anyway I was just thinking outside the traditional box which is often sensible. Rightly or wrongly many employers make a judgment before people open their mouth or even only after 3 minutes of the candidate speaking so this stuff can matter in some careers.

You know, you're right, Xenia - after less than 3 minutes of speaking I can make a judgement about you.

To get back to the OP.

There was a furore, pre-29006 when Russell group unis preferred state school oiks with lowers A levels because they got better degrees.

The mummies and daddies were up in arms because all they'd paid for amounted to to zilch.

Boo hoo.

Here in Oz it's the same; the drop-out rate from degree courses in privately educated students exceeds that of government schools.

Privately educated pupils are NOT necessarily more likely to drop out in the UK, echt. Where did that come from? The article says that state-educated pupils are more likely to do better.

I've not read all of this, but I would imagine privately educated DC would be expected to carry on to university. Teachers and parents wouldn't suggest anything else. Maybe some privately educated DC just drift into university when they don't reaally want to go. The chances are that money/debt would also be less of a consideration.

State educated DC and their parents put more thought into the possibility of not going in the first place.

Xenia...my lads are OK then over 6', handsome, good at sport, doing proper subjects, two of them will make grade 8 I'm sure. They learnt the national anthem at cubs. Shame they go to a state coed comprehensive along with everyone else. ....... so it's just their east midlands accent I've got to sort out!

They can probably spell better than me too!

Yes, work on the accent.

I was unusually amongst the lower classes today and it was fun listening to how people speak. "Have you got them flip flops, the girl says. "Yes, them are over there" the mother said etc etc. I'm sure they were equally amused by us.

"Better than I" not better than me. My rule is say it with the word after the me or I and then you know. So we wouldn't say better than me is so it must be I - better than I am.

" the drop-out rate from degree courses in privately educated students exceeds that of government schools." That is the opposite in the UK. IN the UK which has the best private schools in the world and attacts pupils from all over the planet they are so good, children drop out who go to ex polys from state schools - massive drop out rates and total waste of Government resources.