WUS, CC and KCJS 7+/8+

[firsttimer08]

Starting this thread for those sitting the 7+/8+ for these schools. Have found last few years' threads useful in understanding the process as a newbie; and now that it is our turn, thought we can exchange notes or have an idea of when the dreaded letters/emails arrive!

All the best for this week and the next.

Tennismom and Youarenottheboss, Do you have any personal experience of CC? Your observations seem to be based on what yiu have heard rather than what you have experienced yourself.
There are very sporty boys at CC who thrive on sports fixtures and excel in rugby, rowing, tennis, fencing, cricket, swimming, aikido, etc, benefiting from good facilities and dedicated coaches. However, only 15-20 boys, at most, can be on the A/B teams in most sports. The other 70 or so boys in each year do not Not suffer "ribbing" nor do they feel any less valued nor are they prevented from enjoying sport at whatever level. In fact, if you read the school newsletters, you'll see that the results of D, E, F teams are reported as frequently as those of the A/B teams. Every boy has opportunities each year to represent the school, regardless of sporting prowess.
More importantly, music and drama are outstanding at CC and talent in these areas is celebrated, as is talent in art, debating, chess, math competitions, history competitions, etc. a few years ago, one boy was celebrated for success in cup-stacking...

The school is characterised by bright, energetic boys with a wide range of interests and talents.
As for 11+/13+, my observation from seeing boys at other schools is that the boys at CC are under much less exam pressure. If biys struggle at any point, there is plenty of academic support to help get them on track. The school does not prepare specifically for CE but the curriculum is such that boys who wish to take CE have no difficulty in doing so and, as someone mentioned above, most secondary schools are familiar with the CC curriculum and are willing to take the internal exams instead of or as an adjunct to CE.

Proudmum5 - the KCJS deadline for 8+ just says "by Thursday 4 February" and I think it will be the same for 7+. Having said that, KCJS started calling some people on the 7+ reserve list on the Thursday afternoon last year. See last year's thread:

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/primary/2296526-KCJS-7-Reserve-List.

Hope this helps and thinking of you!

Proudmum yes - CC and KCJS both have a Thursday noon deadline. good luck!

Yes yes yes Cherokee, no need to be so aggressive regarding my previous post. If you could/would read it carefully and in the manner it is written you should be able to see that it is a personal view of the schools.
Your description of CC could be interchangeable with KCJS or WU.
And as you and Mominatrix have clarified and I said about all three schools, they do help the struggling pupils, but if they cannot keep up they do recommend they find another school.
I stand by what I say as it is from personal experience.

Wineatalltimes and ladyifthepalace, thank you so much! This is so helpful, the information as well as the support and good wishes..

Now fingers crossed for those phone calls later this week (hopefully) and best of luck to everyone who are trying to decide or waiting like me for that call!

"Best advice to anybody deciding is to get information from those at the schools, not rumours."

Actually, we are at the school.

"not sure where you get your info, but I can categorically answer that there are no weeding out exams in Years 5&6. There are no boys besides those who have moved away who gave left in those years to my knowledge in the 4 years I have been at the school."

It is not formally called a "weeding out exam" but just regular, normal school assessments. If a boy continually not meet standards after a period of time, the school will most likely have a discussion with the parents to give them a heads up. We know a few boys who are currently in danger or was asked to look for alternatives prior to year 6. This is in line with what you said earlier so I don't know what the problem is.

cherokee, no need to be so defensive. Not trying to put your school down. Just giving my personal opinion to someone who asked. My sons don't go to CC but received offers from there and my posting was just our rationale for choosing WUS. I'm happy your boys are happy.

Huh? Tennis you just said "Actually, we are at the school" in reference to CC, then "Just giving my personal opinion to someone who asked. My sons don't go to CC but received offers from there and my posting was just our rationale for choosing WUS."

Does not add up!

There have been a few people asking about the length of the 7+ waiting list at KCJS. I referred back to my notes from the Open Morning last June where the Headmaster stated clearly that there would be 56 offers and 14 or 15 children on the wait list. I hope this bit of info helps. We were delighted to get good news from KCJS last week (phew!) and acutely aware about how painful the waiting is. I know a few families will pick CC/WUS/other schools (guessing 10 or so?), so there is a very good chance for those on the WL. Best of luck!

Just wondering as you guys are the experts in this, whether any of you had any experience of Merlin in Putney as a successful route to these 3 preps. Thanks in advance. Please feel free to PM me if you'd prefer.

"get information from those at the schools"

Not necessarily at CC. I think WUS was discussed as well.

1Dadhere - thank you for making the effort to look into your notes for us, it is really encouraging to hear about the size of the WL at Kings.. Congratulations to your son! Fingers crossed for us. Will let everyone know if we get any news.. Thank you

Tennis and youarenottheboss -- i didn't mean to be defensive or aggressive. Sorry to have come across that way. As i've said elsewhere, I think all of these schools are good and the differences are at the margin rather than fundamental. the point I was trying to make is that while sports are well coached at CC, "non-sporty" boys make up a large percentage of the school and their diverse interests are nurtured as much as those of "sporty"boys. I have seen nothing to suggest "sporty" boys dominate in any way.
One other observation: the thing that most surprised me at CC was how little homework there is, certainly compared with what I see of similar.aged children at other schools, and also how little exam pressure there is. Other than the end-of-year exams (for which boys are told they do not need to revise until Year 6), I am usually unaware of tests and exams. Ie most of the learning takes place in the classroom, which suits me just fine as it allows plenty of time for non-school activities and/or relaxation.

Luckygirl -- the best thing to do is ask Merlin which prep schools their pupils eventually attend.

Tennis - My point was that you were making incorrect statements about Colet Court and you are not a parent there. The exams at the end of the year happen in all years - they are NOT weeding out exams as you claimed. If you have friends with children who are struggling, well their children probably SHOULD find other schools as it is not fair on the child if they were synthetically pushed to a level just to get in and really are not at the proper level.

I would not dare make such statements about a school I did not know directly about - it is rumormongoering and not helpful in the least.

I can see how you got your moniker....who appointed you as the master arbiter of all schools? I feel like I'm being scolded by an old woman. At the end of the day, I think we are all talking about the same thing. I may have used too strong a language in saying "weeding"--for the record, it's NOT.

Just a parent trying to be helpful and give my personal perspective to those asking for opinions. Everyone has their opinion based on their own experience. It's bulllying tactics like these that turn people off to contributing. I'll leave this chat now so please don't comment as I don't think the raving is helpful to others.

Jod999, yes, we also choose CC over WUS (and KCJS), mostly due to same reasons - amazing facilities, boy fairly sporty, and also Barnes being the area we prefer to move to.

Heard serveral siblings who got into 7+ Colet interview didn't get the offer, not even on waiting list. So I guess this leaves those on the WL some real hope as they will be genuine contenders. Remembered in DS's CC interview, there's a sibling in his group and I thought surely they would have an advantage. But seems I was wrong (luckily). Not sure about Kings/WUS situation but sinecerely hope there be some movements for those on the WL and everyone gets in their first choice in the end.

Just wanted to say I have found the contributions from past parents really helpful despite the recent minor disagreements - thank you all so much for coming on the thread and contributing.

I second ladyofthepalace. Thank you all ( TennisMom, Mominatrix, youarenottheboss and cherokeee) for the insightful information and opinions which all of us benefited along the process. From what I gather you are all passionate about your DS's schools which is really a great sign of the greatness of each super schools in this subject. As I said before, we'd be over the moon to even getting into one of these schools. So please don't quit the thread and we all know you are just trying to be helpful to us and on your own spare time!

Best wishes to all.

Good morning all
Completely understand that this is a stressful time and that it's easy to get het up on the internet about these things but a bit of peace and love, please.
Thanks so much

Its fascinating to watch the exchanges here. While the passion is to be commended on all sides, I do think that in the so-called elite schools of London, parents have formed a self-styled Defence Brigade. No dissent is tolerated and any criticism, no matter how mild or constructive, is dealt with in a heavy-handed manner.
Gone are the days when schools were about children and the education. Now they are very much seen as status symbols for parents and an integral part of their ego and self-esteem. Hence the aggressive reaction to any criticism of the schools as parents take it as a personal slight.
I am sure most observers cannot figure out what was so wrong about what TennisMom or youarenotthebossofme said to invoke the wrath of the DB mums.
Lets chillax everyone. Everyone is trying to do the best for their children and they are the heroes of the show, not us.

For those on the KCS 7+ waiting list, just wanted to give you hope that a place will soon be opening up today or tomorrow.

I disagree London Chillaxer. Everyone wants the best for their children. It isn't, in the vast majority of cases, about anyone's ego. It's about finding a place where a bright child is stimulated and happy. People speak openly on an anonymous forum (as do you, some other threads are a case in point). Posters feel passionately about their own schools and their own choices. End of.

I agree with you LondonChillaxer. Feels like a bit of witch-hunting. Nothing that Tennis said warranted that kind of aggressive reaction.