Prince George at Eton

[squashyhat]

Can anyone explain why Prince George is boarding at Eton when the family home is just minutes away across the river?

@SideEyeClydeI assume your excellent academic record doesn’t reflect your patchy understanding of statistics?

Listen, I’m a Northern Irish grammar school educated woman and have a whole quarry worth of chips on my shoulders about it. Winchester and Dulwich college-educated men have talked down to me in professional life and I bloody loathe it because I’m clearly as intellectually able as they are - if nor more so.

HOWEVER, anyone I have met personally who was educated at Eton College was polite, personable and confident without being boastful or cocky. I taught a boy in a higher education setting who was Eton educated: he was utterly charming, the only one of the class of 18 year olds who volunteered to help move the chairs around when I had said I needed to rearrange the classroom.

I don't think you need to "network" when you're going to be king one day.

That’s really interesting, Piglet. My son (state comp) went on a short course to Eton one summer for able students which was taught by the Eton masters. He came back on fire! I don’t know what it is (ex-teacher myself) they do/have but those masters just know how to inspire teenage boys. My son liked his own teachers but these were inspiring, clearly. I think it must be a combo of Eton picking amazingly bright staff and them never having to waste any headspace or energy on riot control and the box-ticking mania which infests state schools.

He loved being good-humourdly sworn at by them too - something state schools could never tolerate for obvious reasons!😲

Yawn. That’s original.

The sort of pps who insult a youngster on here are a sad, bitter lot. They’re simply telling us how nasty, chippy and unimaginative they are.

Tedious and cheap.

Imagine how incredible our country would be if every school could replicate this!

If you're using boarding school, you don't need to move country for it. They all have overseas students.

We were talking about the general pros and cons of boarding .

Tha hilarious. I wonder if they ever learn that John from eton writing to an alumini wine expert inviting him to etons lecture hall* isn’t quite the same as John from Bracknell new academy writing to a stranger inviting him over to the canteen for a tea in a plastic cup.

*actual talk I attended at eton btw

Eh? Say what, now?

They'll certainly never be short of vinegar for the chips on their shoulders.

I'm not sure if you're trying to be funny here or sarcastic but having seen your name crop up on other interesting topics it's obvious you hate private schooling with a passion. Regardless such an unpleasant attitude. Imagine if people were to make jokes about your own children.

@CoffeeCantatayes - I think Eton’s intake has also changed in the last couple of decades. Perhaps in the past, the cream of the country (rich and thick) was welcome, regardless of results.

I understand that, these days, increasing numbers of international students from incredibly competitive academic backgrounds and cultures has upped the ante and the boys there are pretty much all academically able.

I understand Eton College does have some female teachers - but they remain a minority among the teaching staff, though they’re trying to diversify. There’s something about men (who understand what it’s like to be boys and presumably have pedagogical training in what motivates boys in an educational setting) inspiring the boys they teach.

But I’m still conflicted as, ultimately, it is an incredibly privileged educational establishment open only to males. And educating boys in that highly privileged, male‑only environment limits their everyday experience of girls and women, which can distort social development, hinder emotional maturity, and reinforce outdated gender norms. This is not speculation — former pupils describe it and it is highlighted in public commentary.

Women have had to fight so hard to be educated: it is insane to think, when I graduated from Cambridge in 2002, it was only 54 years since the university first awarded women degrees on the same basis as men. So reserving the most privileged institutions only to male education just feels wrong and a real throwback to a forgotten era.

See also exclusively male choristers at cathedral schools.

It has been recognised as psychologically damaging if started too young. Some countries, like Tanzania, where boarding is commonplace, have made it illegal for under 10s to board, unless a special exemption is sought from the Ministry of Education . Children are vulnerable and historical instances of bullying of younger kids are not rare. Abuse at all ages still goes on. By pupils and teachers.

@Piglet89

Great post and interesting points!

I understand that, these days, increasing numbers of international students from incredibly competitive academic backgrounds and cultures has upped the ante and the boys there are pretty much all academically able.
While I agree that the academic standards may have improved, I think something may also have been lost in the drive to take lots more international students. My son (Cambridge grad) worked in Hong Kong for a couple of years and did some tutoring for parents who were absolutely determined that their sons should get into Eton - it HAD to be Eton. He liked the boys but became increasingly uneasy about the hot-house, very intensive atmosphere these children were being raised in. They had little if any time for recreation and hobbies - it was very utilitarian - such things were not considered to have any worth. And getting into Eton was such a big deal for their parents.

Perhaps Eton College is good at sifting out the unfortunate boys who've been subjected to this narrow regime. I know that some elite UK schools have now established versions of themselves overseas - and it's sometimes said that elite education is one of the UK's most successful exports! But for some overseas families, it has to be 'the real thing', I suppose.

On the subject of the schools being all-boys - there are elite girls' schools too. of course: Cheltenham, Roedean and Wycombe Abbey, for example.

I think that while some public schools will become co-ed, some will hang on to the single-sex model because of the very particular atmosphere it produces - for better or worse, depending on your viewpoint!

It's interesting you mention Tanzania as my Uncle and cousins lived there when it was Tanganyika. Both my cousins were in boarding schools there as it was impossible for them to be educated where the family was based. Tanzania is one of those countries on the ex pat teacher circuit along with other places where there are Commonwealth ties and many locals as well as expats want a " British " education that will enable them to move on in their education. I haven't noticed my cousins are psychologically damaged in any way but of course you can't generalise like that. Some may, some may not - the same as in ordinary state schools.

It’s neither a transferable skill for the state sector to adopt not supporting the students at eton gain the emotional intelligence to appreciate how easy such things are for them.

The family I married into has multiple sets of cousins married to each other and are extremely intelligent. They have PhD’s and advanced professional qualifications galore amongst them. As do their children.

I totally agree.

I've worked mainly in state schools, but had a stint in an independent boys' school, and it was an eye-opener.

Of course the public school had a wealthy (mostly - there were a lot of busary students) intake, but there are still things the state system could learn which don't cost money.

One obvious thing is the huge emphasis on courtese, manners, behaviour etc. Having come from a tough comp, I was literally rendered speechless when, on my first day at the public school, a lad leapt forward to open a door for me. This was not what I'd been used to at the other schools. It costs nothing and would stand all the pupils in good stead for the rest of their lives.

Also - encouraging confidence through dealing with adults more on a trusted, equal basis. Students working with teachers closely to organise activities and clubs. More emphasis on public speaking - not long speeches or debates all the time, but just making announcements or giving a vote of thanks.

These things cost nothing, but would hugely raise self-esteem in state-school students for their adult life and prepare them for the world of work.

I'm sorry - I still don't understand your point.

Would punctuation help?

Apologies, that looked fine when I posted but I was on the train 🤣

It’s neither a transferable skill for the state sector to adopt, nor does it support the students at eton to gain the emotional intelligence to appreciate how easy such tasks are for them.

I'm not even the original poster, but how are you not getting it?

The boys at Eton think they have mastered the skills of social interaction, organisation, confidence, dealing with adults etc. by doing things like the example you gave, without realising that they weren't operating within the same parameters as 99% of the country.

If a child from a normal comp had written to the home secretary or head of coutts bank or whoever asking them to give a talk, their letter (even if it had been written exactly as well, with the same amount of research) would go straight in the bin. The fact that the invite to Eton was the one responded to and the event went ahead isn't evidence that the boys at Eton are more confident or organised or better at interacting with adults, or that the school should be lauded for installing those skills in them, it's just evidence of their massive privilege.

It's like thinking you're amazing at bowling because you scored more strikes than anyone else, without realising its because you were the only one who had the bumpers up. You're not a bowling genius, you just had a huge advantage which made it much easier to win.