Private / Independent schools

cordial

You've just about summed up the private system, feesh.

Adults, yes, but nobody should be allowed to buy CHILDREN an advantage over others. There is an absolute moral imperative here, one which I realise is difficult to enforce - but that does not mean that we should go out of our way to belittle it.

cupid_s

I would never send my kids to a private school. I didn't go to a private school and am glad. I'd have hated it. I got 5A*s and 5As at GSCE (and 1 . My husband went to an absolutely awful state school not far from mine, with about 30% 5 A*-C pass rate and it is currently in remedial measures. He came away with all A*-B grades at GCSE (most being A and A*). All of his friends got similar grades as well. They have all gone to University, as did everyone who went to my school, and are all doing very well.

I would have felt quite offended if my parents thought I needed to go to a private school to do well. If you are clever and motivated I believe you will do well no matter if you go to a state school or private school.

feesh

Good point cupid (loving the name!).


Looking back, and having friends from both my private school and the village secondary school, there's very little difference in terms of 'success' (and how do you judge that anyway?). There are dropouts from both sides and equally, there are people in so-called high achieving jobs from both sides.


At Uni it was about 50/50 private vs state and there is certainly a bit of an arrogance within the private group, many of whom went on to do the classic city blue-chip graduate scheme thing, for which you definitely do need to have gone to a "good" school.......but I don't think they're as happy as me and my more down-to-earth friends, even if we don't get paid so much!!!

I'm not for or against private education, and I don't know what decision I will make when I have kids. I am slightly 'scared' of the state system I have to admit.

And I don't know what benefits my private education has given me - e.g. did it impress my current employer? (As my boss has mentioned the school I went to because he lives near it.) Does it give me a sort of underlying confidence? I just don't know.

But if I have learned anything from my experience, it is to REALLY get to know your kids and their needs, and to separate yourself from what looks like the best thing to do on paper or in the eyes of your neighbours.

My needs were social, not academic.

fabwitch_2

The state Schools in Brentwood is by catchment area but St Martins take 10% from outside the area who pass the technology test. In my daughters class is a boy who travels in from Ispwich everyday as he passed the test. Others come from East London and further a field. My daughter coukd have gone to Chelmsford grammer but I wanted St Martins as the School really has such a good reputation. Have a look at their web site
http://www.st-martins.essex.sch.uk/new_version/index.htm
The School has its own system where parents have their own log in with password to their childs records, timetables , register, exam results etc. So you can log on any time and see that your child is in School and how they are doing in lessons. They also have four pupil progress days where parents, pupils and form Teacher meet to discuss pupils progress a and agree aims and objectives. Also from September their will be a maximum of 24 students per class and only 16 students per class for those pupils with learning difficulties. The School also runs extra lessons at lunch times and evenings after School for pupils to boost their grades. This also applys to gifted students who are hoping for A* B grades. As I said befor we moved into the catchment area to ensure our children go to the School and I have not been disapointed and my daughter is very happy there. At the moment she is in her final GCSE year and will bve staying on for A levels then off to University. My middle son will start St Martins next September followed my my youngest the following year. I know they will all be happy there and be with other children whose parents encourage the students to try their best and achieve the best academically as well as in their personal development.

feesh

I'm sorry but that post above makes my heart sink, its the whole travelling thing coupled with extra classes! So common with private schools. Its very tiring to be pushed that hard and have a commute on top (I remember being up at the crack of dawn for the train)! Its fine if you are happy there but if you aren't it is hell, you just wish you were back home doing stuff with your other friends.

ETA have now realised that school isn't private but it does remind me of the private system. And the whole being able to check up on your kids thing - that makes me feel a bit icky. Kids can gain a lot more by having parents who have complete faith in them

gingin_2

We sent my ds to a private school from the age of 3. You probably haven't seen my post last week about ds but to cut a very long story short they suspected he had adhd. We were told that as they were privately funded there was no money in the budget to assist him. We were given a choice of making him conform or leave.... We left. We put him in a state school ( a lovely one at that) and haven't looked back.

I was very uneasy about the school, we really felt that our ds would benefit from the small class sizes but all children were expected to work to the same pace, there was very little structured play and expectations were high which I do not feel is good for a child's self esteem. At a state school, children work at their own pace and given assistance where needed whether they are bright or have learning disabilities. The facilities are far better and the sense of community amongst the children, parents and teachers is FAR better.

I was privately educated my brother wasn't. I became a trolley dolly he is an Advertising Director for a large brewery! He always resented me for going to a fee paying school and although we left with almost identical exam results I feel he had a far better all round standard of education.

We are moving to Oz and are choosing to find an area with a good state school rather than look to private again. I agree with a previous poster about Herts, they have some of the best state primary's in the country and is a lovely area to live in to boot .

Just my opinion, probably very biased but I am speaking from my experiences.

fabwitch_2

I dont seeing it as checking up on students but a good thing. In some Schools that my friends children attend in ********never know how their children are doing until its too late when they have failed their exams. Not because they were not bright enough to pass but because the culture of the Schools they attend have pupils who have no interest in education and sometimes parents are fighting a loosing battle because they can not change the views of other parents who do not care about their childrens education and my friends children have no choice but to mix with other students who see education as not cool.

At St Martins parents, students and Teachers are aware of the students strengths as well as weeknesses and the students do very well because of the teaching in the School and also because most of the students who attend the School usually have reached level 5 in SATS in there primary Schools in Brentwood. As a parent I have every faith in my children and I wanted them to have he oppertunitys I never had.

Some pupils to travel far some yes by train or get lifts from their parents and other with the School bus that provides transport for those children who live further out but still within the catchment area. Yes I agree commuting can be tireing but the students know that all their peers will be at home studying, doing homework etc . The students do relax and have a social life , Every Saurday morning my daughter does charity work and usually meets up with friends to go for a meal and cinema after woods. I am so happy that my daughter appreciates her education and the friends she has and that she is not hanging out every evening with friends who have no ambition in life and do not want to spend time studying and preparing for their future.

Noctu

Have to agree with all the other posters who have had bad experiences with private schools. I also had a bad experience and would never send my children to a private school. It certainly gave me no advantage over my friends who went to state schools, the teaching was no better and the attitude of the pupils within my school adversely affected my education to the point where I had to be taken out of classes on a day to day basis and was stuck in an empty classroom all day - even eating my meals there - due to the nastiness of the girls in my form and the school's inability/refusal to deal with the situation. The headmistress at the time, when asked about it, told my mother that "there was NO bullying in THIS school!" Err, there's drugs at bloody Eton love, what makes you think there's no bullying in any school?

My friend's brother, who went to a private school also, had his dyslexia ignored/undiagnosed until he reached college. I thought that was the point of private schools - more one-to-one teaching, better quality of education etc?

My school actually had the cheek to beg for more money from the parents already paying over £3000 PER TERM. This was a campaign for money for much needed improvements to the I.T. department and other general work to the school. Again - I thought that was the whole point of private education - you pay the money, you get better resources?! To this day, the I.T. suite consists of - wait for it - 19 computers. For the whole senior (11-16) school.

Of course there are bad state schools but you need to choose a good one!!

I'm not ashamed to name this school either. It's https://www.polamhall.com in Darlington, Co. Durham.

Sorry if this has turned into a personal rant - but when I hear about parents thinking of sending their children to private schools, I feel practically compelled to tell them my experience. They're not all they're cracked up to be - and yes, I have had experience of other private and state schools, having attended a state 6th form which was attatched to a state school, and having many friends attend different private schools within the area.

P.s. It's funny how 2 in the top 3 schools in the country for GCSE grades are comprehensives!

ALWAYS_POOR

Cazzywazzywoo wrote:

Instead what we did was made sure we lived in the catchment area for the best state schools in the county and we have then supplemented this with a private tutor for 1hour a week. At times of SATs etc we can increase the private tutoring.

If you have a child who is bright and who attends a reasonably good high school the chances are they will do well wherever they are educated, and you can buy many many hours of private tutoring at important times for the price of years of private education.

I found that private tutoring taught exam technique which was very useful and something for which state schools have very little spare time.

pudding06

I'm a secondary school teacher in the state sector.

independent / private schools don't require their teachers to have completed teacher training. Just have a degree!!!!!

If a child is motivated then they'll do well wherever they go. If theyre not well - they wont generally speaking.

you cant choose their friends for them, and they will have a huge influence on them. Often these friends will be from your local area, not just school.

You have to be involved in your kids eduction - no matter what sector. You have a responsiblity too, and can make a huge difference to a childs achievement.

My kids went to a local secondary, not their catchment area one, becasue I knew they could cope with my seconds sons adhd. All my kids have done well

private/independent schools dont like to have kids with special needs - it takes too much of their time and resources. THey often ask these kids to leave ( i know lots of parents who have been told to find another school for these reasons)

you can influence the way your child speaks. My sons know how to speak in different situations. That bits up to you and how you bring them up. THink football field language vs speaking to grandma. If you model good language then thats what they'll learn.

You need to look at schools and judge for yourself. Good schools will have no objection to you visiting during the day. by appointment obviously for safety sake(need to be accompanied for the kids safety lol). You will see how clam and industrious a school is, or isnt. Look at the ethos of the school and the social side too - all round development is important.


good luck

pudds