Best wishes to all the new second form

[Pixie]

There are some very good state schools out there too!!

[bosty94]

Yes, but in London very few indeed. We have one with an excellent reputation one not ten minutes walk from us. As it is generally thought of as the only decent one in Wandsworth it is vastly oversubscribed and we didn't get in. There just aren't enough good London state schools and only a tiny minority are lucky enough to get a place at one. Even with this school, I hear stories from friends going to parents evening and speaking to teachers who didn't seem to know which child they were supposed to be talking about. Another friend of mine read her son's report and half way through the teacher began referring to the child as 'she'. I also believe teachers are afraid to discipline these days, and I witnessed a lot of disruptive behaviour when we looked around these schools. Spitting, shouting, texting in class, playing football under the table. Kids deliberately trying to shock the parents looking around. I think inner London secondary schools have long been recognised to be failing our children.

[anniexf]

Yes, but in London very few indeed. We have one with an excellent reputation one not ten minutes walk from us. As it is generally thought of as the only decent one in Wandsworth it is vastly oversubscribed and we didn't get in.

Whatever happened to Wandsworth? I used to live a few miles from there, about 15 years ago, and it was generally considered by those who presumably knew to be one of the few successful London Boroughs - Conservative Council, very low Council Tax, well-managed & efficient, and quite a few pretty good schools. Has everything gone pear-shaped there?

[bosty94]

It's true, what you say about Wandsworth borough anniexf. Well managed etc, Wandsworth, and quite a few good primary schools. However, secondary schools are not so good. Also of the six schools closest to me, only 3 of them were in Wandsworth. I wasn't very clear on that in my last post. The other schools that we applied for were in Merton or Lambeth. Of the 2 schools we were offered places at in Wandsworth, one has been failing and the other doesnt have a great reputation. Possibly the other problem is that teachers are afraid to discipline these days. Maybe not so much Wandsworth to blame then, but more of a social problem. There are alot of gangs in our area, muggings amongst school kids etc. I saw alot of disruptive behaviour when we visited the schools, and have heard nothing good about them from parents in the area, despite being very involved in my local community. I heard some slick talks, and witnessed some clever manipulation of figures, but it was clear when we looked more closely at these school's past results that the pass rates they boasted of were either grade C or below, and in subjects such as Art. (nothing wrong with that but I do think Maths and English are essential). It seemed that the pass rate for Maths and English was very low indeed,(48% gaining 5 GCSEs , grade C or above, including Englsih and Maths). Some of the statistics compared well to the national average it's true, but this only served to show how badly the average uk state secondary school is doing, rather than to demonstrate that these schools were good enough.

[midget]

And what is the "pass" mark for grade C?

[sejintenej]

And what is the "pass" mark for grade C?

Try the following questions: (all mathematics by hand - no calculators, unlimited "scrap paper", unlimited time)
a) what is the date 90 days after 3rd June? (you CAN consult a calendar)
b) what is 80% of the price of 10,000 bales of wool at US$20 each?
c) to 15867 add 75186. To the answer add 68634. from that answer subtract 92854. To that answer add 1564

(This was actually set out vertically with intermediate line spaces for each answer to be written in)

Those are 3 of the five questions in a test given to those who had passed GCSE Maths at grade C or better. Of the first 17 candidates eight got every single question WRONG. By comparison the other two questions were too simple to tax the brains of those on this forum and a colleague did the entire test in under 60 seconds to check my answers. I should add that my neighbouring deputy headmaster was inscensed (?sp) on the grounds that it not for schools to teach this sort of thing but employers.

The answer to Midget's question seems to be 0.01% of questions right.

[J.R.]

I think I'll stick to Crosswords and the like.

[NEILL THE NOTORIOUS]

Re Wandsworth --
My cousin went to Emmanuel, Which HE maintains is the best in the World (Not having been to CH !)
His Father was a Prison Officer, at the Prison -- so it was local.

[dinahcat]

bosty94 you have the same probem that the whole counrty has . It's firstly a combination of a series of political moves to ensure that people vote for the party that says no child can fail at anything because it hurts their feelings.Governments set targets and exam boards set up industries to ensure that targets are met by publishing material that allows the pupils to succeed in the exam without really knowing much .Teachers teach to the exams without educating anyone as the general public have beeen led to beleve that being academically successful is the only way to be happy .Nobody cares that there are no plumbers or electricians until they need one.
The second thing is, that schools consist of pupils and their parents. No teacher can work with 30 pupils whose parents defy the school and support their children's poor behaviour.It is largely the teachers who are the victims in this situation.Many teachers are completely bullied by parents, pupils and other teachers who have been promoted out of the classroom into management positions and who want to stay there because it's so awful in the classroom.

[YadaYada]

How funny! How DOES she know he has a list?!!

It still doesn't stop the phone call the next day saying he has forgotten x, y and z......

[dinahcat]

Son has forgotten trainers...

[lonelymom]

younger daughter has forgotten toothpaste...

[bosty94]

Re Wandsworth --
My cousin went to Emmanuel, Which HE maintains is the best in the World (Not having been to CH !)
His Father was a Prison Officer, at the Prison -- so it was local.

State schools change alot over the years, and so the reputation of a school a few years or more ago is unlikely to have any bearing on its reputation today. In the case of Emmanuel, the change is particualrly drastic as it went private some time ago costs around £12000 a year now! Thanks for the suggestion though. Today is the day that new parents have to pay their deposits for CH, so we are hoping and praying that more places will become available this week and perhaps we will be lucky enough to get a phone call. I know that my daughter is one of a maximum of 4 remaining on the waiting list..Can anyone tell me whether parents have to pay their first term's fees today, or whether it is just the deposit?

[YadaYada]

I have 5 missed calls so expect I will find out later what he has forgotten!

Trip to the post office planned for tomorrow!

[wickedwitch]

labels arrived today actually i cant wait to get started!! x