Initial Assessment

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matthews301
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Real Name: micheala matthews leigh hunt a (once upon a time)

Re: Initial Assessment

Post by matthews301 »

im not putting Ch down but be a parent of a pupil at Ch is very different to going ,
Having gone I feel that its changed .. I was not as clever as my son but lucky me my mum was a drunk ( hence i got in) ..
I will always love that school its a part of my life and where I learnt my values ( EVERY ONE IS EQUAL) however it just feels this isnt practised any more and i understand that they have made improvements .. but we all survied in a dorm or bed, chest of drawers wardrobe in a row ... big houses on the back ash .. our house masters where happy with the little ones on the side
I understand change.. but if it keeps up all ethos will be lots .. it was not set up for what level you was at it was not set up for families that have had there children in private primary to then get a place .. it was set up to show that no matter what your personal circumstance you can shine in the surroundings Ch has to offer and at the end of the road YOU WILL AND CAN BE SOME ONE > AND MORE TO THE POINT SOME ONE BELIEVES IN YOU.

and i agree there not interested in the individual really they need the money ... day boarders ( shocking)

id also like to add that for all those children who are in the school you have something special and you are believed in..
I just felt a bit cheated the girl that showed us round joined in the deps year having gone to a private all girls school she could save on fees at ch??!! i feel not what it was intended for right?..
dinahcat
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Re: Initial Assessment

Post by dinahcat »

Apart from what Mrs C has recently posted I am fairly convinced that the initial assessment(November) is just based on the test results. The family circumstances aren't relevant at this stage. I am also sure that this applies to the Presentations. It would just be a rank order so that part of it is a level playing field which couldn't be fairer. The school makes it clear there is a minimum standard which is average for your age which equates to level 4. So the botton ranked child in any year may well be level 4. In another year if all the candidates are at level 5 then they may all surive the first round and so on. It is a myth that the presentations necessarily get an easier ride . I know a child who had an offer of a presentation but it was withdrawn after the first round as the November test result was not high enough despite a difficult family circumstance.

The close exercise in the November test is the killer in my opinion. There are no sample papers for this and it depends on wider language skills and the ability to use knowledge about your own language to work out what unfamiliar words might mean. This may not come under the the NC syllabus and may well be used to try to stop over coaching which may give a false impression of ability.

This is only my opinion-no one at the school has ever said any of this to me . It's just what I have surmised over the years so you should take it as such and not as the gospel truth.
lippizaner
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Re: Initial Assessment

Post by lippizaner »

Sorry MW24 I didn't mean you to think I was painting a bad picture, but just that I am still upset that the preferential treatment for UK resident pupils was never revealed until we had come virtually all the way down the road to application, as I outlined above. I am sure the school strives hard to be as egalitarian as it can possibly be. I just wish they'd told me from the word go that we would have hardly any chance - ie less than other people. That would have been fairer.
Of course I would still want a place if we were offered, but I fear that it is unlikely, given the NEW information I was given at such a late date.
HowardH
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Re: Initial Assessment

Post by HowardH »

The wait must be very difficult.
Inevitably when we are asking back just 240 from the 430 who sat the Initial assessments there will be some very disappointed folk. Although the words concerning "one door closes, another one opens" might appear fatuous and not particularly comforting, they are true.
I would like everyone to rest assured that the process at this end could not be fairer. EVERY child is considered equally.
I would suggest that if anyone has a specific question then they should send pm me and i will do my very best to answer it.
lippizaner
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Re: Initial Assessment

Post by lippizaner »

It came today! Just found it! A big fat envelope full of stuff! As soon as I saw it my hopes were raised as I guessed they would only send a thin one to turn you down! So now we have to find the money to come in January! But who cares!
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Mrs C.
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Re: Initial Assessment

Post by Mrs C. »

that`s such a relief!
the trip in January will be worthwhile!
The best way to forget your troubles is to wear tight shoes.
CHDad
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Re: Initial Assessment

Post by CHDad »

Lippizaner I am pleased you have had some good news, you now have a few more agonising months of waiting and fretting to get through!
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J.R.
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Re: Initial Assessment

Post by J.R. »

As a grand-dad with no hidden agenda, my thoughts are pretty wide spread.

Everything I read arriving from the school suggests to me that it's becoming a case of 'money-talks', but maybe I'm being cynical.

As an OB who would probably be described by the school as a 'failed-pupil' by leaving immediately after taking 'O' levels, I gained all my experience in the 'University of Life', and eventually reached middle/upper management. Part of my job in road transport was interviewing prospective management trainee's, many just out of Uni with a degree. To say that I found most of them absolutely useless and un-prepared for a role in management would be a gross mis-understatement. So, for all you parents of failed entry children, take heart.

(Yes - One of my Grand-Daughters failed a year or so ago, and stayed on in the sixth form at her secondary school, and has alread submitted some art-work that has provisionally ALREADY won her a place at Sussex Uni.)
John Rutley. Prep B & Coleridge B. 1958-1963.
MW224
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Re: Initial Assessment

Post by MW224 »

It came today! Just found it! A big fat envelope full of stuff! As soon as I saw it my hopes were raised as I guessed they would only send a thin one to turn you down! So now we have to find the money to come in January! But who cares!
So not so discriminating after all! Fabulous news, good luck for the next stage!
matthews301
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Re: Initial Assessment

Post by matthews301 »

This is fab news fou you. :D
Im so pleased to have got to see this after all the sad posts .. feel a small fraction of your happiness and this has put a big smile on my face x
matthews301
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Joined: Mon Oct 24, 2011 11:06 am
Real Name: micheala matthews leigh hunt a (once upon a time)

Re: Initial Assessment

Post by matthews301 »

J.R. wrote:As a grand-dad with no hidden agenda, my thoughts are pretty wide spread.

Everything I read arriving from the school suggests to me that it's becoming a case of 'money-talks', but maybe I'm being cynical.

As an OB who would probably be described by the school as a 'failed-pupil' by leaving immediately after taking 'O' levels, I gained all my experience in the 'University of Life', and eventually reached middle/upper management. Part of my job in road transport was interviewing prospective management trainee's, many just out of Uni with a degree. To say that I found most of them absolutely useless and un-prepared for a role in management would be a gross mis-understatement. So, for all you parents of failed entry children, take heart.

(Yes - One of my Grand-Daughters failed a year or so ago, and stayed on in the sixth form at her secondary school, and has alread submitted some art-work that has provisionally ALREADY won her a place at Sussex Uni.)
im with you here
lippizaner
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Re: Initial Assessment

Post by lippizaner »

Hello and thank you everyone for your kind wishes! I am over the moon, as is DS. You are very kind. Please cross your fingers now for my DS in January. I shall likewise be crossing fingers for your children. So long as we are all within the chosen 100, that will be great!
lippizaner
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Re: Initial Assessment

Post by lippizaner »

Forgot to say, as I was so excited and my hands are shaking still, despite having just eaten soup (imagine the mess) a very big thank you to CH itself for recognising the potential in my DS. I am so pleased I could burst and very proud of my DS. The school has lived up to my hopes! Maybe all that stuff they sent me was not so relevant after all? Crossed fingers for that too.
matthews301
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Real Name: micheala matthews leigh hunt a (once upon a time)

Re: Initial Assessment

Post by matthews301 »

lippizaner wrote:Hello and thank you everyone for your kind wishes! I am over the moon, as is DS. You are very kind. Please cross your fingers now for my DS in January. I shall likewise be crossing fingers for your children. So long as we are all within the chosen 100, that will be great!
I will truely pray and my thoughts will be with for the next round please keep me posted i love to hear what happens and i am so pleased and indeed proud of your little star,my prsonal email is matthews301@virginmedia.com ( let me know how you get on) ( and having been to the school any help I can give you id be happy to ) YAY xxx
sejintenej
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Re: Initial Assessment

Post by sejintenej »

J.R. wrote:As a grand-dad with no hidden agenda, my thoughts are pretty wide spread.

Everything I read arriving from the school suggests to me that it's becoming a case of 'money-talks', but maybe I'm being cynical.

As an OB who would probably be described by the school as a 'failed-pupil' Part of my job in road transport was interviewing prospective management trainee's, many just out of Uni with a degree. To say that I found most of them absolutely useless and un-prepared for a role in management would be a gross mis-understatement. So, for all you parents of failed entry children, take heart.

(Yes - One of my Grand-Daughters failed a year or so ago, and stayed on in the sixth form at her secondary school, and has alread submitted some art-work that has provisionally ALREADY won her a place at Sussex Uni.)
I'm with you on that though I did get a couple of A levels (and got another O level in compensation). I also started by making the tea and worked my way up. I also had to interview people for employment. Ar the first bank we found that people with GCSE Maths (C grade minimum) were innumerate and started our own exam which was so simple as to be offensive; imagine that, given a calendar, 8 out of the first 15 applicants couldn't work out the date 90 days after the 3rd June. In my last bank we had umpteen applicants who had completed graduate trainee training with a certain big UK bank but had hit an advancement bottleneck; they were so bad we didn't even look at the CVs after we discovered that bank's standards.

To echo John's final comment, remember that Steve Jobs was a university dropout whilst a lot of good UK companies were started by people with little
if any post school education. It is simply a case of having the idea of what to do; I made a list as I waited for redundancy.
Additionally one great chance will fall into your lap - just grab it because you may not get a second chance.
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