State vs Private Education

krish

No it wasn't, it was about reform.

Pacifico

"In Britain, private schools – including their fundamental unfairness – remain the elephant in the room. It would be an almost immeasurable benefit if this were no longer the case."

Pacifico

You get the satisfaction of knowing you have given your children the best.

Otherwise we would all be living off those blue and white tins of Tesco beans.

                                                                                                                                       

krish

Which you clearly misunderstood

rustybin

And this is where your understanding falls down. As usual.

This might help: - Australia triples fine for Nurofen maker

nabby

I don't agree that supporters of the state system want to take away the private option.  Some might but it's not a huge number and the removal of the private system wouldn't be a vote clincher in an election.

As for the stuff you wrote about the system failing many of its customers, well they're not customers. They're children.

Also, as someone else pointed out, the education system is a political football and as such, every time we have a change of Government we have changes in the education system.  

Comprehensives, selective schools, non-selective schools, grant-maintained schools, local authority schools, free schools, compulsory academies, non-compulsory academies, return of grammar schools, more freedom for faith schools, less freedom for faith schools.  It's that which is the cause of problems in the system.  

It doesn't help that the teaching profession is under valued and under paid but over worked, and that the education budget is insufficient.

I live in a borough in London that has local authority primary schools and academy primary schools. We also have private primary schools, single sex and mixed.  And then there's the faith primary schools (CofE and Catholic).  Then at secondary level we have academies (mixed), academy grammar schools with 11  selection (single sex), comprehensives (both Local Authority and Academy, mixed), faith schools (Catholic, single sex) and private schools (single sex).

The whole system is a mess.  The academy schools are specialist bases (e.g. science, music/drama, languages, etc).  

I have one kid in year 4 in a Local Authority junior school and one kid in reception in a SEN base at an academy primary.  Both schools are highly rated by OFSTED, parents and governors.  The teachers are brilliant, given the meagre resources they have to work with.

We'll have to look at secondary schools soon enough for our eldest.  The choice is bewildering.

When I went to school, I went to the local infants school, then to the Junior school next door, then took my 11 , passed it and went to a local boys Grammar school.  I took exams for private school, passed them, but didn't want to go as none of my friends were going.  My parents let me choose.  So I stayed at grammar school till I went to uni after my A-levels.  I don't think I'd have done any worse in a comprehensive school.  I would have done at least as well in the private school I had a place offered to me.

My brother went the same route but went to private school.  He did well out of it and subsequently sent his kids to private school from primary age. His wife also was at private school (one of the best in England).   He's in the USA now and sees the state system there as far, far worse than here, in terms of funding and support.  His kids go to a private school there.  

Grammar schools aren't for everyone and the kid you are at 11 is very different to the kid you are at 15 or 16, let alone at 18.

Would I say the state system is failing? My experience of it, both as a kid and as a parent is very positive.  I think nowadays schools do most things better than they did when I went through the system years ago.  We looked at private schools for our eldest when they were about to enter reception.  They were all enticing but weighing up the extra cost, we felt the money would be better spent on other things for them and if that included private tutors, so be it.  They haven't needed one yet, but perhaps in the future.

But I'm not naive to be blind to the fact that education is a lottery in the UK and I only have to look at schools in neighbouring boroughs or councils to know that parent and child experiences can be vastly different to my own.

tapzilla2k

That's an argument from two authors who go into detail about how Private Schools create a tiny minority that tends to get all the top jobs locking out everyone else and distorting society (you've no doubt moaned about Judges decisions, that's a closed off group). The authors solution is quite radical.

The most we'd see happening with private schools is VAT being charged on school fees and said private schools losing their charitable status. Plus they'd be overseen by Ofsted removing their ability to regulate themselves. When you send a child to Private School it's about status and getting your child into the upper end of Society. You have to be exceptionally gifted to overcome those barriers if you are educated in state schools.

Pacifico

Doesnt help at all I'm afraid. If people want to spend their money on better quality products (education, baked beans, cars etc) why shouldn't they?. If they get value out of that extra spending then the supply of that product is clearly working.

Do you understand now?

rustybin

Read the article. You might learn something.

Pacifico

But how is any of that going help the failings in the State system - it is just going to make it more difficult for anyone to escape that system.

You dont improve State Education by making Private Education more expensive.