Our Useless Education System!

[CatB]

Originally Posted by Ian@1904

Wife has just had another chat with the Head of Science.
Answer 1
Seems our daughter is good solid c grade for chemistry. Erm no she is Oxbridge material (top GCSE student last summer in her school)the teacher is not getting the subject over.
Answer 2
There is a big leap in the work from GCSE to A level. yes we know that is why she is doing well in English, Maths, & Biology.
Oooh at least we have the Head of 6th form on our side, and Head of English.
Well it makes my wife's blood boil and I have to endure this before my next little father/daughter chat on Sunday whilst swotting for Monday driving theory test.

Hmm, that sounds familiar except in my case it was maths. I ended up having to take private tuition because my maths teacher just wasn't capable (he had got a C in his own A-level and had a degree in another subject). Fortunately my head of year overuled his predicted grade C and predicted me an A, I got the A, got into Cambridge and am now doing a PhD. The only advice I can give is to keep supporting your daughter and make sure she doesn't lose her confidence. My parents convinced me that it was a challenge to proove my maths teacher wrong and I can't resist a challenge... :-)

[nigelH]

Originally Posted by WannabeMermaid

Hmm, that sounds familiar except in my case it was maths. I ended up having to take private tuition because my maths teacher just wasn't capable (he had got a C in his own A-level and had a degree in another subject). Fortunately my head of year overuled his predicted grade C and predicted me an A, I got the A, got into Cambridge and am now doing a PhD. The only advice I can give is to keep supporting your daughter and make sure she doesn't lose her confidence. My parents convinced me that it was a challenge to proove my maths teacher wrong and I can't resist a challenge... :-)

Ho ho ho.

I had a similar problem but at an earlier age.
I went from a small class private school to a larger, brand new secondary school at 11+ as we did in those days and promptly slumped from near the top of the form to near the bottom.

My father spoke to the school and told them to find out what was the matter. I hated doing 'special' tests but I could do them OK until finally they hit one that floored me:
"Read the bottom line on the chart".
"I can read the big A at the top but the others are too far away."

I didn't know you were supposed to see things at that distance...
It also helps to have the Director of Secondary Education for Oxfordshire as your father. Teachers don't tell him that they know best.
I ended up with 6 A-levels, the Maths Prize and glasses.

[louigi]

Both my boys go to the local secondry or whatever they call it now.
befor they went to said school they were both fluent french speakers and had a good comand of german.
my eldest Oli (the quiet one) had been taught by the same teacher for a year, who kept dispairing in her reports that he was taking no notice and would fail as he would never master the languege, until she was showing off in front of her collegues and stoped him in the coridoor and spoke to him in french as they do, god did she get a surprise when his reply was fluent and gramaticaly corect. unfortunately the german teacher was also of the same standerd as the french one and now both my boys have dropped langueges. And me i'm not pleased.

As for the standerd of IT in the same school is pants unfortunately for my youngest who seams to devour It at a rate that shouldent be allowed. He is very blunt in his aproach to people and thold the IT teacher that she had wasted his time for the last year as she had taught him S F A.

no i dont believe the children are thick I think the quality of teaching is pants. Sorry to all you teachers out there but it shows, especialy when the parents have put the effort in.

[Scuttler]

I send both of mine to private school because the standard of schools in the local area is pretty dire.
I also think that when you're paying directly the teachers pay more attention to the parents and certainly in the schools my two are at the standards of teaching are far higher than most of the local comprehensives.