Slough Grammar 11+ exam dates BROUGHT FORWARD

stevew61 · Post by **stevew61** » Thu Mar 26, 2009 9:30 pm

I think this is a positive move forward, hope that other authorities will follow. In our case "wake up Reading Borough."

A knock on effect from my perspective, Reading LEA are moving to six choices, Slough are offering an earlier exam, so it looks like numbers taking the exam might increase. Not sure I could put DS2 through the journey to Slough from Caversham, but if we had an offer...

Recently local radio "Berkshire" ran a discussion on Slough schools for Slough kids, Reading LEA is suffering a shortage of secondary school places. Would be a shame if "protectionism" crept in and everyone shrunk their catchments, as that would reduce CHOICE

steve

wraysburymum · Post by **wraysburymum** » Thu Mar 26, 2009 10:17 pm

Being "local" to the grammar schools it is also very depressing to watch local, bright kids being ousted from grammar places as higher achieving children from great distances take the places. I do feel sorry for the poor children who start their journey to school at 7am and don't get home til 5.30 just because they are able to attend a school so far from home. Most good schools (Charters, Windsor Boys etc) and the Bucks grammars operate catchment areas and this seems to work.

Bewildered · Post by **Bewildered** » Thu Mar 26, 2009 10:36 pm

Not until the powers that be, get the education in this country right, will parents feel that the local school is good enough for their little ones.

Until that time, parents will stay discontent with the very many anomalies that the current system holds, and always try to attain the best they can for their DC, within the limitations of this system.

I'm still a fan of the education system in Finland. Can we swap/copy, pls?

overpeck · Post by **overpeck** » Fri Mar 27, 2009 8:04 pm

Hi Wraysbury mum I can understand your point but... until a gorvernment realises that grammar schools have a place in the English education system you will always have this situation. The alternative is to drive up house prices in the areas that have GS which allows the better off the privilege of a selective education. This will therefore lead to families with less money having to put up with the local school which may not be the right school for their child. This then falls back on the LEAs to provide either very good comprehensive schools or the old system of GS and secondary mods...

partygirl · Post by **partygirl** » Fri Mar 27, 2009 11:41 pm

Wraysbury Mum, I have to agree with Overpeck on this one. The government and indeed the opposition are missing a trick in not realising the demand for GS. Their view that all schools should be of a good standard is to be applauded but in reality is not happening. I have watched the results from local schools in my area closely for the last eight years and they have remained fairly static despite the year on year rise in the GCSE results.

I fall into the category of a parent that will have to send their children to a school a long distance to get a decent education. I have one child that travels an hour to a GS school in Kingston and started in that school six years ago. I was hoping that I would not have to put my DD through the same trauma again but unfortunately six years down the line the schools are no better than they were when I was looking for a school for my DS. I did a lot of soul searching before entering my DS for the tests after seeing my DS leaving home at 7:15am and not returning until after 17:00 every day. The thing that swayed me was I had a bright child that deserved an equal life chance that her brother had. My DS will have to travel an hour to get to school in Slough come September.

Why have I put my children through this, because there are no decent schools in the area that I live unless you are of a particular religious faith. My children have just as much right to a decent education as those children that live in Slough, Bucks, Kent or anywhere else that has GS. If there were GS in my borough I would be applying to those instead of Slough therefore I make no apologies for the choices I have made.

I don't agree with the view that I am ousting a local child from gaining a GS locally. All of the children sit the same test and those who are the brightest will be offered places regardless of where they live. Children from local schools are prepared for the tests in primary school unlike children from outside the area who are not, in fact I had no help at all from my DS primary school despite several children from the school sitting GS tests.

Sorry if I have whittled on but as Overpeck says, until the government realises that GS have a fundamental place in the education system this situation will not change.

partygirl · Post by **partygirl** » Fri Mar 27, 2009 11:47 pm

for Those wanting to know about the NEW SLOUGH GS dates read below.

The information is on the SG website. Follow the link "Admissions" and then follow the link "Advice to Parents of Year 6 pupils". Here it clearly states that the tests will be sat in September this year along with the dates for Slough pupils and out of borough pupils.

bcookerblum · Post by **bcookerblum** » Sat Mar 28, 2009 1:00 am

Well thank goodness for this site and thank you so much for posting the info! Unless my children's school is in the minority, Slough schools either can't, won't or don't help or prepare the children in any way for the 11+. Our school won't even mention it and if pushed all they'll say is that they are a venue where it is held and know nothing more about it even though the majority of yr6 sit it every year! We've also heard nothing about the changes to the system from them( though thankfully we did get a leaflet about the sgs open evening) so those at our school( or schools if this is common to Slough) that don't attend this open evening( thinking to leave it until the beginning of yr6 maybe as I was until I heard through this site) are going to miss out on their chance as registration forms have to be in sometime in June now I see.....

wraysburymum · Post by **wraysburymum** » Sat Mar 28, 2009 1:50 pm

Hi everyone, just to add some light! I'm not against grammars (I was lucky to attend one of the best myself!) but having them does achieve a dual-class system. Where we are our LEA is against sending the bright kids to grammars as it then lowers the grades of the local secondary schools. In moving our children to grammar school so they achieve their best results we are lowering the standards of the secondary schools that we then don't want our kids to attend! It is a vicious circle and I am as much to blame as the next mum. There is no way in the world a "bright kid" could get into a grammar now without tuition (whether from inside a Bucks school or via a tutor or very bright/willing parent), the subjects they are tested on are not taught at school and certainly none of the maths is hit until year 7/8 (up to two years after the exams!) So you are unlikely to find children at the best schools whose parents have not made the sacrifice of over-stretching the mortgage to move into a better catchment area, bumped up the overdraft to pay for the best tuition or spent hours at the kitchen table working through books. But that doesn't make us bad parents, right? The original aim of grammar schools was to give very bright children from poorer backgrounds the opportunity of a "private" education without the fees. I don't think that rule applies now and they can show this by the proportion of children at grammars that claim free school meals (among other things).
Thirty years ago when we did 11+ you sat a paper and the top children went to a different school. End of story. We can't go back and competition for the places will only increase. The schools don't care how far the children travel to school as long as they bring with them the promise of high grades for the end of year results and tables! What employer doesn't do the same? It's life.

Looking for help · Post by **Looking for help** » Sat Mar 28, 2009 3:08 pm

I agree with what you are saying, but I also think that things have changed dramatically in the last few years.
I have mistakenly approached the 11+ with my last child in exactly the same way as for my older 3, the last of whom sat the 11+ in November 2004. My older three passed, but the younger one has failed last November and there is no way that he is any different academically to his older siblings. Therefore the only difference is that the amount of tuition for everyone else sitting the test has increased so much in that time.
In my view the schools need to admit what is happening and stop the ridiculous advice that only 6 weeks preparaion is necessary - in many cases children are being intensively coached for over a year.
I expect that unless the parents keep up with intensive tuition throughout their secondary school career, their children will not achieve the kind of results that the grammars are looking for, which is a shame for both the children and the schools.
Rgds,
LFH

wraysburymum · Post by **wraysburymum** » Sat Mar 28, 2009 5:31 pm

Hi Overpeck etc, has anyone noticed the increased house prices in the Charter's catchment? A secondary school with excellent ofsted/results and house prices way over the top compared to a few miles away. If you can't afford to live within their catchment you can't send your children to their school. Exactly the same is true of the majority of good schools (Bucks grammars included). It is not in the Slough grammar's best interests to impose catchment areas: they would much rather select the best from 2000 entrants from a 50 mile radius than the best from 800 entrants within a 5 mile radius. So we will fuel the fire by throwing our money/time/effort and then complain when our fingers get burnt. It's certainly not fair but we can't change it ourselves, that can only be done at LEA/Government level.
I'm afraid I'm of the "if you can't beat them-join them" brigade too.