QE - Hype or For Real? (abridged)
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QE - Hype or For Real? (abridged)
[This is a copy of this thread, with much off-topic material removed.]
Hi
We went ot see QE last week on their open evening. Heaving(
!!!) and the tour was long and comprehensive. The guide wanted to show us everything and answered every question except what is in the tests!! The thing is that the reputation the school has got makes it extra hard to decide if we should go for it.
Any thoughts or views on whether this school is for a very intelligent boy(mine, of course
) or whether it is really an exam factory? 
Forms go in on the 24th October latest , so any comments, good or bad will be very appreciated.
Thanks in advance.
Hi
We went ot see QE last week on their open evening. Heaving(
!!!) and the tour was long and comprehensive. The guide wanted to show us everything and answered every question except what is in the tests!! The thing is that the reputation the school has got makes it extra hard to decide if we should go for it.Any thoughts or views on whether this school is for a very intelligent boy(mine, of course
) or whether it is really an exam factory? Forms go in on the 24th October latest , so any comments, good or bad will be very appreciated.Thanks in advance.
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coolmum123
- Posts: 271
- Joined: Fri Jan 25, 2008 11:18 pm
Hi,
we went to the QE open day last year and found it really hectic!! My DS did sit the exam but didn't go there.
I think the best thing to do is think back and analyse how you felt about the the school, were you happy with the extra curricular stuff available, what did you think of the teachers and headmaster etc also what did your DS think of it too (which is most important.)
I asked whether they did drama to which the answer was no, so my impression is that it is highly academic, sporty I wasn't sure about musical as we were whisked in and out of the music area!
DS thought the teachers were too strict on exam day and didn't feel that he would be able to approach them if he was struggling.
I didn't form a favourable impression of the head master if I'm honest.
I know one mum whose son went there and she fretted that she had made a mistake as her son was really unhappy, however whilst he has settled down now he isn't truly happy. Another mum told me that her DS feels like the only thing they do is study and he wouldn't reccomend it to anyone else. Her second boy attends an independant school. Of course I accept that these are only 2 incidents and that there are many boys who attend there who are happy.
It really is an individual choice but I would say go woth your gut instinct - even tho' boys do get excellent results in exams etc it depends on your DS personality and whther he thinks he would enjoy life at the school.
I hope that helps. I am sure that some current QE parents will be able to give you more of a flavour of what life is like - also if you look at the old threads on the Herts forum there are weekly threads of new boys at QE which you may find helpful!!
Regards
we went to the QE open day last year and found it really hectic!! My DS did sit the exam but didn't go there.
I think the best thing to do is think back and analyse how you felt about the the school, were you happy with the extra curricular stuff available, what did you think of the teachers and headmaster etc also what did your DS think of it too (which is most important.)
I asked whether they did drama to which the answer was no, so my impression is that it is highly academic, sporty I wasn't sure about musical as we were whisked in and out of the music area!
DS thought the teachers were too strict on exam day and didn't feel that he would be able to approach them if he was struggling.
I didn't form a favourable impression of the head master if I'm honest.
I know one mum whose son went there and she fretted that she had made a mistake as her son was really unhappy, however whilst he has settled down now he isn't truly happy. Another mum told me that her DS feels like the only thing they do is study and he wouldn't reccomend it to anyone else. Her second boy attends an independant school. Of course I accept that these are only 2 incidents and that there are many boys who attend there who are happy.
It really is an individual choice but I would say go woth your gut instinct - even tho' boys do get excellent results in exams etc it depends on your DS personality and whther he thinks he would enjoy life at the school.
I hope that helps. I am sure that some current QE parents will be able to give you more of a flavour of what life is like - also if you look at the old threads on the Herts forum there are weekly threads of new boys at QE which you may find helpful!!
Regards
Hello,
There has been lots of posts in the past two years in this section about QE-pro and against. I would recommend going back and reading through them.
From myself I can only say (my son is in Y8 ) that so far so good. It is a well organised and disciplined school. Sport is treated very seriously and it takes over lives of the boys, who get into teams. Music is so so and my son 'does ' his music outside school (Barnet Orchsstra and private lessons), which I think works well (music is not associated as one of the school chores and widens his contact with more people from outside). Drama is practically non-existant (it makes my son happy-he hates it).
There is quite a lot of homework, but I do not think it is unusual for selective schools (only Latymer seems to be more relaxed about it ;kids do major part of their homework during learning sessions at school, but then I heard that half of the class have tutors before GCSEs and A levels- unconfirmed). My son seems to be happy. Not being particulary academic he stays in the middle of the sets for most of the subjects, likes most of the teachers especially PE ones, had made a lot of friends, has time for extracurricular activities - music and tennis and of course always manages to find time for PS2, Call of duty 4 etc.
I probabely would say the school would not suit children with very sensitive personalities, especially if they came from cotton wooly prep schools and children. who do not like sports.
.
There has been lots of posts in the past two years in this section about QE-pro and against. I would recommend going back and reading through them.
From myself I can only say (my son is in Y8 ) that so far so good. It is a well organised and disciplined school. Sport is treated very seriously and it takes over lives of the boys, who get into teams. Music is so so and my son 'does ' his music outside school (Barnet Orchsstra and private lessons), which I think works well (music is not associated as one of the school chores and widens his contact with more people from outside). Drama is practically non-existant (it makes my son happy-he hates it).
There is quite a lot of homework, but I do not think it is unusual for selective schools (only Latymer seems to be more relaxed about it ;kids do major part of their homework during learning sessions at school, but then I heard that half of the class have tutors before GCSEs and A levels- unconfirmed). My son seems to be happy. Not being particulary academic he stays in the middle of the sets for most of the subjects, likes most of the teachers especially PE ones, had made a lot of friends, has time for extracurricular activities - music and tennis and of course always manages to find time for PS2, Call of duty 4 etc.
I probabely would say the school would not suit children with very sensitive personalities, especially if they came from cotton wooly prep schools and children. who do not like sports.
.
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londonmum35
- Posts: 112
- Joined: Wed Sep 02, 2009 8:16 pm
I think I formed quite a favourable impression from the QE open day. Went last year too and thought the boys arrogant but this year they just seemed extremely confident and polite.
But since the open days I've heard from a former QE student that one of the reasons they have people leaving at 6th form is that they assess you before you take your GCSEs, and only let you choose A level subjects in which they think you'll get an A at A level, and heavy you into not taking those in which they think you won't.
Has anyone else heard this? Latymer told me unless you had an A at GCSE it would be unlikely you'd be allowed to take the A level, but I didn't know at the time about the above so didn't ask them if they'd go as far.
But since the open days I've heard from a former QE student that one of the reasons they have people leaving at 6th form is that they assess you before you take your GCSEs, and only let you choose A level subjects in which they think you'll get an A at A level, and heavy you into not taking those in which they think you won't.
Has anyone else heard this? Latymer told me unless you had an A at GCSE it would be unlikely you'd be allowed to take the A level, but I didn't know at the time about the above so didn't ask them if they'd go as far.
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coolmum123
- Posts: 271
- Joined: Fri Jan 25, 2008 11:18 pm
I too have heard that if you aren't predicted A grades at GCSE then you are asked to leave.
One of my friends told me that that happened to her nephew and a couple of his friends,they were asked to leave so they had to go to a 6th form college to continue their studies. All I can say is last year 4 boys from my DS's class were offered places at QE and none of them accepted as the school has a reputation of being very highly pressurised.
Actually if I'm honest I have not heard anything positive about the school from anyone whom I have spoken to, even from the boys who I know who go there.
But as I said it depends on the boy. I am sure that if they have the right personality then they will thrive there. When we went on the open day the pupils seemed happy enough and liked the school.
regards
One of my friends told me that that happened to her nephew and a couple of his friends,they were asked to leave so they had to go to a 6th form college to continue their studies. All I can say is last year 4 boys from my DS's class were offered places at QE and none of them accepted as the school has a reputation of being very highly pressurised.
Actually if I'm honest I have not heard anything positive about the school from anyone whom I have spoken to, even from the boys who I know who go there.
But as I said it depends on the boy. I am sure that if they have the right personality then they will thrive there. When we went on the open day the pupils seemed happy enough and liked the school.
regards
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MoneyPenny
- Posts: 28
- Joined: Thu Jul 23, 2009 1:27 pm
Missmem,
You will hear lots of good things about QE but more bad things than most. Do what moose suggests and read the posts from the last 2 years, especially from James, loulou and some others on the QE threads with boys there. Then marry those impressions and facts with how your son is in terms of personality and work ethics. Also how far you want to travel and where you live.This is a more balanced way to decided if you want to consider QE as one of your choices.
You will hear lots of good things about QE but more bad things than most. Do what moose suggests and read the posts from the last 2 years, especially from James, loulou and some others on the QE threads with boys there. Then marry those impressions and facts with how your son is in terms of personality and work ethics. Also how far you want to travel and where you live.This is a more balanced way to decided if you want to consider QE as one of your choices.
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hermanmunster
- Posts: 12896
- Joined: Fri Sep 15, 2006 9:51 am
- Location: The Seaside
There is a lot to consider in choosing any school - certainly not just the academic results.
The A level results at QE are no different from many other boy only GS around the country where the pressure both to get in and work may be considerably less.
So it comes fown to whether you like the atmosphere, the other kids, the other activities, and how much hassle it is to get there,
The A level results at QE are no different from many other boy only GS around the country where the pressure both to get in and work may be considerably less.
So it comes fown to whether you like the atmosphere, the other kids, the other activities, and how much hassle it is to get there,
I have two boys. One Y8 at QE and one Y6 doing 11+ this year.
Coming from state education, Y7 has been a rather steep learning curve for my elder DS. He did feel a lot of pressure when he first joined QE. He used to think school as play group, hardly any work, top group in everything etc. With QE, all boys are bright, but only a minority anyone would considered a geek. I don't get to know all his school mates as I used to in his primary school. But those that I met at birthday parties/ tournaments are really normal kids with down to earth parents. The children know their place well and when to have fun. They only 'muck' around at playgrounds and not in the classrooms.
The experience I had over the last year is that the boys are very much encouraged by the teachers to take interest/responsibility with their own learning both academic and any extra-curricular activities. The variety of the latter is amazingly wide, including the numerous opportunities of school trips both in the UK and abroad. The school truly believes that 'the ones who do most, do best'.
Although the PE teachers have a reputation of being rather disciplinary and harsh, my DS actually finds them very likeable and he is not the sporty-type either. These teachers are charged with making sure that the boys are brought up to be confident and fit men and not wooly wrapped mommy's boys. My DS understands that the respect comes from trying one's best and exceed one's expectation but doesn't need to be best in class in sport.
I'm really pleased to see how my elder DS has developed from child to adolescent over the last year. Homework and tests are really not as draconian as some described, maybe it is just my DS, and possibly a good few of his friends, who are still quite laid back regarding revisions, so it isn't something that has bothered him. And yet, he did manage to move from being average in his year to be in set 1 on a number of subjects.
However, whilst my DH and I have been very pleased with our choice of school for our elder DS (apparently it's his first choice ever since he was 3 so he said), we do face the same dilemma with our younger DS as many other new parents. Now that we had the first hand experience with the school, we have to think hard if the environment is suitable for my younger one, who is just as able but can be very competitive. Competitions are encouraged in all areas, academic, music, sports, chess etc. People take failure differently, some will improve out of failures, but some will just quit. The latter will of course have detrimental effect to one's confidence in life. But for how long should the parents keep their boys in cotton wool environment before they have to face the real competition in the society? The right time is really dependent on the individual and the parents are no doubt the best judge for their own child.
Coming from state education, Y7 has been a rather steep learning curve for my elder DS. He did feel a lot of pressure when he first joined QE. He used to think school as play group, hardly any work, top group in everything etc. With QE, all boys are bright, but only a minority anyone would considered a geek. I don't get to know all his school mates as I used to in his primary school. But those that I met at birthday parties/ tournaments are really normal kids with down to earth parents. The children know their place well and when to have fun. They only 'muck' around at playgrounds and not in the classrooms.
The experience I had over the last year is that the boys are very much encouraged by the teachers to take interest/responsibility with their own learning both academic and any extra-curricular activities. The variety of the latter is amazingly wide, including the numerous opportunities of school trips both in the UK and abroad. The school truly believes that 'the ones who do most, do best'.
Although the PE teachers have a reputation of being rather disciplinary and harsh, my DS actually finds them very likeable and he is not the sporty-type either. These teachers are charged with making sure that the boys are brought up to be confident and fit men and not wooly wrapped mommy's boys. My DS understands that the respect comes from trying one's best and exceed one's expectation but doesn't need to be best in class in sport.
I'm really pleased to see how my elder DS has developed from child to adolescent over the last year. Homework and tests are really not as draconian as some described, maybe it is just my DS, and possibly a good few of his friends, who are still quite laid back regarding revisions, so it isn't something that has bothered him. And yet, he did manage to move from being average in his year to be in set 1 on a number of subjects.
However, whilst my DH and I have been very pleased with our choice of school for our elder DS (apparently it's his first choice ever since he was 3 so he said), we do face the same dilemma with our younger DS as many other new parents. Now that we had the first hand experience with the school, we have to think hard if the environment is suitable for my younger one, who is just as able but can be very competitive. Competitions are encouraged in all areas, academic, music, sports, chess etc. People take failure differently, some will improve out of failures, but some will just quit. The latter will of course have detrimental effect to one's confidence in life. But for how long should the parents keep their boys in cotton wool environment before they have to face the real competition in the society? The right time is really dependent on the individual and the parents are no doubt the best judge for their own child.
Are there any Latymer parents around? I am very curious how it is possible for Latymer's pupils to achieve almost the same results as QE (the difference is negligable) without the same practices as in QE ie giving kids recommendations to go for certain A levels. The level of teaching and teh intake must be very similar in both schools.
I have a feeling that they do it the same way, but it does not appear like a 'cull', because they have an extended 6th form. This could mean some kids have to leave Latymer and threafter their spaces and some additional ones are filled by children from outside. The 'cull' would not be that obvious then. As someone mentioned before QE does not take any 6th formers from other schools.
I have a feeling that they do it the same way, but it does not appear like a 'cull', because they have an extended 6th form. This could mean some kids have to leave Latymer and threafter their spaces and some additional ones are filled by children from outside. The 'cull' would not be that obvious then. As someone mentioned before QE does not take any 6th formers from other schools.
