Grammar further away vs good local comp
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Re: Grammar further away vs good local comp
curly-girly, as per my earlier post we have 1 DC at a (near by) GS and 1 at the local upper school.
FWIW my observations are that at GS the vast majority of DCs will do well because they don’t really have a chance not to, if that makes sense. The whole culture, environment and ethos of the school virtually ensures good exam grades, they are very much steered towards academic subjects throughout and the DCs aren’t considered ‘geeks’ for wanting to learn.
At the upper school the opportunities for those who want to do well, are self-motivated, hard-working and who have parental encouragement and support are there in equal measure. What is different is that there is an element at the school who have no real interest in being there, and consequently the possibility of being distracted and/or coming under peer pressure not to work is that much greater.
The likelihood of that possibility becoming a reality, of course, varies from child to child and only you can really judge whether it’s likely to be a problem for your own DC. HTH
FWIW my observations are that at GS the vast majority of DCs will do well because they don’t really have a chance not to, if that makes sense. The whole culture, environment and ethos of the school virtually ensures good exam grades, they are very much steered towards academic subjects throughout and the DCs aren’t considered ‘geeks’ for wanting to learn.
At the upper school the opportunities for those who want to do well, are self-motivated, hard-working and who have parental encouragement and support are there in equal measure. What is different is that there is an element at the school who have no real interest in being there, and consequently the possibility of being distracted and/or coming under peer pressure not to work is that much greater.
The likelihood of that possibility becoming a reality, of course, varies from child to child and only you can really judge whether it’s likely to be a problem for your own DC. HTH
Re: Grammar further away vs good local comp
I kind of agree with your observations Rob, but it is not true of all children at all grammar schools. One of the Kent boys' grammar schools achieves GCSE results pretty close to the national average for comprehensive schools. And if you put all the Kent grammar school results in order by GCSE results, this school comes midway-ish amongst all the Kent grammar schools - so there are some other Kent grammar schools which come way below the comprehensive national average.
Ask a boy at this school why some do well and some don't, despite it being selective entry, and the answer is ...... some of them don't work, some of them take too much cannabis, some of the teachers are rubbish.
Ask a boy at this school why some do well and some don't, despite it being selective entry, and the answer is ...... some of them don't work, some of them take too much cannabis, some of the teachers are rubbish.
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wonderwoman
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Re: Grammar further away vs good local comp
I think it may depend on the actual schools - it is always best to look as you say curly-girly. Some children definitely suit GS, some, though bright, don't.Rob Clark wrote: FWIW my observations are that at GS the vast majority of DCs will do well because they don’t really have a chance not to, if that makes sense. The whole culture, environment and ethos of the school virtually ensures good exam grades, they are very much steered towards academic subjects throughout and the DCs aren’t considered ‘geeks’ for wanting to learn.
Our local schools are both good, I really do like them both - but the GS (very high achieving) will, I would say kick out (they probably say encourage or suggest pupils leave) pupils who don't measure up in whatever way. Several have left from both my children's year groups. They go to the local secondary if there is room. I have only known one go the other way and that was because the family moved into the area and 2 pupils swapped schools.
Oh and the top sets are called 'boffs' and the bottom groups 'thick'. Nice. At the sec mod this doesn't happen because they celebrate all sorts of achievement, not just academic.
