St Olaves Result

Eleven Plus (11+) in Bexley and Bromley

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overthehill
Posts: 11
Joined: Wed Mar 03, 2010 2:00 pm

Post by overthehill »

yes why are justifying yourselves to me?

we all want whats best for our kids.
all i said was why go on about what school to send your child when many don't have a choice!

yes many kids are over prepped and they do struggle without the extra help when they get to grammar schools.............

but you wouldn't want to understand, so why am i going on about it?
Gercha
Posts: 90
Joined: Thu Sep 18, 2008 5:47 pm

Post by Gercha »

Hi Overthehill

I do understand how you are feeling but at the end of the day we ALL want what is best for our children. It is frustrating that there is only one grammar school for boys in Bromley (which is why a lot of Bromley kids take the Kent and Bexley tests).

In answer to your question re: Olave appeals I can tell you that we appealled last year. My eldest ds is there and my other son missed St Olaves by 3 marks. We lost our appeal and actually went to the ombudsman because the appeal process was flawed. The ombudsman found in our favour and offered a fresh appeal which we subsequently lost BUT we felt we had to try everything we could. My ds had tried his hardest and we owed it to him to do the same. 10 appeals were heard in all and 2 were successful - both with extreme cases, one medical and one social. I have to say this was unusual as St Olave appeals are rarely successful.

Please tell your friend that my son is now at Wilmington and absolutely flying, he loves his school. The journey is longer but he has settled in really well and actually said to me the other day "I'm glad I didn't go to St Olaves mum, I love my school". Yes St Olaves is a fantastic school but like most schools not without it's faults.

The whole grammar school selection process probably isn't fair but, you know what, life isn't either.

I'm sure your friend's son will have a great time at Wilmington, it is a great school.
nissi
Posts: 117
Joined: Fri Jan 08, 2010 4:24 pm
Location: surrey

Post by nissi »

Overthehill

I get really frustated when someone like you comes along and makes assumptions about the rest of us. You are entitled to your opinion of course!

Like Treacle and WhenWillTheProcessEnd, we have worked very hard and done without to help our boys. I drive an old car and have for gone having work done on our house and holidays etc. I have spent time helping my son to familiarise himself with the tests for 11 plus exams and am very pleased that he has worked hard to goet his rightfully deserved place. My son has not been 'over-coached '- his IQ is within the top 5% and he was identified as a gifted and talented child from nursery school.

I agree with Sherry: you didn't have to choose the highly selective grammar- there are quite a number of perfectly acceptable comps in the bromley area after all since you are such a champion of fairness :roll:

We are all aiming for what is best for our children . It is not our fault that other are not in a position to choose and our dilemmas are simply to know what is best for our DC and families. If your son was fortunate enough to pass St O's without any help then well done him, but PLEASE don't even attempt to pass judgement on the rest of us :x :x :x :x :x :x :x :x :x :x

Rant over :D :D
nissi
Posts: 117
Joined: Fri Jan 08, 2010 4:24 pm
Location: surrey

Post by nissi »

If parents are honest they know if their children will be overstretched at grammar school and I beleive the vast majority of parents wouldn't put such a child into a highly selective grammar school like Olave's. We just want happy well adjusted and if possible well educated kids. It ain't too much to ask is it? We wouldn't have this problem if all schools were near enough equally good!
overthehill
Posts: 11
Joined: Wed Mar 03, 2010 2:00 pm

Post by overthehill »

lol, lol,lol,lol!!!!!!!!!!!!

thanks Gercha, very helpful......

why are you guys so sensitive? we are all angry with the system, Its about time people saw both sides of the story! I'm sure there are many people on this site that share my views.
we all make sacrafices for our kids, but we don't boast.
the "champion of fairness" and you would know that? how pathetic?
jingle
Posts: 290
Joined: Mon Oct 05, 2009 2:35 pm
Location: kent

Post by jingle »

Not really sure what you are looking for on this forum Overthehill? Is it advice, support? Or do you just want to wind people up?
Everyone is entitled to their opinion obviously, but there are certain rules on this forum. I don't believe you have read them!
Please do so and then return if you have something positive, useful or even entertaining to say.
overthehill
Posts: 11
Joined: Wed Mar 03, 2010 2:00 pm

Post by overthehill »

I have entertained you.....
other wise you wouldn't have responded!
also if you had read my post you would have seen that gercha had replied with an answer and some advice re: appeal (olaves)

i'm not trying to wind anyone up, honestly!
i felt angry so i signed on and expressed how i felt, isn't that what we are all doing here? life isn't nice if the above people feel angry about my opinions then they are entitled to. i can accept that.
overthehill
yoyo123
Posts: 8099
Joined: Mon Jun 18, 2007 3:32 pm
Location: East Kent

Post by yoyo123 »

At this time of year feelings can run high, however, can I remind you all of forum rules..

especially rule 1

Be Polite

This seems obvious, however, many can sometimes forget that common courtesy goes a long way to lending respect to both you and your opinions. Just because you don't see the other readers' faces doesn't mean they don't have feelings and won't be hurt by rude comments. When you read something that you find silly, rude or insulting, first assume that perhaps there is more to the post than you initially thought. Re-read it and keep in mind that tone and inflection is difficult to convey in written form. It may be that the person is attempting a joke or is exaggerating on purpose. It is best to politely request clarification before accusing someone being ignorant, a liar, or worse.

If after clarification you still disagree with the person then politely outline your points. Try to avoid name-calling or even implying insults wherever possible. These tactics generally only inflame a situation and lead to what are known as "Flame Wars." Whenever a flame war starts it usually ruins a perfectly good discussion. Others will lose interest in the thread and the discussion board in general if this kind of interchange is found here.


Thank you
yoyo123
moderator
bingybongy
Posts: 42
Joined: Tue Nov 10, 2009 3:31 pm

Post by bingybongy »

Just thought you might be interested to hear our story... vain as I am!!

My son was at the local primary and has always been top of the class. We were adament that we did not want to go down the private route as we were in principle dead against the whole concept, even though we could afford it.

The problem was that as time went on and he moved up the years, I realised that he was not best served by the school - it seemed to be an inconvenience to them that they had 29 kids at one level and my son streets ahead.

As time went on it became clear that they were not catering for his needs, he was getting bored and we had a few incidents with bad behaviour etc. which came up during consultation. The school showed a lack of support for the 11+, and just seemed happy to ship everyone off to the local comp, otherwise it didn't look like they were supporting the state system. (It also transpires that the Head's 3 kids went to Tonbridge School, were unhappy, left them almost broken financially and left the Head with a general hatred for the private sector!)

After a lot of soul searching, it dawned on me that the only reason we hadn't sent him to private school was because I was being tight. I realised that I was working hard, earning good money, but what for - eventually I came to believe that you can't take it with you, and if you were going to blow money on something, your kids education was probably one of the best investments you can make as an alternative to a midlife crisis - certainly better than a flash car, speedboat or mistress!

So we sent him of to the local prep to discover that he was no longer top of the class and there were others just as bright out there. He was finally being challenged and has not been in trouble since, taken his 11+ and is off to Grammar school in September. He probably would have done it anyway, without the private education, but in this case it is about the journey, not the destination.

Once you have all woken up from this rather long and tedious story, I hope it casts some light on the subject....
overthehill
Posts: 11
Joined: Wed Mar 03, 2010 2:00 pm

Post by overthehill »

thank you yoyo123 have read rule 1, i wasn't trying to be rude honestly, its just the way it came out......
i'm a nice person really!

and bingybongy thank you for sharing your story, goodluck to master bingybongy in september.
x
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