"Were you tutored?" and other scary 11+ interview questions

[vldbee]

Yes my DD was straight out asked this in one of her interviews last week. She of course answered honestly - which was yes but mainly by my parents but some with tutor as she goes to a state school and we needed a bit of support and steering in the right direction. Is it really taboo to admit to this? Did she blow it by answering this honestly? She feels she answered the rest of the academic and personal questions well though. Playing waiting game for Consortium replies to come out on Feb 13/14 now...

[lefol]

She gave the perfect answer to the question . Majority of kids are tutored and you will find that the tutoring continues throughout year 7 up to year 11 , even in private schools and if it helps the child achieve their potential, I can see nothing wrong with it . Ds1 attends a local independent and a few of his friends go to other local indies . We know parents with children in year 9, 10 and 11 and they still get tutored so please do not worry as I am sure she has done incredibly well .

Tutoring is simply not reserved to state school kids , it happens across the board . I was quite surprised when I found out it goes on in the indie sector and I have no criticism of those that tutor their children . Parents want what's best hence we all spend our time posting on this forum.

[Middlesexmum]

Dd was asked - 'don't you want to go to X school like your sister?' Dd replied 'I want to find the best school for me'.

[Yamin151]

And would think that the interviewers will also see a child who is happy to do extra work in her less strong areas, if needed, big plus points in a high achieving school I should think!

[millean]

Middlesex mum DD-maximum respect-great answer! The other sneaky one is do you get on well with your brother/sister (where they know they currently go to a competitor school)! For me these questions speak volumes about the schools......

[daddylonglegs]

Sounds like a really good answer to me......especially as it is an honest answer!

[Middlesexmum]

I hope so!

Still think it's naughty of them to ask though.

[vldbee]

Thanks guys for your reassurance and insight. @Lefol yes I have been told by other tutors that they tutor kids already in private schools. The little tutoring she did also helped a lot with her confidence so I am happy we did it and I can't put a price on that! @Middlesexmum I think they should have offered your DD a place on the spot for such a brilliant answer. @Yasmin55 I think DD rose to the occasion really well and still managed to keep up all extra curriculars and own school work. @millean - DD is an only child and was asked if she had siblings, when she answered 'No' was then asked if she liked being an only child! Luckily she does

[HappyCow]

MiddlesexMum - Hats off to your DD. Always better to stay honest.

My DS was asked which school he thought was the best academically out of the ones he had applied for!

[SHertsDad]

Dd was asked - 'don't you want to go to X school like your sister?' Dd replied 'I want to find the best school for me'.

Top answer!
Some of the questions that my DD was asked around school choices, etc were well beyond acceptable.
At job interviews there are questions that should not be asked. Perhaps these interviews should also have that type of rules.
Or should we be concerned if wrong questions are answered wrongly?
So if DD would be asked how much mum or dad earn, they'd go "£1M a month". Or £100 a month...