CLSG is leaving the North London Consortium next year

[shootmenow]

The Head is hardly new. She's been there for 5 years.
Not wanting parents to see what is being taught goes a great deal deeper, I'm afraid.
If you are thinking of jumping ship, my advice is to go in year 5. The start of year 6 is not enough time to make up lost academic ground or put their confidence back together. Just comparing our experience to DD's classmates who did poorly on the 11+ exams.

[alwayslastminute]

She was internally appointed as the head two years ago. Before she worked under Diana Veron who left City for one of the most prestigious girls schools in Austria. She was the head of academic department while Diana Veron was there. Totally a different personality to Diana Veron. She started changing the methods of learning and policies. I am afraid, I don't have any confidences in school now.

[shootmenow]

PMed you.

[Dadofmytwo]

I don't know about Maths in their senior school. In prep, their Maths level is at least one year behind an acceptable level. They have no one who can teach proper maths in prep. With the new head who recently changed to the policy of independent learning and stopped giving the homework and forbids the kids to take subject books home as they don't want parents to know what they are learning, it is very worrying for the future.

I am a parent of a current year 7 DD. I think any prospective parents or pupils who are worried about the maths teaching in the senior should ask current parents or look at the school's GCSE or A level results which speak for themselves.

Alwayslastminute, it is not clear whether you have a daughter in prep currently or not. If you are a current parent and you are unhappy with the standard of teaching please feed this back. This academic year all parents were asked to provide qualitative feedback on the head by survey as part of her role appraisal. Did you raise your concerns then? This would have been an opportunity to do so perhaps as a group if other prep parents felt the same way as you do.

There is a lot of homework in year 7 (DD has had more than her friends at other North London academic indies) and regular tests in all subjects throughout the year. There were no formal exams in year 7 except Maths as the girls will be placed in sets for that subject next year. The school states that all girls are expected to do very well in Maths and all sets are able to take further maths at A level. The only difference is the pace at which the top set work (i.e. very fast).

Without rehashing our whole story.....When we pulled DD out of City and sent her to a local prep, the standard of her maths was appalling (she just hadn't been taught some very basic concepts!). It really doesn't surprise me that they've panicked if the 'golden ticket'/Donkey girls look like they will fail.

Shootmenow, I've noticed that you always appear on CLSG threads with negative comments. This is fine if your experience helps prospective parents to make an informed school choice. However, it would be helpful if you make it clear that you are not a current parent and your experience if the prep school only was some ( perhaps 4 or 5?) years ago.

From your posts it seems as though you were unhappy with your DD's experience of the prep but have been very happy with NCLS. I can't comment with any authority on the prep teaching as my DD started in year 7 from a state primary. This year nearly all the prep girls joined the senior school in year 7. As far as I know only one did not go onto the senior and this could have been for any number of reasons.

Since a quarter of the girls in the lower come from CLSG prep, the school would be unlikely to maintain its academic results if 25% were starting from below the 11 plus academic baseline... or alternatively the secondary teaching must be very good to have raised the standard of the "golden ticket" girls as you call them.

DD has friends who joined year 7 from the prep as well as other state and independent schools. I have not been given the impression that prep girls are academically weaker than any of their peers.

I hope this post provides some balance to the debate that has unfortuntely strayed from the original thread (i.e. CLSG leaving the consortium).

[Ellie]

As an existing parent, CLSG has explained publicly why they are coming out of the consortium. It is a great school and it brings out the very best in the girls, academically, emotionally and socially.

[southgate dad]

I also have a DD at CLSG in year 7 and I concur with Ellie's comments. It is extremely hard to differentiate girls on academic abilities in my DDs class who were at the prep from the external ones. In fact the maths homework I have seen and attempted to assist her with is at least 2 years above what I had done all those years ago.

CLSG places a lot of emphasis on individual and reflective learning and pupils developing study habits and methods based on an analysis of their learning styles.

[alwayslastminute]

I am a Prep parent. Every parent in Prep knows the problem with Maths. I don't want to go into details. There are two groups of kids in City's Prep. One group is constantly tutored Maths in advance by their parents or a private tutor at least once a week. The other group lets the school teach and are a bit laid back. Both groups realise the problem with Maths but the ones who are tutored usually pretend that their children are gifted with Maths. The ones who do not tutor their kids, complained to the school. In the end, we all end up tutoring our kids for the 11 plus. It is a fact in City Prep and might be in most Prep schools with Senior schools attached to them. The main thing I want to point out is that they don't even learn basic Maths in Prep from the school alone, without the help of tutoring. There is no homework relating to Maths. We're not able to see their study books. We don't know what they are doing at school. There is not one good Maths teacher in Prep. The teacher who was good with Maths in Yr 6, left the school last year. The girls in my DD's class will be OK with Maths in the Senior school now as everyone is forced to have a tutor outside school as the parents don't want their DDs to be left behind.

[Moon unit]

Interested to learn that all sets are able to do further maths A level. Does that mean anyone can do it if they request to?

[kittymum]

I am a Prep parent. Every parent in Prep knows the problem with Maths. I don't want to go into details. There are two groups of kids in City's Prep. One group is constantly tutored Maths in advance by their parents or a private tutor at least once a week. The other group lets the school teach and are a bit laid back. Both groups realise the problem with Maths but the ones who are tutored usually pretend that their children are gifted with Maths. The ones who do not tutor their kids, complained to the school. In the end, we all end up tutoring our kids for the 11 plus. It is a fact in City Prep and might be in most Prep schools with Senior schools attached to them. The main thing I want to point out is that they don't even learn basic Maths in Prep from the school alone, without the help of tutoring. There is no homework relating to Maths. We're not able to see their study books. We don't know what they are doing at school. There is not one good Maths teacher in Prep. The teacher who was good with Maths in Yr 6, left the school last year. The girls in my DD's class will be OK with Maths in the Senior school now as everyone is forced to have a tutor outside school as the parents don't want their DDs to be left behind.

Having read this about the prep school at CLSG can I ask why people pay in excess of £5k a term if it's so bad? I'm genuinely confused by this. I was that intrigued that I had a look at the website and it appears that there's 24 girls a year in the prep school and that they have to pass a selection exam and that this is already oversubscribed for the next couple of years intake. If things are so dire at CLSG why are people staying there and also queuing up to get in? £5k+ a term is a lot of money to pay for substandard teaching plus the costs of tutors on top of it.

[confusedcom89]

alwayslastminute - why on earth do you leave your DD there if it is so bad?