French in year 7 and 8

[Amber]

Mais oui, naturellement.

[Amber]

the main issue is whether the child has any interest in learning a foreign language or not; fair enough give it a go for a year or so, but if it is still a futile exercise then for heavens sake, don't make it like a tonne of lead dead weight around the poor child's neck. It will only suffocate that .

Would you apply the same criterion to Maths, or English then? What about Music, or Geography? Or Art, which my Year 8 son is so desperate to drop that he actually asked me to write a letter to the school saying as he was obviously so bad at it could he do something else instead?

(I just told him that the school had not recognised his particular brand of artistic talent yet).

[poiuyt]

This then opens up the debate on the uselessness of the English educational system rather than a vocational approach! I am all for a focused education system geared to the strengths and interests of the individual.

[yoyo123]

oh , if only I had been allowed to give up PE!

[KS10]

Don't you mean EPE?

[Amber]

This then opens up the debate on the uselessness of the English educational system rather than a vocational approach! I am all for a focused education system geared to the strengths and interests of the individual.

There is no evidence to suggest that such a system, even if it were attainable outside Utopia, would lead to any kind of improvement in educational standards. In fact 'individualised learning' as a concept has been somewhat discredited of late, and countries where this is the key model (notably the USA) are not highly regarded internationally in education circles, whereas countries which make very little allowance for individual preferences, 'learning styles' and talents, notably China, do rather well.

I do think, even if there is some merit in tailoring education to an individual's strengths, which there may be, allowing 'interests' to be a factor among children deciding what to study has some inherent pitfalls.

The English education system, btw, while it may be idiosyncratic, unfocused, lacking strategic direction and prone to influence from all kinds of financially motivated consultants and concerns, is not actually 'useless'. It has produced, and continues to produce, excellence in many fields, notably the sciences, engineering and design. It is easy to rubbish it when one sees one's own child having some trouble, and indeed there are aspects of it I loathe, but it is not useless.

[KS10]

I taught a girl in top set once who was struggling. The rest were managing quite well, but the mum was insisting that we had chosen the wrong text book for her child.

[poiuyt]

Let's agree to disagree on this one; this is the battle of the left vs the right.

[Amber]

Let's agree to disagree on this one; this is the battle of the left vs the right.

We can agree to disagree by all means; but it has nothing to do with politics and cannot be simplified in that manner. You know nothing of my politics, and I am not interested in battle, only debate.

[poiuyt]

There need to be a comPlete overhaul in my opinion, I wonder what the drop out rate is at comp sch of children at or just before gcse! A vocational education at an earlier age will focus interest and motivate.