Non-motoring > Schools Bucking The System Miscellaneous
Thread Author: zippy Replies: 13
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New Tue 29 Aug 17 16:34 
 Schools Bucking The System - zippy
www.theguardian.com/education/2017/aug/29/grammar-school-unlawfully-threw-out-students-who-failed-to-get-top-grades

Similar evidence here. Local sixth form did everything to prevent my daughter joining and doing Maths, Chemistry, Physics and Biology at "A" level because she came from a failing school.

Comments like, "I am not sure you will pass all of these", "its a lot of hard work", "how about trying one A level first ", "how about easier subjects etc."

She got 3 A*s, in physics, chemistry and biology with some papers at 100% and is now a junior doctor.

It is a crying shame, that the trend is to concentrate on school results and not on educating the children. I know two teachers that are pulling their hair out over this.
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New Tue 29 Aug 17 17:16 
 Schools Bucking The System - smokie
All credit to you and your daughter, but I have to say that without knowing anything other than what you've written, and without the benefit of hindsight, I can see how one might consider that the school were making a very sensible suggestion, in everyone's interest.

If her results had been different I doubt you'd be on here saying we're happy we ignored the school's advice and did what we thought was best, even though it turned out to be a duff decision!!
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New Tue 29 Aug 17 17:24 
 Schools Bucking The System - zippy
She took the full range of GCSEs and got A and A* in all of them and A* in maths and sciences.

They just didn't want to take anyone from that particular school, it is well known around here.
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New Tue 29 Aug 17 17:34 
 Schools Bucking The System - Manatee
The fiddling has been going on one way and another for 20 odd years. The schools most focused on grades would all do general studies (another pass and an easy high grade) until that was highlighted and tables produced that excluded it, and would frequently try to refuse to enter pupils who they thought likely to get higher grades, to get the averages up.

The performance measurement system that does not produce unwanted behaviours has not been invented yet.
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New Tue 29 Aug 17 17:49 
 Schools Bucking The System - Zero
Doesn't matter what sphere of society you inhabit, give someone targets and they will think of the easiest and fastest way to meet them. Invariably never achieving the desired outcome.
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New Tue 29 Aug 17 18:26 
 Schools Bucking The System - zippy
I guess it is the same sort of thing that drove VW to cheat. Better grades equates to better funding. Etc.

Still wrong and playing with peoples educations.
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New Tue 29 Aug 17 20:28 
 Schools Bucking The System - bathtub tom
A colleague had the same and he paid for the son to sit the disputed exams.
He failed them all.
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New Tue 29 Aug 17 21:00 
 Schools Bucking The System - zippy
Once you accept the pupil you should accept them for the length of the course, unless of course there are disciplinary issues re behaviour.

What would happen if hospitals only started taking patients that were only going to get better to improve their performance?
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New Tue 29 Aug 17 21:21 
 Schools Bucking The System - sherlock47
What would happen if hospitals only started taking patients that were only going to get better to improve their performance?

Surely this already happens, with surgeons declining high risk patients (eg the obese and smokers) or declining to do high risk surgery, as it affects the success rate.

www.independent.co.uk/news/surgeons-may-refuse-high-risk-cases-1116990
.html
Last edited by: sherlock47 on Tue 29 Aug 17 at 21:23
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New Tue 29 Aug 17 21:30 
 Schools Bucking The System - CGNorwich
Or to look at it another way a a hospital's scarce resources are prioritised to be used on those most likely to benefit from them.
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New Thu 31 Aug 17 17:12 
 Schools Bucking The System - Dutchie
That is a slippery slope Norwich.Don't really know the answer to this one.
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New Thu 31 Aug 17 12:21 
 Schools Bucking The System - Bromptonaut
>> Surely this already happens, with surgeons declining high risk patients (eg the obese and smokers)
>> or declining to do high risk surgery, as it affects the success rate.

True, but the dangers in surgery performed on a patient with elevated risk are a very different thing to getting less than stellar grades at A level.

Also interesting that the alleged unlawfulness only arises because St Olave's is a Local Authority maintained school and therefore has to follow a national code on exclusions. If it were an Academy or College it could set it's own process.
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New Thu 31 Aug 17 18:17 
 Schools Bucking The System - zippy
>>Also interesting that the alleged unlawfulness only arises because St Olave's is a Local Authority >>maintained school and therefore has to follow a national code on exclusions. If it were an >>Academy or College it could set it's own process.

Thanks for that Bromptonaut.

I didn't know academies could set their own rules. Still if of detriment to the students it is not good! For example, there are too many schools with insanely strict (on a par with the services) levels of uniform compliance.

An ex-girlfriend is a teacher at an academy and complains that they are always short of cash. They are run by an American company that charged the 4 small junior schools over £210,000 to use its curriculum! That is £100 per pupil.

And yes, the curriculum is just that. The same type of document you would get when doing your GCSE's or "A" levels, no books etc.

This has been taken up in Parliament but nothing has come of it.
Last edited by: zippy on Thu 31 Aug 17 at 18:17
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New Fri 1 Sep 17 08:49 
 Schools Bucking The System - Mapmaker
>>True, but the dangers in surgery performed on a patient with elevated risk are a very different
>>thing to getting less than stellar grades at A level.

Very similar, IMO. Risk of death & the sack. Risk of exam failure & the sack. The end outcome for the person *making the decision* is the same.
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