I've been meaning to blog about 11+ exams for nearly 2 weeks, but somehow the dunceys and my friend Shermie keep giving me hilarious insights into their stupidity that I can't resist commenting on. Also, I had no internet for about 8 days while my line was being upgraded for my television (did I mention it works beautifully?) package.
But since Punks is now 9, I have been finding out about secondary schooling here in England, so that I can get her into a 'good' school, either private or semi-private. I have to face the fact that my daughter is not a 'street-wise' kid, and a fully public school may well be detrimental to the sheltered and loving life she has had so far.
The eye-opening revelations about 11+ exams in England certainly gave me pause, and then thinking of all the people in Trinidad who want to do away with SEA (citing shite about level playing fields, trauma to child etc), I wonder how many of them know the real situation in England?
Because aside from the government sponsored 11+ exams, Punks may very well have to write between 7 to 10 individual tests set by schools to screen applicants.
And you all think one 11+ test is trauma! Education in England is certainly below par to Trinidad, I can attest to that. I have taught at colleges here, and being in university myself I see how poorly my younger classmates are educated. Not that there aren't exceptions, but the ones I met so far are from families where they were pushed to excel. Never have I encountered such bad grammar and spelling as in England, where oddly enough our own education system in Trinidad has evolved from.
We learnt our English from here, yet the language spoken here is utterly ruined when a citizen opens his/her mouth. We learn our manners from here, yet no one says good morning/good evening and when I do, I get such strange looks as if I am a genuine alien.
In an effort to 'level the playing field' England is becoming like America, dumbing down education to the point where the value is less and less as time goes by, and the graduates are less competent in the workplace. As an IT manager I had to retrain graduates to thinking and solving simple problems I am confident any A level student in Trinidad would complete independently.
Like the economic world, taking away the competitive edge in education ruins the ambition and drive of the student, and the need to apply himself.
So while 11+ may be competitive, and somewhat traumatic for your child, it prepares that child for the real world, and it is certainly better than writing 7 or more tests.
I've had SEA papers posted to me from Trinidad and there is no way (in my view) the students here in Year 5 could do those questions, they lag so far behind. Children are praised for mediocre work, and many a time I've had to tell Punks that despite her teachers praising her good work, she still has to work harder because they're keeping her back from utilising her full potential. To cite an example, one day while practicing algebra, I made the questions increasingly harder, just to see what she could do. By following the rules as I taught her, Punks was able to complete a few CXC level questions, yet her teacher berated me for it....
Appreciate what you have, and try not to adopt everything 'First World' but rather think for yourselves how you can adapt the good to make it better.
But since Punks is now 9, I have been finding out about secondary schooling here in England, so that I can get her into a 'good' school, either private or semi-private. I have to face the fact that my daughter is not a 'street-wise' kid, and a fully public school may well be detrimental to the sheltered and loving life she has had so far.
The eye-opening revelations about 11+ exams in England certainly gave me pause, and then thinking of all the people in Trinidad who want to do away with SEA (citing shite about level playing fields, trauma to child etc), I wonder how many of them know the real situation in England?
Because aside from the government sponsored 11+ exams, Punks may very well have to write between 7 to 10 individual tests set by schools to screen applicants.
And you all think one 11+ test is trauma! Education in England is certainly below par to Trinidad, I can attest to that. I have taught at colleges here, and being in university myself I see how poorly my younger classmates are educated. Not that there aren't exceptions, but the ones I met so far are from families where they were pushed to excel. Never have I encountered such bad grammar and spelling as in England, where oddly enough our own education system in Trinidad has evolved from.
We learnt our English from here, yet the language spoken here is utterly ruined when a citizen opens his/her mouth. We learn our manners from here, yet no one says good morning/good evening and when I do, I get such strange looks as if I am a genuine alien.
In an effort to 'level the playing field' England is becoming like America, dumbing down education to the point where the value is less and less as time goes by, and the graduates are less competent in the workplace. As an IT manager I had to retrain graduates to thinking and solving simple problems I am confident any A level student in Trinidad would complete independently.
Like the economic world, taking away the competitive edge in education ruins the ambition and drive of the student, and the need to apply himself.
So while 11+ may be competitive, and somewhat traumatic for your child, it prepares that child for the real world, and it is certainly better than writing 7 or more tests.
I've had SEA papers posted to me from Trinidad and there is no way (in my view) the students here in Year 5 could do those questions, they lag so far behind. Children are praised for mediocre work, and many a time I've had to tell Punks that despite her teachers praising her good work, she still has to work harder because they're keeping her back from utilising her full potential. To cite an example, one day while practicing algebra, I made the questions increasingly harder, just to see what she could do. By following the rules as I taught her, Punks was able to complete a few CXC level questions, yet her teacher berated me for it....
Appreciate what you have, and try not to adopt everything 'First World' but rather think for yourselves how you can adapt the good to make it better.
