tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28919367.post6219522138654901396..comments2023-11-22T05:51:28.934+00:00Comments on Frank Chalk: No Escape For You, Ashley.Mr Chalkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02300002644366743672noreply@blogger.comBlogger17125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28919367.post-48504491877399739502007-05-25T13:55:00.000+00:002007-05-25T13:55:00.000+00:00David Willetts is no grammar school boy - he went ...David Willetts is no grammar school boy - he went to King Edward's independent day school in Birmingham.apdavidsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02705983200630332708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28919367.post-88174712395681538632007-05-23T23:27:00.000+00:002007-05-23T23:27:00.000+00:00That was nice of you anonymous. My mother did the...That was nice of you anonymous. My mother did the same for my youngest. The local comp had gone right down the pan by the time she got there and she did not have the hardness or laziness her brothers had to help her accept the waste of her talents and willingness to learn.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28919367.post-55509470835752485952007-05-22T23:11:00.000+00:002007-05-22T23:11:00.000+00:00I'm from a council estate and went to grammar scho...I'm from a council estate and went to grammar school, which effectively changed my life. My only niece was, like me, always top of her classes at primary school, but unlike me there was no chance of her going to grammar school, and no way her mother, who by this time was a single parent, could afford to pay fees to an independent school. She went to the local comp which was destroying her. I sold my house and bought a small flat, and with the profit (which was quite tidy)she got an education that has allowed her to become the young woman she should be, working her way up the career ladder to a bright future. Best money I ever spent.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28919367.post-42803506380556875862007-05-22T04:33:00.000+00:002007-05-22T04:33:00.000+00:00That's gumPf, with a P, your fatrher would have kn...That's gumPf, with a P, your fatrher would have known that!<BR/>Educational standards are going downhill, mumble, rant, etc.<BR/><BR/>GUMPF Gas, Undercarriage, Mixture, Propellor, Flaps.<BR/>WW2 pilot training landing-mnemonic for 'the essentials'.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28919367.post-77640260589989224982007-05-21T13:26:00.000+00:002007-05-21T13:26:00.000+00:00Oh, you poor humble innocents! Ain't you seen the ...Oh, you poor humble innocents! Ain't you seen the light yet? It's just a ploy to get more well-off parents to send their kids to private schools. <BR/><BR/>No more, or even less, grammar schools, means even more scope for the private outfits to suck in extra fees from an even bigger potential customer-base, and expand their activities by building more Pay-As-You-Play/Learn centres. <BR/><BR/>This is the modern reality of privatisation in education, and the Tories are doing no more than than playing their traditional role - or their new one, whichever you prefer!The TEFL Tradesmanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09213645150599522343noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28919367.post-1633968158786308282007-05-21T10:11:00.000+00:002007-05-21T10:11:00.000+00:00Kids from sink estates most probably DO have much ...Kids from sink estates most probably DO have much less chance of getting into a grammar school than a middle-class kid with pushy parents who will pay for coaching and so on.<BR/><BR/>But the kid from the sink estate has no bloody chance <B>at all</B> of spontaneously getting a private education.<BR/><BR/>I refuse to believe that calling the sink comp an "academy" will somehow make it a place where a child gets a decent education. I also don't think that having four students capable of playing instruments is the essence of a good school, either.Maryhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11639094548415759560noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28919367.post-52872277335188222862007-05-21T08:55:00.000+00:002007-05-21T08:55:00.000+00:00If you take a pragmatic view, by far the most impo...If you take a pragmatic view, by far the most important thing is identifying those children with most potential and giving them the best possible education. By "potential" I don't just mean academic intelligence, but any kind of potential. Most progress has always come from a small minority, and that minority is a scarce resource that should be treasured.<BR/><BR/>From a political/moral point of view, every child deserves the best possible education. But what does this mean? Universal education is limited by the resources "society" is willing to allocate to it. Also, it is limited by the values of "society" at large. When most of us value knowledge of mathematics, engineering, history, philosophy, art, and literature more than money, privilege, social status, and gadgets, our education system may have a chance to teach those subjects properly.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28919367.post-14083367042954753122007-05-21T07:25:00.000+00:002007-05-21T07:25:00.000+00:00Mr Willetts attended King Edward's School for boys...Mr Willetts attended King Edward's School for boys in Edgbaston when it was a direct grant grammar school.<BR/><BR/>He then went on to Oxford University and is keen to prevent any nasty working class people from following in his footsteps.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28919367.post-67634358946304270792007-05-21T00:13:00.000+00:002007-05-21T00:13:00.000+00:00I love the blog that you have. I was wondering if ...I love the blog that you have. I was wondering if you would link my blog to yours and in return I would do the same for your blog. If you want to, my site <BR/><BR/>name is American Legends and the URL is:<BR/><BR/>www.americanlegends.blogspot.com<BR/><BR/>If you want to do this just go to my blog and in one of the comments just write your blog name and the URL and I will add it to my site.<BR/><BR/>Thanks,<BR/>DavidUnknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09654569114369015472noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28919367.post-60577072484496132802007-05-20T21:00:00.000+00:002007-05-20T21:00:00.000+00:00Mr Chalk I think you will find that Mr Willets att...Mr Chalk I think you will find that Mr Willets attended, with the aid of a grant, an independent school, not a grammarAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28919367.post-52223378813978223482007-05-20T20:14:00.000+00:002007-05-20T20:14:00.000+00:00The answer is clear to me. Most schools, at least...The answer is clear to me. Most schools, at least in my area, have around 300 pupils per year. Simply stream all pupils and advertise positions within departments as teaching individual streams. This would allow high calibre teachers to teach high calibre pupils within an environment where pupils can always move up and down streams.Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07622106486496944838noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28919367.post-53991361041952181262007-05-20T20:06:00.000+00:002007-05-20T20:06:00.000+00:00There you go. That's the nearest the elite have c...There you go. That's the nearest the elite have come to letting the cat out of the bag.<BR/><BR/>THEY DON'T WANT A GOOD EDUCATION FOR THE WORKING CLASSES, BECAUSE THAT WOULD THREATEN THEIR GRIP ON POWER.<BR/><BR/>They want to continue the destruction of opportunity for state educated children. The likes of Willetts, themselves products of state education, are being fooled by the puppet-masters.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28919367.post-72243230226031988922007-05-20T18:54:00.000+00:002007-05-20T18:54:00.000+00:00Spot on. None of our so called leaders dare argue ...Spot on. None of our so called leaders dare argue with the stupid entrenched idea that we are all somehow equal.<BR/><BR/>They wonder why everyone who can afford it (and many who can't) send their kids to private schools.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28919367.post-83904538632830903332007-05-20T18:52:00.000+00:002007-05-20T18:52:00.000+00:00I support the Grammar Schools in Birmingham which ...I support the Grammar Schools in Birmingham which are an effective way of ensuring social mobility particularly in a city which is very ethnically diverse.<BR/><BR/>David Willets was in the year above me at KES (Edgbaston) at a time when it acted as a form of regional "super grammar" (direct grant) school.<BR/><BR/>I am quite surprised at this policy. I may be in the minority of Lib Dem MPs that sees a role for Grammar Schools. However, I think failing to recognise the role of the KE Foundation in Birmingham is sad for an ex-KE pupil.John Hemminghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16563623241172913378noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28919367.post-71215422475030628512007-05-20T18:39:00.000+00:002007-05-20T18:39:00.000+00:00I get pissed off saying this but if you get the in...I get pissed off saying this but if you get the infant and primary schools right the rest of it will be infinitly easier. The bloody problem is that as far as the politicians are concerned the long distant results i.e.in about fifteen years,will be claimed by the next bunch of anal sphincters we elect.jerymhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15034126923358819802noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28919367.post-86214649062940281842007-05-20T18:15:00.000+00:002007-05-20T18:15:00.000+00:00To see how bright this Dave bloke is, remember tha...To see how bright this Dave bloke is, remember that according to a Telegraph survey, 70% of Conservative (i.e. his) voters support the idea of Grammar school. Many of us would still be living on council estates if we hadn't gone to them, and then to university.<BR/><BR/>My children go to a Grammar. Thank goodness Kent still has the "evil" of the 11+, although the children get no help from the primary schools with it. Strange, they get loads of help with their SATs. Can't think why...<BR/><BR/>Anonymous2Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28919367.post-62648063196411818702007-05-20T17:37:00.000+00:002007-05-20T17:37:00.000+00:00the children of this country are well and truly fu...the children of this country are well and truly fucked.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com