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And I suppose if we say bring back the "3 R's" we'll be classed as dinosaurs !
I think it's a very worrying situation. I'm surprised more young parents aren't concerned.

Hi elle
I think the problem is due to the fact that young parents are also addicted to phones ,internet etc.College had a lot of complaints when students could not take mobile phones into exams even saying it was against their civil liberties.I am very glad to be old but fear for the future

Morning Everyone,

Catching up on last night's and this (early) morning's comments;

I agree with you Doglet - I too am glad to belong to a generation where we were taught strictly but adequately. As I said earlier on in the Thread, I would be all for bringing back the Three Rs, whatever the reaction of most parents to this suggestion !

As for the 'young' parents, they belng to a generation when education had already started to deteriorate, so I think only grand-parents can really see the danger of the present situation

My younger daughter can definitely see the dangers.....she just cannot to pay for afford private education in order to circumvent the problems existing within the state system.
I think (as I may have said before) that the major problem lies in too low expectations of the child.
The headmistress of the primary school we viewed said that all children would have reached the minimum requirement by the time they left the school.
This is not good enough! All children should be reaching their individual maximum potential!

Hi all
There was a great debate recently that schools which did not have state of the art toilets had an effect on childrens school work,I went to infants and junior schools with outside toilets
and we got a 90% pass rate in the 11+ and the convent school though fee paying the facilities were very basic but the pass rate for O and A levels were above national average the powers that be will do anything to avoid the fact that teaching is not producing well balanced and intelligent students

I cannot believe that they will blame it all on the loos - what a load of .........!
I'll get thrown off if I follow through with that......

Hi, doglet! Seriously though , it is incredible what excuses the authorities will come up with to blame their inefficiency to cope with the situation, on any outside influence.
I wonder should we all accept this decline in standards without taking any action?
Maybe it needs a bit of militancy?
Maybe we should all write letters to the appropriate government department or some such?!
What is that expression .... "The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing" Edmund burke, I think? I know it's not exactly 'evil' that is being done, but we are sitting back and accepting it passively.
Should we have a revolt?

Keep calm Elle ...!:

but I agree and my response to the loo issue is 'codswallop' - Hope I dont get thrown off for using such word ! (It's not rude, is it?)

I also agree that a child should be expected to leave each teaching year having achieved his maximum potential; but can you see nowadays teachers taking individual care of each of their pupils ? It's very much a case of 'this is the program, you follow and that's good, you don't and you get left beind' - and so they start the following year with a handicap.

I am sure that at the beginning of the century (20th that is), when there was only one master/mistress coping with a unique class, and when that master had to split his class into three levels, I am sure kids learned more than now!

As for the young parents I refered to, luckily some had the benefit of having parents who made sure they had a good education, ie you sent your daughter to a private school, and you had yourself the required knowledge to oversea her studies; not everyone had that benefit and quite often, at that time, kids knew more that their parents (in the generation I am talking about, lots of youngsters started work at an early age, and therefore had less academic education than their kids)

I know that my 5 year old grandson is lucky, because he lives in a large village in Buckinghamshire. He has school homework, which has to be supervised by a parent and is commented on in writing by his teacher. His parents go to regular meetings with his two teachers who clearly know how he is doing. I am a great deal more impressed than I thought I would be, since it is described as a "community infant school". Even though it's a 3 tier system (often said not to be good), they obviously do care.
On the other side of the coin, I was sent to a small private school from the age of 4. At 7 my mother thought maybe I wouldn't pass the 11 plus so sent me to the (private) junior school of a GPDST for a day's trial. I was turned down for a place because I "knew nothing" (though I'm sure I could read as I remember the moment when it clicked). To her eternal credit, my mother pleaded with them and eventually the Head said "if she comes tomorrow, and I mean tomorrow, we'll allow it as the teachers think she isn't stupid". There were issues of a new and expensive uniform and transport (a bus, a ferry and a tram each way) but my mother was determined, so I went.
My first report from there said "R is careless" 7 times!!!

No, Pigale , 'codswallop' isn't rude; it means nonsense , rubbish...... far more polite than the word I avoided using....which in the context would have had a double meaning!
I think I'm bored... no "Ladies who Lunch" again today - everyone is away on holiday...
The house is clean, the jobs are done, the dog is walked(until later this afternoon anyway).........
Nothing to do but w rite a letter to the Education department ? (like water off a duck's back, comes to mind....)