Am I being a snob?

Just because your kid starts at a mixed school doesnt mean they’ll turn out rough/illiterate. After my Parents divorce I ended up at a primary school in Deighton (Fartown). Didnt harm me now did it?………

statistics show if you wnt rich kids send em to private school.

I’m not sure that my child’s future earning potential is the main factor I’d consider when choosing a school.

For reference, from my year group in my crappy (<30% getting 5C grades) secondary school, I and my friends are now a train driver, a GP, a (medical) consultant, an IT director (via accountancy in Cayman Islands) and a teacher (me). I earn slightly above the national average, and I’m the lowest paid of these.

My brothers and sisters who all went to the same crap school are now: teacher (me), joiner, sexual health charity worker, unemployed and petrol station attendant.

I’m not sure that my child’s future earning potential is the main factor I’d consider when choosing a school.

Nor me, but then we are both teachers and not captains of industry! Dont get me wrong I think private education should be banned because of the points I’m making, whereas the captains of industry most likely think its a good thing for the same reasons.

Go and watch Crash …. might provoke a little thought.

I went to a school where they even let in black and asian kids, I never got stabbed once.

😛

Any private school isnt guarantee of a good education. Dont forget ‘private’ schools also fail, go bust and close. I know girls (great shags mind) who went to two such schools in Hudds that rolled over and closed. Both old schools are now converted into posh flats.

A couple I know called their daughter Trinity,he has his own business & their house is worth half a mill……

Yes you’re being a snob……

As the OP on this thread and just got back from a lunchtime football session, I’m amazed to see the number of replies. Haven’t had time to catch-up on all the replies but will do in due course.

I’ve been interested to read comments by coffeeking and miketually.

As a parent I want the best for my children. I’ll do what I have to do and can do to ensure my children get the best from life. If my children achieve academically, then they will have better choice later in life. Academically, the school achieves OK, and has a good ofsted report. It’s not the whole school at fault – it’s probably a minority but nevertheless a significant percentage. My child would *probably* progress even more from closer tuition and calmer influences at a better school. We lost out on our 1st choice school. Private schooling is now an option. Another is a waiting list at another local school. Children are easily influenced in their early years of education and this is the worry.

Yes, from my OP I probably am being a snob (well, I did ask) but if wanting better for your children when your parental instinct tells you so makes me one – then so be it.

And to reaffirm “Blade Trinity” on a DVD – yes. Not on brother and sister birth certificates. And incidently the mother looks like Vicky Pollard.

A couple I know called their daughter Trinity,he has his own business & their house is worth half a mill……

I bet they made their money through IT, eh?

statistics show if you wnt rich kids send em to private school.

No, statistics show that if you’ve got rich kids they get sent to private school.

Molgrips was spot-on about the problems with this type of statistic.

“No, statistics show that if you’ve got rich kids they get sent to private school.”

I’m sure stats show both, stats remember dont show cause and effect

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/5157598.stm

I’d like to look at how they did this study.

Well, me and Mrs Grips were considering home-schooling.. how’s that for controversial?

Well, me and Mrs Grips were considering home-schooling.. how’s that for controversial?

I only know family who home school. They’re, erm, a little unusual…

I’m sure stats show both, stats remember dont show cause and effect

Yes, my point was that the same figures will undoubtedly show what I said as well as what you said.

It’s not a chicken-and-egg dilemma really though.

I mean, which came first? The rich kids or the schools for rich people to send their kids to?

It’s pretty obviously the rich kids, in case I’d left any doubt.

I didn’t go to private school. I went to public school.

And look where I ended up: the North.

So, it’s not all a bed of roses people.

Well, me and Mrs Grips were considering home-schooling.. how’s that for controversial?

This option has the added bonus that you can cut their hair with the pudding bowl and there won’t be any other children to bully them over it.

yeah you sound like one. Dont judge a book by its cover

Oh the irony!

(to help out the confused, I’m quoting from the first page having only just started reading this thread)

ourmaninthenorth – Member
I didn’t go to private school. I went to public school.

I say!
Yah!

A couple I know called their daughter Trinity,he has his own business & their house is worth half a mill

I’d almost certainly be accused of being a snob if I posted my thoughts on that!

Wun Hun Dred!

I think anyone who is happy with themselves and their life will defend their own upbringing and see it as the best way to go, so there is no all-encompassing right or wrong answer.

I got to see both sides of the education system, starting out in a normal inner city primary school where I was already one of the poorer kids to getting a scholarship for one of the best private schools in the country. After the initial bedding in period of getting posh people to understand what I was saying, I had just as great a time in secondary school as I had in primary. I think this was perfect for me, as I would never have got the grades I achieved at the comprehensive I would have gone to, due to being a lazy git. I would say that my school in particular excelled in extracurricular activities, which I think is a major contributor to that public school boy confidence (Arrogance?) that everyone is aware of. So in summary, I reckon you’re better off having both types of schooling if you can get it as there’s more to be gained than just grades.

As a comparison I have a sister who is doing very well in the retail world, a brother in the civil service and another sister who got knocked up at 18. I’m the only one who got any private education and went to university so I’d say it’s not the be all and end all.

Plus yes, the original poster sounds like a snob to me and I’ve met my fair share!

Schooled at a comp… graduated from Oxford University… earn **** all! 😀

I went to a private school, my wife went to a state school; I want my kids to go to a state school, she wants them to go private.

We looked at private school costs and calculated it would cost £25Ok to put our 2 children through from 7 to 18 years based on todays prices. That would stretch us and compromise what we could financial do in our family/leisure time and therefore utimately the costs outweighed the benefits. We were very disappointed with the schools in our area and this is why we looked at the private school costs.

Instead we moved areas to where we are happy with the schools and the area in general. It is costing us as we haven’t sold our house in our previous area and are renting in the new area but we are much happier in the new area and the costs are still far less than private school costs.

Having said that at the end of the day there is only so much that parents can do to find a school, private or state, their children will be happy and successful at as there are so many variables to consider…the child, the teachers, the other children etc etc

nukeproof – that’s an option we could be looking into for a couple of years time (middle schools).

I’m probably going to open a can of worms but middle-class family church attendance is pretty good in our area due to a very good performing church sec’y school. Admission based on church attendance and commitment 😀

nstead we moved areas to where we are happy with the schools and the area in general. It is costing us as we haven’t sold our house in our previous area and are renting in the new area but we are much happier in the new area and the costs are still far less than private school costs.

How much extra mortgage interest + associated costs will you have to pay over the lifetime of the mortgage vs the cost of private schooling?

If that works in your favour, then it sounds like a good option.

I’d send any children to public school for the excellent life experience (n/w/standing TJ’s baseless assertions), but I suspect Mrs North’s “I went to a compa and look at my PhD” argument will likely win out. Good for the bank balance, bad for the kids who will only get six week summer holidays….

I agree with TJ, there is *no* evidence that private education is generally “better”.

Like miketually said, rather than pay for unecessary education, use the cash to give your kid(s) some fun life experiences, which incidently you won’t be able to if you give all your cash to some private school.

lunchtime football session

COMMONER!!!!! STONE HIM!

How much extra mortgage interest + associated costs will you have to pay over the lifetime of the mortgage vs the cost of private schooling?

I see your point but the house will either be rented out or sold so it is a short to medium term cost…the costs are still less than the £2k per month for our 2 kids to be in private and the duration will be far less than the 11 years they’d be in private.

nukeproof – that’s an option we could be looking into for a couple of years time (middle schools).

Took as about 2 years to figure out what to do for the best: many late nights and bottles of wine plus endless time on the internet. Good luck!

I’m probably going to open a can of worms but middle-class family church attendance is pretty good in our area due to a very good performing church sec’y school. Admission based on church attendance and commitment [:D]

When we first moved to our previous area the secondary school we had planned was exceptionally good but the catchment changed and we were right on the edge. We *may* have got in if we had attended church, volunteered for other church duties, helped out at the Sunday school etc etc but, although parents blatantly do do it, we felt uncomfortable with doing it as we are both not that religious. I suspect we would have ended up resenting volunteering and attending every week when really we didn’t want to be there.

How much extra mortgage interest + associated costs will you have to pay over the lifetime of the mortgage vs the cost of private schooling?

If you really want to game the system, you only have to live close to the ‘good’ school for long enough to get your eldest into it. Once your eldest is in, you can move back to somewhere cheaper and your younger kids are pretty much guaranteed to get into the school.

Schooled at a comp… graduated from Oxford University… earn **** all

I’ll raise you – not only was my comp a rubbish comp and I probably earn less than you, but I also went to a better university 😉

sorry nukeproof, I wasn’t clear.

I meant, having moved house (and assuming you have solkd your existing house), how much extra interest etc. will you be paying on your new mortgage over its lifetime as against the old one?

As I understand – and I’m not a parent – moving to an area with a good school, for which there is competition for places, will have generally have higher house prices than ares where the schools are less good. My logic being that, if you pay more for your house, you pay more for your mortgage, which in turn might be direted towards schooling costs.

To be honest, I left school in 1995 and for the 10 years that I had been in private education up to that point (I arrived in the system aged 8, having spent 3 years in a primary school of 35 to a class), I believe my parents only paid – and then at a reduced rate – when I was at prep school, as I had a scholarship at public school. So, I haven’t much idea of the costs these days (other than knowing that fees have generally increased at bonkers rates across the years) for pre-prep, prep and public (or independent day) schools. Is it really £12k pa at prep school these days? Blimey!

Another point on costs, though, is that where I was at public school, only around 1/3 of the pupils were there on full fees. If you were half bright and your parents skint (my case) then there were bursaries, exhibitions and scholarships. Depends on the school, though: my sis left her school because the folks were brassic – the school only wanted people who would shell out the full whack.

At the school that my kids attend there’s a Chelsea, Storm, Brad and Angelina. Dare say you’d find equally daft names in the local Private school. 😉

Another point on costs

Another point on costs would be the cost of the uniform and all the sport kit, which will soon mount up.

At Cambridge, it used to be that people who got there from state schools got on average something like 1 class higher in their degree. A big significant difference.

So the answer is, thanks to universities imperfect admission policies – paying lots of money can make your kids more likely to get into a good university. But it doesn’t make them actually any cleverer once they get there.

But if you want to engineer it so your kids don’t have to meet poor kids, then private school is great for that.

Joe

…but I also went to a better university

Get in line, tab 😈

(only joking – never gave a stuff for such things… 🙂 )

At Cambridge, it used to be that people who got there from state schools got on average something like 1 class higher in their degree.

Good job I went to a comp then 🙄

Move to Scotland, our schools are generally better all round, particularly In the really remote areas where you could get a whole school roll smaller than yer average class elsewhere. 😉

Another point on costs would be the cost of the uniform and all the sport kit, which will soon mount up.

Sure. But presumably, state schools also have uniforms, no? And if kids play aport – which I admit is compulsory at independent schools – wouldn’t they also need sports kit?

Move to Scotland, our schools are generally better

you have a good source of funding.

HTTP404 – Member
Move to Scotland, our schools are generally better

you have a good source of funding.

Yeah, thanks for that. 🙂