Unofficial Christ's Hospital Forum

in all conscience and integrity be against selectiion in schools?

The reason I am asking this is that I have just listened to Martin Linton, Labour MP for Battersea and an Old Blue, wittering on about the evils of selection in schools.

Surely every Old Blue was selected one way or the other to attend Housie so what is good enough for him should be good enough for others.

What do you think?

without meaning to seem dismissive, this thread has been on here a lot (and, predictably, they just turn into anti-New Labour rants).

the point that usually gets missed when Labour is being 'anti-independent schools' is that CH is like no other, and so the chances of them meaning they want to destroy housey brick-by-brick is highly improbable. much more likely, is that they have serious problems with toffs and their various institutions. though, in recent years, being poor and halfway intelligent are rapidly vanishing criteria for entering CH...

...maybe you have a point...

http://comment.independent.co.uk/letter ... 320783.ece

My thoughts on this topics here., and elsewhere on this forum.

Funnily enough I had this 'discussion' with my husband last night.

His father was a coalminer from South Yorkshire and he went to Grammar School and then to University.

Selection/ selectivity is an integral part of society, whether social, professional or academic, and therefore is , to my mind, an essential process in any school system.

Children are stimulated by their peers, and an homogenous group works and progresses much faster than a class composed of widely disparate levels - the slow ones cannot keep up, the fast ones get bored and switch off, so only the middle-of-the-road actually learn anything.

( I am not talking off the top of my head here - my mother taught for over 40 years, and I worked in her school for 2 years).

Elitism is not a dirty word, and we all know that in the big bad world of the wage-slaves, selection is the name of the game.

Mid A 15 wrote:in all conscience and integrity be against selectiion in schools?

The reason I am asking this is that I have just listened to Martin Linton, Labour MP for Battersea and an Old Blue, wittering on about the evils of selection in schools.

Surely every Old Blue was selected one way or the other to attend Housie so what is good enough for him should be good enough for others.

What do you think?

In answer to your Q, an Old Blue can ethically be against selection. As it was not the Old Blue who submitted themselves for selection in the first place.
I am not against selection but I will find time to use EA's link and see what he has got to say.

AKAP wrote:

Mid A 15 wrote:in all conscience and integrity be against selectiion in schools?

The reason I am asking this is that I have just listened to Martin Linton, Labour MP for Battersea and an Old Blue, wittering on about the evils of selection in schools.

Surely every Old Blue was selected one way or the other to attend Housie so what is good enough for him should be good enough for others.

What do you think?

In answer to your Q, an Old Blue can ethically be against selection. As it was not the Old Blue who submitted themselves for selection in the first place.
I am not against selection but I will find time to use EA's link and see what he has got to say.

SHE please.

It is just the website for the letter I wrote to the Independent a while back. It is on another thread which I think you have commented on.

Apologies, I thoght it was a link to the interview with Martin Linton.

AKAP wrote:Apologies, I thoght it was a link to the interview with Martin Linton.

that's ok, I realised

Hendrik wrote:without meaning to seem dismissive, this thread has been on here a lot (and, predictably, they just turn into anti-New Labour rants).

the point that usually gets missed when Labour is being 'anti-independent schools' is that CH is like no other, and so the chances of them meaning they want to destroy housey brick-by-brick is highly improbable. much more likely, is that they have serious problems with toffs and their various institutions. though, in recent years, being poor and halfway intelligent are rapidly vanishing criteria for entering CH...

...maybe you have a point...

This issue is about State rather than independent schools and the Split within LABOUR over the proposed trust schools.

I just felt that Martin Linton, who has undeniably benefited from selection albeit "independent" rather than "state", is somewhat hypocritical in seeking to deny that benefit to others. Mind you Diane Abbott and Harriett Harman both had (have) different rules for their own kids and the Blair kids get ferried to a state school on the other side of London rather than the local comp in Islington.

You're right it's turning into an anti New Labour rant

Mid A 15 wrote:You're right it's turning into an anti New Labour rant

Not just new labour, it has always been interesting to see the discrepency between what politicians have to say about education and what they actually do when it comes to their own children.

Like school teachers and parents.

Do as I say not as I do.

englishangel wrote:It is just the website for the letter I wrote to the Independent a while back.

Obviously all the best people have their letters published there!! I think I have had two published and an extra to an obit last year.