[Bells]

With all the different education systems in the world, with some parts having none, and different exams, ages of taking exams etc., what are your views? Do you think Britain is following the right route and doing it correctly? Or do you, like me, feel people are forced into being more academic and as a result are just stuffing facts in their head that perhaps won't even benefit them in their career...

I understand we need a way to differentiate between pupils, but teaching is one thing, and teaching simply for people to pass exams is quite another. What with coursework etc. as well nowadays, people can just quite easily download these off the Internet (even though the Govt's thinking of scrapping coursework altogether).

I feel that there are just different types of people, those who seem to particularly good at exams since all they do is just sit there and study, whilst perhaps there's those that don't and therefore don't do as well. I don't feel it makes them any less clever at the time, and who's to say they won't become more dedicated in the future but in that particular time in their lives want to have fun? It shouldn't cost them their futures IMO.

So I was wondering about peoples' views on education systems as a whole.

[Lauren]

I agree with you, Ash, a lot of Britain's exam systems are centered around learning you facts, facts and more facts. In lesson time you are prepared for this ONE exam, given information for just this one exam - and although this is teaching one sense - it's main purpose is to prepare us to sit one single exam.

There's plenty of people I know that can learn pages and pages of writing and simply scribble it all onto a page in the exam, without understanding a word of it - and I don't think that this is actually teaching them, because if they are then asked to explain what they have written they're unable to.

Personally, I find it hard to remember things and I really need to understand something before I can put it into words, and I find that people who don't understand it but have a photographic memory can just spill it all out back onto the page and do better.

[BigSister]

I think you should have 2 different sections 1 for people who want to do gcses a levels etc and 1 for if you want to do a diploma in nursing or become a bulder things like like thats at high school not just at college

[Nowhere]

I do agree to some extent, but after all these years of it being there, it's hard to imagine without it, and how it would all work out. I don't think the majority of pupils learn much these days anyway, with an average of say 30 in a class, theres just too much going on for a kid to truly get stuck into the work, plus kids are always striving to be the most popular, (most) so pay less attention to learning. They'd have a better chance if there were say, 8-10 in a class. I just think schools these days have become a deliquent social gathering rather than a learning center. (that's just my opinion) More kids are playing truant than ever before now aswell I think, the main cause might be the overcrowded classes, or the half arsed teachers. The school I went to was really bad, kids used to carry knives, bullying was all too common, and if you were seen completing your homework on time/paying attention to the teacher or just attempting to learn, you were targeted. If you were able to fight your corner (teach 'em who's boss) they'd move onto the next target. The government have a lot to do in my eyes.At the moment, they're just ignoring the problems, and instead threatening with prosecution to any parent who doesn't force their child to attend the hellhole.

[Sunny_01]

I am all for structured environments that promote learning, that said learning is a choice, if you are not really interested then how will you possibly remember what you have been taught!

I have been to some god awful training sessions where I have sat and wrote my shopping list but still get a certificate at the end to say I have the knowledge to allow me to do certain things! how can that be right?

[lily.]

I think we need to have the basics obviously.. Reading, Writing, Arithmetic.

But, as for specialised subjects like history, geography, technical, p.e. etc.. I think there should be more choice about how much of it is done.

A bit of P.E should be mandatory, if only to encourage physical well-being, but the rest should be optional. It might be an idea to have taster classes in each subject for one year and then kids would be able to choose the one they are most interested in.

When I was going into 3rd year at the academy, I had to choose my 'options'.... but the choices were limited, and had to include certain things. One of the choices I had to make was between History, Geography & Modern Studies. I chose the lesser of the 3 boring evils... Geography. It was the only exam I failed. I didn't want to be in that class. I didn't want to learn about Geography. I wasn't the slightest bit interested in it. Now, wouldn't you say my 2 years would have been better spent in a class I actually got something out of? I managed to pass all 7 of the other exams ... doesn't that say something?

I think you raise a valid point Ash, although I doubt things will ever change enough really. More and more kids are leaving school with little or no education and all the government want to do is shove them into training courses. Wouldn't it be better if they had got it right at school, then there would be no need for all these training courses? The kids would already have some useful knowledge.

[Siouxsie]

Since the literacy and numeracy strategy came into force children are getting less time to concentrate on other subjects. Far too much pressure is put onto children at an early age to achieve good sats results when really these results are to assess the teachers and not the children.At my school i have seen many children stressed and under pressure by the teachersforcing these children to do well in these tests.

[Bells]

I think you raise a valid point Ash, although I doubt things will ever change enough really. More and more kids are leaving school with little or no education and all the government want to do is shove them into training courses. Wouldn't it be better if they had got it right at school, then there would be no need for all these training courses? The kids would already have some useful knowledge. [/quote]

I think that yeah it should be about choice and getting it right at school, and those who do wish to enter a structured education should actually be taught the stuff rather than preparations for an exam. I know exams are what we can use to differ between pupils' abilities, but IMO it doesn't do that. And you mention it to people, they just say, 'That's the way it's always been...' It just annoys me how it's all based on the exam, and I feel that those who perhaps don't do as much preparation due to family circumstances or whatever aren't necessarily any less clever.

[Feral]

Agree with the comments made so far.

I recently attended a Parent Consultation evening and it was absolutley laughable! I challenged the teacher about my daughters reading as she was struggling to meet the demands of the lessons and she just ranted at me that she had 32 children in the class and could not give one to one reading lessons - I wasn't even requesting that!!!! Just wanted to know how much of the school day was given to reading and literacy - then she just went on about school policies - my god if you show no interest in your child's education - they cuss you - and your demanding if you show some!!!

The teachers make me laugh as they are quick to go on strike when they want more pay but not to reduce class sizes or lesson plans.

Who dreamed up the latest education policies - everything is driven by stats and league tables and it is not benefiting the children. too much pressure to make the school look good. I was given advice that the league tables are not always the best guide to how the school is actually doing - there are grades and if there is a high proportion of puplis passing the grade 2 mark (grade 1 being high) usually means the school is training the kids just to pass the sats and not actually learning anything - if there is a higher percentage of grade 1 passes then the school is motivating the pupils and are learning. If the majority is passing then the school receives a better budget - all about money not our children.

[Princess]

We do obviuosly sometimes just have to sit there and learn it. But it doesn't anyways work. If it is boring it goes straight over your head when you really are just daydreaming.

The whole exam thing is beyond riduculious. Its a proof of memory than of cleverness. Someone might be amazingly clever but have a bad attention span. And it is majorily stressful! Like beyond. Everyone basically tells you the Leaving Cert/A-Levels determine your career and your life and my lord thats a lot to have on your shoulders at 17!

I hate the whole study thing. Its so much easier to learn something if its easy or you enjoy it. I for one can quote episodes of Friends,know everything there is to know about Prestelle and know all the TT lyrics yet I couldn't say a basic sentence in Irish-a language I've been doing since I was 4!

It has to be changed but I have no idea how.