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Parents turning backs on old comps
Monday 6th October 2008, 11:36AM BST.
Parents across the Black Country and Staffordshire are turning their backs on traditional comprehensives and opting for academies, grammars and faith schools, it was revealed today.
New figures show the region’s top-performing schools are being inundated with thousands of applications every year, while many council-run schools are struggling to attract new pupils. In Wolverhampton, the city’s girls’ high school is the most popular, receiving an average of five bids for each place.
Sandwell Academy is receiving eight applications for each place a year and Queen Mary’s High, in Upper Forster Street, Walsall, 8.1.
In Birmingham, voluntary-aided Muslim secondary Al Hijrah in Bordesley Green was the most popular with 18 applicants for each place.
Moorside High School in Stoke was the most popular in Staffordshire receiving an average of 1.3 applications for each place.
The figures suggest growing numbers of parents who cannot afford private schools are turning to alternatives which are run independently from the Local Education Authority (LEA), rather than council-run comprehensives.
City academies are state-funded but billed as independent schools run by private sponsors separately from the LEA.
The new figures also reveal which are the least popular schools in the region.
Pendeford Business & Enterprise College in Marsh Lane, Fordhouses, came off worst in Wolverhampton, with just 132 applicants for 151 places this year.
Nether Stowe High School proved the least appealing in Lichfield with only 89 prospective students for 170 places.
Sam Freedman, head of education at the Policy Exchange think tank, said: “It is clear that parents don’t want bog standard schools run by the state and that if they cannot afford to go private, they are looking for schools run by non-state providers, be they faith, grammar or one of the acdemies.”
The scramble for the best in education comes as parents agonise over school application forms, with the deadline looming this month.
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This just shows how little we care for democracy now.
Academies are undemocratic, controlled by private sponsors, over whom parents have no control whatsoever. If an academy is sponsored by religious nutcases who want to teach creationism at the exclusion of real science, then tough – parents will have no opportunity for redress.
Academies push up results by booting out “difficult” pupils. Who has to provide the education for these excluded pupils? Local Authorities will have to. I can’t exactly imagine business sponsors itching to open an academy to teach all the kids that the other academies kick out, can you?
Academies represent one more chunk of the Neo-Liberal agenda to hollow out the state. But because they come singing and marching with private cash, parents don’t care, as the figures in the article demonstrate.
Yet when the private sector goes pear shaped, let’s see who comes to bail them out. Northern Rock, Bradford and Bingley, the entire US financial system…
Voters and parents need to open their eyes to what they are willingly let happen to our public services. Education should be well outside the control of private interest. Going back to the 19th century is not my idea of progress.
Education of children happens at home. It is lazy of parents to expect their ignorant, lazy and arrogant children to turn up to a “good” school and miraculously turn into employable and talented assets for industry. Calling for ever more increasing standards, whilst putting next to zero effort in at home, smacks of hypocrisy, ignorance and irresponsibility.
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Rebecca seems to be very bitter about the fact that when people have the choice, they tend to choose what they believe is best for their children. If Rebecca and her comrades had their way, parents would not be given a choice – they would all have to make do with state-run standardised schools, and their views would count for nothing. This would really be the denial of democracy that she complains about.
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It’s about time we went back to the old criteria of sending our children to the nearest school and then it would be a lot fairer for all concerned!
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Rebbeca’s not bitter IMHO — just explaining the facts. Academies are not part of any democracy and unacountability to their local population.
And the notion that they get more funds because of private bussiness funding hasn’t transpired — the fact is that the main funding is from central government (as is the main funding of LA comps.
But Acedmies get a bigger share. And children with special educational needs (even those 3% lowest achievers with statements) can be refused a place — distorting the LAs ability to organise on an inclusive and comprehensive (mixed ability) basis for its area.
Academies are the new super grammar schools — where the richer middle-classes will predominate and get their private style / super grammar school style schooling for their elite offspring — paid for out of the taxes also contributed to by the less well of who will be denied access (as Academies covertly base selection on type of parent as well as child).
And those less well off (and less able to work the system) and children with less ability will be confined to ‘Sink Schools’ with less funds and facilites and failing to attract the best teachers (as with the old Secondary Moderns.
It’s a disgrace and the usual old story — the well-off in control of the state education system — for their benefit of their own kind.
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Well said, Derek.
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Education in schools was founded by the Christian church. Later on, secular schools were set up by philanthropists, most of them from buisness. Then minortity faiths began to run their own schools. Then the rot set in and the councils had a go at getting rid of the faith schools,and the Grammar schools. Heaven forbid Children learn morals, values, maths and english. However parents are clearly voting with their feet (while they can)and things have come full circle. Why? because traditional schools work, and always have done. Council comps don’t. THey should stick to being wheelie bin and parking monitors and leave the kids alone.
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Well said Derek.
Central control and the comprehensive system create a bland uneducated population. We need to develop the skills and potential of all kids and some kids will have more potential than others and this is not being exploited by this one size fits all government.
Tomorrows leaders of industry and business will not come from the comprehensive system
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I have a son in 6.1 at Thomas Telford CTC and a daughter in Yr 9 at St Edmunds Catholic secondary school. I simply applied for my children to go to the schools where I believed they would receive the best education from teachers who want to teach and enforce the social behaviour I have taught them.
I am most definitely NOT “richer middle class”, nor are my children “elite” re:werewolf.
I have found that the people who rant against these schools are usually the ones whose children have not been offered a place in the school. Sour grapes? I think so.
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Academies are forward thinking, exciting places to learn. The kids always look immaculate and take pride in their surroundings. You cant say that for a comp that has had no investment for years.
The staff work hard and have a real enthusiasm… the only problems seem to be the uninspiring ex-comp dregs teachers who end up at a new academy which has replaced a dour old failing school. But they never last, they get bored of complaining about the work they have to do and end up getting a job at a comp where they can free-load their way to retirement on a council salary without doing anything to really inspire a new generation to achieve and believe in themselves.
No, i dont work for an academy and i’m not a teacher… i’m just open minded and take the time to look at facts.
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regarding academies… all that glitters is not gold.
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