h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Although I'm not a parent, I am a student at the moment but I feel I have something useful to say on this subject.

All of my educational life (up until College and Uni) I have been ahead of my peers, sometimes ahead of my teachers (especially in primary school). Teachers used to shun me out of class, sit me on a computer and have me do my own thing. At the time I thought it was great, but I didn't know the reason.

Later on, in Secondary school, I finally found out the reason. I was home taught. As such, I was far in advance of anything the primary school teachers were capable of teaching, especially as my Dad is into science himself. I also had a chance to read the Ofsted reports that were in my School Record, they all passed me several years in advance but every one of them read the same thing: "Lacks social structure, would do better in school".

I personally, didn't want nor need "social structure". I am naturally reclusive and until I got to college had never had more than 3 friends. I feel as though the educational system has done me a great injustice, I have been put down and pushed out of everything because I am different to the 'mainstream'.

This is the reason why the educational system is failing not just me, but all of the potential Next Einsteins. Todays children are not allowed to be different. If we are different, we are not allowed to succeed.

Fortunately, in my case, I have succeeded. I am now a fourth year astrophysicist at one of the top Universities and in real danger of becoming a Next Einstein.

The main point of what I'm saying is that I owe my success to being home-taught by parents who care. Hopefully my perspective has reinforced the importance of the parent in the teaching scene because (and correct me if I'm wrong here) most schools are not capable of teaching.

I think you have missed out on the most important aspect of school, socialisation. The purpose of school is not to teach you how to pass exams, it is to teach you to be a human being, with all that entails. By being home schooled, you've missed out on learning how to make friends, to deal with enemies and all the other things that school teaches us.

Any genius can learn how to be an astrophysicist. But can a genius learn how to fit in with a group and live a full and satisfying life?

I have never had a problem with socialising. Being home taught has in fact made me choose my friends better. Many people make friends very easily, but they also lose a lot of friends when moving around from place to place. I am still in contact with every friend I have made. I still go to parties regularly with friends from when I was 8. I am still making friends today, from all walks of life.

As for dealing with enemies I believe mine have been of a somewhat higher caliber than most. I have had to deal with teachers, and I assure you, for most eleven year-olds that is a frightening prospect. As for physical bullying, I have had my share.

Interesting.

If you're currently a student I assume that means you are in your early twenties. So I'm hugely depressed by your tale, because it suggests that the education system isn't dealing any better with highly gifted children now than it was some 30 years ago.

Gnomon, in my view some of the most valuable learning at school takes place in the playground. But not for everybody; for some of us it is a miserable place. I learnt about how to get on with people in my family (I have 3 siblings), at Guides, and subsequently as an adult at work - that is, away from the school environment, where I was given a very hard time.

I'm fairly confident that schools recognise and deal with bullying more effectively nowadays. Hopefully the new Gift and Talented policies that schools are beginning to adopt will also prove worthwhile.

Mol

I have made several visits to secondary schools accompanying my family on open days. From what I have seen the system is continuing to decline at a steady rate despite the claims and statistics. I am hoping that G&T schemes do take root, as I don't see the 'mainstream' system working for much longer and gifted children do need someone more gifted to teach them, a rarity in many educational institutions.

As for bullying in schools, the situation is becoming better. The only thing missing is the discipline. Of course it would help if the teachers had more to begin with....

Strangely enough, some of, what I consider the best teachers were hated by over 90% of the student body for being too strict.

I believe that in my country, the educational system is very good.

Which country is that though?

There is a school in my town which is failing, so yes bullying and behaviour are not dealt with. All of the other schools are doing better - obviously some better than others. I would say that most schools round here do have discipline.

Schools don't always 'teach' socialisation - just by being there you won't learn to get on with other people. I am currently trying to get my son out of mainstream school - not because he's a genius, but because he simply cannot deal with the amount of people at school. Not only has he got all those kids to deal with, but he's also got around 15 adults he has to learn to deal with too. He's also got no idea of hierarchy, which obviously the school feels is a problem. There's no point in sending someone to the Head if he has no idea that's any different from seeing his usual teachers.

He has special 'social' lessons. It's not something that all kids just pick up.

On the other hand, he's got a very wide range of skills and 'non-skills'. He's 12 and his abilities in different areas range from 7 to 16.

I live in Ireland.

I live in England, so that is probably where the difference arises.

In relation to your son, I think teaching him at home, for at least a little while could help him understand about hierarchy. As you are his parent he must in some way feel that you are superior to him.

But, I must warn you, home-teaching is not a decision to be made lightly. You have to weigh up the financial and emotional costs against the expected advantages. From my own experiences of teaching, it can be very draining on all aspects of your life.

There is absolutely no way I'm home educating. J needs to be *away* from me, not even closer! At the moment I'm pretty much the ruler of the world to him, and that is not going to teach him that other people are just as important in different ways.

And I'd like him to get a decent education. I couldn't even teach him to ride a bike.

Have you sat down with him and his teachers regarding the situation?

We're going through the Statementing process at the moment. I'm in the middle of writing my arguments against what they've 'offered', because it consists of a sticking plaster, and he needs specialist help. The school is with me on this one - they are prepared to work very hard with J as long as he's with them, but they do feel he'd be better off in a much smaller environment.

I see, I'm not pretending to understand becuase I'm not familiar with Statementing, I know the basics because my brother went for assessment. Unfortunately for him they refused on the grounds that the school didn't support the application. So at the moment, although he still attends school, I also give extra help at home.

At the moment I believe it's working but it is very slow because I am trying to teach at the schools rate to maintain some kind of link between the two different things he is being taught.

You can appeal apparently. His last school didn't support it either, but I didn't know then that I could ask for one myself. Had I known, I would have taken my boxing gloves and fought for one.

When I last checked, the appeals process and the personal statementing costs around £400, which is far in excess of anything my family could muster together at the time. So we effectively took things into our own hands.

My father actually went to the school and took my brother out of class, to sit outside and be taught within the school grounds. The really damning thing about the system is that other children in the class were wandering out of the class to join them.

I didn't realise there was a cost to appeals, but £400 doesn't seem a huge investment in a child's future.

No, it doesn't, but to a family of six where the sole breadwinner has just been laid off, £400 is an impossible value to pay for anything.

That is why we had to work around as best we could, and we were quite lucky in that the school accepted our proposal.

Appealing shouldn't cost anything. £400 is probably an average figure based on the fact that some parents will get a lot of specialist reports privately, and/or use specialist legal firms. You can appeal without incurring that expense and *always should*.

I'm starting to sound like a scratched CD

Mol