The Student Room Group

Why is it fair for people with money to get a better education than me?

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Original post by Pinkool14
Wow....just look at the Most of the kids in India and China....who cares if you are rich or poor!!! Its NOT about private or State...its about YOURSELF and how determined you are to get ahead in life!.... The kids there just pick up the damn books and start reading and working for themselves! Even those who are struggling to live on the streets manage to work their A** off! and eventually will get somewhere in life! some of them have supportive parents, and some don't even any!
So make the most of your ******* time at school and realize that MONEY ISNT EVERYTHING! Forget abt the shyt teachers bcoz they're not doing the exams, it's all down to YOU and only YOU can make a change!


I agree with you here. If you fail an exam/do poorly, it is because you have very little motivation or take no care or pride. Of course, in some cases people do genuinely struggle, but the majority of the time its lack of motivation
(edited 11 years ago)
Original post by i_hate_ucas
You cant blame the fact you dont go to a private school for not getting the results you want, at the end of the day its the pupil's responsibility to do well in an exam. I go to a pretty average state school and Ive done well in my exams because i work hard, not because the teaching is any better than in other schools


I got the results I wanted.
Only way to resolve this being fair to both sides, is to bring state schools up to the same standards as the average private school. Maybe employ better teachers? Instead of just hiring anyone with a scientific background to teach "science" at GCSE, hire only teacher who for example have a degree in physics to solely teach physics.
Encourage more extracurricular activities in state schools-bands/orchestras and stuff.
Reply 283
Original post by Miracle Day
I've put up some statistics from the BBC which obviously shows that people do better in Private schools, doesn't matter if you tell me I should have done tried harder or I should have done better the bottom line is people have an advantage if they go to them.


I hate this attitude of 'If I went to a private school, I would've done better' - no, you probably wouldn't because you clearly have a habit of blaming external factors. If you're smart, you're smart wherever you go to school - it shouldn't hold you back. You get good teachers and bad teachers in every school - some push you, others don't - it's not a state school phenomenon.

Private schooled children are not always better off but they do work harder. Why? Because their parents are paying a hell of a lot for their education and only a dick of a child will not even try to work hard. With state schools there is this attitude of: a) not like parents are losing any money so why should I care what they think; b) teachers are crap - if I went to a better school, I'd suddenly turn into a straight A/A* student but I'm stuck in a lowly state school so it's not my fault; c) lack of resources - it hasn't hindered the few people who do get excellent grades in the very same school but might as well use that as an excuse...I could go on.
Original post by Pinkool14
Wow....just look at the Most of the kids in India and China....who cares if you are rich or poor!!! Its NOT about private or State...its about YOURSELF and how determined you are to get ahead in life!.... The kids there just pick up the damn books and start reading and working for themselves! Even those who are struggling to live on the streets manage to work their A** off! and eventually will get somewhere in life! some of them have supportive parents, and some don't even any!
So make the most of your F******* time at school and realize that MONEY ISNT EVERYTHING! Forget abt the shyt teachers bcoz they're not doing the exams, it's all down to YOU and only YOU can make a change!


:afraid: :cry2:
i think im going to go revise now...
Reply 285
Original post by Miracle Day
I've already done my GCSEs and am working as hard as I can for AS.

Perhaps at post #205 has said, if I went to a private school they would have gotten the best and I would have ended up higher. Evidence shows this is true. I am happy with my GCSEs, although I know I probably would have done better if I went to a private school and that's the bottom line.


Take some responsibility for your own future. This statement might stand, but I don't see how you can say that if you went to a private school THEY would have gotten you better grades. Your grades reflect your work ethic, and you got what you got because you didn't work hard enough to get the A*s you seem to want. And yes maybe that's down to schooling and environment - perhaps you weren't as inspired, pushed, challenged and spoon-fed as much as you think you could have been, but that does not negate the argument that with hard work you could have attained the grades that you seem to think are handed to private school students on a plate.

If you were in a crappy job would you accept your fate or strive for something better? Would you blame the work environment and other staff for your unrealised potential, or would you find another job? Life isn't about what's handed to you, it's about what you make of it.
Original post by JustJen
Take some responsibility for your own future. This statement might stand, but I don't see how you can say that if you went to a private school THEY would have gotten you better grades. Your grades reflect your work ethic, and you got what you got because you didn't work hard enough to get the A*s you seem to want. And yes maybe that's down to schooling and environment - perhaps you weren't as inspired, pushed, challenged and spoon-fed as much as you think you could have been, but that does not negate the argument that with hard work you could have attained the grades that you seem to think are handed to private school students on a plate.

If you were in a crappy job would you accept your fate or strive for something better? Would you blame the work environment and other staff for your unrealised potential, or would you find another job? Life isn't about what's handed to you, it's about what you make of it.


Actually, in my situation this isn't right.

English Language and Literature: Mostly down to being naturally talented, obviously my talent couldn't surpass the A* boundary.
Maths, Biology, Chemistry and Physics: I was put into low sets based on my year 9 results, where I had no work ethic etc.. Perhaps I would have had one if I were inspired and put into such a setting.
Religious Studies: My teacher was fired, infact I had the third highest grade (being a B) out of 30 people because we were taught wrong.
History: Did one exam in year 10 which i got a low B. Got high As in my year 11 exams, and was 2 ums away from an A so I never had a work ethic in year 10.
Welsh Language and Literature: Same as English, except I was actually good at English and bad at welsh hence the B and C.
ICT: Put into low sets based on my performance in year 10 which was poor.
Drama: Don't know why I took it.. I suck at acting and ended up with a D-E in my dramas and an A* in my written exam so I got a C overall..

It was only in year 11 I started to work. My parents haven't contributed even slightly into my education, they just don't care, in contrast to my friend who's parents do yet they all did much worse than I.

So as you can see my biggest downfall was the fact I had no work ethic up until year 11, when it was too late. This is emphasised by the fact I'm getting As this year in Sixth form. I was happy with my GCSE results and got what I expected and I'm not blaming my results on not going to a private school because I was happy with them anyway.

The evidence however suggests I would have done better in a private school. I would have had more attention from teachers instead of 30 per class and even competent ones.
Original post by krissy73
Having seen many comments on here from people who say that they are currently attending/have been to state schools that are 'good' (possibly selective..) i.e high GCSE pass rate and a good standard of teaching, what are your views on students who go to 'bad' state schools? I went to a failing state school in London which had a GCSE pass rate of 25% in 2010! :frown: Teaching was poor in most subjects and all the teachers at the school led us to believe that getting 5A*-C's was a big achievement. Yes, the amount of hard work an individual puts in does to a great extent influence their exam results but surely quality of teaching is also a major factor?
btw: the school in question is now an academy after being in special measures for 2 years...


This wasn't Pimlico by any chance...? (Apologies if not)
Original post by Miracle Day
I got the results I wanted.


Well then suely this is proof in itself that state schools are no worse than private education?
Original post by i_hate_ucas
Well then suely this is proof in itself that state schools are no worse than private education?


No. Because someone in private schools will want alot higher. Perhaps if I was in a private school I would have wanted alot higher.
Original post by alkyone
I'm sorry but I don't agree... If you can get 4As at AS level in a private school, you can do it in a state school too, perhaps it will take more time for you to do so. What I don't understand really is how state school students would benefit from closing down all private schools. Instead of being in a class with 20 students, you would find yourself in a class with 25 students, making it even more difficult for you to cope and people who have the ability and determination to study more and can appreciate the education they receive would still get the better grades. What private school has done for me basically is taught me HOW to study instead of spoon-feeding me to achieve the grades I wanted. I do see your point about how private school students are advantaged, but I believe it is more up to you and that there would be more problems created than solved if private schools did not exist


Actually, it's in reverse. Private schools tend to do more of the "spoon-feeding" than state schools, which is why state educated students tend (not in every case, obviously) to outperform former privately educated students.

Of course I can't really tell you how your schooling experience was/is, but I'm just pointing to the more general idea about spoonfeeding in schools.
Reply 291
Original post by placeboeffect
Actually, it's in reverse. Private schools tend to do more of the "spoon-feeding" than state schools, which is why state educated students tend (not in every case, obviously) to outperform former privately educated students.

Of course I can't really tell you how your schooling experience was/is, but I'm just pointing to the more general idea about spoonfeeding in schools.


Thanks for pointing this out, even though due to the competition which I feel exists at my school at least, students tend to find alternative ways of studying which would give them an advantage over other students. My teachers always tried to make us think for ourselves too, but then again that applies to my school.
Original post by placeboeffect
Actually, it's in reverse. Private schools tend to do more of the "spoon-feeding" than state schools, which is why state educated students tend (not in every case, obviously) to outperform former privately educated students.
Of course I can't really tell you how your schooling experience was/is, but I'm just pointing to the more general idea about spoonfeeding in schools.


in what world is this?
Simple really; people with money can afford to go to 'better' educational institues. It may not be fair, but if they have worked hard to earn the money, then why not? :smile:
I went to a state school, and I managed 1 A*, 9 As and 1 B in my GCSEs, followed by 3 As in my AS exams, and I'm currently doing my A2 exams. It's not always about the school.
In fact, it is more about the student. Pupils in private schools tend to have a better work ethic and are more appreciative of their education due to the cost that their parents are paying for them. My best friend attended a private school and yes, she did really well in her GCSEs.
But to be fair, if your parents were paying that much money, who wouldn't work hard; if for no other reason than to not waste your parents money? :smile:
Reply 294
you should work hard to reach your goals, don't waste your sweat about whether wealthy gain more or not as we are all equal. everyone has the same intelligence and in order to be more intelligent is to educate yourself as you cannot always rely on your teacher to teach you.
Original post by Monzystar
everyone has the same intelligence


:eyebrow:
Reply 296
Original post by TimmonaPortella
:eyebrow:


I mean that majority of us are intelligent however, some don't know how to use it, hence why they are some xxxhole :smile:
(edited 11 years ago)
Original post by AverageExcellence


God i ****ing hate liberals


I would suggest that your definition of "liberal" is severely warped.
(edited 11 years ago)
Reply 298
Not sure if my reply will be highly popular but please permit me to use this analogy MIRACLE DAY,
so u can ask, 'why does this rich man have a better car, nicer house and a fitter wife than me'?
people with money get better education because yes it is a cliche but money does make the world go round.
going to a state school doesnt justify your future no no but it is your hardwork, avoidin unnecessary nights out... and one day you will have a FITTER WIFE and ur kids can go to private schools.
As at now the government could subsidise private schools BUT there is NO MONEY.
Original post by Drewski
Why is it fair for someone with more money to have better clothes than me?


It isn't, duh.

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