The education system is fundamentally flawed because the government thinks only of 'one size fits all' kind of system and also because of the failure to support the teachers and schools.
The schools which are successful are criticised. I live in Doncaster, a town where many of the outlying villages saw a dramatic rise in unemployment after the pit closures many years ago and still hasn't recovered fully. The behavioral issues that exist even at a young age in the schools is something the government doesn’t' want to face up to. Then along come the new 'Academies' which are part private funded and part state funded, but operated completely independent from the government. The parent’s criticisms when this school opened in 2006 were
The parents don't want to face up to the responsibility of their children’s behavior, so the schools must be given the authority to take a hardliner attitude. The parents and pupils will get upset, but it works. ZERO TOLERENCE. You don't need corporal punishment, that’s only when you've failed or the pupil is probably beyond the point they can be improved.
A few days ago, the Academy released this article
Bear in mind, this is only 2 years later, and this is one of the most deprived areas in the UK! The results tell the story...
Well, how about my story... When I was 18 I wasn't interested in going university despite my parents urging me too. Mostly I wasn't interested in doing a course without seeing the relevance in it. Instead I decided to take a Merchant Navy Officer Cadetship. My friends who were going to University laughed, "what on earth will you ever achieve in a job like that..." they said. So off they went to University, took courses in Business Management and similar themes.
Now I'm 24 and of the group of 5 friends I went to school with who all went to university; 3 of them are unemployed and the other 2 are in jobs much less grand than they were dreaming of 6 years ago.
For myself I work 6 months a year and earn around 5 times as much as my Dad was earning after being a school teacher for 30 years! (After being very reluctant to support my desire for a career to sea, he's completely turned around his view). I have to admit, it wasn't easy at the start with 7 month trips working 6 on/6 off in the offshore oil fields of Angola. I was given the worst jobs onboard from cleaning sewage tanks, cleaning boilers to scrubbing the holds of a 40,000 t ship. The only consolation was that the aged Captain and Chief Mate giving me the job had done the very same jobs many years ago and would always chirp 'you need to know how hard these jobs are son, otherwise how could you ever give other people these jobs when your an officer...'
So what is wrong with University system, are there too many people coming out of university? Do employers value a degree anymore? Do employers actually understand what is on the CV in front of them, when the system seems to change so frequently?
How about these so called 'Mickey Mouse' degrees? These 'quasi-academic degrees' such as Madonna Studies, golf course management, pig enterprise management, knitwear and beauty therapy courses give absolutely nothing to society, and I personally would be embarrassed to have them on my CV!!!!!!!
What on earth would an employer say to these?
http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2006/ma...litics.schools
http://www.thestar.co.uk/doncaster/D...ove.5572290.jp
Originally Posted by RickyR
