'11 Plus'

[Arthur Little]

Having been an 11+ failure, myself, I fully empathise with these sentiments; you felt as if you were "branded for life"! <

Actually, I eventually managed to "redeem" myself [academically] - in my early 30s - by going to Evening Classes and taking a "clutch" of Scottish Highers - among them, English & History - plus Arithmetic at Ordinary Grade (the approximate equivalents of the former GCE 'A' and 'O' Levels, respectively, South of the Border).

Sadly ... however, by the mid 1970s, *such qualifications were being obtained by a greater number of youngsters than had been the case back in 1961 when I left school. And so, their value diminished ... coinciding with an increase in demand for graduate applicants to fill promoted posts as a greater number of people competed for fewer jobs.

But, if nothing else, it gave me a sense of achievement and much-needed self confidence.