More on the Education theme

The decision to go private was helped along by two earlier bad experiences with the State Education System: I was disappointed at my young daughters ignorance of her times tables during her spell in Primary School. Imagine my shock when, at a Parents Evening, her elderly teacher told me that she was "no longer allowed to teach times tables". How the hell are our children expected to go through life? Counting on their B****y fingers?
Of course, it goes without saying, they were taught at home.

Later on, in Junior School, daughter came home and told us that the old (stern, respected, no-nonsense) Head Master had retired, to be replaced with a young 'touchy/feely' bloke to whom the children had all taken an instant dislike. (They saw through him immediately. It took us parents a bit longer). His first act was to rearrange the furniture so that the children all sat round interfering with each other, copying each other's answers, and kicking each other under the table. The ones with their backs to the board had to screw their heads off constantly to see what was going on. What a great idea!

The old-fashioned Private Grammar School we chose for her secondary education had all the desks facing the front, as they had in my day. If parents can choose their children's schools, they can make their own minds up, but in Africa, with the pupils facing the front, one teacher can educate 150 in one class - under a tree, probably. And get a better result than some of our own poor deluded teachers get with the vast sums poured into their training.

Huh!