Why private schools should be banned
"....I believe that educationalists and egalitarians should fight for an end to private schools and the extension of an Eton standard of education for every child. Why? Because the current system institutionalises and makes acceptable educational inequality."
The article has a lot of liberal gobbly-gook that is not very logical, but there are many comments on the article which are pretty good.
From the article and the comments, I was struck by the difference between British Society and the American "Land of Opportunity." We have so many people who achieve rags-to-riches success, that not attending an ivy-league school like Eton (or Harvard) is not seen as a career stopper here.
As a side note, I did a little research on the homeschool laws in the United Kingdom. This from HSLDA:
Compulsory Attendance Ages: 5-16
Legal Status: Homeschooling is legal in England and Wales under the 1944 Education Act, which was consolidated in 1996. Section 7, Education Act 1996 states, "…[E]fficient full-time education, suitable to his age, ability and aptitude and to any special education needs he may have, either by regular attendance at school or otherwise." Under the "or otherwise" phrase in the law, families can legally homeschool.
There are no requirements to inform the authorities when one is home educating, unless the student was previously enrolled in the government school system. At that time, the parent must let the school official know they are withdrawing their student to home educate him. No other requirements for home education exist.
Number of Homeschoolers: Between 20,000 and 100,000 children.
The Online Times article claims that 7% of children in the UK are educated in private schools. I wasn't successful in finding a percentage rate for homeschoolers, but I found many articles detailing the increase in home education.
I was surprised that home education was not mentioned in either the article or the comments section. Many comments gave me the sense that parents felt trapped in the public school system. It was kind of strange how the parents seemed to believed that a private school was the only option to a good education, as if the content being taught at private schools was top secret information. I found myself muttering at the computer screen, "Well, then pull them out and teach them at home." With the internet, that wealth of knowledge is available with a click of a button.
I have to admit my view of the educational system in the United Kingdom was tainted by watching the World's Strictest Parents. Listening to those teens talk was down right painful.
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