The glorious British education

[Vanguard_Ex]

OK, searched the forums thoroughly, so unless someone started the same topic 10 seconds before me, you can't whack me round the head with the search bar. Also, my first topic, yay! There will be drinks afterwards.

So here's the story: way back in my Polish high school, a teacher told me that apparently, in the UK his is a highly respected profession, that teachers are paid well and have a good sense of responsibility, and that the British school system is among the best in the world. I'd had that image stuck in my head since then to the point of being a bit afraid when I went to study in the UK. I expected that I'd be totally wasted in the first nerd duel(*) I run into and become the laughing stock.

Then I spent almost an hour trying to prove to a geography student that there exists a country called Armenia.
Then I met another student who, until her boyfriend asked her if she wanted to go to the Niagara Falls, thought the Falls were in Africa.
And recently, another one asked me in short succession what does the word "Shah" mean (she was reading about the Iranian happenings on BBC News) and who Kafka was.

Now, before anyone flames me, the purpose of this thread is not to laugh at the Brit's ignorance. It's just that there is this discrepancy between my previously held beliefs about the British school system's quality and what I've experienced and I'm curious about the reasons. So, my dear British escapists, I have a few questions:

Is the system just incredibly Britain-centered, so that anyone can quote the total beef production of Yorkshire for any year between 1900 and 1990, yet fail to name the capital of France? Or is it, plainly, not as good as advertised? If the latter, then where does the reputation come from? Is it that it USED to be very good, and just turned worse recently?

(*) For those of you who don't know, a nerd duel consists of throwing random trivia at each other unless one runs out of ammo or admits that they hadn't known what they were just told.

Actually, in topics such as History, I found myself furious because of the lack of British history in the curriculum. It was all about America and Germany, yet you can bet your ass that most American history classes would be centered around American history. It's ridiculous.

 

[Zac_Dai]

Fortunately I still live in an area of England that didn't remove Grammar schools so the education system around me is of high quality.

Still hated it though.

 

[Kevvers]

He's probably thinking of the English public school system. Where everyone is extremely clever, because they are routinely whipped to death if they fail their exams, and buggery is an official extra-curricular activity.

As described in Ripping Yarn's Tomkinson's School days
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=InqBDv_9ar0

 

[Chipperz]

My geography lessons were stuff like measuring soil densities and weather patterns. I've never had a lesson on where different places are on a map, but if you'd asked me about 8 years ago, I could have told you how muddy it was there...

 

[Susano]

I like it better this way. It makes less sense, but is much more true. But then again I wouldn't expect someone who hasn't consumed a gallon of whisky to grasp the logic of the Irish.

Fixed, and I know an Irish guy! He enjoys rape, but he's cool.

You try typing while half drunk, and we'll see if your spelling as is good as mine! And Irish are close relatives of Vikings, so the love of rape is no suprise.

Wow, I both respect you, and want to murder you and harvest your soul to figure out how you Irish work.

Thats a farily common reaction to an encounter with an Irishman. Although following through on the soul harvesting would be an uncomfortable experiance for both of us.

I've done it enough, normally I would just rape you till you told me everything.

That would also be an uncomfortable experiance for both of us. And i'd have to eat you black widow style afterwards. It's an Irish tradition that you'd just have to deal with.

edit: it also seems Irish are famed quote pyramid builders.

No, it would be very comfortable though if you screamed a lot. But I'd just rape you to death.

As long as you're okay with me eating you afterwards then alright. Otherwise i'm going to have to pass.

Well if you're going to do that I'll have to shoot you with my Colt .44.

As long as I get to eat you after you shoot me then i'm fine with that. The rite of eating the rapist goes back 9000 generations.

Well you can't eat me, as you would be dead.

Have you never seen the documentry, Shaun of the Dead? Dead people can still eat you.

But you don't have the Zombie virus! Plus I would just blow your brains out anyway.

I point to another documentary, Resident Evil 4. I have a bad case of plagas for your information.

You know what, I'll burn your body and spread your ashes in space.

/fight

There was a fight? I was just explaining the traditional custom of eating the rapist. Weird Yank/Brit/Whatever

I will murder you and destroy your family. THERE!

That seems a tad bit harsh, doesn't it? Sounds like someone needs a nap.

No, you need a shotgun blast to the face.

That doesn't sound like it'd be very fun. Maybe you need to picture a calm stream while listening to Phil Collins. Works every time.

Phil Collins sucks.

He thinks very highly of you.

I know, and he's a good drinking buddy. But his vocal talent leaves much to be desired.

Then listen to something else peacful. If it's emo though then Phil will be dissapointed in you. And really, nobody wants Phil Collins to be dissapointed in them.

Except me.

Then may your god/non-god have mercy on your soul. I have to go out and drink wit my crew, so g'night.

Good day! And don't mind the beeping sound under your car.

We've learned to check under our cars from the bad years...

 

[Kevvers]

I thought that the main impression of the public school system in Britain was pretty awful. A Brick in the Wall, Pt. 2, anyone?

In britain we call our private schools 'public schools' because back when the phrase was coined there were no schools all, and they were open to the public provided you were from the right background and could pay the fees -- as opposed to having a private tutor which was also very popular.

The education for the masses are called 'State schools' because they are run by the State, and are usually pretty badly run. Until the 70s we had a system whereby you would take an exam called the 11+ (*which you took at the age of 11), and if you were in the top 25% you would go to a grammar school where you study things like maths, science, languages, latin and the like (classical education), and if you failed you would go to a secondary modern with the rest of the masses where you would study something more practical like metal work. They still have this system in Kent, but everywhere else it was abolished because it was unfair.

 

[D.C.]

Then I spent almost an hour trying to prove to a geography student that there exists a country called Armenia.
Then I met another student who, until her boyfriend asked her if she wanted to go to the Niagara Falls, thought the Falls were in Africa.
And recently, another one asked me in short succession what does the word "Shah" mean (she was reading about the Iranian happenings on BBC News) and who Kafka was.

I have to ask Where are you being educated in Britain? Theres a hughe difference between the top schools/unis and the worst in Britain now. I also have to point out that education in Britain has gone under significant changes (for the worst recently) due to politicians interfering.

As for the geography stuff, geaography in the UK due to above mentioned changes is no longer about places and where stuff is, it has become an education about environments, i.e. how a river impacts a surrounding area etc.

SNIP

I don't think ANYTHING is a good excuse for standing still when people are firing bullets at you. Couldn't you hide in a tree? That way, when you're reloading after firing once, people won't shoot at you, as they won't know where you are. I dunno... What you said makes since... but doesn't . Not that that wasn't their reason for doing it, of course [/quote]

That little rant would put you up for a ranger/light infrantry. These guys did fight like how you described and were well used in The British army too. It was just a matter of fact that a group of well disciplined men in order stood up to cavalry much better than skirmishing. And most Battles at the time were fought in big open fields, so there wasnt much cover anyway.

If we only went by the criteria for calling a country 'fascist', then the Third Reich meets them all. The distinction lies almost exclusively in the inherent racism of the Nazi ideology.

The Third Reich did not have an economic policy of corporativism, one the three big distinctions of Fascism. Therefore not entirly Fascist. Nazis and Fasism are different but similar things. Like how two breeds of dogs are the same species but different breeds.

Fascism is a very hard thing to agree on what defines it. And so it is often misargueed.



And i will end this stupidly hughe rant on two points that are OT.
The British education system has changed and most of the students no longer want to learn, So British education is failling horribly but we still have some shinning examples.

 

[Helnurath]

http://i37.tinypic.com/2wnsp6w.jpg

You can't beat Americans when it comes to stupid.

 

[master m99]

i use to be good but i think that there are trying to hard to make it so even the complete idiots leave school with some qualifications which in turn makes them dumb all the classes down making the qualification's worthless. I'm speaking from the point of view of a British guy just going into 6th form (plz say all the chavs have left my school now!)

 

[Daveman]

snip

well in general our universities are better especially considering it is for a fraction of the cost compared to american universities

 

[D.C.]

http://i37.tinypic.com/2wnsp6w.jpg

You can't beat Americans when it comes to stupid.

He couldnt even spell the state he lived in correctly.
Oh boy does he deserve need some new brain cells.

 

[D.C.]

i use to be good but i think that there are trying to hard to make it so even the complete idiots leave school with some qualifications which in turn makes them dumb all the classes down making the qualification's worthless. I'm speaking from the point of view of a British guy just going into 6th form (plz say all the chavs have left my school now!)

Im just leaving 6th form and im afraind to say they wont. Unless there is a collage nearby where they can do even less work and get away with it, they will stick on for the £30 a week for doing nothing and to avoid actually getting a job. Sorry to ruin your hopes.
On the good side there will be remarkably less, because a lot wont be able to continue education.

 

[purplegothchick]

Well I've just finished university but I am terrible at geography. Really, I couldn't even tell you where most places within the UK are, I've just never been interested in geography. Some people just don't like certain subjects, others don't like school and others just don't get the point most of the time. However, I do think that's true for most places in the world, not just the UK. Don't understand where our reputation for a good education system came from :-S

 

[Dogstile]

you got told that the British school system was good? HAHAHAHAHAHAHA

Britain's probably the only country where you get taught the specifics of rocket science and then you get tested on paper air planes in your final exam

(yes, that happened to me)

 

[CloudKiller]

and who Kafka was.

Wasn't he the bad guy from FFVI.

 

[bue519]

Stupid people are stupid.

And they are everywhere. Everywhere. God, there are so many of them.

Sigh.... if only we had thought police around to hunt the stupids.

we would be fascists.

and if i may invoke Goodwin's law.
Hitler was a fascist.

So stopping stupidity is fascist? Cause I'm pretty sure that a lot of countries that arn't fascist have secret police.
EDIT:
Also wasn't Hitler a socialist. After all he was in the National Socialist Party. Mussolini was a fascist though.

 

[Mother Yeti]

and who Kafka was.

Wasn't he the bad guy from FFVI.

nah bro he was that french guy who turned into a bug

 

[JenXXXJen]

Sounds like you went to a shit school to me. They aren't all good, most are shit. You can tell how good you're school is by how many flamboyant gays there are, if there's more than three, it's a good school. True fact.

 

[Bendebec]

The majority of Britain's best schools are private ones, it depends on which school you go to. The fact that most of Britain's quality schools are ones you have to pay a large yearly fee is one of the reasons why Britain is (supposedly) one of the worst places to be a teenager in europe.