[Glice]

There's not much of a trend towards home-schooling in the UK (that I've encountered) but the comprehensive sector is fucking dire. People like myself, who arrogantly consider themselves intelligent, are let down by teachers who just want an easy life. I was lucky to pass all of my exams without any effort, and get high grades. If I was in another educational sector I'd've A-starred everything. People who aren't so sharp just fall off the edges of education in the comprehensive sector. There was a kid I'd sit with in geography who wasn't diagnosed dyslexic until he was 16 (i.e., far too late). He was a clever chap, and with a bit of support could've done better, but no-one ever thought to ask why he was able to talk about things but not write.

The thing that makes me most angry is one of my best mates came here with English as a second language - in fact, at the age of 11 she could barely speak it at all. She's also one of the most cuttingly witty and astonishingly perceptive people you'll ever meet, and she didn't get a single GCSE from the comprehensive sector because no-one ever thought to give her extra language support or anything. It annoys me because she thinks she's thick, because her teachers always made her feel thick.

Wow. That was a rambling monologue, well done me.