Why children are more stressed

Editor News editor A close acquaintance told me her 10-year-old daughter had not passed the 11-plus. Imagine the disappointment of the girl who had visited her chosen grammar school and hoped she would be able to be educated there.

She asked her parents if they would appeal the judgement. They agreed, while stressing she must not get her hopes up and they would first check with her school they were not tilting at windmills.

When they spoke to the head of her primary school she said that she should have passed and she would thrive in a selective school.

If the head teacher knows who should and who shouldn’t go to grammar school, why are we allowing this iniquitous divisive testing to dominate Year 6 in our junior schools? Why are parents having children tutored? Why are we amazed our children are more stressed than they have ever been? Why is nobody doing the joined-up thinking?

I taught in one of Maidstone’s happy non-selective secondary schools in the 70s and 80s. All teachers kept copious records of each of their pupils’ achievements from when they entered the school for the next two years. At 13-plus decisions were made regarding each individual’s performance.

This process was thorough, painstaking and time-consuming and absolutely fair. Those for whom a grammar school education was thought appropriate were offered a place and those for whom nonselective education was deemed proper stayed where they were until sixth form when they could make another guided choice.

I do not understand why we are allowing such uncertainty to plague our children when what we need to do is to trust the teacher and let our children enjoy their years in primary school, where love of learning should be the litmus test. A retired Maidstone teacher Name and address supplied