Schools

Late last year, I got the dreaded letter in the post stating I had to chose the school and second choice school I would like Nate to go to. I'd already got an idea in my head which one I wanted him to go to. Then came the dilemma, I had to justify to myself that I had chosen the right school. What is a good school? Is it results? Is it the feeling you get when you are around it? Is it how the children behave outside of the school (in uniform)?

For me it wasn't about the results, or how the children behaved (it isn't senior school) it was about that feeling I got. Now admittedly I have spent a lot of time in his chosen school recently and haven't really explored the other schools in the area nearly as much as this one. There was also word of mouth, you know which school has the best reputation in your area but you don't necessarily know why. 

The school Nate is going to rarely comes up in conversation. Is that because it's a bad school? Or mediocre? Or just off the beaten track? I don't know but the children in the school are always seem to be happy, polite and interested in what they are doing. 

Should I check those league tables? No, I'm sticking firmly to my guns that I won't chose a school based on results. It doesn't tell me how happy the children are, or wether the school is setting them up for senior school and enstilling a love of learning. For me these are far important than scoring well in a test, results can only get your so far.

I just hope that this is the right school for him.