E d u c a t i o n M a t t e r s
Trying to do theRight Thing by Your Children
Chris York, Educational Development Manager and son of a retired RAF Officer, mulls over the educational challenges faced by Service families
I
t is some time ago that I and my two brothers followed my father around this country and beyond, in his RAF service. I
know that my mother and father often discussed, sometimes heatedly, what the right solution for their children’s education was. I know that my mother always regretted the decisions taken to send us off to boarding school to provide a stable education.
As for me......I’m still not sure. I certainly didn’t enjoy being packed off to Dotheboys Hall* at the tender age of 8, and I cannot say that I flourished academically in that strange environment, which is the English boarding school. However, I do not know if the alternative of changing schools as frequently as my father was posted would have served me well either.
If I had, I would have attended five or six different schools between the ages of 8 and 17 and I simply do not know whether or not the benefit of being with my parents all of the time would have been outweighed by the lack of continuity in my schooling which would have been the result. Frankly, I did not do as well as my early promise (before boarding) seemed to indicate that I would. Over time, I also became more distant from my parents; simply because they were not the ones with whom I shared any problems that life threw my way.
The third option would have been for my father to have been absent from the family (at least during weekdays, and often much more), while my mother provided the ‘stability’ of a settled, but often fatherless, home life. I’m not sure how that would have worked out either.
The choices which face Service families are not easy. I think nowadays, there is a different culture, where families try to be together and fathers try to be involved and I think that’s a good thing.
24 Winter 2008
This will usually mean that the children have the problems which go with changing schools. There are the social issues which go with having to suddenly say goodbye to friends accompanied by the fear of having to make new ones. This puts a very real stress on children emotionally and, frequently shows itself in a sudden downturn in performance because so much energy is being devoted to surviving in the new and unfamiliar environment. Also, children don’t really understand why they might suddenly not be doing so well, and this can, in turn, lead to behavioural issues.
who might just benefit from targeted tutoring, as it is called.
• Assessment. Each child has three assessments per year in Maths and English, which let parents know how their kids are doing measured against the National Curriculum, and identify specific topic areas where they might need help.
• Helpline. Children can call in with their homework problems to get help from our experienced and qualified teachers. This eases the homework meltdown situation, which I am sure we are all familiar with, if, for whatever the reason, you cannot provide the help your child needs.
• Practice. Practise for SATs and GCSEs.
Currently the organisation is helping over 40,000 children with their English and Maths learning. Lots of parents talk to the organisation’s teachers as
well....to get advice on their children’s education.
Just a Thought
In addition, there are academic problems and when children arrive at a new school in the middle of the school year, they may well find the topics which they are being taught there are the topics they have already covered and vice-versa. This really matters in subjects like English and Maths, the building block subjects. If a gap in knowledge is allowed to form, it makes it very difficult to make good progress. To give a very simple, exaggerated example: if you miss out on multiplication, you cannot do division.
There are no easy answers to the conundrum but I now work for an organisation providing educational backup and my thoughts immediately turned to my own disrupted education and immediately recognised it would be perfect for Forces families today
I have talked to the directors of the company and they have agreed to offer a special price for children of Serving personnel for under £4 per week (per family). Being able to help our children when they are having difficulties is one of we parents’ most basic instincts. If you would like to know more visit www.
educationalbackup.co.uk; call the head office: 0208 658 7711 or email me:
christopher.york@ebluk.co.uk
* ‘ Y
At Mr W ackford Squeers’ Academy , geometry , astronomy , Dotheboys Hall,
outh are boarded, clothed, booked, furnished with pocket-money
, trigonometry
use of the globes, algebra, single stick (if required), writing, arithmetic, fortification, and every other branch of classical literature. T
, provided with all necessaries, instructed in all languages living and dead, mathematics, orthography
, the erms, twenty guineas per
annum. No extras, no vacations, and diet unparalleled.’ Extract from Charles Dickens’ Nicholas Nickleby.
www.raf-families-federation.org.uk
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