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A retired head master informed me that he doesn't recommend grammar schools for kids with AS. The reason is that the staff have less knowledge and experience of SEN than those in a state school, the SEN services of the LEA are no longer available, and the culture of the school isn't good most of the time for a kid with AS.

 

Has anyone here had any experience with a grammar school and AS?

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That is just plain silly.

 

The local boys grammer has an excellant reputation for very clever high performing Aspergers. None have statements as their specific learning difficulties tend to just be acepted and allowences made.

Grammer schools are not suitable for those who are average and struggle to learn regardless of if they have a disability or not.

 

ALL applicants get to sit the enterance examination and those unable to cope with that do not enter the school itself. The school is far smaller than surrounding seconderies and offers a far higher level of teaching with higher expectations of pupils which for the bright 'geeks' [aka ASD] who long to learn works.

The local school also offers a better pupil teacher ratio than the overstretched secondary [yes....you guessed it looking for Sam]

 

ASD Friend of Nathans who was constantly in tears in primary school from sheer boredom won a place and has not only thrived but is actually enjoying life. I did ot think that lad would stop crying from frustration.

 

I went to a girls grammer school. [i know it does not show in my english] and I can tell you this its a holding place untill the brighter aspergers can go to those very special residential facilities that meet their needs....I believe they are still called universities.

 

And that retired head teacher ought to think long and hard about some of the staff that teach in grammer schools too! :P The better teachers who truly knew thier subjects inside and out at my old school would certainly meet the diaognostic criteria if they had been assesed as kids these days.

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Teachers in grammar schools tend to be qualified in their subject and not qualified to teach. As a result, they are likely to know their subject to a higher level than a teacher with a teaching qualification, but are they capable of teaching or dealing with someone with SEN? Some may make excellent teachers but others can end up as "old Einsteins" or simply be incapable of understanding problems related to AS or dyspraxia.

 

Officially grammar schools are set up for people of a high intelliegence that have few problems rather than for people that require services the state cannot provide. For example, someone might be a maths genius but have difficulty with writing or foreign languages. Do grammar schools provide extra help when one struggles with a certain subject or issue or do they simply discredit them?

 

Another point is that a culture tends to run through the school that isn't really there in a comprehensive and if someone is an odd-bod then they can lose respect or get treated badly by the staff as well as their classmates. One example is sports and music which tend to take a higher status than in most comprehensives. A bad sportsman or musician will not be very popular regardless of their academic abilities. Finally, if someone has a serious interest in something outside of the school curriculum such as Ford Capris then where does that stand? If they spend most of their time outside school under a car bonnet then the school could interpret it as someone who wants to become a car mechanic rather than go to university!

 

I will discuss the issue with the head master to see if he can provide more information on the merits and shortcomings of grammar schools for someone with AS.

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I think it depends on the school and their attitude. I visited 3 grammar schools for Jack and 1 in particular had a better knowledge of Asperger's than any of the schools, comp or grammar that I'd visited (and I visited practically every school in our borough and the two neighbouring boroughs!!). They told me that the majority of their SEN are AS kids, ALL the staff that I came into contact with, not just SENCO and head, had an excellent knowledge of the difficulties our children face. They even had a Pokemon and Yu-gi-oh trading card club at lunchtime which they said is very popular with AS kids. My son never goes to any clubs but after visiting he was already planning to join 3!! Pet club, trading card club and computer club. They were going to provide my son with a 6th form mentor who would be trained in Asperger's, solely for Jack and they planned that every morning the mentor would go through Jack's timetable with him and make sure that he had the correct books for the day, knew what homework to hand in etc.

 

Before I had even voiced some of my concerns the deputy SENCO was telling me some of the difficulties that he'd probably get into and how they'd help him, and they were spot on.

 

I think that in grammar schools there are probably quite a few undiagnosed AS kids and to be honest the majority of highly intelligent kids I know who are NT are a bit geeky and weird anyway. There's normally quite a lot of learning support in grammar schools, as they still get the same SEN budget as other schools (in our area, not sure about other areas) but with a lot less SEN kids. As there are not many children with statements in grammar schools, sometimes only 1 per year if that, all the teachers would know that particular child rather than in a huge mainstream secondary where they're often 30-40 statemented children per academic year.

 

As for the sport, none of my sons friends who got into grammar school are very sport orientated, quite the opposite and would much rather talk star wars than play football any day. I thought comprehensives are more sporty where kids can do GCSE's or NVQ's in football.

 

Unfortunately my son didn't pass the 11+ which is a shame as his NT friends (intelligent, geeky star wars obsessed) all did. I felt he would have really fitted in.

 

Lisa

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I used to know a kid who could have had AS and attended a grammar school. He said he wasn't very happy there despite doing well in certain subjects including physics and chemistry. Many of the staff didn't think much of him as he was disorganised and didn't involve himself in the extra curricular activities. He left at the end of Y11 and did his A-Levels in a 6th form college because he felt he didn't fit in with the school culture and his classmates considered him weird. This was about 5 years ago so things could have changed at the grammar school.

 

I am tempted to say that grammar schools in areas with the 11+ have a higher proportion of AS kids than grammar schools in areas without the 11+.

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In our area there are no grammar Schools,so mine have gone to a Comprehensive School.Mine are high achievers and they've all been valued and stretched.These days,teaching is a graduate profession,so all staff have a specialist qualification in their subject as well as a post-gradute teaching qualification.

 

I don't think that one type of School is better than another;there are good and bad in all systems and it comes down to looking and choosing the best school for each individual.xx

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Interesting thread as the 11+ looms it's head in 2006 for my son. I am already thinking about what to do for the best. He is certainly bright enough to cope with the subject matter but the sheer size of the highs/grammars here is going to overwhelm him, plus all the moving around. Mind you first I will have a battle on my hands for him to be able to take the 11 plus on his own, I doubt he will need the extra time but he will need to be allowed to talk out loud to himself all the way through

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It might be worth taking the 11+. If he doesn't like the grammar then he can always move to a comprehensive. I think its the fee paying grammar schools that the retired headmaster is wary of.

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It's better to take the test if your son can cope with it, it then gives you more options when looking for the appropriate school. If your son has an LSA they should be allowed to sit with him and he should also be allowed to take the tests on his own away from the "crowd".

 

I regret not doing this. I thought my son would cope better if he was with his friends at the testing centre and I didn't make arrangements for his LSA to sit with him. We did have the opportunity for him to take them at school but declined and in hindsight, I think this was a mistake.

 

After praising grammar schools in my earlier post, don't forget that it does all depend on the school. One of the grammar schools in our area, after speaking to the SENCO, I didn't even bother viewing. Her attitude was he'd just have to toe the line or get detention. She also told me I was a bit early looking for a school and said I'd got it wrong when I told her that if your child has a statement the norm was to name a school at the year 5 annual review. I said thank you and crossed it off my list!!

 

Lisa

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Before I was sent to boarding school I was in Harrogate Grammer. It was a nightmare and Student Services didn't know where their ar*e was(in my face most of the time). It was pointed out that I had difficulty writing and would need a laptop to type on, I got one some *months* later when I had been bullied(by teachers and students) to a wick end. They never once bothered with a psych assessment(too much money?) which as time was moving on became more obvious that I needed it, they never stopped discussing it, but never got round to actually getting it.

 

There did seem to be a deliberate effort to get rid of me. Every instance of bullying I reported was ignored, but a single incident where I fought back, chased the lad down the corridors and then broke his rib got the book thrown right at me. Nevermind that my arm had been broken twice in the short time I was there.

 

I believe that the 'we pick what we want' nature of Grammer schools is predeterminately leaning against any pupils with special needs. Everytime I get upset by the closure of a Grammer because it's one of the only ways a student from a poor background can get the best education, I just remember my experience and how it's often just a way of giving rich families a free education with public money when they can go private.

 

One day soon I hope to be extremely rich. Then I will buy all the property around Harrogate Grammer. Then I will begin an agressive development programme which raises tall buildings that cast a shadow over the school and block out all the light and scenery. Then when the head complains I'll tell him where to stick his inkwell.

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