<p>My good friend is being relocated to England and is considering a private school in York for her high school son How would one evaluate an English school?</p>
<p>You might do a google search. I don’t know much about them now because we lived there 20 years ago, but what I DO know is that private schools are a definite necessity in England. One of the main reasons we moved back here.</p>
<p>You might look at the O and A level results commonly achieved by their graduates, and acceptances into universities and other post-secondary programs.</p>
<p>I think one of the major newspapers - probably The Times -has an education section that ranks the schools in the country.</p>
<p>A place to ask this might also be ************** which is a site somewhat similar to this. If they have an area for nonuniversity questions, they may be able to point your friend in the right direction.</p>
<p>Does the company offer relocation services? I think when my sister moved within England the company she was moving to had information on the area schools within a certain mile radius.</p>
<p>If they are likely to join a church there, members on a welcoming committee may be a source of local opinions.</p>
<p>Best of luck to them.</p>
<p>edit: I see the forum doesn’t allow the british forum’s name. PM me if you want it.</p>
<p>I did check that British forum but couldn’t find any info on it. And I know nothing about O and A levels. The company is relocating their family and recommended this particular school. </p>
<p>If I could find the O and A level results, could anyone help me to interpret them? Thanks.</p>
<p>twinmom: Cupcake who sometimes post on the international students forum is British and is attending Oxford, I believe. You could ask her for information about that particular school or about how to get more information about the school.</p>
<p>York is a lovely city!</p>
<p>I know some expats who choose local schools in the UK and others who choose international schools (which are abundant in London and elsewhere). For a HS student I would be concerned about changing systems much past 9th grade. The breath of subjects and the instructional mode may be issues. This depends on the skill set of the student, of course.</p>
<p>I think that among the best sources are the other expats attending the school. The parents should ask for names and contact them directly. </p>
<p>There is a placement service in the UK called Gabbitas or something like this- it has extensive school profiles available on line.</p>
<p>I attended an English school for three years - 4th - 6th grades. Having gone through those years was a great experience for me. I came away with an appreciation of another culture that persists to this day. On the other hand, the transition back to the American system, was a major challenge with gaps in my knowledge and other areas where I was well ahead.</p>
<p>As for a high school student, I think I would recommend against it - too much trauma in what is already a difficult time. Your student would find that they have a very different experience base - and that the gaps in the knowledge would be a real handicap.</p>
<p>I don’t have an answer for you but we went to York on vacation last summer and it was an interesting town with a nice medieval center.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>I’m not British, I’ve just been here a million years by now!</p>
<p>I also have little idea about private schools, because I didn’t attend one, ever!</p>
<p>Americans (who I have to say are generally totally obsessed by stereotypes that they get from movies) believe that most British students go to some kind of Harry Potter-esque boarding school. This is so ridiculously far from the truth. Over 90% of students go to “state schools” which are those which are free and provided by the government. They are not generally boarding either. I think many people consider sending your child to a boarding school a little sadistic really! I get that impression anyway. </p>
<p>We should sort out the terminolgy too.
Private schools are those you pay for. Public schools are a TYPE of private school. It is NOT TURE that UK private = US public. That is totally wrong! Usually the term “Independent schools” is used to encompass both. “Public school” in the British sense historically just meant that anyone could go there, as long as they could pay. They didn’t have to be of a particular religion or take an entry test. The remaining public schools tend to be very old and usually boarding schools. The fact that it costs more that the national average yearly wage to attend one excludes 99% of the population from these anyway.</p>
<p>I am linking Wikipedia here because you won’t believe me.
[Public</a> school - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia](<a href=“Public school - Wikipedia”>Public school - Wikipedia)</p>
<p>UK schools years are one year out from American ones because Kindergarten is year 1. eg year 11 UK is US year 10.</p>
<p>Most private schools are not boarding schools and are not historic or beautiful. Eton is not typical! They are very ordinary buildings in ordinary places. </p>
<p>There are also “grammar schools” in some areas only. These can be state or private schools, and the main point is pupils have to take an entrance test to get in aged 11. My dad went to one of these schools in Northern Ireland and historically they existed everywhere. Students who passed this “11plus” exam went to grammar schools, and the rest went to an easier school. But successive governments decided they were discriminatory and tried to get rid of them. Havng said this, there are LOTS of people from grammar schools at Oxbridge, despite the fact the total number of them is tiny. They do really well in the league tables - i.e. their pupils do very well in the national exams. In general private schools do better too, but I would expect that because they often have entrance exams too i.e. most of the clever kids go to private schools.</p>
<p>I went to a free state school for A-levels. At the age of 16 (after GCSE exams - see below) students can leave academic schools and do apprenticeships or vocational training. In some areas all schools finish at age 16, and those who want to continue on the academic track (you have to have 5 GCSES at grade C or over) go to a separate “6th form college” like I did. The others go to a vocational college or the workplace. In other areas, the 6th form is part of the same school that the students attended for GCSE study, so they just stay on in the same school after age 16. </p>
<p>My school was fine. I don’t think it was the best school in the world, but it wasn’t the worst. As I said, I haven’t attended a private school so I don’t know what they’re like. I get the impression that they have a lot more extra-curricular activities (but most people in the UK do not look to their school for ECs. thi is something they do at home, and they don’t do them to get into college like US kids) and better equipment through having more money. My teachers were nice and they were good. Schools with entrance tests of course do better in the league tables, which are based on the results of national exams. </p>
<p>I think UK schools are like US public schools in that most are ok, but you do hear horror stories about the ones that are not. These tend to be inner city schools on the whole. I did a masters at uni of York. I highly doubt there will be lots of horror schools there because it’s a really nice place. </p>
<p>According to the Guardian in 2003, 7% of pupils in the UK attend private schools, but it’s 12% in London. That would make sense because most of the scary “sink schools” probably are in London.
[Steep</a> rise in private school fees | UK news | The Guardian](<a href=“http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2003/may/01/schools.education]Steep”>Steep rise in private school fees | UK news | The Guardian)</p>
<p>The UK is a bit obsessed with league tables. School tables are based on the results of national exams i.e. the teacher doesn’t set the exams, an outside body does. So all pupils can be compared to everyone in the country.
O-levels - were phased out in the 1980s are replaced by GCSEs. Still exist only in some Asian countries.</p>
<p>GCSEs - exams taken in years 10 and 11 (aged 14-16). There are several compulsory subjects (eg English Lang, Maths, Science) and students choose some more so most people take between 8 and 12 subjects. They get a grade A-G. A grade C is considered equivalent to an old O-level pass. Many employers treat grades less than C as worthless. the grades are based on course work and exams over 2-3 years. they are NOT standardised tests in the American sense (see A-level below).</p>
<p>A-levels - Are generally the entry crtiteria needed to go to university. They are NOT standardised tests like US exams are (again, I know most of you will not believe me here). A students final grade is based on “coursework” (stuff done in class, and sometimes at home but less so now because people copied stuff of the web!) and exams over two whole years (years 12 and 13, or “6th form” as it is often known in the UK. Aged 16-18). So the grade (A-E or a U for unclassified) is actually much more like a GPA. Most students only do 3-4 subjects, because they’re hard and universities are looking for focussed students. If you pass year 1 you get an “AS-level” which is worth half an A-level. If you pass year 2 (often called A2) you get a whole A-level grade.</p>
<p>National school league tables
[BBC</a> NEWS | Education | League Tables](<a href=“http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/league_tables/default.stm]BBC”>BBC News - League Tables)</p>
<p>Ok, I have now exhausted my knowledge of the UK educational system. I don’t know everything so please use other sources. The British Council is very helpful.
[Home</a> page - British Council USA](<a href=“http://www.britishcouncil.org/USA]Home”>http://www.britishcouncil.org/USA)</p>
<p>To the OP - In my opinion it could be seriously problematic for your friend’s son to enter the UK system in the middle of GCSEs or A-levels. It would be very difficult to pass the courses having missed the first year. It is much better to start at the beginning of A-levels (UK year 12, aged 16. Effectively Junior year US high school) or the beginning of GCSEs (effectively US freshman year). This is why a private school, or even an international school, might be better for your friend’s son. They would have more experience of children coming from different educational systems. To be honest I doubt that state schools in a semi-rural place like York will have.</p>
<p>Cupcake: Thanks so much for the valuable info. I will pass it along to my friend.</p>
<p>I was thinking after I wrote all of that (which is probably far too much info!) that your friend should look into a school which does IB. This is much more compatible with the US system that A-levels, as the student will most likely want to go to a US college. But it is also compatible with the UK system and not unusual here, usually in private schools.</p>
<p>I also forgot to write about SATS. There are some exams called SATs or maybe SATS in England, but they are not like US SAT. They are for younger students. I think there are several, taken a different ages (7, 11 and 14. I’ve heard it said that there are more exams in the English education system than any other in the world. This would not surprise me). Again, these are national tests that everyone takes. They are nothing to do with college admissions. They are a way of measuring the progress of younger students as far as I know. But school league tables may also include school SAT results. In other words, those with better results are higher up the table.</p>
<p>Thanks again, Cupcake!</p>