I have firmly focused my job search outside of Northern Ireland. Some people agree this is a good thing, but others will protest that I am somehow abandoning my country!
Well this is what I have to say....
Well this is what I have to say....
- Northern Ireland will never forget the Troubles, but it is now in the past and we need to move forward!
- The MLAs are a perfect example of how Northern Ireland is and always will be stuck in the past!
You might remember in late December 2010, there was a water crisis, and Northern Ireland Water were hauled over the coals, and the minister was criticized! If this was any other country the minister involved would be punished at the polls, but not in Northern Ireland, who still vote either green or orange depending on their grievances - so the criticized minister got back into the Assembly on his first count!
Northern Ireland has the top 25% of students in the whole of the UK. What an achievement. So why would the Northern Ireland Assembly through the Sinn Fein minister in education want to damage that reputation by essentially streamlining the top performing schools, so no one can excel !
The 11+ WAS fair. The 11+ is a 2 test process measuring a child's academic ability, assisting pupils with their choice of secondary level education, based on their academic ability.
This is not discrimination, it is FAIR. The pupil will be going to a school that will meet their academic ability, that won't be teaching them beyond their capabilities, so they will have more of an opportunity to excel.
Instead, there is now a 5 test system and at the end of it, instead of getting an A, B1, B2, C1, C2 or D - each test has their own grading scale. And nobody knows how to decipher the information. So who knows what schools are best suited to them.
The minister is trying to streamline the secondary education system and have all schools teach the same curriculum, and every one learn at the same level. How are pupils to excel, and what about those pupils who struggle to learn at that level. This IS discrimination!
Lastly my frustration with education is university and college degrees! There are so many people going to college now that it is slowly but surely devaluing the worth of a degree. Most students have to obtain a 2:1 or above to be remotely considered for graduate positions! What about the hundreds of students who get 2:2, and who worked just as hard, but couldn't quite get there! This goes back to the academic ability!
Raising the fees is the most straight forward way of reducing the number going to university. But I would be hypocritical of saying this is the way to go.
There should be better advice and guidance given in schools to help pupils discern if university is the best way in terms of their career path. After speaking with professionals in several industries I have come to the conclusion that esp. in Arts degrees, that the volume of work covered in a 3 year degree, can also be taught on the job in 6 months!
This is something that needs to be looked at !
This is why I want to get out of Northern Ireland - people need to wake up and look beyond this small island and see how they are very narrow minded.
It is easier to have gone away and come back, rather than stay at home and try to go away!
Follow me on twitter: @DickyJJr
Keep chukkin them dueces!
