Why I'm Considering a Homeschool, Part 2

Yesterday the Ministry of Education released the results of the GSAT exam. After two months of anxiety, Earth Mother finally got notification of her future and it was bittersweet. She did very well and was accepted to a very good school. However, she was not accepted to her first choice and therefore she feels like she has failed. Her first choice was the high school Warrior attends. It is a very good school and incredibly popular so the number of spaces available each year are limited.

The GSAT has no pass/fail standard...meaning the students are not trying to score a certain number. It is based entirely on available seats at the high schools the student applies to. A student lists their top three choices on their applications. If a high school has 50 spaces available, they accept the 50 students who scored the highest on the GSAT and listed that high school as their first choice. Earth Mother scored very high but 50 people scored higher and had the same high school listed as their first choice. She gets bumped to her second choice. She didn't fail anything.

She is eleven years old. Her sixth grade graduation is on Thursday. She should not be experiencing this kind of pressure and disappointment. I am sad for her. Her support network is a fragile one. I hope that she is being encouraged about her results and comforted regarding her disappointment. Mo and I are very proud of her and know that no matter which school she attends, she will excel.

This is the article published in the paper today about coping with the GSAT results. The fact that such an article has to be written is just wrong...It's time for the system to change.