Private school students scoop scholarships. BIG surprise, huh?

[pet0006]

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Originally Posted by qwerthey

Have a cry. VCE rewards smart work, hard work and intelligence. Socio-economic status cannot and will not, in any case, supersede these funadmental aspects of success. Perhaps throw in, even a bit of luck. There's no "secret training" given at private schools, those who succeed are those who deserve it, and those who get 99.95, private school or not, can have their achievements in no way diminished by others. They. Deserve. It.

"Big surprise" ? Check the school rankings again. Private schools aren't the highest ranked. Case in point. Government schools, Melbourne High, Macrobs, Bialik, all have occupied the top 3 spots in recent years. So go back to your excuses and self-pity at your "plight" of "discrimination" and "prejudice", but know this: if you don't work hard, there's a high chance that you won't perform as well as you desire, no matter what type of school you attend.

Such 'anti-discrimination' (against a majority) grates on my nerves. Enjoy your VCE next year, and I expect you'll be whining non-stop at the "unfairness" of it all if you don't get 99.95.

MAC.ROB!!!

no s. mac.robertson girls high school.
i hate it when people spell it wrong

[Darnie]

I dont see what is wrong with this. The students were offered a scholarship for getting the highest mark possible, yes? So what if they were from private schools? as a general statement, private schools offer better education than public schools. I dont see why this is such a big deal.

It is like everything else in life; if you are willing to pay, you will get the best. It is no different with education.
The fact of the matter is, if private schools stopped performing better than public schools, they would fall down. Many parents would not send their children there, and the school may have to close down.

As for "perpetually disadvantaged", lol.
its not that they are disadvantaged, just that some private schools have better facilities and teaching capabilities. if you are worried about it, stop being so fucking stingy, spend an extra few $ and get yourself a private education.

also, lol at tags

[mastermind666]

Originally Posted by pet0006

Those 2 public schools that are number one and three?
I go to number one.
Mac.rob. and we're only number one becuase we pass a bloody hard exam to get in. we're the top 3% of the state.
so you can't count us as 'public schools are going ok'
cos we're not! we're going shit! my school is so underfunded. half our computers dont work. we have no grounds. and we can't afford anything. all we have is our seven years at number one. and umpteen at number two

its not that people who go to a public school will get a lower ENTER, or wont get a 99.95. its just that private school pupils have more facilities, and more money. the private schools have the resources for extension classes/learning difficulties, and if you are good at something there are the facilities there to help you e.g. art, sport. you are able to pay for tutoring, and usually don't have money worries......
at public schools people seem to have more stuff going on. i dont know if its just me, but i've een to both public and private, and the private school kids live a very sheltered life. less distraction=higher score

Also, don't forget that the elite private schools such as Scotch and Melbourne Grammar attract a lot of extremely intelligent students through scholarships. The best students in Victoria are naturally interested in private school scholarships, due to the additional facilities they have. Thus, the best students are often on scholarships in private schools.

In addition, Mac Rob and Melbourne High students are the cream - they are obviously going to top the state!

Normally (correct me if I am wrong) it is the scholarship students in the private schools who 'scoop' scholarships from universities.

From my previous school (up to 2007), 8 of the best students (including myself) were 'taken' by private schools (scholarships) or the selective schools - my teachers were livid!

[bwendan]

Originally Posted by OliverHolmes

"It just so happens..."?
The universities can claim simple recognition of academic merit - but we all know academic achievement is intrinsically linked to social class stratification.

So what if universities select on academic merit? What should they do instead? And so what if academic ability is correlated with family income, etc.?

Originally Posted by glenda2007

Australian uni entrance should be changed to the US Model which requires mandatory interviews, essays etc. to better gauge their applicants which will be supported by SAT results or in our case VCE.

A lot of universities already do that, take Medicine for example. Further more there is no "mandatory" "interviews, essays etc." in the sense that the Government forces universities to adopt such practices. Universities decide for themselves how they will admit and select students.

Originally Posted by humphdogg

I've seen several studies on this, and I'm still not certain. I went to a private school and have seen several of my friends drop out of university. But then again, plenty of my school friends are still at uni, and I also know plenty of public school graduates who've dropped out of uni.

As I am aware there is a paper from Monash University, using a sample of Monash University students, showing for a GIVEN ENTER/UAI, public school grads tend to get higher uni marks than private school grads, though the effect only lasts for about a year. Furthermore, I recall that the study simply treated a 70 in Arts as equivalent to a 70 in law. So some caution is warranted when interpreting their conclusions.

[lifequest]

I don't understand why people (generally those who can't afford private schools) wish for private school students to be disadvantaged. That is ludicrous.

If I chose to go to a private school to help my education, why should I get punished? Punished so that my efforts would be dragged down to the level of a public school. If someone's parent has worked hard, earned their status and living quality and are able to afford such good teachers, then good for them. You have no right to DEMAND you receive the same treatment. Sorry for those who still believe they have the RIGHT to have equal standings, life is tough.

It's clearly jealousy. So instead of staring at the fence spitefully at those private school students, get off your ass, get a couple of tutors (they're cheap) and start studying.

I personally didn't go to a private school, however, I do not envy them one bit. They deserve to continue leading our community and society because they have the power, the brains, the will and the "hereditary" experience to do so.

If you are born lower on the social hierarchy, suck it up and work your way to the top.

I'm saying all this from a person who went to a public school, his parents rented through his high school life. I'd say I wasn't great, but I did manage to get a higher than average ranking and course.

[SylvesterBr]

It's not a matter of wanting them to be disadvantaged, it's just wanting fair oppurtunities.
I'm not necessarily saying private school students are unfairly advantaged, but the OP is trying to argue that private scool students get advantages because they come from private schools, not because of their intellectual merits.

personally, I believe that scholarships should go to those who achieve the best results. If they happen to be from private schools, then so be it. As long as it's not because they're from private schools.

[bwendan]

I think lifequest is spot on a lot of the criticism of private schools seem to be based on envy.

[lifequest]

Originally Posted by SylvesterBr

It's not a matter of wanting them to be disadvantaged, it's just wanting fair oppurtunities.
I'm not necessarily saying private school students are unfairly advantaged, but the OP is trying to argue that private scool students get advantages because they come from private schools, not because of their intellectual merits.

personally, I believe that scholarships should go to those who achieve the best results. If they happen to be from private schools, then so be it. As long as it's not because they're from private schools.

Ahh fair enough.
No the scholarships were not selected based on school, race, gender, religion or any other "unjust" reasons. It was academic or economically-disadvantaged students (depending on the scholarship).

The Newspaper attempts to allude that private school students get scholarships just because they're from private schools. Note: Allude. It's not true.

Because if this was the case, it would give grounds for so many students to sue the university for inequity.