Thank you Patrick.

Yes I'm all about choice and meeting individual needs.

I think your use of the word 'train' hits a good point actually. I think schools main purpose is actually to train children into social conformity. But again, the world has moved on a long way since the current model was introduced.

I do struggle with the way all children are supposed to fit into classroom situations and a systematic learning model. As you will know all too well, some children just don't thrive in that system. Our child definitely wouldn't have. I struggled myself - not with the work, but with the 'social' aspect and the limits of an authoritarian environment. I had a couple of teachers who became mentors and friends (arty types who recognised I was struggling, and why). They probably saved my life in my late teens because they gave me someone who I could relate to and made me feel seen and understood.