Bute House Confusion

I wanted to call this blog something else but it didn’t seem appropriate.

Having prepared several girls for this assessment, I’m very well aware of what is involved. I’m very well aware of the standards expected by Bute House and I’m very well aware of the calibre of girl who is offered a place to study at Bute House.

My client sent me a mumsnet post the other day and I found it fascinating and also utterly destructive to other parents reading her experience and most likely believing what she is writing.

Obviously, you are free to believe whatever you want to believe!

This mother writes that her daughter was offered a place at Bute House (7+) and she writes about how proud she is that she ‘didn’t tutor her daughter’.

Listen up, she 100% did tutor her daughter. She taught her herself (supposedly!). So she tutored her. Why is tutoring such a dirty word? Tutoring just means teaching. They are the exactly same, identical thing. So if you are teaching your child yourself, you are tutoring them. Understand that. All this nonsense I hear from parents who tell me ‘I didn’t tutor my child.’

Yes you 100% did.

After going on about her daughter not being tutored she then goes on to speak about all of the learning her daughter did each week at home in preparation for her Bute House 7+ Assessment. So she was tutored!

She goes on to tell her readers that Bute House doesn’t do ‘formal written assessments’ and instead invite girls to a ‘day at school’. Complete and utter nonsense and very misleading to parents who will believe what she is writing! Yes, it’s a day at school. But your daughter will complete ‘formal written assessments’. Specifically a maths paper, a reading paper and a writing paper. Bute House also write that they ‘do not follow a traditional paper based format’ - not sure what they mean by this. They can masquerade it how they want. Your daughter will be completing papers in one way or another.

So yes, it will be a lovely day at school for your daughter but really no body is interested in the fact that your daughter had a ‘lovely time’. If her daughter passed, it’s because she passed each aspect of this rigorous 7+ Assessment. It’s because she met the high academic threshold, it’s because she was able to demonstrate confidence and exceptional capabilities in her 7+ Assessment.

Bute House also say not to have your daughter tutored because she will then not be able to keep up with the academic standards of the school further down the line. I think tutoring has been completely misunderstood by some. Tutored girls are the ones who will pass their 7+ Assessment at Bute House. Those who are not, will not stand a chance. At the end of the day, your daughter needs to meet a percentage point in order to pass.

Simple.

Oh and by the way, don’t let anyone tell you not to have your daughter tutored. Even if your daughter is successful at Bute House, having tuition is just a beautiful complement to that.

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