Part 1 of documentary

Last week we began the discussion of the comparison between the US model and UK model of schools. The US model consisted mostly of the contest system where individuals have to work for where they are. The UK model is based more on sponsorship, where your class is what is important. If you do not have money, you will not go to a private school, which in turn will give you fewer opportunities. You were also able to move up a class if you showed your skills in school, but you were then required to resituate yourself away from your original class and become upper class.

The video that we looked at was the first part of the UP series that is trying to determine how much of our future is determined by the time we are seven. Is it possible to know what we will be by the time we hit that age? I was one of the few students in the class who put up their hand when asked if they knew that they wanted to be a teacher by grade 2. It was actually at seven that I realized that this is what I wanted to do and it was confirmed later on in my school years. By me saying this though, I do not necessarily think that our future is determined, but that there may be clear ideas of what you might be. However, people are sometimes able to break away from this. It is actually sad to think that your life is determined by the age of seven, as some of the less wealthy individuals assumed that certain jobs would be too difficult for them, so they immediately disregarded any chances of trying to achieve their goals.

The video is very neat as it documents 13 different students from a variety of classes at the age of seven in Britain. They ask them many questions regarding education and other topics, and from this, they are trying to determine what they will be. I especially enjoy it because the documentary does not stop there. They also follow them at the ages of 14, 21, 28, etc and they are currently making age 56 (I think). This allows educators to see particular results not only if this theory is correct, but also to show the results of the US and UK models.