Re: ICL :)
I was 3 years ahead when I left junior school thanks to lunchtime lessons from teachers who really cared.
I went with my peers to the local "Comprehensive" as our Local Education Authority (LEA) had dropped the 11+ exam that year (mid '70s). It was the old "Secondary Modern" and was only used to the children unable to pass the 11+. The form groups were even called 'e', 'q', 'u', 'a', 'l', 'i', 't', 'y'!
I spent the next 4 years bored and getting into trouble with the teachers (including when the teachers line of thought was very obvious, answering the next question they were going to ask rather than the one they had asked.)
I had an at least weekly trip to the Head Master for a caning, always with the teacher in attendance to make sure that I was caned. As soon as the teacher left, the Head Master always apologised for the situation and explained he had to cane me otherwise the teachers would walk out! (They were as left wing as the LEA.)
It was very comprehensive though with boys and girls doing all subjects. As a boy, I was not too pleased with the repercussions of winning the school prizes for both Needlework and Cookery in the first year! I never made that mistake again.
I just scraped into the local Poly, where I started to get interested again. I always left the 3 hour exams after the 30 minutes you had to sit in your seat was finished, and one lecturer only gave me 99% - docked 1% for not going to his lectures!
Biting the hand that feeds IT
