From my own experience of attending a grammar school entrance test about 7 years ago now, most my competitors were children from middle class backgrounds who had been trained up for the test by private tutors so working class children, like me, stood no chance.

Tara, Berks,

Crikey. I thought this out-dated nonsense had been put to bed.

However, we have a government of half-wits who do not possess the ability to raise the standards of anything, let alone Secondary Moderns. So in order to make themselves even more smug, they cut down anything that breeds success...

william tapley, London, uk

of course theres nothing wrong with going to a state school, but the choice of NOT goin shouldnt be taken away.the state schools my catchment area were so bad, that most classes failed to pass more than 3 GCSEs.All kids have dif learning speeds+abilities and not many would fare well in that envirn.

Elsinore, London,

Alex, London I couldn`t agree more. What is it with these Labour cronies who denounce Private/Grammar schools whilst they themselves enjoyed the trappings of Private Ed? No doubt his kids go/or will attend Private schools or state schools where only the select get to attend [Tony Blairs kids!!]

GeS, Leeds, UK

So, let me get this straight... Grammar schools are damaging educational standards by turning out well educated pupils. Sec Moderns must therefore be seriously boosting ed standards then, the illiterate morons they seem to churn out. Why blame schools which are doing well, better improve the others!

Steve, Luzern, CH

Balls by name, pity his policies are also. He should understand that all children are different, both in mental capacity, ability and desire to work. Without detriment to the less able, he should be working hard to provide higher levels of education to the more gifted to provide for the future.

Chris Goodman, Fareham, England

I do hope Ed reads this! Get real! Parents are forced to send their children to private schools in order to avoid the disaster caused by the labour government. When the next generation of well educated non British children take over the world and look down on our nation, we will be kicking ourselve

Terry, Berks,

There is no clearer demonstration that New Labour do not agree with selection by ability than the PM and the Cabinet, just look and listen to them.

Chris , Doncaster,

Why, why, why is it not OK for brighter children to get the education and encouragement they deserve?! Why should they be held back so less bright kids won't feel bad about their underachievement. Get over it! Some kids are just brighter than others. That's the way it is, and always has been.

Sarah, Ottawa, ON, Canada

Labour must be the party of national suicide.

Carl-Edward Endicott, Los Angeles, U.S.A.

Labour policy of dumbing down once again rears its ugly head

Not a case of aspiring to better oneself more about bringing everyone down to the same level ( well its been the policy for a levels for years and no-one noticed except the universities!)

Shaun, Peterborough,

Class hatred is alive and well in the Labour party. Balls would rather drag everyone down into the gutter than allow a few people to get a decent education.

Ian, London, UK

I went to a new comprehensive in the early 70's. It was a place where learning was of no major importance. Bullying was rife, the pupils were more concerned with abusing the teachers than learning.
Luckily we moved and i went to a Grammar school...What a revelation!! Get real Balls...

paul, london,

When you're a government minister who knows full-well your party's heading for annihilation at the next election, you can babble all the whacky crazy stuff that pops into your head, secure in the knowledge that since you're hopelessly and utterly hosed anyway, it won't make anything worse for you.

Mike, Brighton, England

Grammar schools are the best non independent schools. The academically bright need to be taught differently to those who are not. To teach both groups the same is pointless as those who are not academically bright will not keep up with those who are. Life's full of success and failure live with it.

James Morley, Leicester, UK

Grammar schools are unfairly selective (personal experience). Taking the 11+ at 10 years of age is too soon for some children in terms of cognitive development.

Extra test provision for sen/disability is provided via the nfer, however this is often overlooked as it is not communicated.

Roy, Lincolnshire,

The fact is you can't have high achieving comprehensive schools (judged by high numbers of children gaining 5+ GCSEs including maths and English) when grammar schools take up to 40% of the top ability students. The choice is a) scrap grammar schools or b) stop making ridiculous targets!

David, Dover, UK

Yeah, good idea: get rid ot them: be just like the convoy restricted to the speed of the slowest ship - so they all get sunk....Wake up to the fact that kids elsewhere in the world are having to actually learn things of use so that they can make their way in an increasingly harshly competitive world

Gerry Watts, Hobart, Tasmania, Australia

Ed Balls is a damned nuisance. We are all fed up with his lack of vision for excellence.
Look at what he wants to do with small rural schools- close them!! Small is beautiful, children thrive- but rural life is very underfunded, and so are rural county councils.
Labour has lost the plot.

Mrs Maggie Snook, Wool , , Dorset UK

So Grammar Schools are bad as they make people who don't get in feel like failures? So jobs as brain surgeons and rocket scientists should be open to all, regardless of ability, in case failed applicants feel like failures.
Why the hell does nobody challenge the absurdity of this position?

Geoff, Pontefract, England

I'm sure the children who leave school with no qualifications or illiterate feel more like failures than the few who don't pass the exams to get into a grammar. Yet he still wants successful grammar to take over failing non selective schools...he needs to get his message straight.

Liz, Ely, Cambridgshire, UK

At the end of the day, selction allows you to identify the best teaching styles for students. Grammar schools have traditional styles of learning that suit a minority. Stop viewing intelligence in such a narrower way and allow SM schools to use dif methods to develop their students!

Laura, woking, surrey

Yet another champagne socialist who like Tony Crosland, Shirley Williams and Charles Clarke, is hell-bent on destroying the best part of the educational system.

Part of the tragedy is that Ed Balls clearly knows little about his topic. What is a "secondary modern school"?

Victor, NW Kent, Swanley, England

If a child feels himself or herself to be a failure, shouldn't we look first to the parents and not try and blame the school?

Marco, Kraków, Polska

Interesting to hear that Ed Balls is so against grammar schools, unfortunately not all parents can afford feepaying schools such as he was sent to

Tom white, Geneva, Switzerland

At least Balls is being honest. Labour's education policy over the decades since the sixties has never been based on anything except this nightmare of pupils "feeling" they are failures.

Oddly, he doesn't propose closing down Manchester United to save the feelings of the other clubs.

jon livesey, Sunnyvale, CA/USA

An intellectually challenging education is a MUST for any child lucky enough to be born (or brought up to be) bright. The state education system should provide this for families who are either unwilling or unable to pay for this privately. This has little to do with poor standards in failing schools

John Howard Norfolk, Tiverton, Devon, UK

Having attended two grammar schools myself and now a law student at Oxford, I have seen first hand how fantastic & meritocratic the system is. If Labour ever get their way, rest be assured that parents will rather send children to private schools rather than risk the perils of the state system.

Laura, Oxford,

This is pure smoke and mirrors politics - an example of Orwellian doublespeak to invert cause and effect and pander to the politically correct instincts of egalitarians. After the next election mainly rabid left wingers will represent Labour in Parliament, and he wants to be their leader.

Alan Gooch, Honiton,

Balls has just confirmed his ignorance of the education system. Ask him about the failure of the comprehensive school.The grammer schools set a high bench-mark, but we must all remember that we still need clever youngsters to learn skills in the 'Knowledge Economy' for when 'The Machine Stops (Saki)

Rodney Barker, Gainsborough, England UK

They go to top private schools and off the Oxbridge and then make the system fail the aspiring poor . What is wrong with a school that makes pupils proud of being brainy?

jane, Whittlesey, uk

Does that mean we do away with private schools too? So only the richest of parents are able to make sure a proper education is achieved. I am not long out of a grammar school and found it to be a massive advantage. What a joke. Balls probably only went private to stay out of the catchment.

Stuart, Orpington, Kent

Socialism is about equality of opportunity, which is a good thing. This Government seems hell bent on trying to legistlate for equality of outcomes which is not the same, and will not work. The outcome that is being achieved is the vandalisation of anything of quality - Schools ; House of Lords etc.

John, Warwick, Engalnd

But then of course Mr Balls was educated at Nottingham High School - a private school.

Am I the only person who finds irony in a labour MP not wanting poor people to have the opportunity of a decent education?

So sick of these sanctimonious rich kids trying to tell us how ours should be educated.

Alex, London,

The selection process for grammar schools is a total lottery. My daughter passed the 11+, but there were insufficient places at our grammar school. She went to a Comprehensive School, and has graduated from University with a BSc, then she went on to study for her PhD and is now a research scientist

Neil, Gloucestershire, England

Yes, Redbridge does have two grammar schools. However, most of the pupils attending the two schools have not come through the local primary schools - they have been sent to fee paying private schools and are taught how to pass the 11 plus, then they opt into the state sector. Clever?

Elizabeth, Redbridge, England

From A. Teacher! Did you hear the news item this morning? Apparently, amongst the various secondary schools earmarked for closure due to 'poor' GCSE results (<30% A-C?) are a significant number of schools with recent 'Outstanding' OfSTED reports. Fancy that!
Thought for the day...... Does that imply that the government has little regard for the findings of OfSTED inspectors? If the government doesn't rate OfSTED inspections, why should we?!..........

Andrew Guttmann, Macclesfield,

If so many of these state schools are so appaulling then y doesn't the gov try to improve them rather than attack grammar schools.My family arent rich but I went to one and I felt like I had a great chance to do nurture any career I wanted to do and get real help in subjects i wasnt good at.

Elsinore, London,

Mr Balls seems to adhere to the assumption that less able children are "dragged up" by sharing a class with brighter students. As someone who was consistently at the top of his class I know it works in reverse - children don't want to stand out from the crowd so the bright hide their ability.

Rich, Surrey, UK

Northern Ireland, with a grammer/secondary school system throughout has, by far, the highest proportion of 'working class' children at University compared to any region of the UK. So how is that failing the community?

Judy, Soton,

When will politicians admit that children have differing abilities and give them schools which nurture these,whether practical or academic? Then the word failure does not enter into the equation.
As for our education minister, never has a politician been so aptly named!

Barbara Marfleet, Wakefield,

Mr Balls should concentrate on improving failing secondary modern schools. Oh, I forgot, the Labour Govt has spent 12 years ruining, sorry improving them. Leave the schools that are working alone. Concentrate on poor teachng and lack of discipline and if Mr Balls you cannot, resign.

J Williams, Manchester, UK

Despite his protestations, I bet Ed Ball's children go to a Grammar School........ and when will this government finally realise that if I want to send my child to a selective school, I have the right to a choice. They are in no position whatsoever to lecture me on what is best.

Andy, Leeds,

Will they do away with gold medals at the 2012 Olympics? We don't want anyone feeling like second-class citizens do we.

David Masu, Zürich,

Instead of bringing Grammar schools down to the standard of 'other comps' the govt should be raising the standard of these poor performers. It's ridiculous to blame Grammar shools for the failure of other schools! Who will they blame next? Why do we have to settle for the lowest common denominator?

aj, Londoon,

The schools Not he problem its the kids, They dont speake english and hold the whole school back if i had my way 100% of school's would run on selection why is that this Labour govement always wants to hold the bright back and dragg them down and dumb down the whole country?

MR W Jones, Liverpool, England

I went to a Grammar school and feel that I benefited enormously from the system. However, I now tutor bright students from both secondary modern and grammar schools and I've found that those who have failed the 11+ and 12+ are no less bright, but have now far less confidence in their ability.

S. Savoy, Berkshire,

Thank goodness this person will not be in charge of education much longer.

Using the school tables quoted by The Times, the top schools are in places like Buckinghamshire (where every child is given the chance of grammar school education), while the poorest schools are elsewhere.

Ian Tinn, Slough, England

It's about time someone pointed out that in a selective system more children go to Secondery moderns than grammar schools. There is so much talk about excellent grammar schools but we seem to forgot in a selective system about the children who are labelled failures at 11.

andi, lancs,

How is it possible for yet another privately educated and Oxbridge graduate to pass judgement over Grammar schools that give hope, social opportunity (mobility) and a lifeline to "working class" students and their families? It is better to have some opportunity than non at all. He should resign.

chriski, manchester, GB

As public schools take more foreign students ( indigenous parents cannot afford the fees) there will be an ever increasing demand for grammer schools. Balls (privately educated) rebukes the grammer and is intent on witnessing it's demise. Soon Secondary moderns will become Primary moderns.

Douglas Miller, Fulham,

Ed Balls obviously does not understand that some kids are intellectually more able than others and should not be held back ,they are the future of our nation -those with lesser ability should be given better secondary modern education but one that fits that ability and gives them incentive .

phil, lancs, uk

It almost makes me cry to hear these 1970's mantras STILL being trotted out. Does it not occur to Balls and Co that what good education there is due to selection -ie Grammar schools? By all means improve SMs.. but not at the expense of the main source of what good education there is left in the UK.

andy, Perth, Australia

Why does the system expect children of lower ability to mimic those of a higher academic aptitude? Surely the kids are on a hiding to nowhere because the system is expecting them to perforn to that of their more able peers. It's not one size fits all. The system needs to adapt to the students.

chris, France,

Balls - Nottingham High Shool, Keble college Oxford and Harvard university. Bet he hated every moment of it ! Probably not ,he would just hate it if your children did likewise.

Wills, soton, UK

Last week grammars were part of the answer to improving "underperforming schools"; this week they are the cause of "underperforming" schools; next week it will be primary schools that are the cause. Whne will someone understand that each child has an individual capacity and adapt education thereto

Patrick, Taipei, t

Right, lets lower the overall standard of British education because one or two chavs (or should I say their parents) feel aggrieved. Lets scrap independent schools too. Lets give away universities degrees.

In fact lets have a nation of illiterates who will vote Labour.

Justin , Hong Kong,

It's not selection that's the problem here.

Exactly why are SM schools competing against grammar schools in the first place?

Sounds like Balls is hell-bent on ensuring that no kids graduate with brains enough to challenge or even recognise that their country is being ruined by the left wing.

Toby Johnson, Hastings,

I thought we got rid of secondary modern schools years ago? Are they not comprehensive now? I feel the need is still there for grammar schools for the high flying academics. In our area we have two grammar schools and top quality comprehensives who achieve very well. It is possible to run the two

Shirley, Redbridge, UK

I'm sure grammar schools are shaking in their shoes hearing Ed's dulcid tones [I think not] !!!!!!

ian payne, walsall,

The only failure here is on the part of the comprehensive system that lets down all of the pupils who aren't blessed with the academic abilities needed to get into a Grammar and get the only decent, non-paid-for education on offer in Britain.

Dave, Ipswich, UK

After 50 years of socialist PC campaigns, the dumbing down of education is now official policy. Parents want Grammar Schools; but Labour only listens to low performing families because that is where their vote lies. No thought for excellence - just misbegotten 'equality' that promotes failure.

Peter Athey, Paris,