How did Diana do in school?

Started by LouisFerdinand, March 05, 2017, 12:08:59 AM

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LouisFerdinand

Diana did pay attention in class.   
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1325274     
:eureka!: :eureka!: :eureka!: :eureka!: :eureka!: :eureka!: :eureka!: :eureka!: :eureka!:


TLLK

#1
Her teachers have shared that Diana did put forth her best effort in school but she didn't do well on examinations. As an educator I'm speculating that she had a mild learning disability. Considering the era in which she attended school, I doubt that she would have received any additional assistance.  Harry, Beatrice and Rose Windsor were each diagnosed with a learning disability and received assistance during their years in school.

From the British Monarchy website

QuoteLady Diana was educated first at a preparatory school, Riddlesworth Hall at Diss, Norfolk, and then in 1974 went as a boarder to West Heath, near Sevenoaks, Kent. At school she showed a particular talent for music (as an accomplished pianist), dancing and domestic science, and gained the school's award for the girl giving maximum help to the school and her schoolfellows.

She left West Heath in 1977 and went to finishing school at the Institut Alpin Videmanette in Rougemont, Switzerland, which she left after the Easter term of 1978. The following year she moved to a flat in Coleherne Court, London. For a while she looked after the child of an American couple, and she worked as a kindergarten teacher at the Young England School in Pimlico.

Her old  boarding school West Heath now serves special education students who are not well suited to being mainstreamed into a regular education classroom with typical peers.

Camilla Al Fayed: My quest to ensure Princess Diana?s old school stays a haven | Express Yourself | Comment | Express.co.uk

royalanthropologist

As usual the comments on DM are acidic, to say the least. If Diana had a form of learning disability (such as dyslexia) then she did a very good job of hiding it in adulthood. I found her handwriting disciplined. She was no intellectual but she was not stupid either. You do not learn to play the piano like she did if there is nothing up there. I think she was very badly educated, very typical of aristocratic girls in those times. They were meant to be pretty and somewhat stupid so that they could make good wives for equally non-intellectual husbands. With the right support and reading material, I am certain Diana could hold her own in the highest circles. The self-deprecating remark about being "thick as a plank" was a preemptive defense mechanism against people who might question how inadequately she had been educated.
"In the past, people were born royal. Nowadays, royalty comes from what you do"...Gianni Versace

amabel

She failed all her exams, and her sisters who ahd the same education, passed nad did quite well academically. All of them were reared to marry rather than to go to college or have careers, yet the older girls got several O levels and Diana failed

Curryong

^ We know so much more about learning difficulties of all kinds now than we did in the 1970s. I have felt for some time that Diana may have had some mild form of dyslexia that wasn't picked up at the time. As well, I don't think Diana had enormous self confidence. She didn't bloom in the schoolroom or in academic circumstances at all, whereas her sisters managed fine and her brother did well. That's all right, and happens in many families, but I think it may have given another knock to Diana's self esteem, all the same.

royalanthropologist

If there is one thing I have learnt about children, it is that they are different. Academic competence in some siblings does not mean the whole family will pass. Diana lacked confidence in her intellectual capabilities and preemptively tried to prevent criticism through self-deprecation. As a parent, you try to support the child in the things that they do best. As we all know, Diana had no problems with communication. I am sure that she would have passed an exam in that with flying colors.

The other education relating to the history of the monarchy, she took limited interest. That turned out to be one of the many things that made her life difficult at court. I would recommend that every Princess of Wales is carefully educated about the institution. I would also advise any royal consort to read about the six wives of Henry VIII. They literally provide a model of how you will end up depending on how you behave as a royal consort.
"In the past, people were born royal. Nowadays, royalty comes from what you do"...Gianni Versace

amabel

Quote from: royalanthropologist on March 05, 2017, 10:47:32 AM
If there is one thing I have learnt about children, it is that they are different. Academic competence in some siblings does not mean the whole family will pass. Diana lacked confidence in her intellectual capabilities and preemptively tried to prevent criticism through self-deprecation. As a parent, you try to support the child in the things that they do best. As we all know, Diana had no problems with communication. I am sure that she would have passed an exam in that with flying colors.

but she didn't pass the exams at school.  And she went toa  good school, not soemwehre that there were huge numbers of kids, and I'm sure there were decent teachers.  perhaps she didn't try very hard, because she didn't need qualifications but it could just be that she was either lazy or not clever.  and the fact that she refused to read about princesses of Wales, or at first ot "learn a bit of Welsh" saying "I've left school I'm not doing homework" suggests that she didn't try very hard at least in her younger years, to learn things.  I think that iwht the remarks about learning about royal history, she was afraid of looking stupid and woud't try..

TLLK

#7
Quote from: Curryong on March 05, 2017, 10:22:36 AM
^ We know so much more about learning difficulties of all kinds now than we did in the 1970s. I have felt for some time that Diana may have had some mild form of dyslexia that wasn't picked up at the time. As well, I don't think Diana had enormous self confidence. She didn't bloom in the schoolroom or in academic circumstances at all, whereas her sisters managed fine and her brother did well. That's all right, and happens in many families, but I think it may have given another knock to Diana's self esteem, all the same.
:goodpost: Considering that her siblings used to tease her about her lack of school success I doubt that  she did have much self-confidence. IMO she had normal intelligence but some form of a processing disorder that made it difficult for her to learn like other children. IMO she found her own ways to cope and mask some of those issues in order to live independently as an adult. And as others have pointed out her family's expectations were focused upon her eventual marriage.  Had she been born 25 years later then she would have likely been referred to receive additional support at school. Perhaps she would have been able to pass those O levels if she'd been taught differently. We know that Beatrice and Harry were able to do so.

William and Kate will need to keep a close eye on George and Charlotte as both of their uncles  were diagnosed with dyslexia. IMO having George begin pre-school has been beneficial because if he's showing signs of a delay then it can be addressed early on.

Learning disorders can be hereditary so if families are aware of them it is something to be discussed with a student's teachers. I've sat in on too many meetings in which this information is very reluctantly shared. In the U.S. programs are available to help families from a very early age if the help is requested. Early intervention can be very beneficial to students who are struggling developmentally. One final request is to PLEASE keep kids off of electronic devices when they're young and expose them to books, singing, nursery rhymes and  hands on activities!!!!

amabel

Its hard to say. I think that she had normal intelligence but was'nt all that clever. I think she found learning hard and stopped trying..and being from an upper class background they didn't push her or try and see if there were problems, either emotional or learning related.  but I think that as an adult, she didn't try hard either, she would learn in "bite sized" chunks, and I think the longer she was in the royal job the more she DID try.. but her intitial reaction at being asked to learn stuff was to shy off and act like it was beneath her.

TLLK

#9
QuoteDiana had no problems with communication. I am sure that she would have passed an exam in that with flying colors.

Also if  she had the opportunity to give an oral response on an exams I do believe it is possible that she could have expressed herself adequately and could have possibly passed. In fact students with diagnosed learning disabilities can ask for modifications on standardized test ie:  a time extension.

Examples of Accommodations & Modifications | Smart KidsSmart Kids

Double post auto-merged: March 06, 2017, 01:13:42 AM


QuoteI would also advise any royal consort to read about the six wives of Henry VIII. They literally provide a model of how you will end up depending on how you behave as a royal consort.

As fascinating as their lives were, I'd recommend  reading about the consorts from a more recent era since the role of the monarch is very different than it was in Henry's time. I'm not sure if reading about an absolute monarch would be as relevant as a constitutional one if we're looking at it as a form of  "Royal Consort 101."

Alexandra had been the most recent Princess of Wales when Diana married Charles, though I believe reading about the roles that Mary, Elizabeth (Queen Mother) and even Phillip played would give some insight into the expectations that the role requires.


amabel

I don't know if she'd have passed exams because she didn't seem to have much basic knowledge. I think that that was why she didn't want to read more stuff when she was a new pricness, because she knew she didn't know vyer much, even about the RF and was embarrassed at her ignorance being exposed. 
I agree about the Princesses of Wales, it would be good to know a lot fo royal history but for the time being It was best I think that she should concentrate on the more recnet Princesses who were closr to her in time andi in what their role was expected to be.. ie charity work, keeping one's opinions discreetly to oneself etc.  But I believe her aides tried to get her to read about Alexandra and Q Mary and she woudlnt. I honesly am not sure if there was some arrogance in her refusal to raed up, or was it mostly fear of her lack of knowledge being exposed.

LouisFerdinand

At Riddlesworth Hall Diana won the Leggatt Cup for helpfulness.       
At West Heath Diana learned to play the piano.


TLLK

Both schools provided the education that her parents wanted for their daughters.

sandy

#13
Diana herself said she froze up when she took exams which is why she failed. She did have a learning disability. Princess Elizabeth and PRincess Margaret (especially Margaret) did not have the best of educations themselves. Diana was expected to marry well being an aristo. Diana was excellent at music, she learned languages quickly, and did well from her first royal appearance and had the gift of relating to people. Some people with University degrees are deficient at that.

I would never ever call her ignorant.

Her husband did not have the best grades at University. In many ways I think she was brighter than Charles.

Double post auto-merged: March 10, 2017, 03:43:08 PM


Quote from: amabel on March 05, 2017, 05:45:54 PM
Its hard to say. I think that she had normal intelligence but was'nt all that clever. I think she found learning hard and stopped trying..and being from an upper class background they didn't push her or try and see if there were problems, either emotional or learning related.  but I think that as an adult, she didn't try hard either, she would learn in "bite sized" chunks, and I think the longer she was in the royal job the more she DID try.. but her intitial reaction at being asked to learn stuff was to shy off and act like it was beneath her.

Oh no, Diana did try hard as a royal. She wanted to succeed and she could have been merely decorative but she never stopped trying. there are entrepreneurs and inventors who did not complete school who would put University education people to shame.



Double post auto-merged: March 10, 2017, 03:44:17 PM


Quote from: amabel on March 05, 2017, 11:05:27 AM
Quote from: royalanthropologist on March 05, 2017, 10:47:32 AM
If there is one thing I have learnt about children, it is that they are different. Academic competence in some siblings does not mean the whole family will pass. Diana lacked confidence in her intellectual capabilities and preemptively tried to prevent criticism through self-deprecation. As a parent, you try to support the child in the things that they do best. As we all know, Diana had no problems with communication. I am sure that she would have passed an exam in that with flying colors.

but she didn't pass the exams at school.  And she went toa  good school, not soemwehre that there were huge numbers of kids, and I'm sure there were decent teachers.  perhaps she didn't try very hard, because she didn't need qualifications but it could just be that she was either lazy or not clever.  and the fact that she refused to read about princesses of Wales, or at first ot "learn a bit of Welsh" saying "I've left school I'm not doing homework" suggests that she didn't try very hard at least in her younger years, to learn things.  I think that iwht the remarks about learning about royal history, she was afraid of looking stupid and woud't try..

Diana did speak Welsh on her very first tour. So she did learn Welsh and spoke it. ANd it was well received.

Trudie

Diana was a lot more intelligent than people give her credit for. Diana learned Welsh, sign language and educated herself on Aids, medical issues leprosy, heart problems, etc. Diana also educated herself on landmines and the destruction caused by them. There are many intelligent people who freeze at doing written tests but shine during oral exams. The Queens education until she became heir consisted on music lessons, art and not much else as was Margret's, it was said the Queen Mary would often speak to Crawfie about introducing more subjects. Once she became heir she but she alone studied the British constitution but Margaret did not yet the Queen is a very intelligent and respected woman.



TLLK

#15
QuoteDiana did speak Welsh on her very first tour. So she did learn Welsh and spoke it. ANd it was well received.

Yes she did speak a few sentences in Welsh but as far as I know she did not have conversational skills in the language. However if anyone has information regarding her fluency in the language I'd be interested in seeing it.


Princess Diana gives speech in Welsh (Wow!) - YouTube

I believe that French was part of the curriculum at her finishing school but I recall that she struggled with acquiring it while in Switzerland and that compounded with homesickness made the experience miserable.

sandy

She did not have to converse with the people there. She was expected to say some sentences in Welsh which IMO is nothing to sneeze at. She did very well. Diana essentially was in Switzerland at a Finishing School.  I don't get the put downs. She was a success as Princess of Wales and worked hard and was very proactive.

TLLK

QuoteShe was expected to say some sentences in Welsh

Thank you for clarifying. Based upon your earlier post I was under the impression that you thought she had enough fluency so that she could converse with a Welsh speaker.

It is a very difficult language to learn and I can understand why Charles has only a basic knowledge of the language.

sandy

I think anybody who reads up on Diana or goes to YouTube, the nature of her using the Welsh language is well known. I was under no such impression. I said she gave a speech in Welsh not that she spoke with the people there fluently. Just how did you reach that conclusion when I never said that?

TLLK

QuoteDiana did speak Welsh on her very first tour.
IMO this gives the impression that she could speak the language instead of reading a few sentences that had been written phonetically.

sandy

She spoke Welsh. It is well known that Diana gave a speech in Welsh. If you know Diana's history (which I believe you do) you would have not misinterpreted the post.

TLLK

Knowing Diana's educational history I know that she read a few lines that were written for her phonetically. As someone who works with students who are learning a second language, I wouldn't say that she "spoke Welsh."

This is similar to what Diana said in her speech that day. "Thank you for inviting me to your beautiful city."

QuoteDiolch i chi am fy ngwahodd i eich dinas hardd.

However if you believe that she spoke Welsh that's fine. :)


sandy

If you want to split hairs that way. But would you say the same thing about a language teacher who says a sentence and asks a student to repeat it in a classroom to teach the language or some of those Language instruction tapes which does require repetition to get the pronunciation. I don't think Diana was that dense that she did not know what the words meant.  She spoke Welsh and the press said she did and her biographers. If you want to dispute this go complain to them. Diana can't seem to win with you. Some movie stars from Europe did originally speak phonetically and yes, they learned the language that way and did become familiar with it in future roles. That is a known fact.

TLLK

#23
Actually with my career background I understand Diana's academic struggles  and thought that she did the best that she could with her schooling considering that she likely had a learning disability. IMO she had normal intelligence but lacked the support necessary for her to learn like other students. If you read my posts you'll see that I've been rather understanding and positive about her in this thread.

sandy

But she did work and went into the work right away and did very well. I applaud her efforts to give that speech in Welsh and do that tour soon after the marriage.