How School Shapes Your Identity

And why this realisation led me to starting ILS

First of all,

I want to re-introduce myself after my summer hiatus.

I am Joel Freedman and I am the CEO and Co-Founder of ILS – Independent Learning Strategies (

https://www.independentlearningstrategies.co.uk/

).

At ILS, we aim to redress the disparity in the education system by providing strategic tools, information and strategies to as many parents and students as possible.

And that is precisely what I try and do in these weekly newsletters.

These newsletters are and have always been completely free,

I am not trying to sell you anything,

I simply like writing them and hopefully some of you like reading them.

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I want to kick off the year,

With a bit of context.

My mum and I co-founded ILS during COVID-19 and are about to enter our fifth academic year of running the company.

But I wouldn’t say we were always planning on starting an education business.

Instead, it seems to have happened quite naturally.

And the following is the very short story as to how that happened.

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My School Experiences

I started off my school life at a very privileged, academic, all boys primary school.

I absolutely believe that the advantages that I gained from my years there dramatically influenced my academic trajectory however that is not the point of this story.

The point is how I felt.

During my time at primary school, I felt like one of, if not the least academic person in any room that I entered.

I was diagnosed with dyslexia,

I was in a ‘special’ English class,

And I acted out behaviorally to get any attention I could.

In short,

I considered myself as the furthest possible thing from academic.

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I then got taken out of that school,

And found my way into a state, mixed, faith based, secondary school.

The transition was quite something but what was most interesting is I was immediately,

And I mean immediately,

Thrusted into the top set for every subject,

And boy did my identity change.

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This dramatic change,

Combined with growing up in a household (and specifically with a mother) who was a big proponent of mindset and confidence,

Led me to where I am today.

I am proud to say I have completed a degree from the University of Bristol and a Masters from LSE,

But I am most proud of the people that we have helped during the last 5 years of running ILS.

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I am not afraid to say that the education system is broken,

Because it is.

And this broken system significantly influences how so many (and I’m talking about the vast majority) teenagers perceive themselves.

Our mission at ILS is to give as many teenagers as possible the chance to approach their exams effectively, think positively and ‘beat their exams’ so that they have the most amount of options available to them.

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This will be my third year writing these emails and I intend to make more valuable than ever.

Over the coming weeks and months, I will be sending out a weekly email discussing a strategic tip, a useful resource, an education-based anecdote,

With a sprinkling of wider discussions parents and teenagers have chucked in there (think paying rent, teenage gambling, friends holidays etc).

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I hope you all have a great week ahead,

Best wishes,

Joel