Oh yeah, it is a nightmare for the teachers, and the government are struggling to keep up with the building of new schools, due to the influx of migrants and the growth of the province's population. We have the highest un-employment count in the world, and the migrants invade hoping to get some form of employment over here. They bring their families with them, and the children need to be registered in local schools.
Standardized testing puts all into one box, and it does not cater for the differences between the learners.

No, it's not odd, as many including myself are self taught. Reading is a great key to open the doors of the mind, and it has served me very well. A shock was that a test was done in the schools for the 4th grade learners, and the result was that they could not read for meaning. I challenged myself to study a degree, and now I am the owner of a BTh degree. So, if I could do it, then thousands of others can also do it. All that it takes is will power.
I really hope that you will do something with your passion for education, and maybe for a start, instead of writing novels, it might be better to write some e-books?

!PIZZA and !LUV