After school detention

[wendysingleton74]

Need advice please.....My son came home from school ( Academy) yesterday and said he has been given an after school detention for a tiny bit of green ink, and i mean tiny, ( felt tip pen ) on the front page of his school planner, he also had to buy a new one otherwise he would have to have gone to TRACT, so that would have been 2 punishments, i refused this detention yesterday and the school states that it still stands, i find this a petty thing, the school are saying zero tolerance, the book was damaged etc etc, i still refuse this detention as i think it is totally unfair and unjustified.
Can the school insist that he does this or am i within my rights not to make him do it?

[honeysucklejasmine]

It's likely that they will get him in at lunch time instead. You agree to follow their rules when you send your child to the school. I agree its a bit petty though. If it's as tiny as you say, I wonder anyone noticed!

Is TRACT isolation or the like?

[wendysingleton74]

Yes, (TRACT is 'time to reflect and act') , an isolation, yes, i did agree to the rules, but i can understand if he swore in class, scratched his name in the desk or other, but i honestly cannot understand where the school is coming from here :/

[ButterflyUpSoHigh]

It does seem over the top for a small mark.

Are you from the Midlands? My friends cousin has the same name as you?

[MayPolist]

Sounds ridiculous.Is this definitely what the punishment was for?

[noblegiraffe]

Parents cannot overrule the school when it comes to detentions. You have no legal right.

If you refuse to let your DS attend, then the school can escalate the sanction, e.g. an internal isolation.

[MayPolist]

Obviously the school cannot detain your child against their , or your will!! But surely it is better than internal exclusion?

[wendysingleton74]

No, i am from Norfolk.

[wendysingleton74]

Yes, this is what the punishment was/ is for.

[Lweji]

By refusing the detention you are escalating even more what could be a tiny thing.

Where are they supposed to draw the line? Two dots? Two mm of line? One cm? A full drawing?

I suppose the school is trying to get them before they start swearing and drawing on the desks, by which time you might be forced to pay for a new desk and so on.

I'd be perfectly happy with no tolerance, tbh. And of buying the new planner.

The only times I don't support school punishments are when my child is punished for someone else's behaviour.

[ShaynePunim]

Support the school. You're only making it worse.

[starfish4]

If it was a genuine accident, after school detention is harsh, but if he meant to do it then the school will probably stick to their guns. My DD's school state that if they issue a detention it's final and that parents are expected to accept their decision and re-arrange transport home if necessary (ie no allowances for school buses).

Is he in Year 7? My DD's school seemed to come down hard on them in Year 7 - she got two after schools - one was her fault, the other she'd misunderstand what she needed to do in class. Neither were as bad as she thought, one told her to read (so she got out a book she had to read for homework!) and the other the teacher basically gave her a personal lesson on where she'd gone wrong with her work.

[EvilTwins]

Schools do not have to seek parental permission or approval for after school detentions.

[MayPolist]

I would have just told my kid that to give a detention for a dot on a planner, the teacher must be barking mad.But to just go along with it for an easy life!

[Thymeout]

Did he maybe make the mark in his book immediately after being told not to?

I think there may be more to this than he is letting on.

[pointythings]

Is this that barking mad academy in Great Yarmouth? If so, it's only to be expected. That school is bonkers.

[UnderthePalms]

Hopefully the op has got over her anger about this by now as it happened in 2015.

[jorjieanne]

My daughter recieved a 45 minute after school detention on Tuesday as she had failed to achive at least 50% in her science test ??? Im appauled at the fact her science teacher feels that doling out detentions for failing to achieve at least 50% in science tests is in any way appropriate. Im more appauled that detention by defenition is to be detained for comitting an offence !!!! ( or doing wrong ). Detentions stay on your childs record just as a police caution stay on record...I have made my feelings with my daughters Academy very clear that not achieving 50% in a test surely cannot be justified as she had not comitted any offence that would constitute a punishment in her own circumstance as she had done no wrong...I am still waiting for a response, When i rang the school to complain & to ask for a rational justification for such a severe punishment, the receptionist tried to assure me that it was to get the minority underachivers in a classroom together to see where they could be helped to improve their test score in future, this did not assure me in any positive way at all in fact it angered me more as these kids shouldnt have had to endure detention, the teacher should have in their next lesson taken them to 1 side to go through whatever issues & problems that could help them in a positive way NOT THROUGH MEANS OF DETENTION AS THEY FAILED TO GET 50% IN A SCIENCE TEST !!!!!!

[MaisyPops]

jorjieanne
Take a step back and pause for a minute before comparing detentions to police records.

It sounds like the teacher is keeping all the people back who under performed and going through things with them. (And potentially it could be students who've not worked hard in class, not done homework etc so there are factors behind the test score)

What do you propose happens to the rest of the class if the teacher spends the next lesson going through odds and ends with a select few?

By all means complain if you want to but all I can see happening is either it gets escalated up the behaviour system if it's not as simple as 'given detention for low score' or your child doesnt get additional support or intervention.

[CaramelAngel]

Did your dd revise for the test if revision was given as homework? If you know she definitely revised because you saw her making revision notes or you helped her with it by testing her etc, then i can see your point about not wanting a detention on her records. In that case you could contact them politely to let them know she definitely revised but seems to be struggling with the subject and so got a low mark because of that. Personally I'd be delighted with a child being offered a revision session with a subject they are struggling with if that's what it is, as opposed to a detention sitting in silence doing nothing, so i definitely wouldn't turn that down. If you know she definitely did the revision homework you could ask politely that it not be recorded as a detention. If she didn't do the revision homework then i probably wouldn't challenge it and be glad they were using the detention to make sure they caught up with the missed revision

[Abismother]

I know this is an old post but unsure how to start a thread.
My daughter is in YR11 and attends an academy school who has introduced 'optional period 6 which means she is at school until 4pm.. not a massive problem in itself but we live in a very rural area so she has an hour wait for a bus on an unlit road which I feel is unsafe. The school isn't bothered and state that it is up to me to arrange something, I don't drive since my stroke and taxis are few and far between.
We live approximately 4 miles from the school. Other students are provided a taxi by the school as there isn't a bus service for them.

[Penguinsetpandas]

Abismother Would agree its unsafe for her to be doing that plus who wants to spend an hour a day waiting for a bus. Might be worth asking council as its over 3 miles (assuming you didn't refuse closer school) though as its optional they may well not help. If you can afford it if you phone a local taxi company they might do a regular arrangement. If you can't get transport, or another parent to help, I would not let her go.

[Abismother]

It is our nearest School, council won't help so I have took her out now following a boar coming out of the forest opposite!
The school is not happy and have implied she will miss out on theatre trips and her prom unless she attends.