Why do some mums go all weird when new classes are announced?

[DrNortherner]

It so bloody competetive sometimes and it annoys me.

[VeniVidiVickiQV]

What? How? Why????

[allgonebellyup]

What do you mean?

[ranting]

Oh tell me about it!!!

We already have the 'Mum who is campaigning to get her child moved to a different class'.

[Dropdeadfred]

????

[cheesesarnie]

they do here!smoke coming out of ears etc.'i need to speak to head now'i dont(see my halo)as long as dd and ds1 are happy,im happy.

lol

[robinpud]

Becuase they have nothing better to worry about or to do and think that they are so important that their needs must be visibly put ahead of anything or anyone else.

[edam]

Don't think there's been anything like this at ds's school as far as I know. Why are they getting worked up? Is it an unpopular teacher?

[cheesesarnie]

we have it because they the classes are being mixed.dds year is too big,year above isnt so instead of getting extra teacher or help for dds class theyre mixing the two.but wont effect their work(yr 4 will be doing yr4 work,yr 5 doing yr 5 work etc).but no one wants to give it a chance,just rant and rave as far as im concerned dd is happy,and if it doesnt work then i'll moan.plus here theyre(the adults not the children) moaning about whose in whose class.theyll still all see each other at playtime.

[ranting]

We have the opposite, our mum wants her dd in the mixed class because 'she is highly intelligent and the school just hasn't realised it yet', I quote.

[cheesesarnie]

schools cant win either way.

[Romy7]

it all goes on here. last term they got a teacher sacked. it backfired though, as they then had a job-share (which caused all sorts of consternation as you can imagine!). they demanded a meeting with the head and then demanded that next year they had an experienced teacher. done. except now they're whinging becasue the teacher is so experienced she holds another role within the school and so has extra non-contact time which is covered by (gasp) another teacher.

i want to knock their heads together and tell them to get a grip.

clearly they have nothing better to do with their lives than wrap their little darlings in cotton wool and shelter them from the big bad world of school. i can't imagine their parents ever banged the desk and demanded a change of teacher because popsy doesn't like miss x. it's surreal - surely if you spend your life anticipating problems you are going to make up a few that don't actually exist?!
gah.

[Guadalupe]

we don't know ds1's new class yet even though there's less than a week to go. I assume this is to minimise the fuss about it!

[pigleto]

Having the right teacher and learning environment makes a huge difference to a childs happiness and progress at school. Are you suggesting that the parents shouldn't care?

In a perfect world all teachers would be equally competent and it wouldn't matter. In reality this is just not the case.

If you find that the parents in your school are very worried about mixed classes I would suggest that instead of moaning about their ignorance you should work harder at explaining to them how you are going to make it work. I would be very worried if my dcs had to go into a mixed class. Running a mixed class well takes a very skilled teacher.

[DrNortherner]

Well my ds is in Yr 1 moving to year 2. There are 2 yaer 2 classes. One is Yr1 and 2 mixed, one is all Year 2. Some mums are disgusted their kid is in a yr1/2 mixed class and should be moved to year 2 class.

They assume the cleverer kids are in Yr2 class.

It's crazy.

[MehgaLegs]

We only have one class per year group so no swapping could happen anyway. On the wjhole our teachers are very good but the slightly dodgy one, who DS3 will have next year is pg so leaving at Xmas ! Hooray - we have been silently egging her on for months.

[DrNortherner]

Err pigleto, why on earth should I explain how I am going to make it work?!!!

[cheesesarnie]

pigleto-theres been lots of meeting about it,they know whats happening.and i truly dont see the point in worrying yet.if after a few weeks/months its affecting dds education or happiness etc then i'll worry.but surely its best to try it.yr 3 and 2 have been mixed this year(again as dds year is so big)and ive got child in each class and can honestly say theyve been fine.

[ranting]

Pigleto, I can assure you that the teacher is not the concern of this mother, trust me on this, she campaigned (and got) preferential treatment in nursery too.

Some people are just deluded.

[pigleto]

I think mixed classes can work and that they suit some children better than others. I wouldn't want my child to go into a mixed class as they are not the ideal way to teach most children and most teachers find it easier to teach one age group.

I think it is reasonable for parents to be concerned about what is definatly a funding driven compromise on the education of their childen.

[ranting]

Well I'm with Pigleto on this, I don't know if it's going to work (and my child is one of the one's who is in the mixed class) but, as we don't have any choice in the matter (and I am not moving her to a different school), we shall see how it goes.

Fwiw, my ds had a truly appalling teacher one year but his overall education hasn't suffered one bit. He's flying along now.

[pigleto]

It is true that pushy parents are a PIA. But much preferable to parents who don't give a shit.

[ranting]

Sorry I meant, I with Cheesesarnie, not pigleto.

Obviously I had some appalling teachers at school

[cheesesarnie]

'It is true that pushy parents are a PIA. But much preferable to parents who don't give a shit.'

totally agree.that annoys me much more.

[robinpud]

But what are these parents modelling to their children if they question the school's decision making? Are there any decisions which schools can make without some parents considering that they either know better or should be consulted?

Did our parents make a fuss or did they accept that the school would make the best decisions possible bearing in mind the resources they have?

[Blandmum]

because they think that their children are the centre of the known universe and that the teachers' only job is to teach their child and no-one else.

Their kids are very often total PITA