School Detention - Fair?

My DDs went to pretty strict school and none of these would have earned then a detention. The school should have their behaviour policy on their website which should ideally have some sort of chart of the sanctionable behaviour and the corresponding sanctions. It might be worth looking at that. If it’s not on the website, email the school to ask for a copy.

Collective punishments are a wonderful idea if the goal is to lose the respect of the previously well behaved students and encourage them to be defiant. It has the added bonus of alienating parents, making it much harder to get their support if you need it later on.

It did the trick

I'm 100% with the school

When I was at school many blue moons ago - we had class detention twice - the teacher was right as most of us were stupidly silly - it was also a lesson for those that followed the two leading class clowns if they misbehaved and you lol at their clowning, you all get it. It did not work so a few weeks later the whole class was linned up for canning - the 2/3 clowns were the first in and two cried like babies and trust me it drover the crap back up me as we waited in-line outside the dep heads office - it did the trick class was much better behaved and the 2/3 clowns, one got expelled, one took to missing lessons and the others mellowed

@WhiteLily1 Have you spoken to the teacher yet?

No - my kids don’t have anxiety because I’ve taught them to take things in their stride. Sure, it’s a mad system, but it’s not a big deal. They both kicked off about it - and then got on with their lives.

Never forget another pupil carved my name into the table and my family had to PAY for a new table even though other student admitted to it.

Life at secondary school is just weird.

our french teacher did this back in 1977, so that's memorable

So, the naughty kids in the class have punished their quiet classmates by default.
That system seems extreme and unfair and hopefully the kids who muck up have learnt a painful lesson.

If your son doesn't notice much better behaviour in his class mates from now on, you should go to the senior principal and discuss the whole discipline strategy. Make a formal complaint if they don't back down from punishing the entire class when a few misbehave.

Your son will have to do the detention on this occasion. Though I would write a letter to the Principal about it.

I highly disagree that ‘it teaches kids that life sometimes isn’t fair’.

They aren’t stupid, they will figure that out and will experience many other things in life to show them that.

But punishing a kid when they have done nothing wrong is bullying. Neither kids or adults should be taught to put up with bullying.

I was bullied in the workplace by my manager, I would report it to HR. Not sit there and think ‘oh life isn’t fair sometimes’.

I think next time Op, as soon as something like that happens again, you intervene immediately. You speak to the school to get their side, and if they also confirm your kid wasn’t being disruptive, you explain he won’t be doing detention and you call the teacher out for bullying.

Are you sure the whole class got a detention? Iv not known that to happen at c’s school (could be wrong)
however I think some of the reasons for detentions are stupid I personally do t think they make any difference. Very outdated

I really do think this is appalling (I'm a former teacher, never ever dished out whole class punishments).

I'd be making a complaint, and making it very clear that this was not acceptable.

As a home educating parent now, these posts (of which there are plenty) are really great advertisements for home education. Not once have I ever regretted that decision!

@ReadingSoManyThreads isnt if!! If true then the school is actually insane. They are then punishing him (harshly)for being sick.

WTAF???? That is LUDICROUS!!!

I see @WhiteLily1.

I would write in and say your son won’t be attending the lunch time detention because it’s not appropriate or proportionate. He’s a good student and did nothing wrong in the original situation.

If they have an issue they can speak to you. However, if they do force your son to attend this you will be writing to the local MP and paper about collective punishment and the ridiculous escalations for good students. I would definitely mention the other student who was off sick.

I suspect there is more to the first detention than he is telling you.

@Maray1967 don't you think both your kids getting a detention for forgetting a protractor is ridiculous?!

What is that teaching them except how to have anxiety every day that they don’t have something?

What would happen in the real world - you would borrow one.

You can’t normalise something which is completely wrong. I would expect this from a religious cult not a UK secondary school.

My DD got a whole class detention a few years ago during the first term of Y7. I noticed on the behaviour policy on the website that it said they were not to be used and there happened to be a school coffee morning so I went along and happened to ask the Head of Year whether they were policy or not because my DD had received one, he said they weren't supposed to be used and she didn't get one again so I presume the teachers were reminded not to. So I would go to Head of Year and ask if whole class detentions are their policy and what their reasoning is for them.

I wouldn’t want my kid at that school OP it sounds like a prison camp. I’m guessing it’s an academy. Genuinely makes me sick to my stomach reading all that.

The people in charge are sadists. Don’t put your son through it - he will have a miserable time at secondary. Are there any other schools near you?

Because some people are still of the old-age mindset that school staff must be believed at all costs and that an adult must be believed over a child purely because of their lack of years. There’s a term for this:adultism.

I think learning to accept life isn’t always fair is a good lesson. Also the company you keep reflects on you so choose wisely on your school friends, nice kids who buddy up with the wrong ones get led astray.

Also the teacher giving the break time detention would have had to give up the opportunity for their break to be with a class they find difficult. The teacher is not going to want to give up multiple break times for those who forgot, too busy chatting to mates, decided to hang out in the loo etc…. Hence the upscaling to a lunchtime detention which will be covered by someone on duty not the original teacher missing their lunch.

If you are late for a train the train leaves without you, if you miss a concert you can’t just rock up the following day and ask to waltz in without paying again……same goes for detention, you miss it doesn’t mean the easiest route or cheapest ticket is available to you it’s just life.

Did he ask the teacher at the point at which they said they’d have to do a lunchtime one to avoid a particular day? A reasonable teacher of a truly blameless child would have moved it back a day.