3 day suspension for having phone out in school

Like what? What different punishment do you think would work? What different punishment would parents actually support and enforce? Do enlighten us if you can think of something no school has thought of in the last 15+ years.

I know phones don't make a difference.
That's not my point.
The point is by breaking the rule of not having a phone switched off, in a pouch and in their bag a child can get 3 days off school.
It's an easy and non violent rule to break in order to get a rest from school for 3 days. Those that simply just hate school could do it too.
The "punishment" doesn't really fit the crime.
It makes me laugh every year when schools do things like compulsory after school revision sessions with the rule of "if you don't attend you can't go to prom".
If prom had been a thing when I was at school I would have HATED the idea of going so if I had received the punishment of not being able to attend I wouldn't have cared at all.
Not really an incentive to behave 😂
Have the rule of phones off, in pouches and put away - but they need a different punishment.

Phones don't help with any of those issues, they don't make schools quieter, they don't make uniform more comfortable. They are a problem on top of a problem, not a solution to anything. Parents need to be making sure kids can't take phones to school in the first place - they shouldn't get the opportunity to do it twice imo. Ineffectual parenting.

If my child had been subject to cyber bullying then they would barely have a phone at all. I certainly wouldn't be whingeing about the consequences of them using it against school rules.

@Digdongdoo it's nothing to do with parents.
Schools are often noisy due to the design of the buildings that makes everything echo.
They are chaos because there's several 100 children there.
But it's not just that.
Classrooms that are quiet can still be a sensory overload due to the type of lights and the temperature.
Uniform is often a horrible nightmare for those with sensory conditions.
Even having too many wall displays and bright colours can be overwhelming because having too much of different things surrounding a child means they can't focus on the one thing they need to be focused on.
The smells - food, body odours, lynx deodorant etc...urrgh.
It's so hard for children with sensory issues to just be there. They struggle every day.
But by doing something fairly simple (getting their phone out) they get 3 days at home. Some will definitely do it on purpose just so they can have a break.

And why are schools noisy and chaotic? Because of ineffectual parenting! Schools aren't magic, they cant fix problems if parents wont help. If kids get excluded, parents need to be continuing the punishment at home. Blaming SEN for everything is just lazy, and supporting phone addiction isn't going to help in the long run - it's destroying mental health. Completely illogical to say behaviour is poor, more tiktok and fewer punishment is the best solution.

It's awful, and unfortunately the student committed suicide not long after. Nothing was done regarding the school's actions AFAIK. The poor child had a host of other issues that weren't supported by staff and they 'slipped through the net'. There's a shit memorial plaque in a corridor somewhere, too little too late. It's why I'm so passionate about children's rights and children knowing their rights and having access to support. Having access to a phone when being cared for by staff who might not be able/want to give care is vital. But that's overlooked by many who think phones are pure evil and 'back in my day we didn't have them'. (sorry to derail the thread slightly!)

Not necessarily.
I thinking more for children with SEN who hate the noisy chaos of school and just find it all too much and desperately want a break from it all.
They just have to flash their phone and - bingo - 3 days of peace and calm.
Some children even like to be put in isolation because they prefer the quiet to a regular classroom.
Easy way to get 3 days at home.

Responding to a consultation isn't whining.

Giving feedback to respondents after a consultation is normal practice.

I deal with school complaints and clerk exclusion panels as my job..

I know that a well handled consultation, and a well launched behaviour policy results in less kick back than a dogs dinner of a launch. Having seen two schools schools in a trust launch the same policy different just 2 years ago.

Parents undermine schools whatever the punishments are. Which is why phones in schools remain a problem in the first place. If parents want proportional punishments from schools they need to start backing them up. Not whining when schools have no choice but to up the ante.

Not for too many working parents, though.

And therein lies the problem. Too much ineffectual parenting.

I disagree. I think its perfectly fine to highlight a problem without having a solution and I think its important the trust knows if lots of people think its too harsh/wrong.

The school/trust can then consider it again and check their thinking. They have more information to hand but it's not unknown to make mistakes or get carried away.

If they reach the same conclusion, the onus on them is then to respond and say 'people said it was disproportionate but we disagree because x y z' and have a communication plan about the behaviour policy so its well received and this plsn is easier knowing which points are controversial.

otherwise parents will undermine it, or you get things like parental information evenings getting ambushed by this one issue.

If op wants to suggest more proportionate options like internal exclusions, or a 1 day suspension for the first offense, building up for further offenses she can but i dont think its essential.

You'd hope !
3 days at home is bliss for some children.

And of course they are using them at breaks and whenever they can find a secret spot.

They won’t do it again.

Yes, but it isn't compulsory to weigh in if you don't have anything constructive to say. You think the punishment should be proportionate, so what does that look like and how would it be more effective than anything already being done?
Otherwise you're just another parent undermining the school. It's not remotely like a tie.

@TizerorFizz yes I definitely think that 3 days is too much unless it's a constant repeat offender.
It isn't be a complicated rule to follow and one that the students can have control over themselves (lacking correct uniform or equipment isn't always something children can control because parents are the ones responsible for providing it) so they just need to follow the rule.
3 days is extremely over the top.

But why do you need to query it? Do you have a better idea that hasn't already been tried by schools everywhere over the last decade? If so, I'm sure we'd all love to hear it. It's not as though this is a new issue and the school is jumping in head first. This is a last resort.

@Needmorelego Most behaviour policies outline sanctions on a sliding scale. Going to 3 days for first offence that’s isn’t violent is ludicrous. It also can make some dc very nervous. Others very much dislike unfairness and resent the teachers. The best schools are firm but fair. Once a school stops being fair, they lose the support of dc and parents. The majority want a calm and ordered school. The job of the school is to ensure the pupils get this and they deal with the ones who prevent learning. But it must be done objectively and fairly, or it falls down and is resented. This looks like lashing out.

I do now think 3 days for a first offence is a bit over the top.

This.

Banning phones in schools by legislation is long overdue.

@TooBored1 Er? Yes. But you surely don’t believe a consultation will change anything? Are you truly ok with this regime? I would not be and would be travelling to another school. If you can’t, you can’t. But do not think you will change anything. You won’t.

But they also want to be able to provide education that isn't constantly disrupted by needless and unnecessary phone use surely? Both things can be true. It's not just the phone you need to deal with, it's also the children actively going out of their way to disengage and disrupt.

I'm not a fan of what I consider petty school rules around uniforms and creating little robot children but not am I fan of a culture where parents think their wee Johnny can do whatever he wants, and wee Johnny starts to believe that's the truth. I know schools have been trying to deal with phones in so many different ways from trusting children to not use them during lessons, to having a box, to trying to incorporate them into lessons and unfortunately it's clear that if you give the children an inch, they'll take a mile. Because they're children. So it has to be incumbent on the adults to manage this and that includes the parental aspect of responsibility for this. I think schools are genuinely in the position that it is so disruptive and resources are being stretch so thin that zero tolerance is the only way to deal with it.