Please or to access all these features

Secondary education

Connect with other parents whose children are starting secondary school on this forum.

WWYD? School report is partly a work of fiction.

36 replies

Al1son · 07/03/2011 14:40

DD1 is 13 and attends a Mainstream Autism Base in High School. She does a part time timetable, attending mainstream classes for some subjects, covering the curriculum in the Base for some and has dropped others entirely.

She's brought her school report home today and three teachers whose subjects she has not done at all and who have had no contact with DD1 this school year have given her current levels, personalised comments on her behaviour and skills, target levels and whether she is on track and grades for effort.

We had a similar situation in December when her progress check contained similar works of fiction. I emailed the head of year who phoned me with a list of reasons why this had happened and reassured me that it was a one off caused by staff sickness, and other misc difficulties.

So what would you do? Let it go as they are meeting her needs fairly well at the moment and it's not worth upsetting the applecart, email the head of year again or write a letter to the head, copied to the chair of governors.

The funniest one is the teacher who has given her very good for effort but says she should participate more in class discussions! She'd have a job!

OP posts:
DamselInDisguise · 07/03/2011 16:27

It isn't really acceptable to have a system in which teachers don't know the children in their classes though. It's even worse to pretend that isn't the case by getting the teachers to write generic and fictional reports.

I'm not having a go at individual teachers here, btw. It's the system that's the problem. I sincerely doubt many teachers wanted to be providing such impersonal education and that most of them do try to get to know the kids.

mummytime · 07/03/2011 16:11

I might flag it up, but then my DS (NT pretty much) has a predicted grade of C in GCSE French having not studied French since year 6.

I imagine your DD appears on their lists and they have been desperately trying to work out who she is. The predicted grades are probably from the computer system, and they may have asked others for the comments.

Al1son · 07/03/2011 16:09

Thanks for the insight mnistooaddictive. I understand that there are challenges involved in working in large schools. Is it just accepted amongst staff and governors that reports are fiction?

The cynical says it will just be swept under the carpet again if I do raise it again.

The idealistic me says that there should be records about each child for the teacher to refer to when writing a report.

I'd rather have no report than a bit of cut and pasted rubbish which has nothing to do with my child.

I wonder how many children in the school are not attending some subjects and nobody is aware. I'd have happily believed that my DD was doing these three subjects if I'd not know different.

OP posts:
mnistooaddictive · 07/03/2011 15:52

As a teacher I can understand how this happens. Some teachers may have 5 classes in a year group and no idea who all the children are. They write blanket reports for everyone who is on their list. Sad but true.

Eglu · 07/03/2011 15:50

I really wouldn't let it go. I would be concerned aobut all of the other parents out there who are getting reports that are a pile of crap.

mollymole · 07/03/2011 15:48

some years ago my son had a report that said 'he may have a latent ability' in a particular sport - however he was a GB international in this same sport !

crystalglasses · 07/03/2011 15:21

Same thing happened years ago in relation to my brother in mainstream school. A teacher gave him a lousy report for a subject he wasn't studying.

DamselInDisguise · 07/03/2011 15:15

I really don't understand how this error could have been made once, let alone twice. Confused How can a teacher not realise that they are writing comments for a student they've never taught? And how can they have levels and targets for her in classes she doesn't take? Did they just make it all up? I would be wondering if anything on any of the school reports is even vaguely accurate.

missmehalia · 07/03/2011 15:12

This is bonkers, I think you should say something (in writing, like they have!!) Contact the head of year (and maybe the head, because it's quite serious) listing the problems, and asking for a revised document that reflects the truth.

At the moment it may not be causing a problem (if they've said positive things) but it would only take for something negative to be said on there later on, and you'd have deep poo to contend with for not saying something earlier.

ZZZenAgain · 07/03/2011 15:08

I think you'll have to send it back with a note to say that there was an error and that she does not take those 3 subjects. Can't believe this happened twice

IndigoBell · 07/03/2011 15:06

Shock Bloody hell.

I don't think I could let it go.....

Swipe left for the next trending thread