There's a "culture of low expectation" in secondary schools. Do you agree?

Oh I can quite understand seeing a performance for the sheer joy and magic of it. But these pupils do this all the time. This exercise was not about that. This was about adaptations from books. A more academic exercise if you will.

Sorry, ET, still not getting it. I thought that teaching was all about different techniques to capture different learning styles. I understand that they cannot continue the lesson's groupwork for homework but you could set them something different - read a review, watch a YouTube, read his biography for context, etc. Why can't you plan that?

I always read a synopsis at the very least before going to the theatre, opera or ballet and it would not cross my mind not to ensure DD was not acquainted with the story before a theatre visit.

For a start, I wouldn't expect a class to read a play simply because we were going to see it. Where's the magic in that? The point if watching a play is to see a story unfold before your eyes.

I do not automatically set homework just because I've taught the class that day. Homework needs to have a point. My yr 9 classes are currently learning about Brecht through practical exploration. They are learning what they need to learn through a variety of practical activities. They can't continue to do so at home as their work is being done in groups and the chances of 6 kids in the rural area that we're in being able to get together to work on their drama in the evenings is slim to none.

Homework set for the sake of homework is rarely effective.

Foolish dd2 spent ages on a homework involving drawing and making things look nice last night, and left herself about 20 minutes for a science homework, only to come really unstuck when the last two questions were deceptively long because they required the finding out of latitude and longitude for a long list of places.

Script learning obviously better done at home, balloon debate too, though perhaps a combination would also work. But the fact that there are many good times and reasons for homework to be set, still wouldn't make me worry about a year 7 who didn't get an awful lot just yet. There's time enough.

Out of interest DS homeworklast night was English. He had to come up with a figure for a balloon debate, and it had to be a woman.

Surely that's better done at home? Then the boys can all go to the next class with lots of different ideas and chat about who to choose.

I wondered about that too senua.

In the example I gave of DD's drama homework, I can't see how else a drama teacher could cover it.

They have, what, two lessons per week. They couldn't possibly have covered the book and the script in class could they? Or that would have been quite a number of (dull) lessons. Yet they knew they were going to the performance, so it had to done beforehand.

Maybe I'm being a ninny, but I can't see how else it could be covered.

EvilTwins: I dislike the idea of giving homework for the sake of it tbh. Students need to see the point if it. I am not totally against kids working independently, but setting homework just because it's Tuesday and Tuesday is homework day? No.

Can you explain please? Presumably you have a timetable that says "it's Tuesday, and Tuesday is Year 9 in lesson 3". Do you ever decide not to give the lesson "just because", or do you plan and prepare for it? Why is homework accorded different emphasis to lessons? Surely you either do it properly or not at all; you can't dip in and out as the mood takes you (or if you do, then you can't complain when the pupils take the same attitude!).

habba only 8 A+?
shocking. what are you, cavemen?

I'm afraid you got a D- for your sense of humour module Habba.

I totally agree wondering. The world won't cave in but I've told mine that I am drawing the line at eight A*s

Nothing changes really does it beatback. These unruly teachers need to be dealt with firmly. Bring back the cane and knock some sense into them.

I think we need to relax a little and accept that the world won't cave in if some children don't get 9A* GCSEs.

The pupils of William Tyndale High School are having a very hard time trying to cope with their teachers. Some of these teachers are polite and hard-working. others are high -spirited but bright enough and likely to do well. A very few,however probably those from problem homes- are very disturbed and every pupil knows that just one such teacher can completely disrupt a classroom. GUARDIAN 27 OCTOBER 1975. I thought i post this as a laugh.

pickledsiblings
it tells me that A grades do not differentiate between bright students as the "tail" to the left should be roughly the same as to the right for any large cohort group.
If you set a MUCH harder exam with more grades, or showed actual marks rather than grades (on the assumption that only one student nationally would ever achieve 100%) the normal distribution would reappear

did you hear "The Life Scientific" with that wonderful statistician this week? I sat in my car listening to the end when I got to work!!

beatback - absolutely. Though of course there are also DC for whom Drama is their idea of hell. I firmly believe in confronting those demons though (the lack of confidence that is, not the actual children) as confidence development is hugely important. I guess I'm doing an ok job though - nearly 50% of the current yr 9 will be doing it as either a GCSE or BTEC next year

Can I ask what subject it represents pickled?

Talkin, I was interested in your post to beatback where you broke the grades down set by set. It inspired me to look at our local comp's GCSE results. Do we think that the grades should be normally distributed? Here's a graph of a whole cohort in one subject: Histogam of GCSE results by grade. Anyone care to comment?

Evil twins. In Drama should classwork and homework, not be enjoyable as it gives kids who may struggle in other academic subjects a chance to be equal or better in performing. You may have a kid who has very poor literacy in English but has a great singing voice. Drama can offer kids a chance to shine and find themselves. This can also help them in other subjects ,because they can find confidence and that will mean that they will achieve their best.

nit oh for sure nit and as I say, I'm not advocating tons of homework in year 7. Not at all. Just enough to make class work more efficient/more interesting etc.

evil I bet it's a lovely job!!!!!
And I'm sure that your school takes it seriously.

I just asked DD what her last drama homework was and she said she had to read the book and script for Lion Boy before they went to see the new show in Oxford.

She then missed the lessons that followed, but I suppose they talked about how the book had been adapted...though I'm surmising of course.

We take it extremely seriously too! The kids I teach don't have the money to go on trips every term though Lots of performances and lots going on. My job makes me . I love it.

Absolutely building blocks - but some blocks are bigger than others, and some less tricky to nail. (with apologies to The Smiths)

That said, DD has always had plenty of drama homework from year 7. But the school takes the performing arts extremely seriously. There are tons of performances so tons of lines to learn. And they go and see a performance usually once a term so lots of study around that too. Lots of reading scripts etc

Fair enough. DS school never really seys drama homework either (pre GCSE) other than learning lines. Though that's kinda exactly what I'm talikng about. It makes no sense to learn them in class. Ditto it makes no sense to do things in class in most subjects.

KS3 = Key Stage 3.
I teach Performing Arts.
The only homework I really set is line learning, as and when necessary.
Would I set it if I could guarantee they'd all do it? No. I dislike the idea of giving homework for the sake of it tbh. Students need to see the point if it. I am not totally against kids working independently, but setting homework just because it's Tuesday and Tuesday is homework day? No.

Talkinpeace. Your clients know how to make money though. They not illiterate when it comes to paying too much tax they understand that bit of maths.