Advise needed on how/whether to broach the school re sets.

With the greatest of respect (as people always say when they are about to say something rude) what possessed you to take a 12 year old out of a school where she was happy and achieving and put her in a completely different system for 6 months? Particularly when there was no guarantee of her getting a place when she came back?

I really think you need to wait and see. There's no point blustering in all guns blazing before you know the facts.

FWIW, when we have in-year admissions at my school, they go into the set they need to be in, and yes, that does sometimes mean that top sets are too big for the classroom.

You have actually applied for a place for her haven't you......?

I would be meeting with HofY to generally discuss reintegration.

During that meeting you can bring up sets.

Have the meeting just before your DD returns to school.

Yup. Wouldn't be the head at a secobdsry school

I would think a meeting with the Head Teacher/Head of Year very sensible indeed - whatever stream she ends up in.

Oh fgs. Dont encourage the OP a to do anything till she's found out what the deal is

You say you " suppose I would just find it galling if she was put down just for their convenience" but you say in your OP that she is no longer on roll. Why on earth do you think she's on a class list AT ALL (and really - you "have heard" that she's on a list??) I find it odd that a school would include a child's name on a set list if she isn't actually on the school roll. At my school, set lists and registers are the same. A child's name isn't going to be on the register unless they're registered at that school.

When is she returning to the school? You need to arrange a meeting with the head of year to discuss her return, and also check with whoever deals with admissions that she does still have a place.

Your sense of entitlement is a bit galling.

I agree it's a very odd streaming system.

You ask if you should;

2) write to the school before she returns and request that she be put with her friends? This would be just silly.

Unless this is an independent school, I think if she's been taken off roll you're lucky for her to be able to still have a place, and should arrange a meeting shortly before she returns, especially in the light of discussing her German ability. There is always the possibility the school were moving your DD down a stream anyway, so this is something which needs to be discussed with the school.

And what on earth is a teacher doing discussing the streaming of another pupil even if it is with their friend.

Is this a state school? I'd just be glad your dd has been included especially as she's not on the roll. Have you re-applied for the place? Could it go to someone else who moves into the area before next month? Logically how could they put your dd in the top stream without having a clue where she's at?

I find it very strange that a school operates this sort of streaming - as noblegiraffe says, it's a rubbish system and doesn't cater for children who may be good at English but weaker at maths or vice versa. I would have concerns about my dc going to a school which split the pupils like that. In the vast majority of secondary schools it would be possible to be, for example, Set 1 for German, Set 3 for science, Set 5 for maths etc etc. Sorry, not helpful I know.

Presumably you had a conversation with the school about the possible impact on your daughter before you sent her away for 6 months. If at that point the school didn't advise you that your dd might be placed into a set which wasn't doing German then I think you would have grounds for complaint. If they did advise you that this was a possible or probably outcome, then I think you will just have to live with it.

Ref the German thing. She will be way ahead of her classmates but if she is prevented from doing it later for GCSE or would have to join a beginners class in year 9 then that is the group she needs to join.You could write with the pretext of saying you want to help her hit the ground running and reintegrate quickly so are there any copies of assessments in marhs and science they can send you.If you are confident she will be ahead in maths you could tell them she has kept up with key stage 3 and send a list of the topics she has covered and say you hope that this will allow her to join the German set.

Ref the German thing. She will be way ahead of her classmates but if she is prevented from doing it later for GCSE or would have to join a beginners class in year 9 then that is the group she needs to join.You could write with the pretext of saying you want to help her hit the ground running and reintegrate quickly so are there any copies of assessments in marhs and science they can send you.If you are confident she will be ahead in maths you could tell them she has kept up with key stage 3 and send a list of the topics she has covered and say you hope that this will allow her to join the German set.

Ref the German thing. She will be way ahead of her classmates but if she is prevented from doing it later for GCSE or would have to join a beginners class in year 9 then that is the group she needs to join.You could write with the pretext of saying you want to help her hit the ground running and reintegrate quickly so are there any copies of assessments in marhs and science they can send you.If you are confident she will be ahead in maths you could tell them she has kept up with key stage 3 and send a list of the topics she has covered and say you hope that this will allow her to join the German set.

If she has been living in Germany and studying at a German school, then won't her German be a bit beyond Y8 German anyway? She should be looking into being assessed and possibly entered early for GCSE.

I'm a bit surprised that the school streams (if it is for all subjects then it is called streaming not setting). I didn't think many schools did that any more, because it's a rubbish system!

What everyone else says. Firstly, I wouldn't go on the gossip of her friends. Secondly, you chose to take her out of school (here) for 6 months, therefore, the school doesn't know what topics she's covered or what she's missed or done differently, so it's perfectly reasonable for her to be in a lower set until she can show what she is capable of now, in Yr 8. Thirdly - secondary schools (nor Primary IME) don't 'set' by friendship groups, they set by the level the children are working at, at the time of setting. Fourthly, I'm not sure how you can suggest 'being in the same class as her friends' is important, when you chose to send her to a different Country for 6 months. I'm sure if she can manage that, she can manage 40mins of a maths lesson without them. Fifthly, of course they can't just keep squeezing another child in - or do you expect that rule only to apply to your dd, and not other dc who fancy being in the top set?

Seems daft for her not to be able to continue German if she is a shoe-in for A/A*. Do they usethe same set across all subjects ? tbh you aren't really in a position to negotiate until she actually returns though in which case 1 would apply.

I think you could push on the German thing, rather than the setting issue. As she has spent 6 months in a different education system, she will likely be behind in some areas, but likely ahead in others.

However you could speak to the school about how passionate she is about learning German (she must be pretty keen to spend 6 months living there) and how disappointed she is that she will not have the opportunity to use her knowledge and study it to a higher level.

It would also be helpful to get a list of everything she has missed, so she can fill in the gaps. Get her some KS3 revision guides (CGP?) and I am sure she can catch up quickly if she is bright.

The friends thing is not going to be relevant, she just spent 6 months in a school where she presumably knew nobody (excepting perhaps a few family members?)

Agree. Bollocks to friendships. She's managed in Germany surely ?

If only the top set studies German then obviously you have a good case for her to be included in that set if she's able in other subjects as well - just don't mention friendship groups or school grapevine. I would email the school asap re setting and German - they may be planning a re-shuffle as it is and you want to remind them that your daughter exists.