Does my child really need to choose French as an option?

Totally disagree matchstick. A 3 year course only benefits the school as they want good results. My gdds class in year 10 just sat one paper from last year as practise. All the class completed in 15 minutes, admittedly it was a foundation paper and the lowest score was 98%. Yes they are doing the higher paper but they did not start GCSE coursework till year 10. It seems that they all have a thorough grounding on the basics which enabled all to achieve a level 5/C on one paper in a quarter of the time.

Yeah she does sound like a gobby brat. A colleague of mine was filmed on a mobile phone by a pupil, without her permission. She contacted the LA's Legal and Admin team who sent a letter to the parents saying that action would be taken if the video wasn't deleted straight away and an apology given. The school will have an Acceptable Use policy which pupils and parents will have had to have signed before a pupil will be allowed to use mobile phones in class, making a video of a teacher without permission will have been one of they things forbidden.
They sound like a group of wee mares tbh. She needs to suck up the French, start knuckling down and showing a bit of respect to staff and realising the world doesn't revolve around her or her mates.
Oh, and the 'popular' ones are often the ones staff find to be the biggest PITAs in class. 'Popular' is not a label I'd like for my DD.

Actually, for languages a 3yr course is much better as the new course has so much content, doing it in 2yrs is a rush. Currently we are choosing between covering all the material or doing it thoroughly.
Most kids in Y8 know what they enjoy and what they are good at.

This idea you should do a 3 year course for a GCSE is rubbish. Picking options in year 8 is ridiculous as it leads to children picking things they don't want to do. A GCSE course is 2 years long not 3. A thorough grounding on basics in key stage 3 should be done before the leap to GCSE. The 3 year course us only for the schools benefit not your child's. And changing a subject in year 9 is easy to do as you have 2 years to do GCSE which is sufficient time to achieve them. I also think that children should learn that school is a place to learn, not to sit and chat with your mates. If I was a teacher chatty kids who disrupted others concentration would be having detention every day till they learned that one valuable lesson.

Have you heard it from the teacher BTW, that he allows them on their phones during the last 5 mins?
You might find his version of things is very different to Miss Popular's.

I had a parent on Thursday come to ask me why I had it in for her (almost best in the class)dd. I told her, I could put X next to a statue and within 5 mins the statue would be laughing and whispering and drawing stupid messages in bits of paper. There have been 3 "statues" so far this term, and 2 parents have asked that their kids be moved.
You may be mistaking "popular" with "gobby showoff" here.

P.s. I'm quite certain there is more to your daughter's behaviour than you are letting on or perhaps even know. How do you know she isn't insolent to the teacher?

As a teacher myself I'm far too busy to conduct a focussed harassment of a student. I imagine he'd be delighted to shed her from the course!

Don't you think that at this point in key stage 4 it's a little late to be changing an option? Do you realise how much work she'll have to catch up on since September??

Your daughter sounds like she is the ringleader of the disruption going on in the class.
And I think you, and the teacher, know it. Maybe it's time to go into school to hear it officially.
Re the French. I doubt the teacher would want her in his class if he didn't have to have her, but again, ask the school not a forum.

Seems like your child has no respect for the teacher because she doesn't want to do the subject. Bit if 'I don't want to do this and I want my own way' . the teacher is stupid to allow any child to use phones at any time in a lesson and as far as recording goes that's definitely a no no, and finally if your child is so bright, changing to another subject should be no bother at all.

Sorry but she sounds like a brat.

Her teacher will probably be delighted if she swaps, but what could she swap to?

From your extra info it sounds like the teacher is working on then principle of squashing the ring leader.

You've said she's popular and that people talk to her. Fine. She can choose whether to engage with frieemns chatymting or not. I've heard that from one of my gcse students. They are the hub of chatter. It makes it impossible on certain days to get through the lesson and those days I keep the girl back. Mum has been very supportive on the regular occasion we talk about this. I've gone as far as to tell student and mum that her obsession with gossip and chatting not only risks her own grades but is affecting others. She's settled now but it took a good few months of me and mum endlessly pulling her up for it. I don't care if she's popular or people talk to her. She can choose not to engage.

It sounds to me like the teacher isn't dealing with the situation well. E.g. bringing Duke of Edinburgh into it and blaming for other tests (we can only be responsible for our own actions). But friends recording the teacher plus the fact she's a chatterbox makes me think that she's not entirely blame free.

He has been blaming her for other students' test scores? Is she disruptive?

She can't quit french or change to another subject now if she's been doing her GCSE course and it's May! She'll have to make the best of it. Can you contact the teacher to see what your daughter can do to improve her French? A language GCSE is really beneficial and she may well look back on this and be proud if she manages to achieve in the end. You say she would be allowed to change her option. Is this what school has said?

I'm amazed that they thought going on phones was appropriate as a teacher. I always thought colleagues who let kids use phones if they were well behaves were just a little bit crap if I'm honest and the kids thought they were cool but didn't respect them.

Even if teacher said they were allowed on phones, recording a member of staff like that is totally inappropriate.

The teacher shouting I would deduce comes less form bullying a child and more to do with shocking classroom management where they bribe kids with screen time.

On Snapchat in class?!

I'm surprised her friend wasn't disciplined for being on Snapchat & for recording in the classroom.

At my school they can change to a different option right up to Oct half term. I am a Head of Languages, but I still don't think making kids who are unwilling and have no aptitude for languages take it as an option is a good idea.

If she is in year 9 she won't have started her GCSE courses yet, so why can't she change to a different subject before they start the GCSE syllabus?

MFL is no longer compulsory!!! I had to argue with my DDs school and they have finally let her drop it and in the younger years it's no longer and automatic option thank goodness!

Her tutor? Her form tutor at school or her private tutor?

My previous reply assumed she had only just chosen her options. If she goes to one of the three year gcse course schools it's probably too late. However what wouldca child joining in Year 10 do?

Your daughter being bullied by teacher is a separate issue. If you think she is being bullied you must contact the school. Why have you seen a video, I don't understand that bit.