Absence and plea for no homework after D of E weekend

I swear some people just can't treat students with a modicrum of humanity.

Compared to adults, children and teens have very little control over their schedules. If I'm making my schedule and it involves a physically and/or mentally exhausting weekend then I can choose a different date, or schedule a half day at work, or make sure I don't have any big meetings or projects the next day, or get ahead over the weeks before. I can tell my family that I'm not going to be up for weekend shopping or cooking and Monday will be a frozen pizza night, and let my friends know I'm skipping our next exercise meetup. When my DH knows I'm exhausted he'll pick up some of my normal tasks instead of dumping extra on me, just like my colleagues and I are considerate of each other's workloads. And I (oh so scandelously, apparently) even take the occasional rest day just to catch up on sleep and hit pause.

Teens, on the other hand, have a dozen adults each independently setting them tasks, each often having zero regard for what else is on the teen's plate.

Being able to allocate our finite time and energy and recognize when something can be temporarily deprioritized or postponed isn't weak or whiny, it's a vital life skill.

@Talipesmum

Haha I did think it might be, all sounds rather wonderful. Probably a different baseline of walking activity to most uk high school bronze d of e cohorts though.

Kili is the 4th level. It starts relatively easily but they do have to pass a fitness test for any level.

Haha I did think it might be, all sounds rather wonderful. Probably a different baseline of walking activity to most uk high school bronze d of e cohorts though.

@Talipesmum

This is superb. Proper mumsnet chicken resilience. The cut off is Kilimanjaro. None of your local peaks or average walks.

Kilimanjaro is our local peak.

My point is about incentivising (applies even more in volunteering )….

Our son is one of the Dof E organisers at the school he works at and they’ve started doing the 2 days on a Friday /Saturday on enrichment weeks or similar as it stops the mass absence on Monday and is also easier to get staff volunteers .

Stealthboast?
Humblebrag?

No, more like Little Miss Perfect

No doubt your kids were those 100% attendance ones as well.

Dear oh dear. Do you also go around policing grammar online too?

Bet your lots of fun at parties....😂

There are part-time positions in the police force for people like you who like telling people what to do. Or even the army perhaps?

I wouldn’t class practicing past papers (at home or in another study environment) as homework though.

Perhaps we are comparing apples and oranges. 🤔

How can young people consolidate their learning unless they get the opportunity, especially for science and maths subjects?

DD passed her GCSEs and A levels with high grades because she had a chance to practice past papers at home in a quiet environment with no distractions.

I'm sorry, but I don't agree with you.

It's voluntary. They volunteered to do d of e

What would te school response be to non attendance or late homework if the expedition had be via an external provider like Cadets or Scouts?

Or indeed any similar experience... an important football tournament or concert, or international trip...

50% off is too high. Snowflake generation indeed!

Self study that’s not mind numbingly boring or unnecessary?

Self study that doesn’t dominate time at home with family, hobbies etc - creating a healthy study / life balance?

I believe some schools have creatively built self-study into the school day to facilitate a more effective use of time & resources.

How do young people learn to self study before they go to university if they never do any homework?

Parents today are completely pathetic if they can’t get their children to school after a DOf E weekend. Next they’ll be wanting holidays in term time.

My DD had 100% attendance until she took the day off after the D of E expedition and I didn't blame her one bit. She had blisters on the soles of her feet and could barely walk. One day mattered not one jot- she finished y11 with a full set of 8s and 9s and is predicted all A* at A level despite her slack attitude

This is quite an irrational and disproportionate response. Are you ok op?! I'm a teacher and a few kids missing my lesson after d of e and not setting hw is never an issue.

😆 @Talipesmum

Both of my sons had the day off after the d of e they couldn’t think straight they were so tired from lack of sleep . They could have done the same walk again though no problem

The law of unintended Consequences applies here - if homework isn't completed because they're too tired, you'll get two things happening;

1. Lots of 'diarrhoea and vomiting'.
2. Consequences for not handing in homework - detention. This leads to

2a. Office staff (if you don't have automatic detentions or automatic notifications) having to add all of these kids to detention for multiple subjects and emailing multiple parents.
2b. Kids suddenly getting 10+ detentions put through for one week.
2bi. Kids complaining to teaching staff and office staff that it's not fair and they can't do that many detentions and they want the behaviour points removed. Office staff then having to go in and manually remove them when SLT say they have to. Kids then learning that if they kick up a fuss, points can be taken off again.
2c. Parents phoning up and yelling because their kid is now in detention for the next 2-3 weeks from going on DofE. Parents yelling that their child is not doing any detention because they were on DofE and they want the behaviour points taken off. Office staff then having to go in and manually remove them when SLT say they have to. Parents then learning that if they kick up a fuss, points can be taken off again.
2d. Parents whose kids do the detention phoning up and yelling that Kid X, Y and Z didn't do the detention and that's not fair and they want the points taken off/will refuse the next detention(s) on the basis they already did 1-however many already.
2e. The member of staff supervising the detentions being inundated with Year 11s who were on DofE.

There's also consequence 3 if it's not applied to the whole year group - parents phoning up pissed off that the DofE kids don't have to do the homework that the others did.

I am with you OP, but if my boss asked me to work like a dog on a weekend (which he does hence my username 🙄), he would definitely give me time off following week or extra cash

so same principle I’m afraid 😑

Sorry, but don’t you sit on your arse in a nice climate controlled comfy chair while driving? It’s not quite as active as hiking up mountains in the rain with a 15kg backpack and sleeping on the ground now is it?

I'm suprised so many weren't in OP and I agree with you. Was it bronze? My DC were back in school the next day. Some kids had the day off but very few (the ones who don't really bother with school, mostly).

Also, not sure what a PP is wittering about homework not being productive. By Y11 they need decent amounts of homework. My DC go to a dodgy state school and had to do 3 Maths papers for homework this week, as well as 40 topic questions. This is what will get them decent grades. They are Y11 not Y1!

This is superb. Proper mumsnet chicken resilience. The cut off is Kilimanjaro. None of your local peaks or average walks.

DS was back on the Monday, on time, with his homework done after his DoFE bronze expedition. He is able-bodied and quite strong.

But several of his group members (one with a physical disability and one with additional needs) needed the Monday off.

I don't think that's "a bit pathetic" at all. I think your post is mean-spirited and that "strength of character" isn't determined by sheer presenteeism.