Are all Secondary’s this strict?

We are looking at a school on sw London that is known for being strict. But I’m not sure if the reviews online are true or exaggerated.
Our dc is in year 5 so we are compiling a list of potential schools.

What I want to know is has ATAcademy been mentioned today?

I hate these boot camp zero tolerance schools. Much praised academy in Hackney : investigated for emotional abuse and causing mental health issues.

My Dc went to a non-leafy S London comprehensive. There was a strong sense of discipline and behaviour was good, on the whole, and the overall ethos seemed to be that the teachers liked young people. That their achievements and successes were enjoyed and crusaded. That staff respected the young people and expected respect in return.

Staff had a high degree of autonomy over their own pedagogical style )in some schools the teachers are required to follow a set regime laid down by the head) and there seemed to be enjoyment and imagination in the teaching.

It really isn’t necessary to treat young people like criminals to get them to engage and behave.

This describes my Grandsons school perfectly. It's run like a military camp. Last week they were told that they didn't have to wear blazers because of the extreme hear, BUT the pupils still had to take their blazers in and carry them over their arm! They weren't allowed to put them in their school bags. Totally nonsensical. Unfortunately now that most schools are academys, there doesn't seem to be anyone you can appeal to.

The strict behaviour expectations are now common, unfortunately. I worked in a school like this and hated it BUT I appreciate the need for it in a lot of schools. Lack of parental discipline, lack of pastoral support, too much time on social media and a prevailing attitude that teachers are on a power trip (they’re not) has led to rude, disruptive children and unfortunately, if you’re going to go down the zero tolerance route it has to apply to everyone. That said, some schools manage to find a balance and you generally find it gets a bit more relaxed after year 7.

As far as hw goes, I’m astounded that you think it should only be 30mins over 3 subjects! In some subjects I can see that being useful but in mine, that would just be a complete waste of time!

I always tell people who complain about schools being too strict to have a look at the Ofsted website. Search for secondaries rated inadequate for behaviour and attitudes.

You'll find lots of reports detailing schools which are out of control- no learning taking place due to disruption, children running around corridors banging windows and staff and students being assaulted.

If that is what these parents would prefer, there are plenty of schools like this available.

I have still to find these mythical schools which don't have strict rules but behaviour is great!

No, it’s not a big ask. Getting a detention for it is a big response, though.

The detentions for touching a curtain etc sound ridiculous.

The homework, I'm not so sure if thats unreasonable. I remember having at least an hour's worth of homework every night from year 7-9. Across maybe three or four subjects.

They never told you how long it was meant to take. It takes however long you spend on it while trying to get a good mark presumably?

It would be interesting to see if it applies to some sets, some subjects and some year groups.

It’s probably fair to say that some schools will be very definite in their expectations and some may be more flexible. You say you’ve emailed. What has been the response to those emails? Perhaps you could ask for a face to face meeting to express your concerns. You could ask about the amount of homework too.

if children are asked not to touch curtains and to sit still I hardly think that’s a big ask. Also, homework over 10 mins also doesn’t seem that bad, how will she cope with self directed further education if 30 mins homework is insurmountable

It's a consequence of generally poor behaviour in schools these days and the attitude of a lot of parents that their children can do no wrong. Also school funding - bigger classes, less pastoral support.

Instead of teachers being able to manage behaviour in a class they are getting intractable, rude children, who take no direction and and don't engage. It spoils it for everyone.

So a system of clearly laid out infractions that teachers can refer to is helpful. Children will look for any old loophole, answer back, argue. This is an attempt to try and stop the 'give an inch, take a mile' situation. The idea that any behaviour you let slide encourages similar behaviour to proliferate is one with increasing traction these days.

That's such a shame and unfair for the kids who are feeling so anxious about it. 😥

I think my son's school strikes a balance between 1 and 2, which so far has been a relief. There is definitely disruption but it could be a lot worse from what I've read on here. My disabled son gets very upset with disruption and certainly has found it difficult but overall is coping much better than expected thank goodness.

That's definitely not normal in my opinion, or at least it's not right and doesn't have to be this way. My son goes to a secondary school with extremely high numbers of kids with challenges such as SEND, also difficult parents who don't discipline their children, a high number of children with EFL who may not understand instructions clearly, looked after kids, poverty etc. Behaviour is very tricky to manage. They do have the points system and detentions but in my opinion they strike a good balance between being too strict and not strict enough.

If they were too strict then the disruptive kids would think 'what's the point' and be even more disruptive. For example the other day my son's class had a horrible supply teacher who gave a whole class punishment of behaviour points when only a handful of children were playing up. My son has a one-to-one, she complained to the pastoral manager, they removed all the behaviour points and told the supply they weren't coming back.

On the other hand, a boy recently threw dirty water from the corridor into a classroom covering some equipment and splashing a couple of people. They gave them a four day suspension.

Are they all this strict now?
No.
But it’s fairly common, sadly.

This is a gross oversimplification and others will no doubt share different experiences, but many state secondaries fall into one of two categories:

1. ultra strict, as you describe, with many minor behaviours being punished quite severely. However, this reduces disruption from poorly behaved children and means the lessons and the school generally can be run reasonably orderly.
2. less strict, so no punishments for looking at the clock when your not meant to. However chaos often ensues, lessons routinely disrupted by bad behaviour, teachers reduced to zoo-keeping with an obvious impact on teaching/learning.

Why is this? It seems an increasing minority of parents are unwilling and/or unable to parent their children properly, no discipline at home, no proper boundaries and often don’t support the school in trying to maintain discipline. Plus disruption from an increasing number of SEN kids whose needs are unmet (not saying all SEN kids are disruptive of course).