DS y7 school report -

[Turnthevolumedown]

Not sure what to make of this so any advice appreciated.

DS is quiet, sensible and gets on with his work- that's what his teachers told me at the parent's meeting we had in January this year. All except one who said he's lazy and doesn't do his work properly in their class. DS has accumulated many merits and positive points so far but also 6 negatives (5 of which are from this particular teacher). Negative points are usually given for bad behaviour, not meeting school expectations, forgetting school things etc. DS received his for incomplete online homework which he claims he always completes and sends but for some reason the teacher fails to receive it. I should point out DS has ASD and a worrier, he's absolutely anal about homework completion and we've never had this complaint from any other teacher.

I got his Spring term report today and his current grades for all the subjects are 6 and 7. But for that particular subject it's a 3! The teacher has added a comment of poor classwork and homework. DS is really upset. I don't really understand why he's doing so crap in just this subject when he's fine in everything else. I feel like this is dragging him down emotionally. We have had anxiety and school refusal in the past I guess in the back of my mind I always fear that reoccurring. How can I help this situation? I was thinking tuition but it's a subject like history, geography and the tutors locally focus on English/Maths/Science which he is doing fine with. Money's quite tight too.

Sorry it's long!

Is there a head of year/pastoral teacher you can speak to about your concerns?

Surely it should be flagging up somewhere if the report from one teacher/subject is do different to the others?

The HOY is pretty difficult to get hold of.. I realized just how difficult when I had to inform her of DS's ASD diagnosis and it took weeks for her to get back in touch!

Check the homework and watch him submit it

Does he bring his exercise book home?

I would watch him submit his homework to confirm it is being done. I would also look through his exercise book at the classwork that is being described as unacceptable. There should be work that has been marked by the teacher with written feedback given so that you can see what the complaints are. Is the work actually crap?

Once I'd done this, I'd email the teacher (not HOY, they'd only have to go to the teacher) to ask for clarification as to why they are not receiving homework that is being sent, and for more detailed feedback on what is needed to be improved. Express concern that this is the only subject you have received negative feedback for and are wondering what can be done to improve the situation (change in seating plan, answering questions in a different way?)

Did he do this subject at Primary School and did he enjoy it then?

Thank you that's really helpful. Yes I've told DS from now on online homework needs to be submitted before DH or me, so we know for sure it's been sent. He informed me he will be bringing his workbook home tomorrow when they break up for the holidays so I'm looking forward to a thorough read.

It's a difficult one because I know a few parents in his year and their DC also have issue with that teacher. They complained of unjust detentions (eg smirking when the kid is genuinely lovely and always smiling, another got detention for not having a certain book despite it being their first day). My DNephews are ex students and at the start of DS's academic year they said they hoped he wasn't unfortunate enough to be in that teacher's class. I have to say the teacher didn't seem at all unlikeable when we spoke at the parent's meeting.

@toomuchlaundry yes he enjoyed it. He even had a fun fact competition with year 6 teacher on that subject and teacher was extremely proud of him.

My y8 DS has ASD so some of what you say is similar for us.

Issues that we have had have included teachers being unclear in setting homework so that what DS did was wholely inadequate when considered against what the teacher was expecting, but was "correct" according to the literal but misunderstood interpretation of the requirements which DS was working to. In some cases this miscommunication has been treated as if it was DS choosing to be lazy rather than the teacher understanding that their instructions were inadequate. Just last weekend we had to deal with a great deal of stress because DS insisted that he had done his French homework but I asked to see what he had done, realised that he had got totally the wrong end of the stick and made him do it properly and he was really angry with me because what I was making him do wasn't explicitly written in the instructions. This is just the latest of many similar occasions. We have to keep an eye out for homework instructions that have any room for interpretation or misunderstanding and make sure that they are clarified.

Thats really interesting @BuanoKubiamVej I've seen DS also get the wrong end of the stick on occasion, noticed it for Art homework and I've had to explain what actually needs doing. He completes most of his homework during prep or tutor lessons so has the benefit of asking his friends if he's unsure. The issue is though he claims he has submitted the HW and teacher hasn't received it. He's way more tech savvy than me so knows what to do.

Teacher here. How often does he have this subject? Is the teacher mixing him up with another student?

He has it twice a week. I dont think the teacher is confusing him with another child as the laziness and poor quality of work was mentioned at the parent's meeting.

Was DS at the PT meeting?

Even if yes, don't discount the possibility of the teacher mixing him up with another student.

One of my DDs was one of two students with the same distinctive hair in a certain class. I went to the PT meeting, spoke with the teacher for my allotted time, got a decent assessment which accorded with DD's own opinion of how she was doing. I asked some questions; the answers seemed fine.

Right at the end he shook my hand, said it was nice meeting me, and told me he was looking forward to seeing DD back on the cross country team for the next season (he coached the team). All good, except DD wasn't on the cross country team.

He had mixed her up with the other girl. The next parents were entering the room and I didn't have time to start again, so I emailed him as soon as I got home - a not very happy email, and I cc'd the dept head.

Mixing up can happen, which is why you need to actually look at the work and feedback. If the feedback is 'great essay on volcanoes', 'excellent analysis of the causes of WWI' sort of thing then you'll know there's a mix-up. If the feedback is 'you haven't answered the question' or 'this is incomplete' then you'll have a better idea of what's going on.

Speak to the SENCO, they should be able to support your DS through this.

It sounds like hmk isn’t correctly been submitted for some reason, this is easy to solve.
Does DS like the teacher, I’ve seen hard working students not try at all in some lessons and been realised surprised. Have you asked DS what he thinks is happening does he think he is working hard but is finding the work difficult?
Ask to see his class book.

Yes he was present for the parent's meeting. I agree mix ups can happen, I recall it happening to a friend's DC a few years ago. I will look at his workbook tonight and see if whether his work and the feedback given are contradictory.

@Sockpile the senco seemed lovely when I spoke to her on the phone and she said she is always there for him if he needs any support. Currently is he is in denial about his diagnosis and doesn't want to discuss anything with the Senco or for anyone to know (other than staff). He is so desperate to fit in.

@Duracellbunnywannabe no he doesn't like this teacher at all but it would be very out of character for him not to put in effort. He tells me she shouts (sensory issues), doesn't explain things properly - I think it's more him being reluctant to ask when he doesn't understand something which could partly be the reason why he's struggling in this class.

Hi OP - not related to the homework but it is quite possible she really doesn’t explain as clearly as other teachers.

I have a DS with ADHD ( and undergoing assessment for ASD). He is younger but will also distinguish between teachers who ‘teach well’ in his words or not. Some teachers are just naturally better at breaking down their lessons. It’s very common for SEN children not to want to ask for extra clarification - ideally the teacher would have a system to offer it to your DS proactively ( appreciate this may make him uncomfortable about standing out).

For my DS the difference in how a teacher taught meant him going from working at greater depth to completely failing. He’d just sat there not understanding/not being able to follow.

If she wasn't on mat leave I'd swear you were talking about DS's history teacher. At least, I think she's still on mat leave - he's in Y11 and hasn't taken history as an option. She gave out detentions for the most trivial, ridiculous reasons - including one child 'smirking' when he was just trying to smile politely at her (I know the boy, he's definitely not one to smirk).

A detention for smirking is crackers anyway.

@Turnthevolumedown - Checked with DS. Teacher is back off maternity. She's not called Mrs B is she?

no he doesn't like this teacher at all but it would be very out of character for him not to put in effort.

The only year I did badly with one subject - I went on to do it at GCSE and A-level and got highest grades - was year I had PE teacher teach it as her second subject. I was very bad at PE.

I wasn't aware of putting in any less effort - I just couldn't seem to do right. I was lucky it was Y8 ad Y9 had a great teacher who taught GCSE and A-level classes.

On top of all the other good surgestions you could try keeping him ticking over with on-line sites like senca or just general interest like TV, books ect.

So DS didn't have his workbook with him on Friday as he'd given it in for marking. But he has homework to do in it over the holidays. The homework is based on previous work which is only accessible in the book! DS's friends came over for tea and they confirmed they'd also handed theirs. This has happened before and the teacher gave th entire class detention - I really don't understand how the kids are at fault here.

@iklboo no that's not the same teacher

@Turnthevolumedown - OMG there's TWO of them out there!! 😂

The homework is based on previous work which is only accessible in the book! DS's friends came over for tea and they confirmed they'd also handed theirs. This has happened before and the teacher gave th entire class detention - I really don't understand how the kids are at fault here.

That has happened to my DC - though not the dentention.

It's usually sorted by kids informing the teacher often by teams these days but if not that's when I tend to step in and then work way up to more senior people - though the SENCO could also be helpful.

I'm always polite and would start by clarifying the situation ie checking they don't have the books and the books are needed but in such situations I would be stepping in - and escalate if necessary.

I think you need to contact the head of year.

This teacher sounds really bad - disorganised, shouty, unable to break down her teaching objective into sections. Someone who gives out drastic punishments for minor infractions or problems she herself causes has no business teaching. There are other careers out there. She should investigate porting her skills (what she has on paper anyway).