Behaviour, is it just my school?

[PupInAPram]

In the decades I've worked here, behaviour has never been this bad. Off the scale bad. Is it something to do with my school, or is it happening in all schools?

Behaviour is pretty awful at our primary school as well as the local secondaries according to my teens (who hear/see everything!) Depressing as hell, frankly.

Very click baity title. I don't know any teachers who aren't aware there are massive behaviour problems in almost every school.

I think behaviour in general is poor. Many teachers are walking away because they have had enough of it.

Are you primary or secondary?

DS1 is in year two and when he tells me about 'naughty' things that happened, they are never that dramatic...eg, someone bought football cards in to school, he got told off for chatting etc.

90% of the things he tells me about school are positive though (things they learnt, games they played in the playground etc).

I left a school at Christmas where the behaviour had become awful. It was rapidity declining with no signs of it being sorted so I left.

It was really awful when I was at school (mid 30s now). Can't imagine it's much better now!

There is bad behaviour in DDs secondary school but it is 100% handled appropriately. Repeat offenders either tow the line or have to leave.

What is your school's approach to managing behaviour?

For example, in DDs school, if a child has been given an after school detention and doesn't go to it, a member of SLT or the Head is always waiting at the gates, goes on all the buses to find the child and tells them to get off. This usually does the trick. If the child still refuses to get off, they are suspended for a day or put in the inclusion room the next day, depending on how the child usually behaves.

No phones are allowed to be used on school premises. If a child is found with a phone, it gets confiscated and the PARENT has to go to collect it. It is never given back to a child, the parent is inconvenienced deliberately.

Seems to be all over the place atm. Most school staff I know are saying it’s all been a lot harder since lockdown.

Pandemic, masks, lockdown, homeschooling, bereavement, illness.

Are you surprised?

Ours has declined MASSIVELY since covid.

Volunteer at DC’s school so limited observations but their primary school is poor at the moment. Several children disrupting class daily, to the point they have to be physically removed or restrained. DC’s teacher was kicked a few weeks ago. Furniture has been thrown. A few children I know are battling for provision for their children too. It seems to be worsening too.

I have two friends who have worked in schools for years. They are both at good primaries.

Both want to quit because behaviour is so bad.

Friends with kids in other schools seem to indicate it's not any better anywhere else.

From what I can tell is it's generally just one or two kids in a class who didn't get appropriate care / support / diagnosis due to COVID who set off the other kids or are just so plain disruptive it's impossible to manage. Then there's kids who have additional mental health needs because of issues at home (again made worse by COVID). Poor parenting has contributed and then been dumped on teachers to address

My understanding is that the current year 2 and 3 at primary are the worst affected.

I work in a PRU so behaviour is our thing.

We're seeing record numbers of referrals and exclusions and behaviour in our centres is worse than we've ever seen. We're used to bad behaviour but this level of disruption, destruction and violence is unheard of.

We're also hearing from all the schools in the area that they just don't know what to do about behaviour. Some good schools who've successfully used positive behaviour management techniques for years are seriously considering a return to punative zero tolerance methods.

Most worrying, the EYFS practioners are telling us "if you think this is bad, wait till this lot come through". They're seeing behaviour they've never seen before too.

It's mostly being blamed on covid and a lack of structure and expectations for so long.

The previously most well respected secondary in our Borough has recently had an RI OFSTED with the primary criticism being around behaviour.

My brother works in a secondary school in a completely different part of the country and he says they're seeing exactly the same.

I've been told this is typical rather than the exception now. My friend is a TA and is constantly being hit ATM. She's had enough and will probably hand in her notice by the year end.

Haven't you noticed a decline in adults behaviour in the past two to three years? People lose their shit and spew abuse for the most innocuous reasons in traffic, while travelling, in shops.

If you look at the smaller people standing right by their side when they're behaving like pigs it's not that difficult to connect the corresponding appalling behaviour in schools.

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I work in a primary school...14 years now. Behaviour is awful. Really awful, and all parents want to do is blame staff! There is zero respect from large numbers of children (not all of them, though). I don't think it was just Covid. This began a few years before....but obviously it didnt help matters. Children also seem to be hitting puberty earlier...it used to be almost unheard of in Primary, now year 4's and 5's regularly seem to be hitting it - girls AND boys.

My daughter is a secondary school teacher; already this week she has been in the middle of trying to break up fights - twice - and its only Tuesday! Last week a child goaded her and actually hit her in the face. Yesterday she was kicked in the leg. She has been a teacher since 2020. It's been a steep learning curve.

But you try and instill some discipline and the parents are like "Noooooo! Not my child!!!" or They're just children!".....🙄

People have lamented the lack of discipline in schools for a long time. It really needs to come back.

Which year groups?

I run a childrens group and the behaviour is awful. Apparently it's because the children missed a socialisation window during the lockdowns :(

@RedToothBrush its terrible. No Ta or teacher should have to put up with it. I have been volunteering whilst I study with a view to teaching but questioning whether to. They all seem so unsupported by the school and the parents.

I'm a parent not a teacher but the behaviour in Dts 'outstanding' secondary seems extreme. Y7 kids baking in class and dancing on tables, huge fights between the y11s in the lunch hall and outside school.

H is a teacher at the sister boys school where behaviour seems to be exemplary.

And year four. Ours has been badly affected

Our children have had massive trauma in recent years, they pick up on the stress faced by their families. Many of those children’s poor behaviour will be a result of the turmoil we’ve faced as a society.

We’re in children’s mental health week and teachers need more support than ever to help the children who are struggling and have social rather than educational needs

The figures for self harm and worse among our children are frightening. We’re in the grip of a child mental health pandemic.

Massive thank you to all teachers and mental health professionals facing this second pandemic.

I agree that the behaviour of adults has got worse as well. Everyone knows their 'rights' but few seem to understand their responsibilities.

I'm not sure what schools are meant to do. Just look at the threads on here about parents not liking time out, being made to face the wall, rainbow charts, detentions etc. I think a lot of parents forget that in a class there are another 30 children, in a school maybe 300 or 400. The techniques that work one to one at home simply aren't practical.

That's interesting because we are definitely seeing the most extreme behaviour from girls and that is new. Traditionally we got very few girls in the PRU. It's still more boys than girls but the numbers are becoming more equal and my goodness the girls we get take some managing. The only staff member I've ever seen hospitalised as a result of "behaviour" was by a girl, recently.

Going against the grain here, but there isn't noticeably worse behaviour at DD's school. It is an all girls grammar though, so that probably makes a difference.