is it normal for secondary schools to use fear their induction method for year 7s

[Alevelquestions]

My child started secondary this Wednesday and the school has concentrated on emphasising all the ways they might get detentions. Kids have already been given detentions for not having the right colour pens, for not sitting straight or for forgetting parts of their PE kit. This is within three days of starting. My kid hasn’t had a detention but on Friday he told me he spent the whole day trying not to cry because he thought he’d have detention for forgetting his white board. The school prides itself on discipline but it seems to be at the expense of humanity and remembering these are quite young kids undergoing a major and unsettling transition. Is this the normal approach nowadays? It genuinely makes me so sad.

Yeah my kid's secondary school is the same. Zero tolerance on everything.

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Sounds sensible to make expectations for their behaviour clear from the start.

There is a difference between making expectations clear and actually giving detention on day one and two for minor mistakes. There is a difference between making expectations clear and having the primary emotion of the first week at a new school be fear and anxiety.

I'm interested to see what people's replies are and how common this is

Is it part of a multi academy trust? Would you like to say which one if so?

This is not a school I would choose personally. Is it any wonder we have record mental health crises among young people? Those poor souls. I worry for my DD when the time comes as she's not the most organised.

What should we ask about this at open evenings?
Should we be asking what they should get detentions for?

It is. But no, I don’t want to name names or identify myself.

I think you could just ask them to describe their approach to discipline and order. Then if you don’t like it look elsewhere if you are lucky enough to have more than one decent secondary you can get into.

I don't know if it's common or not, but that isn't the approach my kid's school took. In fact, they went very, very easy on the kids for the first term while they learned the rules.

Its ridiculous, on my sons 2nd day in year 7 his tie was stolen off him by some year 9s on the stairs, He went into lesson and was given a detention for not having a tie despite telling the teacher what happened. I must say I went mad at the school.
It's a common theme amongst the local secondary schools where I live that they give detention and punishments out like sweets so the meaning is lost and no one cares if they get one.
It's pathetic

Similar at our school

we’ve had no choice in the school due to sprawling new states pushing the two good schools out of catchment

I now have no choice but to send her to a school I didn’t out down as an option, whose uniform and behaviour policy I strongly disagree with.
what can we as parents do apart from write to the governors? And support our children?

in our area you can’t even move house to access a more suitable school, because you have to be in the house by the start of year 5 to get a place in the local schools. Yet at the start of year 5 the housing estates weren’t there 🤷🏼‍♀️
there are still year 8 children at home with no school place at all having been at home all last year as well

My school was like this when I was a child. Punishments for errors when trying to adapt to a completely new environment and regime. I remember being very anxious. I’m a teacher and schools I have worked in have not been quite as harsh. There was a transition period in one school where sanctions were not given for things like disorganisation initially, but if they had three ‘transgressions’ they would go to a support session to help them adapt to the new routine where they would, for example, be helped to use their homework diary properly. This was also reinforced during form time. After a few weeks, the disciplinary policy took effect in full and they were forewarned in assembly, form time etc. so they were well prepared. I liked that way of doing things as it was more about setting them up for success.

I work in a secondary school and a hard line is taken at the start in the hope they have respect from the off. The only detentions would be for poor behaviour.
I don’t think it’s appropriate they’re terrorised about pens!
I was shocked this year at the immaturity of the new year 7s! Has anybody else found this?

My kids’ school is known as being strict on all sorts of things, but even they have an amnesty on Year 7s for the first two weeks. If they do something wrong they’re told about it, but no detentions or punishments.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m001yxq0
Listen to this. Unfortunately it's very common nowadays. I'd be looking for another school that shows compassion to children.

Nowadays? Kids always used to have discipline but from the mid 80s it slowly disappeared. Im glad it's back and it shows how mollycoddled they are at primary if theyre shitting bangers in Yr 7 for being told they'd have to do detentions.

The whole primary system is too soft. I'd happily do away with homework for more old school discipine and less poncing around in class, so you wouldnt need to take work home when you should still be having fun on evenings.

That sounds awful. I never remember detentions being given out. Unless the kid was throwing chairs and screaming abuse!?
But that barely ever happened. I just don't understand the purpose of it? It doesn't represent real life at all. Adults are responsible in the workplace and the equipment they need is supplied to them. Unless they are tradesmen and it's not like schools ever teach kids anything about trades being a valuable career?
Are all the schools like that in your area?
I'd not want my kid somewhere that hardcorely Draconian and disciplinarian.
Your poor kid.

I would have thought that it would be better to send a letter to all parents enclosing the rules and asking the parents to make sure the kids were aware before the start of term. The parent and kid could sign it and email a picture back or whatever.

These lectures that are given to loads of kids always frighten the ones that aren’t going to do anything wrong anyway. The ones that are going to break the rules are going to do it, regardless of any fear tactics.

When I started secondary school in the early 90s, it felt like a massive change. I remember our form tutor telling us that for the first two weeks, he expected us to lose ourselves and forget things. But that after that, things should start to fall into place.

I’m glad no one gave us detentions in the first week for forgetting things! We just weren’t used to following a timetable, moving around a large four-storey building, having multiple teachers and being expected to bring different books and equipment to different lessons.

Not to mention all the unwritten social rules, which were often pointed out to us by scary teenagers. Apparently, I was committing major faux pas by carrying my rucksack on both shoulders and wearing long socks.

So many schools in the UK appear to be run like prisons. Really horrible.

I guess that's why I'm paying for private education.

They sent us the rules and we signed them and therefore I made sure he had the right pens and PE kit and knew to be silent in corridors etc. But then he started and they went on and on about the rules above all else, and punished kids whose parents had not got them 2 bloody red pens as well as two black and two blue, and he’s a good kid so he was terrified. I just hoped that although the rules were strict they would concentrate on welcoming the kids and making them feel excited to be there and learn rather than terrified and unable to concentrate on the lesson because a detention might be given at any second.

Back in 1985, I was in reception. My Mum dropped me off at school and our very scary, strict teacher was asking me where my handkerchief was. We didn’t use them at home as we used tissues. She had asked me on the Friday to make sure I had one on Monday or else. I forgot.

So on Monday, got dropped at school and whilst I was on the mat for morning register, the teacher asked me to show I had my handkerchief. I said it was in my coat on my peg outside the door. She sent me out to get it, and as I didn’t have one, I panicked and ran out of school. I got halfway home, just as the lollipop lady was walking back and she stopped me. I was red faced, crying and so
upset.

My Mum took my into school and funnily enough I was never asked for a handkerchief again.

I lost all respect for that teacher, as it was so petty. Lots of school bollockings and unfairness stay with you. I do feel for these kids being told off so soon into term.

'Cause I Ain't Got a Pencil
I woke myself up
Because we ain't got an alarm clock
Dug in the dirty clothes basket,
Cause ain't nobody washed my uniform
Brushed my hair and teeth in the dark,
Cause the lights ain't on
Even got my baby sister ready,
Cause my mama wasn't home.
Got us both to school on time,
To eat us a good breakfast.
Then when I got to class the teacher fussed
Cause I ain't got no pencil.

By Joshua T. Dickerson