Kids asked to stand for headteacher

[Worcswarrior]

So dd has just started high school. There is an expectation that the students stand up when the headteacher enters the assembly hall. Is this not a bit draconian in 2024?

Had to meet a couple of relatives recently I hadn't seen in six years and they were so rude they didn't even bother to stand up when their daughter brought me into the room. They always were rude and ignorant and I thought to myself: No wonder I haven't seen you for six years and hopefully not for another six!

Aside from the good manners point, it's probably useful for the point of view of shaking the kids up a bit and giving them a bit of movement.

I used to get very sleepy in afternoon lessons at school if I found them boring to the extent that I'd be continuously pinching myself under the table. I liked it if the head or another adult came in and we had to stand as it woke me up a bit and helped me concentrate.

It’s probably a good way to get them to stop chatting and pay attention.

You stand when a Teacher enters the classroom, let alone the Head.

Not draconian, just basic manners.

😂

If they are not at Borstal, this is the norm.

Totally fine. It's manners and a sign of respect. My DS is in y9 and has to do it at the start of every lesson when the teacher arrives. And I did exactly the same in the late 1990s.

Total non-issue.

Oh your poor children, fancy them having to go through the misery of greeting a teacher and having to wait until they were told to be seated. Such a hardship!
You need to give your head a shake, your parenting skills are dire, they were being taught respect in a teaching environment where they need to listen and observe in order to learn the skills and rules of life as well as receiving an education.

Next they'll be expected to take their feet off the desk.
Personally I'd be concerned if this basic mark of respect and good order were not happening.

I think differently.

I feel that in this mess of an education system nowadays, this "small stuff" is one of the last respectful things we have left.

We need to hang on to it.

It teaches children respect. Hardly Draconian.

PemberletnotWemberley…
I totally agree, what’s wrong with these parents?

As if people expect family to stand when they grace the room 😂

To be fair it would improve behaviour in schools and possibly focus - unless the children are too hungry to concentrate.

Agree!

I remember this being brought into a secondary school where I used to teach around ten years ago. Loads of the older kids refused to stand and it was hugely embarrassing for everyone watching.

I always stand when an older person comes into the room, as does DH.

How many parents are sending their kids in without being fed?

Absolutely this. Anyone who's recently been in a whole assembly hall full of chattering kids will be well aware of the cacophony of noise that creates. Without some signal that business is about to begin you'd need a klaxon to shut them up.

As far as I can see, kids are not expected to stand at the beginning of every class when the teacher arrives, nor to surge to their feet and bow when the Head happens to pass them on the stairs or in the playing field. It's just a cue to get things started.

Amazing the trivialities some parents will extend their energies in complaining about. I prefer to save mine for the things that matter.

Yes at my kids school the children stand for any adult who comes into the room. This includes the caretaker.

Disrespect to dinner ladies in particular gets short shrift (as there’s a clear gender aspect in terms of teens being more likely to act respectfully to men than women in school).

Don't be ridiculous.

Another parent looking for trouble…

it's the kind of thing we need more of in school.

No. I've spent the whole of my adult professional life protesting that my sex has absolutely no bearing on the way I do my job. I'd like equality, not further differentiation on the mere account of having XX chromosomes.

I'd much prefer not to be talked over in meetings by men, or passed over for promotion. Whether they stand or sit whilst doing so is a point of the least consideration to me.

Fat chance of that.

Don’t you stand for your own family
too? Eg growing up if my grandparents visited and walked into the living room where I was sat, I stand up to greet them! I wouldn’t stay sitting on my bum on the sofa and shout hi over my shoulder. That would be rude and disrespectful, as well as not very caring.