What does Katharine Birbalsingh do different?

[User2346]

I can’t say I like her but I am intrigued as to how she gets the results which are remarkable.

I know the model of zero tolerance etc but this is copied in a lot of academies without the resounding success.

Is there something different with the teaching methods? Is there an element of selection weeding out children with SEN and EHCP’s?

I would love the perspective of parents who have their DC at the school.

The zero tolerance policy when it comes to routines, homework, discipline and uniform only work when the parents are 100% on board. It's a model that works with a self-selecting group of families that sign up for this.

It's not a model you can transfer into any area and expect it to work.

@howshouldibehave that makes complete sense but leaves me wondering why parents can refuse discipline for their children? I appreciate this is just me being dense but perhaps a teacher could explain? When I was at school, detentions were imposed by the school and you were expected to attend, no questions. It wasn’t up to parents to say whether or not their child would do the detention.

When did you go to school? I went to school in the 70s and 80s and it certainly wasn't the case then that the school could expect the unquestioning support of parents and I suspect it wasn't when you went to school either. There has always been a rough element who have no respect for establishment figures of any sort and pass that disdain for authority on to their children.

Coming back to KB - her school model only works where school choice exists and parents specifically select the school for it's ethos. It simply would not work where I live where we only have a single secondary school - government is supposed to provide universal access to education, and providing a school that only caters to a very narrow demographic is a complete breach of that service commitment.

@Pharazon 90s/00s and I’m sure you’re right that there were parents who didn’t care, but their kids would be given detention and if they didn’t do it there would be consequences, escalating until the child was eventually expelled. There wouldn’t be the option for parents to “refuse” detention on their child’s behalf and then the school be left with no other sanction.

Not sure about that. Zero tolerance policies have also worked elsewhere.

This school was one of the worst in the country, with staff and students being assaulted and no learning at all taking place.

It has been turned around due to zero tolerance policies on behaviour, including attendance and uniform.

All those statistics are publically available: https://www.compare-school-performance.service.gov.uk/school/140862/michaela-community-school/absence-and-pupil-population

1.9% EHCP vs 2.7% national average
31% free school meals vs 29% national average
70% English as a foriegn langauge vs 18% nationally

I’ve read a lot about Michaela and I’m a huge fan of the approach.

There is a behaviour crisis in UK schools, KM’s approach may be strict but it works. My dds are now older but they would have loved it, they got fed up with constant disruption in class.

I also love the idea of shared meals. I am a visiting teacher in schools and I’ve seen first hand some terrible table manners. Children yelling loudly, can’t use cutlery, I saw one child actually licking gravy from a plate. In one secondary school, they do take away options so kids wander around eating a tub of pasta with a plastic fork. Meal times should be relaxed and a time to connect with others.

Exactly the same happens now. Not sure why you think it doesn’t.

@Pharazon apologies, I got the impression from various posts on this thread that parents were actively preventing schools imposing discipline rather than just not supporting them. Thanks for explaining.

Apologies if this has already been posted- but with 10% of pupils with SEN and 30+% on FSM. This is a remarkable achievement.

those two qualifications are absolutely foundational for kids going forward into employment.

Absolutely spot on. I find it mind-blowing that so many people get so agitated about one state school with very strict rules and amazing results, when we have an absolute crisis in schools up and down the country. Teachers are leaving in droves, fuelled by poor student behaviour amd overwhelming pressure to cram more and more into the day to compensate for the lack of other services. It seems to me that KB has taken steps to protect both her pupils and her staff by stripping the school down to core aims - focused education resulting in excellent qualifications and good work habits, and good manners and ability to communicate effectively. By making sure they focus on that they have presumably made it easier for teachers to do what they need to do and I would think it becomes a much more satisfying and healthier place of work. And the kids leave with everything they need to get on in life. I'm astounded that people get cross about it instead of getting cross about the teachers amd kids being failed everywhere else.