infant school horror- smoking and cook as teacher substitute

[misssilverwings]

.. Future infant school for ds aged 3 ( in Italy) has smokers outside the classroom door ( parents or teachers, not sure), has the cook take classes when tecaher is sick, (!) has 3 teachers ONLY for 90 children, has ant-infested classrooms - and children who don't want to participate in ' religion' classes have to sit it out with the cook in the kitchen! BTW ofsted doesnt exist here and the school has no head teacher.

Try a different school? Smoking culture is different in Italy is it not? As in, it's more acceptable?

I don't understand how the school has no head.
We had 3 teachers for 90 children, seems normal to me.
While smoking is undesireable, it's not in the classroom is it?
Yes, the cook teaching is not good. Is she a teacher also?
Perhaps you should find another school.

Is the advert below you a home swap for England-Italy? Spooky! It sounds awful. Is this rural or urban? are there no alternatives? I don't know what to suggest.

Oh its bic Kids now. 3 teachers for 90 kids is 1 for 30. Isn't that the ratio here?

Rural. Lombardy. No choice except the nuns school in the next village. Or private but its over subscribed. ( funny that) The cook is just a cook, not a proper teacher. No head, its run by a PTA committee. Yep, italians smoke anywhere, inc outside the school door.

Love the thread title

You should write for the Daily Mail

Smoking outside classrooms - YANBU but it is a cultural thing maybe the same for the cook being a cover teacher.
3 teachers for 90 children is 1 for 30,perfectly acceptable. When I started teaching there were no TAs and you always had a class of between 28 and 32 on your own.
That said I would probably try to find a different school but I don't know how much of your problem is normal for Italy.

Dare I say, well that's Italy for you? Not helpful I know but I suppose if you live in another country you can't expect British culture/ regulations to apply. Sorry. Don't fancy the nuns then?

Look at homeschooling then.
Did you not think about schools before moving there or having dc?

Worralliberty- was a journo in a previous career! hahah

Hmm homeschooling is unheard of here as are alot of things, in fact I despair sometimes of the whole country. Some things are good ( food, weather, coffee, ) somethings aren't so good ( er, everything else? )

Anyway will give the school a chance and if turns out be una merda totale- will a) move back to Uk b) ask for a pay rise and send him private!

Funny that when I trained as an early years teacher in the UK, the lecturers never stopped going on and on about how superior the Reggio Emilia approach was! Just goes to show how theory and practice often differ.

I also love your thread title :).

Ain't 3 a bit young for "school" 30 three year-olds, one teacher. Can't you just get a nice childminder for a few hours a day?

I wish you'd say what was not so great about Italy [nosy], since I am actually a tinsy tinsy bit jealous back here in old blighty .

PML at your thread title! I live overseas too (NL) and have yet to find out what the schooling horrors are.......

"Some things are good ( food, weather, coffee, ) somethings aren't so good ( er, everything else? )

LOL! I want to move there (sometimes) but Italian DP refuses , for reasons above
It would maybe drive me mad.....

what else is bugging you OP (other than tax.........)

If its a state materna then it should have more teachers as it doesn't reach the state guidelines.
If its private then 30 is ok but they should have a minimum I think of three on lunchbreak so I guess the cook bidella helps out there as well.
Materna is not obligatory either...maybe try the nuns , but if its like upnorth then registering was in January so you are a bit late....

Brilliant headline - 'Smoking cook as teacher substitute' would have been even better.

I have to say, my first reaction was that 3 teachers for 90 children is indeed shocking, but I think that's what it was when I was school in the dark ages. At my son's school there are 6 teachers for about 60 children though, plus numerous TAs. (Small village school, not private.)

My nephews' teacher used to chain smoke in class (Sicily). 3 for 90 isnt too bad though, if its classes of 30. My own DC in the UK were in classes of that soze and survived!

Soze? Size!

I'm sure that Italy has people who grow up to be well read and well qualified so I'm not too sure that it's a case of "That's Italy for you!".

misssilverwings, 1 teacher to every 30 pupils is the average her in state schools. Smoking outside the classroom happens too, it's not ideal, indeed some parents are horrified and furious about it but it's not, imho, the end of the world. A school run by a (presumably elected?) committee of parents sounds superb to me. Which just leaves the cook being left to teach.

So tell me, is home education illegal or is it merely unheard of?

But looking at it from a different angle, here TAs are left in charge of classes when they have no teaching qualifications too and, of course, you don't need to be qualified in any area to home educate in the UK. Despite this levels of achievement and maturity amongst HE children are high. So, while the DC are at infant age, maybe and as crazy as it sounds, cook has a lot to offer and it's not such a bad thing.

Though, if I'm honest, I'm not as confident as I sound and I would be looking to HE or to send my child to an independent school.

Thanks everyone, I now have some good advice and weaponry to tackle the state schooling system with. HE is unheard of, although I will do a survey amongst family here to findout what they know ( little, I imagine).

Scuola materna is not obligatory, but if you work f/t ( we both do) its the best option.

Hmm, so the ratio is the same, and perhaps being led by an italian cook wouldn't be sooo bad.... better than being bible bashed I guess !
Buona serata signore!

Unless the teacher has chronic health problems, surely the cook will just stand in for a day or two a term. And she's someone who is known to the children. And the other teacher's probably set work that's appropriate which she overseas. And honestly, your child is 3! What do you think they're missing out on?

The ratio is like many state schools here (ignoring TAs). And unless they're carrying off children, ants aren't that big a deal.

• '

^ e. Though they are overseas too.

my son is just finishing in the local state materna. I'm in lombardia too, but not rural. There are 29 children to 2 teachers who work half days i.e. only one at a time.......the cooking is all done off site!!! Thank god I say incase he/she gets involved too.
Smoking; well to be honest I'd go mad at this. As far as I'm aware no-one smokes on the school grounds in my sons school. It's illegal to say the least. Saying that, my bosses both smoke in the cloakroom at work. Don't like it, but I don't go in there if I can help it.
I have heard of some home schooling here. At the moment as you know there is no obligation to send your child to the materna, so you have another 3 years to work that one out.
I would think strongly about a private materna, and even the nuns........in buca al lupo

I would have thought the cook is probably quite capable of dealing with the educational needs of a 3yo on an occasional basis.