To think that secondary schools should not make children do desk duty

[ReallyTired]

My son's school gets each child to spend a day on the front desk on reception doing errands. They miss a whole day of lessons to do the job that frankly should be done by paid staff. I feel its wrong that parents get fined for taking their children out of school, but schools are allowed to waste children's time doing cr*p.

Mascara you may not believe that such pupils exist but they do.

'getting out' of lessons is not part of the culture of the school

I have never seen glum looking kids on a fire drill. In any school. Or unhappy kids on a snow day

They did this 15 years ago when i was at school didn't realise they were still doing it.
I haven't got a problem with it.
I always wanted to do it but never got a go. It seemed to be the troublemakers who did it, however they were always really behaved when doing desk duty!

If that's the case fizzy, I pity them tbh.

School is a very important part of my children's upbringing. But I also want them to take on new challenges with enthusiasm, and to take opportunities as they arise.

Our fire drills are conducted in silence and are very dull. We had one just then other day.

Fire drills at the school I went to (state comp) were mad, shouty and we saw them as a 'doss'.

Plus, the kids can't really spare two weeks at KS4. Too busy studying for GCSEs.

So why not do work experience after they've taken their GCSEs, in Y11?

fizzy - I honestly don't want to get into an argument with a fellow teacher about respective teaching pace or culture of learning!

I can only say that we don't bloody hang about when it comes to either in my lowly state school, as our results reflect each year.

& yet we somehow manage to fit in a couple of lessons of work experience for each KS3 student, too.

our pupils would not want to do it as 'getting out' of lessons is not part of the culture of the school. could just as easily be countered by the riposte that 'our pupils would want to do it as an enterprising attitude & being willing to take part in activities outside of one's comfort zone is part of the culture of the school'

Being in lessons is good. Sometimes experiencing other stuff can be good, too.

How odd.

I went to a very prestigious and academic private school (relevant as I sense you're making a distinction between private and state) and they were ALWAYS fun (and shouty).

Poor kids. What a shit atmosphere it must be when you get a large group of kids together and there's silence.

Mascara no need to pity them I assure you! They are involved in so much stuff after school and have so many opportunities open to them which they grasp with both hands. They realise that they are privileged though. Not doing a day's reception work in the office is not something that they will miss.

Um - fire drills are all about health and safety. Silence is a necessary part of assembling and registering 800 pupils in a field!

Can't see why that means that the school has a 'shit atmosphere'!

Good idea duhgldiuhfdsli!

I've no idea why that doesn't happen - well, I do, it's because we wash our hands of them after they've taken their exams (we're 11-16), & it'd be impossible to enforce on the entire cohort, but I agree with you.

It'd be far more sensible.

Of course it is - and the teachers should/do enforce it.

For a large group of kids to mooch along silently by choice though...what you said is correct, it sounds dull. Which my interpretation is = not a great atmosphere generally.

raven I agree that experiencing other things is good. That is what after school is for - activities until 5pm usually. I will never agree that doing office duty is a valuable learning experience (and have seen it first hand in several schools I have taught in).

Off to bed now anyway. Goodnight.

Anyway, regarding the op...I don't think any child should be made to do desk duty.

If a child really didn't want to, they shouldn't be forced. I would imagine it would be the brighter, more enthusiastic students who would want to anyway tbh.

They are not silent by choice FGS! We MAKE them be silent as that is our job. Jeez.

But you interpret me doing my job properly (enforcing silence in a potentially life/death situation) whichever way you like.

How about experiencing spontaneity (sp?) or the pure joy of novelty?

Not something you can experience in structured 3-5pm 'activity time' is it?

I'm sure your school is just wonderful to you fizzy - no need to convince me. Different strokes and all that.

Sounds like a brilliant idea to me. I hope whichever secondary my son goes to does it.

I especially love the idea of year 6s pretending to be a takeaway

I only got to do 1 weeks work experience :( can't remember if it was in year 9 or 10 though. Year 9 I think as the idea was to help us decide what job we liked (based on a trial of 1 job) and therefore help us pick our options.

No worries, fizzy - we'll agree to disagree!

From your descriptions, though, it doesn't sound like you've seen student office duty done particularly well.

& I'm not sure how one could replicate that particular experience out of school hours, tbh. Many of our kids are busy doing GCSE boosters, extra GCSEs, sporting fixtures, the school production, & chuff knows what else until 5pm or later too, but the 'helping to run a busy office' thing's only going to work at a time when the office is busy!

Mascara we teach until 4pm for a start. Activties such as CCF and DofE have to happen after school. Not really sure what your point is tbh.

But you have made me laugh out loud at the idea that a day's drudge in the school office will offer spontaneous joy and novelty(or whatever waffle you came out with).

I find your attitude astounding for a teacher tbh.

Do you not encourage your pupils to take on new challenges? Your sneering tone at anything that's not sitting in a classroom and being actively taught is unpleasant (and concerning, if you were my dc's teacher).

raven you are probably right that it has not happened well in schools I worked in previously. I may feel differently about it has I seen it done well. I remember it particularly in one classed as outstanding and another in special measures. If anything it was better in the special measures school as pupils treated it as a privilege but pupils at the other school saw it as a doss. It did help lower ability pupils more than the able I think.

Mascara seriously? You have no idea about me or what I do or who I am so don't make silly OTT comments like that. May I remind you that it was YOU who claimed that my place of work had a 'shit atmosphere' and became abusive because I don't agree with you?

And just before I go and for what it's worth, the subject I teach is all about extra curricular opportunities and is not taught 'sitting in a classroom'. You are very,very wide of the mark.

I think it works best with students who are self-reliant & receptive to something new, but may, conversely, be of most use to those who find it difficult to see merit or purpose in activities that are outside of their direct experience.

That's possibly true of all of us, of course!