to take ds yr6 out of school for the summer term?

[ingeniousidiot]

We've talked about it for months, spoken to his teachers, school governors and a couple of people that work in that sort of area. We've spoken to him about it, he want's to do school work at home. He's due back tomorrow, I've just rung the LEA to speak to the Education Welfare, got put on hold and put the phone down.

I know teachers are under pressure to get the dcs to perform but where are their ethics, their morals?

Seriously? I can't believe I actually just read that.

Children taking their GCSEs this year may not have targets due to the 20@0 boycott. No one died!

Agree with Feenie about age appropriate pressure - why don't we put 5 year olds under extreme pressure? Surely that would prep them better for their year 6 Sats!
I wonder why more parents don't get more annoyed with the Sats...maybe only a small percentage of kids feel the pressure at 11 years old in a very damaging way, but these kids - mine included should not be railroaded into sitting exams at the age of 11 which do not help them proceed, in fact they do the opposite. Every child counts and a system that does not recognise the damage pressurising any 11 year olds to complete an exam that does not benefit them but supports a political cause is screwed up.
And if my dc was having mental health issues at the age of 16 that were directly related to sitting GSCE's I certainly would not be forcing them to continue, I'd be showing some compassion and trying to help them find a path that worked for them.
Mental Health to me comes before exams because without mental health the exams aren't worth shit!

Changes to the Y2 tests make it very difficult to keep low key. They have to be ' in sight of a clock at all times in order to pace themselves' - this, for untimed tests! Children going to the toilet must be accompanied - cos, you know, most 6/7 year olds are well known cheaters

It's all part of the plan - schools who fall below floor targets (65%) will be forced to become academies. Make everything harder - fait accompli.

You guys need to look at this group, who are proposing a parent boycott on Tuesday 3rd May - won't affect SATs, but they are intent on cause a stink. God on 'em!

m.facebook.com/parentssupportteachers/?ref=ts&fref=ts

letthekidsbekids.wordpress.com/.

Haven't read full thread so apologies if already mentioned. Perhaps if everyone took their kids out of school on Msy 3rd the government might listen?

Good, not God, obviously. Too much wine

Penny our year 6 teacher built sats up to an incredibly stressful level because the teachers had to show x improvement. It's not in the interest of year 7 teachers to hot house

Cross posts, hypermum - great minds, 'n' that!

You think, Spand? How long d'you think, before it becomes an extra stick for Ofsted to beat secondary schools with?

Ha ha Feenie!

I had no idea it was this bad. Ds hates y6. I thought it was just him. (Not that he was imagining the pressure-that's very real, but the whole hating going to school this year)

Like lots of pp, he's won a place at a super selective grammar, so he has the ability, it's just so boring doing Relentless prep. They've stopped anything that isn't sats based since January, so no science, art, history etc.

And the teachers look exhausted. It's sucked any joy out of school for my ds. In fact he calls school the fun sponge.

I've spoken to ds's teacher about how stressed he is.
I did ask if he can not do SATs, whilst talking about his welfare and what can be done to help protect his mental health, but I've been told it's law, unless he has a severe learning disability, he has to take them.
There is a very real chance that I will simply not be able to get him into school, but have also been told that he will have to do them in the two weeks following, meaning he will miss loads of learning opportunities.
I can't de register him, because this would likely mean that I will never get him into school again.

What would happen if you got him signed off Phil? Would they still insist he does them on return?

I got the impression from the meeting we had that there is a distinct cut off point after which they can't set them as they need to marked within a set time frame. Perhaps if you could get a doctors note for long enough it would be a loophole?

I guess you've already told him it's a boring pita that is there for the clueless government to test the teachers rather than results being important at child level.

I'm very lucky that my DD is sailing through all this, albeit frustrated and bored senseless. It must be awful for those of you with children who are really stressed about it .

Sorry, I missed this.
He knows that SATs aren't important to him, and he knows that we're not putting any pressure on him, but the pressure is coming from school and from his peers.

If I take him out for SATs week I have been told that as soon as he comes back he will have to take them, which will waste his time and staff time.

Our GP is very understanding and will write a note if we feel it's necessary, but I'm not sure if that would be enough to protect him from it all.