100% attendance

[AgainstTheOddsNo2]

My daughter has just been sick and is currently devastated and not talking to me because I said she will have to stay home from school and lose her 100% attendance.


Fuck that prize!

[AgainstTheOddsNo2]

But clever is different things to different people. Someone who may not be great at academics may be a clever at art or drama or creative things. He may be a talented builder or carpenter. He may be brilliant at bringing people together.

[SaorAlbaGuBrath]

Not being academically competent doesn't mean you're not clever, or indeed capable of making something of yourself. My DP was written off by teachers, belittled, put down, sneered at, told he'd never achieve anything, that he was stupid. Funnily enough one of those arsehole teachers has a newspaper cutting of him in Iraq on her wall now! He's had his own business, there is literally nothing he can't turn his hand to, he's a tech/electrical genius, he's forgotten more about mechanics than most people will ever know, he's driven and determined and has a work ethic like nobody I've ever met. But the damage done by the fucking smug twats who wrote him off because he wasn't "clever" is still there, his confidence is on the fucking floor, despite his achievements. Bottom line is, they're still there, putting kids down and feeling smug about it.

[skerrywind]

SaorAlbaGuBrath

Same as my OH. He was written off as " thick" and "not clever" at school by smug twat teachers too.

Since then he has gone on to do some amazing things. Like your OH saor he is a techie/IT genius, nicknamed "the prof" at work because of his lateral thinking and ability to problem solve, often flying out to problem client sites because of catastrohic issues.

His self esteem suffered terribly during and after school, he "knew" that he was not clever because he had been labelled so.

He had a series of dead end jobs, because he did not have the confidence to aspire. Thankfully became a mature student, and after graduation his career took off.

To label a 14 year old kid as not clever - or worse is showing a very shallow attitude, and teachers who view individuals in this way should not be teaching.

[SaorAlbaGuBrath]

skerrywind I feel very strongly that no child should be "written off", because the damage that can be done is incalculable. There's a child at DDs nursery who is very violent and caused a serious enough injury to DD (the last of many less serious incidents) that I felt compelled to bring it up with the management. When I went in I made it clear that I fully understand the child has problems at home and I am in no way demonising a 3 year old, or insisting they be removed, I just needed to bring DDs injury to their attention.
To write children off as thick (hate that word), or worthless, or not worth the hassle is just awful. If you're not academically strong, then there are other strengths that can and should be focussed on.

[Trifleorbust]

I'm not going to continue to respond to people who call me a 'fucking smug twat' because I am honest enough to not pretend something that I know not to be true. I am not a twat. I help my students to fulfil their potential. Anyway, I am out.

[grannytomine]

Again!!!! Is it a revolving door Trifle?

[SaorAlbaGuBrath]

Trifle if that was aimed at me I wasn't talking to you or about you. I don't like the way you referred to some kids, but other than that I'm not really interested in what you have to say, other than being grateful that you're nowhere near my children.

[Janey50]

I think attendance is over-rated. My DD,now 33,had a lot of health issues when she was at senior school,especially in years 9 - 12. This led to her having an attendance rate of 84%,which considering the problems she was having,I didn't actually think was THAT bad. But the school were constantly on our backs about it. I ended up having an argument with her form tutor at a parents evening because of her attitude,basically saying that she shouldn't have had 3 days off because she had kidney stones. And her head of year said 'She will never achieve anything because she has too much time off'. wankerAnyway,the outcome was that my DD achieved 2 grade As and a B at AS level,then went on on to get a 2.1 degree at uni,in psychology and sociology. So it didn't actually do her that much damage. The head of years face was a picture when he saw her AS level results. .

[zoemaguire]

I'm ashamed to say I once thought somebody I knew (a junior colleague) wasn't too bright. He would come out with the daftest of things. Well, he now has a PhD and is doing really very well indeed. Judging intelligence is a tricky thing. Anxiety can make you say very stupid things - I once forgot my own name under high stress! A teacher ought to know that their assessment is highly situational and specific. I genuinely shudder to think of teachers judging my DS like trifle. He is very bright, but you need to see him at home working out complicated electronics circuits off his own bat, rather than in the classroom struggling to count to 20.

[Deidre21]

Nonsense. How about giving children rewards for having manners or reading well? As someone said it's just another reason for parents to send in sick children which doesn't benefit the rest of the children in school. If a child enjoys going to school they will want to go and not come up with excuses to stay away. Sicknesses should be overlooked and not taint a record as genuine sickness is not planned. This sounds like a silly incentive to get those kids (some of them) who don't really want to go to school to not cut classes.