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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

To think the supply teacher, not the child, is wrong?

34 replies

CoughLaughFart · 15/09/2017 13:25

Just been talking to my neighbour and wondered what you thought of this?

Her teenage daughter was ill on Monday night, but felt well enough for school on Tuesday morning. However, on the walk there she felt sick, so turned around and went home.

She went back to school yesterday with an absence note for the two days. It turns out that her form tutor had also been off and a supply teacher covered registration. One of the girl's friends had seen her walking up to school, said she was on her way, and the supply teacher marked her in.

The form tutor told my neighbour's daughter that she should have let someone know she had gone home; what if there had been a fire or emergency and people had been looking for her? The daughter argued that she'd never got to school, so hadn't 'gone home' - she was never there. The teacher apparently said 'But people had seen you here - it was your responsibility to let us know you weren't'.

My neighbour is really annoyed that the teacher blamed her daughter for what she sees as the supply teacher's mistake - and I agree. Surely a teacher, full time or not, should only mark a child present if they've seen them? Otherwise someone could easily get a friend to say 'She's on her way', get registered and then play truant. In my view the teacher is pushing what was obviously the supply teacher's mistake onto the child. Would you agree?

OP posts:

TheFifthKey · 15/09/2017 13:26

Only mark someone present if they're in front of you - that's a golden rule!

Groovee · 15/09/2017 13:28

The teacher was wrong to mark someone as present when they hadn't showed up at school.

BackieJerkhart · 15/09/2017 13:28

Teacher is an idiot. "Miss, I saw her in the toilet a few minutes ago" is the oldest trick in the book. We all used to try that one. Some fell for it, others didn't.

DontMakeMeShushYou · 15/09/2017 13:29

What thefifthkey said. Although the school should have been informed that the child was not coming in that day as well, unless they'd already been told that the child wouldn't be in until Wednesday.

Glumglowworm · 15/09/2017 13:29

Teacher shouldn't mark pupils as there if they're not. Even if they're trying to be nice and avoid the pupil getting a late mark.

I would also expect school to have a policy of phoning in absences, which should be followed. So parent should be phoning to let them know the child is off sick.

Wolfiefan · 15/09/2017 13:34

The teacher was absolutely wrong. You don't mark a child present based on what another student says.
What if there had been a fire? Fire personnel would be sent into a burning building to look for a child that wasn't in the building.

katmarie · 15/09/2017 13:38

I'd go one further on this, surely if the neighbour's daughter said she was on her way, and yet she hadn't shown up in class, shouldn't there have been a call home of some sort by the teacher, to say your daughter never made it to school, do you know where she is? What if something had happened to her?

LadyGagarden · 15/09/2017 13:42

Isn't it usual to ring school and let them know if you are off sick? It's a policy at our school. I would say teacher was wrong to mark her present and she was wrong not to call in sick.

AssassinatedBeauty · 15/09/2017 13:43

@katmarie, there could have been many reasonable explanations as to why she was seen walking to school but then not in registration. The teacher shouldn't take what another pupil says as fact, as they could be mistaken, being silly or malicious. Registration is very simple - if they're not in front of you when you're doing the register then you mark them absent.

coldcanary · 15/09/2017 13:44

The teacher was U but so was your neighbour for not phoning her in sick, plus the school should have followed it up.
Cock up all round I'd say.

Ladyvird135 · 15/09/2017 13:49

I do not mark children in unless I can see them with my own eyes, or know 100% they are there. For example they have injured themselves at lunch and are in the office. Another child will normally say "so and so is in the office". Even then, I will phone to check with the office. Or if they're still finishing lunch in the afternoon, get a sensible child to poke head in to lunch hall (which is next to room) and confirm.

Teacher made a mistake, trying to cover her own back by blaming dd. I might mention to the teacher and tell her your comcerns, as it is a safeguarding issue, and at the very least could have induced panic.

BenLui · 15/09/2017 13:50

The teacher was wrong for marking her present.

The pupil/her parents were wrong for not ringing the school to report her absence due to illness.

Sirzy · 15/09/2017 13:53

Teacher shouldn't have marked her in, however the parents should have informed the school she wouldn't be in too.

Ladyvird135 · 15/09/2017 13:53

Also, if the teacher thought your dd was on way, and then she didn't show, that should have warranted further investigation and you should have been phoned.

Also also, let the school know beforehand if she won't be in. Either you or dd should have phoned the school.

Ladyvird135 · 15/09/2017 13:54

Also it's not your dd. Sorry. Reading comprehension fail.

TheSparrowhawk · 15/09/2017 13:56

Former teacher here - no child was ever to be marked present unless the teacher knew for certain that the child was there. So the teacher is wrong on that front.

That said, it's odd that the school didn't follow up when it was clear the girl wasn't there, and the girl should have rung in to say she wasn't coming in - that's standard in every school surely?

lalalalyra · 15/09/2017 14:00

The teacher shouldn't have marked her in if she wasn't in the room.

Also, if the teacher had been told she was seen walking to school, but then didn't appear I'd have expected that to be followed up on.

diddl · 15/09/2017 14:02

Teacher definitely in the wrong.

Is it policy that the school should be contacted when students are ill?

If so, why didn't this happen?

unfortunateevents · 15/09/2017 14:10

Why did she/her parents not phone in to say she was ill? First rule of illness in DS's school.

TheFallenMadonna · 15/09/2017 14:18

Supply teacher should not have marked her present.

The form tutor a right in saying that someone should have told the school she was not in.

Did the child tell a parent she was going home?

ChelleDawg2020 · 15/09/2017 14:31

The parent should have told the school that the child was not in when the sickness occurred. Do we know for sure that the child is telling the truth here - it's quite possible she did arrive at school, signed in, and then left, and is now trying to cover her arse. I usually trust the teacher's word about the child's especially when it's someone else's.

Original poster

CoughLaughFart · 15/09/2017 14:40

I usually trust the teacher's word about the child's

That seems a little arbitrary. Are you saying teachers never make cock-ups?

OP posts:

littlemisssweetness · 15/09/2017 15:06

The supply teacher was wrong. However either the dd or her parents also should of let the school know that was off sick as well

CrumpettyTree · 15/09/2017 15:16

Did the school not phone to ask why she wasn't turning up to any lessons for the rest of the day? Usually a register is taken for each lesson i thought.

CrumpettyTree · 15/09/2017 15:17

Yes normally the parents would need to report the sickness immediately

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