To tell the teacher that dd won't be doing the detention ?

[Wibblywobblyfoo]

Dd came home from school tonight saying that she has been given an after school detention, to be done on monday, for missing a bit of homework that was meant to be handed in today. She went to her lesson and they were all asked for their homework. She told the teacher there was none and the teacher logged onto the online homework portal and showed them the set work, that she had set at 9.30pm last night!
Dd is 14 and was in bed at 9.30 last night. We also have a no computers after 8.30 pm for them all during the week.
Is setting the work that late reasonable?

Well done @AnnieAnoniMouse I have handed in mum notice because of a typo/ autocorrect made on a forum, tapping on my phone, whilst watching trashy TV.

Yet another typo. I have handed in my notice and promised never to be around a young person again.

I'm surprised at all the parents on here who are anti-after school detentions.

They're not given lighly in my experience and should always require 24 hours' notice.

My daughter has had a couple and it's an absolute ball-ache as she misses the school bus, we live miles from her school and I don't drive.

Before working in a school myself I would have been anti as well. However, sitting in on meetings and listening to all the planning that goes into every aspect of school life is an eye-opener. Do you think that it's fun for the teachers to conduct after school detentions?

As for the "they can do it on their time" comment, in our school "their time" is usually checking emails before work, attending staff briefing, registration or assembly, lesson, lesson, break duty, lesson, lunchtime intervention/club or duty, lesson, lesson, after school detention or meetings, home to check emails and plan - or in this teacher's case post homework at 9.30pm (which she shouldn't have expected the next day). And that's just the tip of the iceberg.

I have refused dd to have an after school detention, due to rural living. she simply has to have detention in her lunch hour.

I’d send an email copied to the head, deputy and year head

Dear X
I understand my DD has been given a detention on Monday because she didn’t see homework you told the class about online at 9:30pm the night before this was due, no other notice

I find it abhorrent you don’t classify this in the realms of unacceptable - I refuse to allow you or the school to put such demands late at night on children, it’ll be anxiety inducing, checking the computer before bed (although she won’t be as I have s curfew on the computer of 8:30 - for obvious reasons that I can explain if you don’t understand)

My daughter will not attend as she was not in the wrong - I don’t mind detention but in this case you’re actions are inappropriate and frankly ridiculous

I’m coping in your management team in order that this type of ridiculous expectation is stamped out immediately.

I would like a response to why this has happened and what outcomes there will be

I’d probably copy to the board of governers too

What a stupid teacher!

sailorcherries, I can believe a teacher who's doing work themselves at 9:30 pm might set the homework piece to be handed in next day without really thinking about it. Or even set it out of a feeling of sour grapes, that if they have to work that late then so should the pupils.

So out of sour grapes because they are working late the teacher has set homework late at night which they will then probably have to spend time marking which means another late night marking . Yes it is definitely that

@flumpybear or you could just send a polite email to the teaching asking if there has been an error.

Wibblywobblyfoo
In which case, I would call to speak to the teacher calmly and say you've got some queries. Then what work was set in study hall & how that links to the homework being set.

If it is 'i set reading and then put homework on at 930pm' then you would be within your rights to say the deadline was unreasonable and you aren't terribly happy about a detention given the time frame
I would offer to ensure the work gets done, but you would like a new, more reasonable deadline, after which the teacher qould be more than welcome to issue a detention.

Honestly, how parents raise concerns makes a massive difference to how I deal with them. If they are reasonable then I am reasonable. Ig they decide to email me informing me that their child will/won't be doing something etc then I'll deal with it but make a mental note that they are bonkers.

Will you be contacting the school, OP? I’d be interested to know an update as the whole string of events just doesn’t sound feasible. There’s definitely been a mistake along the way as teacher WBVU to set a detention in those circumstances

I’m coping in your management team in order that this type of ridiculous expectation is stamped out immediately
What the fuck!? Way to massively over react and be one of those utterly ridiculous individuals who think they are saving the world one email at a time.

I would like a response to why this has happened and what outcomes there will be
Even if there was a serious issue, you have NO RIGHT to know what has been done about it.
You have the right to know something has been resolved but not a step by step 'we spoke ti the teacher, she will be getting support etc'

For the record, it's this sort of email that gets parents banned from contacting teachers in my school. Utterly ridiculous

'but tbh why no computers after 8.30 op? at the age of 14?'

A healthy rule, I think. A fair few adults (incl me, tbf, when work allows) would probably do well to follow it likewise. Screen time shortly before bed is not great for sleep.

After-school detentions had been pretty much phased out when I was at school (a longish time ago), IIRC. What's with the renaissance? They seem a bit archaic, not to mention much too much of an incursion into family life, extra-curricular activities, etc.

But that's a general point. In this specific case, I would be writing a polite email (not like the one above!) informing the teacher that dd would not be attending anf setting out why not. I would also be mentioning the disproportionate nature of the sanction to a non-completed homework, even if the homework had been culpably not completed.

Omg flumpy. What if there (very probably) is a reasonable explanation? What a prat that letter would make you seem .

OP please contact the school for clarification but don’t be that parent

I have just sent an email to the teacher. (Going to the head is overkills)
Just said
Dd has said that she is due a detention for not doing homework, she is sure the there was no prior mention of it before the 9.30 email that you showed them in school. Could you clarify if something was set during class that she did not take note of? Regards wibbly

If you must contact teacher I suggest a phone call, give the teacher the benefit of the doubt.

cross posts.

you didnt explain about the computer off at 8.30 op?

Perfect email OP!

Wonder how many other parents have emailed too. Hope you get clarity before the end of the day.

So out of sour grapes because they are working late the teacher has set homework late at night which they will then probably have to spend time marking which means another late night marking . Yes it is definitely that

You know this do you? Which teachers have shared this with you? It doesn't even make sense. What teacher would set work which could not be done, would occasion a detention, which they would have to oversee themselves? In their own time? FFS.

After-school detentions had been pretty much phased out when I was at school (a longish time ago), IIRC. What's with the renaissance? They seem a bit archaic, not to mention much too much of an incursion into family life, extra-curricular activities, etc.

In my experience they are rarely used and are saved for students who refuse to attend lunch time detentions and serious offences that fall short of an internal or external exclusion. For that reason in my opinion they should be supported by parents and if you can't get your child home either they behave or attend a different school

Well done, wibbly. Cut to the chase. A concise and reasoned email. Unlike the ones recommended by scenery-chewing posters that you contact CoG/HY/HOY, with time-wasting emails.

I hope you get a response that clarifies it all.

Do they really gwt detention for one missed homework!?

Yes! DD came home in tears the other week. (she's Yr7). A number of her friends got put in detention by the language teacher for not doing the homework.

Think I'd be saying something if she really did set it at that time of night. There's a strict rule in my house. All phones and tablets are brought downstairs at 8:30pm. DD is in bed by 9 at the latest!

I'm surprised at all the parents on here who are anti-after school detentions.

I'm not anti after school detentions. DDs class got given detention recently for fucking about messing around the whole lesson. No one went to the set detention. I told her if she got an even longer one for disrespecting the teacher to not come crying to me.

I would like fair warning though. We live semi rurally. It's as rough as shit around here and I'd be worried sick wondering where she was.

wibbly Good email. Very reasonable and hopefully all will be resolved. Very glad you didn't go for the crazy raging approach.

Do they really gwt detention for one missed homework
They do in my class.
For a first offence, I will generally quietly tell them I will cancel it if their homework magically appears on my desk the next morning.
After that, yes. After school detention.

What people sometimes forget is that for minor things the certainty of the sanction is effective, not the severity. Students know they will get a 30min detention, so they do their homework.
The positives of this are:

1. I Get homework in on time
2. Homework is usually linked to the lesson of thay day so having it means the child can do the lesson properly
3. Because students know how I work, i don't end up issuing many detentions at all because they get their homework done.

At the moment I have 2-3 detentions a week. By January I might have 2 detentions a half term.

That means all the time I would spend chasing homework can be spent marking, planninh, doing extracurriculara etc.

'but tbh why no computers after 8.30 op? at the age of 14?'

I do the same. DD needs her sleep. She's an absolute nightmare if she hasn't had enough. I don't think that's fair to inflict on the school the next day!

Dsis had a right palava when she let her DCs have their phones past 9pm. They'd still be on it at midnight!

Wow I don't think we will be choosing a school with afterschool detentions for missed homework! I didn't realise that was becoming common.