To raise a formal complaint regarding school isolation

[HaudYerWheeshtYaWeeBellend]

Last week a group of 20-30 kids were throwing acorns at each other in the school playing field, a child who also throwing the acorns, got hit in the eye which I've been led to believe required medical treatment, teacher asked who hit the child and DS said he believed it was his acorn, and that he was sorry, and did not mean to cause anyone harm.

He was given a days isolation plus after school detention, however on the day with only 10 mins notice.

His head of year called and said as he admitted it was him, they had no choice to follow the isolation process, however admitted they thought it was harsh, however rules and rules which we will adhere to and support the school with.

DS has NEVER been in isolation.

My AIBU is, Ds was made to sit in a 2 by 4 booth, being made to sit upright and face a white wall for the whole of the school day. NO SCHOOL WORK WAS GIVEN AT ALL

He could not tell the supervisor he had no course work as he isn't allowed to talk while in isolation, and tbh nor should even have to ask for course work, its the supervisors role to ensure DS has course work, which is the policy in DS school.

Only one teacher called the isolation supervisor to ask if DS was present, however did not send course work, not one of his other 4 teachers called to ask if he was present.

The isolation supervisor has confirmed all of the above is true his HOY has advised us that they have passed it on to the isolation manager who will be calling me, however even after chasing it up everyday for the past week and leaving messages for them to call me I am still awaiting the phone call.

My own DS ended up requiring medical treatment as he endured a headache with sickness and sensitivity to light, ds has never had a migraine before isolation, which the A&E doctors advised was the cause.

I am obviously a draconian parent because no way would I be allowing my secondary aged kids to go to a mixed sleepover. And I wouldn’t be complaining about the isolation

It is possible to be cross with your child for misbehaving, and support the necessity for a consequence, while still raising concern about school using a sledgehammer to crack a nut. Particularly when the punishment as it was applied caused the child to become unwell. There is a lot of black and white thinking on this thread.

When we hear from the inclusion officer I will be very very surprised if he says, "Yes your DC was forced to stare at a bright white wall for 7 hours and nothing else".

It is confirmed in the OP. She is still waiting for the promised call from the isolation manager after a full week.

Boney not by me!

I've stated the FACTS posters have deliberately chosen to ignore key FACTS that resulted in DS hospital admission, or made up there own versions of untruths, also chosen to not read the thread and then embellish their own conclusions to fit the own agenda, I just cant be bothered to continue to bang my head against a brick wall, its painful yet LOL reading at times.

My last post, until I update, thank you to those who have supported that DS treatment not punishment was unjust.

^Upset? Yes.
Lashing out at the school who have punished behaviour they felt was unacceptable? Not helpful.^

She is not lashig out at the school. She has been very restrained waiting all week for the promised call that has never come. She is lashing out at some mumsnetters who are haranguing her in a most unpleasant manner.

MN classic right there. Thank those who agree with you!
The punishment seems to be overkill.
You still haven’t said how providing work would have prevented your child’s illness.
Nothing you have said suggests anything other than you thinking they were too harsh on your child and are focusing purely on procedure in order to avoid an argument over whether your child truly deserved isolation.

I think reading and writing is different to being made to sit still and stare at a wall.

It was an accident because he did not intend to cause injury and any one of those kids could have caused an injury by their behaviour.

But none of the other kids did cause injury, and if you have kids you would know that almost certainly they intended their acorns to make contact with force.

Punishments are given for actions not intentions, otherwise any assault can be excused/defended with the excuse "but I didn't mean to injure anyone it was an accident". The Bart Simpson defence.

How does a teacher tell a child's intention, unless you only believe darling children from 'nice' families and label other children as guilty?

dippledorus
If your child had behaved himself they wouldn’t have been put in isolation.
My child is autistic and ends up in isolation at least once a week. Once for not making eye contact with a teacher, who said it was 'disrespectful'.
What should I do to make him behave himself? With your immense knowledge I'm sure you can help me out..

“I am obviously a draconian parent because no way would I be allowing my secondary aged kids to go to a mixed sleepover”

Me neither!! Doesn’t matter if one person’s secondary age child is not interested in the opposite sex yet, there will be others present who most certainly will be.....

Am loving the Socrates quotations. In th course of my work in a state secondary school, I have on a number of occasions had to physically pull 2 fighting pupils apart. (Big strong 15 year d lads on all occasions) while a crowd looked on, no other staff present. I have just last week been told to fuck off by a pupil. Felt intimidated by threats from various angry and out of control pupils, argued back at EVERY break and lunchtime, told I’m “just having a go at” them, when they have littered my room in front of me, kicked at shelving and thrown books across the room, stolen from my desk, seen drug-dealing between pupils who were out of lessons, had to close my department early because of a mini riot and things got unsafe, had to sympathise daily with our cleaner who is fed up with pupils peeing in the fixed toilet roll holders (just cos they want to cause a problem), had pupils standing on desks and jeering like in the monkey enclosure in the zoo, seen pupils disrupt exams and religious services, had to sympathise with my colleague on reception because parents of really very naughty kids are forever coming into school saying we’re being too harsh on their child (and swearing and screaming in the head’s face in the process), had to step around broken glass from a door that has just been booted in by a pupil and accompanying laughing onlookers.

I am betting I am not the only one in this situation in their school. I am not even a teacher trying to get the kids to learn something. The situation is DIRE.

But yeah, that old Socrates, eh, what a card!

It doesn't sound like the child who was hit has accused him. That would be a very different scenario.

But none of the other kids did cause injury, and if you have kids you would know that almost certainly they intended their acorns to make contact with force.

That would seem more by luck than design. I think you are kind of contradicting yourself there!

Punishments are given for actions not intentions, otherwise any assault can be excused/defended with the excuse "but I didn't mean to injure anyone it was an accident".

All the kids were taking part in the actions (throwing the acorns). The others weren't punished. Fortunately only one kid was injured and OPs DC was punished for that.

I am obviously a draconian parent because no way would I be allowing my secondary aged kids to go to a mixed sleepover.

Have I missed somethi on this thread?

And I wouldn’t be complaining about the isolation

Has this actually happened? What for? And were you actually OK with it?

@curlyhairedassasin
Yes, our school regularly experiences very similar incidents.
We have had staff members physical attacked (punched in the face/kicked) by parents who think their children’s punishment has been too harsh.

In what fucking school does this happen ?
A child is locked in a small room ? Seriously

stop

No child was locked in a small room.

Curly

There is not a single behaviour in that list which is new or original to this generation. Ditto the problems recruiting teachers.

Why are psychological punishments ok when physical punishments are not?

Yes. The child with whom the op DS had the sleepover - the child who was hit in the eye, the op says there’s a she.

Will find the post now.

I've spoken to the Childs parent today, and they did not know DS was put in isolation, she advised her child needed first aid treatment to rinse some soil out of her eye, she had to collect her DC from school, as the school was worried she might have damaged her eye, as there was some redness, however she advised her child was unscathed, and didn't need any other medical treatment, was only concerned that DS had a good time at the sleep over.

From one of op posts

It was a girl he hit and had the sleepover with.

C8H10N4O2: “there is not a single behaviour in that list which is new or original to this generation. Ditto the problems recruiting teachers.”

How long have you worked in schools? I’m just interested because this is a decline that’s happened in the last 8 years or so. These are not isolated incidents. This sort of thing is now happening every single day. When I first started in secondary schools you may have got the odd thing on that lists happening a couple of times a year. You may have got one or two kids whonyiu knew woukd always give staff a hard time. It is the sheer number of kids and incidents that are happening now.

As for teacher recruitment, the past few jobs advertised at my school have been shown barely any interest. Most have 3 or 4 applicants, but more and more have just one person applying. Needless to say, they are given the job usually because there is no-one else to do it.

Ok, I’m a teacher and a parent of five...

• if my child was throwing acorns and was then hit with an acorn I wouldn’t be seeking revenge, I’d be telling them that is exactly what happens when you throw acorns. I’d certainly say ‘duuhhh!’

• isolation booties like this are unacceptable.

• the punishment was extreme, in many school good kids throwing acorns would just be shouted at. End of. 99.9% remain as good kids with this method and don’t become troubled kids

• I’d make a formal complaint

C8H10N4O2

I’m also interested in what kind of school you work in and how long you’ve been teaching for.

Isolation in the form it is in most schools is not psychological punishment. It’s dull so the mainly good kids want to avoid it and it is safe, so the ones who struggle aren’t walking the streets excluded.
It’s part of a range of strategies as I outlined pages ago.

C8H10N4O2
Curly haired assassin is not saying these types of behaviours did not happen in the past, it is the sheer volume of incidents that is the problem.
It is the norm now, not the exception.

I have to agree with CurlyhairedAssassin on this. Behaviour has deteriorated in recent years. I've seen it at a primary level and from the stories my son comes home telling me about the abuse teachers receive and from my friends who work in the school.

Despite my issues with the behaviour policy regarding my sons treatment I continue to work with them because the majority of teachers care. Deeply. And the others are so burned out and desensitised by the constant barrage of abuse the have to endure.

Policies are not made by the staff on the ground, and many of them in my child's school do not agree with the methods. They do not appear to have had an impact on behaviour levels.

Schools themselves are not to blame, it's funding cuts and the need to prioritise data over pupil well being although I'm sure this is just my simplistic view.