Please or to access all these features

Add post

Watch this thread

Save thread

Start a new thread

Flip thread

Hide thread

My feed

Active Unanswered threads

Getting started FAQ's

Unanswered threads Acronyms Talk guidelines

Hide shortcut buttons

Talk

AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Flip

1 2 3

Original poster

To think whole class detentions are lazy teaching practice?

74 replies

Helpmestartagain · 07/10/2019 07:04

Four kids kept talking in class, were told to stop and didn't so teacher gave whole class lunchtime detention. They are 13.
29 kids who did nothing now have to miss their lunchtime clubs /miss time with their friends. I know this is true.
I'm not going to complain (yet I might of it keeps happening) but aibu to think this is a lazy way to disciplen a class.

OP posts:

Teachermaths · 07/10/2019 07:09

Who told you it was only 4 kids talking? Unless you were in the room there's no way you "know this is true".

You're right they aren't the best form of punishment and can breed resentment. However it can be very difficult to pick out exactly who is talking if there's more than about 5. At that point the teacher has limited options.

Icantthinkofanewname87 · 07/10/2019 07:10

I disagree - I think it’s incredibly effective because the rest of the class will pressure the naughty and disruptive children to stop being naughty and disruptive.

Icantthinkofanewname87 · 07/10/2019 07:11

Also if the teacher doesn’t know who was talking (as I suspect is the case) then the other students are welcome to tell the teacher. If they’d rather keep quiet and take the punishment that’s really their problem 🤷‍♀️

healthylifestylee · 07/10/2019 07:13

The whole class will know not to talk because who wants a whole class detention

They were fairly effective when I was in school. Then the better behaved the rest of the class the easier it is for the teacher to pick out the recurrent and worst offenders

MollyD88 · 07/10/2019 07:13

This reply has been deleted

Message deleted by MNHQ. Here's a link to our Talk Guidelines.

WaterSheep · 07/10/2019 07:13

I suspect that the teacher couldn't tell who was talking, and of course no one would own up when asked. So instead they had very little choice but to keep all the children in.

No teacher would choose to keep an entire class in over lunchtime, if it was clear who was causing the disruption.

Chanteuse · 07/10/2019 07:16

They aren't great but very rarely actually happen ime. For example, a teacher will say they're keeping everyone but then will dismiss people gradually as the ones who weren't talking generally won't be talking when the bell goes so will be allowed to leave.

MorbidMuch · 07/10/2019 07:18

I agree with the other posters. If all the other 28 students were quiet and getting on with their work, the teacher would easily be able to target the four who are off task.

Girasole02 · 07/10/2019 07:20

As if the teacher wants to give up their own limited time at lunch. Sounds like there are 4 selfish individuals in there, spoiling the lesson for everyone including the teacher. I can guarantee that it's soul destroying seeing your hard work and planning destroyed by students who think the rules are for all but them. Hopefully the rest of the class will put pressure on the few who misbehave, especially as it's often impossible for the teacher to work out who it is as they can be sneaky.

JMKid · 07/10/2019 07:20

Plus they wouldn't have missed all of lunch, teachers are not allowed to do that.

LolaSmiles · 07/10/2019 07:22

Whole class detention as a full sanction is lazy teaching in my opinion. I hated whole class break detentions as a student, however what I would say is for all I didn't like the teacher for doing them, it wasn't for 3 or 4 students. They usually got issued when 25+ students had been messing around at different points (some ringleaders but others capitalising on the naughty behaviour to have their own chats).

If it's a case of the bell goes for lunch/brrak and the teacher waits until the class is quiet to dismiss/speaks to the class about conduct before dismissing then that's totally reasonable.

I'm fairly surprised that a whole class was told to come back for a lunch detention that meant they couldn't see friends or do any clubs when only 3/4 students were talking.

edenhills · 07/10/2019 07:23

Punishing everyone for the crimes of a few actually breaks the Geneva convention!

IsobelRae23 · 07/10/2019 07:23

Agree with pp, it is effective, and it is also difficult for her teacher to pinpoint who exactly was talking. I actually used to use something similar when training adults, but it was not a lunch time detention, but a we will be finishing 30 minutes later if people continue to talk and interrupt- when people have childcare etc, they soon quiet the ones who talk.

TheCanterburyWhales · 07/10/2019 07:24

Yes, it's lazy
Yes, it's effective.
Yes, MollyD88, I've reported your post. Grow up.

AliciaQuays · 07/10/2019 07:25

Agree with grammar correction 😀

Fucket · 07/10/2019 07:27

I remember these as a child. We weren’t streamed until yr9 and we had a heck of a lot of class detentions because I was in the naughty form. There were about 4 of us who loathed school until yr 9. We were always bullied by the others and had to take part in the punishment for their behaviour. I really really hated my life back then and no one cared. Class detentions were awful and really makes my blood boil and proves to me that the quiet kids just get forgotten by the teachers and also why imo anyone thinks class sizes don’t matter is talking bollocks. Teachers can’t manage a class of 30+ and it’s not teachers fault

LolaSmiles · 07/10/2019 07:28

Punishing everyone for the crimes of a few actually breaks the Geneva convention!
There's always one 🙄

chomalungma · 07/10/2019 07:28

I heard something about how to identify the people involved.

Ask the class to look at the front and don't look at the people who were talking.

You'll always get a few people looking at those people involved.

And yes - as DS says, general punishment for the acts of a few is frowned upon elsewhere. It's not very effective.

somanyresusablebags · 07/10/2019 07:30

Fine so long as there are also whole class rewards.

Group contingencies work for kids who misbehave for peer attention. In the immediate they feel unfair, but if used sparingly can be effective. I'd hope the teacher uses more positive than negative strategies.

siriusblackthemischieviouscat · 07/10/2019 07:32

I only ever had 2 detentions in my life and they were whole class detentions because a couple of kids kept messing around in form. Our teacher felt we would complain to the boys and it would make them behave! No way, they were rough naughty boys so no way would I say anything to them. Annoyingly they never bothered coming either time!

Tonnerre · 07/10/2019 07:35

@MollyD88, actually it's "might if" - simple typo.

Wolfiefan · 07/10/2019 07:37

I bet it wasn’t just 4 people talking while the rest of the class worked hard and ignored them.

Troilusworks · 07/10/2019 07:37

I think this is an awful way to treat people. Imagine in the workplace if everyone had money docked from their salary because a few people were regularly late. Peer pressure might work in that case too but I don't think anyone would say it's fair.

My son really hates it. And where's the incentive on others to be good in the first place because they get the punishment irrespective of their good behaviour. Lazy and irritating.

LolaSmiles · 07/10/2019 07:38

Sirius
Your form sounds like mine.
A handful of quiet well behaved students.
Most nice but could be really chatty and took liberties when the tutor was dealing with a core group
Core group of badly behaved students

Somanyresusablebags
I was thinking about this. If I've had a really good lesson then I put bulk reward points on for the class and also a few extras for those who've gone above and beyond.
I think that more than balances out the 3-5 mins where I might dismiss later whilst waiting for a group to hurry up, get packed away and be ready.

RollaCola84 · 07/10/2019 07:38

@Icantthinkofanewname87 so an adult whose paid to teach and control a class can't deal with what's going on properly but a 13 year old can ?

I used to deal with that shit in my secondary school that likes class detentions. Teacher can't deal with bad behaviour but me, who got bullied pretty much for existing, can ? Don't be so ridiculous.

OP - it's a lazy, unfair and ineffective punishment. I'd tell a child of mine to walk out and I'll deal with the school.

Flip

1 2 3