Year 7 the lost generation

[Marzipan12]

I've heard this a few times now, the thinking is that year 7 have missed out more than anybody else. This annoys me surely at this point every year group has missed out. My child is year 8, missed over an entire term of year 7, disrupted learning so far in year 8 and home learning for half a term. Every other year group has missed the same. Some year 7 parents think their kids have missed out more, regardless that they had time back in school to finish year 6 and didn't miss an entire term of their first year in high school. I would say this puts year 7 at an advantage over other year groups. They certainly are not the lost generation that some are making them out to be in fact they are one of the more fortunate year groups.

In Wales, Year 7,8 and 9 don't go back until after the Easter holidays . My child has been impacted a lot in the last 12 months, they aren't the same child they were a year ago. The move to senior school particularly for years 7&8 has been very hard without the usual chances to integrate and find new friends. I also feel desperately sad for the exam years and the disruption and stress they have had. I feel so sorry for school children of all ages.

I think year 7 has had it worse than year 8. Id consider year 8 and 9 pretty fortunate. My son is year 9.

The hardest times have surely been for children in exams years.

My child is year 7. I don't think he has had it worse than anyone else:

• SATs, they didn't have to take them but they spent months before hand being prepared for them.
• missed out on the yr 6 residential
• was able to go back to school for the end of yr6 where others couldn't and didn't go back properly until September.
• wasn't prepared in the 'usual' way for the massive step up to secondary,
• secondary school has also noticed that they still tend to 'play' at lunch time. They think it is more because each year has break/lunch at a different time so Yr 7 are under less pressure to conform to the norms

Each year group will have had their own challenges and it is up to government, the schools and society to help every year group and every child.
Up until now I think everyone has concentrated on the exam years so perhaps it is good to widen the band width and talk about the problems other years have experienced.

It's a year, not a generation. Don't be dramatic.

I've literally not heard this once.

@AlexaShutUp

If we are looking to spend money on making sure disadvantages are removed, my preference would be to spend it on kids who are really losing out. Of course, this won't happen because too many voices bleating about their precious little tarquins requiring tutoring will drown out the quieter voices advocating for those who are truly at risk.

Yes, exactly.

My dd is gutted that she didn't get to play the starring role that she had been assigned in her final school production. She is upset that she missed out on her beloved dance show. She is disappointed that her string of 9s at GCSE will not be regarded as well as they would have been because they will be based on teacher assessment and not exams. She is sad that she won't be able to dress up and go to the prom with all of her friends. She feels sorry that she didn't have a chance to camp overnight for her DofE expedition. And so on....

The last year has been full of disappointments for dd. It has been tough. Genuinely. However, the things that she has been disappointed about mostly just reflect her incredible privilege. A lot of kids didn't miss out on any of that stuff because they didn't have it in the first place.

What about the kids who have been stuck in violent and abusive homes for months on end? What about the kids who have had to do remote learning in cramped and noisy conditions, without access to the internet and without parental support? What about the kids who have had to look after their younger siblings for months while their parents scrape a living? What about the kids who aren't getting enough to eat because their parents have lost their jobs? What about the kids who have lost one or both parents to covid?

Most of our kids will be just fine, and we need to stop fucking whingeing about how much they have missed out on and focus instead on what we as a society are going to do about the kids who have been hit the hardest by this pandemic. Hint...it isn't the ones who missed out on the ski trip or the year 6 residential.

Yes. Well said. We don’t know how lucky we are to be sad about a lack of Bunsen burner experience.

Personally I think the whole thing is slightly exaggerated.
I have seen commend from parents as young as year 1 “ my entire child’s education is ruined, their future education destroyed “

My opinion - the parents have mainly been the issue.

I think you're taking it a bit personally, but everyone has suffered.

Pre-school age have missed vital development time out in the world meeting new people and seeing new things. Primary age have missed a whole year of real learning, or missed vital prep for going to high school if older. High school the same, sixth formers have had an awful time. Uni students have missed over a third of their uni experience (and learning). Early 20s have missed some of their crucial working years learning how the workplace operates, having fun with their colleagues, dating, normality, a decent job market. Those in late 20s/30s have missed a year where they could be enjoying the spoils of a few years' work under their belt, being more settled, and many have chosen not to TTC (if that's what they wanted) because of the pandemic. Others have still been unable to look for a partner in the hope they could start a family. Those in 40s more likely to have children needing homeschooling and that means they've missed a year of being able to properly focus on work, had their entire lives taken over by dealing with their kids. Very elderly people have suffered isolation and a whole year of what's left of their life taken away.

But all of these things are so variable. You might not have or want children. You might not have a job that requires working from home, in which case your working life hasn't been affected at all. Your school might be amazing and your learning has barely been affected. You might have already found a partner in your early 20s and actually, Covid has been a great time to renovate your house or whatever. No one group is homogenous.

Think year 7 has had it worse than year 8. Id consider year 8 and 9 pretty fortunate. My son is year 9

Really? Year 8 had about 6 months in a new school, and have barely been back since. Not enough time to establish friendship groups, no getting to know people in drama club.

Year 7’s will still effectively be starting a new school all together, just a year late.

My year 8 child still feels like her secondary is “new” to her. Lunch protocols, rules, she has no concept of what “normal” is. She should be starting her GCSE choices next year but the school have had to redesign the curriculum so no getting art and other course based GCSE’s out of the way early. Year 9’s the same, they’d normally have submitted a year’s worth or work toward GCSE.

All kids have had it hard for various reasons. Years 10/11/12/13 because they have struggled to cover course content.

TillyTopper if you had read my OP you would realise it's not me calling them the lost generation.

I think it's hard for all year groups
Reception would have only just got used to be at school.

Current year 7s havent had the usual transition to high school
Year 10- year 13 have had the stress of exams being different (or not knowing if allowances will be made for next year)
My DC are year 6 and year 10 but I do really feel for last years year 13s.
A levels were a fiasco then do you take a uni place or have a year out....where there is no social life at uni, and you are mainly studying in your room....or take a gap year...but cant travel and job opportunities are minimal....
And the enormous cost of uni without the experience of going to uni...

I find it hard to understand why you seem so angry about this. Lots of kids (and lots of people!) have missed out on lots of stuff. I think many people feel particularly sorry for those who have missed out on significant transition years. And you're probably right in many cases that the current Y8s could be considered one of those transition years, but often aren't. But what harm is it doing, really? Presumably you are acutely aware of the losses/difficulties your Y8 child has had and are doing your best to support them. Hopefully those around them are too. Does it matter if they're not held up high in public sympathy (if that's the case)?
I have Y7s. I'm acutely aware of how much they have missed out on, and I'm aware that their/my sadness that they missed out on their residential/leaver's play etc comes from a position of great privilege. I wouldn't describe them as a lost generation. My other child is Y9, and I think they are a 'relatively' fortunate cohort in all this, but that doesn't mean she and her friends haven't had a tough time and don't deserve my support. I suppose what I'm saying, is that I don't see the point of trying to convince us all that Y8 has had a harder time than Y7 (or whatever). Who/how does it help?

People saying that year 7s missed out on all the traditional leaving stuff at the end of year 6 - does any of that really matter? We didn’t have leavers proms, plays etc when I left primary - you just finished & went up to the ‘big’ school without all the fanfare now. I doubt very much it matters long term - and like some people have already said, a lot of them went in after half term last summer anyway.

If I had to compare, I think year 8s have it it tougher than 7s but they have loads of time to catch up still. No way near as bad as 13s who have had no 6th form to speak of, no chance to look at unis, no proper a-levels, none of the stuff that makes 6th form fun (parties, learning to drive, new boyfriends/girlfriends etc etc)

YANBU all the children have lost a year, who is the most affected will depend highly on the child itself and on how school handled home learning.

Reception:
Have missed so much integrating into school life.

Year 1:
Have missed so much transitioning from learning through play to learning at a desk.

Year 2:
Have missed the transitioning of KS1 to KS2

Year 3
Only just transitioned from KS1

Year 4/5/6
Have missed so much as well, transition to each year group, SATs etc.

I have no experience with high school as yet, but all year groups have missed out on so much, there is no forgotten year group. There are all in this together. It has no doubt been hard on everyone, in many different ways.

Of course it will impact all year groups but I am sure and hope they can pull through this.

I guess what I'm trying to say is year 8 should be treated as a priority. They haven't settled properly into high school yet, their entire time there has been one disruption after the other. Alot of them still feel like they are new to the school and more like year 7 when they should be fully settled. They will start year 9 still settling in to what is deemed normal school life. I feel there should be more support and awareness for this year group, last year and this they have just been lost in the crowd and expected to just get on with it.

I think year did get a bad deal yes.

My oldest didn’t get to finish year six at all they left in March and that was that. So he spent all September - March getting ready for sats to then nothing. New school in September new teachers new children new classes etc. They also didn’t and still haven’t actually settled in because they don’t get to move classes much, no science, dance or cooking practicals. They are in their secondary school but almost still working like year 6. They didn’t get to say goodbye to old friends who left or start meeting the new people.

I however also think again reception starters got it rather hard. Preschool shut again in March, then off to a nee big school in September without meeting the teachers or new friends. Parents where allowed in one day to settle and that was it you can’t even get near the classroom to help them with bags. Then just as they got used to school and finished for Christmas lockdown again. Children that where happy taking themselves in are now crying having to be handed over in the middle of the playground to a teacher.

I think pupils who have just gone up a year within existing schools have had it easier than any child who’s had to move schools.

I have a Year 7 and I think actually she hasnt been impacted as much as the other years. She completed her Year 6 curriculum (the term they missed was going to be consolidating all of that).

For me in Primary the current Year 6 I think have missed out on a lot more. DD was able to really start moving on once lockdown occurred last year and the remaining time in school and out was spent preparing her for High School. Her school have done a good job of that and she is happy and settled there with a good friendship group and a solid group of friends she has left behind. The way her Year 7 has been done isnt normal but is ok in terms of transistioning in.

The school also sorted out online learning for this lockdown so she didnt miss anything - they were not so good in the first lockdown.

The current Year 6 though have had far more upheaval, alongwith the current Year 11s and 13

@Marzipan12

I guess what I'm trying to say is year 8 should be treated as a priority. They haven't settled properly into high school yet, their entire time there has been one disruption after the other. Alot of them still feel like they are new to the school and more like year 7 when they should be fully settled. They will start year 9 still settling in to what is deemed normal school life. I feel there should be more support and awareness for this year group, last year and this they have just been lost in the crowd and expected to just get on with it.

In the nicest way, you think this because your child is in Y8. Which is why you hear other people thinking the most important year is Y7, because it is the one that affects them. The whole year groups is in the same boat, all other years have suffered equally difficult changes. Y8 needs really shouldn't be a priority over everyone else in the school, they all need the support.

Year 8 are working like year 6 at tbe moment, no moving, no labs etc. That's not unique to tear 7.

I’d say my reception aged child with ASD has missed out among the most... he missed 2/3 of his only year of Pre School as he didn’t attend nursery then almost 50% so far of his reception year (his bubble has closed about 4 times!) as well as not getting to visit his school or get to meet his teacher before starting school, (he’d never even seen a school classroom before starting) or get to say goodbye to his Pre school classmates after leaving suddenly last March. For a neurodiverse child it’s been incredibly hard and emotionally devastating.

what about year 10s??? my son has suffered really badly this year, and towards the end of a well provided online provision, he was literally sitting and crying and saying that nothing has gone in and he wasnt learning anything.

Nobody has mentioned them yet. lost a year of school and no doubt having to do the full GCSE exams with no leeway/teacher based assessments. They have returned to school and are now having to go over everything that they did last year to ensure that everyone is on the same page

Id imagine Year 12s are much the same - first year of A levels disrupted, but expected to sit A levels with no additional considerations given.

The uni students who have paid full whack, including in many cases accommodation costs. I feel terrible for them.

Everybody has had their own issues with it, its not great for anyone, but Im not sure competative whataboutery is helping

My 20 year old lost 4 years of schooling due to ill health. she will get there, but in her own time. There isnt a time limit on learning. At least with whats happened here its universal, not personal.

All the kids I know have given little to no shits about this pandemic. I’ve heard a lot of carastrophising from over emotional parents however.

There will be of course be a small amount of fallout but kids are the most resilient of people so I can’t in all honesty hold them up as the biggest victims of this pandemic.

@Marzipan12

55%think I'm being unreasonable. So 55%think that year 7s are the lost generation and have had it harder than any other year. Unbelievable. So their attitude is exam year groups have had it easier than their precious year 7s. Sad world we live in.

‘Sad world we live in’.

Well, yes it is. Look at the news this morning about the man in America who has shot and killed multiple Asian women. Horrific.
It’s not a ‘sad little world’ because some people have a difference of opinion over who has had it harder .
I don’t have a year 7, mine are young primary so I’m not talking about any ‘precious year 7’s’, but I voted that YABU. You are giving this far too much headspace.

I have not heard this before, but anyone subscribing to this is being overdramatic. Overall almost all children will have lost out and whilst some will be able to catch up by the time of leaving schooling, not all will do so.

The pandemic has cost a lot of things to many if not most people (except for friends of the government).