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AIBU?

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Original poster

Movie afternoon for high attendance

49 replies

bumblefeline · 18/10/2021 15:27

DS's school is having a movie afternoon this week for those with attendance above 97%. If you have been off with Covid this doesn't count towards the attendance.

DS has been off for a week recently with this rotten bug that's been going round, was very poorly and couldn't go in at all really. Turned into tonsillitis and a chest infection.

There are also lots of teachers off with this cold bug at the moment as well.

DS has had Covid last year and he was more ill with this cold virus.

Is it unfair of the school to reward for attendance when there is this nasty bug going around, but Covid doesn't count to attendance?

OP posts:
userchange987 · 18/10/2021 16:08

Our school does similar for kids who have: done their homework (reading, spellings and maths) and remembered their pe kit. There's a weekly small treat, and a big treat if they've done it all term.

It certainly motivates my kids, but no it seems ridiculous to do attendance when it can be out of a child's hands.

gogohm · 18/10/2021 16:10

They did it at my DD's school because of the terrible attendance, these kids were not sick (well mostly) they just didn't want to go to school and their parents couldn't be bothered to take them, or argue with them to make them go, attendance by year 10 was at 75% - lots of interventions in place etc but one programme that helped was that everyone who got 200% went into a draw for an iPod (10 years ago now), the year that was brought in attendance shot up

gogohm · 18/10/2021 16:11

100%!!

userchange987 · 18/10/2021 16:12

We went on a secondary open day recently and they had an "attendance wall" EVERY pupil in the school (1000+) was listed from best to worst with their percentage listed, this was updated every week. This would only make me determined not to be at the top if I was in secondary, my mum would let me have one day off a term so I didn't have to walk on stage to get an attendance certificate!

CampagVelocet · 18/10/2021 16:13

As someone with a hidden disability who had a lot of time off school I hate this shit. It wasn't my fault I was, and am, ill. Surely being healthy is a reward in itself?

Bavarois · 18/10/2021 16:13

YANBU but it spills into adult life too. I took sick leave in April last year as I was unwell (not covid) and needed a day or two off to recover. It counted toward my sick record. Had I phoned in with a cough I'd have got 10 days off (or 14? At that stage) and it wouldn't have counted towards a trigger point for sick leave with HR. It's ridiculous.

Moonface123 · 18/10/2021 16:15

The schools are copying the work ethic of the big business companies, as in having time off sick is now viewed as a criminal offence.
What a wonderful empathic world awaits our young people.

girlmom21 · 18/10/2021 16:17

@userchange987

We went on a secondary open day recently and they had an "attendance wall" EVERY pupil in the school (1000+) was listed from best to worst with their percentage listed, this was updated every week. This would only make me determined not to be at the top if I was in secondary, my mum would let me have one day off a term so I didn't have to walk on stage to get an attendance certificate!
What an incredible waste of somebody's time and school resources!
Nayday · 18/10/2021 16:18

Brilliant. I'd be picking up DD for our own movie afternoon in celebration of ignoring stupid

Kb2942 · 18/10/2021 16:19

YANBU. It's always sucked. In year 3 Ds got full attendance and he earned a reward - it was just pure luck that he didn't get ill that year or when he did get ill it was in the holidays. The following year he got ill a few times and his attendance was 90 percent and was threatened with further action. But he was generally poorly...

It's a shit system. There was a girl I went school with who didn't have a single day off during secondary school and got a reward. Truth is, she was sent in when if and spread it to others.

Attendance is important, of course it is but so is stopping the spread of germs - not just talking about covid!

userchange987 · 18/10/2021 16:21

@girlmom21 completely agree, I wondered about the data protection implications of it too.

Itsbeen84yearss · 18/10/2021 16:21

Tell this to Ofsted. Ofsted are still grilling/beating schools around the head about attendance and the school’s have to show strategies for rewarding good attendance and discouraging poor attendance

MilduraS · 18/10/2021 16:25

@Itsbeen84yearss

Tell this to Ofsted. Ofsted are still grilling/beating schools around the head about attendance and the school’s have to show strategies for rewarding good attendance and discouraging poor attendance
Ah that makes more sense. Poor teachers are damned if they do and damned if they don't.
TheOrigRights · 18/10/2021 16:25

Making covid not count is even worse than usual.
So, someone's lifelong chronic condition has been deemed to be less worthy of time off than covid.

ittakes2 · 18/10/2021 16:29

I would take him out of school for his own treat while they are watching a movie. I would say he has a dr's appt...

godmum56 · 18/10/2021 16:31

wrong so wrong and nasty

lazylinguist · 18/10/2021 16:32

Like a lot of attempts at behaviour-nudging in schools, the problem is that they're often just preaching to the converted. The kids most affected by getting punished (and most keen to avoid it) are generally the ones who are already well-behaved. And the kids whose attendance the schools should really be trying to improve are often not the ones who are going to care about attendance certificates (unlike some of the poor kids who are really ill!). Hence schools upping their game to cinema trips.

RedHelenB · 18/10/2021 16:36

My ds Wildcats off at a drop of the hat, my dd would go in even if she didn't feel 100%. Since the govt. has stipulated the length of Covid isolation of course they won't count it. Yabu, it's one afternoon.

Sirzy · 18/10/2021 16:36

@Itsbeen84yearss

Tell this to Ofsted. Ofsted are still grilling/beating schools around the head about attendance and the school’s have to show strategies for rewarding good attendance and discouraging poor attendance
I would like to see any evidence that things like this actually work though.

Does the offer of a movie day stop children being ill? Stop them being disabled? Stop them having caring duties at home? Stop them having a chaotic homelife? Etc etc

The way to improve attendance is to do it on a case by case basis looking at how to support not coming up with a one size fits all strategy

BigYellowHat · 18/10/2021 16:40

I hate this in schools. One of my twin DDs has a chronic illness so is never able to get an attendance award. It sends out the wrong message and discriminates against disabled people.

NativityDreaming · 18/10/2021 16:44

Attendance awards or celebrations are pathetic.

thepastisanothercountry · 18/10/2021 17:12

I'm with you OP, I hate this.

DD had 100% attendance all the way through primary but from about year 3 refused to go to the "reward" sessions because her best friend had health problems so frequently missed school and dd didn't think it was fair.

It's a nasty system - let's single out the ill kids and punish them Angry

usernotfound0000 · 18/10/2021 17:18

Our school is doing something similar and I really don't agree with it. They don't count if you are off having tested for positive but seems like days off for testing aren't excused. It's just going to make people send their kids in instead of keeping them home.

Buzzinwithbez · 18/10/2021 17:23

@ittakes2

I would take him out of school for his own treat while they are watching a movie. I would say he has a dr's appt...
Yes, I think this is fair. I would probably tell them why though.
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