Being quiet in lessons? Year 12 report

[Stugs]

Dd is in year 12. She's just had a written report which her school does once a year. She's doing PE A level and one of the teachers wrote that "Snugsdd is quiet in lessons, and one if the quieter pupils in the class, however despite this she has an excellent grasp of the topic and performed well in the recent tests".

She had a really good report with Excellent for learning for all subjects/topics apart from that one which was Good.

I'm really happy with her report and she knows I'm proud of her for getting her head down and working hard (she's been unwell). She's working at grades B mostly with the odd A. She's needled by the comment as she doesn't think she is quiet at all!

This is just a question to (genuinely!) ask if you are a teacher why is being quiet in lessons a bad thing? She says there are two very loud girls who play solitaire (!) in lessons and shout out who the teacher really likes as they do the sport that he teaches- this is just what dd has told me obviously not sure how true that is.

I would LOVE if I got that my son was quiet in class that "mouth of the south"! She sounds like a lovely girl who is doing really well. I hope she is feeling much better now after being ill.

*rather than "mouth of the south".

I was told I was quiet in English, which was because the teacher wished I'd speak up more during class discussions. I didn't have the confidence to do so, but the teacher really liked my written work and was trying to encourage me to see that I had worthy points to make.

Every report we had for DS said versions of 'GnomeDS is very quiet'. I think he went through his entire school career not saying much. Never in trouble, never a shining star. When he left I don't think he even disturbed the dust. Quite happy just not interested enough to speak up.

My DDs reports always say she's quiet and works hard. She gets good reports, but that's just who she is, her grades are good and when asked a question she will answer she's just never going to be putting her hand up and shouting out. It's who she is and most of her teachers are okay with that.

From a teacher's point of view it's massively frustrating (especially in a small class) to have someone sitting there, taking everything in, listening, and knowing the answers and having good points to make but not offering them. A successful class relies on everyone playing their part and someone sat silently in a corner isn't contributing anything. Sure, some people have a quieter personality - you don't think teachers know that? But it can be a huge drawback in life as well as at school and we are trying to teach life skills as well as our subjects!

A piece of feedback I often get in observed A-level lessons is that the same students answer the questions/dominate discussions. It's true and not ideal but at the same time they're the students who are happiest to speak out and will quickly chip in with opinions. They're not the cleverest students necessarily or have the right ideas but they are sparky and keep discussion going when otherwise it would be me droning on. Sitting passively making notes or writing might look like being a "good" student but actually it's not. Quietness is not a proxy for learning.

By the way I am an introvert who would like to be left alone to work quietly but it's never worked out that way. At school/uni I was often the only person who would contribute to discussions at all. It was annoying for me as I would have liked to bounce my ideas off someone other than just the teacher.

Well presumably it's meant to be a comment on not contributing in class - in dicsussion, answering questions etc. Which could suggest that she doesn't understand it. So what they are saying it that even though she doesn't contribute she still is doing well.

Also being able to contribute to group discussion and answering questions is a beneficial skill (although not one that should be expected at 12)

I can totally understand this but then again it's about making life easier for you as a teacher - dd likes to take everything in. I know she's said that particular lesson often gets derailed by discussion of the local school hockey results and she's worried they are going to miss something. It's PE, so on the surface discussing results is fine - it's not the sport she does but I suppose it is relevant

That’s not making life easier for me as a teacher, it’s about making the learning environment in the classroom better for all students. Trust me, a class full of silent writing students is the easiest thing!

OK I will talk to her about speaking up although I suspect she is now slightly mutinous!

My DD is only 7 but her teachers say this about her too. She's very bright and has lots of good ideas and they want her to contribute more to class discussions, put her hand up and answer more questions. She's a bit shy and doesn't like attention so would prefer to sit back and watch.
She's getting better at it.

See my daughter has ASD and is quiet as a mouse in class. Hates group work. She is however engaged and enjoys her subjects.

27 years as a secondary teacher and l hate ‘so and so is quiet in class’ as if it’s a bad thing. When you’ve got 30 gobshites in a class it’s a nightmare. Quiet people are as important as noisy people. It’s disgusting the way school kids are described as ‘quiet’ like it’s a bad thing.

Maybe we need to be feeding back tips to the teachers on how to get our kids speaking more. One teacher, having said DD was quiet, explained that she would ask her easy questions so she could be more confident about answering. DD's response was that easy questions were the worst, because it was more embarrassing if you got them wrong. She was an able pupil, so it's unlikely the harder questions would have been a problem for her.

At A Level it’s more important than lower down the school that students participate in discussions. It’s what helps deepen understanding for everyone in the class. This year I have one A level group who are very quiet- studious but not terribly keen to participate - and one who are equally as bright but far more talkative. The latter are getting far more out of lessons and covering ideas much faster.

I think part of the problem is that dd knows the difference between interesting and measured discussions- RS and Psychology where both mention her valuable input - and gobshites trying to deflect the course of the lesson because they haven't done the work - PE. I suppose this is inevitable as PE probably appeals to the less academic student (even though its actually quite interesting and rigorous). I realise this makes me sound a bit up myself about dd who is not a huge academic brain but is diligent and hard working (and possibly a bit boring for this teacher!)

Gobshites ... Why are you using insults to refer to other pupils? Pupils who are apparently meeting expectations of this level of study that your daughter isn't?

Acknowledge the differences between learning styles and encourage your daughter without putting down others. There's nothing special or superior about leaving the social lifting to others.

Sorry i was replying to a Pp who had said it. I think you've over reacted a bit as she's not having these issues in any other class.

Gobshites ... Why are you using insults to refer to other pupils? Pupils who are apparently meeting expectations of this level of study that your daughter isn't?

Because this world is full of people who have too much to say for themselves. Quietness is disregarded. I’m totally sick of people who are gobby and full of themselves.

AFWIW my dd is predicted A*. So quiet people can engage🤷🏼‍♀️

And when l was teaching, every class always had people who want to use answering questions as an excuse to disrupt the class. Even at 6th form.

Well, there's this. She's predicted an A and working currently at a B. She's one of two predicted As (and funnily enough the other one is also quiet!)

Classrooms are a collaborative learning environment and are often discussion driven. By “quiet”, they may mean she doesn’t contribute to discussion, which is an important learning tool. Being “quiet” in her personality is fine but it’s an expectation that students attempt to contribute verbally just as it’s an expectation that students contribute to written work or contribute to practical sessions in practical subjects. Discussing things in class benefits everyone, helps with comprehension and with memory.

It’s not an insult, it’s just a comment.

Thanks. Dd is pretty sure she does contribute- just doesn't shout over people.

Jeez OP, defensive much? Your DD got good feedback with some polite comments re contributing more. And that leads you to slag off other students suggesting anyone who does speal up in class is doing so becuase they've not done their work and PE is the only subject they can manage. Shitty attitude.

Fact is at some point your daughter's "queitness" [reluctance to contribute in discussions] may work against her. Wouldn't it be better to positively look at how you can develop her confidence to do that rather than feel offended and proceed to be horrible about people who aren't like her?

Well they often haven't done the work tbf. But apologies if I've triggered you.