To think there have to be some clearer reasons for the rise in school attendance problems?

[FloorWipes]

Inspired by this article https://unherd.com/2024/02/the-tragedy-of-britains-school-refusers/

How specifically has the pandemic affected things? Why is the environment so inhospitable to the neurodivergent?

I fought again when she left and she now has a comprehensive EOTAS package but she is undoubtedly damaged by her experiences as am I

@hiredandsqueak yes families do come out of this traumatised. People have made comparisons to the post office scandal and I don't think they are far off.

We are gaslit, blamed, told our children will fail, told to go against our best instincts (to protect our children from things that harm them), told there's no money, told school is the only option, etc.etc. etc.

I remember having a conversation with the Education Welfare Officer who was sent to my house to tell my suicidal 10 year old that 'mummy might go to prosecuted if you don't go to school' about how shocking it is that safeguarding flags are raised if a child doesn't want to go home but the families and home life is blamed if a child can't attend school and flags are STILL raised about what's going on at home rather than what's happening in school. It makes no sense.

My children do bear the scars, as do I, but they have learnt that they can trust adults to keep them safe which is invaluable. They trust me and their dad to guide them to be independent in ways that they can manage. ( I know that this will vary from child to child and is needs dependent) and they know that they won't be blamed if they say 'I can't do this' or 'I need help'. These all make a person more resilient and able to cope in the 'real world', not less.

I bear the scars because I'm finding it challenging to re-enter work after such a long period of absence. I used to do advocacy but I'm not sure I have the headspace to do that anymore. There is only so much you can fight. And then there is ALWAYS the fear that your child might end up that unwell again. That's the worst fear. But yet you have to try to let them be independent as much as possible.

The curriculum is fucking ridiculous now. For clarity - I'm an ex primary teacher, I marked KS2 English SATs for years and years as a highest grade marker, and then I retrained as a SALT - with pretty much top of my cohort marks for things like linguistics. I also have a GCSE in Latin - so SPAG should be an utter piece of piss for me to help with the homework for? I mean, I even knew what a fronted adverbial (without google) was during the horror of lockdown learning... so automatic gold star for me!

DD2 is just at the point the horror of SATs prep is kicking in and they've brought the sodding workbooks home - very anxious kiddo in terms of making sure she's done everything expected, so we're trying to keep it as low-key as we can at home but supporting her to get the expected set of mock papers a week done (I object to them being expected to do it but I know from DD2 that she'll tie herself up in absolute knots if she doesn't comply) - and I'm having to google the fucking shit out of the grammatical terms she's expected to know and identify. I've definitely got a more skilled background in this regard than all the other parents in the cohort - and if I'm struggling to support with this - there's NO chance that other families are managing - so the homework becomes totally pointless as an exercise.

Some of the shitty attitudes from purported teachers (anyone can claim to be anything on the internet) towards SEN on the ruler thread also help explain why school is an awful place for many kids as well.

Link to the EBSA support chat. Come and join us if your kids are or, have been EBSA.

www.mumsnet.com/talk/_chat/5003192-the-ebsa-support-thread-emotionally-based-school-avoidanceabsence?page=1

It is trauma. I agree.

I only thought yesterday that the guy who made the Post Office program should next make one about the current awful state of the education system. I think it’s now at the stage where it needs some media attention to the wider public.

https://www.brightonandhovenews.org/2024/02/21/school-criticised-over-learning-ranked-canteen-queue/

Can't possibly see why kids are struggling

Gosh. What have we become 😔.

My fear too is that teacher like myself that go 20 years back know how it can be and have been taught to teach but those home grown teachers from these "systems" only know this! So this will be the next generation of teachers.

Get in the queue. That guy needs to do a programme about the 3 million excluded from covid support first. Far more people affected than the Post Office, and numerous deaths (suicides), business closures, job losses and house repossessions because of Rishi's exclusions!!