To be glad schools are finally hitting back

[Teachingquestion]

Over the last couple of days I've seen more stories about schools introducing new rules and sending students home who won't comply.
I'm in a really tricky school about to do the same (when we start back) and the staff are so relieved. Teachers on here : are you glad to see it?

So you are now saying that the school will assume all reports of racist language are genuine?

Seems a very dangerous precedent to me, kids are hardly known for being reasonable and respectful at all times, they aren't known for going through hormone changes and emotional instability.

It sounds totally out of the realms of possibility that kids would make up accusations knowing it would get someone they had a grudge/argument/minor disagreement that day with in very serious trouble.

(that was very heavy with sarcasm)

You make your child wear their blazer at home...
Wow.

I am with you on the racist language and the violence.

However, you can't force girls to wear skirts in school and then complain about "indecency". It's sexist, impracticable and uncomfortable to wear skirts. Let them wear what the boys wear.

What the actual! Firstly, how does she drink at lunchtime when they’ve taken away her drink? Secondly that is a reasonable adjustment for a disabled child. We should be teaching equity in schools not equality. It’s a basic human right to have access to a drink for goodness sake and if she can’t tolerate water because of her autism then that is a reasonable adjustment that absolutely should not be questioned. Utterly ridiculous.

TBH I'd welcome that.

Though DD2 friendship group reported racial slurs after school ran a zero tolerance PR thing - it was supposed to be anonymous - they told the kids who were doing it who accused them resulting in friendship blow up and bullying claims right before exams - and what wasn't dealt with in the end was the racist language. DD2 group learnt not to trust the school PR.

Skirts will be a mine field though - a huge time suck but do get it I used to see so many teen nickers walking my own kids into their then primary school. DD1 like a long skirt got shouted at in a corridor full of belts mascarading as skirts beause it rode up to her knee going up stairs . DD2 went for trousers.

We are on the brink of an incredibly likely to be catastrophic ofsted.
Behaviour was good until Covid. We've struggled to get them back on track. We are In a difficult geographical area with its own challenges.
We won't say no evidence needed but we are at the point where it's tricky for staff . A colleague was told by a year 10 boy that he would rpe her and she was a n btch"
Parents insisted he said it all apart from the racist bit. He had a morning in isolation but was back in the afternoon and not removed from her lessons. Staff nearly walked out over this one. There have been other incidents hence staff wanting bodycam

With regards to the skirts, we've had several public complaints , some reporting they can see sanitary towels etc as the skirts are so short.
It's a safeguarding risk at this point tbh

It is one of the reasons I left education.
Consequences are essential and positive behaviour strategies are just as important.
Sadly it just seems to be implemented incorrectly with some of the most vulnerable being affected.
Everyone seems to implement it how they choose with their own ‘rules,’ and so many teachers seem to be on power trips.
Maybe let’s fix the system teachers are required to work in rather than allowing these stressful conditions and lack of funding to effect the most vulnerable.

But I didn't have such rules in place when I was at school. We could dye our hair, wear makeup, whatever socks we liked, we weren't supposed to wear jewellery but none of the teachers really cared if we did, and somehow I managed to get by in the workplace. I've worked in a café and then a DIY/tradie retailer/warehouse, both places where wearing the correct PPE is important, I couldn't wear nail polish or jewellery in the café and needed to tie my hair up as well.

I think that's absolutely fair. If schools cannot trust teaching staff to give a truthful account of what they witness or to be able to assess what has happened on a balance of probabilities then there are big problems with their recruitment practises!

That is not what @FloofyBird was saying, @Shatteredallthetimelately!

She said, ”Well i imagine if i told my child they couldn't take their blazer off until I said so when it's hot outside or I grounded them for hours because they forgot to bring a pencil down to do their homework or I made them sit in a room for hours and hours because they had their shirt untucked some (school) would flag it a a safeguarding concern.” - the key word here being imagine.

She is saying that IF she enforced some of the stricter school rules at home, it would be a safeguarding concern.

One of the local senior schools has an issue with skirt length - the girls roll them up so short it’s unreal - I’ve certainly seen arse cheeks when driving past some of them, and yes, that’s a safeguarding concern when younger teenagers don’t know or appreciate the dangers that exist. I wish the world was different, and they could wear whatever, but there you go.

i’ve been into a couple of senior schools recently and was surprised by the huge difference in culture and behaviour. School A was very hot on behaviour, not tolerating even minor slip
ups. This lead to an atmosphere of calm in the classroom and learning happened.

School B was more relaxed, but some of the kids went unchallenged - so for example a year 7 walked in late to a science lesson, yelled ‘I fucking hate science’ put his head down on the desk and refused to work. The teacher did nothing and when I asked her after the lesson, she told me that student had form for smashing up her lab and she didn’t have any more budget to replace broken things, so she just ignores him.

i can’t help but think that school As approach is better for the majority of kids, and the teachers.

I work in PRU two days a week. Years 7-8 still have a chance to turn everything around and are usually reintegrated back into school, sadly some are groomed by the older ones.
Years 9-11 are already involved in gangs, county lines, criminal behaviour etc, it is very unlikely they are willing to leave that path.

Special schools are extremely difficult to get into and have ridiculously long waiting lists.

Yep school B is us !

Yes of course all 1500 children forget their pencils at the same time on the same day! It really is time that schools gave their heads a serious wobble. Strict uniform rules are ridiculous in 2025. No other European country has uniforms and I think they do alright. Children with behavioural problems exist with or without strict rules and sanctions. The only thing these rules do is damage kids with neuro diversity or anxiety or other special needs.

More vulnerable DC getting ostracised.

I agree, behaviour needs to be addressed, but sending potentially valuable students home isn't the answer.

100%.

The mass exclusions are the backlash for how things have swung too much the wrong way. From what we have experienced, more kids need removing not fewer.

Teachers are not getting enough support from parents that, yes maybe, chucking out a bunch of trouble makers, ones who think the rules don't apply to them, ones who cannot be in that classroom provided become disruptive, then yes, go this isn't the place for you. And how many of their parents are concerned about their child or just pissed off that they now have to deal with them again? I know parents of less well behaved pupils, and they are glad when the summer holidays are over "as they need a break" so they know their child is disobedient. They can't hack it but think a teacher with 25 others should whilst getting them to attempt some trigonometry. Come on you know if your child is a nuisance and are just happy they are not your problem from 8-3.

People saying "oh you can go to the toilet at work and get a pen out of the stationery cupboard" - all true you can, what you can't do is call your manager a fucking n**r, or say, why aren't you back home in the kitchen looking after a man. Which my teens have heard other pupils say to their teachers. So it works both ways.

Exactly that @FrenchFancie, I have family and friends working in schools in my local area and where rules are more lax, so is the behaviour in the classrooms and this does impact on the learning, I have heard horror stories but I genuinely don’t think many parents realise the damage it causes or what goes on in the classrooms. My children go to a school with strict rules and they tell me their learning is rarely disrupted, classrooms are quiet and calm. I’d rather that, than complain about whether they have to bring their blazers in, in hot weather or whether there really is a need for a green pen.

I don't think parents realise how scary a classroom can be for a quieter or nervous student if behaviour can't be tackled and the loud ones dominate/have to be persuaded to do the basics

Please be mindful that not everyone is able to find strategies that suit them.
It’s great that you have but not everyone is able to do that. Not everyone’s ADHD is the same and you cannot compare your adult brain to a child’s.
I am almost 40 and I still slip up a lot, even with strategies in place. I usually have to laugh otherwise I’ll be constantly disappointed in myself.

provided you get the job in the first place.

If you can't be bothered to turn up on time at the interview, don't send your CV, don't submit your application form and/or in the requested format, you won't have the job.

Reasonable adjustment doesn't mean holding someone's hands, or it means they can't do the job in the first place anyway.

Again, people need to take responsibility for themselves. If you can keep to deadlines, you don't belong in the job. If you can't be bothered to remember your passport, you won't be allowed on a plane. If you can't remember your train ticket, you will get fined.

Refusing to teach responsibility to children is not doing them any favour whatsoever. Most kids will be delighted if we tell them that reasonable adjustments mean they can all stroll at school at 10:30am because they can't cope with an early start 😂

Clear , sensible and reasonable rules that are actually enforced? Sure! I’m all for it.

Petty rules like the colour of socks you can’t even see? Meh, can’t get too excited about that.

Exactly the bullies and violent kids should be sent home and all the better if they end up in prison also. After seeing an online video of boys kicking a boy in school uniforms and them 10 and he lying on the ground alone, don't have any understanding left for parents like you.....who brag about that their violent child has a right to education. I hope the police gets involved with you all, social services also

Obviously my post is not addressee to you whose quote I fetched but the ones who parent violent children