Breaking up for the holidays

[Crocsforlife]

Just wondering with fines and stuff what happens at end of term. We finish up today for Easter, eldest is going in for reg then going with her pals for a McDonald's breakfast. Youngest isn't even bothering.

This is normal at summer and Christmas also very rarely go in last few days. Schools are a ghost town with very few pupils in and I think the teachers like the down time.
Both in high school. In Scotland so don't get fined for time off. Do the kids elsewhere do this, is it just a west of Scotland thing?

NE Scotland here, this isn’t a thing I’m aware of. My kids go in up until the holidays.

Also high school you can exit by just pushing the door release but can’t get in unless a class change time/at all - think many high schools are the same.

The whole point of registration is so the teachers know who is there or not, what’s the point of going to registration then buggering off? As a pp said if there was a fire those children would need to be accounted for and possibly putting teachers and the fire service at risk

If they do not show up to period 1 this will be recorded in the register again at that point and parents will be informed. So the school does know who is there or not in the event of a fire. The register is taken again at the start of each period.

We moved primary schools so have experience of two. Kids do full days right until the last day of term. Noone takes time off, (maybe an odd few have gone on a holiday but certainly not many) full school of teachers and pupils until 3pm.

This. Absolutely batshit.

My kids high school has 1,500 kids, and 4 entrances into the actual building excluding fire escapes. They all have fire exit style push bar doors so you can get out but you can’t get in from the outside unless you are buzzed in.

Kids can attend registration and leave instead of going to their next class. If your child isn’t present for any of their classes the parent gets an automatic text message alerting them to their child’s absence for that class. Both the school and the parent knows the child is not in class. There isn’t someone stationed at each door between classes so the child is unlikely to be challenged as they leave, besides which you’re going to have a pretty hard time keeping a teenager in place if they really don’t want to be there.

My DC school put a notice out last Monday saying that lessons continue as normal right up to the last day and they expect all pupils present.

I’m in Scotland and my daughter had a maths exam today so suppose they expect everyone there.

Oh and our campus is an open campus - kids come and go for break and lunch but also for various other reasons like apprenticeships etc etc. It has several buildings and they’re kept open for children to move around. No one would have any way of stopping a teenager from leaving but they take a register at each class so can text if they aren’t there.

Went to school in West of Scotland and taught there, this was not a thing! Yes, kids wouldn’t come into school, but leaving after reg seems mad.

I think she’s saying the rules are different. No one cares what colour of socks you wear, or what your hair colour is. I don’t know a school here that would punish a child for having a visible logo on an otherwise black shoe.

We don’t fine parents for school absence, there are different process to deal with that. The idea of “asking” permission to take your child out of school for the day blows my mind - they’re my child and I decide if they need to be absent from school for whatever reason, I’ll inform the school but I’m not asking permission. It’s just a completely different culture and mindset.

In my experience schools here work to build good working relationships with parents, as equals.

Dd goes to school in West of Scotland. She can leave school at break and lunch but not after registration. She's going in today but leaving at lunch and going to McDonald's with friends. She's in S4.

I no longer have young kids, and I'm very happy about that! Standards seem to have slipped horribly. I can't believe kids are simply allowed to wander in and out of school as takes their fancy. Once we were in the door, that was it. It pretty much took a family death for someone to be allowed out before hometime.

Wouldn't have crossed our minds either to say "I'm sure the teachers would like the extra break" when referring to kids coming in and out as takes their fancy on a school day.

Primary schools? Where is that?

in England I would say that is pretty much unheard of now.

DS goes to the same secondary school I went to in the 90s. It’s much harder to just wander out now than it was when I was there.

The layout of most secondary schools locally makes it very difficult to 100% stop someone getting out if they really want to though.

My DS school have to be there for the full day even if it's the last day of term, as they should be.
The primary and lower senior school are not allowed out at lunchtime but S4 and above are allowed out and have to go out the gate which has a security person on all day.
No one can go in unless they have a pass or are there to see someone.

We're in Scotland.

My DD’s school has very few on the last day but her school does half days and not all school buses are on. When we were in England I don’t remember half days being a thing.

No one anywhere should ever leave a premises after registering/signing in and walk back out again leaving it to be believed they're still on site.

What would happen if there was an incident at the school, a fire for instance and your DC couldn't be accounted for.

Best tell them not to bother going to registration at all.

A registered is taken in every class - the school and parents know immediately if a child turns up for registration and doesn’t attend classes.

Actually quite shocked at your post tbh.

This is hilarious OP, you have really managed to stir things up 😂
We are also Scotland where pupils can leave school every lunchtime for some Greggs or a Tesco meal deal.
Today was S6 final day so they all went in for breakfast, some low key shenanigans and then off to the pub.
DD in S5 went in to see her friends and make sure she has everything for revision over the holidays, there will have been no new work today. They’re meant to go back for 2 days after Easter before exam leave officially starts but I can’t imagine there’ll be anything like full attendance then.
Shock and Horror.

Scottish secondary school teacher here and all my classes were working today. It’s only the last day before Christmas and summer holiday that no work is done.

God in my day the two weeks before any holiday were basically colouring in and board games and I frequently went on holiday early with family (also Scotland).

It wasn't a great use of time but fines are madness imo.

My DS was in on Wednesday and spent every class either sorting out the classroom (art, drama, science) or watching a video (drama, modern studies, English). I let him stay home yesterday.

Most schools in England are gates and students cannot leave without a member of staff signing them out and unlocking the doors. This now prevents students from leaving the site to truant. In addition, we have to immediately search the grounds when students don't turn up to lessons.

A small number of students are taken out by parents at the start / end of terms to take advantage of cheaper holidays and those parents are fined.

I'm quite shocked that you feel it is acceptable for your kids to truant in this way.