Help for dc whilst boarding

[Betterbelieveit]

Hello MNetters,
My son in Yr 8 at a boarding school is not performing well in Maths and sciences and I'm looking for ideas on how to help him bring his grades up.

I've thought of removing him from the school to enrol into a day school so he can have a Maths tutor who sees him every week, but have not managed to get a good school in commutable distance, and would hate to lose the other good things he is currently benefitting from his current school.

Alternatively, I would consider a different school, day or boarding, if they have a great mix of academic and extracurricular programmes that also have a strong support for children to improve their grades. I

Has anyone found themselves in this situation and did they find a solution that worked?

From my personal experience as a teacher in independent schools, everyone employed to teach an academic subject has a teaching qualification unless they were/are training ‘in role’. If this happens, they are mentored until they gained/gain their teaching qualification. I suppose your personal experience may be different. However, as many state schools in England are academies and they definitely employ unqualified teachers, it doesn’t mean the OP is likely to find qualified maths teachers at a state school. In fact, I would say it is much more unlikely, especially in subjects like maths and science where there are teacher shortages.

Yup. I agree with this and have experienced it.

Had to take DC out. Doing MUCH better at a day school where I can keep more of an eye, have found tutor near home, etc.

When you say he’s doing well in all other subjects, how is that defined?

When did he join the school and where was he educated before this? How often are you able to see him?

What was the 57% in? A single unit test on content that had been recently covered or a paper covering much more?

Is he struggling in all 3 sciences?

I would be expecting a boarding school where children don’t see their parents often to be stepping up and taking the lead to identify exactly what the child is struggling with and suggesting the best way forwards.

Stop spouting bollocks "Teachers may not be formally trained etc, but rather their for pedigree"

Having read a few more posts on this. I am wondering if by "pedigree" (which was an odd word) that poster meant the likes of Oxbridge degrees in the subject being taught.

If so, I have known this (and quite honestly was more delighted about the level of education in the subject so didn't stop to think about teaching qualifications).

But "pedigree" made it sound like the dc of titled folk wind up teaching Religious Studies or wiping bottoms in Reception in independent schools which is not a phenomenon I have observed.

Thanks everyone and sorry for not responding earlier.

To answer some of the questions, dc started at the school from Y7. The 57% was a recent assessment but I don't know if it was for a particular number of topics or not. I am yet to speak with him about his grades as I'm trying to think of how best to help him so when we talk, there are action points as well.

His previous scores in Maths were in the high 60s but not more. I'm not obsessed with Maths, it's just that Maths and English are a general marker and he is failing in one, hence my need to do something before it's too late.

In the subjects he's confident in, he's getting average scores of 95%. So it's quite a gap.

Maybe he misses home.

Ask the school when he has time in his schedule for a tutor. And then find him someone that can either attend the school or teach him online.

I'd say an in-person tutor is going to be of more use. But you might find it hard to find someone that could attend the school.

Firsttutors.com is a good tutoring site. Try to pick someone who is very experienced.

Alternatively, if you'd like to PM me, I have a friend, Head of Maths, also has her own tutoring company who is a phenomenal teacher. Genuinely. Not just saying it because she's my friend. She MAY not do online tutoring, but it's worth a try.

This is my gut feeling too. Only problem is getting a place in the school we'd like.

Have you approached the school that you would like?

I think this is the bottom line op.

Possible, although he is starting to get used to boarding life.

Yes, we're on waiting list.

Thank you @TheAmusedQuail , I've pmed you.

I've replied with an email address and her website. BUT Mumsnet is saying they're taking a look at it. 🙄

It's not a sales pitch. I'm not her. Etc etc.

Hopefully they'll approve the message. Good luck! You won't regret using her. She's inspirational.

Thank you so much. Much appreciated.

@Betterbelieveit
I have a similar situation, also Y8 boarding.
DS was OK with maths early on but the gap between him and the top set has got wider and wider as the maths has got harder. He gets anywhere between 40 and 60% in his maths exams, but more like 80% in every other subject.

The school has been very relaxed about this to date (a bit too relaxed IMO) - they say he’s fine although “could try harder” and in particular manage his time better. However he’s got CE exams this year and I am beginning to see that they are taking things a more seriously now and keeping a much closer eye on him. When exams that matter are on the horizon (SATS at primary, CE at prep and GCSEs everywhere) it has a great effect of concentrating everyone’s mind.
This is good because moving schools is very disruptive to friendship groups, not without risk and I wasn’t convinced things would be materially different maths wise at a day school.

If I were you I would ask for a proper meeting with his current school and dig a bit deeper. As others have said you need to know how he compares with his peers. Also I would be asking for specifics - ask to see his marked test papers and ask them which topics he is particularly struggling on. You might also see if they can administer the dyslexia battery to him. Not because he is dyslexic but one of the things it assesses is short term working memory. We discovered that DS was off the charts (high scoring) on everything that battery except STWM of numbers, where he scored very low. That helped explain why he was struggling with time on maths exams and left several pages undone.