How much contact has your primary school aged child had with their teacher?

[georgedawes]

Please can you tell me how much contact your primary school aged child has had with their teacher since March. I'm specifically asking for kids not yet back in school and not about emails with work set etc, but actual direct contact (telephone, zoom etc etc) with their teacher.

Y2 - daily MS Team calls with whole class. Timetable set for the week. Assignments set daily on Teams and returned marked on the same day. Also a weekly call with teacher and a friend (requested by friend). We also have a Parent/Teacher appointment this week on Teams.

One phone call!

I don’t understand why some teachers are so defensive of their whole profession... I’ve worked in 2 schools, most of the teachers were brilliant, some less so. If you know you’ve been doing your best, that’s great... and thank you... don’t take criticism of others as criticism of you... it’s not meant that way!

Two phone calls, and the teacher regularly types personal messages and messages of praise to my DD via the classDojo app. She also arranged a pile of specially chosen library books for her, and arranged part of the class syllabus to accord with my kid's tastes.

The teacher is working in school teaching a Reception bubble while setting work znd trying to motivate and cheer up my DD's year 4 group.

No, the work doesn't get marked, but I can do that. The teacher has kids of her own yet is updating the class app at 7am and 8-10pm.

Ffs. I thought these bloody threads were now overtaken by threads where all the parents were giving themselves permission to bon off homeschooling.

Apparently not.

Brilliant amount of work set and marked - year one, daily Instagram (private class account) throughout the day and zoom meeting with teacher weekly also 2 x infant assemblies with ht or ah

3 children. 3 different primaries. None have had any contact at all. It has shocked me to be honest.

Also, most days she posts on Dojo a round-up of the kids' work, showcasing it, and often highlights and praises all the kids who submitted work individually, commenting on how proud she is.

She also posts results of the times tables app and singles out improvers for special praise.

It is me doing all the teaching, really, but she is doing all she can, and I think she's fucking wonderful.

DS is year 2 and has had no contact at all with teacher. There has been the work emailed and a response when I’ve submitted work for him. But no one from the school has had any direct contact with him.
They have not phoned us (as parents) either.

I know year 2 from the school up the road have had twice weekly video calls

I work in a primary and we have made a minimum of 2 phone calls to every parent and asked to speak to the child too if they wanted to. We have called others more often if there are issues ie vulnerable or known safeguarding issues.
We have provided work both on line and in the form of booklets to pick up.
The phone has always been manned and emails to main school responded to the same day even when we were closed.

@ProfessorRadcliffeEmerson

balloons, you’ve read posts as a personal attack when people are commenting on what they’ve had from their children’s schools. Personally I said nothing about wanting online live lessons; I want work meaningfully marked,and I want the school to check in with DD from time to time so that they know she’s OK. Why exactly is that unreasonable?

Oh, and my DD’s school is showing us zero respect, so by your logic we’re entitled to return the favour.

I agree. I don't want to upset teachers who are having a rough time. Some of us parents working are too and it's hard on everyone. Covid times are crap. Everyone's stressed to the max.

I'm upset that my child has not had a direct message from his teacher. That's all. I haven't even complained about it as I don't want teachers thinking bad of me & then treating DS different. It's just other children in his class do get calls. The ones you say are more vulnerable, or need more help etc, but because he's done his work he doesn't deserve a call? I think many children would appreciate a well done. You're doing fab working from home call. Doesn't have to be long. But it would probably put a smile on his face. That's all. He's one of those that likes a bit of praise & he hasn't had any from anyone other than us for 4 months. Would have just been nice I think.

One postcard which came on Saturday.
No phone calls.
Yr 5.
Its a small school in an afluent area, they're not inundated with vulnerable children, I would guess they have well below average for pupil premium or english as a second language students compared to other schools in the city.
Im disappointed with what we've been given.
My child is one of the most disadvantaged in that school on paper, he's fine, but it would have been nice for the school to check that or give a shit.

Its interesting to see how much it varies from school to school.

I don't think it reflects badly on the teachers, more the leadership at the school.

Y3. Multiple times per day. I'm not kidding. Firstly through emails following submitted tasks on daily YouTube lessons and then through an online learning platform. Work set for about 4 subjects per day, each one has had a response, sometime a 'like', sometimes a correction or guidance, sometimes a really lovely well done message. Every one who has had a birthday has had a singing video left on the class page. Still getting RE, geography, nature, art and so on alongside maths & English. Whole school sports day was hilarious. I know this sounds like a total brag but it's really not, I am just so indebted to them,totally floored by their care and professionalism. Way above & beyond.

Y10 more chilled but still 3-6 pieces of work per day of varying subjects, lengths & complexity and plenty of follow-up/extra curricular options. Not feedback on everything but a lot of encouragement and responses. They are also quick if work not completed on time though have always extended a deadline if asked just because of feeing overwhelmed or struggling.

It does astound me though how apparently a week off to go on holiday destroys a child's education but apparently they will all catch up, although I am not confident on this for every child

You're mixing up two different things.

Anyone remember when the new curriculum came in? (thank you Michael Gove). Fab for the little ones just starting it and for those who came in after.

This new curriculum effectively jumped 2 years. And they just started teaching it.
I was REALLY worried for my DD (who was in early secondary school at the time).
but the teachers did what teachers do... they plugged the gaps. My DD did absolutely fine in her GCSEs, and looking at the results over the years since that new curriculum was implemented, she wasn't alone.

Plugging the gaps is what teachers DO. So for those of you worried about September and time out of school, have confidence that the teachers will do what needs to be done. They do it all the time.

However, in normal times, taking your child out for an unnecessary week IS an issue. I was chatting to a Yr 6 teacher about this just this week (along the lines of him explaining to me just what the online work was that his class were doing btw).
So, for literacy, they shared a book, which they had available in pdf form (because it was online working). The children read the book or extracts from it. Together. Then they discussed it. They did some comprehension about the story. Then they were set some more complex work - what one character might have thought, what their motivation was, what was going on behind the story, etc.
If that's what's happening in your child's classroom the first week back after half term and they miss the first week (the spoiler for the story and starting to read the book together) because you're off on a cheap holiday then ALL the work following on from that is fucked.

[btw, I'm not a teacher, but I do work in primary schools]

Zero contact. Nothing from anyone at the school.

We feel as if we've left the whole schooling system. We're forgotten.

Zero for DC1 (Year 1 - he can't go back in because the school is 'at full capacity' due to SD rules), work set and marked daily for DC2 (Year 4) since June halfterm at least. No phone call all from either class teacher / HT since March.

Don't forget teachers' unions specifically instructed teachers not to mark work, so it's hardly surprising many have taken the opportunity to do so.

My son's teacher does send through odd bits of stuff, but it seems randomly copied and pasted off the internet as allegedly "the government have said the curriculum is suspended" according to the school. I've no idea if that is true or not.

Luckily the ixl website and I believe twinkl too do curriculum activities so I've been setting my own curriculum, but no doubt when some of the other kids go back in they will be so far behind where they should be it will be beyond a joke.

None

None

It is true that the govt suspended the curriculum.

One direct phone call since March. Since I wrote a lengthy complaint we have had one weekly generic message on class dojo every Monday about the weeks work, but that is directed at the parent.

Set work is a few links to twinkl, etc. Nothing is marked, nothing is to be handed in. Frankly it’s not good enough, especially since my youngest ds school in a tiny semi rural one.

My eldest sons nigh school have been fantastic. He has three full days of live lessons and set work which is marked and to be completed Thursday and Fridays. We have taken this time to get him a science tutor though as he sometime struggles in a larger class setting, so we’ve exploited this opportunity to his advantage. He gets regular calls from his tutor and has a key worked as well over and above the work.

Few phone calls and about 4 zoom meetings. The teacher is available daily to respond to the student messages/questions on google classroom if needed. She marks daily and give feedback. We can always call the office if we need further help.

Zero

balloons isn’t the point of vulnerable children that it can change? My main gripe about our school is they have decided that all separated families can have their children return to school and additional support. This is regardless of the home situation, work, income, new partner etc. But that’s as of March.... no one has called us to find out how we’re doing, we’ve actually had an incredibly tough time but the school will never know this and I feel this is a dereliction of their duties. Why should the fact that I have WiFi preclude my children from any emotional/ educational support? Dd year group is leaving the school in July so I can see why they don’t care, they aren’t their problem in September!

If teachers can honestly put their hand on their hearts and say they’ve done their best for every student then that’s amazing! I fear many cannot.