What matters most to you about schools? Views needed for a conference on Saturday Nov 27th.

[carriemumsnet]

We've been invited to take part in a TUC conference aimed at everyone involved in schools ? parents, teachers, headteachers, governors, unions and local authorities. We're there to give the parents' perspective on what matters most to parents about schools.

It would be great to represent as many views/parents as possible so do please add your thoughts here before Saturday and we'll try to pass on as many of them as possible.

Thanks

MNHQ

I'd like sexist bullying in school taken as seriously as racist bullying. ATM every racist incident has to be reported, but sexist incidents are apparantly not that important. I went to an all girls school so had no idea that so much sexual bullying went on in mixed secondary schools - there was a report recently that said that girls accept sexual assault at school as a fact of life. This is absolutely fucking disgraceful and why isn't it being treated as urgent?

I want to have an equal chance of gaining a place at my local school as others do. I want my children to be able to walk to school and have local friends. I want a great education for my children.

I think schools should meet the needs of the community.

Homework to be an hour after school, AT school, supervised by whoever set it.

And goddamned well kick fairy stories taught as fact off the syllabus, any child who gets to ten and hasn't realised that people are too goddamn heavy to walk on water is a child that needs extra help, and possible heavy supervision near the seaside, not encouragement from adults who should no better than to tell lies to children.

faith can be adequately described as "the persistant belief in something despite no factual evidence, or indeed, all evidence to the contrary."

WHY would I want to teach my child to cary on believing in something with no evidence or all evidence to the contrary?

Faith schooling makes an utter mockery of science.

I think they need to be told that faith is quite different from science and that everyone has different beliefs and they need to make up their own mind and everyone, including parents, should put 'I believe' or 'Christian's believe' or 'Muslim's believe' in front of what they say and thast it is important to treat everyone's beliefs with respect.
RE should be taught in schools but they are not the place for collective worship IMO.

RE should be taught as part of humanities. As a "This is what some people choose to believe" way. ALL the religions should be taught that way. Not in a "Muslims believe X, isn't that funny? Now get ready for lunch, wash your hands and say thankyou to God The Great Provider"

It's insiduous.

You should read the thread on taking your DC sailing colditz-I was very heartened that people have their own minds and they don't just say 'mummy the oracle has spoken oh wise one'-they very often say 'my mother is a loon'! What you think is up to you -but your DC may have a spiritual side and not agree. One thing for sure on the sailing thread is that DCs can't be told what to think by parents. To put the record straight-no DC is a Christian or Muslim-they are merely the DC of a Christian or Muslim and will make up their own mind.
I don't want faith schools-but I would be utterly appalled if they didn't teach pupils to respect others -however silly they think it privately.
I find your last comment about muslims utterly astounding-do you not realise that schools have to treat the Qur'an with respect, and can't just bung it in a cupboard-they would never make a comment like that!

Sorry OP-rather hijacked there so won't continue. Just making the point that schools shouldn't tell DCs what to believe (and neither should parents). Treat all DCs and their opinions seriously.

You have COMPLETELY misread my post.

And what in the name of all that is holy has the KORAN got to do with ANYTHING I said?

My point is that I do not what any religion to be insiduously put into my child's mind as 'the thing you do', whilst teaching all the other religions as 'something people believe'.

I do not want my children to be told to say grace, or "give thanks to any God you like", especially not by the back door of not even telling them that some people actually believe in what has been proven to be true! What a novel idea!

Honesty, kindness, respect and compassion amongst the staff starting from the head and the governors.

No homework. Let school be school and home be home.

Start expecting children to be fully well before they return to school after an illness, no need to spread bugs around needlessly.

Have a nit nurse who can actually help the parents who are really struggling with getting rid of nits. It's not that easy and other parents are nasty about the ones who can't manage it.

Make teaching less stressful for teachers so they don't tend to go down with illnesses as soon as it is the holidays.

Brandybutterpie - I love your idea.

I actually love Brandybutterpie's ideas, but in practice it would be very difficult and without the right staff DCs could get lost in the system-it would need a lot of record keeping. There is a lot of potential to do it badly. It doesn't mean that you couldn't try and I know schools that implement some of those ideas.
It would be good if Heads could have more freedom to do things differently and think 'outside the box'.

Colditz,
I do not participate much but read quite a lot and you are among the posters who have made me learn lots and lots here.
However, I really would like a school where the kind of feelings you are expressing were not tolerated.

I am a non-believer and would be happy with the removal of the 'daily worship' thing. However, the fact that I do not believe, does not make me blind and I see how the majority of the world believes in God. I do not believe they are just stupid in their brains believing forever in fairy tales. I think it is part of who we are as human beings, in the same way that we are social animals, although some people are not.

Science keeps changing and most of the scientific theories of today will be dismantled and proven wrong tomorrow. This is also scientifically proven.

While I would be happy without experiencing any religion in school (and learning about them), my child seems to particularly enjoy that part in school. And it would not cross my mind to tell her that anybody aged 9+ has a SN issue if they are believers.

Science keeps changing because scientists base their beliefs upon observable evidence. As more evidence comes to light, scientists adjust their beliefs in line with this. A scientist that dissents is asked to prove it.

Religion doesn't change because religious people DELIBERATELY IGNORE observable evidence, prefering instead to refer to books that were written 1500 years ago. A religious believer that dissents is told to shut the fuck up or 'be tolerent' (which, in a lot of cases, is the same as 'shut the fuck up')

A lot of the things we do as human beings is stupid. The behavior of crowds is stupid. Gambling is stupid. Taking illegal drugs is stupid. (In fact, all addictive behavior is stupid)

It's not abhorrant, it's quite normal for human beings to do at least one stupid thing. But just as I want my child to stand up to a crowd of stupid behavior, just as I want my child not to display addictive behavior, I also want my child to think rationally about whether or not the things they believe are actually possible. And I don't want them to be taught to suppress this critical thinking.

I actually, believe it or not, find religion facinating. I just disagree with it being taught as fact. It should not be taught as fact. It should be taught as 'human belief development throughout history'

Colditz, I probably think the same way as you do, but I do not believe I am clearly right. Many things human beings do and seem to make them happy (anything related to tradition, culture, etc.) is irrational. That is not equivalent of stupid.

If you put your child in school, any school, make them wear uniforms, respect authority, etc, you are doing most of the job on alienating critical thinking. I am not sure that part of your argument stands. I hate children taught religion as facts too, but it seems to make happy many human beings and I live with it as I live with the uniform.

I don't want to hijack again but religion isn't a fact-this is why some scientists have faith and some don't. It can't be taught as a fact-it isn't and it equally can't be disproved by anyone. Respect for other views is important and DCs should be taught it. I am against any indoctrination-either for and against.

DCs will make up their own minds-despite parents. I actually think that parents have very little effect on what DCs think-many Christians have atheist DCs and vice versa. Beliefs are a personal matter.

Actually, I went to a heavily christian primary school, and it was my parents who taught me to think about what I was being told, and not to accept blindly because Teacher Said So.

I got told to SHut UP on a few occasions - most memorably when I asked the visiting vicar who the hell Cain and Abel married, seeing as they were the sons of the first people on the face of the Earth.

I like the 5 outcomes of Eyfs (have I got that right?). But I deal with young adults at the other end of the system who do not understand percentages, rounding up, rounding down, how to manage money, disappointment or daily routine or tasks. This could be down to parenting but there is a place for home economics in the curriculum IMO. I don't think that children should be constantly coached to demonstrate the ability of the school. SATs should be there to spot check ability and perhaps should be more observation/sample based rather than testing.
Reading, writing and arithmetic should be the top priority and although some new methods are great I.e phonics, older methods just work e.g. Learning by rote.

I think that schools should be making DCs think for themselves and I would like to see the end of teaching to the exam. The end of league tables would help.
I would like to see a true choice for parents-at the moment choice is a mockery.