Sixth form students unwilling to do 30 mins revision a day

[Blandmum]

My class,most having failed at least one modular examination outright told me today that 30 minutes revision a night is unreasonable, 'What if we have something else to do?'

Dur??????

You did it your way and failed, and what does this tell you children???????

Lazy little devils.

I'm even helping them to sort out a timetable FFS!

Ahhh Dominic, you have no idea do you. You are making the basic mistake of assuming that the average student is a reasonable, civilised creature. I regularly have to stare down 6 foot plus, aggressive students with police records who see no reason why their personal right to have conversations with their mates in the middle of class should be infringed. It takes a good five minutes per student, complete with lots of verbal, and occasionally physical agression to coak a mobile out of one of them. Multiply that by 3 or 4, which is the average number of mobiles I have going off in each of my lessons, add to that the limited amount of time you have to deliver the subject, compounded with the time it takes to settle the class after one of them has kicked off (they all have to have their say on the matter), and factor into the equation that I have a reputation for being really strict, so they go off less often in my class than in others.

And that's just the mobiles.....don't get me started on ipods, computer games and gameboys under the desks.

and, slug, just remember when they fail (not if, in most cases) it is your fault. Couldn't be theirs, could it? Couldn't because they didn't listen and didn't do any work, could it? Must be yours......and mine

Back to the OP... I'm doing my MA dissertation on improving revision at a large 6th form college and was shocked when I sent out my sample Questionnaire that I had not asked the Question "Did you revise for your exams in 2006". My Uni supervisor did not pick up on it either, but it seem to be the case that at least 10% of students do not do any revision at all for their exams last year - including at AS and A2 level (although we are talking about the 3rd years!)

Oh, and no where I am we are not allowed to confiscate mobiles, not in any of my schools... but then, in my last school it was officially a disciplinary offence to shout at the students!

Oh and last thing - MB how do you get through the syllabi i so little time? I have 5 hrs a week per 'A' level, and find that a struggle!

We have 4 hours and 40 minutes a week with them. TBH, I don't find it that hard to fit it all in at A level, but it is a real push at KS3 and KS4

Yeah lockets, I'm old, and I was told as a kid I'd grow out of low attention span...

Yes, slug. I have no idea. Last time someone started talking on a mobile in a class, I called him a stupid wanker and threw fruit at him.
He and his mates got quite agitated.

I'd last about three picoseconds in a school.

I have some sympathy with the rule that you don't shout at kids. Usually interpreted as a loss of control, and the kids at my pretty low respected more the teachers who didn't shout. But I wouldn't make it a disciplinary offence, rather an indication of a need for a little training.

Games, phones et al need removing from classes, so how could it be done ?
I'm a bit of a confrontational type, so all I can think of as solutions are of the form: take the gadget, if student resists, increase the level of sanction until loss of gadget seems least of their problems.

I got in trouble round here before by suggesting bouncers for dealing with kids, but if they flatly refuse to behave and offer violence what other options are there ?

But what is the solution ?

Yep, DC, you'd be sacked in minutes at my last school!

I agree that a teacher that shouts a lot is one who often has lost control... but there are times when it is needed, and teachers should have the right to be able to make a professional decision to do it without fear of a black mark against them. I honestly cannot remember the last time I shouted at a kid, but I would want to keep the right to do if they are being a right pain in the backside and little else is working.

As for taking away the mobiles, the whole thing about escalating the punishment is against the whole ethos of what the government is trying to do... so you escalate it, then what? Give them a DT? They don't turn up (Often with a letter from the parent stating that they do not support the Dt and will not allow their child to sit it!). Then what? the only real alternative is to exclude (either internally or externally). Exclude them internally, and the student bunks school, so this is escalated to external but then there are government limits on external exclusions and nowadays in some counties, you are not allowed to externally exclude until you can swap your excluded student for another... so an excluded student can be in your school for days or weeks until a swap is found.

Quite frankly, there are so many limits being placed on what teachers are not allowed to do these days that we're in a straightjacket for enforcing such rules and mostly have to rely on their good will and cooperation to make the class work.

If you don't believe me, look at the recent cases that have been to the courts on human rights grounds...

One Scottish girl took her school to court for giving her a detention for doing her maths homework in a completely different lesson.

Another boy took his school to court for permanently excluding him after he tried to set his school on fire. (Apparrently, it contravened his right to an education).

A third girl took her school to court for insisting she wore the school uniform (She wanted to wear the hijab instead).

These are genuine cases, and given that teachers are not allowed to touch students (I don't mean hit, but even to prevent them leaving or hitting another student), threats of court cases and disciplinary action, its all very well having these ideals, but they are not the reality of what teachers are allowed to do in the modern secondary school classroom.

Did a survey today with my year 12s. it was a correlation between hours of extra work/reading and their desire to go to uni. It was quite interesting, in that the extra work/reading ranged from 2 hours a week to 10 hours a week. and all of them are studying 4 AS levels and exams are only a few weeks away!!!!

Even though the info was confidential, it was easy to work out who did what, just by looking at the quality of their hwk!! No matter what I say, and even though have fail module exams in Jan, some just think it all going to fall into their laps and that they can walk away with 'good' grades.

It seems to me that years 7 to 11 are not adequate preparation for years 12 and 13 - it's no wonder they find it hard to adjust. ds's school doesn't do end of year exams. Ok they have modular assessments throughout the year but that isn't the same as a concentrated exam period with all the revision that entails. Any idiot can concoct a revision timetable but implementing it is another matter and imho you need a few practice runs - years 7, 8, 9 and 10 would do.
And GCSE's are just too easy, they can doss their way through. They just aren't accustomed to hard work and it comes as a real shock in the sixth form. A bit late to get into the habit if you aren't a natural swot.
I don't know what the answer is as I can see both sides of the argument. I wish ds would do some work but if he can get grade A GCSE's without, why should he? He is right. The sort of person any employer would be glad to employ. But what is he going to make of A level when he actually has to work for the first time ijn his life? I just hope it isn't too late.

Fully agree that GCSEs are no preparation. I think thejump between them and A levels is the biggest a kid ever does, far bigger than between A level an university.

Troble is you tell kids this and they don't listen, they still don't listen even when they have failed!