Graduated return to school after illness & how it's recorded.

[KatyMac]

DD may have had Glandular Fever or post viral fatigue

The doctor recommended a graduated return to school; phoned the school & it's all agreed

Now she is back at school full-time they want us to come in to discuss the time she had off & prevent it from happening again - which tbh I understand (despite having no control over viruses)

But they have only classed her as 'at school' if she made registration so if she did 3 or 4 classes but missed registration she was marked as absent - which seems a little unfair; should she get any credit or acknowledgement that she made it in for even part of each day? or is it fair that she is marked as 'off'

Sending you the very very best as your DD copes with full on school.... I have had ME as an adult.... two suggestions here -

1. Contact Association for Young People with ME .... they will have come across lots of cases like this and will find it easy to advise (whether its ME or GF, doesnt matter)

1. I'd encourage you to give your DD all the support you can to ensure she doesnt relapse... and if she needs the occasional day off, or an easy weekend, dont hesitate... it is so much easier to stay well, when well but if she gets ill again, it'll be tougher to recover and be a horrid dent to her confidence too....

Good luck to all of you

In my school absence like that would be marked as I for ill, M for medical or O for other authorised circumstances and would count as authorised absence.

Hope she feels better soon.

It's down as ill - but even if she manages part of a day it's being written as a complete absence, because she misses registration or half a day if she misses one registration - but manages 4 lessons (out of 6)

So she might as well not bother to attend at all iyswim

Poor poppet her attendance is down to 75%

She is almost completely better now & after half-term will be back for complete days (assuming no relapse)

I did wonder about suggesting pushing her so hard for all those GCSEs probably hasn't helped

In my school if you are in for Registration, or P1 or P2 or P3; you still get a 'present' mark for the morning session. (But you're marked "L" = Late if you don't make it in for registration.)

Similarly if you're in for any of pm Registration, P4 or P5; you get a mark for the afternoon session.

But personally I would say these discussions are not important. What matters is not "her attendance statistic", but whether or not she is in classes and making progress. If - say - she's attending 90% of her English lessons (even though her attendance figure is 75%), then that's positive.

All the very best to her and you - I am awed by your and her resilience. It sounds to me as if the school doesn't understand her illness. My niece had a similar experience but the school was behind her not overdoing it and her tutor and the school nurse were involved in her 'rehab' (my word not theirs) to make sure she didn't overdo it. As you will know much better than I do, avoiding relapse is more important than getting her back full time right now.

If the attendance record is going to affect something (e.g. applications at a later stage) then I would attack the policy - so long as it doesn't stress your DD.

It might be worth pointing out to the school that their attendance recording policy is putting stress on her and that it might compromise her continued recovery. Especially as you have the doctor's support. It's hilarious in a black way that they want you "to come in to discuss the time she had off & prevent it from happening again". I think you are a saint understanding their point of view!

100% endorse other posters - your DD health is the most important thing. Definitely choose hte balance that works for the two of you rather than school records - she's not at school to fill in their tick boxes but to get an education which it sounds like you're achieving. If you can do this while maintaining her confidence and her health, you are doing fabulously.

TBH I wonder about home schooling - it would be easier than fighting all the time