school fees - huge increase next year

[helenmc]

I feel very mean moaning about this as we are very fortunate enough to be in the position of paying for school fees. But we have just got next years fees, and the fees have got up 27% again. Since my eldest started the fees have almost doubled!! The governors quote they have gone up in accordance with the Independent SChools Bursars Association, but surely £280 a term is extortiant. Should I be looking else where?

Uh Oh, got the school fees bill this morning and yes....they have gone up again. Plus, they have decided to add a voluntary contribution of £50 per term per pupil for the new swimming pool, butof course you can decline to pay it, but you have to write and decline, talk about make you feel guilty.

Yep Candy - as a fellow state school secondary teacher I totally sympathise with your feelings - BUT the fact that most state school teachers are great and work their butts off doesn't change the fact that there are still some truely appalling schools out there that I would never send my child to.
I have less knowledge of the private sector but from ''hearsay'' know that all that glitters is not gold and there are some truely awful private schools too- which are all the worse as they can rarely 'blame' their intake in the way most state school with problems can ( tho I agree totally that it is never JUST the fault of the 'intake' - because some very deprived areas boast great schools...)
One of my closest friends was a head of dept in a city school neigbouring the one I teach in. After a number of yeasr she left - with no job to go to - just because she could not stand it anymore ( and neither could I have from what she told me!)and one of the saddest things that she said was a key moment for her was a new boy arriving mid term from out of area. He was 'average' ability - but nicely brought up and pleasant in his manner - very polite. And she looked at him as she sorted out his group and thought to herself ''you'll go one of two ways - in 6 months you'll be telling me to ''F' off'' with the rest of them or you'll be bullied within an inch of your life''...... And she said that she could have cried.
None of this negates how hard most of us ( including my friend) work - but the fact remains that for all our work their are still some 'rotten' schools out there. Whilst I would send a child of mine to the school teach in _ I'd never send her to the neighbouring school I refer to here...

Candy - thanks for saying a lot of the things I have been thinking as I have read this thread (without contributing much as I couldn't figure out what to say). I am a secondary school state school teacher currently on maternity leave but as the school (we are in a remote area, and I am in a single teacher dept) can't get a replacement in my subject to cover I have actually worked right through my leave without any boost to my maternity pay, setting lessons, marking jotters and going in to school when 38 weeks pg (in fact my ds was born early 2 days later) and when he was 6 weeks old to run revision classes and keep up to date with paperwork. The kids I teach are important to me and this is true of so many of the teachers I know. I was planning to leave after the birth of ds and be a full time mum as we can finally afford it (had to go back to work after dd was born, no option) but they can't find a replacement - and this is in a nice school with good results and reasonably small classes.
Interestingly, though, most of the really good teachers I know work in the state sector and wouldn't want to work in the private sector, it's just so much more interesting and challenging to have to deal with whatever walks in the door.
This maybe doesn't make a lot of sense. I think I'm saying that most (by no means all) state school teachers are doing their best in a fairly crappy system, and maybe we do sometimes take it personally when people want to take their children out of the state sector - we work pretty hard and the attitude of so many who can afford it is 'thanks but no thanks'. AArgh hope I havent offended anyone here, I don't mean to!

Surely all you teachers cannot believe that the quality of some state schools is so bad because all the "nice middle class" parents have taken their children elsewhere? Blaming the parents who choose to spend their money (most do not have huge incomes) on their child's eduaction is not the REASON that these particular state schools are not very good. The parents choose to pay elsewhere BECAUSE their options are not brilliant. Before I get shot down in flames I will add that my mother was a teacher in both state and private sectors during her career and taught all age groups so I am not posting from a position of complete ignorance of the teacher's lot.

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Batters, maybe I'm touchy but I felt that many of these messages criticise state schools and therefore, even if only implicitly, must be criticising the teachers within them. Having just spent an entire day of my holiday preparing materials to teach in revision clubs in another two days of my holiday, I'm probably feeling even touchier tonight. However; what do teachers feel parents should be doing? One: sending their children to us even if they are "nice middle class and good ability", only by getting a realistic mix of pupils can state schools have any hope of competing with private ones; Two: attending parents' evening and actually listening to and then acting on, some of the things their teachers say; three: caring if a child a) has homework and b) does the homework Four: supporting said child with said work eg: taking them to the library, buying revision books, helping them trawl the internet; Five: writing to the press in support of their local schools instead of believing all the crap said local press writes and then running miles to the private school in the oppossite direction; Six: teaching their children respect for other people; Seven: acting as positive role models themselves ie: treating other people with respect too Eight: leading by example and helping to support state schools rather than showing children that money can buy them an escape which other people don't have the choice of. Oh gosh, I could go on and on but I'm obviously going to offend people so won't. I'm going to go and do another few hours before bed in the hope that a few pupils and parents at least may appreciate it.

I certainly don't get paid for the holiday clubs I have taught!

Candy, Rozzy and others, thanks for answering my question about parents accepting responsibility for teaching their children outside scool.

Some of what you suggest is obvious to me, no offence intended ie visiting museums, making sure homework is done on time, and moral education in the widest sense etc.

But I still feel that my son's teachers have more responsiblity than me in the nitty gritty of teaching my son the three 'r's - and later on helping him pass exams.

They have him for approx 7 hours a day, 5 days a week, when he is awake and fresh. I get him at the end of the afternoon. I do my best to squeeze in quiet one-to-one time and we do all the homework set, and sometimes more, but he's often tired and fed up or he wants to let off steam at the end of a demanding school day. What's more I have an active toddler to think of. Can't get much quiet time with the oldest while the youngest is rattling about. And the evenings are only so long. IMO, one of my main duties to the school is to ensure my son gets enough sleep, so that means sensible bedtimes.

Ok, of course there are weekends and holidays. The trips out, the visits to the library etc but this is our fun, family time as well. Giving him extra coaching with his spellings and maths should not, I think, be high on the agenda at his age.

Also, as I said before, and as Batters mentioned, so many parents of school age children work. This makes regular visits to the classroom during school hours an impossibilty. Yes, we can make parents evenings, help with extra curricular clubs, can get involved in the PTA, can stand for parent governor positions - all admirable stuff, but again, we are not and can't be, 'there' for our children in the classroom.

Parents can't pick up the all pieces if a school fails their child. IMO choosing a school that's right for your child is one of the most important decisions you will make.

candy, rozzy - i completely agree with everything you have mentioned so far, being a primary school teacher in a so called 'rough inner city' school in the centre of birmingham, i am only too aware of the pitfalls and negative comments i hear about such schools.

just thought i would give you some support in this very heated discussion, from which there seems to be a huge porportion of those partaking in the 'private education' route!

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just want to add something else to my last message: at each of his state primaries, my son has had some excellent teaching. I don't think that's the problem. In his last school, a weak head teacher who gave her hard-working staff inadequate support which added to their heavy burden, making them unable to give their best.

Also, the great number of supply teachers at his last school meant my son experienced less consistency and routine in the classroom. This definitely affected both his behaviour and his work. I'm sure the individual teachers were fine, it was just that he had so many of them.

Though my children re at private school now, some of their best and most formative years were ina state primary.

When my daughter passed the exam at 7, we deliberated for a long time whether to send her then or not. We decided to keep her at her primary school, (although the juniors is a separate school, separate head) she was so happy there and they had been extremely good about extending her ability. Her teacher wrote on her report DD is extremely gifted at Maths, she achieved level 4 is KS1 sats. The juniors continued to build on this and she had some of the most dedicated caring teachers I could ever meet.

In year 6, the teacher borrowed text books from local secondary schools to progress a small group of children. They all achieved level 6 at KS2. I know how much time and own resource and monet teachers put in outside of their remit, and I too tried to show our appreciation of this with support, and in supplying the school with items such as computers and printers that companies were scrapping as outdated (but to schools state of art!)

My children love their private schools, but their state primary will always have a special place in their hearts and mine. I am always welcomed back whenever I visit, and they are proud themselves of what my children have achieved as they know they were part of that process.

Candy you're not offending anyone at all. You are describing the ideal of parenting in what you would like parents to do with their children. If all parents were like this it would not only help the teachers to teach well but possibly solve most social ills such as young criminals, etc. Again I have to say parents who send their children to a good private school cannot be blamed for the lack of interest that any other parents may or may not have in their children, the school their children attend, etc.Please blame the government's lack of investment. After all, I am still paying my taxes for state education even though not using it.Tigermoth, have to say I always love how reasonable and readable your posts are.

That's it - I've had my say now and am exiting this discussion! However, Chick, thanks for the support and guess what?! I teach in Birmingham too! Would love to hear more from you!

Candy, I'm sorry the last few posts made you so angry. I think they contain lots of support for state school teachers, even if they are appproaching the issue from a different angle to yours.

Absolutely ks!

i think what it comes down to is thhis (regarding the amount of time a teacher spends preparing!)

it can be as much or as little as you want... i can whizz off a very badly prepared lesson, with few resources, not much differentiation, not much to enthuse the children... a boring chalk and talk lesson basically...

this sort of lesson would take me minimal preparation time, very little effort... but would get me slated by anyone who was officially observing (ofsted, headteacher etc) and more importantly would be of very little learning educative use for the children...and if you have the sort of children i have, a badly prepared lesson = boredom and misbehaviour!

however those lessons which are really good and exciting take a lot of time preparation and care!

if you are a conscientious teacher, wanting to do your very best, an excellent lesson would take me ages to prepare as i would love to get evrything spot on! - so this would involve making sure all resources were to hand, are prepared (access to rulers, rubbers, sharpened pencils (less time sharpening - it's amazing how much time children can waste sharpening pencils!), lots of visual stiimulation involving, OHP's, computers, big and small diagrams/pictures for class and indiviual use...good differentiation, work appropriate for special needs, struggling, capable, more than capable, extension work for the more than capable, making sure i get round to all of them to ensure i spot the ones who are struggling and push on the ones who are 'resting' etc etc - lots more but it is too early in the morning to get into teacher mode!!!

now that's what it's like when you want to teach on top form which i am ashamed to say i don't always teach like that because if i did that 100% of the time it would absolutely kill me!! Just as long i have my differentiation, and it is an interesting exciting lesson (in delivery as much as resources), it does take some time to prepare...

however... i'll tell you the basics...

my usual day starts from 8:55 - 3:00...there are basically 4x1 hour lessons and 2 x 30 mins lessons, for all of these lessons i would need to be aware of what i am teaching and why, with objectives and aims made clear in my planning, i would refer to previous and future lessons, with a nod towards the national curriculum. All these lessons are included in a larger overview of the term or half term, showing where i plan to strat the topic and how it will progress.

so we don't just walk into the classroom and think.... hmmmm sunny day today... let's go and do some pe.. everything istimetables to the hilt...

i would normally get in for 7:30am and get the resources, photocopying etc ready and school starts at 8:55 with 15 mins morning break, 40 mins luch break and 10 mins afternoon break...finsih at 3:00pm, but usually there's a hour staff meeting, 30 min key stage meeting, a club here and there, a match here and there, help out with other teachers, marking (30 sets of work for 5-6 lessons!), getting ready for the next day, seeing parents etc...so i generally leave at 5pm (quite conservative!!) then when i get home, i like to look over what i need to do, try to get my marking done, back work for displays, get resources ready for the next day etc etc... could go on and on...probably missed out somethings and stated the obvious... but apologies for half sleepyness....

i've been off for almost a year now (go back in june) and will be part time... so this may all change (will definitely!) and gotten a little rusty (not been in teacher mode for a tme).. but like i said in the begginning, you can devote as much or as little time... but to be a good teacher... it does take a lot of effort!!!... it's very easy to when you are tired just to say sod it!!!! and waltz in with hardly anything prepared! (we've all done it now and again to keep sane!)

hope this helps!!!

sorry for the very long ramble!!!

but

Oh Chick YES YES YES!!!!!!

No, No Meg Ryan orgasms here - just a total recognition of the life of a 'good' teacher.
As said before not 100% of us are - but an awful lot.
Chick - I can speak from a 2 days a week perspective and it is very different.
Before I was head of department and work was my whole life - I adored it but it really did take over my whole life - I would work pretty much every evening until at least 9pm and usually most of Sunday.
Now so much less is demanded of me ( management in schools is a joke - it's like herding cats - and about as effective much of the time - we have NO carrots and NO sticks so all we can do is ask nicely and try and inspire people by our 'shining example'.... It's draining - and frustrating.
For all that I get cross when people imply I have short hours and long holidays so can't work very hard - I also feel VERY strongly that the teaching unuions should be more accepting of meaningful appriasal ( I left the NUT because of its complete rejection of it)
But I digress!
My 'standard scale' 2 days a week are SO much easier - especially as I am teaching in my 'own' department so know the ropes! There is a real temptation to make every lesson really good just because I have more time - but I try to resist!- And when you are job sharing you do have to be very very organised and think ahead - but I work in the eveings far far less now. That said I do do far more that I am paid for - e.g. going in on days I don't work to drop off materials for a lesson my job share partner is teaching - and of the 4 days over Easter that were 'holiday' - 2 were spent working pretty solidly at home and a half was spent in school.
But Dd is 'my life' now not school - so the balance has completely changed - and in some ways I miss my old job - but my current life is a LOT less stressfull and tiring!