No teacher for sixth form subject

[hoxtonbabe]

Hi,

So I need some advice on where to go with this. My DC started a newly introduced subject at their school sixth form. At first all was fine, however about 6 weeks in the subject teacher was off and the pupils were all left to self teach, then eventually the teacher left in December.

The school didn’t initially inform parents of this but when my DC told me ( so this would be around late November ) I contacted the school asking what was happening and if they could change subjects, anyway the school was saying it was a bit too late to switch etc, however my argument was, you don’t have a teacher to provide the lesson and setting our children up for trouble later down the line if this isn’t sorted sooner rather than later.

Anyhoo, they did a round of interviews in December with the hope to have someone start by the latest in the summer Term ( so in April) but it seems that there was no one suitable so they started online lessons for the kids with a teacher from a different school, with the hope of being able to find someone to start after Easter. As it stands they still haven’t hired a teacher so looking like the online lessons will continue till the end of the school year. My DC has said while the online teaching is better than nothing, they still want to have a proper teacher as they learn better that way and it’s all a bit of a mess.

I pointed out to the school that online learning was acceptable during COVID plus exam marking/boards took this into account at the time but now in 2024/2025 everything is back to
normal and what makes it worse the subject in question wasn’t one that was on offer as a subject or GCSE so my DC is literally learning from scratch. To add, the online teacher had the audacity to say my DC isn’t contributing in the lessons. My DC has always been a bit quiet and teachers over the years know this but that’s not to say DC isn’t taking in the information etc, so my DC is annoyed by this as they are saying they do actually contribute in lessons as they are lessons they picked and interested in. I feel like the teacher is saying this to use as the excuse of my DC low grades so rather than admit this online learning is not working well, let’s just say the kid isn’t interested.

DC other subjects are fine/on target, and it’s only this online one that’s low. My concern here is DC will essentially not have proper teaching for the whole academic year bar 6-8 weeks and when they apply to Uni or an apprenticeship their other 2 subjects with the appropriate teaching will be fine and then this online subject will be a D or something.

I do understand that issues can arise but to go practically a whole school year with online teaching only I can’t see it ending well for my DC and the school have gone quiet on this as in no updates.

Thanks in advance

If they can't recruit a teacher they can't recruit a teacher.

Not sure what else to suggest.

The online lessons are quite common for my subject - I teach maths and often further maths a level is online across a number of schools due to not many students doing it in any one school.

It could go in the contextual bit of the UCAS form, as it will have affected his studies.

But, if you can’t get a teacher, you can’t get a teacher.

What subject is it @hoxtonbabe ? There are some where there is a real shortage of teachers.

Is there some reading and extra work that your DC could do to supplement? As a last resort, could you consider a tutor – tho I agree you shouldn't have to be paying and ofc it may also be hard to find a tutor for the subject.

It's not right, but it seems that the school have tried to hire a suitable replacement and have been unable. I would assume that they are still advertising/trying to find a better solution.

This happened to sixth form pupils in a variety of subjects over the last few years at my school - there's a severe shortage of teachers. The options the school currently has are to continue with the online lessons and to hope to recruit for September, or to cancel the A-level.

Which subject is it? MNetters might be able to suggest some good resources. Trying to find a tutor might also be a good idea if you can afford it.

There is a box on the UCAS application form where the school can put that she didn't have a teacher for the course and then was taught online which unis should take into consideration. Make sure your DD reminds them about this when the time comes to write UCAS applications.

This happened with my son when he was doing his Resistant Materials GCSE. Teacher went off ill within a few weeks of the start of the course (year 10) and the class was taken by a succession of temps/cover teachers, most of whom had no idea at all about Res Mat. Not only that, but because they didn't have a "qualified" teacher, none of them could use any of the equipment! Meanwhile the other "qualified" teacher who was HOD was merrily teaching other year groups (who weren't taking GCSEs) which seemed very strange - surely it would have been better to prioritise the GCSE cohort and let the supply/cover teachers cover the years 7/8/9 tech classes where they weren't going to be as badly affected. Made no sense. Needless to say most of the class got very low marks - hardly surprising when they weren't allowed to use any equipment. Most basically just did the "theory" project, the planning/research etc and then the written exam, but had nothing tangible to be marked upon in the way of the radio/lamp or whatever they'd have made if they'd been able to!

This is really unfortunate. Unfortunately the school cant magic up a teacher but that said I don't think they have handled it very well. They should have communicated straightaway that the teacher had left, back in October half term it wouldn't have been too late to start an alternative A-level but it probably is now.

Hopeully you can point this out in the UCAS form - it's rotten luck for all affected.

As other PPs have said, not ideal at all but I'd be looking to get a private tutor on board asap assuming the DC wants to carry on with this subject.

Ok. I do think it definitely needs to be highlighted when it comes to applications but i wasn’t sure how that all worked so thanks for pointing that out.

He is at a boarding school on a full bursary so i certainly don’t have the finances for private tutoring but even sorting it out would be a nightmare as they are already providing the online lessons in the evening when the online teacher is done with their day at their school.

It’s computer science. Annoyingly my eldest DC studied IT at college and uni but not specifically computer science as that’s more math based and eldest DC was terrible at maths and actually not NT so he could have tried to help but he’s not patient to teach, but even he said ideally with CS you need an in class teacher, and my DC in sixth form did actually explain to me why certain parts of the course needs would be better face to face as I assume with it being IT that would be an easy subject to do online, they both shot me a look that told me otherwise, lol

As other PPs have said, not ideal at all but I'd be looking to get a private tutor on board asap assuming the DC wants to carry on with this subject.

Dc expressed they want to do something else from back in December but the school are having none of it and basically saying they have to stay on the course.

Ah I did wonder if it was CS. Only the fact that he hadn't done it for GCSE made me wonder if it was something not usually offered at GCSE (like gov pol or psych).

There is a very serious shortage of CS teachers across the UK. It's a real issue – not that that helps you or your DS. A bit poor though that the school has not flagged it earlier.

Is it something DS wants to take on to uni? what a nightmare indeed.

The school are not wrong for not recruiting someone who wouldn't meet what they needed. It's better there's a teacher online than none at all, or one who was not any good in the room.

You're going to have to work with this teacher, as it's the best chance. If they say your child doesn't contribute, actually think about the fact that this is probably true (you say he is like this), and given the lack of ideal circumstances, is more important than ever. Don't assume that because things haven't worked out, this teacher is the enemy and must be lying to cover themselves. It's likely this extra work doesn't affect them whether the kids pass or not, as they are helping out.

They, or at least their boss, will have agreed to do this for the benefit of these pupils - it won't be what they want either, in terms of online lessons or additional workload or timetable changes.

Online or not, this teacher knows how to teach the subject, is willing to do so, and needs your child to cooperate to get the most out of it.

Could you share the subject so teachers on here can recommend resources?

Sorry, I see you've confirmed that now.

CS is awful to recruit for!

People who have a CS degree earn a lot in industry or even doing freelance. Who wants to train to be a teacher, earns 1/2 or 1/3 of the salary and gets hassled by the parents?

online lessons are harder to teach, especially if the students just turn of the camera and mute themselves. Ask your child if they turn on their camera, talk to the teacher, ask and answer questions.