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Original poster

DS1 aged six in Year 2 totally undermarked by year 1 teacher - advice needed please

11 replies

carocaro · 13/10/2008 20:00

DS1 is six and was marked across the board as a 1 by his year 1 teacher. His year 2 teacher totallly disagrees and says he is quite far behind. She has given us some goals and additional things to try at home. But I am very angry at his year 1 teacher and her failings, I have drafted a letter to the head stating this. His teacher said lets see how he goes umtil Christmas, but I feel we have wasted a year already, he needs the help now. THe counties education philosophy is 'every child matters' and this is clearly not the case. There are three of them in the class who are in this situation.
What protocol can I follow to get some action?

Advice please as I am totally cross!

ccc

OP posts:

Reallytired · 13/10/2008 20:27

Rather than drafting a letter I would ask to see the special needs coordinator and ask verbally about progress.

Ie. Asking what national curriculum level was your son at the start of year 1, the end of year 1 and now. If the school is evasive about giving the information you can ask for it in writing. Legally the school cannot refuse to give you your son's national curriculum level data.

How did your child do in his foundation stage profile? Maybe your son has not settled into year 2 and shown his true ablity.

Year 2 is a big leap and my son has struggled with adjusting to year 2. My son has found it really upsetting that year 2 is very formal and there is no learning through play.

My son was put back in the school reading scheme from stage 9 to stage 7. He found it really upsetting being made to re read the same books. I went and saw her and persauded her to move him to stage 8. Even so he is reading these books without any effort.

A knock to the confidence can really damage a child's performance. What is your gut feeling? Do you think your child is struggling?

Original poster

carocaro · 13/10/2008 20:48

thanks RT, but he has not been classed as special needs, so cannnot really go down that route, I think? Good question about at the start/end of Y1. I think he is at a tipping point at the moment, he likes his teacher and class, which is good and helps him. My gut tells me more needs to be done.

OP posts:

MaloryDontDiveItsShallow · 13/10/2008 20:50

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Hassled · 13/10/2008 20:53

The school will have all sorts of data from the endless testing - the Bury Infant Check that is done when they start Reception and more. What's more important than where he is now (although obviously that matters) is how much progress he has made since he started school, whether he's met his targets etc. And if the SenCo isn't involved then I don't think the school can be especially concerned at this stage. Year 2 is a big change, especially after a long summer away from school - give it some time and try not to worry.

Romy7 · 13/10/2008 20:58

i would ask whether literacy and numeracy are taught in ability groups. i am expecting they are, in which case the yr 2 teacher will be working really hard to bring the levels up of this small group. they have SATS next spring/ summer, and the teacher will be perfectly aware of the necessity to concentrate on the ability levels of the whole class. i really wouldn't worry too much at this point - the teacher has recognised there is an issue and is working to remedy the situation. you can bet your bottom dollar that she is working her butt off between now and christmas and will be giving him all the help he needs. i'm sure she is aware of his profile, and will know what levels he was achieving in yr 1, but sometimes there is a wobble on starting yr 2, it is a big jump as SATS loom on the horizon and children are expected to work a little more independently...
i would just go through the additional stuff at home - being ticked about yr 1 is probably not going to help ds at this point. the yr 2 teacher is being very proactive, which is a good sign. if you have issues with the yr 1 experience, i would just make an appointment to speak with the head, but use it as a fact finding interview rather than going in all guns blazing - i'm sure the head will be able to reassure you.

mysonsmummy · 13/10/2008 20:59

wow i could have written that.....

ds 6 also got a 1a in his year 2 end of year report. his teacher has now called me in to say shes moved him back a colour in reading and he way far behind the other kids.

hes in the bottom group with kids that english is not even their first language. hes got no reason to be there really.

im not cross abut the year 1 thing though. there nothing i can do about it now. i just know i need to do more with him at home.

mysonsmummy · 13/10/2008 21:02

sorry i emnat end of year 1 report.

scaryteacher · 14/10/2008 07:23

Within the level descriptors there are three levels of a, b and c. Your son may well have been a level one, but you may not know how far up the level he is.

I would not get hung up about this. Children develop and learn at different rates and pushing you son will turn him off learning. The Year 2 teacher is concerned about SATS, which test the teachers ability to teach to a particular test, not the ability of the child. If she can sit down with you and give an honest teacher assessment across the board; not in just the SATS subjects, you will get a more accurate picture.

Be encouraging with your son and give him time and space. It's amazing that UK children start school so early, and yet we don't see good results the other end. Perhaps HMG can't see the bleeding obvious, that they need to play for longer, and not be fastened into the educationalstraitjacket quite so early on.

corriolliss · 14/10/2008 07:28

even if a child does not have any special needs, if he or she is not im[roving according to expected levels, then they should b e able to see the senco. i have two dc who saw the senco for years, despite having no special needs, other than that they just couldnt learn in a class ful of thirty kids.
some kids just need extra help, and the school should be able to provide it.

throckenholt · 14/10/2008 07:37

I think often when they change teacher there is a hiatus for a while - until they get to know each other and then things settle down again.

I remember parents evening this time last year when DS1 had just gone into year 2 - his teacher totally had no handle on him - she called him an enigma, said he hardly ever spoke, and incidentally his reading was a nightmare (my observation) and very slow at writing. I am guessing she would have struggled to give him average marks on anything. Equally DS had no idea how to deal with this new teacher. By the January they had both figured each other out - and by the end of the school year they were great mates and DS was marked at least average and mostly above.

If I were you I would hold my fire for a while and see if things sort themselves out. It may well not be that the previous teacher had overhyped things - it may just be a transition thing.

cory · 14/10/2008 08:56

I would give it a little time; it does sound like his new teacher is going to put work in. It's not necessarily the case that teacher 1 was totally wrong and teacher 2 completely right; it may be that he needs to find his feet. Sometimes children do take a step backwards, this is not necessarily due to faulty teaching, but may simply mean that they are adjusting. He is so little, it is unlikely that his chances in life will have been ruined even if he didn't quite learn all he was supposed to when he was 5. He's got 12 years to catch up!

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