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Higher education

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Original poster

Humiliated Sons Exam results publicised

409 replies

Frances39 · 08/09/2017 01:21

My son received his A-level results this August and is about to head off to university. However his college which he attended in their assemblies have being showing his picture and results in all the assemblies. My son did very well despite several unfortunate happenings during his exams, however he did very mediocre compared to the rest of the leavers. In their assembly's they put up the A*AA etc. students up and those going to Oxford/Cambridge, then they went on to show my sons grades and his less prestigious university as some kind of charity case. My son has not left his room now for a couple of days since hearing about what the school did, he did not even tell his close friends what grades he got. He feels humiliated and violated that they would do such a thing without his consent and that he was contrasted with Oxbridge students. I have no idea what I should do, I will he contacting the school and maybe a solicitor. I cannot imagine what my son must be experiencing

OP posts:
Headofthehive55 · 08/09/2017 07:57

I am horrified that they did this.
They have broken data protection laws.
Imagine a hospital publishing individuals success on a operation without consent?

Children after a levels can be very sensitive and it can be upsetting.
My DD didn't do as well as her friends. She felt unable to celebrate and didn't enjoy going off to uni as it wasn't the one she wanted.

I would have been mortified had they used her as an example.

MollyHuaCha · 08/09/2017 08:02

When I was at school and far fewer pupils did A levels (just around 20 at our school), our names and individual results were published in the local paper. No permission was asked.

OP, I understand how your DS must be feeling. But maybe now it's time to move on and look to the next few years.

Give your DS a hug, tell him the school were out of order, then move on. No point in making a mountain out of a molehill.

saffronwblue · 08/09/2017 08:02

Completely understand your reaction - this would have sent my son over the edge in this raw time when he was getting his head around disappointing results and a different pathway.

frumpety · 08/09/2017 08:02

A friends child didn't do as well in her A levels as expected because of various things happening at home . She still got a place at Uni doing a course she was passionate about . She got a 1st degree and is now starting her Masters . A levels are a stepping stone , remind your son he is on the next step and hasn't fallen face first into the water Smile

UrmomTM7 · 08/09/2017 08:03

I'm an exams officer in a secondary school and this is extremely bad practice by the school!! I'd be fuming! The results belong to ur son And ur son only! We don't even release gcse and alevel results to their own parents without written permission from the actual student! You should make a complaint and speak to their exams officer.

OuaisMaisBon · 08/09/2017 08:06

Again, to those talking about their own results being published where everyone who walks past a noticeboard/reads a newspaper can see them - can you not see that this is completely different to the marks being read out loud to an entire assembly in a community which knows you, with a photograph, and being singled out in contrast to successful Oxbridge candidates to the extent that the neighbours know about it and comment on it to the OP?
I agree with Headofthehive55 about some children being fragile after their A level results - and mortified is the right word.

Fintress · 08/09/2017 08:09

When I was at uni you found out your degree classification by seeing them pinned to the main noticeboard, they were also published in the press. You had the option to opt out of both, which I did even though I knew I had a attained a good degree. If they are going to announce results in a school there should be an opt out clause.

SuburbanRhonda · 08/09/2017 08:11

Which data protection law has been broken,head?

Whatsforu · 08/09/2017 08:11

Yes they should of got his permission but calm down. It sounds like they were showing all paths apprenticeships included. Be proud of your son and stop getting hung up on the so called prestigious universities. I am getting fed up with the culture of A*'s or your future is ruined. Rubbish!!!

Willow2017 · 08/09/2017 08:18

OP said her son did well considering things that have happened in his life in the past year but the school have put up his photo and grades as someone who has just scrapped by to get to a lesser uni.

Several pupils have told her how it was done and what the reaction was not just one.

In what universe is that a good thing to do to someone?

Its done now but I would be telling the school the effect it had on her son and to take it down pdq.

SandyDenny · 08/09/2017 08:19

Maybe a data protection expert could clarify whether a school reading out pupils results inside the school is covered by the law. Personally I doubt it but it would be helpful for it to be confirmed.

I'm another one who grew up with all exam results being published in the local paper and university results being put up on a noticeboard. I'm sure that was even more difficult for students who didn't do as well as they'd hoped.

I do agree that you should contact the school and ask what was actually said. It's not relevant whether they meant to humiliate, the result is the same. You might be able to stop someone else being in the same position in the future.

In one of my DCs schools one department has a notice board with pictures of the previous years cohort with their grade complete with suitable sad faces from those who didn't get A or B.

Kewcumber · 08/09/2017 08:19

I don't understand why people are being so dismissive. A levels are a huge deal and people can get great results and still be disappointed and struggle to deal with it on top of the uncertainty involved in leaving home for the first time. Schools should be well used to that and understanding of it - using his picture and grades and destination publicly in an assembly is very poorly judged. Our school doesn't publish what schools people are individually are going to at 11 just a list of schools.

Forget solicitors, thats just your knee jerk reaction because your child is hurt. Contact the school and explain how upset he is about being used as he feels as an example as how you can "scrape into a university" even if you do badly as I'm sure they didn;t mean it that way - maybe someone he respects from school could write to him and apologise and say they were intending to convey how proud they are of his getting into BC university and how they'd love him to come back and talk to the sixth form later in the year to share his experiences.

Rufustherenegadereindeer1 · 08/09/2017 08:23

What maisbon said

I completely see why you and you son are upset, i would be

I think it was tactless and badly handled

And for those saying they were only praising him

'and special mention should go to frances junior who worked incredibly hard this year, Passed all his A levels and got into his first choice university.'

Or tell the story and don't mention his name...its very easy to inspire children with out a name number and photo

HarHer · 08/09/2017 08:25

In my opinion, the school should have asked every person if it was OK to publicise his/her results in this way (although this would have been an onerous task). However, your priority now should be your son. He has done incredibly well. He is going to university. He has shown how strong he is. Many people have a patchy start to university life (myself included) and go on to have sparkling careers and make fantastic friends.

Why not write a letter of complaint to the school about their practice of publicising names and results without consent, but focus on building up your son's esteem for the next step in his life (as many posters have already said).

greit · 08/09/2017 08:25

Very sensitive time for your son, what were the college thinking?

I can't believe how anyone can compare this to everyone's results being stuck on a wall. We all know this won't matter further down the line, but right now it matters a lot to one young man. It's really not on.

OuaisMaisBon · 08/09/2017 08:25

Kewcumber - now that would be a great outcome all round!

Kewcumber · 08/09/2017 08:26

Exam results are personal data (when allied with teh name of the person) and you just can't release personal data to whomever you choose, whenever you choose without the permission of the person involved.

There is specific guidance on this for schools

"Publishing Exam Results
The Data Protection Act does not stop schools from publishing exam results online or in the local pres. But if you intend to do so, you must act fairly. Inform students first that their results will be published and how the information will be displayed. For example, will the results be published in alphabetical order or in grade order? The latter can be quite controversial. This gives the student time to object and withdraw their result from the list if desired.

Students also have the right to make a subject access request to see their examination script, marks or markers’ comments. These should be provided if called upon. However, information comprising of the answers given by a candidate during an exam cannot be provided. This means a subject access request cannot be used to obtain a copy of the student’s completed exam script."

Maybe the school thinks reading them out in assembly isn't "publishing" but I think they're wrong.

Anyway going that route won't help OP's son (although school should have this pointed out to them).

Whatsforu · 08/09/2017 08:26

What they did was not ideal but come on life is going to hit harder than this. How about teaching your son how to pick himself up from difficult situations. Things are not always going to go his way. I think we are trying to protect kids too much and when things go wrong they don't know what to do.

frumpety · 08/09/2017 08:29

The local paper here also prints every child's GCSE and A level results , from every local school , I hadn't realised that this was unusual .

Oldie2017 · 08/09/2017 08:30

Although the Data Protection Act 1998 prohibits publishing of your personal data without permission in many cases, it may well be that the school rules which you accept on entry to the school allow the publication (go off and read them) but if not it may well be a breach of the Act. However I would just complain to the school and leave it at that. Things are difficult in life and learning how to deal with them can be as important as anything else.

museumum · 08/09/2017 08:30

The school are absolutely wrong.

But your son is going off to uni and need never see anyone from school again. It's the past and over and done with. I think you send a strongly worded letter explaining to them my it was wrong then forget about it. Don't ask for a response or apology, just move on and leave it behind.

Kewcumber · 08/09/2017 08:35

oldie you could be right but I have a feeling that exam results may well come under "sensitive" personal information which wouldn't allow a blanket authority to disclose.

Though to be fair it's been some years snce I've been a data complaince officer so am a bit rusty.

senua · 08/09/2017 08:43

I think you (plural) need to have a rethink about whether your DS goes to University this autumn - he does not seem to be in the right mental frame of mind.

Purplemeddler · 08/09/2017 08:44

Exams results aren't sensitive personal data, although it's possible that the GDPR may change that next year.

I was also of the generation where all GCSE and A level results were published although they didn't publish grades, just added a next to the subject if you'd got an A (in the days before As).

I would raise this with the school as others have suggested.

CancellyMcChequeface · 08/09/2017 08:45

The school was completely in the wrong and it's not at all comparable to putting up a list of everyone's results. To those of you mentioning university, it seems a bit more like talking about the individual students who got high Firsts during a speech and then saying 'and also, this is Bob, he got a Third but he still has a job lined up, good for him.'

Regardless of whether there are particular circumstances which mean that even a lower grade is a very good outcome for him, it's very inappropriate and in his situation I'd find it humiliating, too. You aren't over-reacting.