How many Mums are dissatisfied with their DCs primary school?

[CrosswordAddict]

There seem to be a lot of dissatisfied Mums on MN and primary schools seem to be particularly disappointing. Any strong views? And if so, how can Mnetters become a force for change/improvement?

Sorry my posting has cross the ones asking if the original post is from a journalist.

Does make you wonder

Time to end this thread!

I assumed not as I've seen the OP's name on here before.

I agree...no I read the op, and the fact that she is no where to be seen... It is time to end this thread...

now - Im tired!!!

Liby don't mean to be pedantic but it should have been their children - you are a teacher ?????

whoops - sorry, I have now read a few posts and have seen you've already been given a hard time - I will step away from the thread

People have already pointed that out...you are a bit late. I already feel like a sh1t teacher because of it... [bluh]

grrrr - i'm typing like an infant today.

...but just to say that in DS' yr 1 class, they don't ever read to the teacher and the TA only hears them read once a week in guided reading. I am appalled at this and this is supposed to be one of the nicest primary schools in the county

I think it is unfair to highlight typing errors at 11:30pm. I do it all the time on here

I am sorry liby that you have had a bad day. I think all of us on here who are teachers have posted something on here when we are tired tha does not represent us on top form. We have then had the expected flaming.

Hope you feel better soon

Thanks!!

Vintageteacups - please just read yourself with your little one as much as you can. He will get a better love of reading from you than his teacher can ever give him.

jenandberry - you cannot mistype their for there - the 'i' is across the opposite side of the keyboard. Anyway, my solution to the whole primary ed thing is to have school managers instead of head teachers.

I truly think schools could be run far more effectively by a business person/army officer than a head teacher. The HT could then concentrate on implementing the curriculum and the school manager could run the rest of it and the discipline/staff/planning/budget etc.
The same for secondary schools too.

Luckily Liby, I read a lot with him and he has really come on in the last couple of months (much as I hate Biff and Kipper books). I believe school ed is just a small part of how a child learns and that parents also have so much to teach (and I don't mean only academically)

I give you that over the their/there although sometimes you muddle the two up when you are tired. I am sure it is a mistake liby does not make when she is at work.

Many secondary schools have financial managers or bursars who no not have a teaching background for the reasons that you give, Primaries are a much smaller operation.

sorry if you do already - some parents don't...

Mine are in prep school after we gave the local school a go, one of the best in the county apparently.
The things that the prep school do differently are not rocket science at all, I often think Christ am I really paying for this but it's simple practice and repetition, they read every day to the teacher, they write their letters over and over until their handwriting in year 2 is beautiful, they sit and say their tables over and over until they sink in, same with their French.
It sounds boring as hell but the teachers make it fun, the children enjoy it and the benefits come into their own when they move up to junior school and they've already nailed the basics and can cope with more complex work.

mamatomany - i don't think that we would be able to do that in a state primary!! where is the VAK?

Wow - the best state school in the county wasn't good enough for your DC!!

Our primary is lovely - no traffic light system but an "apstep cahrt" where they up a level each time they do some thing good/nice and at lvel 10 they get to have special time. Poor behaviour is dealt with by a less public system of warnings and time out which seems to work well.

Teacher seems able to judge th eright level of ability for the children I have come across. Reading is done in teh corridor (for the whole school which also works well and is quieter.

Parents volunteer to do book changes and sort out the maths packs.

The school has an extremely competent business manager.

have I missed anything? Oh higher than teh local average percentage of SEN children but significantly above the national average for results. And an all round good school.

Liby - if you are anything like my DS's reception teacher I would forgive you teh odd misuse/typo of a work late at night. I'm an accountant - I've been known to ass things up wrong but most people can't add up in their head very well so they rarely spot it.

addd things up wrong

Mama, prep schools have the option to do things differently of course, which not all state schools do. At dd's school around a third of pupils have SENs, and over half of the children have English as a second language, with many at the early stages of learning English. You just don't get that volume of need at your average prep school.

I agree mamatomany, the difference is so simple yet so effective. The numbers in the class though I believe make the biggest difference.

Well yes, I guess that is what I pay for then.

OK ? in response to OP?s question - The best schools have high quality teachers led by high quality leaders! Why doesn?t every school have this? That?s the political question.

What puts off the best candidates going into or maybe remaining in teaching? For me it?s never being able to concentrate on the job of actually teaching because all the paperwork e.g. finding APP evidence that backs up what I know from my lesson observations ? but if it?s not written down somewhere it doesn?t count (guess what I?m spending half term holidays doing?!) or applying for Healthy School Status. It?s having new initiative after new initiative before we?ve embedded the previous one; the view that we always seem to be in the wrong; working 50 ? 60 hours a week in term time, but always having more expected of us; for many it?s the pay ? they can earn far more in industry; the lack of respect for our professionalism. Most of us put up with the grotty bits because we love working with children and believe we can make a difference. But to ensure we get the best teachers we do have to make the profession attractive.

Then there?s what puts teachers off applying for headships? I think some parents would be amazed how difficult many schools find it to appoint a new head. I certainly wouldn?t want all the stress and aggro.

What can MN do to make a difference? If they had that answer to that they?d make a million! How can they make teaching a profession that the best people see as worth training for? How can they ensure the best teachers remain in the profession and don?t get jaded, frustrated or burnt out? How can they ensure headteachers have the time to focus on the really important aspects of running a school?

Visual, Auditory, and Kinesthetic Learning Styles ??

Oh it's all covered Liby, the teachers are a mixture of old war horses and young ones with lots of fresh ideas, the children with special needs are given additional help but they aren't allowed to fall behind or drag anyone else down by distracting them or hogging the teachers attention.

Numbers shouldn't be an issue as I am often told the state schools have a minimum of 1 to 15 ratio with TA's so those children should be out performing mine, but they aren't.

I agree my beef is with the school very little of that (and only for specific things) is directed at the teachers.