If DS got A for attainment but 3 for effort, does this mean he's not being challenged?

[chicaguapa]

DS is 8 in y3. A means working above national average and 3 means sometimes makes an effort (compared to usually or always).

We've had a few problems with DS and this year's teacher (there have been previous threads about this). But DH said he wouldn't have been able to send a report like that as it says the pupil isn't being challenged.

DS used to be so motivated at school but has entered lazy territory. DS says the work's too hard btw, not too easy and just can't be bothered.

I wondered what the MN jury and/or primary school teachers thoughts were?

Maybe the teacher is challenging him but he isn't rising to it?

Have you seen any of the work in question? Can you set similar work at home and tell for yourself what he's capable of? Without examples of both it's hard to tell. (It's also hard to tell how accurate the teacher's opinions of his effort are.)

what subject is it in . Sounds like he is coasting and teacher believes he isn't reaching his potential ie maybe he shies away from trying the harder/extension questions.

I would say this is a mixture of everything.
Attainment wise DS is above where he should be on average but the teacher obviously feels from the effort score that DS could be doing more and should be doing more.
The question for you then becomes whether DS is being challenged by the teacher but is simply not responding ( being lazy) or is being challenged but the teacher is pitching the work at too high a level so they are overawed (can't do it) or whether DS is simply not being challenged as DH is suggesting.
In two of the three cases this would appear to come down to a teacher capability issue and even in the third case where it is down to DS not responding it says something about the relationship between teacher and pupil.
Would suggest that at the very least you need to talk to the teacher to establish their view about what is going on and put to them DS's view that the work is too hard.

I think you need to speak to his teacher in the New Year. My dc's school has just brought in reports with 'attainment' and 'effort' - a number doesn't really tell you that much.

The important questions are 'why isn't he making much effort?' and 'what can you do to help him improve this?' which you will only work out with a face to face meeting.

i would say he needs to work harder, but yes maybe he needs more challenging work?

I would think he's a lucky chap - being able to achieve so well without really trying. However, I would be talking to him about why the teacher is having to report that he's not putting the effort in.
been there, done that, got the t-shirt.

is it possible that the report is telling you exactly what it says - that your ds is bright and capable but that he doesn't work very hard or put as much into his work as he could? I would personally be talking to my ds to say that he needs to try harder so that he gets a higher effort grade next time. I would also make an appointment to speak to teacher to ask what she would like to see from him. Alternatively you could choose to make this the teacher's fault for either not being interesting enough or not working hard enough. I would also personally be pleased that the teacher is bothering to report truthfully to you. IME many teachers tend to gloss over lack of effort if the grades are OK as they probably think the parents don't really want to hear anything negative. I wonder where they get that impression from?

I think you've answered your own question. DS said the work is too hard and he just can't be bothered. If I were you, I would work on the basis that this might be correct - and concentrate on how to get DS to make effort - rather than assuming it's the teacher's fault for not "challenging" him enough.

What Lizs said.

He's doing well but if he tried harder he'd do even better. That's how I would interpret that grade. Bright but lazy is not a good combination, if he can get out of that rut now it would be better than later.

Bright but lazy. Don't blame the teacher!

What Chubfuddler said.

But would be talking to the Teacher with and without DS to get to root of the problem

Thanks for the comments.

I think the relationship between DS and the teacher is key tbh and we need to work on that. She doesn't like DS and he's picked up on it and has no interest in working for her. We are speaking to DS about how it's his responsibility to make sure he does well at school and works the hardest he can.

Blaming the teacher is not a knee-jerk reaction btw. But I do think she should be questioning why his effort is a 3 if his attainment is above average, rather than simply reporting it as a failing on DS's behalf.

This is a teacher who can't find a good word to say about DS but previous years all we've heard is what a great addition he's been to the class etc. He's also had 1 for effort across the board in all reports at school. If his attitude has noticeably deteriorated this year compared to previous years, you would think it would raise a flag of some sorts and the teacher or school would question why.

I'm not teacher bashing btw as DH is one, but it does mean he compares what he's expected to do with what we're getting.

Sometimes the effort score is not just about laziness. My little boy got some low effort scores but these were more related to confidence issues (preferred feeling safe and knowing that he was right than pushing himself). It is not a criticism of the child but more an observation of his learning style. I think at this point you need more information.
In our case I think part of the problem lay with me as I sometimes over emphasised the importance of getting things right.

Good point nettlemummy . Is he naturally a risk taker , prepared to make mistakes and learn from them , or a perfectionist with a preference to be secure in his own knowledge ? There may well be a difference in personality between ds and the teacher in question but he is going to encounter that all through life and will need to rise above it.

Yes, he is a perfectionist, he gets that from DH so you might have hit on something there. It would explain why he thinks the work is too hard. He's in the top group for everything and is really good at maths but says he's rubbish and we've had comments from previous teachers about his lack of confidence.

Will mention it to the teacher. If he's being told off all the time, it'll just be perpetuating the feeling that he's lacking, rather than encouraging him to step up.

Thanks.

I think it might really help the teacher to hear from you about how your son is at home and the thoughts and feelings he has about school, we sometimes assume that our children's teachers know them well when of course they are one of thirty.