Teacher...a bit like Jordan...but worse

[Jinx1906]

Was hoping to get some advice here.

My dd is currently in year 4 and has been very lucky to have had a very nice teacher who has made good progress with her. From speaking to some of the other mums it seems that all are very happy with her.

On the friday before half terms DD had a letter in her schoolbag saying that DD's current teacher would look after the kids 2 days per week and that another teacher who has now returned from leave will be taking over the class 3 days per week. The trouble is that not only are we unhappy with the school's decision to replace a very popular teacher for the last half term of the year but that she is being replaced by someone who is not at all popular, appart from with some of the dads perhaps. My older daughter also had her in year 6, which was a complete waste of time. She was not able to maintain discipline in her class and was often rude or on the mobile chatting in front of her class.

I know that the school is not going to take our concerns on board. Some partents have already written to the school to voice their concerns but have not received any replies so far. I would very much like to do the same but is it reasonable to complain about a teacher putting a lot of cleaving on display, wear see through blouses and mini skirts whilst at work which is my main concern at this stage. The current teacher told me that the school reports are currently being put together and that all testing has now been done, so in terms of academic stuff I'm not that concerned. Not much happens in most schools during the last few weeks in any event.

Any advice very much appreciated.

Thank you mummies.

...and yes to some kind of dress code. However, a low cut top within reason should not be an issue (but then there is low cut and very low cut).

We do need to be teaching our boys though that comments about boobs are inappropriate....unless of course we expect our daughters to be fair game for those same boys in a few years time when they put on a lower cut top which shows some cleavage.

I became aware about the mobile phone issue because the girls came out of school and were talking about how she had bust up with the boyfriend and was teary when she put the phone down. I don't really mind if teachers have a phone in class and take urgent calls, but perhaps not to argue with the boyfriend?

Thing is JakeBullet, if my DD went to her secondary school dressed the way this teacher does, she would probably be send home!

All schools do have dress codes, and staff codes of conduct. If they are LA maintained schools they are usually pretty similar.
Luckily for teachers, head teachers do not provide parents with written notification of having bollocked a teacher about anything. Performance management is personal and private. You dont know what this woman has been through. If kids really havent made progress then the head and governors will be well aware, and she will have targets and possibly a capability procedure in progress. This is none of your business. The head doesnt have to tell you the sordid details. If you have a complaint, put it in writing and ask for some recognition of you having made it. Dont bitch in the playground.

For all you know she has been off having a miscarriage, or nursing a dying relative. Show some compassion and maturity for heavens sake.

Even if this woman had been through an awful ordeal this should not effect a class of 30 children. It is all very well for the head and governors to be aware of the lack of progress but it is then up to us parents to deal with it and as such very much our business. Our children are our business.

I use fake tan, have big boobs and fake nails .

I am still a great teacher.

No, it us up to the head and governors. Parents do not deal with teachers...what sort of popularity contest would that be?

And I am not saying bad teaching should be accepted. I an saying bitching about teachers in the playground is not the way to get something done. It is teaching your kids to be judgemental and cruel, meanwhile the head will think every complaint is more unfounded bitchiness. Complain in writing to head and govs once she had done something wrong. Ask for confirmation that your complaint has been received.

Is your DC a pupil at Waterloo Road?

Actually she is being very unprofessional. She is supposed to be a role model. It DOES matter how she dresses. I thought teachers had a dress code or something.

Don't believe you.

Every school I have worked at, primary and secondary, have dress codes. There is some leeway, but excessive cleavage and very short skirts would not be accepted and we would be pulled up on it.

We are not allowed our phones out in the classroom if children are about. I have a locker in the store cupboard and it goes in there on silent. Many schools have moved away from this as there are schools which have failed OFSTED due to presence of a mobile phone in the classroom - child protection grounds. Now again, there is some flexibility in this. I have known teachers use apps on their phone with children and it be all above board, and having a quick check at the time whilst it is in their bag, etc. and that's all been ok. But actually having a conversation in the classroom, in class time and with children present - in most schools that would be a disciplinary issue.

The behaviour/discipline thing also needs addressing. If school have received complaints then the school should investigate further.

And I am not sure how a class of children making no progress gets through either. We have half termly progress checks with the class teacher, TA, head and deputy head. The info about progress each half term goes on a computerised checker thing and it is all automatically colour coded, etc showing individual progress progress. If there is no movement over a full year this would be highlight very clearly and very much picked up on. The teacher would have to be able to explain why it was the case and what barriers to learning there might have been. This is done on an individual child basis, but also girl/boy breakdown and other breakdowns based on focus groups - EAL, SEN, BME, Pupil Premium, etc. AFAIK many schools use similar systems.

A school would not be outstanding if it didn't have evidence to back up pupil progress throughout each year.

Vess have you read the thread? Yes teachers do have dress codes. And staff codes of conduct. And disciplinary procedures and ofsted and performance management targets and lesson observations and marking scrutiny and members of the leadership team dropping in to do spot checks... And governors and heads who are responsible for discipline and staff management. Wonder how this teacher is managing to smuggle her tits past all that.

I think this is a wind up anyway.

I am not a teacher but AM a parent governor, there are huge policies that often parents have no idea about which is why I wonder about mobile phone use in the classroom as that does not sound right. As someone else says, OFSTED would take a very dim view of that so I wonder if there has been some misunderstanding about WHERE the phone was used. I would be very surprised if it was in the classroom in an OFSTED Outstanding school.

Schools do have dress codes as well, and certainly really inappropriate clothing should be dealt with by the Head.

As has been already said. If her dress is THAT inappropriate then her head will deal with it.
If you have an issue with her ability to do her job and you have actual evidence to support this then speak to the head.
Her appearance is pretty much irrelevant.
One if the best teachers I have ever had the privilege of working with was a full out goth. Black hair, piercings etc. she was amazing.

I am more concerned about the 11 year old future sex pests tbh. If they are spending whole days in the classroom with this woman and "have nothing to talk about but boobs" I would be seriously questioning their parenting and what role models they have at home.

I don't think it is fair to perceive us as gossiping parents. We are talking to each other about genuine concerns. The letter only came home on the Friday before half term. The parents I have spoken to have already written to the head during the half term. I intend to write something over the weekend, hence my post here asking for advice. My previous complaints about this teacher were documented in writing, or at least most of it. Having said that I don't know if I can still refer to this as this was a few years ago.

Am I the only one having a vision of the teacher trotting around the classroom looking like this

I think all you can do is address the teaching concerns but if those were a few years ago then tbh everything might have changed. It might be better to see how things are when she returns than condemn her already. How much leave has she had? Are we talking about two years out of just six months?

What type of leave was she previously on? You're a bit vague about that, did she disappear mid year and now is back or was she on a fixed term contract and has now been reemployed?
As to the lack of progress for a year, that's hard to fathom as pupil progress figures would have been looked at by ofsted.

She was away since last summer. Career break, do we have been told. That was the summer the year after DD1 had her. Loads of unhappy parents that year. In term of ofsted, school has not been inspected for some time because they have outstanding status apparently?

Also when we complained about lack of progress with DD1 we were told she had made good progress in year 5 and because she had achieved level 5 at the end of that year she would not have been tested beyond level 5. As such it was deemed appropriate that instead if giving her more challenging work she should help some of her peers who were struggling when she finished her work.

I just saw some pigs flying past my window!

Crock. of. shit.

So when you complained about her lack of progress last yr I assume she was dressing the same way? Did her appearance have anything to do with your complaint?

If the head was unhappy with her then she wouldn't be coming back to teach would she?

Sounds like a witch hunt to.me. You and the other complainers sound like you should live in Royston Vasey.