Mystery of school workbooks/ homework diaries retained by school

[PastSellByDate]

Hello

I'm hoping someone out there may be able to clear up a small mystery for me. I'm in no way upset - just curious to understand if this is 'normal' or not - as quick survey at work seems to indicate it is a bit unusual.

Usually, at the end of the school year, our school sends children home with their school workbooks (these are books with a few (ca. 10 - 12 items) 'fine' examples of our children's work in science/ maths/ English glued into a A4 sized scrap book for each subject and homework books.

I have to admit I'm still not clear whether this is all the work my kid did in school last year or there is more elsewhere or possibly discarded at the time.

For whatever reason the school kept all these workbooks back last year. At the time we were told this would help teachers at the start of this school year by comparing last year's work with this year's work so far.

I'm just curious to understand if this is something that happens at your school - or if you are a teacher how this helps?

Thanks

Our school in previous years has sent everything home. This year DD is in Y6 and they kept back any exercise books that had space left so that they could be used this year rather than issuing everyone with completely new books. Might be a cost saving exercise. We have an interim head who has changed lots of things. This seems to be one of them.

Schools are required to keep back at least some of the books in case OFSTED visit in the Autumn term and want to monitor books (the books for the new term would have insufficient work in). Sometimes it's just easier to keep all of them, rather than send some home and not others. If the work was done on paper and glued into a scrapbook, it sounds like a display book for "best" work.

We keep back the work from three children in each class for moderation. They are usually returned at the end of the next year so books kept in Y1 are returned at the end of Y2. We always tell parents that we are keeping the stuff though!

Most of the time we get all workbooks back. The exception being one year when the school was expecting an inspection at the start of the new acedemic year. They kept back all books sot hey'd have soemthing to show the inspector.

Yes, sounds like an inspection thing. They kept my DD's book back last year but she got it back eventually.

In our case Ofsted is due and the school announced at the end of the year that they will hold back the books until the inspection is over.

Mixture of both at DS old school; keeping books back for inspectors and also not starting a fresh exercise book if there was a lot of space in the old one.

We keep literacy, maths & science for the following year. Just as well ... we had Ofsted in the first full week of term and they DID ask to see last year's books!

Thanks - hadn't thought about an inspection so that may well be it.

These are definitely glue in display type books with only a small selection of work. However, not all pages used - so maybe they're continuing to use these books?

parent/ teacher meetings in a few weeks so I may find out more then.

In Kent schools tend to retain all year 5 books until the Kent Test(11+) has been sat, in case they are needed for Headteacher appeals.

Interesting point jeee - but I'm not in Kent, although this is an 11+ area my understanding is there aren't HT appeals - it's just down to your score on the day here.