So long St. Mediocre

[PastSellByDate]

Well it is an end of an era.

I joined MN in 2010 because we'd had about 6 months of trying to get help from the school with our struggling DD1 (May Y2 - slow reader/ barely able to add to 20/ unable to subtract) and the school had pretty much repeatedly told DH & I our expectations were too high - topping it off with the dreadful HT stating:

'What you need to understand Mrs. PSBD, is your DD1 just isn't that bright'.

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Do I have issues? Oh boy do I ever!

Have I lost faith in state education - totally!

Low brow

Uninspired

Chaotic

doesn't sum it up.

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But here on MN - I have found help. Many teachers & parents have made brilliant suggestions - leading to great websites/ resources/ ideas which have really helped.

DD1 finished Y2 KS1 SATs at NC L1 across the board. She finished Y6 KS2 SATs at NC L5/6. That would never have happened without Mumsnet members answering my questions/ giving their advice to help me help my DD1.

My advice to any who feel in their gut that something is amiss/ the school just isn't doing enough - stick to your guns.

Battling a school isn't easy - and I wouldn't advise it. But know that you can do more at home. The internet hosts a wealth of resources that can really make a difference and MN is brilliant as a place to come and moan/ rant/ scream HELP!!!!!!!!!!! On MN you can vent your anger (which is useful) - and get some positive help.

I know I've had my tiffs with some on PRIMARY TALK over the years - but part of that is that we parents only experience the education system in our small little corners of the UK. What happens in NI/ Wales/ Scotland or England - or even within cities - can be night and day to each other.

I think as parents we need to push for more consistency.

Just as we would expect a medical professional to handle notification of cancer with seriousness and compassion - and would understandably expect information to help us digest the diagnosis and explain our next options...

We need teachers to move toward that kind of professionalism - to be able to tell a parent/ agree with a parent that their child is struggling and provide useful guidance on what to do next.

Leaving a parent to it - is in no way 'professional'.

I take the point that not all parents will take so much interest - but I suspect more parents care about their child's education than teaching professionals give us credit for - and most parents - if wisely directed to useful resources/ methods/ techniques - will follow that guidance and can be a real asset to teachers - putting in those extra hours at home - and may just turn a struggling pupil into a successful one!

Thanks & happy summer everybody!

PSBD

[RaisinBoys]

Beer And of course the independent sector never lets children down, right?

SOME schools and SOME teachers in BOTH sectors are poor.

The OP's generalisations about the state sector are insulting and inaccurate.

The ease with which some posters slag off state education - a system that works and more importantly is the only option for the overwhelming majority - is staggering.

The "state school failing children" rhetoric is lame.

[Feenie]

[Wellthen]

I think most of the reposnses here are a reaction to continual condescension and 'us against them rubbish teachers' mentality.

No one has claimed that the op's school isn't rubbish, just that she needs a little perspective.

[spanieleyes]

The staff at St Mediocre are, apparently incompetent, cheats and liars. If that was my view of the people to whom I entrusted my child for 6 hours a day then there would be NOTHING that would stop me from removing my child.

[insanityscratching]

Dsil's experience of three (reputable) private schools hasn't been that what she was paying for would ensure dn's needs were met tbh. Fifteen years spending an absolute fortune and dn left with two barely scraped passes at A level at 19.
Funnily enough the state primary that he entered at four raised concerns with sil early on wanting to refer him to an ed psych. Dsil was horrified and paid for private to be told dn had no difficulties that the small class sizes wouldn't fix.
Dn spent fifteen years in schools isolated with his difficulties unrecognised and no peer group as he floundered academically, emotionally and socially. I'm sure there are poor teachers and poor schools but not all of them are in the state sector.

[Wellthen]

Also yy spaniel!

[Wellthen]

That was in relation to your post about shit parents.

[spanieleyes]

No-one disagrees that there are SOME poor schools and SOME poor teachers! What we disagree with is the apparent view that we are ALL poor teachers at poor schools because we chose to teach in the state system!

[spanish11]

I agree with PSBD, too many children are being tutored by parents or tutors. My dd is going to struggle in 2016.

[spanieleyes]

If the staff are incompetent, cheating liars, it IS as simple as "take your child out, then"

[spanieleyes]

PSBD says in her OP
Have I lost faith in state education - totally!
Low brow
Uninspired
Chaotic
doesn't sum it up

which is generalising somewhat surely!
If St Mediocre is low brow, uninspired, chaotic AND has incompetent, chealing liars as teachers, why on earth is ANYONE still there, let alone someone as vocal, pro-active and dynamic as PSBD!

[RaisinBoys]

*It's absolutely that simple...if the teaching is "shit" as you claim and you have no faith that your child will receive the education they deserve in the state sector, then of course you remove them.

Shouldn't be a problem for the parents on here to home educate whilst waiting for an appropriate school place. They are education specialists after all; no area of the curriculum would be beyond them. They are already doing all this supplementary teaching at home to fill the yawning chasms in our state education system!

[spanieleyes]

You seem determined to take criticism of some schools and some teachers as a swingeing judgement on all schools, spanieleyes. I'm not sure why that is, but it makes discussion very difficult.

Actually I said No-one disagrees that there are SOME poor schools and SOME poor teachers! What we disagree with is the apparent view that we are ALL poor teachers at poor schools because we chose to teach in the state system

[Wellthen]

Beer I've lost track of your point.
Teachers posting here have said that bad teaching does exist. We agree on this.

What we have argued against is psbd's constant spreading of this bitterness and generalisation that the profession as a whole needs to shape up.

Which you have agreed is a generalisation.

It does niggle a little to argue with a parent who, mostly has experience of one school, maybe two when we as teachers have done training in at least 3 schools and then gone one to teach in (in my case for example) 3 more.

[Wellthen]

Beer, explain to me what you feel incompetency is, within teaching.

I will then be able to tell you if there is any at my school.

To say there is one in every school is (another) huge generalisation and I am genuinely Interested to see if, based on your definition, it would be true.

[Feenie]

My dd is going to struggle in 2016.

What an odd comment - why won't you be able to do anything about it until then?

[insanityscratching]

Dd's school has just got their best SATs results ever with over 90% getting the required standard and over 50% getting 5's and above. It's in a highly deprived area with more than a third having SEN and it's the school I chose for dd who has a statement and incidentally got 5a's. It is a fantastic school and the teachers work wonders and parents and children are very happy. It's also a school that doesn't spend all of year 6 preparing for SATs. OFSTED rate it good.
In contrast the school nearer to us with a wholly MC intake and a HT that "dissuades" parents of children with SEN from even viewing, officially less than 1% have SEN (I insisted visiting telling the HT if I wanted the school named on dd's statement then he would have no choice and I wanted to see whether I wanted that school) is rated outstanding but it's widely known the majority of children are tutored to get them through SATs.
I viewed a lot of schools and for me OFSTED outstanding didn't always inspire confidence anymore than satisfactory (as dd's school was then) signaled a concern.

[spanieleyes]

As I said, I don't blame 99% of the teachers for that, as it's most likely the SMT failings that have led to it.

Damm, I just KNEW it was all my fault