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Secondary education

Connect with other parents whose children are starting secondary school on this forum.

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Original poster

I need to go in and see the teacher, don't I?

82 replies

LittenTree · 04/07/2013 23:01

DS1 is 'able' as in 'is capable of 9 or 10 decent GCSE passes, and most probably university'.

He attends the 'best performing comp' in the county as measured by exam results.

They do 'Business and Communications GCSE' at the end of Y10, presumably because they recognise that to a 'good', 'school-ready', 'MC' cohort it's 'a gift'.

DS has just admitted, after some wheedling from me- he got a D in the end of Y9 exam.

I am Not Happy.

He and I revised the reasonably detailed 'revision sheet'. Block a business letter? Check. H&S? Check. Methods of reimbursement? Check. All his notes were presented in text boxes, as in:
-a
-b
-c
etc.

I am a H&S officer; DH is in IT. DS has had lots of help in his revision.

I have No Idea why he did so badly. He is a quiet, well behaved DS who is generally achieving well. Or as well as our expectation would, well, Expect.

So. D?

Why have we not received a personal communication from the teacher who is the Head of IT telling us of our DS's, well, FAILURE? Why has his exam not been sent home? Why did a 'D' from such a DC not ring alarm bells?

Why have our comprehensive schools not grasped that fundamental of a successful educational outcome, i.e. Child/Teacher/PARENT?! The famous Japanese three legged stool? Is that So Hard?

I am not blaming the teacher for his failure as such but I am suggesting that this glaring failure should have been immediately drawn to our attention so we can see what went wrong.

Did he give one word answers to questions? He claims not.

Miss the point entirely?

He has No Idea why he did so badly. He hasn't been told, just that his performance was 'disappointing'. And we have no exam to look at.

Like everyone, I am busy. I shouldn't have to go in and see, if not confront this teacher. They should have told ME there's 'a problem'.

Rant over but I am Not Impressed.

OP posts:

AuntieStella · 05/07/2013 13:36

If you had said in OP that you knew the school had departed fom its settled procedure (ie sending a letter at time of issuing results) you would probably have had a different tone in the responses.

It is right to expect a school to follow the procedure it has chosen.

Dejected · 05/07/2013 13:48

Fair enough I won't argue with you. You know your children best and if they are able to cope with the pressure then that is great

glaurung · 05/07/2013 14:13

Perhaps you were wrong to dismiss this as 'a gift of a subject' and an easy GCSE. It sounds as if you didn't help your ds learn the material to the required standard (maybe he'd have done better if you'd let him get on with it himself?) probably as you'd dismissed it as a soft subject.

TheOriginalSteamingNit · 05/07/2013 14:55

My silence was only because I was busy: I still think you needed to calm down and stop being so confrontational. I do hope your 'what went wrong?' was said in such a way as to avoid sounding as rude as it might in print!

Also if your ds has to be 'wheedled' before he will admit a low result, you might want to think about why.

BalloonSlayer · 05/07/2013 17:44

lborolass Here is a school site with the same sort of thing on it.

pusspusslet · 05/07/2013 17:49

I'm frankly at a loss to understand all the hostility towards the OP in this thread.

She's told us she has a bright boy, working hard, but for some reason he got a D (a fail) in his pre-GCSE test which was based only on what he's been taught so far, rather than the whole syllabus. OP and OP's partner are particularly concerned because they understand the subject, helped DS to revise, were sure he'd covered what the teacher told him to cover and therefore can't understand how he's gone so badly wrong. In OP's position, my own concern would be that the teacher has not taught the syllabus effectively enough for DS to get a passing mark. Maybe that's OP's concern too: I don't know. It sounds as though the head-teacher is also concerned and confused, though, and that OP is not the only parent to express concern.

What's the problem with OP coming here to express her concern? This is the place to let frustration out, isn't it? OP has told us that she approached the school tactfully, and that she was met with understanding because other parents had expressed similar concerns.

Yes, it's 'just' a test, but so is a GCSE 'just' a test. Isn't it natural for involved parents to be concerned if their DCs fail practice tests, because that suggests they might fail the 'real' test too? And so not get onto their preferred course at uni? To me that seems like quite a big deal.

BackforGood · 05/07/2013 17:56

I have a dd at the end of Yr9.
I would not expect her to feel she had to "admit, after much wheedling from me" that she got an unexpected low mark - I know we have a relationship where she could tell me this herself, without fear, and know I wasn't going to over react (with her), and that I wouldn't go storming into the school.
She's 14 - if she got a 'd' in a subject she would probably be expecting an A in, then I would expect that she had sought out the teacher and asked about it, if it wasn't gone through in the lesson they were told the results.
I certainly would not expect a personal phone call from the teaching staff if she dropped under the radar with one test in one subject. These people actually have teaching timetables you know.

BackforGood · 05/07/2013 17:58

pusspuss 0 I think it is the confrontational language and aggressive sounding stance, rather than a question about what others would do in this circumstance perhaps. Maybe added to the fact that she is micro managing his homework / revision and that he was afraid to tell her he'd got a low grade in something.

titchy · 05/07/2013 18:26

There's a massive difference between an end of term test and a GCSE bagpuss! Last time I checked universities weren't asking for applicants' results at the end of year 9.....

titchy · 05/07/2013 18:27

Sorry puspuss

pusspusslet · 05/07/2013 19:17

No probs, twitchy :) Bagpuss is actually a better name. Should have thought of it first!

I understand what you're saying, but tests that come before the real thing are an indicator of likely success/failure. I got the impression that that's why the OP was concerned.

pusspusslet · 05/07/2013 19:20

Doh and aargh!!! I meant twitchy, not twitchy!!! Sorry

pusspusslet · 05/07/2013 19:21

Um... titchy! Blasted iPad speelcheeker!

titchy · 05/07/2013 20:54

lljkk · 05/07/2013 20:57

If OP came on to say "I'm worried" she would have had plenty sympathy.

Instead from the start OP came across as entitled and indignant. With no sense of perspective.

Cassieyellow · 05/07/2013 22:19

The main issue here is that the pupil himself, 'didn't know' what he had done wrong. He should be encouraged to be an independent learner and go ask himself. The teacher would be far more impressed with that rather than Mummy calling up. As usual, children aren't always self motivated to achieve and improve their progress because they are used to others doing it. If there is still 2 more years to go then these parents have got a lot more revision to do! Good luck with that. Sadly this child Will struggle at A Level and University. Well done parents...

xylem8 · 05/07/2013 22:34

Crikey you sound hard work OP.The report is the standard method of feedback to parents why would the teacher have to make immediate personal contact with you separately before that?
I find it hard to believe the teacher did not go through the exam afterwards with the students, so your child should have a clear idea of where he went wrong, and if not needs to be asking the teacher for clarification. You need to back off a bit and remember that your DC is the student not you!!

marriedinwhiteagain · 05/07/2013 23:43

I'd be worried if my dc were studying something as vocational as Business and Communication for GCSE tbh. Doesn't it get in the way of English, Eng Lit, French, Latin, Physics, Maths, Geography Chemistry, Biology, RS, etc, for a bright child?

Clary · 06/07/2013 00:11

"IME no one in their right mind should trust the teachers at a "best performing comp" or any other comp probably for that matter to be doing the best for anyone's DC! "

Blimey that's a bit depressing happygardening. Really? What exactly do you think the teachers are doing then? You actually don't think they are doing the best for any students? Surely that's their job?

Doing the best for all the students is certainly difficult, but surely most teachers are doing pretty well for some of their students...?

cricketballs · 06/07/2013 00:40

This thread has been an interesting read! There are though a couple of points I would like to comment on....

"No, the school screwed up" sorry, but no the school hasn't screwed up at all. They set a test, your DS didn't do as well as you expected; in his report will be the information.

"They do 'Business and Communications GCSE' at the end of Y10, presumably because they recognise that to a 'good', 'school-ready', 'MC' cohort it's 'a gift'." again no! Business and Communications is not a gift, it is a qualification that (depending on the board) usually has a weighting that is 50% coursework. This works in favour of year 9 starting the course so they can see an justification in the work that they are doing (which is often a downfall to year 9). It is based on the types of software usually seen in the workplace (offices) and is based around problem solving and therefore suits the curriculum for ICT. The business part of the spec is the sort of thing that every young person should be aware of for the adult life. It is not easy, and it is not a gift (as you have been witness to)

"I readily agree that there was detail missing which she said she wasn't surprised about at this stage etc, but, overall his grasp of the subject was 'solid' and so forth... which still doesn't really tally with a 'D', does it?" yes it does! I mark GCSE papers and the key to success is to fill in the detail, answer the question linking to the scenario, bring in the factors surrounding the question; all of which is practice and experience which he will gain in the next 12 months.

As other posters have said; you are in for a rude awakening over the next couple of years...intelligence counts for something; practice, experience and the teachers' input count for a lot more.

From reading your posts, I do feel for your DS - if a D grade in year 9 is not good enough in your eyes; what will he do if he struggles to meet your expectations? His parents experience and knowledge do not give him a GCSE grade A - he has to do the work and you have to let him do the work and let him face the reality of not doing enough work

cricketballs · 06/07/2013 00:46

marriedinwhiteagain - "I'd be worried if my dc were studying something as vocational as Business and Communication for GCSE tbh. Doesn't it get in the way of English, Eng Lit, French, Latin, Physics, Maths, Geography Chemistry, Biology, RS, etc, for a bright child?"

so should only 'thick' students need to learning about the work place? Forgive me whilst I tell my previous students who are at Oxbridge/Russell Group that they should never have bothered with a vocational course such as Business.....(even though there isn't a career invented yet that will not use something they learnt in the course at some point)

burberryqueen · 06/07/2013 01:55

comment from marriedinwhite about 'bright children' and GCSE subjects a bit silly IMO

EduCated · 06/07/2013 02:42

It is more than possible they were marked to GCSE standard but that the questions set only cover what has even taught so far. They aren't mutually exclusive.

xylem8 · 06/07/2013 04:30

why oh why are the school putting your kid in early for this exam if they are only forecasting a B for her ? I hate this policy of lots of gcse at mediocre grades and re sits to give the school the highest number of a to c passes, rather than aiming for a clean sweep of as and a *s passed at first attempt

olivevoir58 · 07/07/2013 09:10

At my dds school (a high performing c of e comp) the whole cohort takes RE gcse in Y10. In my dds year 50% achieved a - c in the Y9 mock (based only on y9 coverage). In the actual Y10 exam 51% achieved A/A and 88% achieved A*- C. I mention this only as it seems like similar scenario and also to show likely progression. From these results you can see that a D in Y9 likely predicted a B in Y10.

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