Should child be refused GCSE revision session because of detention?

[youarenotkiddingme]

DC year 11 gets a detention for not handing in a piece of homework - fair enough.

Revision session for core subject is announced for same day.

DC asked teacher if he could re arrange detention as thinks revision session would be useful.

DC told no because detention is punishment and they have to learn actions have consequences - again the consequence is fair enough.

This is only 2nd detention has has had in 5 years so isn't a serial offender iyswim?

AIBU to think that considering the change in curriculum and grading and the fact the GCSE's affect their immediate future the teacher should have agreed another day or even said he could attend the session as part of his detention for being mature enough to A) realise the session was important and B) have the maturity to try and rearrange not just get out of it?

This is only part of a whole issue that seems to have stemmed from a change of HT.

No, the detention needs to come first. Revision sessions being offered by unpaid staff after hours are a privilege, and privileges don't take precedence over scheduled punishments.

Missing one revision session will make no difference to their gcse grade. It's absolutely right that the detention stands.

It might come as a shock but children are able to revise outside school without a teacher...

I do get that you have a very difficult job, but being overly draconian is just going to alienate some of the more liberal children.

Rules still apply to "liberal children". It isn't overly draconian to follow through on a detention that they had every chance to avoid by doing their work on time.

Why does a child need to be punished for a one off, why not a warning then a punishment; we all forget things sometimes, that's just being human. I understand there are life and death situations, but this is a one off homework miss. Kids have so much pressure now, and we shouldn't all go around being as unforgiving as earth vader.

Darth Vader!

Tbf to this lad he didn't really not do homework. It was an honest misunderstanding because he'd been chosen to represent school at an athletics competition.

Lol @ crowy
Funnily enough the consistent teacher my ds loves and most students hate seems fair - I also find him extremely enthusiastic and must be motivational as my ds really needs something motivational for him to even realise that he's being taught anything and to get his attention.
I don't know you but you seem reasonable and a fair teacher to me. And I for one don't blame you for not adding 'chasing detentions unnecessarily' to your already heavy workload.

Why does a child need to be punished for a one off, why not a warning then a punishment; we all forget things sometimes, that's just being human.

Because if that's the rule it has to be applied consistently. There's no better way to lose the respect if your class than to let your "nice" kids get away with things the more challenging ones end up in detention for.

he he!, not even the mostly good bright ones!, I think the teachers know whose not going to mouth off about having got away with something; so maybe sometimes they do let them get away with a bit longer for a genuine mistake, and not someone whose just trying to get out of stuff all the time.

I wouldn't actually complain in this situation, probably show sympathy , as being a mum for almost 18 years has taught me never to dare complain to a secondary school; my kids would be mortified, as they see it as their territory not mine. There must be a lot of mum's out there zipping their mouths shut though😀.

stuckin90s:

It makes no difference whether you allow a warning or not, really. Someone will always complain and say you should have allowed another warning or that it was an exceptional case for whatever reason. In this case, no homework equals detention.

I tend to think that an honest explanation in exceptional circumstances should be given consideration by the school and the detention should be moved . One would assume missing the revision session is not the punishment that was intended but it has meant a double punishment. I would speak to the school about this personally. The two are separate issues and should be separated. There should be one punishment and that is detention for a missed homework deadline, not a second one. Some schools are unreasonable and not happy places. Is he going to another 6th form?

The two are separate issues and should be separated

They are not separate issues. He is missing one thing because he can't do two things at the same time (as was suggested in the OP). The detention takes priority. He misses the thing he would prefer to do.

oh dear, this does make me sad, because we can never 100 percent remember things all the time. It just seems unfair not to give someone a break sometimes. You never know what's going on in someone's life.

90s "give him a chance".

Sounds fair. Let's look at the practicalities. So that would be one chance in every subject for each child then? So each child gets 13 free passes. Across a year group of, say, 150, you then need to track 150x3 "chances" so 450 pieces of homework can be handed in without consequence.

Not workable.

stuckin90s:

I agree and I think when teachers know things are going on that present genuine difficulty to a student they tend to cut as much slack as possible.

I think the detention should be rearranged. People on here are so pious when it comes to teenagers sometimes. If he nearly always hands his homework in then he hardly needs to 'learn' about deadlines like a 9 year old...

In fact, I'm quite relaxed about extensions for homework.

Kid hasn't done it because they had a sports match/were at other parent's/something kicked off at home/they just forgot - 'ok, bring it tomorrow'.

Detention kicks in per school policy if they still don't. Which is a fair consequence.

Incidentally, my ds is super bright but dyspraxic & hopelessly disorganised. He attends the school where I teach.

The teachers who get the best out of him - as he will cheerfully admit - are the ones who say 'no homework Little Crow? Hand it in tomorrow or you're in detention'. He sorts it, or he does it in detention. Then it's over.

The ones who fluster about giving extra chances etc are the ones who cause him to get extra stressed, totally behind, & ostrich over the whole hot mess.

I've had to have it written into his IEP that he is sanctioned like everyone else. The result has been a huge improvement.

If he misses revision sessions at GCSE or beyond because he's not met deadlines elsewhere, then that is how it will be. I'm increasingly hopeful that we won't have this issue beyond his current year 8, because those clear boundaries & consequences are in place.

Of COURSE there is room for slack. One of my most conscientious Y10s was off before Easter - quite ill. I had to email his mum & suggest she banned him from opening Google Classroom for my subject - he needs to get well, not fanny about doing homework.

But generally there needs to be clear expectations. Vague requirements don't do students any favours.

Also - it's detention, not the pillory. A mild & appropriate consequence.

That is good to know if that is true Trifle, because I think teachers probably know the ones that are trying it on all the time,and the ones that have a genuine difficulty.

schokolade:

The problem with rearranging the detention is that he will be far from the only student asking. If a department sets detention on a Wednesday and it clashes with a revision session, it won't always be possible to rearrange it, because on a Monday they might have a revision session for something else, on a Tuesday they might have a department meeting, on a Thursday they might have a KS5 lesson and on a Friday they will all be more than ready to go home on time. If ten students a week request a rearranged detention it throws everything else out and is ten times the admin.

I do also think that teachers are under far to much pressure nowadays, you see it in the way it rubs off on your teens, when they become over anxious about grades. My daughters school, even though it has improved a huge amount over the years, still gets far too many inspections, it must be exhausting for everyone.

typically they do revision during detention... detention is a revision session. Mountain out of a molehill, maybe?

oops too, teachers marking!,😀

I think from what I've read then that you do all mostly try to be fair, which does seem to be the case in my teens school, and I will be forever greatful for the time the teachers have put into their education;but then we are in Wales so perhaps things aren't so intense here,so greatful most of the children here get their choice of school.

oh god, grateful 😀!!

Who would have thought I got A in English with all those mistakes!,eighties, those were the days.😀

We do try!

But honestly, if one of mine came home & said 'I've got a detention for not handling in Maths homework but I soooo need to go to extra Science revision' (or whatever) I'm afraid I'd tell them to suck it up.

If the consequences of missing the Science session were likely to impact on grades, I can definitely reassure you that the Science Dept would have full school clearance to overrule all detentions - I've taught in scenarios where, say, a teacher has left & it turns out a whole cohort's coursework is in a right bloody state.

At this point a whole school klaxon goes off & all other detentions are quietly cancelled for the greater good.

Individual student missing one session as has a detention to serve elsewhere is NOT a biggy.